‘Multilateralism key to peace, security’
Qatar, on behalf of the UN General Assembly, has underlined that multilateralism is neither a threat to the sovereignty nor the national interests of member states, and is the only way to address the complex challenges that no country can overcome alone.
It calls upon all member states to reaffirm their commitment to the principles and provisions of the Charter of the United Nations to strengthen international law and maintain international co-operation.
This came in a statement delivered yesterday by HE the Permanent Representative of the State of Qatar to the United Nations Sheikha Alya Ahmed bin Saif al-Thani, in her capacity as vice-president of the assembly on behalf of the president of the 73rd Session of the UN General Assembly, Maria Fernanda Espinosa Garces, at the official meeting of the UN Security Council on “Maintaining International Peace and Security: Strengthening Multilateralism and the Role of the United Nations”.
As a vice-president of the General Assembly, Sheikha Alya said that “we have no choice but to collectively support the multilateral approach in a world where human rights, development, peace and security are increasingly inter-related”.
She referred to the conflicts that are afflicting Yemen and Syria, as well as the tensions that continue in other places, which deprive the peoples of those countries of the fruits of sustainable development.
Sheikha Alya stressed that the prosperity of countries is linked to the prosperity of all nations.
She also pointed out that lasting results of conflict resolution require a multilateral approach, while at the same time promoting multilateral mechanisms that had allowed continuous dialogue, mutual support, and joint action.
Sheikha Alya expressed her firm conviction that international dialogue and co-operation are the only tried and tested approaches to global challenges.
“The commitment to involve women and young people as a key goal of a pluralistic approach is fundamental to the success of the peace and security agenda and the achievement of sustainable development goals,” she said.
In this context, Sheikha Alya stressed the importance of increasing economic opportunities, decent work, political participation, social protection and peace processes, and called for continued strengthening of concerted and co-ordinated efforts among the principal organs of the United Nations and for the promotion and observance of multilateralism, noting that the General Assembly, the Security Council and the United Nations organs and other entities play complementary roles in the promotion of international peace and security.
“It is clear that peace is not only about the absence of war but that it needs to be nurtured before, during, and after conflicts to be sustainable,” she said, adding that “development, peace, security and human rights are all interdependent and mutually reinforcing concepts”.
The last time the president of the United Nations General Assembly took part in the Security Council was in 2015, and the last time the vice-president of the General Assembly made a statement before the Council was in 2007.