"United Nations climate officials announced Thursday that Turkey will host the 2026 Conference of Parties, COP31, making it the fourth time in five years that the climate talks are held in a country under authoritarian rule.
Australia and Turkey had both placed bids to host the next COP. Under U.N. rules, the host country rotates among five regional groups of countries with the host agreed upon by consensus. In this case, neither country conceded until Wednesday when Australia withdrew its bid in a compromise: Australia will control the COP31 presidency, while Turkey provides the venue. Turkey has proposed hosting COP31 in the Mediterranean resort city Antalya.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s decade-long rule has been one of democratic decay and increasing oppression and authoritarianism. Prior to this year’s event in Brazil, other recent COPs also took place in countries with autocratic rule: COP29 in Azerbaijan, COP28 in the United Arab Emirates and COP27 in Egypt.
“Unfortunately, authoritarianism is on the rise around the world and that affects many aspects of geopolitics and multilateral engagement,” Rachel Cleetus, senior director for the Climate and Energy program at the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS), told Newsweek via email."
Jeff Young reports for Newsweek November 20, 2025.
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"Turkey: Government Silences Last Critical Media Outlets" (DW)
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