Germany's Chancellor Friedrich Merz has decided to skip the UN's COP31 climate summit, which is set to begin Monday in Antalya, Turkey, reports DW.
The only representative from Germany's cabinet at the summit will be Environment Minister Carsten Schneider. Merz explained his absence by citing other commitments, but this decision has drawn sharp criticism from German climate activists.
Luisa Neubauer, one of Germany's leading climate movement activists, stated that the chancellor's refusal to attend the summit sends the international community the "possibly worst signal."
"This is unworthy of Germany and an insult especially to those countries already facing existential threats due to rising sea levels," she emphasized.
According to the media, on Wednesday, while the summit is still ongoing, Merz plans to celebrate his 71st birthday by visiting an Italian restaurant with his wife and daughter. Neubauer called the chancellor's absence from the climate summit a "Bella Italia absence," making a pun on the Italian phrase Bella Italia.
The summit in Antalya will be attended by representatives from around 200 countries. The COP31 conference focuses on international efforts to combat climate change and agree on further measures to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
