Singapore is combining COP31 climate-market talks with trade meetings in Turkey, where Minister for Sustainability and the Environment Grace Fu plans to meet Turkish Minister of Trade Omer Bolat, The Straits Times reported Nov. 12.
Fu’s COP31 attendance is due to begin Nov. 15. The conference is scheduled to run Nov. 9-20 in Antalya, where representatives of nearly 200 countries are meeting, the newspaper reported. Fu is also scheduled to deliver Singapore’s national statement and join ministerial discussions on speeding emissions cuts before 2030.
The Straits Times reported that Fu will convene a session where participating countries can exchange experience and advance the delivery of high-integrity carbon credits. Article 6 of the Paris Agreement provides a basis for countries to cooperate through carbon markets toward climate targets, the report said. Such mechanisms allow governments to apply credits generated in other jurisdictions toward their targets, alongside domestic emissions cuts.
The Coalition to Grow Carbon Markets, which Singapore co-chairs, began in June 2025 as a government-led effort to increase corporate demand for high-integrity credits. France, Panama and Canada are also members, according to the newspaper.
Fu’s schedule includes heat-resilience and sustainable-cooling events in support of the Global Cooling Pledge, which seeks to reduce emissions associated with air conditioning, The Straits Times reported. At the pledge’s first assembly in Singapore in September, participants outlined ways to maintain water and food security, protect schools, hospitals and workplaces, and safeguard energy infrastructure during heatwaves. The report also listed events on climate adaptation, resilience and the circular economy, which aims to keep resources in use through repeated cycles.
Before COP31, Fu is due to visit Istanbul and Mersin on Nov. 13-14. The Straits Times reported she will meet Bolat on bilateral economic cooperation and speak with Singaporean and Turkish business leaders about commercial ties and trade and investment opportunities in the two countries and wider regions. In Mersin, she is scheduled to visit Mersin International Port, where Singapore port operator PSA International is a majority shareholder.
