Union Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav is in Brasília, Brazil, attending the pre-COP meeting on October 13-14, 2025, as India prepares for the COP30 summit in Belém in November. The pre-COP meeting serves as a crucial opportunity for climate negotiators and ministers to iron out differences on sensitive climate-related issues and to build consensus ahead of the main UN climate conference.
The two-day event gathers environment and climate ministers, senior negotiators, and observers, hosting between 30 and 50 delegations with approximately 800 participants. These pre-COPs are not formal UNFCCC events but have become routine instruments employed by host countries to focus ministerial attention on a concise list of political questions that negotiators often spend weeks resolving. Ministers will use this time to test negotiating text, identify common ground regarding sensitive matters, and prepare ministerial positions to facilitate quicker advancements during the main COP.
Several key themes are expected to be addressed during the pre-COP meeting. These include climate finance, adaptation, and the just energy transition. Disagreements over climate finance, the speed and responsibility for the energy transition, and the burdens placed on developing countries remain sharp. India is expected to advocate for increased climate finance for the Global South, emphasizing the need for developed nations to meet their financial commitments to developing countries. Discussions will also likely focus on a roadmap to end the use of fossil fuels.
The COP30, officially known as the 2025 United Nations Climate Change Conference, will be held in Belém, Brazil, from November 10-21, 2025. This conference marks the first time since the 1992 Rio Earth Summit that Brazil has hosted the event. With the conference being held in close proximity to the Amazon rainforest, nature and forests are expected to be a significant part of COP30. Brazil intends to launch the Tropical Forest Forever Facility, aiming to gather public-private financing to prevent the loss of tropical forests.
In preparation for COP30, India plans to release updated climate plans, including its first national adaptation plan and an updated Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) extending commitments to 2035. The updated NDC is expected to revise the existing pledge, focusing on reducing emissions intensity of GDP, increasing the share of non-fossil electricity capacity, and expanding carbon sinks through forests and tree cover.
The COP30 is set against a complex geopolitical backdrop, with ongoing disagreements over climate finance and the implementation of the Paris Agreement. Brazil has voiced its frustration with delays in countries submitting their updated climate targets. The conference aims to build on the progress made at COP28 in Dubai, where nearly 200 countries agreed to begin "transitioning away" from fossil fuels. Brazil's Environment Minister, Marina Silva, has suggested that COP30 could result in a roadmap detailing a "planned and just transition to end fossil fuels".
More than 600 participants are expected at the pre-COP meeting in Brasilia, offering countries an opportunity to collectively reflect on the 10th anniversary of the Paris Agreement's entry into force, as well as its challenges and opportunities. Discussions will cover adaptation, the just energy transition, a follow-up on the Global Stocktake (GST), and key issues for climate action, including forests and renewable energy.
