NEW YORK (ANA-MPA/G. Garantzioti) –
The Security Council held a high-level open debate on “Upholding the Purposes and Principles of the UN Charter and Strengthening the UN-centred International System”, organised by China, which holds the Council presidency for the month of May.
The meeting was chaired by Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and UN Secretary-General António Guterres briefed the Council.
Guterres stressed that the United Nations Charter serves as a survival guide for humanity, but today the Charter’s purposes and principles are under severe strain. He said that we are now facing the highest number of conflicts since the founding of the United Nations.
The Secretary-General stated that he is deeply concerned about the Russia’s recent announcement that it will launch continuous and systematic attacks against Ukrainian defence operations in Kyiv, as well as against decision-making centres and command posts, following reports of a Ukrainian drone attack on a college building and dormitory in the Ukrainian city of Starobilsk, which is currently under the control of the Russian Federation.
Guterres noted that he recently condemned the attack on the school, “just as we condemn all attacks against civilians and non-military infrastructure, wherever they occur.”
Greece’s Permanent Representative to the UN Ambassador Aglaia Balta, stressed that “we are deeply concerned by the erosion of the Charter principles that we are witnessing”. “The prohibition on the use of force against the territorial integrity of states is not optional, she added. It is neither a preference nor a recommendation; it is a cornerstone of the international system. When that principle is violated with impunity, or with the implicit acquiescence of the powerful, every member of this body is weakened. We therefore call upon all Council Members to recommit to the core principles of the UN Charter, particularly the peaceful settlement of disputes, respect for international law, and the rules-based international order,” Balta noted.
She also said that any à la carte implementation of the Charter is completely unacceptable and that we should all oppose any attempts at selective application and double standards.
The Permanent Representative of Greece to the UN also said that a major achievement of multilateralism has been the conclusion of important multilateral treaties. “In this context, we underscore the core international human rights conventions, the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea particularly given its universal and unified character and, more recently, the BBNJ Agreement on the conservation and sustainable use of marine biodiversity.
“My country supports meaningful reform: reform that enhances equitable geographical representation, increases transparency and accountability, and reduces the paralysis that allows atrocities to unfold while this body deliberates. Within the framework of the IGN process, my country has expressed its readiness to support any reform model that is fair, balanced, and capable of achieving the broadest possible consensus, with the objective of strengthening the United Nations as a whole. Greece highlights the need to ensure a credible, effective, transparent and more representative Security Council. We support the long-overdue call for Security Council reform in order to enhance its authority, effectiveness, and inclusiveness,” she added.
