President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo is set to attend in person the 26^th United Nations climate change conference (COP26) in Scotland next month, officials confirmed on Tuesday, as the leader looks to bolster Indonesia’s global credentials as it takes on a defining G20 presidency.

Jokowi will head to Glasgow for the crucial summit after visiting Rome, Italy to attend the G20 Summit and take over the reins of the club of the world’s largest economies.

The trip will be Jokowi’s first abroad since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. He is scheduled to attend COP26 on Nov. 1-2, which follows the G20 Summit hosted by Italy on Oct. 30-31, Foreign Ministry officials said in a briefing.

The President previously skipped the United Nations General Assembly meetings in New York last month, choosing to air a prerecorded speech instead. Conversely, Jokowi had gone to great lengths to ensure the country is prepared to host a flurry of G20 meetings, having visited the future site of the global event in Bali over the weekend.

Indonesia’s G20 presidency, which officially begins on Dec. 1 and runs until Nov. 31, 2022, will be the nation’s most strategic international role yet, as the world sets its sights on inclusive recovery from the pandemic and a drastic turnaround of the ongoing climate crisis.

The ministry's director general for multilateral affairs, Febrian Ruddyard, said Jokowi’s decision to attend the Glasgow meeting aimed to demonstrate Indonesia's “strong commitment” to advancing climate action.

“COP26 is very important because the climate conditions are increasingly urgent and it is hoped that this meeting will produce concrete steps, for example, the development of a global carbon trading mechanism,” he told reporters in Jakarta on Tuesday.

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