Stating that "Nature has no borders, the seas have no passports, the oceans have no customs gates", Minister Kurum continued as follows: The message we will give to the world from Trabzon is very clear; We cannot protect our common future without protecting the seas together. More than 70 percent of the earth's surface is covered by oceans and seas. Billions of people earn their living from the sea. Oceans also absorb approximately 29 percent of global carbon dioxide emissions. However, this has a heavy price. The seas are warming, water chemistry is unfortunately changing. Sea levels are rising and the pressure on habitats and biodiversity is increasing day by day. The seas cannot remain on the sidelines of climate action, they are at the very center of the solution. It is with this understanding that the Blue Dialogue Program in Trabzon was born. We gather governments, international organizations, academia, the private sector, the financial world and civil society around the same table. Because we know well that there is capital, technology, knowledge in the world, and there is a great need for investment. But unfortunately, these do not always meet at the same point. We want to eliminate this distance at COP31. We are sure that; We will succeed in bringing the goal to the project, the project to the financing, and the financing to the implementation at COP31.
"THERE IS THE ONLY CONCRETE GOAL FOR US, AND THAT IS THE NAMED PROJECT"
Underlining Türkiye's determination, Minister Kurum said, "If we all say that 'the world is our common home' and we want to put forward a will regarding this, we have to put this will together and share our opportunities. And we will follow the results of all these at COP31. Which project was prepared, which financing was reached, which coast was implemented, which ecosystem was revived? Because there is only one concrete goal for us, and that is the named project. We came here from the beginning ceremony of a project. We named the project. "We started it and we will deliver it one year later. The established mechanism, the financing provided and the implementation started in the field will lead us to the result," he said.
CALL FOR SUPPORT FROM LOSS DAMAGES FUND FOR NEPAL
During the session, Minister Kurum also called for increased support to Nepal from the Loss and Damage Fund: A city in Nepal was destroyed and destroyed. There is great destruction there. We would be pleased to receive support from the loss and damage fund. Our expectation from the loss and damage fund and from the countries that have commitments here is to deliver this aid to Nepal.
"WHAT IS THE POINT OF DEFENSE IF THERE IS A WORLD UNLIVABLE?"
After the opening speech, Minister Kurum answered the questions of the press members. A journalist asked "How will COP31 respond to the possibility of exceeding the 1.5 degree temperature target?" Answering the question, Minister Kurum said, "Unfortunately, the possibility of achieving the 1.5 degree target does not seem very easy. First of all, we need to know this fact. But if we can keep it at least around 1.5 degrees, this will be a success. At this point, the goal of COP31 to become the 'Implementation COP' emerges. What will we do for this? We will raise awareness even more. We have to change our lifestyle, our view of life. This obligation is not a choice. Otherwise, our income may increase, Our countries may grow, our populations may increase, but what is the point of this if there is a world that cannot be lived in? I said this at the financial summit: All NATO countries increased their defense budgets to 5 percent. Why did they put forward this will in order to live in a safer country? So, based on your question, what is the point of defending if there is a world that cannot be lived in? That is why we are trying to show this will to all countries. We can increase this awareness together with you.
"WE SET A TARGET OF 35 PERCENT IN ELECTRIFICATION BY 2035 AGAINST FOSSIL FUEL"
Minister Kurum: "Can Türkiye be a pioneer in gradually giving up fossil fuels?" He answered the question as follows: So, you may not see an item on the direct action agenda regarding fossil fuels, but you may encounter many indirect items that will actually reduce the use of fossil fuels. So one of them is electrification. We set a target of 35 percent in electrification by 2035. This target is actually the most important concrete step that will reduce the use of fossil fuels and contribute to clean energy and clean transformation. In other words, it is a concrete step that goes beyond goodwill wishes. That's why it's not what you want, but what you do that matters. What do we want? We want to reduce emissions. To reduce it, we need to switch to clean energy. For this, we need to expand electrification. When you expand electrification, fossil fuel will decrease. Under the leadership of our President, we built 455 thousand houses. We are talking about an area perhaps the size of a European country. And here we saw that energy use intensity decreased by 39 percent. So, if you take precautions, you will eventually take precautions. Frankly, we have set out targets where we can make progress and targets where we will get concrete results and outputs.
"SEAS AND OCEANS WERE ONE OF THE TITLES THAT WERE SAID AT LEAST ATTENTION"
He explained the COP31 Presidency's goals regarding the protection of oceans and seas as follows: Every step we take here, more than today, is a success. We want to ensure this. So, there is a problem of access to finance, a project problem, and a technology problem. That's why we are implementing a mechanism to share this knowledge and experience. In this mechanism, together with the Small Island States, we will prepare investment-ready projects as soon as possible and bring together the financing. We will demonstrate the will to bring together finance, technology and projects around the same table. Therefore, this topic was actually one of the topics that was allocated the least funding and paid the least attention in the context of combating climate change. The reason why we put this on our action agenda is to hold the pre-COP in Fiji, in the Pacific, together with Australia, to announce the awareness here to the whole world and to demonstrate the struggle here by showing more will.
WHAT IS BLUE FINANCE?
Minister Kurum, who opened the title 'Blue Financing' in response to the questions, gave the following information: The Blue Project is actually related to the issue we call the Implementation Bridge and the finance bridge mechanism. We are working on such a project with UNDP. Let's prepare the projects here. So, to give an example, today we shared a project about Trabzon's wastewater treatment plant. We gave good news to our citizens and the project is being prepared quickly and we are bringing it together with financing. Now, if there is no project, even if you have financing, it does not mean anything. Here we will focus on efficiency. We will actually bring the projects together with these funds. In order to do this, you need to build this bridge. This is Blue Finance. Until today, there were not many loan and support opportunities under the Blue Financing title. Or not at the level we want. We have to increase the amount of Blue Financing. Because half of the breath we take comes from here. If we do not want to lose our breath, we have to allocate more financing there.
US GOVERNMENT'S ATTITUDE TOWARDS CLIMATE ACTION
Minister Kurum was also asked about his comment on the USA's withdrawal from the Paris Climate Agreement: America may have taken a step back as a government, but I met with companies registered in the chambers in America. Google, Apple, Amazon, big companies that shape the economy of America and even the world... 'Yes, the government made a decision in this direction, but we, as industrialists and manufacturers who produce, do not think so. And they said, 'Whatever we need to do to represent America at COP 31, we want to work on these topics.' After all, America's private sector clearly wants this. I think society wants it too. The American government may have made such a decision today, but in the previous period there was a struggle to lead this issue, and we saw that too. Therefore, we have to put these different perspectives aside and take determined steps towards the main goal. We are negotiating with China, China is participating in the process. There is no problem. In fact, I congratulate China. So, I congratulate you, he is truly leading this transformation in his own country, with such a large geography and such a large population. In other words, they are making investments both in their country and in different geographies of the world, from electric vehicles to renewable energy production facilities. We are conducting the same negotiations with Russia. After all, if we are going to fight climate change here, we need to come together with a common agreement. So I don't see a problem there.
"TURKEY HAS BECOME THE ADDRESS OF PEACE AND PEACE"
Minister Kurum answered the question on how Türkiye will demonstrate a more equitable climate management as follows: As Turkey, we are actually one of the rare countries in the world in terms of equality and fairness with our stance in foreign policy. The foreign policy of our President clearly demonstrates this. In the crises we are experiencing today, Türkiye has become the address of peace and tranquility. In other words, Türkiye has been a mediator in the crises we are experiencing, both in the Middle East and in other parts of the world, and has undertaken the role of mediator, and we are doing this. We also showed this attitude in the Russia and Ukraine crisis. In other crises too. Therefore, I think we have shown this impartiality and trust to the whole world, both regarding the UNFCCC and the COP process. Regarding financing, yes, the current financing spent is at the level of 1.7 trillion dollars, including the private sector. But in order to achieve those targets, we need to spend 7.5 to 9 trillion dollars. Here, the first priority is to put the commitments into practice and fulfill them as soon as possible. That's why we call on all countries of the world to fulfill their commitments at this point. We are following this process.
CLIMATE IMPLEMENTATION MECHANISM WILL BE IMPLEMENTED FOR 6 PILOT COUNTRIES
Minister Kurum listed the steps to be taken to achieve the 'implementation' target of COP31 as follows: We are implementing the mechanism we call the implementation mechanism. We will announce 6 pilot countries in New York. We started the work here. He even held meetings with our Ministry of Finance as Türkiye to develop this project. We will also provide grant support. When this mechanism is implemented, we will focus on efficiency, that is, we will focus on work that will get more results with less money. We will combine the application with the project. We set out these goals. When we set these targets, directly or indirectly, the central government and the private sector have to increase their budget in order to carry out these works. The process we are going through actually tells us that we need to allocate more budget for this work.
"WE HAVE NOT HAD ANY PROBLEMS WITH AUSTRALIA TODAY"
Minister Kurum asked a journalist "How will Türkiye manage the co-chairmanship with Australia in the COP31 process?" He answered the question, "Turkey and Australia are not co-chairs. Turkey is the COP31 President, Australia is the head of negotiations and will conduct the negotiations in consultation with the COP31 Presidency, and ultimately the final decision belongs to the COP31 Presidency. However, we do not have such a problem. In other words, we are carrying out the process in real harmony with Australia and our friends, within the framework of a whole perspective. We have not experienced any problems so far, and we do not think that we will have any in the future."
"CIVIL SOCIETY WILL EXPRESS ITSELF FREELY IN ANTALYA"
Minister Kurum answered the question, "What will be the role of civil society? Will you allocate space for peaceful protests and demonstrations at COP 31?" as follows: We are already discussing the process regarding civil society together with the non-governmental organizations approved and deemed appropriate by the UN. We consult with them at every meeting, we will give them a place in the Green Zone, we will put forward their demands and desires in the sessions on the negotiation agenda. Civil society will express itself freely in Antalya. There are no obstacles to this. In other words, In Antalya, one should never think, "Sir, I cannot express myself, I cannot convey my thoughts." We are carrying out this presidential process on behalf of 196 countries. We will be transparent, we will be fair, and everyone will express themselves freely there.
