BRASILIA, April 9 (Reuters) – Brazil has scheduled the preliminary round of negotiations that help countries prepare for the global climate summit, known as COP30, for October, roughly a month before the main event starts at the Amazonian city of Belem, the government’s special secretary for COP30, Valter Correia da Silva, told Reuters on Wednesday.

The early negotiations, called the Pre-COP, will take place in Brasilia, the nation’s capital, on Oct. 14 and 15, he said. Despite being a much smaller event, with only the main negotiators, the Pre-COP has gained importance this year because countries are struggling to deliver their new pledges to reduce the greenhouse gas emissions that cause global warming, known as Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs).

So far, more than 90% of countries have failed to meet the February deadline for submitting their new NDCs, as the world has turned its attention to wars and trade disputes, and financing for climate projects has dried up. The United Nations decided to extend the deadline to September.

“The pre-COP this year can help make Belem a success or a failure. Brazil’s intention is for the talks there to lead to effective negotiations a month later,” a source who follows the issue told Reuters.

Reporting by Lisandra Paraguassu, editing by Manuela Andreoni; Editing by Aurora Ellis via Reuters