Pope Francis has announced that he will not be attending the 28th edition of the Conference of the Parties (COP28) UN climate meeting in Dubai due to the flu and lung inflammation that he is healing from.

According to Vatican spokesperson Matteo Bruni, Pope Francis cancelled the trip to Dubai, where he was set to speak at the climate conference, based on the recommendation of his physicians.

“According to the most recent statement from his doctors, the pope’s “influenza and inflammation of the respiratory tract have improved,” but they have “asked the Pope not to make the trip planned for the next few days,” Bruni said.

“Pope Francis accepted the doctors’ request with great regret, and the trip was therefore cancelled,” he added.

In 2021, Pope Francis urged lawmakers and governments to set aggressive goals to combat the threat of rising temperatures, emphasizing the significance of “concretely encouraging new paths to pursue” that would aid in environmental protection.

That same year, he stated his intention to attend COP26, but the Vatican declared that the pope would not participate and that the church’s delegation would be led by Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the secretary of state.

Delegates from nearly 200 countries will convene in Dubai for the COP28 climate summit  from November 30 to December 12, 2023.