Cairo, Washington to Coordinate over Egypt's Hosting of COP27

Egyptian Environment Minister Yasmine Fouad and US Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry. (Egyptian Government)
Egyptian Environment Minister Yasmine Fouad and US Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry. (Egyptian Government)
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Cairo, Washington to Coordinate over Egypt's Hosting of COP27

Egyptian Environment Minister Yasmine Fouad and US Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry. (Egyptian Government)
Egyptian Environment Minister Yasmine Fouad and US Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry. (Egyptian Government)

Cairo and Washington expressed on Thursday a desire to cooperate ahead of the 27th session of the UN Climate Change Conference (COP27), expected to be held in Sharm El Sheikh at the end of the year.

During a telephone call, Egyptian Environment Minister Yasmine Fouad and US Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry agreed to form a joint working group to prepare for the upcoming Summit.

An Egyptian government statement said Fouad stressed that both sides agreed on the importance of building on the outcomes of COP26, which was held in Glasgow in November 2021.

The two sides tackled the Egypt-US joint cooperation program meant to confront climate change consequences within the framework of the 2050 climate change national strategy.

They agreed on working on implementing climate mitigation and adaptation actions.

“Developed countries need to fulfill their pledges to provide the necessary funding,” the two officials said.

Fouad and Kerry then discussed the prospects of the private sector’s engagement in Egypt’s climate-related projects in the energy sector.

According to the statement, Kerry conveyed the US keenness on supporting Egypt to host the COP27.

He said his country is keen to cooperate with several countries, including Mexico, India, and South Africa, to support their efforts to counter the effects of climate change.



Kurdish PKK Militants to Hand over First Weapons in Ceremony in Iraq

PKK militants in northern Iraq (Reuters)
PKK militants in northern Iraq (Reuters)
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Kurdish PKK Militants to Hand over First Weapons in Ceremony in Iraq

PKK militants in northern Iraq (Reuters)
PKK militants in northern Iraq (Reuters)

Dozens of Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) militants will hand over their weapons in a ceremony in northern Iraq on Friday, marking a symbolic but significant first step toward ending a decades-long insurgency with Türkiye.

The PKK, locked in conflict with the Turkish state and outlawed since 1984, decided in May to disband, disarm and end its armed struggle after a public call to do so from its long-imprisoned leader Abdullah Ocalan, Reuters said.

After a series of failed peace efforts, the new initiative could pave the way for Ankara to end an insurgency that has killed over 40,000 people, burdened the economy and wrought deep social and political divisions in Türkiye and the wider region.

Around 40 PKK militants and one commander were expected to hand over their weapons at the ceremony in the northern Iraqi city of Sulaymaniyah, people familiar with the plan said. The PKK is based in northern Iraq after being pushed well beyond Türkiye’s frontier in recent years.

The arms are to be destroyed later in another ceremony attended by Turkish and Iraqi intelligence figures, officials of Iraq's Kurdistan regional government, and senior members of Türkiye's pro-Kurdish DEM party - which also played a key role in facilitating the PKK's disarmament decision.

The PKK, DEM and Ocalan have all called on Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan's government to address Kurdish political demands. In a rare online video published on Wednesday, Ocalan also urged Türkiye's parliament to set up a commission to oversee disarmament and manage the broader peace process.

Ankara has taken steps toward forming the commission, while the DEM and Ocalan have said that legal assurances and certain mechanisms were needed to smooth the PKK's transition into democratic politics.

Erdogan has said his government would not allow any attempts to sabotage the disarmament process, adding he would give people "historic good news".

Omer Celik, a spokesman for Erdogan's AK Party, said the disarmament process should not be allowed to drag on longer than a few months to avoid it becoming subject to provocations.