DiEM25 condemns the COP29 summit currently taking place in Baku, Azerbaijan, as a hypocritical spectacle driven by corporate and political interests that betray any meaningful commitment to climate action.

Under the guise of environmentalism, the Azerbaijani government and fossil fuel elites are exploiting this summit as a smokescreen to expand their own oil and gas dominance.

Hosted by a country infamous for both its human rights abuses and fossil fuel dependency, this conference has proven to be a farce, where corporate greed and political power are more important than actual climate action.

In an obvious display of this betrayal, COP29’s chief executive, Elnur Soltanov, has already been caught negotiating fossil fuel deals at the summit itself.

This blatant prioritisation of profit over the planet reinforces what we have long argued: these so-called climate summits are merely corporate puppet shows that advance the interests of powerful lobbies.

Despite its alleged dedication to sustainability, Azerbaijan is a nation that derives over two-thirds of its revenue from oil and gas, and is clearly using COP29 as a shop window to make new deals for fossil fuel expansion, undermining the summit’s supposed goals.

Even more hypocritical is the European Union’s role. Having cut off Russian gas due to geopolitical and human rights concerns, the EU now eagerly pursues Azerbaijani gas, despite the similarly dismal human rights record of the Ilham Aliyev regime, and its aggressive actions against Armenia.

Such a stance exposes the hollowness of the EU’s ethical posturing, showing that, in practice, European energy policies remain fully complicit with authoritarian regimes as long as it suits their energy agenda.

The influence of corporate sponsors, many with close ties to Azerbaijani elites, adds another layer of corruption. From “green zone” partnerships that amount to little more than greenwashing to a multi-million-dollar PR campaign aimed at sanitising Azerbaijan’s international image, COP29 reeks of systemic corruption and manipulation.

The Azerbaijani regime profits directly from COP29, with state-run oil corporation SOCAR sitting at the heart of the summit’s organising structure, ensuring its interests are safeguarded.

COP29 serves as a dire warning: climate summits will continue to fail unless they rid themselves of fossil fuel influence and enforce integrity and transparency measures.

The world deserves climate action rooted in accountability, justice, and independence from fossil-fuel interests – not a farcical conference that serves as a launchpad for corporate and authoritarian agendas.

If global climate goals are to survive, we must demand that future summits bar the influence of fossil fuel powers and re-centre around meaningful climate justice.

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