A senior United Nations “climate change” official has been secretly filmed discussing negotiations for business deals that profit from fossil fuels.
The official is Azerbaijan’s Elnur Soltanov, one of the leaders of the UN’s Climate Change Conference (COP).
Soltanov has been using his role to secure meetings with potential investors in the country’s oil and gas sectors.
Energy production drives 60% of Azerbaijan’s economy.
According to PJ Media, Soltanov, Azerbaijan’s deputy energy minister and COP29 chief, was covertly recorded discussing investment opportunities in the state-owned SOCAR.
“SOCAR Trading is trading oil and gas all over the world, including in Asia,” he was caught on tape saying.
“To me, these are the possibilities to explore.
“But in any case, this is something that you need to be talking to SOCAR, and I would be happy to create a contact between yourself and them.”
He added: “We have a lot of gas fields that are to be developed.”
SOCAR, Azerbaijan’s state oil company, reportedly responded to a fake investment group, indicating interest in meeting, according to Global Witness.
In the meeting, Soltanov discussed the event’s goals, the PJ Media report notes.
Soltanov stated that COP aims to “solve the climate crisis” by “transitioning away from hydrocarbons.”
Still, he expressed openness to oil and gas investments.
The “eco-warrior” pointed to Azerbaijan’s gas expansion plans and new pipeline infrastructure as investment opportunities.
WATCH:
This marks the second year a petro-state has used its COP presidency to promote fossil fuel interests.
The exposé raises significant questions for the UN on oversight.
Simon Roach from Global Witness called it “endemic corruption on a planetary scale.”
Roach emphasizes that COP standards, set by the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, strictly prohibit such conflicts of interest.
COP29 is likely to see less high-profile attendance for the global warming conference.
Globalist leaders like the European Union’s unelected EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, French President Emmanuel Macron, and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz plan to skip COP29.
Scholz currently faces a political crisis at home.
Meanwhile, others may anticipate waning support for climate initiatives.
Many expect a coming global shift in “global warming” sentiment following President Donald Trump’s political resurgence.
