Emine Erdoğan, the wife of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, attended the opening of the COP29 World Leaders Climate Summit, where she was warmly welcomed by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and Azerbaijan's President Ilham Aliyev. Accompanying President Erdoğan, Emine Erdoğan participated in the summit held at the specially established venue near the Baku Olympic Stadium.
Upon her arrival at the COP29 Conference Hall, Emine Erdoğan was greeted with a heartfelt embrace by Mehriban Aliyeva, the First Lady of Azerbaijan, who expressed her warm welcome.
During the event, Emine Erdoğan held discussions with Mehriban Aliyeva, Aygül Japarova (wife of Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov), and Ziroat Mirziyoyeva (wife of Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev). In addition to these conversations, she briefly spoke with notable figures such as Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, the former UN Habitat Executive Director Maimunah Mohd Sharif (now Mayor of Kuala Lumpur), and Muhammad Yunus, a member of the UN Advisory Board on Zero Waste and the Interim President of Bangladesh.
Reflecting on the summit's opening, Emine Erdoğan shared her thoughts on social media, stating, “I hope the United Nations Climate Change Framework Convention's COP29 World Leaders Summit, hosted in the friendly and brotherly country of Azerbaijan, brings beneficial outcomes for our shared home, the Earth. This summit is a powerful expression of solidarity that transcends borders, reflecting our shared responsibility toward nature and humanity. I hope this collective will paves the way for a fairer world for all.”
At COP29, Emine Erdoğan is also set to visit the Zero Waste-themed Turkish pavilion along with pavilions from other countries, with the First Ladies from Azerbaijan, Kyrgyzstan, and Uzbekistan joining her on these tours, organized by the Turkish Presidential Directorate of Communications.
