The Paris Agreement aims to limit the rise in global average temperature to “well below” 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels and to “make efforts” to limit it to 1.5 degrees Celsius. Kadigil Sutlu, a member of Turkey`s Workers` Party, questioned whether the government would abandon industrial projects criticized as harmful to the environment after the agreement was ratified. As a reminder, Turkey signed the agreement on April 22, 2016, but has not ratified it, which entered into force in November 2016 and is expected to enter into force by the end of 2020. To date, 186 countries out of 195 signatories have already ratified and acceded to the agreement. Turkey, Russia, Iran and Iraq are among the countries that have signed the agreement but have not yet ratified it. Under the agreement, countries should establish measures to reduce greenhouse gas emissions based on their economic situation. President Tayyip Erdogan announced that Turkey would ratify the deal last month at the United Nations General Assembly, saying countries that have a “historic responsibility” for climate change should make the greatest efforts. The source added that the decision to ratify the agreement could mitigate some of the negative effects of the EU`s carbon cap tax. President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan had made it clear that Turkey would not ratify the deal if its demands were not met. He recalled that German Chancellor Angela Merkel and former French President François Hollande had made promises to him during the negotiations on the Paris Agreement. On Wednesday, 353 members of the Turkish parliament unanimously ratified the agreement. Although Turkey was among the first countries to sign the Paris Agreement in 2016, it refused ratification because it sought to be classified as a developing country rather than an industrialized country in order to avoid stricter emission reduction targets and receive financial support. It belonged to six countries, including Iran, Iraq, Eritrea, Libya and Yemen, which have not ratified it.
If Turkey is removed from the list of countries in Annex I, it could benefit from the investments, insurance and technology transfers that can be provided under the Agreement. A statement approved by parliament said Turkey was ratifying the agreement as a developing country and would implement it as long as it “does not violate its right to economic and social development.” Turkey, the last Group of 20 (G20) country to do so, had not ratified the landmark agreement for five years, arguing that it should not be considered a developed country. Apart from the Energy Efficiency Action Plan and renewable energy auctions, Turkey has made little progress in implementing climate action and, most importantly, has yet to ratify the Paris Agreement. In September 2019, ahead of the UN climate summit, Turkey reviewed the financial package proposed by Germany and France, with the support of the United Nations and the World Bank, which aimed to address Turkey`s concerns in the context of ratifying the agreement, but so far to have no results. The government seems to stand still in developing measures to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions: its 7th edition. The Projections of the National Communication (NC7) in 2018 have projections identical to the previous version (CL6) as well as to the BAU INDC 2015, while the 4th biennial update report, published at the end of 2019, also forecasts almost identical emissions for 2030. However, CL7 describes in more detail the guidelines contained in CL6. The main reason Turkey refused to ratify the deal was Ankara`s belief that Turkey should not be considered a “developed” country within the meaning of the rules of the Paris Agreement – with all the additional obligations that this entails – as this would only mean more pressure and a heavier burden on its already struggling economy. The main opposition republican people`s party (CHP) lawmaker, Jale Nur Sullu, told parliament that it was unclear what the outcome would be of ratifying the agreement as a developing country without the change in status being approved at the climate conference. Turkey says it is a developing country and needs financial support to comply with the deal. What`s strange about this categorization is the fact that it lists Turkey as a developed nation, while China, Singapore, South Korea, India, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Brazil, Argentina, and the oil-rich Gulf states are classified as developing. The dispute over Turkey`s status is why it officially supported the deal.
Although it has signed the Climate Convention as a developed country, the government has repeatedly argued that it is a developing country and should therefore have access to climate finance – a status privilege. .