Shafaq News/ An Iraqi environmental watchdog on Sunday called for hosting a next climate change conference in the Iraqi capital, Baghdad, to raise awareness for an eminent environmental catastrophe in the country.
More than 190 signatories to the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) will take part in the U.N. climate conference (COP27) that started today in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt.
"The participation of the Iraqi president in the activities of the climate conference in Egypt is a positive step," the "Green Iraq" monitor said in a press release today.
The watchdog urged the Iraqi government to work for "hosting the next conference, or the one after that, in Baghdad to show the world all the different environmental catastrophes in Mesopotamia."
It is noteworthy that the next meeting is slated to take place in the Emirati capital, Dubai, in 2023.
"Iraq is vulnerable to natural disasters due to an acute environmental deterioration, neglection, war scars, and decreased water shares due to neighboring countries' violations," the statement said.
The international climate summit will test the resolve of nations to combat global warming, even as many of the biggest players are distracted by urgent crises ranging from war in Europe to rampant consumer inflation.
More than 30,000 delegates, including representatives from some 200 countries, will gather Nov. 6-18 in the seaside resort town of Sharm el-Sheikh to hash out details around how to slow climate change and help those already feeling its impacts.
But with nations dealing with the fallout of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, along with soaring food and fuel prices and stuttering economic growth, questions loom over whether they will act quickly and ambitiously enough to avoid the worst effects of climate change.
