COP31: Ankara’s Cyprus snub triggers Brussels warning

World Cyprus problemeuTop Newsturkeyun COP31: Ankara’s Cyprus snub triggers Brussels warning Cop31 Relevant News Biker accused of running down officer, fleeing scene, loses court challenge 20 August 2026 COP31: Ankara’s Cyprus snub triggers Brussels warning 20 August 2026 Fine weather expected Thursday, highs of 38C inland 20 August 2026 Theodosis Pipis 20 August 2026 FacebookXWhatsAppEmailPrintViber Cyprus has found itself at the centre of a diplomatic dispute ahead of COP31, after Türkiye excluded the Republic of Cyprus from at least one preparatory meeting linked to the United Nations climate conference in Antalya. The move has prompted a direct response from Brussels, with the European Commission making clear that the exclusion of a UN member state from the COP31 preparatory process is “not acceptable.” The issue was brought formally before the European Commission by Greek MEP Nikolas Farantouris, who submitted a written parliamentary question on 29 May 2026 concerning what he described as the “unacceptable exclusion” of Cyprus from the COP31 processes. For Cyprus, the dispute is significant not because of the substance of the climate negotiations themselves, but because of what the episode represents: the attempt to carry Türkiye’s longstanding political position towards the Republic of Cyprus into a major multilateral United Nations process. COP31 is the 31st United Nations Climate Change Conference, formally the Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). It will take place in Antalya from 9 to 20 November 2026 and will bring governments and other participants together to negotiate and advance international action on climate change, including emissions reductions, adaptation and climate finance. The UNFCCC says the road to Antalya is intended to be “open, transparent and inclusive,” with engagement involving parties, observers and other stakeholders. It is this principle of inclusiveness that Farantouris placed at the heart of his intervention. According to the European Parliament’s records, Farantouris asked the Commission to address Cyprus’s exclusion from the preparatory processes for COP31. The intervention came after Cyprus was not given a seat at a preparatory briefing held at UN headquarters in New York on 27 March, chaired by Türkiye’s Environment and Urbanisation Minister Murat Kurum. The incident subsequently triggered a wider diplomatic reaction from Brussels. The Commission’s response is particularly significant for Nicosia. EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Commission Vice-President Kaja Kallas made clear that the UNFCCC process must be inclusive, transparent and open to all parties to the Convention and the Paris Agreement, with full respect for their rights. More importantly, the Commission stated that it had “made it clear to Türkiye, as the incoming COP Presidency, that the exclusion of a UN member state from the preparatory process of COP31 is not acceptable.” Brussels also raised the matter with the United Nations Secretariat and Australia. The COP31 arrangements give Türkiye responsibility for hosting and presiding over the conference, while Australia has been assigned the role of leading the negotiations. The two countries are working together under a joint arrangement for the Antalya conference. The dispute places Cyprus in a particularly sensitive position. The Republic of Cyprus is a member of both the United Nations and the European Union, while Türkiye does not recognise the Republic of Cyprus. The Cyprus dispute has consequently entered the preparatory diplomacy of an international conference whose stated purpose is to bring countries together around a common global challenge. For Nicosia, the message from Brussels is important: the status of Cyprus cannot simply be set aside when international organisations and governments prepare for a UN conference. The European Commission has reportedly also received assurances from Ankara that Cyprus will not be excluded from future preparatory meetings. That assurance, however, does not erase the political significance of what has already occurred. The question raised by Farantouris therefore extends beyond a single meeting in New York. It is whether Türkiye, as host and incoming presidency of COP31, can allow its bilateral dispute with Cyprus to determine the participation of the Republic of Cyprus in the preparatory diplomacy surrounding a UN conference. The answer from Brussels has so far been clear: it cannot. And for Cyprus, the COP31 dispute is yet another test of whether its status as a full member of the United Nations and the European Union carries practical weight when Ankara seeks to impose its own political interpretation of the island’s status on an international process. With COP31 only months away, the issue is unlikely to disappear. The conference is intended to demonstrate international cooperation on one of the world’s most urgent challenges. 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