Turkey Beats Australia in Race to Host UN Climate Talks in 2026

Turkey is set to host the flagship United Nations climate change conference in 2026, beating a rival proposal from Australia, Bloomberg News reported on

Wednesday, citing people familiar with the matter.



The COP31 talks next November will be taking place in the resort city Antalya, the report added.



Turkey will also hold the presidency of the summit and Australia will lead the negotiations according to an agreement forged late Wednesday, according to the report.



The Australian government and the U.N. climate change press office did not immediately respond to a Reuters' request for a comment. Reuters could not immediately verify the report.



Australia will not oppose a successful Turkish bid to host next year's COP31 climate summit, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said earlier this week, warning a prolonged standoff over hosting rights could undermine unity required to help the Pacific island nations.