Turkey ratifies the Paris Agreement after approving a 2053 net zero goal

(Climate Home News, 6 Oct 2021) Turkey’s parliament ratified the Paris Agreement on Wednesday, more than five year after it signed the treaty.

The move comes days after the government’s cabinet approved a goal to reach net zero emissions by 2053.

Ozlem Katisoz from Climate Action Network Europe told Climate Home News: “A new era begins. It’s a very positive development. We have a foundation now for ambitious climate action.”

Turkey’s ratification means just five countries have yet to ratify the agreement – Iran, Iraq, Eritrea, Libya and Yemen.

But in a declaration approved by lawmakers alongside the text of the Paris climate treaty, Turkey unilaterally declared that it would implement the accord “as a developing country” despite its developed country status in the UN climate convention.

The dispute over Turkey’s status is the reason it held out formally endorsing the agreement. Although it signed up to the climate convention as a developed nation, the government has repeatedly argued that it is a developing country and therefore should be allowed to access climate finance – a privilege of the status.

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Climate Home News, 6 Oct 2021: Turkey ratifies the Paris Agreement after approving a 2053 net zero goal