World Leaders Address COP31 as Several Major Figures Stay Away

World leaders are set to address COP31 in Turkey on Wednesday, but several prominent global figures are missing from this year's UN climate summit, even as the effects of global warming continue to intensify.

The two-week conference began earlier this week in the Mediterranean city of Antalya, with governments facing mounting pressure to address the climate crisis following a year marked by European heatwaves, deadly floods in Nepal and major wildfires in Indonesia.

Several world leaders are scheduled to speak during the high-level segment on Wednesday and Thursday. Those expected to attend include Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian.

However, the absence of several influential leaders has drawn attention. British Prime Minister Andy Burnham is the only leader from a G7 nation scheduled to address the summit. Although European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen is expected in Antalya, French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni will not attend.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi are also missing from the latest list of attendees.

Cosima Cassel, a climate diplomacy expert at the think tank E3G, told AFP that the absence of major European leaders was disappointing, stressing that Europe should demonstrate stronger engagement at COP31.

However, Wopke Hoekstra, the European Union's climate commissioner, said such absences were not unusual, noting that leaders sometimes face practical constraints that prevent them from attending international summits. He also acknowledged that expectations for this year's climate conference were relatively modest.

The French government said Macron would miss the summit because of World War I Armistice Day commemorations on November 11 and an EU meeting in Ireland scheduled for Thursday.

Chiara Martinelli, director of Climate Action Network Europe, said attending the summit was essential for influential leaders seeking to shape the direction of the global energy transition. She expressed concern that von der Leyen could be left representing Europe largely alone while leaders of its biggest economies stayed away.

'But We Have Lula'

US President Donald Trump is also absent from the summit. Since returning to office in 2025, he has continued his opposition to international climate commitments, including withdrawing the United States from the Paris Agreement.

Chinese President Xi Jinping, who rarely attends COP summits personally, will be represented by Vice President Han Zheng.

The participation of the United States and China remains particularly important, as they are the world's two largest economies and leading emitters of greenhouse gases.

"But we have Lula," Cassel said, highlighting the Brazilian president's presence at the summit.

Climate campaigners welcomed Lula's participation, particularly following his victory over right-wing rival Flavio Bolsonaro in last month's Brazilian presidential election. Lula has made reducing deforestation a central part of his environmental agenda.

As host, Turkey is promoting a voluntary initiative aimed at accelerating the electrification of transport, buildings and industrial sectors. The proposal seeks to increase electricity's share of global energy consumption to 35% by 2035.

The European Union has emphasised that the transition must rely on clean electricity, a position that could trigger discussions over the role of fossil fuels, including oil, gas and coal, in Turkey's proposal.

Despite countries agreeing in 2023 to move away from fossil fuels, the primary driver of climate change, progress towards achieving that commitment has remained limited at successive annual UN climate conferences.