NEGOTIATORS at the Cop29 summit in Azerbaijan were working today to break a deadlock over the “trillions” of dollars needed to help poorer countries deal with the impact of climate change. 

Ministers at the UN talks in the capital Baku had been waiting for the declaration from their countries’ leaders, who had gathered for a G20 meeting in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

While there was no direct call by the leaders to transition away from fossil fuels, their statement on climate finance was cautiously welcomed at the sports stadium where the conference is taking place.

“G20 delegations now have their marching orders for here in Baku,” UN climate chief Simon Stiell said in a statement.

“We urgently need all nations to bypass the posturing and move swiftly towards common ground, across all issues.”

Rich nations are being urged to significantly raise their pledge of $100 billion (around £79bn) a year to help poorer countries cope with climate change.

But disputes remain over how much the deal should entail, who should provide the money and what types of financing should be included.

The G77+China grouping of developing nations is “not comfortable” with vague wording saying that the money should come from “all sources,” warned Uganda’s Adonia Ayebare, who chairs the group.

“We have been insisting that this has to be from public sources,” he said. “Grants, not loans.”

The G20 statement said there was a need to step up international collaboration “with a view to scaling up public and private climate finance and investment for developing countries.”

But Indian activist Harjeet Singh said the G20 had “displayed a stark failure in leadership” by “neglecting to reaffirm their commitment to transitioning away from fossil fuel.

“Their rehashed rhetoric offers no solace for the fraught Cop29 negotiations, where we continue to see a deadlock on climate finance.”