Prime Minister James Marape has announced he will not attend the United Nations Global Climate Summit (COP29) in Baku, Azerbaijan, citing a lack of global commitment to rainforest protection. Baku is located between Eastern Europe, and Western Asia. The prime minister raised serious concern over the limited finance and slow progress on reversing global deforestation, which was agreed upon at COP28 in Dubai. “Papua New Guinea is a major rainforest nation, and we are making our stance clear by protesting against these nations who do not prioritize either domestic emission reductions or global rainforest conservation,” Marape said, reflecting his frustration with high-emission countries. Despite efforts under the Paris Agreement, the Prime Minister said large industrialized nations have yet to meet their commitments, particularly under Articles 5 and 6, which target greenhouse gas conservation and compliant carbon markets. Marape stressed that, “the conversation on climate change is incomplete without genuine action on preserving the world’s rainforests, which serve as vital carbon sinks and replenish our atmosphere through oxygen production and carbon removal.” Marape further criticized the summits for overlooking rainforest's critical role in combating climate change and shared his hope that the upcoming COP30 in Brazil—a fellow rainforest-rich nation—would prioritize rainforest conservation. “We look forward to COP30 in Brazil, where we hope rainforest nations will have a stronger voice,” he said, reiterating PNG’s commitment to impactful climate solutions and its decision to skip COP29 as a call for meaningful global action on rainforests. He further clarified that PNG’s absence from COP29 is not a retreat, but rather a protest emphasizing the urgency of rainforest preservation. “Papua New Guinea has sent our apologies to the COP29 organisers and reiterates our call for more meaningful action in support of global rainforest preservation,” he said in a statement.