UN General Assembly
2022

Let us never forget that debt. It serves the interests of all our countries and indicates the path to peace. It reminds us that there is no other legitimate or lasting centre of power than that where the nations come together to make decisions sovereignly. It tells us that the universality of our Organization serves no hegemony or geopolitical oligarchy. Yet, this legacy, our Organization, along with our choices as nations, are today facing a choice. We have one simple choice to make today, and that is the choice between war and peace. On 24 February, Russia, a permanent member of the Security Council, fractured our collective security with an act of aggression, invasion and annexation. It deliberately violated the Charter of the United Nations and the principle of the sovereign equality of States. On 16 March, the International Court of Justice stated that Russia’s aggression was illegal and demanded that Russia withdraw. Russia decided, with that action, to pave the way for other wars of annexation, today in Europe, but perhaps tomorrow in Asia, Africa or Latin America.