S/PV.8699Resumption2 Security Council

The President: In accordance with rule 37 of the Council’s provisional rules of procedure, I invite the representatives of Colombia, Qatar and Senegal to participate in this meeting. I wish to remind all speakers to limit their statements to no more than four minutes in order to enable the Council to carry out its work expeditiously. Delegations with longer statements are kindly requested to circulate the texts in writing and to deliver a condensed version when speaking in the Chamber. I now give the floor to the representative of Morocco.

Mr. Hilale (Morocco) (spoke in French): At the outset, I should like to congratulate you, Sir, on your election as a non-permanent member of the Security Council and on assuming the presidency for the month of January. We believe that Viet Nam will make a significant positive contribution to the work of the Council and we have great confidence in your capable diplomacy. I welcome the presence of the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs of Viet Nam during our debate last Friday. I would like to take this opportunity to congratulate Niger, Tunisia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and Estonia as they begin their terms as non-permanent members and to reiterate my warm thanks to Côte d’Ivoire, Equatorial Guinea, Kuwait, Peru and Poland for their significant contributions to international peace and security over the past two years. I would like to express my heartfelt thanks to the Secretary-General and Mrs. Mary Robinson for their extremely important statements. The theme chosen for this first open debate of 2020 is very symbolic. Indeed, as we prepare to celebrate the seventy-fifth anniversary of the founding of the United Nations, some serious reflection is called for to take stock of the achievements made and identify current challenges. In 1945, at the end of the Second World War, the United Nations was created with the Charter of the United Nations as its founding text, which was conceived as a political contract among nations resting on three pillars: peace and security, development and human rights. The essence of the Charter was and continues to be the maintenance of international peace and security, which today remains the core objective of United Nations operations. The Security Council, which bears the primary responsibility in that area, is dedicated to serve as the guarantor of peace and security in the world. In that context, we welcome the efforts of the Security Council to promote conflict prevention, mediation and the peaceful settlement of disputes, which are fundamental principles enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations. It should also be noted with satisfaction that the Security Council has, over the decades, developed an extensive institutional and legislative framework for tackling emerging global challenges, such as international terrorism and transnational organized crime. However, it is essential that the Council be able to show unity and take joint action when faced with the gravity of current global crises. We also welcome the reforms launched by Secretary-General António Guterres, which have strengthened the role of the United Nations as the leading and authoritative actor in preventing and resolving conflicts and promoting dialogue and political solutions to disputes. In reforming the peace and security architecture, strengthening the principle of sustainable peace and launching the Action for Peacekeeping initiative, those reforms have made it possible to adapt the various bodies, strategies, mechanisms and departments of the United Nations to tackle today’s realities and challenges, with full respect for the provisions of the Charter. Our Charter constitutes the road map of the Organization. It is therefore crucial to safeguard the unity of its message and implement its provisions. To that end, the founding fathers of the United Nations enshrined in the Charter a separation of the functions, powers and prerogatives among the bodies of the Organization and specifically articulated, in Article 12 of the Charter, a distinction between the mandate of the General Assembly and that of the Security Council, by clearly stipulating that: “While the Security Council is exercising in respect of any dispute or situation the functions assigned to it in the present Charter, the General Assembly shall not make any recommendation with regard to that dispute or situation unless the Security Council so requests.” Full respect for this separation is therefore a prerequisite for each body to fulfil its respective mandate and, ultimately, for the proper functioning of the Organization and respect for the Charter. In conclusion, I would like to stress that peace and security will be strengthened when the Charter of the United Nations is fully respected and it is therefore crucial to promote and protect the sacrosanct principles rooted therein — sovereignty, territorial integrity and the national unity of States. As we mark the seventy-fifth anniversary of the founding of our Organization this year, I wish to reaffirm the firm commitment of the Kingdom of Morocco to respect for the Charter and the purposes of the United Nations. Our Organization remains the ideal and indispensable venue for the pursuit of collective, multilateral efforts towards the realization of a world that enjoys peace, security, sustainable development and respect for human rights.

The President: I now give the floor to the representative of Montenegro.

Ms. Šćepanović (Montenegro): At the outset, I wish to congratulate you, Sir, on assuming the presidency of the Security Council and to thank you for organizing this open debate on the theme “Maintenance of international peace and security: Upholding the United Nations Charter”. I would also like to thank both briefers for their valuable contributions. While we fully align ourselves with the statement delivered on behalf of the European Union, I would like to make some additional remarks in my national capacity. Today’s world is completely different from that of 75 years ago, when the United Nations was created. Significant progress has been achieved in eradicating extreme poverty and upholding human rights, as well as in fostering peace, security and international cooperation. However, we live in a rapidly changing world that faces complex global challenges, such as climate change, refugee and migration crises, terrorism, violent extremism and nuclear proliferation. In addressing these challenges, we must uphold the Charter of the United Nations as the cornerstone of a multilateral system that strives to maintain international peace and security, foster friendly ties among nations and ensure respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms for all. We all agree that no country on its own can handle these ever more demanding challenges of modern society. Cooperation is a prerequisite for success, while strong commitment to the vision enshrined in the Charter is imperative. For more than seven decades, the world has faced countless peace and security challenges, while recent developments in the Middle East once again confirm the importance of dialogue and cooperation. We must be aware that any form of long-term instability will make all of us vulnerable. Therefore, it is more crucial than ever to address the root causes of conflict and work to prevent them before they escalate. In so doing, everyone must assume their responsibilities to make the Organization stronger and more efficient. To effectively respond to non-traditional and transnational security challenges, we believe that the Security Council should undergo necessary reforms and demonstrate a stronger and renewed commitment to the tools provided in the Charter. In the year that marks the seventy-fifth anniversary of the founding of the United Nations in an atmosphere of increasingly profound polarization, fragmentation and instability in international relations, and economic and geopolitical uncertainty, it is our common responsibility to reaffirm the true values of United Nations action and efficient multilateralism as the only global solution for the global challenges we face. We must ensure that this global Organization serves as a framework for dialogue and cooperation, guaranteeing that all people can enjoy safety, prosperity and dignity. In conclusion, I wish to reaffirm my country’s strong commitment to the approach defined by the founders of this global Organization, which we accepted in 2006 after restoring our independence and becoming a full- fledged State Member. That is the approach of good- neighbourliness, strongly and resolutely defending universal values and principles, and being a reliable partner in efforts to preserve international peace and security. We believe that every country, regardless of its size or statistics, can by its own example contribute to global solutions and take part in them.

The President: I now give the floor to the representative of Djibouti.

Mr. Doualeh (Djibouti) (spoke in French): At the outset, Djibouti wishes to express its deep gratitude to the delegations of Viet Nam for having convened this open debate on an issue of critical importance for the maintenance of peace and international security. We condemn the terrorist attack of unprecedented violence that brutally claimed the lives of 89 soldiers in Niger. The upsurge in terrorism and violent extremism and the enormous loss of life that they cause is a source of grave concern for the African continent. We must equip ourselves with the appropriate tools and develop a comprehensive approach to stop the perpetrators of such acts aimed at spreading terror and sowing death. Djibouti reiterates its congratulations to the incoming members of the Security Council and wishes them success. (spoke in English) The seventy-fifth anniversary of the adoption of the Charter of the United Nations provides an opportunity to assess the effectiveness of the system of international law and international relations that the Charter put into place and to consider ways to further strengthen this vital institution, which has done so much to safeguard international peace and security and foster economic and social development. Reviewing the Charter’s Preamble, as well as its purposes and principles as set out in Articles 1 and 2, one cannot help but be struck by how the concerns that motivated the Charter’s adoption remain salient today, more than seven decades later. In fact, many of the most urgent challenges currently facing the international community can by their very nature only be effectively addressed through the approach of such collective action as is reflected at the foundation of the United Nations system. As we evaluate the United Nations’ capacity for meeting those global challenges, one is heartened by the central role that the United Nations has already played in advancing the causes of peace, development and self-determination. Indeed, many of the most effective means for resolving disputes are explicitly mentioned in Article 33 of the Charter, which requires parties to a dispute likely to endanger international peace and security to seek its solution by, among other means, negotiation, mediation, arbitration and judicial settlement. Much of the international infrastructure for resolving such disputes is already in place. For example, the Charter’s creation of the International Court of Justice as the United Nations’ principal judicial organ provides for a permanent court to resolve legal disputes between States. It is encouraging to see how frequently States have invoked the Court’s jurisdiction in recent years, not just to resolve disputes concerning international boundaries — which have become increasingly important to address, particularly as the extension of maritime rights to 200 nautical miles or beyond can give rise to disputes over access to ocean-based resources — but also to resolve disputes concerning such varied but important matters as transboundary pollution and human rights. States should be encouraged to make — as Djibouti has done — declarations under article 36, paragraph 2, of the Statute of the Court, accepting the Court’s compulsory jurisdiction. Where a State fails to comply with a judgement of the Court, the Security Council must not hesitate to act under article 94 of the Charter to decide upon measures to give the judgement effect. When the Charter was adopted, most of the world’s peoples were subjected to colonial domination, especially in Africa. That is no longer the case. Much of the credit rightfully belongs to the Organization of African Unity and the United Nations. The Charter refers to the determination of the peoples of the United Nations to “save succeeding generations from the scourge of war, which twice in our lifetime has brought untold sorrow to mankind”. It is a matter of deep regret that the world has often failed to meet that objective. Therefore, there is an urgent need to adapt the tools of the United Nations to current realities and the emerging transnational threats. We also need to collectively reflect on the decision-making process in the Security Council. Continued divisions and conflicts of interpretation of the Charter of the United Nations have undermined the Council’s ability to respond effectively and decisively to emerging crises. Djibouti has joined the two initiatives that have been developed in response to the use of the veto in cases of mass atrocities — the France-Mexico initiative on veto restraint and the Accountability, Coherence and Transparency group code of conduct. The United Nations system offers tools for addressing many of the world’s vexing problems, but to be effective they must be utilized, which in turn requires a greater level of awareness of their availability and the possibilities they hold. Djibouti urges the United Nations to engage in a concerted effort to make those mechanisms available through enhanced training and capacity-building. Under the rules of the African Union, it is indisputable that Djibouti should be the sole candidate of the Group of African States for a seat at the Security Council for the period 2021-2022, at the elections to be held in June. If elected, Djibouti will tirelessly continue to uphold and promote the rules of the United Nations Charter. Together, let us recommit to strengthening the rules-based international order. Together, let us open the new decade from 2020 to 2029 as a decade of the rule of law.

The President: I now give the floor to the representative of Bolivia.

Mr. Cuéllar Suárez (Plurinational State of Bolivia) (spoke in Spanish): At the outset, I would like to convey the gratitude of Her Excellency Karen Longaric Rodríguez, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Bolivia, for the kind invitation extended to her. Unfortunately, she is unable to participate in this debate due to a scheduling conflict, but she asked me to express her congratulations and good wishes on Viet Nam’s assumption of the presidency of the Security Council and organization of this debate on such a key issue for the States Members of the United Nations. We also welcome the participation of Secretary-General António Guterres and Mrs. Mary Robinson, Chair of The Elders. Today, we are going through a particularly challenging time for international peace and security. We live in a time of growing uncertainty and instability for global security. The existence of armed conflicts shows that geographic tensions have persisted or intensified in various parts of the world, as we have seen over recent weeks. Unfortunately, that global uncertainty and instability undermine or threaten to undermine multilateral dialogue for disarmament. As the concern over global instability has grown, so too has our concern for the future and reliability of the global architecture for arms control. In recent years, we have witnessed the constant erosion of various disarmament treaties and agreements and it is evident that there is growing global concern over their future. The challenges facing the Security Council in the fulfilment of its mandate are many and complex. Nevertheless, we believe that those that jeopardize the efforts of the Council and the Organization to avoid the breakdown of international peace and security are also linked to the inadequate implementation of the mechanisms stipulated in the Charter of the United Nations. We are particularly concerned that authoritarian Governments that do not act in accordance with the basic principles of respect for human rights and democratic freedoms in their own countries bring that tension to the international arena, which is frequently the trigger for confrontations or problems of global security. The use of force should never be considered as an alternative. That is very clear. We believe that all countries should exhaust all peaceful means of resolving disputes before employing the use of force as a last resort. The application of that measure must always be occur in line with the principles of the United Nations Charter and exercised within the Security Council in the framework of respect for multilateralism, which underpins our Organization. The effectiveness of our Organization’s efforts to safeguard and maintain international peace and security depends specifically on Members’ respect for and compliance with the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations, as well as the actions implemented through the Council, which must at all times promote dialogue and the peaceful settlement of disputes over the use or threat of use of force. Dialogue requires a dynamic, inclusive and participatory process that promotes mutual understanding and cooperation, with the primary purpose of resolving conflict through the peaceful means set forth in the Charter. The International Court of Justice, as the principal judicial organ of the United Nations, plays a leading role in the peaceful settlement of disputes, as long as the universal jurisdiction with which the Court was conceived and the work it has been carrying out since its creation represent a permanent call for dialogue and always opt for negotiation and peace rather than force and aggression. A comprehensive peace can only be achieved in the context of adequate living conditions for all, without exception, which in turn requires that we recognize our differences and promote dialogue and consensus in order to pave the way for sustainable development at all levels of society so as to fully comply with the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations. Bolivia therefore consistently advocates the peaceful settlement of disputes, good offices, preventive diplomacy, multilateralism and non-interference with respect to State sovereignty — so violated of late, with my country as victim — as well as respect for the independence and territorial integrity of States, which are all universal principles that are recognized by the international community and effective tools to avoid the scourge of armed conflict and its consequences.

The President: I now give the floor to the representative of Austria.

Mr. Kickert (Austria): We would like to thank the delegation of Viet Nam for convening this open debate and giving all interested Member States the chance to express themselves on what is now already the third day of the open debate. Austria aligns itself with the statement of the European Union (see S/PV.8699(Resumption 1)). We have come a long way since 1945. While we may have succeeded in saving humankind from the scourge of a new world war, we have not saved it from regional or national wars and we are still far from realizing fundamental human rights, the dignity and worth of every human person and the equal rights of men and women and of nations large and small, as stipulated in the Preamble to the Charter of the United Nations. Nevertheless, the United Nations, with the Charter at its core, has undeniably proven to be indispensable. Austria strongly believes in multilateralism and that a rules-based international system with clear and predictable rules is an essential precondition for lasting peace and development. As States Members of the United Nations, it is our responsibility to adhere to the Charter and the rule of law at the national and international levels. Lately, as the United Nations Charter, legally binding Security Council resolutions and human rights obligations are being blatantly ignored, one might get the impression that some countries believe they are above the law. In order to uphold the principles of the Charter and the rule of law, it is clear that we must do more. We must further strengthen the prevention of violence and conflict, including in the Council. Early warning and response capacities need to be enhanced, as do national expertise in mediation and preventive diplomacy. Austria is working with partners in the Economic Community of West African States and the Intergovernmental Authority on Development in that regard. Austria supports all means of peaceful settlement of disputes referred to in the United Nations Charter and we call on all Member States to accept, without any reservations, the compulsory jurisdiction of the International Court of Justice, in accordance with Article 36 of the Charter. All States must refrain from actions that are in violation of Article 2, paragraph 4, of the Charter, prohibiting the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any State. We note with concern the increasing number of cases where armed force is applied unilaterally, invoking the inherent right of self-defence pursuant to Article 51 of the Charter. These cases and the fact that other States Members of the United Nations do not publicly express their legal views on each and every case may not be interpreted as a new State practice or opinio juris that might lead to the erosion of Article 2, paragraph 4, of the Charter, which the International Law Commission has determined to be a peremptory norm, or jus cogens. We emphasize the importance of a collective response to threats to international peace and security, which must be guided by the rule of law. In this regard, in situations where Security Council action could prevent or stop violence, it is the Council’s responsibility to do so. Austria urges Security Council members to refrain from using the veto to curtail Security Council action where such action could prevent or stop violence or conflict in accordance with the purposes and principles of the Charter. Austria supports the code of conduct of the Accountability, Coherence and Transparency group as well as the initiative by Mexico and France in that regard. Also, when it comes to Security Council sanctions, fair and clear procedures, including an independent mechanism for review, are a prerequisite for the legitimacy of and compliance with sanctions. While Austria would like to highlight in this regard the vital function of the Office of the Ombudsperson for the Security Council Committee pursuant to resolutions 1267 (1999), 1989 (2011) and 2253 (2015) concerning the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (Da’esh), Al-Qaida and associated individuals, groups, undertakings and entities, we call on the Council to ensure that procedural human rights guarantees are institutionalized in all sanctions regimes. Finally, Austria believes that accountability and the fight against impunity for violations of international human rights and humanitarian law are central to ensuring lasting peace. Austria is a strong supporter of the International Criminal Court (ICC), and we call on the Security Council to refer the situation in Syria to the ICC as well as to ensure cooperation and follow-up in situations it has already referred to the Court. In conclusion, I would like to stress once again that the provisions of the United Nations Charter are legally binding for all States Members of the United Nations. They serve not an abstract goal but the protection of the rights and interests of both States and individuals. The United Nations Charter is the cornerstone of the rule of law at the international level. Austria, also in its role as coordinator of the Group of Friends of the Rule of Law, will continue to give utmost priority to this subject.

The President: I now give the floor to the representative of Brunei Darussalam.

Ms. Sulaiman (Brunei Darussalam): I would like to congratulate Viet Nam on assuming this month’s presidency of the Council and to thank you, Sir, for having organized this timely and important debate, particularly as we commemorate the seventy-fifth anniversary of this body. I would also like to thank the Secretary-General, António Guterres, and the Chair of The Elders, Mrs. Mary Robinson, for their remarks. Brunei Darussalam aligns itself with the statements delivered by the representatives of Azerbaijan and the Philippines, on behalf of the Movement of Non-Aligned Countries and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), respectively (see S/PV.8699, Res.1). The United Nations was born after two world wars that made it crucial for nations to come together in forging collective peace and security and preventing another such global destruction. Seventy-five years on, the United Nations has no equal. As the world becomes increasingly interconnected, its mandate has also evolved, but our lofty goal of sustained peace remains constant. The United Nations Charter has been the cornerstone of the success of the Organization. It has been a meaningful compass that has seen us through both significant advancements and difficult times. The Charter has also been a means of empowerment, especially for small States such as ours. We firmly believe that the security and well-being of our country are ensured in a rules-based international order, with strict adherence to the principles of the Charter. It has ensured our equal participation in pursuing the goals of achieving international peace, security and development, along with the rest of the world. It bears recalling that we are meeting here, at the United Nations, where multilateralism and diplomacy are at the core of our work. And yet we do so against the backdrop of a backsliding on multilateralism. Thus today’s debate provides an opportune moment of self- reflection, with a focus on our concerted efforts in respecting and upholding the United Nations Charter. As great and as many as our differences may be, it is evident that the Charter has been an effective commonality that has contributed to our overall unity. The effectiveness of the United Nations is contingent on each and every Member State upholding the Charter. On its part, Brunei Darussalam reaffirms the principles and purposes of the Charter that govern our conduct in the international arena and recognizes it as a key document to guide the Security Council in implementing its mandate of maintaining international peace and security. We are mindful that much more needs to be done. We continue to see conflicts all over the globe that have resulted in the loss of lives as well as distress and much suffering. We share the concern that security developments and the escalation of conflicts in many parts of the world could weaken our resolve to achieve our common goals. We continue to look to the leadership of the Security Council for global collective security and stress the importance of engaging regional organizations such as ASEAN. Such partnerships are crucial to addressing global challenges. Indeed, a big part of ASEAN’s identity is our shared commitment to upholding the United Nations Charter and international law, as enshrined in the ASEAN Charter. On that note, we are committed to seeing a more robust ASEAN-United Nations partnership in enhancing ASEAN’s capacity in preventive diplomacy and conflict prevention as well as peacekeeping for the maintenance of peace and stability. These are vital tools that are conducive to an environment of trust and constructive cooperation and promote the peaceful settlement of disputes without resort to the threat or use of force. For Brunei Darussalam, the United Nations Charter is not merely an abstract concept. It has moral and legal significance for big and small countries alike. We look to the Security Council’s moral and persuasive authority to further demonstrate the principles and fundamentals contained therein for the maintenance of international peace and security. On our part, we will always strive to achieve congruence between those principles and our own conduct in world affairs.

The President: I now give the floor to the representative of Turkey.

Mr. Varli (Turkey): The rules-based international system is experiencing what is perhaps its gravest crisis since its emergence after the Second World War. For some, multilateralism is no longer the best way to work for global security and prosperity. Consensus- building and compromise are viewed not as virtues of strength but as signs of weakness. Long-standing legal norms have been eroded. The threat of force is used all too frequently. As a result, people are losing faith in international institutions, including the United Nations, which are viewed as ineffective and weak. Despite the narrative of some about the failure of multilateralism, it has produced many success stories over the past seven decades. It developed a culture and ethics of peace, as well as institutions, and adopted rules. These institutions and rules help us resolve conflicts and enable us to establish norms and platforms for dealing with global challenges, from climate change to weapons of mass destruction. That is why we have to protect multilateralism and defend international rules, norms, agreements and institutions. That is why we must take up the multilateral agenda with a renewed commitment; relaunch the narrative of multilateralism; and show the added value of international cooperation. This effort can start with evoking the spirit and letter of the United Nations Charter. The United Nations Charter is resilient and remains visionary, with its articulation of universal values, its grounding in peace, development, human rights and the rule of law, and its vision of countries living as good neighbours and sharing a common fate and future. It remains our most valuable legacy for future generations. Yet young people need to better understand the Charter and the United Nations system. They need to know what it would be like to live in a world governed by no rules at all or by a set of rules imposed by the most powerful among us. The seventy-fifth anniversary of the United Nations offers us a compelling opportunity to educate young people about the values of the United Nations Charter and the achievements of the United Nations system. We need to teach them that the United Nations is our unique platform to deal with global challenges, from climate change to weapons of mass destruction, and that the United Nations system must be saved. We must also remember that the Charter confers on the Security Council the primary responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security. The success of the Council is, in the eyes of many, indelibly linked to the credibility of the United Nations as a whole. When the Security Council fails, the United Nations fails and people lose faith in multilateralism. When the Council succeeds, it is a victory for the Charter and the rules-based international system. The Security Council therefore needs to fulfil its mission as the primary United Nations organ for maintaining international peace and security. Before I conclude, I must use my right of reply with regard to some statements made last week (see S/PV.8699). The representative of the Syrian regime repeated, as usual, delusional references to my country. Let me underline that the Syrian regime, which is responsible for massacring and torturing countless people for more than eight years, lost its legitimacy long ago. Let me also remind representatives that millions of Syrians have suffered and continue to suffer countless crimes at the hands of the regime. The representative of the Syrian regime is therefore not our legitimate counterpart. Also during last week’s meeting, Egypt made some misleading remarks with reference to the recent memorandums of understanding (MOUs) signed by Turkey and Libya. I would like to remind the delegation of Egypt that the MOUs that Turkey signed with Libya’s sole legitimate Government not only are in full compliance with international law and the relevant resolution 2259 (2015) but also seek to strengthen peace, security and stability in the eastern Mediterranean region.

The President: I now give the floor to the representative of the Lao People’s Democratic Republic.

Mr. Vongxay (Lao People’s Democratic Republic): At the outset, let me express my delegation’s sincere congratulations to the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam on its election to the Security Council and on its assumption of the presidency of the Council for the month of January. My delegation associates itself with the statements delivered by the representatives of Azerbaijan and the Philippines on behalf of the Movement of Non-Aligned Countries and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, respectively (see S/PV.8699 Resumption 1 and S/PV.8699). I am honoured to speak at this important open debate, which is timely and of great importance as the international community marks the seventy-fifth anniversary of the United Nations. Since its inception, the United Nations has made significant achievements on many fronts, making substantial contributions to the maintenance and promotion of international peace and security. The Security Council has the primary responsibility for maintaining international peace and security by performing its duties in accordance with the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations. At the same time, Member States agree to accept and carry out the decisions of the Security Council. All that demonstrates that the role of the United Nations remains very relevant after more than seven decades. The international community now faces ever- increasing challenges, which include, among others, armed conflicts, terrorism, extremism, political unrest, climate change, natural disasters, widening inequality and extreme poverty. The current situation poses serious threats to international peace and security and sustainable development in various parts of the world. We are therefore of the view that it is high time for all countries to reaffirm their strong political will and commitment to strengthening multilateralism by upholding the United Nations Charter and international law, in particular the principles of the sovereign equality, independence and territorial integrity of States, non-interference in their internal affairs and the peaceful settlement of disputes, in seeking to address the current challenges and promote international relations. The Lao People’s Democratic Republic recognizes that, without peace, development cannot take root and human rights cannot be upheld. Therefore, supporting multilateralism, enhancing cooperation at all levels and creating a conducive environment for peace and development are of great importance. In that connection, the United Nations system, especially the Security Council, should further strengthen its efforts and central role in the maintenance of international peace and security, while every Member State should honour its commitments and fulfil its international obligations and responsibilities in good faith. Let me conclude by stressing the importance of making the United Nations more effective, more responsive and more relevant to all and by calling for collective political will and a renewed commitment to upholding the United Nations Charter and international law.

The President: I now give the floor to the representative of the Mozambique.

Mr. Gumende (Mozambique): At the outset, on behalf of the Government of the Republic of Mozambique, I would like to congratulate the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam on assuming the presidency of the Security Council for the first month of its current term as a non-permanent member of the Council. We also welcome the other new non-permanent members of the Council, namely, Estonia, the Niger, Saint Vincent and Grenadines and Tunisia, and wish them success in their endeavours to represent all of us in this very important organ of the United Nations. Allow me to extend greetings from His Excellency José Pacheco, Minister for Foreign Affairs and Cooperation of Mozambique, who asked me to convey this message of gratitude to the Deputy Prime Minister of Viet Nam for the kind invitation to attend this important and timely gathering marking the seventy- fifth anniversary of the signing of the Charter of the United Nations. Regrettably, previous commitments related to the recent elections in Mozambique prevented him from attending this important meeting. Mozambique wishes to align itself with the statement delivered by the representative of Azerbaijan on behalf of the Movement of Non-Aligned Countries (see S/PV.8699 Resumption 1). We gather here at a time of great anxiety, when menacing clouds of conflict and insecurity threaten to engulf several regions of the world in a never-ending spiral of instability, as recent events in different parts of the world attest. As Secretary-General António Guterres recently stated with his usual frankness “[w] e are living in dangerous times And this turbulence is escalating.” Indeed, as the logic of peace and mutual respect is being drowned out by the rhetoric of war and confrontation, the international community and particularly the Security Council, the central organ responsible under the Charter for upholding international peace and security, is called upon to assert its role in pursuit of the noble goal of peace and stability across the globe. In the same vein, it is incumbent on the rest of the membership to remember the role of the Charter in guaranteeing international peace and security, as clearly outlined in its Preamble: “to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war”. Whatever differences may perhaps exist in assessing the track record of the United Nations in upholding the ideals and principles of the Charter, it is undoubtedly true that, over the past seven decades, the Organization has developed as an essential platform for the promotion of global governance, in which States can debate, shape, articulate and develop international law and norms in areas such as human rights, international trade, the sea, space, cyberspace and combating terrorism and violent extremism. While the spotlight is invariably and appropriately shined on the mandate of the Security Council in matters of international peace and security, the Government of Mozambique welcomes the increasing attention that the nexus between security and development is receiving from national, regional, international and transnational actors. As the Secretary-General repeatedly stresses, development and security are inextricably linked. In that regard, Mozambique welcomes the work undertaken to enhance conflict prevention, as well as that of the Peacebuilding Commission to help the sustainable recovery of nations emerging from conflict. We call for the allocation of adequate resources to that body in order to better address the broader demands of providing sustainable human security, which, by emphasizing the principles of freedom from want and freedom from fear, constitutes an integral dimension of international peace and security. The Sustainable Development Goals are intrinsically linked to human security. They can be achieved only if the right conditions for international peace and security exist, under which broader political freedoms and stability, as well as economic prosperity, thrive and existential challenges to humankind, such as climate change, can collectively be addressed. Since the Charter was adopted, we have witnessed the growing emergence of new forms of threats and conflicts, such as intra-State conflicts, insecurity, terrorism and violent extremism. Naturally, those challenges require the Security Council to reform its composition and working methods and readjust its approach in the light of the current reality of the world of the twenty-first century. In conclusion, I would like to call upon to the international community to seize the momentum of the seventy-fifth anniversary of the Charter to rise up to the ambition of those men and women who more than seven decades ago in the city of San Francisco achieved the far-reaching vision that set up the foundations for this important institution. That vision has indeed stood the test of time. It has enabled humankind to avert many catastrophes and continues to give a sense of purpose to the lofty ideals of a peaceful world, as encapsulated in the opening preamble of the Charter, which continues to represent our collective will to seek multilateral solutions to the multifaceted challenges that humankind has encountered over the past 75 years.

The President: I now give the floor to the representative of Malta.

Ms. Frazier (Malta): We thank Viet Nam for organizing this open debate on the importance of upholding the Charter of the United Nations to maintain peace and security, and we wish Viet Nam and the new elected members of the Security Council a successful and productive term. I also take this opportunity to thank the Secretary-General and Mrs. Mary Robinson for their inspiring and insightful statements. Malta fully aligns itself with the statement delivered by the Permanent Observer of the European Union (see S/PV.8699 (Resumption 1)), and I would like to add a few remarks in my national capacity. The Charter of the United Nations, which all Member States have the obligation to uphold, promotes the maintenance of international peace and security as one of its main tenets, conferring this responsibility upon the Security Council under Article 23. Member States repeatedly underscore their commitment to upholding the values and principles enshrined in the Charter, yet the work of the Security Council and the United Nations as a whole is required now more than ever before. Such debates have become increasingly important as we recognize the crucial role of the international multilateral system in managing an ever-more interconnected world. Geopolitical tensions, disarmament, migration and climate change, among others, are challenges that require a common response. As a State that embraces the principles and responsibilities of the United Nations Charter, strengthening the international multilateral system has been a constant pillar of Malta’s foreign policy since it joined the Organization in 1964. The Charter provides a common safety net for inter-State relations in the pursuit of peace and security. The prevention and resolution of conflicts, peace negotiations, peacebuilding, peacekeeping, humanitarian responses and post-conflict reconstruction remain at the core of the United Nations work. Upholding the United Nations Charter also means that all Member States — in particular members of the Security Council, which represent the general membership in their deliberation and decisions — recognize their responsibility to fulfil the principles of the Charter. As we look towards celebrating the seventy-fifth anniversary of the United Nations, we are aware that, in order to ensure that the legacy of the important Organization lives on, we need to act now. Over the past years, the international community has time and time again sought to promote collective action to address pending issues and seek solutions. There has always been a tendency to be reactionary, thereby yielding positive, albeit limited, results. We cannot shy away from working together. Global issues require global solutions. We need to revitalize and refocus our efforts by stressing that only through multilateral endeavours can we secure lasting solutions. Effective multilateralism remains the best way to advance the national, as well as the collective, interest. To echo what the Secretary-General said just a few days ago, we need to stop escalation, exercise maximum restraint, restart dialogue and renew international cooperation.

The President: I now give the floor to the representative of Lebanon.

Ms. Mudallali (Lebanon): I would like to congratulate Viet Nam on assuming the presidency of the Security Council this month and for holding this important open debate during a milestone year for the United Nations — the seventy-fifth anniversary of the Organization, which embodies the sum of the collective memory and achievements of humankind of more than three-quarters of a century and its hope for the future. I would also to thank the Deputy Prime Minister of Viet Nam for presiding over this debate earlier last week, the Secretary-General, Mr. António Guterres, and the Chair of the Elders, Mrs. Mary Robinson, for their interventions. I would also like to congratulate the new non-permanent members — Tunisia, Estonia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and the Niger — on starting their two-year term on the Security Council and wish them the best of luck. Lebanon, is proud to have been one of the founding Members of the United Nations and to have been represented in San Francisco 75 years ago. Lebanon is also honoured to be one of a handful of countries that drafted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. A country with such a legacy and history does not look at the United Nations as a mere organization, regardless of its limitations and shortcomings; it sees it as the best hope for humankind, especially for small States. Lebanon sees the United Nations, as all small States do, as the guarantee of its sovereignty and independence, and views it as the embodiment of a rules-based system in which all enjoy equal rights and the principle of sovereign equality, as Article 2 of the Charter of the United Nations promises. In San Francisco, the then Governor of California, Earl Warren, addressed the attendees of the United Nations Conference on International Organization and said that, “We have learned that understanding of one another’s problems is the greatest assurance of peace”. It is this peace and the determination to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war that have guided the work of Member States over the past seven decades with successes, as well as failures. At the United Nations, the world community has achieved many successes over the past 75 years in political, economic, and social issues. Human rights and their protection around the world — no matter how imperfect — are one of the success stories. With regard to gender, it should be remembered that only 4 out of the 850 representatives who signed the Charter were women. We have come a long way, but we still have a long way to go. In conflicts around the world today, people say that the United Nations did this or failed to do that, but we all forget that, as my predecessor Ambassador Charles Malik put it, the United Nations in its activities mirrors the objective political realities of the world. Let us all look in the mirror, and we will find the answers to what ails our world. Some expect the United Nations to achieve miracles, as if the United Nations had a power of its own, independent of its components. Conflicts are mushrooming and becoming resistant to solution. Nature and the environment have been under attack. Force, not the rule of law, is the guiding principle instead of the last resort. Inequality is becoming the norm, especially in international relations. Member States are doing this to themselves and to others. Seventy-five years ago, the world came together and we committed ourselves to upholding the set of principles enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations. President Truman, at the conclusion of the San Francisco Conference, considered the failure to fulfil our commitment to the principles of the Charter as an act of betrayal. He warned that, “If we seek to use [the Charter] selfishly — for the advantage of any one nation or any small group of nations — we shall be equally guilty of that betrayal.” It is the responsibility of all Member States not to betray the ideals upon which the United Nations was built. The more power a country has, the greater its responsibility to uphold the Charter and its principles. The Charter entrusts the Security Council with maintaining international peace and security. There are a number of conditions that are necessary for the Council to succeed in its mission. First, concerning the unity of the Council, when the Security Council is blocked and prevented from taking any meaningful decisions, it is not fulfilling its responsibilities under the Charter. The unity of the Council is more urgent today than ever, as the multilateral system is facing many critical tests and conflicts are multiplying. Secondly, with regard to leading by example, Council members are the City on the Hill for the world. They should let their actions speak louder than their speeches when it comes to their commitment to the peaceful resolution of conflicts and world peace. Thirdly, the Security Council should stop the practice of double standards and implement its resolutions, especially those that affect peace and security and are related to ending occupation, mass atrocities and human rights. In Article 1, the Charter makes prevention the foremost priority in maintaining peace and security. The Secretary-General, Mr. Guterres, considers the inability to achieve prevention the most serious shortcoming of the international community. Prevention should become our overarching concern — in this building, and around the world. The international community has been too preoccupied by crisis overload around the world to be able to focus on prevention. But we have to remember that it is easier, cheaper and more humane to prevent crises than to have to deal with their consequences. In conclusion, I would like to join the voices of the more than one hundred countries that took the floor during this debate and reaffirmed their commitment to the Charter and its principles. Lebanon is going through difficult times, as it has on many occasions in its history. But like the phoenix behind the President, which symbolizes rebirth, Lebanon, the phoenix of the East, will rise again.

The President: I now give the floor to the representative of Bahrain.

Mr. Hatem (Bahrain) (spoke in Arabic): At the outset, I offer our sincere condolences to the people and the Government of the sisterly Sultanate of Oman on the death of His late Majesty Sultan Qaboos Bin Said. We pray to the Almighty to envelope him with mercy and grant the people and the Government of the Sultanate of Oman patience and solace. We thank you, Mr. President, for holding this meeting against the backdrop of tense and accelerating international circumstances that make it necessary and important to uphold the Charter of the United Nations if international peace and security is to be maintained. We also commend you, Sir, as well as your delegation, on the skilful steering of the work of the Council this month. Further, we wish to thank Secretary-General António Guterres and Mrs. Mary Robinson, Chair of The Elders, for their valuable briefings (see S/PV.8699). This year the world celebrates the seventy-fifth anniversary of the United Nations, whose Charter remains the principal reference for States as they strive to resolve international conflicts and maintain international peace and security through negotiations, enquiry, mediation, reconciliation, arbitration and judicial settlement, or through resorting to regional agencies and arrangements, or through other peaceful means. The Kingdom of Bahrain believes in the importance of implementing the provisions of the Charter and the resolutions of the United Nations, which assert the principles of non-interference in the internal affairs of States, commitment to good-neighbourliness, mutual respect, the peaceful settlement of crises, and cooperation in combating terrorism, extremism and cross-border terrorism. We also need to strengthen our collective efforts in order to guard against some States using conflicts to advance agendas that threaten others’ national and international security. In conclusion, we, the international community, should support reconciliation efforts that have a bearing on the promotion of the rule of law. This approach calls all of us to prioritize the supreme interest of committing to the purposes and principles of the United Nations Charter. We reiterate that the Kingdom of Bahrain will continue to engage with international partners and the United Nations to achieve the foregoing noble goals, as well as the goals of peacefully settling disputes and achieving security and stability in all States across the globe.

The President: I now give the floor to the representative of Angola.

Ms. Ferreira (Angola): First of all, I would like to join my colleagues in congratulating Viet Nam on assuming the presidency of the Security Council for the month of January. We also congratulate the other newly elected members of the Security Council: Estonia, Tunisia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, and the Niger. We would also like to thank Secretary-General António Guterres for his timely briefing (see S/PV.8699) and exceptional guidance on this important issue. We align ourselves with the statement made by the Permanent Representative of Azerbaijan on behalf of the Movement of Non-Aligned Countries (see S/PV.8699 (Resumption 1)). At the outset, allow me to reiterate my Government’s concern with the escalating tensions in the Middle East, including increasingly hostile confrontations, which have the potential to plunge the region into another deadly cycle of violence. As we gather in this Chamber today to discuss the importance of upholding the Charter of the United Nations, we urge all sides, under the terms of Chapter VI, to use all available peaceful means of resolution, and that any military intervention be approved by the Security Council. Given that in June we will all celebrate the seventy- fifth anniversary of the United Nations Charter, we would like to take this opportunity to reaffirm our commitment to upholding its principles. As our President, His Excellency Mr. João Manuel Gonçalves Lourenço, mentioned in September during the general debate of the General Assembly at its seventy-fourth session, specifically in the context of international peace and security, multilateralism is the only way to resolve the conflicts that plague the different regions of the world (see A/74/PV.4). The Government of Angola has always supported the notion that the United Nations Charter is one of the most important global safeguards against international crimes. In that regard, the Republic of Angola respects and applies the principles of the United Nations Charter and the African Union Charter, seeking to establish friendly and cooperative relations with all States and peoples based on the principles of respect for national sovereignty and independence; equality among States; the right of peoples to self-determination and independence; the peaceful settlement of conflicts; respect for human rights; the non-interference in the internal affairs of other States; reciprocity of advantages; the repudiation and combating of terrorism, drug trafficking, racism, corruption and trafficking in human beings and organs; and cooperation with all peoples for peace, justice and the progress of humankind. However, when we assess how the challenges that we face around the world have evolved and how the drivers of conflict have become more complex, and when we see that the consequences of instability now have far-reaching consequences and create new threats on a global scale, it is crucial that we all contribute to the efforts being made to reform the United Nations, which span the areas of peace and security, development and management, in order to make the Organization and its Member States more effective in fulfilling the Charter’s vision. During our tenure in the Security Council, we underscored the importance of promoting international peace and security by placing more emphasis on prevention. It is well known that the international community spends far more time and resources responding to crises than in preventing them, and that, through cooperation at the United Nations, we must rebalance our approach to achieving and maintaining international peace and security by finding more effective ways to help countries avert the outbreak of crises. Chapter VI of the Charter describes the tools that are available for the purpose of conflict prevention, namely, negotiation, enquiry, mediation, conciliation, arbitration, judicial settlement and other peaceful measures and means. The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development is a direct and commendable product of such tools and offers an integrated framework to address the economic and social drivers of conflict and to build stable societies, including through a focus on institutions and the rule of law. In the same vein, Chapter VIII of the Charter recognizes the value of regional arrangements and agencies as a first resort to the pacific settlement of local disputes. Regional perspectives are critical to understanding the challenges that we face, while regional capacity-building is crucial for rapid deployment. As part of the African Union and other regional organizations in Africa, we believe that regional ownership is essential for effective solutions to take root. In this regard, we welcome and fully support the dynamic partnership between the African Union and the United Nations, anchored in the two framework agreements on peace and security and in the alignment of the 2030 Agenda with Africa’s Agenda 2063 because we firmly believe that conflict prevention depends crucially on advancing sustainable and inclusive development. We also believe that if we are to successfully address the challenge of immigration, as well as the threats of climate change and rising inequality, we must continue to build on these established frameworks. Given the constraints of time, I will conclude my statement by reminding all States Members of the United Nations, in particular the members of the Security Council, that in order to effectively respond to non-traditional and transnational security challenges, such as climate change, terrorism, violent extremism, nuclear proliferation and cross-border insecurity, the Security Council has to be reformed in order to be more flexible in its decision-making process. This has to happen not only because international peace and security issues are at a critical juncture, but because multilateralism is also under threat. Multilateralism cannot be upheld by one Member State or a group of States. Therefore, the United Nations, and specifically the Security Council, must continue to improve its working relations with other interconnected pillars of the United Nations system and also increase its focus on the concept of sustaining peace.

The President: I now give the floor to the representative of Bulgaria.

Mr. Panayotov (Bulgaria): At the outset, allow me to express my county’s gratitude to Viet Nam, Deputy Prime Minister Pham Binh Minh, and to you, Mr. President, for convening today’s open debate dedicated to a fundamentally important topic — upholding the United Nations Charter for the maintenance of international peace and security. It is a privilege and honour for me to be here today to engage in this discussion. My country fully aligns itself with the statement delivered by the observer of the European Union (see S/PV.8699). Seventy-five years ago, the drafters of the Charter of the United Nations wisely and humbly acknowledged that global peace and security can be restored and sustained only by collective efforts. They, who twice in their lifetimes suffered the devastating effects of war, managed to choose the path of cooperation, instead of confrontation, and to set the foundation of a new, more just and rules-based global order. The United Nations and its Charter are the legacy and the promise to future generations that all peace-loving nations will be equal and have the right and responsibility to settle their international disputes by non-violent means. Since then, our world has faced multiple shifts. Despite the ever-changing circumstances, the United Nations Charter, particularly its purposes and principles, has proved its role as a cornerstone in upholding the international rule of law and maintaining global peace and security. To keep the momentum, and for our common benefit, we need to reconfirm its relevance and validity on the eve of its seventy-fifth anniversary. Nowadays, we witness security challenges of an increasingly complex nature. Just a few days ago, the Secretary-General stated that geopolitical tensions are at their highest level since the beginning of the new millennium. This is particularly relevant for the Middle East, where utmost restraint and de-escalation are crucial now to prevent violence from spiralling out of control and developments that may have detrimental consequences. Addressing some of the newly arising threats, such as terrorism, violent extremism, asymmetric and hybrid attacks, space and cyberwarfare, requires qualitatively new levels of international cooperation and dialogue, whose foundations lie at the core of the United Nations system and its Charter. In addition to our commitment to the United Nations Charter, Bulgaria has lent its full support to the Alliance for Multilateralism and Good Human Rights Stories, two recently launched initiatives that further contribute to building a stable and secure world. Against the backdrop of the current international tensions, the Republic of Bulgaria shares the deep concern about the crisis of multilateralism. Many multilateral agreements and institutions, including those in the field of non-proliferation and arms control, which for years have served us well, now suffer from lack of consensus, stalemate and even violations. We firmly believe that only through multilateralism will our nations be able to preserve international security and stability and build upon the achievements of the rules-based global system. The moment is critical, and active engagement and concerted collective efforts are needed now more than ever. With a view to strengthening multilateralism, Bulgaria also stresses the importance of good- neighbourly relations, regional stability and mutual cooperation and puts special emphasis on finding and implementing definitive, inclusive and binding solutions to bilateral disputes in the Western Balkans and on dedicating additional efforts to reconciliation. Today’s commitment to respecting and upholding the United Nations Charter will be our nations’ joint legacy for succeeding generations. Commemorating the sixty-fifth anniversary of its membership in the United Nations, the Republic of Bulgaria joins all those who continue to advocate global peace, international rule of law, respect for human rights and mutually benefiting sustainable development.

The President: I now give the floor to the representative of Eritrea.

Ms. Tesfamariam (Eritrea): My delegation wishes to congratulate Viet Nam for assuming the presidency of the Security Council for the month of January and for convening today’s timely debate entitled “Maintenance of international peace and security: upholding the United Nations Charter”. I would like to take this opportunity to welcome His Excellency Mr. Pham Binh Minh, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs of Viet Nam, and thank the Secretary-General and Mrs. Robinson for their statements last week (see S/PV.8699). The United Nations came about primarily to monitor and maintain international peace and security after the devastation, destruction and dire humanitarian conditions caused by the Second World War. Established in 1945, the creation of the Organization was a deliberate attempt to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war. The Charter of the United Nations was the means to do just that. The Charter gave the Security Council the primary responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security and provided the procedures to handle international disputes and prevent their escalation. The Charter and organizations of the United Nations are necessary for mediating relations among States, protecting common principles and promoting common values and material well-being. The Charter has been described as the world’s central operating system — the motherboard of global governance — which has borne such ideas as the Millennium Development Goals and, today, the Sustainable Development Goals, which have been embraced globally. At the present time, generations around the world are living in conditions of poverty and peacelessness, where human development, dignity and security remain elusive. Despite the fact that Article 2 of the United Nations Charter calls on countries to refrain in their international relations from the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any State, today, there are wars being waged in total disregard for the Charter of the United Nations and its principles, and the sovereign rights of States enshrined in the Charter are wilfully ignored. Our world has witnessed and continues to witness massive atrocities, mass destruction and slaughter. We have failed to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war, and the Security Council’s efficacy is being questioned by suffering people everywhere. The Security Council has been ineffective and inconsistent in securing peace in our world. In some instances, its actions have contributed to untenable situations, thereby prolonging the suffering of millions in the process. Many populations around the world are grappling with intractable conflicts beyond their capacities, and the Security Council remains impotent, constrained by geopolitical considerations, double standards and conflicting interests. And when it does act, the Council’s actions tend to revolve around managing crises, rather than ending them. The Security Council’s credibility, integrity and efficacy have been undermined, there are many factors contributing to this reality. For brevity’s sake, Eritrea wishes to highlight three of them. The first is the less-than-strict observance of the principles of the United Nations Charter. Eritrea reiterates the importance and validity of collective security by fully adhering to the United Nations Charter in order to deter war and advance peace. One of the pillars of the United Nations Charter is for nations to live by their commitments. Treaty commitments are sacrosanct. States should not be allowed to cherry-pick, and the Security Council should also be duty bound to enforce peace accords. Secondly, in terms of invoking Chapter VII, this Chapter should be applied only when the situation warrants it. However, at times, the Security Council has acted ultra vires, leading to the imposition of unjust and illegal sanctions on States. The Council has broadly construed its powers under Chapter VII and expanded its jurisdiction from traditional matters of security to new spheres previously under the purview of other organs and non-United Nations entities. The Council has also, over time, assumed quasi-legislative and quasi-judicial functions, straining conceptions of propriety and institutional competence. Discordant Council practice has resulted in a blurring of the lines between the ordinary powers and functions allotted to the Council and those extraordinary powers reserved for situations constituting, at a minimum, threats to international peace and security, thus giving rise to the need for transparent rules and procedures for invoking Chapters VI and VII. Thirdly, with regard to Council’s agenda, there is a tendency towards the entrenchment of situations in which Chapter VII has been invoked. Although the Council may have explicitly concluded its consideration of an item and removed it from the list of matters of which the Council is seized, it has done so with great infrequency, and, in some instances, matters have remained on the Council’s agenda for extended periods, which leads to a lack of clarity in assessing both the purpose and the end point of Council responses to threats to peace; it also allows for the routinization of exception. Clarity and consistency are similarly essential in resolutions pertaining to mandate evolution and termination. Otherwise, overriding political considerations could lead to selective and inappropriate application of the rules. Adherence to its mandate under the United Nations Charter will enhance the Council’s credibility, efficacy, integrity and reputation, as well as the confidence of Member States in its decisions. In 2020, in addition to the seventy-fifth anniversary of the United Nations, the global community will mark the twenty-fifth anniversary of the Fourth World Conference on Women and the adoption of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action. As we enter the decade of action in pursuit of the Sustainable Development Goals, African Union’s Agenda 2063 and the Silencing the Guns by 2020 initiative, a renewed and concerted effort by us all towards the full achievement of peace, security and development will be required. The Council can count on Eritrea’s continued support to that end.

The President: I now give the floor to the representative of Nepal.

Mr. Bhandari (Nepal): At the outset, I would like to congratulate you, Mr. President, and the delegation of Viet Nam, on your assumption of the presidency of the Security Council this month and to extend our best wishes for a successful tenure. I further thank the presidency for convening this timely open debate. I also congratulate the new non-permanent members of the Council and wish them success in their mandates. I align my statement with the statement delivered by Azerbaijan on behalf of the Movement of Non-Aligned Countries (see S/PV.8699 (Resumption 1)). The Charter of the United Nations is the embodiment of the aspirations of people to universal peace, security and prosperity. The principles enshrined in the Charter, including respect for national sovereignty, territorial integrity, peaceful settlement of disputes and non-interference in the internal affairs of States, constitute the fundamental basis for the peaceful world we all want to live in. As we approach the seventy-fifth anniversary of the United Nations, it is time to acknowledge the achievements the United Nations has made in the maintenance of international peace and security. We also need to commend it for its role in reducing poverty and promoting sustainable development. However, we must concede that the world is not yet free from poverty, inequality, conflict, climate crisis and terrorism, among other scourges. This is where the roots of the problems in our efforts to maintaining international peace and security lie. No one is spared those problems as they transcend the boundaries and borders of societies, nations and regions. In this context, we believe that, more than ever, the world needs to reassert its faith in the principles of the United Nations Charter and multilateralism. We must reflect further and work together to address the challenges facing the world. I am proud to inform the Council that the Constitution of Nepal recognizes the United Nations Charter and its principles as guiding principles of Nepal’s foreign policy. Since 1958, three years after joining the United Nations, Nepal has contributed its peacekeepers to United Nations peace operations in an effort to maintain international peace and security. The role of the United Nations in the maintenance of international peace and security has been included in the school-level curriculum to increase the awareness of Nepali citizens from a formative age. As the birthplace of Lord Buddha, Nepal’s culture and world view are imbued with peace, compassion and harmony. Nepal believes that while strict observance of the United Nations Charter is essential, our efforts must also be focused on enhancing the Charter’s centrality and indispensability in multilateralism. We also believe that the United Nations needs continuous reforms to adapt to evolving challenges. The reform efforts should make the United Nations more responsive to the development needs of countries, including, inter alia, least developed countries, landlocked developing countries and small island developing States. Failure to adapt to changing realities may make fulfilling the purposes of the United Nations an increasingly unrealistic proposition. In conclusion, there is no alternative to peace, and we, the people of the United Nations, have no choice but to build a stronger United Nations to maintain peace and security where each and every Member State, large or small, rich or poor, has an equal opportunity to prosper and grow in harmony.

The President: I now give the floor to the representative of Senegal.

Mr. Barro (Senegal) (spoke in French): I wish to convey to Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs of Viet Nam, His Excellency Mr. Pham Binh Minh, the regrets of Mr. Amadou Ba, Minister for Foreign Affairs and Senegalese Abroad, who was unable to take part in this important debate due to time constraints. Allow me also to reiterate my warm congratulations to the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam, and to all the new members, on their accession to this prestigious Council, and to express our appreciation for the relevance of this debate. I would also like to thank Secretary-General António Guterres for both his very informative statement and for his commendable efforts, which have brought tangible progress in terms of respect for the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations, particularly in the context of operations for the maintenance of international peace and security. My delegation aligns itself with the statements delivered by the representative of the Republic of Azerbaijan on behalf of the Movement of Non-Aligned Countries (see S/PV.8699 (Resumption 1)) and by the African members of the Security Council (see S/PV.8699). The complexity of today’s international environment gives us no choice but to remain faithful to the principles and purposes underpinning the establishment of the United Nations, namely, the sovereign equality of States, non-interference in the internal affairs of States, the peaceful settlement of disputes and refraining from the use or the threat of the use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of a State. Moreover, these purposes and principles are the recipe for the peaceful and secure world to which we so much aspire. Their violation creates conditions conducive to the emergence of various threats, such as armed conflicts, aggressive expansionist policies, terrorism and violent extremism, separatism, intercommunal conflicts and transnational organized crime. That is why the ongoing quest for peace and security challenges all of us and requires from each and every one of us a high level of awareness of the imperative of respecting the purposes and principles enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations, the fundamental law of our planet. However, preserving the Charter requires, above all, the promotion of multilateralism, the foundation on which the United Nations was built. We would like to recall that, acting alone, we cannot meet the challenges of today’s world. It is fundamentally the weakening of multilateralism through the proliferation of unilateral actions that encourages repeated violations of the Charter and further undermines the gains made, at the cost of immeasurable efforts and sacrifices, in the area of peace and security since the end of the Second World War. The current situation in the Middle East amply demonstrates that causal relationship. In that connection, we express our serious concerns about the escalation of violence and the untold suffering of the civilian population and we call on the parties to show greater restraint and to negotiate with a view to reaching a successful outcome to all the conflicts. We cannot stress enough that multilateralism also means respecting others, accepting differences and recognizing the equality of all peoples, as clearly set forth in the Charter of the United Nations. On that subject, when addressing the General Assembly at its seventy-fourth regular session, His Excellency Mr. Macky Sall, President of the Republic of Senegal, said: “We must firmly reject populist rhetoric, which manipulates minds, fosters hatred and, ultimately, trivializes racism, xenophobia and violent extremism ... That also means that peace is also diversity, that there can be no superior hub of civilization that would dictate to others how to be and act and that all cultures and civilizations are equal in dignity.” (see A/74/PV.4) The words of the President of Senegal also reflect another principle that is dear to the United Nations and essential to our perpetual quest for peace — the right of peoples to self-determination. In that spirit, Senegal renews its call for reconciliation between the Palestinian and Israeli peoples and for the realization of the right of the Palestinian people to a viable State, with East Jerusalem as its capital, peacefully coexisting alongside the State of Israel, each within safe and internationally recognized borders. In our view, another equally critical requirement is to ban the use of interference and force as the preferred means of settling disputes. The Security Council should do all it can to prioritize peaceful means for the settlement of disputes in situations that do not constitute a threat to international peace and security. In other words, coercive action is only a means and not an end in itself. The success of the Organization therefore depends more on its ability to apply Chapter VI, on the peaceful settlement of disputes, than on its ability to apply the more difficult and challenging Chapter VII. That is why Senegal, as a staunch advocate of preventive diplomacy, favours striking a balance between the most essential elements of those two Chapters. Respecting the Charter of the United Nations in the maintenance of international peace and security also requires us to recall the basic principles governing peace operations. The consent of the parties, impartiality and the non-use of force except in self-defence must therefore continue to be paramount. To that end, it is important that all parties involved in peace operations have a clear understanding of the practical scope of those principles in order to ensure their effective application. Such an exercise should therefore invite them to reflect in depth on the dialectic underlying peacekeeping since the end of the Cold War — the proper balance between a robust mandate and the non-use of force, between conflict prevention and sovereignty, and between the protection of civilians and impartiality. In view of the significant regional dimensions of most conflicts and the essential role that neighbouring States must play in any peace process, we also believe it is appropriate to place the regional organizations at the heart of peace efforts, in accordance with Article 52(1) of Chapter VIII of the Charter. The examples of successful cooperation on conflict resolution in the West African subregion between the United Nations, the African Union and the Economic Community of West African States serve to illustrate the virtues of that approach, although funding remains an urgent outstanding issue. Peace has no price but it does have a cost, and it is important to continue our efforts to find ways to provide predictable and sustainable funding for peace missions. In conclusion, the consideration of the principles and purposes of the Charter from a peacekeeping perspective also raises the nagging question of the reform of the principal organ of the United Nations for the maintenance of international peace and security — the Security Council — in order to make it more legitimate in its composition and more credible and effective in its action. I would like to thank the outgoing members of the Security Council for their valuable contributions to its efforts to maintain international peace and security, and to assure the States that have just joined this prestigious organ of my delegation’s full cooperation.

The President: I now give the floor to the Permanent Observer of the Observer State of Palestine.

Mr. Mansour (Palestine): At the outset, I warmly congratulate Viet Nam on assuming its seat on the Security Council and commend it for skilfully presiding over the Council this month. We thank the delegation of Viet Nam and its Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs for convening this timely debate on upholding the Charter of the United Nations for the maintenance of international peace and security. We thank the Secretary-General and Mrs. Mary Robinson, Chair of the Elders, for their briefings on a matter requiring the urgent attention and engagement of all if we are to preserve the international rules-based order in the face of the many challenges ahead and are to strengthen multilateralism in service of global peace, stability and prosperity. I also would like to say that we associate ourselves with the statement delivered by the representative of Azerbaijan on behalf of the Movement of Non-Aligned Countries (see S/PV.8699 (Resumption 1). Although unjustly denied full membership in the United Nations, the State of Palestine has pledged to respect the Charter and to act in accordance with its noble purposes and principles. We do so despite being deprived of one of its most fundamental principles — that of equal rights and self-determination of peoples — as the Palestinian people continue to suffer a prolonged foreign occupation and constant oppression, dispossession and colonization obstructing their independence and freedom. In spite of the profound scope and scale of that injustice, we are firm in our conviction in the inevitability of the realization of our right to self- determination and equally firm in our conviction that upholding the Charter is vital for the fulfilment of that right and of all our inalienable rights for the achievement of a just and peaceful solution and the establishment of regional and global peace and security. We know that we are in good company with the overwhelming majority of the international community, who agree that the United Nations and its effective functioning is critical for preventing conflicts and peacefully resolving them, safeguarding human rights, and promoting friendly relations and cooperation among all States. Yet, some that are granted the rights and privileges of a Member State have chosen instead to trample the Charter and abuse United Nations organs, seeking to benefit only themselves while disrespecting the Organization at every turn. Disparaging multilateralism, they even mock the Security Council and its responsibility for international peace and security, going so far as to claim that it has no role in resolving certain conflicts — specifically the Israeli- Palestinian conflict — while flagrantly defying the Council’s authority and violating its resolutions. That has been done systematically for decades without real consequences, undermining the Council’s role and credibility and the Charter’s purposes and principles. Such selectivity has been gravely counterproductive and damaging. Upholding the Charter must mean defending it in all circumstances and insisting on compliance, without exception, and it must also mean that any breach will lead to consequences. Accountability and respect are two sides of the same coin. When the right to self-determination is violated, when force is unlawfully used to kill and injure civilians and destroy their homes, when threats of annexation are routinely declared and boasted of — as we witness being perpetrated every single day by Israel, the occupying Power — and when all such actions have no consequences to hold the perpetrators accountable for their crimes, the international community has failed in its obligation to uphold the Charter and can only bear witness to its continuous degradation. This is to the detriment of all — both those who believe in international law and in our shared values and humanity and those who do not, for the world can only become less safe, less prosperous and less peaceful for all in the absence of respect for the law. Yet we maintain faith in the Charter and in the centrality of international law when it comes to addressing the challenges our world is facing and to establishing the peace, stability and security vital for us all to develop and thrive. This debate has reinforced that faith within us, as has the recent decision by the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court to open a formal investigation into alleged war crimes in Palestine following a ruling by the Pre-Trial Chamber, which is an important step that will allow for the realization of long-overdue accountability and justice for the many victims of the war crimes that have been and continue to be perpetrated by Israel, the occupying Power, against the Palestinian people, as well as for deterring future crimes. This accountability is the way in which impunity must be responded to and stopped. It is how justice — the cornerstone of any peaceful solution — must be realized. It is how our collective international legal obligations, including under the Charter, must be upheld — not just in words but in deeds.

The President: I now give the floor to the representative of Colombia.

Ms. Quintero Correa (Colombia) (spoke in Spanish): I appreciate your initiative, Mr. President, to organize this open debate at the beginning of a new decade, in which the global challenges humankind is facing demand the collective, coordinated and effective action of the international community. Our discussion takes on even greater relevance as we celebrate the 75 years of the Charter of the United Nations and the Organization itself. I also wish to highlight the discussions that have taken place since last Thursday on international peace and security, the primacy of the Charter of the United Nations, the value of multilateralism and the importance of a world order that is based on rules and international law. Such valuable exchanges of ideas reflect, above all, our shared concern for building an increasingly safer and more peaceful world, as well as our common interest in promoting sustainable development and protecting the environment. In 1945, we declared our determination to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war; to reaffirm faith in fundamental human rights, in the dignity and worth of the human person and in the equal rights of men and women and of nations; to establish conditions under which justice and respect for the obligations arising from international law can be maintained; and to promote social progress and better standards of life in larger freedom. As a founding member of the United Nations, Colombia once again reaffirms its unwavering adherence to those purposes and principles, as well as its infinite respect for international law and its steadfast belief in the value of multilateralism. It is forums such as this one, and the Organization in general, that are, without a doubt, best suited to effectively address and achieve consensus on the fundamental issues humankind is facing, which will enable us to make positive progress in meeting our collective goals. We must acknowledge that there have also been failures, which is precisely why it is important to recognize that the Charter must adapt to the changing realities of the international system so that we can move forward in the process of Security Council reform. At this crucial juncture for humankind, we must rise to the challenges confronting us. We need an Organization that is capable of taking strong, effective and timely decisions. We therefore consider it relevant to renew our commitment to the purposes and principles of the Charter, to international law, to modernizing multilateral institutions, and to promoting synergies and complementary processes among global, regional and subregional organizations. That is an essential endeavour that will be possible only if we work together. Accordingly, I wish to express my country’s support for the Secretary-General and his efforts to strengthen the Organization, thereby contributing to improve its response capacity and effectiveness in addressing the dynamic and evolving threats that humankind is facing.

The President: I now give the floor to the representative of Qatar.

Mr. Al-Khalifa (Qatar) (spoke in Arabic): At the outset, I wish to congratulate you, Mr. President, on your friendly country’s membership in the Security Council and on its presidency of the Council this month. We welcome the participation of the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Viet Nam in this meeting and commend Viet Nam’s choice of theme for this open debate. We thank the Secretary-General and the Chair of The Elders for their valuable briefings. We would also like to take this opportunity to congratulate those countries that joined the Council as non-permanent members at the beginning of the year. We look forward to working with them and the other members of the Council in the years to come. We also commend the efforts and contributions of the five countries whose membership of the Council has just ended. The founding of the United Nations constituted the beginning of a promising new era in achieving security, peace and prosperity for all peoples and in upholding respect for human rights. Given the growing challenges to global stability, we are today in need of greater effort and increased cooperation as we strive to adapt to new developments. We must overcome current challenges by renewing our commitment to the purposes, principles and goals of the United Nations, the cornerstone of which is the maintenance of international peace and security. This requires us to translate our political will into action, including through the implementation of international treaties and conventions in the economic, political and social spheres as well as through enhancing cooperation in conflict resolution and the uprooting of terrorism and extremism. There is no better solution to these problems than implementing the provisions of the United Nations Charter. We recall that the Charter of the United Nations was originally developed as a comprehensive solution designed to address the most daunting challenges to international peace and security in an era that is not so remote from ours. The Charter exemplified humankind’s best wisdom for avoiding, or if necessary, tackling such challenges. Accordingly, we do not lack a point of reference for ways to maintain international peace and security. Nevertheless, we have not succeeded in the practical implementation of the international instruments at our disposal, principally the Charter of the United Nations. Numerous experiences over the decades have proven that failure to adhere to the provisions of the Charter is the underlying reason for the many threats to international peace and security, the outbreak and escalation of conflicts and the occurrence of violations to which countless innocent people have fallen victim. It is in this spirit that various States Members of the United Nations have stressed the utmost need to strengthen and adhere to the provisions of the Charter in order to duly maintain international peace and security. As we mark the seventy-fifth anniversary of the founding of the United Nations, its Charter constitutes the most important international document for establishing a global multilateral system that guarantees peace, security, stability and prosperity around the world. This Organization and its Member States must renew their efforts to ensure the effective implementation of the letter and the spirit of the Charter so that its noble purpose of serving the peoples of the world may be achieved. The State of Qatar seizes the opportunity presented by this seventy-fifth anniversary to reaffirm its commitment to the Organization as the most important and irreplaceable forum for collective action aimed at achieving peace and security, development and human rights. We look forward to working with all Member States to adopt a declaration in line with General Assembly resolution 73/299 on the commemoration of the seventy-fifth anniversary of the United Nations that will express the collective commitment of Member States to multilateralism, the United Nations and their shared vision for a common future. We are extremely proud that Her Excellency Ambassador Alya Ahmed Bin Saif Al-Thani, Permanent Representative of the State of Qatar to the United Nations, will be working together with Her Excellency Ambassador Anna- Karin Eneström, Permanent Representative of Sweden to the United Nations, on the task of facilitating intergovernmental negotiations to reach a consensus on the text of that declaration. Peace and security cannot be achieved in the absence of a collective approach at all levels. In that regard, the ongoing blockade against the State of Qatar, which has now been in place for two and a half years under fake and exposed justifications for the international community, constitutes a flagrant violation of the provisions of the United Nations Charter and of international law. It also contributes to undermining regional and international peace and security. The State of Qatar has consistently called for resolving the crisis through constructive dialogue that guarantees State sovereignty within the framework of respecting the Charter, which places emphasis on developing friendly relations among countries and the peaceful settlement of disputes as the only way to defuse crises and achieve international peace and security. In line with the policies of the State of Qatar, which is renowned for its commitment to international law and its respect for the Charter of the United Nations, we renew our support for international multilateral action. It is our goal to resolve all crises and settle disputes by peaceful means through dialogue, mediation and enhancing respect for human rights, in accordance with the provisions and purposes of the Charter and in cooperation with all parties that believe in the rule of law and collective action.

The President: I now give the floor to the representative of Barbados.

Ms. Thompson (Barbados): Barbados congratulates the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam on its assumption of the presidency of the Security Council. We welcome the convening of this debate on such an important and almost prescient choice of topic. We acknowledge the presence in the Council last week of the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs of Viet Nam, His Excellency Mr. Pham Binh Minh (see S/PV.8699). The raison d’être of the United Nations is to promote dialogue and development, act as a reminder of the devastation of war and serve as a restraint on its pursuit. The decision to promote global peace some 75 years ago came not from a lack of understanding of the shame or sting of turning the other cheek, but from the broader understanding that there is a far greater cost when war robs thousands of young people of hope and a future, when citizens lose their limbs and lives, when the development trajectories of countries are interrupted and their natural environment, built landscapes and cultural treasures are decimated, and when the sights and sounds of ordinary daily life are replaced by the miasma and horror of the sights and sounds of war. Suffering is the bread of all those who experience war, and none of its horrific, far-reaching consequences can be diminished by the new technologies of modern warfare. It is therefore the responsibility of every State Member of the United Nations to uphold the Charter’s purposes and principles of and maintain international peace and security, even in the settlement of disputes. The United Nations, including the Security Council, must therefore act as the conscience of humankind. But the Council cannot properly do so unless it better reflects the security challenges faced by the family of humankind, as represented by the membership of the United Nations itself. In that regard, Barbados calls for Security Council reform that includes a rotating seat for small island developing States, among other substantive changes, and an encompassing of the security concerns of the entire United Nations membership. That is the very point that the Prime Minister of Barbados, Her Excellency Ms. Mia Amor Mottley, made in her statement during the general debate of the General Assembly at its seventy-fourth session, in which she said: “As a small nation, [Barbados is] not only committed to multilateralism[;] we also understand that it is the one thing that protects our sovereignty and our ability to navigate in this world. It is our buffer against the display of might and it is our shield against tyranny. We continue to view the United Nations as an important mechanism for achieving international peace and security and sustainable development for all countries...” (A/74/ PV.9, p. 36). Our delegation wishes to thank Côte d’Ivoire, Equatorial Guinea, Kuwait, Peru and Poland for their invaluable contributions to the work of the Council during their tenure, and to congratulate the new members of Estonia, the Niger, Tunisia, Viet Nam and, of course, our sister country of the Caribbean Community, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. Barbados’ foreign policy is anchored in the principles of non-intervention, non-interference, respect for sovereignty, human rights and democracy, and adherence to the rule of law. In that regard, it parallels the Charter of the United Nations. Barbados will therefore always advocate multilateral approaches over unilateral ones, and dialogue and diplomacy over weapons and war. If we forget the horrors that the United Nations was birthed to avoid or if we choose to breach or ignore its Charter, knowing well the possible consequences, then we are again placing humankind on a path to relive some of its darkest days, and history would have taught us nothing.

The President: The representative of the Syrian Arab Republic has asked for the floor to make a further statement. I now give him the floor.

Mr. Al Arsan (Syrian Arab Republic) (spoke in Arabic): I have asked for the floor in order to make a further statement in response to what was said earlier by the representative of the Turkish regime. The representative of the Turkish regime claims that it does not recognize the legitimacy of the Syrian Government. I can assure him, from the Chamber of the Council, which is charged with the maintenance of international peace and security and which is handling the situation in Syria, that we have never and will never seek recognition of our legitimacy from a criminal terrorist regime. We derive our legitimacy from the Charter of the United Nations; from the name of our country, the Syrian Arab Republic; and from our seat in this Chamber. Above all, we derive our legitimacy from the Syrian people, the blood of whom, I would recall, was spilled by Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s regime when he sent tens of thousands of foreign terrorist fighters into our country. All who are present in the Chamber are aware, thanks to the reports of the Analytical Support and Sanctions Monitoring Team of the Security Council, that tens of thousands of foreign terrorist fighters came to Syria from 101 countries around the world. Of course, those foreign terrorist fighters did not reach Syria by parachute or spaceship; the majority of them infiltrated my country via the Turkish-Syrian border under the supervision of the Turkish regime and its intelligence services, which facilitated the entry of those foreign terrorist fighters to Syria. Those are not our words nor are they baseless. The representative of the Turkish regime says that we are not his counterpart. I ask my dear colleague to believe that we are not looking to be a counterpart to a regime like his. The Turkish regime is an exceptional one; it has no equivalent in the entire world thanks to its irresponsible practices, which undermine international peace and security. Today, military forces of the Turkish regime arrived in Libya. What do Turkey and Libya have in common? What borders threaten the Turkish security? Why do we see the presence of forces of the Turkish regime in Libya? For some time now, the Turkish regime has been sending to Libya Syrian and foreign mercenaries who fight alongside the Turkish regime in Idlib. The Turkish regime occupies parts of north-eastern Syria through an aggressive military operation, which it has ironically codenamed Operation Peace Spring. The Turkish regime is first and foremost a sponsor of Jabhat Al-Nusra, which is classified as a terrorist entity by the Security Council. The Turkish regime supervises, finances and facilitates the operations of that terrorist organization, which controls Idlib and its environs. I advise my Turkish colleague not to speak about legitimacy, as the legitimacy of the Turkish regime as an extremist religious party does not derive from its people. It comes instead from implementing its own agendas that do not serve the policies and interests of Turkey. Turkish interests are derived from what Turkish officials used to refer to as “zero problems”. Today, the Turkish regime is responsible for the total lack of security, peace and stability in the Middle East region.

The President: The representative of Turkey has asked for the floor to make a further statement. I now give him the floor.

Mr. Varli (Turkey): I did not intend to take the floor once again and I am actually very sorry that I have had to do so. I believe that the statement of representative of the Syrian regime is lowering the standard in this Chamber to a very disappointing level. I would merely like to make that point and note that our prior statement remains valid. I will not otherwise dignify the representative of the Syrian regime with a response. The meeting rose at 5.05 p.m.