Baku: Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev has urged countries with a colonial history to provide financial and technical assistance to small island nations facing the climate crisis. Speaking at the Leaders’ Summit of the Small Islands Developing States on Climate Change during the UN Climate Change Conference (COP29) in Baku, Aliyev emphasized the need for support from developed countries to help protect these vulnerable nations from climate change impacts.
According to Anadolu Agency, Aliyev highlighted Azerbaijan’s strengthened relations with small island nations, which have been bolstered since hosting COP29. He noted Azerbaijan’s commitment to supporting disaster-prone countries, providing financial and humanitarian aid to over 80 countries during its leadership of the Non-Aligned Movement. This focus on aiding countries facing climate challenges is a central aspect of Azerbaijan’s efforts at COP29.
Aliyev also addressed the link between neo-colonialism and climate change, identifying French and Dutch t
erritories in the Caribbean and Pacific as highly affected by climate issues, including rising sea levels and extreme weather. He criticized the delayed decolonization process in French Polynesia and New Caledonia, which remain non-self-governing territories despite UN recognition.
Highlighting historical environmental degradation, Aliyev pointed to the 193 nuclear tests conducted by France in French Polynesia between 1966 and 1996, resulting in severe contamination. He also mentioned France’s nuclear tests in Algeria, underscoring the ecological damage caused by such actions. Aliyev criticized the European Parliament and the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe for not condemning the French government’s response to recent riots in its overseas territories, including New Caledonia.
Aliyev concluded by referencing remarks made by EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell in October 2022, which described Europe as a “garden” and the rest of the world as a “jungle.” In response, he asserted, “If we are
jungles, then stay away from us, and don’t interfere into our affairs.”