The Pacific Islands Forum will engage in a pre-COP leaders’ summit in 2026, as regional leaders work to ensure Pacific priorities remain central to global climate discussions, Secretary-General Baron Waqa said at a press briefing Wednesday.
“While we are disappointed that we will not host a Pacific COP in Australia next year, we are encouraged by Australia’s commitment to work closely with Turkey as president of COP31 and in its capacity as president of negotiations,” Waqa said.
“To be able to host a pre-COP leaders’ summit in the Pacific region in 2026 is no mean feat, and our teams are working closely with members to finalise the details around the high-level engagement.”
Waqa said the pre-COP summit will provide an opportunity to elevate issues critical to the Pacific, including the climate-ocean nexus, just transition, and access to climate finance.
“The Forum will continue to anchor advocacy for our regional priorities and ensure that partnership support does not dilute these priorities,” he added.
On the timing and expected outcomes of the summit, Waqa explained, “Next year, more will emerge from our engagement as part of the COP31 arrangements. On the negotiations side, Australia has a strong chance of setting the agenda alongside the region, advancing many of our priorities.”
He acknowledged the effort made by Australia in supporting the Pacific’s climate ambitions.
“We worked hard to gain confidence and have Turkey respectfully hand it over to us this time, but it wasn’t to be. We are, however, grateful that Australia has remained steadfast in supporting the Pacific.”
Waqa said that finer details on how the pre-COP summit will take shape are expected to be released early next year, signalling an important step for Pacific nations to influence global climate negotiations.
