COP31, which will open on Monday November 9 in Antalya, Türkiye, raises few expectations among Europeans. The European Commission explained on Friday that it was not expecting a "revolution" in terms of climate, but nevertheless hoped for concrete progress in terms of clean energy.
Published on: 06/11/2026 - 17:13 Modified on: 06/11/2026 - 17:13
A climate meeting which will open without much enthusiasm on the European side. For Brussels, COP31 will not bring a "revolution" as the international context is difficult, but the European Union still maintains the hope of obtaining concrete progress in terms of clean energy, explained the Commission on Friday November 6 in Brussels.
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The UN climate conference opens Monday, November 9 in Antalya, Turkey, and is scheduled to end on November 20. It will focus on the theme of electrification.
“It is no secret that the geopolitical context is very difficult at the moment,” underlined a European official, in particular because of the withdrawal of the United States from the Paris Climate Agreement. At COP31, "we must adjust our expectations. We cannot hope for a revolution in climate action. But what we want is to really show and consolidate constant progress," explained this official.
“No political will”
In terms of climate financing, the European Union, the world's largest contributor, "will respect its commitments", but "there is no room for maneuver and no political will" for additional financial commitments, this official also recalled.
“There is no question of making a new financial commitment,” said a French source, during a separate exchange with journalists.
France, however, said it was open to a discussion on the role of finance in adapting to climate change, demanded by developing countries. “This will be one of the challenges of the COP” and “we will have to provide a response,” said those around the French Minister of Ecological Transition, Monique Barbut.
At COP31, the European Union will notably support the Turkish presidency's initiative in favor of the "electrification" of the economy, to replace fossil fuels, the Commission also indicated.
Turkey is aiming for a non-binding target of 35% electricity in final energy consumption by 2035, compared to around 20% currently.
Towards more “clean” electricity?
Europe is calling for the measure to concern "clean" electricity, from renewables or nuclear power, in order to discourage the production of electricity in coal-fired power plants, which are particularly polluting.
But Brussels knows that the term "clean" will be difficult to include in the final declaration of the COP, in the face of resistance from fossil fuel producers.
"The term 'clean' may pose a problem for certain stakeholders. There could be other ways of formulating this objective," said a European official.
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The EU wants electrification “as clean as possible. It remains to be seen how this will ultimately be formulated,” he said.
France, for its part, insists that the electrification objective be included in a formal decision of the COP, therefore binding, “adopted by all parties, and not just by a small group of States”. “It will send a much stronger message if that is the case,” we judged.
With AFP
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