Lieutenant General Sheikh Saif bin Zayed Al Nahyan, UAE Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior, chaired a high-level ministerial forum held in the "Blue Zone" of COP29. The forum brought together prominent international figures from law enforcement and environmental protection sectors, where it focused on the critical role of law enforcement agencies in addressing environmental and climate challenges.

The event was organized in collaboration between the Office of the Prosecutor General of the Republic of Azerbaijan and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), and was held on the sidelines of COP29 hosted by Baku, Azerbaijan.

The forum followed up on a similar ministerial event held in February 2023 at the World Government Summit in Dubai. It featured high-level participants, including Kamran Aliyev, Prosecutor General of Azerbaijan and Vice President of the International Association of Prosecutors; Ghada Waly, UN Under-Secretary-General and Executive Director of UNODC; Mukhtar Babayev, President of COP29; and Alexander Zuev, UN Assistant Secretary-General for Rule of Law and Security Institutions.

In his opening speech, Sheikh Saif bin Zayed Al Nahyan congratulated Azerbaijan on hosting COP29 and thanked Prosecutor General Kamran Aliyev and UNODC for organizing the forum, which aimed to harness the power of law enforcement to enhance climate action.

Sheikh Saif recalled the famous saying that the mother is like a school; if she is well-prepared, she will raise a righteous generation distinguished by noble morals. He added that the earth earth is like a mother; if her health is well, human life will continue, and the world will remain healthy. This belief is central to the UAE's approach. If the health of the earth is sustained, human life will thrive, and the world, as well as future generations will have a healthy life."

He further explained that based on this belief, the concept of the "I2LEC" initiative (International Initiative to Enhance Law Enforcement Cooperation) was born to protect the environment. He noted that criminals are not only thieves or terrorists, but there is also a form of terrorism being perpetrated against the environment. Sheikh Saif shared examples of environmental terrorism, including the unprecedented levels of climate change indicators, which have reached alarming levels.