COP29 host tries to calm waters after diplomatic turmoil

Host Azerbaijan tried to bring down the diplomatic temperature in Baku on Thursday after a French Minister cancelled her trip to the UN climate talks and Argentina withdrew its delegation.

France's Environment Minister Pannier-Runacher said Wednesday she would not travel to Baku after Azerbaijan's President Ilham Aliyev accused Paris of colonial "crimes" and "human rights violations" in its overseas territories. Attempting to calm the waters, COP29 Lead Negotiator Yalchin Rafiyev insisted that Azerbaijan had fostered "an inclusive process".