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3. The Paris Agreement and Türkiye’s Commitments

The Paris Agreement is considered one of the most important milestones in
the global fight against climate change. The Agreement was adopted at the 21st
Conference of the Parties (COP21) in Paris on December 12, 2015 in the scope
of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)
and aims to determine the climate change regime after 2020 following the end
of Kyoto Protocol. The agreement entered into force on November 4, 2016
and intends to establish cooperation between the participating countries
in reducing greenhouse gas emissions worldwide, adapting to the effects of
climate change and providing financial support (TCDB, 2022).
The main goal of the Paris Agreement is to keep the global temperature
increase as low as possible below 2°C compared to the pre-industrial period
and to push the target of 1.5°C. This goal is of great importance in terms of
minimizing the damages caused by climate change and reducing the impact
of the climate crisis on vulnerable countries. The agreement adopts a “bottom-
up” approach, offering a system based on individual and voluntary contributions
from countries. Each country determines its greenhouse gas emission reduction
targets in accordance with its own conditions through Nationally Determined
Contribution Statements (NDCs) and reviews these commitments every five
years. However, these commitments are not binding, they are monitored by an
international monitoring and reporting system (TCDC, 2022; IDB, 2022).
The agreement is also based on the principle of “common but differentiated
responsibilities and relative capabilities”. According to this principle, while
developed countries are obliged to have a higher emission reduction due
to their historical responsibilities, they also assume the obligation to provide
financial, technological and capacity-building support to developing countries.
Within this framework, the goal of increasing the adaptation and resilience
capacities of developing countries becomes prominent (TCDB, 2022).
Article 6, one of the important provisions of the Paris Agreement, regulates
international cooperation mechanisms that allow countries to achieve their
carbon reduction goals in a more flexible way. This article provides two basic
mechanisms for the functioning of carbon markets: Article 6.2 and Article 6.4.
Article 6.2 contains a regulation that promotes cooperation in voluntary carbon
markets by ensuring decarbonisation between countries and enables the use
of internationally transferred mitigation outcomes (ITMOs). This mechanism
can contribute to countries reducing their greenhouse gas emissions. Article
6.4, on the other hand, regulates the functioning of global carbon markets
in accordance with the Paris Agreement and is a continuation of the Clean

28 Journal of Environment, Urban and Climate