Brazil and the Caribbean will ask for 'robust financing' from rich countries at COP30

Brazil and 16 Caribbean countries agreed this Friday (13) that they will demand “robust financing” from rich countries during COP30 to “adapt” the rest of the world to the climate crisis.
Representatives from Caribbean countries met with President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva at a summit in Brasilia to establish “joint positions” with a view to COP30, the United Nations' largest climate conference, which will be held in November in Belém do Pará.
“We will arrive in Belém united for a fair and inclusive transition (…), demanding ambitious targets from rich countries to reduce emissions and robust financing for mitigation, adaptation and compensation actions” for the damage caused by global warming, said Lula at the end of the meeting, held at the Itamaraty Palace, headquarters of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Representatives from the 14 members of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) attended the summit, as well as the President of the Dominican Republic, Luis Abinader, and the Vice President of Cuba, Salvador Valdés.
“We adopted a declaration with common positions to be taken to COP30. Small island developing states are particularly vulnerable to the effects of global warming,” Lula added, without giving further details about the joint declaration.
During the meeting, the Brazilian government committed to contributing US$5 million (R$27.8 million, at the current exchange rate) to the Caribbean Bank's development fund.
Both Brazil and Caribbean countries are especially vulnerable to extreme weather phenomena associated with global warming.
In 2024, deadly floods hit Rio Grande do Sul, followed by a historic drought that triggered a wildfire crisis.
Meanwhile, the island nations of the Caribbean are threatened by rising sea levels.
The security crisis in Haiti was also on the agenda.
“Last year, more people died in Haiti than anywhere else in the world. But it continues to be ignored because it is not seen as a traditional conflict area,” said Barbados Prime Minister and Caricom Chair Mia Mottley.
Without a president or parliament and amid a serious crisis of gang violence, Haiti was represented at the summit by the president of the Transitional Presidential Council, Fritz Alphonse Jean.
Lula asked that “the UN assume part of the financing of the Multinational Security Mission”, which has been in Haiti since June 2024 and faces an alarming lack of resources.
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