EU Climate Chief Warns of Low Expectations Ahead of COP31 Summit
10 Nov 2026 10:38 PM IST10 Nov 2026 10:38 PM IST
"If indeed we manage to make electrification the sole focus, or close to the sole focus of the COP, I think we have a chance to deliver on something that is truly meaningful," he said.
Former Netherlands' Foreign Minister and Commissioner-designate for Climate Action, Wopke Hoekstra takes part in a hearing of the Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety (ENVI), as part of a plenary session at the European Parliament in Strasbourg, eastern France, on October 2, 2023. (Photo by FREDERICK FLORIN / AFP)
Brussels: The EU's top climate official admitted Tuesday that expectations were "low" from the COP31 summit in Turkey, while holding out hope for "meaningful" progress on the topic of clean electricity.
"Expectations are low -- that's just a reflection of reality," European Commissioner Wopke Hoekstra told a group of reporters including from AFP, arguing that electrification should be the core focus of the UN climate talks.
"If indeed we manage to make electrification the sole focus, or close to the sole focus of the COP, I think we have a chance to deliver on something that is truly meaningful," he said.
The European commissioner will travel to the Turkish resort of Antalya on Monday for the talks which run until November 20.
Hoekstra voiced hope that setting an electrification target would be "at the heart" of the summit conclusions, adding: "Of course, the cleaner that electrification is, the better it is."
Host nation Turkey is inviting countries to join a voluntary "electrification" pledge to raise the share of global energy demand met by electricity from around 20 percent today to 35 percent by 2035.
But the EU's call for "clean" electrification could spark debate over the role of oil, gas and coal in the Turkish proposal.
Observers expect few major breakthroughs from COP31 as countries grapple with an oil price shock and geopolitical tensions fuelled by the US war with Iran and Russia's conflict in Ukraine.
'Underwhelming' COPs
The talks are also missing a major player since US President Donald Trump -- who pulled Washington out of the Paris climate agreement -- has not sent officials to the talks.
"The larger picture is that the geopolitics of the times we live in are extremely complicated," said Hoekstra, who acknowledged that a string of recent COP meetings had been "underwhelming in terms of their delivery".
"There are substantial questions to be asked on how fit for purpose this design actually still is, with its unanimity" system that does not always deliver "what is actually needed," he said.
The EU has previously warned there would be no political will for extra funding pledges at COP31 -- a message Hoekstra repeated.
"Europe is at the absolute top of delivering on climate finance, not just for ourselves but also for others," Hoekstra said, calling for a push for "more burden sharing".
Environmental groups have criticised a series of recent European rollbacks on climate, most lately plans to postpone rules targeting methane, a highly potent greenhouse gas.
But Hoekstra pushed back at the notion the EU was backsliding on its ambitions.
"Not at all. Just clear and plain, not at all," he said, pointing to the bloc's 27 member states backing a target to cut emissions by 90 percent by 2040 compared with 1990 levels, with some flexibility.
( Source : AFP )
Next Story