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Hotel prices cause countries to skip COP30 Climate Summit

Hundreds of dollars per night are being charged by hotels due to a lack of rooms at the COP30 Climate Summit in Brazil next month. The small island states that are on the frontline for rising sea levels will have to reduce the size of their delegations to Belem. Two European nations also said they would consider not attending. The organisers of COP30 are racing to turn love motels, churches and cruise ships into accommodation for the 45,000 expected delegates.

Brazil held the climate talks in Belem because it has an average of 18,000 hotel rooms available. It hoped that its location at the edge the Amazon rainforest, would draw attention to the threats climate change poses to the ecosystem and its role as a sink for climate warming emissions.

LATVIA SAYS THAT ROOMS ARE EXPENSIVE Latvia’s climate minister said that the country had asked if their negotiators can dial in via video call.

Melnis stated, "We've already decided that it is too expensive for us." It's the very first time that it is so expensive. "We have a duty to the budget of our country."

Lithuania, a second country in eastern Europe, has also indicated that it will not be staying after receiving quotes for prices exceeding $500 per night per person.

A Lithuanian energy minister spokesperson, who covers climate issues, stated that the quality and legitimacy of negotiations would be affected if governments were unable to attend due to the cost.

According to a spokesperson for Brazil's COP30 Presidency, the decision is up to each country.

DELEGATIONS FIND IT HARD TO PAY FOR HOTELS AT COP30

The website displayed rates ranging from $360 per night to $4,400 per night, just days after Brazil launched a booking platform at the beginning of August. The platform indicated that prices this week began at $150 per day. The host country rejected calls to move the summit, saying it would provide 15 hotel rooms at a price of less than $220 per night for each delegation from a developing country and below $600 per delegation from a wealthy nation. The United Nations also increased their subsidy for low-income countries to attend. According to Brazil's Presidency of COP30, less than six weeks before COP30, there are still 81 countries in negotiations about hotel rooms, while 87 have already reserved accommodations.

Evans Njewa is the chair of the Least Developed Countries Group, which represents the poorest countries in the U.N. Climate Talks. He said that the group was still assessing the attendance plans.

Njewa said: "We receive a large volume of concerns... and many requests for assistance." "Unfortunately, our capacity is restricted, which could affect the size and composition of delegations."

CLIMATE ACTION IS UNDER THREAT The COP Summit this year takes place as President Donald Trump of the United States has tried to shift America's focus away from climate change and Europe's priorities have changed due to its struggling economies.

Ilana Seid said that the lack of affordable housing placed her members at "a severe disadvantage". The small island states have taken advantage of previous COPs in order to get more funding for climate change adaptation.

Seid stated that smaller delegations would not allow island nations to "participate effectively in the negotiations that decide our future" because they lack the expertise required.

(source: Reuters)