Security Council Provisional Asdf Seventieth Year 7389Th Meeting Monday, 23 February 2015, 10 A.M
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United Nations S/ PV.7389 Security Council Provisional asdf Seventieth year 7389th meeting Monday, 23 February 2015, 10 a.m. New York President: Mr. Wang Yi/Mr. Wang Min/Mr. Cai Weiming . ......... (China) Members: Angola. Mr. Augusto Chad .......................................... Mr. Mangaral Chile .......................................... Mr. Barros Melet France ......................................... Mr. Delattre Jordan ......................................... Mrs. Kawar Lithuania . ...................................... Mr. Linkevičius Malaysia ....................................... Mr. Aman New Zealand .................................... Mr. McCully Nigeria . ........................................ Mr. Wali Russian Federation ............................... Mr. Lavrov Spain .......................................... Mr. Ybañez United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland ... Sir Mark Lyall Grant United States of America . .......................... Ms. Power Venezuela (Bolivarian Republic of) ................... Mrs. Rodríguez Gómez Agenda Maintenance of international peace and security Reflect on history, reaffirm the strong commitment to the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations Letter dated 3 February 2015 from the Permanent Representative of China to the United Nations addressed to the Secretary-General (S/2015/87) This record contains the text of speeches delivered in English and of the translation of speeches delivered in other languages. The final text will be printed in the Official Records of the Security Council. Corrections should be submitted to the original languages only. They should be incorporated in a copy of the record and sent under the signature of a member of the delegation concerned to the Chief of the Verbatim Reporting Service, room U-0506 ([email protected]). Corrected records will be reissued electronically on the Official Document System of the United Nations (http://documents.un.org). 15-04838 (E) *1504838* S/PV.7389 Maintenance of international peace and security 23/02/2015 The meeting was called to order at 10.05 a.m. I wish to draw the attention of Council members to document S/2015/87, which contains a letter dated Adoption of the agenda 3 February 2015 from the Permanent Representative of China to the United Nations addressed to the Secretary- The agenda was adopted. General, transmitting a concept paper on the item under consideration. Maintenance of international peace and security I now give the floor to the Secretary-General. Reflect on history, reaffirm the strong commitment to the purposes and principles of The Secretary-General: I thank the People’s the Charter of the United Nations Republic of China for organizing today’s discussion on reaffirming commitment to the Charter in this year, Letter dated 3 February 2015 from the in which the United Nations marks 70 years since its Permanent Representative of China founding. The seventieth anniversary of the United to the United Nations addressed to the Nations finds an Organization with major achievements Secretary-General (S/2015/87) to its credit, multiple crises on its agenda, and The President (spoke in Chinese): I would like tremendous opportunities ahead. The United Nations to warmly welcome the Secretary-General and the was founded to prevent another world war, and it has ministers and other representatives who are present succeeded in that. Despite the recurrence of genocide in the Chamber. Their participation in this debate and repeated outbreaks of armed conflict, the past reaffirms the importance of the subject matter under seven decades would surely have been even bloodier discussion today. without the United Nations. In accordance with rule 37 of the Council’s Peoples’ lives are better in other ways, too. In most provisional rules of procedure, I invite the parts of the world, people are living longer, healthier representatives of Albania, Algeria, Armenia, lives. The empowerment of women, the advancement Australia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Belgium, Bosnia and of international law and the spread of democratic Herzegovina, Botswana, Brazil, Burundi, Canada, governance have helped to improve our collective well- Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Cyprus, the Democratic being. The world is starkly different than when the People’s Republic of Korea, Ecuador, Egypt, Estonia, Charter’s drafters gathered in San Francisco in 1945. Ethiopia, Georgia, Germany, Guatemala, Hungary, The membership of the United Nations has nearly India, Indonesia, the Islamic Republic of Iran, Ireland, quadrupled. New Powers have emerged. Globalization, Israel, Italy, Japan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Kuwait, urbanization, migration, demographic shifts, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Maldives, Mexico, Montenegro, technological advances, climate change and other Morocco, the Netherlands, Nicaragua, Pakistan, Papua seismic developments continue to remake our societies New Guinea, the Philippines, Poland, the Republic and transform international relations. of Korea, Romania, Rwanda, Saudi Arabia, Serbia, Yet the aspirations of “we the peoples” enshrined Slovenia, South Africa, Sweden, Switzerland, the in the Charter remain just as valid, valuable and vital. Syrian Arab Republic, Thailand, Tunisia, Turkey, The Charter is a living document, not a detailed road Ukraine, the United Arab Emirates, Uruguay, Viet map. It is our compass, enshrining principles that have Nam and Zimbabwe to participate in this meeting. stood the test of time. At the heart of the Charter is In accordance with rule 39 of the Council’s a commitment to the prevention of armed conflict provisional rules of procedure, I invite His Excellency through the peaceful settlement of disputes and the Mr. Thomas Mayr-Harting, Head of the Delegation of protection of human rights. Collective security is the the European Union to the United Nations, and His core purpose of the Organization. Unlike in 1945, Excellency Mr. Téte António, Permanent Observer of however, we no longer have a full meeting of minds the African Union to the United Nations, to participate on what that means. We need to reflect on what has in this meeting. changed, and fortify our sense of unity. Decades of preventive diplomacy, mediation, peacekeeping and The Security Council will now begin its consideration peacebuilding — gains and setbacks alike — have of the item on its agenda. helped us to sharpen our efforts to promote peace and 2/103 15-04838 23/02/2015 Maintenance of international peace and security S/PV.7389 head off brewing crises before they become deadlier extremism have emerged as serious transnational and costlier for all concerned. threats. At last Thursday’s Washington, D.C., meeting on violent extremism, I highlighted the need to The primary responsibility for preventing conflict respond decisively and to combat extremism without lies with Member States. The Charter is very clear on multiplying the problem and with full respect for this point, yet in too many instances Member States are human rights. Sovereignty remains part of the bedrock still falling short. Our shared work is based on consent of international order, but in today’s world the less and respect for the sovereign equality of all Members sovereignty is viewed as a wall or a shield, the better of the United Nations, which the Charter recognizes as our prospects will be for protecting people and solving a basic principle. Early action to prevent conflict and our shared problems. protect human rights helps to strengthen sovereignty, rather than challenge or restrict it. We must ask We should use this year’s observance of the whether, for example, earlier efforts to address human seventieth anniversary of the United Nations to rights violations and political grievances in Syria could seriously reflect on our common enterprise — on peace have kept the situation from escalating so horrendously. operations, peacebuilding, women’s empowerment, disaster risk reduction and much else. We should also A major obstacle to United Nations human rights seize this year’s opportunities to take transformative action has been a concern among Member States that action on sustainable development and climate change. such action may harm national sovereignty. In reality, In all these efforts, we should bear in mind that the it is serious violations of human rights that weaken three opening words of the Charter make clear who is sovereignty. Such abuses kill and displace people, the driving force behind the United Nations — “We divide communities, undermine economies and the peoples”. Let us reaffirm our duty to serve those destroy cultural heritage. They silence the Government peoples with all our creativity and will. Let us reaffirm officials, parliamentarians, civil servants, judges and our commitment to each other in the great cause of others who lead national institutions that are essential living together in dignity and peace for all. to sovereignty. The President (spoke in Chinese): I thank the The primary goal of United Nations action on Secretary-General for his statement. human rights is to support all these actors. Doing so is, most fundamentally, a support to national sovereignty. I shall now make a statement in my capacity as the A conceptual shift in how we understand United Minister for Foreign Affairs of China. Nations human rights action could have a positive This year marks the seventieth anniversary of and, indeed, transformational effect on the role of the the victory of the World War against fascism and the Security Council in