The mid-year UN climate negotiations in Bonn, the 64th sessions of the UNFCCC subsidiary bodies, ran from 8 to 18 June 2026 and closed with few concrete outcomes. Negotiators failed to agree texts on the Global Goal on Adaptation and on the mitigation work programme, the only formal agenda item devoted specifically to cutting emissions. Both were sent to COP31 in Antalya, Türkiye, in November under rule 16 of the UNFCCC's procedures, which carries items forward when no conclusion is reached.
Parties did agree a package of texts on the just transition work programme, including steps towards a new mechanism to support workers and communities through the energy transition. In his closing statement, UN Climate Change Executive Secretary Simon Stiell warned against "you-first-ism", in which groups refuse to move unless others act first.
Adaptation and finance
Adaptation was among the most contested issues. At COP30 in Belém, parties called for efforts to at least triple adaptation finance for developing countries by 2035, but the decision did not specify a baseline, which countries should contribute or what types of finance count. In Bonn, the African Group, small island states, least developed countries, some Latin American countries and the G77 and China pushed for the tripling goal to be referenced in the Global Goal on Adaptation text. Canada, Norway and Japan were among those opposing that reference, according to Carbon Brief. The final draft text remains entirely in square brackets for negotiation at COP31.
Climate finance more broadly remained a point of friction. Official figures show that climate finance from developed countries reached a record $136.7 billion in 2024, Carbon Brief reported. Since then, aid cuts by major donors, particularly the United States, mean public climate spending by developed countries is likely to have fallen. Few developed countries have pledged new finance for 2026 and beyond. The new collective quantified goal agreed at COP29 set a target of $300 billion a year for developing countries by 2035, alongside a broader aspiration of $1.3 trillion a year from all sources.
Developing countries pressed for the new climate finance work programme agreed in Belém to focus on Article 9.1 of the Paris Agreement, which says developed countries "shall provide" finance. Developed countries, including the EU, Norway and Canada, favoured a broader approach covering all sources. COP30 President André Corrêa do Lago wrote to request that the work programme be placed on the COP31 agenda.
Mitigation work programme
The mitigation work programme failed to reach even a short set of draft conclusions. The main divide was between parties wanting it to drive faster emissions cuts and those preferring it to remain a space for exchanging views. Kaveh Guilanpour of the US think tank C2ES told Carbon Brief the tension reflects the fact that national contributions are nationally determined while the Paris goals are collective.
Just transition mechanism
COP30 agreed to create a just transition mechanism. In Bonn, much of the time on the just transition work programme went into procedural discussions on the terms of reference for a review, but co-chairs introduced a draft text on 16 June listing elements for taking the mechanism forward. A package including the review terms and a list of items to be agreed for the mechanism was adopted without objection on 18 June. Civil society groups said further meetings before COP31 would be needed to finalise the design.
For energy-producing regions, including coal regions in South Africa, Indonesia and Eastern Europe, the mechanism is intended to coordinate support for workers and communities as fossil fuel industries contract. Its design, funding and governance remain open.
Fossil fuels
Fossil fuels were not on the formal agenda. At COP30, dozens of countries backed a roadmap for transitioning away from fossil fuels, but it was not included in the final text. Instead, the Brazilian presidency is developing roadmaps outside the formal process. Carbon Brief reported that 21 countries and negotiating groups had submitted views on the fossil fuel roadmap. In Bonn, the presidency held a session on its progress. Several countries also cited a recent conference on transitioning away from fossil fuels held in Santa Marta, Colombia.
In the global stocktake dialogue, the EU, Switzerland and Colombia emphasised the energy package of the 2023 stocktake, which includes transitioning away from fossil fuels and phasing out inefficient fossil fuel subsidies. Saudi Arabia, speaking for the like-minded developing countries, said parties should avoid "cherry-picking" paragraphs and that different pathways are valid.
COP31 presidency priorities
The Turkish COP31 presidency launched its action agenda priorities during the session. The most prominent is a goal, not yet endorsed by governments, to raise the share of global final energy demand met by electricity from just over 20% today to 35% by 2035. Other goals include reducing energy consumption intensity in buildings by 25% by 2035. Australia's Chris Bowen, who serves as president of negotiations for COP31, said the action agenda and the negotiations are separate, and the action agenda does not require consensus.
For energy markets, an electrification goal of that scale would imply large growth in power demand and investment in generation and grids. Carbon Brief noted that some governments have pointed to electrification as a way to reduce reliance on expensive imported fuels amid the price rises linked to the conflict involving Iran.
Trade and CBAM
The first of three dialogues on climate and trade, created at COP30, took place in the first week. Developing country groups argued that trade-related climate measures raise compliance costs and restrict market access. The Arab Group cited International Monetary Fund research on the distributional effects of the EU's carbon border adjustment mechanism. The EU argued such measures address environmental externalities. The chairs will prepare an informal note with no legal status.
Science and the IPCC
Parties disagreed over references to the 1.5°C goal, misinformation and the role of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. For five consecutive IPCC meetings, countries have failed to agree on the timeline for the panel's seventh assessment report, with some seeking alignment with the second global stocktake concluding in 2028 and others opposing it.
What to watch
Key milestones before COP31 include ministerial meetings, the UN General Assembly in September and the pre-COP. The main questions for Antalya are whether parties can agree texts on adaptation and mitigation, whether the finance work programme gets its own agenda item and how the just transition mechanism is designed.