Politico: Ukraine calls for international boycott of COP29 if Putin attends

In an interview with Politico, Ukraine’s EU Ambassador Vsevolod Chentsov has called on the international community to shun the COP29 climate summit in Azerbaijan if Russian President Vladimir Putin decides to attend.

Chentsov emphasized the need for collective pressure on Azerbaijan, stating, “We need to exert this pressure and our partners need to make it clear to Azerbaijan that, if Putin is there, they aren’t coming,” Caliber.Az reports.

Chentsov’s remarks come in response to the Kremlin's recent announcement that Putin is considering attending the annual UN-backed climate gathering scheduled to begin on November 11 in Baku, Azerbaijan’s capital. Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov confirmed that a final decision regarding Putin's attendance has yet to be made.

Highlighting Azerbaijan's increasing dependence on the EU amid the bloc’s efforts to replace Russian fossil fuels, Chentsov noted, “They want to foster cooperation with the EU, and they should be really careful in that regard,” suggesting that this dependency provides Brussels with significant leverage over Baku.

Putin’s international travel has been limited in recent years, especially following the International Criminal Court (ICC) issuing an arrest warrant against him for war crimes. However, since Azerbaijan is not a member of the ICC, it is not obligated to detain him if he visits. Notably, Putin met with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev in August to discuss enhancing trade and political relations.

Chentsov stressed that the ICC arrest warrant should serve as a deterrent against Putin attending the climate conference. “We are warning our partners that what Russia is doing is war crimes, and we’ve made the point that we need to be aware that Russia tries to normalize the war,” he added.

In parallel, Ukraine has urged Brazil, the host of the upcoming G20 summit, to arrest Putin should he appear at that meeting. A senior EU official echoed Chentsov's sentiments, asserting that the Kremlin should not be allowed to derail the critical climate conference. "We are not scared of Putin — should he come, it would be an opportunity to confront his lies and aggression,” the official stated, speaking on the condition of anonymity.

By Khagan Isayev