By Anjali Sharma
WASHINGTON – India on Friday reiterates that it will push for climate finance, tech transfer and greater flexibility, nationally determined approaches to climate mitigation and adaptation, at COP 31, according to the sources.

The climate scientists, activists and policy experts observed that COP (Conference of the Parties) summits rarely ever yield tangible results a criticism shared by many skeptics.

The experts said that over the past decades of these annual summits, global greenhouse gas emissions have continued to rise, and the planet remains on track to overshoot the critical 1.5°C warming target.

Has the climate finance from rich to vulnerable nations changed hands—the answer may be a “yes” from the wealthy and “not in the way we require” from developing countries.

The officials attending the upcoming UN Climate Change Conference COP31 said that predictable climate finance, technology transfer, and nationally determined approaches to climate mitigation and adaptation will be among India’s key demands.

India will once again ask developed countries to fulfil their financial obligations to developing nations.

According to Dr Ajay Mathur, India’s Lead Negotiator for the Paris Agreement and former DG of the International Solar Alliance, “If we want to hit $300 billion in adaptation finance by 2035, we need a clear baseline and a monitoring mechanism that reflects real needs on the ground. Public money has to go where markets can’t: deep adaptation, urban resilience, small enterprises.”

“Ultimately, we need to move beyond debt stress and high borrowing costs, and beyond the capital shortages facing the Global South. What we need is a multilateral framework built together: developed countries committing to their Article 9.1 obligations and developing countries staying committed to the goals of the Paris Agreement.”

The experts Aarti Khosla from Climate Trend point, this is not an ordinary COP, and 2026 is no ordinary year.

“This year’s COP is taking place against a backdrop of deep geopolitical fragmentation, cost-of-living pressures being felt across the world, and tightening national and international budgets.”

The implications of the midterm US elections cannot be ignored. The world is facing one of the strongest El Niño events, there have been floods, droughts, wildfires, landslides, melting glaciers and extreme heat. Meanwhile, every country wants to be part of the AI and data centre race.

“We are in an era of overshoot, and exceeding 1.5°C is now unavoidable. Success at the COP, therefore, requires a lot of finesse, not just finesse in terms of diplomacy, but also in terms of what the agenda should have and what the outcomes should be,” Khosla said.

According to the COP 31 website, this summit is all about implementation of climate solutions and progressing a global energy transition that drives economic growth, more jobs, food security, better health and safety and affordable clean energy.

The world has more tools than ever to tackle climate change, yet millions remain unable to benefit from them.

It said that as clean energy technologies advance faster than ever, the challenge facing countries at COP31 is no longer just finding solutions – but making sure everyone can afford them.

The COP summits rarely ever yield tangible results because these UN summits rely on absolute consensus among about 198 countries.

The final text is often diluted to the lowest common denominator, giving oil-producing nations and heavy fuel-guzzlers/ polluters an edge over aggressive timelines, leaving less influential, developing nations with limited negotiating leverage.