World climate summit opens in Antalya, US absent; Nepal's climate finance mostly loans

The UN Climate Change Conference, COP31, opens Monday in Antalya, Turkey, with the US government not sending an official delegation.

According to American broadcaster ABC News, the Trump administration will be absent for a second consecutive year from the conference, which runs from November 9 to 20 at the Antalya Expo Center. The administration also did not officially take part in COP30, held in Brazil in 2025.

Even though the government is not attending, 19 US lawmakers are set to take part in the conference. Discussions at the summit will cover controlling the rise in temperature, financial support for affected countries, and implementation of past commitments.

Meanwhile, according to a study by the Prakriti Resource Centre, 63 percent of the roughly $3.19 billion in climate finance Nepal received between 2016 and 2023 came as loans, with only 30 percent as grants. The study warns that taking loans for adaptation work such as flood control and early warning systems increases the risk of having to repay principal and interest later.

On the other hand, a Reuters analysis shows China sent clean technology and investment worth about $132 billion to developing countries in 2025. The same analysis notes that total climate support from wealthy countries to poor countries in 2024 stood at nearly $137 billion.