A/78/PV.2 General Assembly
The meeting was called to order at 10 a.m.
I now request the General Assembly to direct its attention to section II of the report of the Committee, entitled “Organization of the session”, which contains a number of recommendations concerning the General Committee, the rationalization of work, the closing date of the session, seating arrangements, the schedule of meetings, the general debate, the conduct of the meetings and so forth. Allow me to flag a few points for members’ consideration.
In paragraph 37, the General Committee draws to the attention of the Assembly that the general debate will begin on Tuesday, 19 September, and will continue on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, 20 to 22 September, and on Tuesday, 26 September, and recommends that it continue on Saturday, 23 September 2023.
May I take it that the Assembly takes note of the information contained in paragraph 37 and approves the recommendation that the general debate continue on Saturday, 23 September 2023?
It was so decided (decision 78/501).
In paragraph 53, the General Committee brings to the attention of the Assembly
information on rights of reply to addresses made by Heads of State.
May I take it that the General Assembly takes note of the information provided?
It was so decided (decision 78/502).
I believe it would be beneficial to address all the remaining organizational matters concerning the General Assembly as a whole.
May I take it that it is the wish of the Assembly to take note of all of the information and to approve all the recommendations of the General Committee contained in section II of the report as a whole?
It was so decided (decision 78/503).
I now invite members to turn their attention to section III, which deals with the adoption of the agenda. The question of the allocation of items will be dealt with subsequently in section IV.
In paragraph 93, in connection with item 37 of the draft agenda, entitled “Question of the Comorian island of Mayotte”, the General Committee decided to recommend its inclusion under heading B, on the understanding that there would be no consideration of this item by the General Assembly.
May I take it that the Assembly approves this recommendation?
It was so decided (decision 78/504).
In paragraph 94, in connection with item 59 of the draft agenda, entitled “Question of the
Malagasy islands of Glorieuses, Juan de Nova, Europa and Bassas da India”, the General Committee decided to recommend that consideration of this item be deferred to the seventy-ninth session of the General Assembly and that the item be included in the provisional agenda of that session.
May I take it that the Assembly approves this recommendation?
It was so decided (decision 78/505).
In paragraph 95, in connection with item 63 of the draft agenda, entitled “The situation in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine”, the General Committee decided to recommend its inclusion under heading B.
May I take it that the Assembly approves this recommendation?
It was so decided (decision 78/506).
I shall now give the floor to those speakers who wish to make statements after the approval of the recommendation.
Russia distances itself from the consensus on the report of the General Committee (A/78/250) regarding the recommendation to include in the agenda of the General Assembly item 63, entitled “The situation in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine” — adopted by the Committee in a vote, by a minority of its members — on the following grounds.
First, the wording of this agenda item does not reflect reality, deliberately misleads the international community and does not comply with the fundamental principle of international law enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations: the principle of the self-determination of peoples. The inhabitants of the territories, which Kyiv and a group of its Western handlers are trying to portray as occupied, made their own free choice in favour of Russia during the referendums. That choice was natural in view of the bloody coup d’état in Kyiv and the subsequent massacre of Donbas, and the policies of discrimination and terror carried out by the new Kyiv regime — in contrast to the history of long years of those people living safely in the same State with Russia.
Secondly, the wording of this agenda item intentionally forecloses the possibility of carrying out constructive discussions that would serve to resolve
the Ukrainian crisis and would be consistent with the mandate of the General Assembly. It turns the Assembly into a platform for the representatives of Kyiv and its Western handlers to repeat well-known propaganda clichés, which only exacerbates the crisis.
Thirdly, the inclusion of this agenda item is a violation of Article 12 of the Charter, as the Ukrainian crisis is regularly discussed by the Security Council.
Fourthly, the inclusion of this agenda item is a clear example of a duplication of effort, as the crisis in Ukraine is being discussed in numerous other formats. If this item were included in the agenda, then it is not clear what the point of the rationalization of the work of the General Assembly is.
Fifthly, this agenda item was recommended for inclusion in the agenda of the General Assembly by a vote of the General Committee — which is supposed to act on the basis of the principle of consensus. However, that principle has been violated in favour of the interests of a limited group of States — which do not bind themselves to any principles — in order to achieve political goals.
In conclusion, we would like to note that the recommendation to include this item on the agenda by a minority of the General Committee’s members speaks volumes. It shows that the majority of the members of the General Assembly do not agree with Western narratives, but are not always ready to give them a firm rebuff. However, the time when that will happen is just around the corner.
We urge all delegations who truly wish to resolve the Ukrainian crisis to ignore this item.
I wish to go on the record once again with regard to our voting intention on the inclusion of this item. I informed the Secretariat that our vote on the inclusion of an agenda item on Ukraine in the General Committee was intended to be an abstention.
Since this is the first time I take the floor during the current session, I would like to congratulate you, Mr. President, on your assumption of this important post and to assure you of my delegation’s full support.
We are grateful to the General Assembly for the adoption by consensus of decision 78/506, on the inclusion of the agenda item “The situation in the
temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine”. As a nation that has steadfastly countered hostile aggression for the past nine years, we are hardly surprised by the manipulative tactics employed by Russia. Much like thieves never cease efforts to conceal their crimes, Russia persists in its endeavour to remove the agenda item entitled “The situation in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine”.
However, I would like to draw your attention to the fact that this time Russia is not challenging a procedural decision made by the Ukrainian delegation, but is contesting resolution 77/229, which is duly documented in draft agenda document A/78/100. In the resolution, entitled “Situation of human rights in the temporarily occupied Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol, Ukraine”, the General Assembly decided:
“to include the item entitled ‘The situation in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine’ in the agenda of the General Assembly until the violations committed as a result of foreign occupation and control of parts of the territory of Ukraine are duly dealt with and the territorial integrity of Ukraine within its internationally recognized borders is fully restored” (resolution 77/229, paragraph 17).
It is therefore perplexing to us how the General Assembly could now contradict its own resolution, which garnered support from 82 Member States. We deeply regret the disrespectful attitude displayed by the Russian delegation towards the General Assembly, the most representative principal organ of the Organization. Against the backdrop of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, we firmly believe that retaining this agenda item in the General Assembly’s agenda is of paramount importance. We are convinced that the vigilant attention of the Assembly, as the primary deliberative policymaking and representative organ, is indispensable in addressing Russia’s heinous acts of terrorism and reprisals against the civilian population in the occupied territories of Ukraine.
This year’s debate on the item has garnered substantial interest from Member States, underscoring its significance. All criminals attempt to conceal their crimes, and Russia’s actions are no exception. However, it is our collective duty to thwart such efforts and to closely monitor and demand accountability for all violations of international law and the Charter of the United Nations.
In paragraph 96, in connection with sub-item (c) of agenda item 76 of the draft agenda, entitled “Agreement under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea on the Conservation and Sustainable Use of Marine Biological Diversity of Areas beyond National Jurisdiction”, the Committee decided to recommend its inclusion under heading F. May I take it that the Assembly approves that recommendation?
It was so decided.
In paragraph 97, in connection with item 141 of the draft agenda, entitled “Report on the activities of the Ethics Office”, the Committee decided to recommend its inclusion under heading I. May I take it that the Assembly approves that recommendation?
It was so decided.
In paragraph 98, in connection with item 171 of the draft agenda, entitled “Observer status for the International Parliamentarians’ Congress in the General Assembly”, the Committee decided to recommend its inclusion under heading I. May I take it that the Assembly approves that recommendation?
It was so decided.
In paragraph 99, in connection with item 172 of the draft agenda, entitled “Observer status for the Organization of Ibero-American States for Education, Science and Culture in the General Assembly”, the Committee decided to recommend its inclusion under heading I. May I take it that the Assembly approves that recommendation?
It was so decided.
We turn now to the agenda recommended by the Committee in paragraph 100 of its report for adoption by the General Assembly, taking into account the decisions just adopted with respect to specific items.
Bearing in mind that the agenda is organized under nine headings, we shall consider the inclusion of items under each heading as a whole.
Items 1 and 2 have already been dealt with. We shall now turn to items 3 to 8. May I take it that these items are included in the agenda?
It was so decided.
We turn now to the inclusion of the items listed under heading A, “Promotion of sustained economic growth and sustainable development in accordance with the relevant resolutions of the General Assembly and recent United Nations conferences”. May I take it that the items listed under heading A are included in the agenda?
It was so decided.
We turn now to heading B, “Maintenance of international peace and security”. May I take it that the items listed under heading B are included in the agenda?
It was so decided.
Next, we turn to heading C, “Development of Africa”. May I take it that the item listed under this heading is included in the agenda?
It was so decided.
Now we come to heading D, “Promotion of human rights”. May I take it that the items listed under heading D are included in the agenda?
It was so decided.
Heading E is entitled “Effective coordination of humanitarian assistance efforts”. May I take it that the item listed under that heading is included in the agenda?
It was so decided.
Next, we turn to heading F, “Promotion of justice and international law”. May I take it that the items listed under heading F are included in the agenda?
It was so decided.
Now we turn to heading G, “Disarmament”. May I take it that the items listed under this heading are included in the agenda?
It was so decided.
Heading H is entitled “Drug control, crime prevention and combating international terrorism in all its forms and manifestations”. May I take it that the items listed under this heading are included in the agenda?
It was so decided.
Lastly, we turn to heading I, “Organizational, administrative and other matters”. May I take it that the items listed under heading I are included in the agenda?
It was so decided.
We turn now to section IV of the report of the General Committee, on the allocation of items. We shall now turn to the recommendations contained in paragraphs 105 to 108. We shall take up the recommendations paragraph by paragraph. Before we proceed, may I remind members that the item numbers cited here refer to the agenda in paragraph 101 of the report of the General Committee before us.
We shall now turn to paragraphs 105 (a) to (g), relating to a number of plenary items. May I take it that it is the wish of the General Assembly to take note of all of the information that the General Committee took note of and approve all of the recommendations of the General Committee contained in paragraphs 105 (a) to (g)?
It was so decided.
We turn now to paragraph 106, relating to the First Committee. May I take it that it is the wish of the General Assembly to approve the recommendation of the General Committee contained in paragraph 106?
It was so decided.
We turn now to paragraphs 107 (a) to (c), relating to the Fifth Committee. May I take it that it is the wish of the General Assembly to approve all of the recommendations of the General Committee contained in paragraphs 107 (a) to (c)?
It was so decided.
We turn now to paragraph 108 (a) and (b), relating to the Sixth Committee. May I take it that it is the wish of the General Assembly to approve all of the recommendations of the General Committee contained in paragraph 108 (a) and (b)?
It was so decided.
We shall now turn to paragraph 109 of the report of the General Committee, on the allocation of items to the plenary and to each Main Committee.
I will first turn to the list of items recommended by the General Committee for consideration directly in plenary meeting under all the relevant headings.
May I take it that the General Assembly approves the allocation of the items listed for consideration in plenary meeting?
It was so decided.
We come next to the list of items that the General Committee has recommended for allocation to the First Committee under the relevant headings. May I take it that the General Assembly approves the allocation of those items for consideration by the First Committee?
It was so decided.
We turn now to the list of items that the General Committee recommends for allocation to the Special Political and Decolonization Committee (Fourth Committee) under all the relevant headings. May I take it that the General Assembly approves the allocation of those items for consideration by the Special Political and Decolonization Committee (Fourth Committee)?
It was so decided.
We come now to the list of items the General Committee has recommended for allocation to the Second Committee under all the relevant headings. May I take it that the General Assembly approves the allocation of those items for consideration by the Second Committee?
It was so decided.
We turn now to the list of items that the General Committee has recommended for allocation to the Third Committee under all the relevant headings. May I take it that the General Assembly approves the allocation of those items for consideration by the Third Committee?
It was so decided.
Next we come to the list of items that the General Committee has recommended for allocation to the Fifth Committee under all the relevant headings. May I take it that the General Assembly approves the allocation of those items for consideration by the Fifth Committee?
It was so decided.
Lastly, we come to the list of items that the General Committee has recommended for allocation to the Sixth Committee under all the relevant
headings. May I take it that the General Assembly approves the allocation of those items for consideration by the Sixth Committee?
It was so decided.
The General Assembly has thus concluded its consideration of the first report of the General Committee.
I would now like to draw the attention of representatives to a matter concerning the participation of the Holy See, in its capacity as an observer State, in the sessions and work of the General Assembly.
In accordance with resolution 58/314, of 1 July 2004, and the note by the Secretary-General contained in document A/58/871, the Holy See, in its capacity as an observer State, will participate in the work of the current session of the General Assembly with no further need for a precursory explanation prior to any intervention.
I would also like to draw the attention of representatives to a matter concerning the participation of the State of Palestine, in its capacity as an observer State, in the sessions and work of the General Assembly.
In accordance with General Assembly resolutions 3237 (XXIX), of 22 November 1974, 43/177, of 15 December 1988, 52/250, of 7 July 1998, and 67/19, of 29 November 2012, and the note by the Secretary- General contained in document A/52/1002, the State of Palestine, in its capacity as an observer State, will participate in the work of the current session of the General Assembly with no further need for a precursory explanation prior to any intervention.
In addition, I would like to draw the attention of delegates to a matter concerning the participation of the European Union, in its capacity as observer, in the sessions and work of the General Assembly.
In accordance with resolution 65/276, of 3 May 2011, and the note by the Secretary-General contained in document A/65/856, representatives of the European Union will participate in the work of the current session of the General Assembly with no further need for a precursory explanation prior to any intervention.
Items 7 (continued) and 140 of the provisional agenda
Organization of work, adoption of the agenda and allocation of items
Pattern of conferences
Letter from the Chair of the Committee on Conferences (A/78/332)
The General Assembly will now turn to document A/78/332, which contains a letter dated 5 September 2023 from the Chair of the Committee on Conferences addressed to the President of the General Assembly.
Members are aware that, pursuant to section 1, paragraph 7 of Assembly resolution 40/243 of 18 December 1985, no subsidiary organ of the General Assembly should be permitted to meet at United Nations Headquarters during the main part of a regular session of the Assembly, unless explicitly authorized by the Assembly.
In that connection, authorization is sought for the following organs or entities: the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People; the Panel of External Auditors and Board of
Auditors; the Meeting of States Parties to the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons; the Executive Board of the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women; the Assembly of States Parties to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court; the Committee on Relations with the Host Country; the Executive Board of the United Nations Children’s Fund; the Independent Audit Advisory Committee; the Conference on the Establishment of a Middle East Zone Free of Nuclear Weapons and Other Weapons of Mass Destruction; the Meeting of States Parties to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea; and the Committee on Conferences.
May I take it that it is the wish of the General Assembly to authorize those organs or entities to meet during the main part of the seventy-eighth session of the General Assembly, on the strict understanding that all such meetings would be allocated conference services in such a way as to ensure that the work of the General Assembly and its Main Committees is not impeded?
It was so decided.
The General Assembly has thus concluded this stage of its consideration of agenda item 7.
The meeting rose at 10.35 a.m.