Mr President,
Excellencies,
Ladies and gentlemen,
“The survivors were immune, the others dead.”
This is the rather pithy description of the end of the Spanish flu one hundred years ago by a German medical historian.
So pithy in fact that we recoil when we consider the pandemic that has a firm grip on our world today.
Thirty million people have already been infected by coronavirus.
Almost one million people have died.
And its longer-term impacts — hunger, poverty, displacement and conflicts — are beginning to reach us only now.
And yet 2020 isn’t 1920.
History doesn’t repeat itself — at least, if we don’t allow it to.
We have a choice, ladies and gentlemen, and few things illustrate this more clearly than the experiences that we have made during the COVID-19 pandemic.
On the one hand, they show that a lack of transparency, coupled with disinformation and conspiracy theories, can kill.
On the other, they point to a path out of the crisis.
It is the path of reason that is founded on scientific expertise.
The path of cooperation that is based on common rules.
Rules all of us have to abide by. And that is why I’m speaking to you today from quarantine at my home, having come into contact a few days ago with someone who tested positive for the virus.
And I hope that the technology works and that you can understand what I’m saying nonetheless.
Ladies and gentlemen,
As long as the virus is out there, it can affect each and every one of us.
That is why only when we get the pandemic under control throughout the world will we be able to overcome it in the long term.
Those affected by it must be at the centre of all of our efforts. And the search for vaccines and medicines must not be a competition or a beauty contest.
This is why Germany has set aside more than three billion euro this year for global crisis management — with a particular focus on the United Nations, the World Health Organization, the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank.
And, as the biggest exporter of pharmaceutical products, we have expressed a clear commitment to distributing potential vaccines and medicines against COVID-19 in a fair way — as a global public good.
Ladies and gentlemen,
This crisis also shows that international cooperation is neither an ideology nor an end in itself.
On the contrary, it delivers results.
Far beyond the actual pandemic.
Such as in Ukraine, where the negotiations between Russia, Ukraine, France and Germany have helped to bring about the longest ceasefire since the beginning of the conflict.
Hundreds of thousands of people in the east of the country are currently no longer living under the permanent spectre of war. This is grounds for hope for a genuinely permanent solution to the conflict.
We will take this hope as the basis for intensive engagement in the Normandy format in the coming months, including at high-ranking political level.
In Libya, too, we are focusing on cooperation with the United Nations in order to implement the decisions of the January Berlin Conference to the letter.
The rapprochement between the government in Tripoli and the forces in the east of the country that has taken place in recent weeks is a major step forward. However, forces outside the country must also fall into line at long last in order to achieve a solution. They must cease sending weapons and mercenaries, thus exacerbating the conflict.
This is what we will aim to achieve when Antonio Guterres and I gather together the supporters of the Berlin Process once again in early October in order to make them honour their commitments.
The latest developments in relations between Israel and the Arab countries in the Gulf are likewise grounds for hope — this is also the result of courageous cooperation.
I have been in close dialogue with my counterparts from Jordan, Egypt and France in recent weeks, and we agreed that this new dynamic should be seized by the parties for fresh, credible negotiations on a two-state solution that alone holds the promise of lasting peace. For this, both sides must make compromises and refrain from violence, but also from unilateral steps such as annexation and settlement construction. Wherever we Europeans are able to support this — politically or economically — we will do so.
Ladies and gentlemen,
Despite all the progress made in recent weeks, we’re still a very long way from a new global attitude. The Secretary-General’s call for a global ceasefire, which was adopted in the Security Council under Germany’s Presidency in July, is falling on deaf ears in many places.
This is not only a problem as far as credibility of the Security Council is concerned.
It is, first and foremost, a disaster for millions of people in war and crisis areas who are utterly defenceless in the face of the pandemic.
•We need still greater efforts in the fight against violence and terrorism in the Sahel, and above all closer dialogue between the countries of the region, regional organisations and the international community.
This is what the Sahel Alliance, the Partnership for Security and Stability in the Sahel and the International Coalition for the Sahel are seeking to achieve.
And we’re supporting the efforts made by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) to help Mali return to a constitutional order as swiftly as possible — as peace, stability and development are what the people there are calling for.
Furthermore, ladies and gentlemen, a new, international effort is also needed in order to bring peace to Syria at long last.
A nationwide ceasefire and a comprehensive, genuine constitutional process, as envisaged by Resolution 2254 (2015), are prerequisites before we can talk about reconstruction of the country.
And until that time, we stand firmly by the side of the Syrian people — with humanitarian assistance, which must continue to be provided across borders.
There’s another thing that is necessary for lasting peace, namely justice.
This is why we will continue to ensure that those responsible for the worst crimes against humanity — for murder, torture and rape — are held to account before German courts and why we will support the UN mechanisms for investigating these crimes with all our might.
This is by no means just about Syria, however. Those who don’t clearly distinguish between perpetrators and victims, who blur the line between right and wrong, shake the very foundations of our rules-based order. Such people jeopardise our peaceful coexistence itself.
This applies to those who stand in the way of the work of institutions such as the International Criminal Court.
This applies to those who block the Security Council with one veto after another and who prevent its urgently needed reform with constantly new delay tactics.
And this especially applies to those who contravene international law, although, as permanent members of the Security Council, they bear particular responsibility for upholding it.
This isn’t the first time that we have been confronted by a violation of an existential principle of international cooperation, namely the banning of chemical weapons.
A violation of this — as we have been able to prove together with our partners in the poisoning of Alexei Navalny — is a problem for the entire international community.
I call on Russia to do more to investigate this case. A case such as this must have consequences. The EU therefore reserves the right to impose sanctions.
And we’re grateful to our partners around the world fortheir unequivocal support.
We need this same determination, this same will to cooperate also with respect to other existential issues facing humanity.
Here, once again, we have a choice.
We can continue to watch as our forests burn — and yet still deny the existence of human-induced climate change.
Or we can listen to the voice of scientists and treat climate change as what it is, namely the biggest threat to security, prosperity and development on our planet.
This is also why we have firmly enshrined the issue of climate and security on the Security Council’s agenda in recent months.
And we’re delighted that Norway, Ireland, Kenya, Mexico and others will continue to work on this when they are members of the Security Council next year.
Ladies and gentlemen,
We can continue to violate arms control treaties — thereby destroying trust that has been built up over many decades.
Or we can put nuclear disarmament and non proliferation back on the international agenda — as we have done in recent months, not least with a view to the upcoming Review Conference of the Non-Proliferation Treaty.
Europe’s efforts to promote the nuclear agreement with Iran must also be seen in this context.
Yes, we share the concerns about the end of the arms embargo as long as Iran threatens Israel and destabilises the entire region from Lebanon to Syria to Yemen.
However, the destruction of the JCPOA doesn’t get us any closer to an arms embargo. On the contrary, at best, the JCPOA’s demise brings Iran closer to getting the atomic bomb.
And this is why we, as JCPOA participants, continue to stand by its full applicability and call on Iran to likewise fully comply with the agreement.
Ladies and gentlemen,
We can watch human rights being hollowed out and trampled underfoot, even though all of us have committed to uphold them.
Or we can stand by the side of those who are suppressed, abused and persecuted — such as the peaceful protesters in Belarus.
We have called on Lukashenko time and again to support a national dialogue, mediated by the OSCE. However, he has rejected all offers and is continuing to tread the path of violence and suppression.
And this must also have consequences if we are serious about our values and our international agreements. We’re discussing this in the European Union.
Ladies and gentlemen,
Courageous decisions are needed especially in times of crisis.
Seventy-five years ago — following the devastation of the Second World War that was unleashed by Germany — the international community decided:
To oppose war and to promote international cooperation.
And to oppose the law of the strong and to promote the strength of the law.
And so the United Nations was born. Thirty years ago — after the fall of the Berlin Wall and the Iron Curtain — this decision was underpinned by the Charter of Paris. The Charter proclaimed that the “era of confrontation and division of Europe” had ended and that a “new era of democracy, peace and unity” had begun.
Today, in the midst of the pandemic, it is our generation that faces a choice.
Either we go it alone, without taking others into consideration, and throw this multilateral legacy to the winds.
Or we renew this legacy and show that the right response to the crises of our age is “more solidarity” — “more cooperation” and “more justice”.
Germany is prepared to do just this.
Together with you — as genuinely united nations.
Thank you very much — and stay healthy!


It is a distinct honour for me, on behalf of His Majesty’s Government, and the people of the Kingdom of Tonga, to address the United Nations General Assembly, for the first time, as Prime Minister. I thank the God Almighty for enabling us the opportunity to meet virtually in the midst of this global pandemic.
I warmly congratulate Your Excellency on the assumption of your presidency at this historical milestone, where the United Nations commemorate the 75th anniversary of its founding.
Tonga pledges our unwavering support towards the success of your term, and we welcome the theme for this session “The Future We Want, the UN We Need: Reaffirming our Collective Commitment to Multilateralism”.
Allow me to also pay tribute to your predecessor, His Excellency Mr. Tijjani MuhammadBande, in successfully spearheading the 74th session of the General Assembly during these unprecedented and most difficult times.
I applaud the oversight and dynamic leadership of His Excellency Mr. Antonio Guterres in safely navigating the operations of the United Nations in coordination with Member States in the fight against the pandemic.
Mr. President,
In the context of the defining health crisis of our time, Tonga stands in solidarity with all Member States, who have been affected by the deleterious impact of the global outbreak, resulting in the loss of precious lives and loved ones. I express our sincere sympathy and heartfelt condolences to those Member States.
While the virus has not arrived on our shores, Tonga is not immune to the overwhelming global challenges that beset us at this juncture. We have activated emergency measures to that effect while undertaking risk assessments and prioritizing the procurement of medical equipment to strengthen our health system preparedness and response.
In that connection, I express gratitude to all of our Development Partners and the international community for their generous financial and humanitarian assistance, in addition to logistical support, which have aptly facilitated Tonga’s response to remain vigilant amidst this global pandemic.
The economic impacts are affecting different sectors of our economy. According to the Asia Development Bank (ADB), Tonga will encounter a zero economic growth in 2020, however, the situation is astutely managed within, through activation of financial stimulus while priority is given to health-related activities. In regard to education, digital divide is made more evident by COVID-19, requiring accelerated solutions for the new norm of teaching via internet, radio and television considering thousands of students in Tonga that will be affected if education is disrupted by COVID-19 or a similar pandemic in the future.
Given the severity of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Pacific Island Forum Leaders invoked the Biketawa and Boe Declaration, pronouncing the pandemic a major crisis to our Pacific peoples and economies. The activation of this declaration has expedited assistance and cooperation between member countries as well as cooperation with the international community in response to the COVID-19, including facilitating the timely repatriation of our stranded Tongan people abroad.
Mr. President,
While Small Island Developing States, including Tonga, contribute to no more than one percent of global greenhouse gas emissions, it is unfortunate that we continue to bear the brunt of this climate injustice. As a result, the Pacific Island countries continue to be imperiled by many tropical cyclones of unprecedented magnitudes and destructive in nature. The most recent one was Tropical Cyclone Harold in April of this year which wreaked havoc on four Pacific Island nations, namely, Fiji, Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, and my own country, Tonga. This is while we grapple with the distressing effect of the COVID-19 outbreak.
Our Pacific Island Forum Leaders have consistently echoed the need for urgent climate action in their communique, every year, for at least the last 30 years. This year marks the fifth-year anniversary of the adoption of the Paris Agreement. And it is only befitting for us to capture this historic moment through reaffirming our commitment to achieving the goal of limiting global warming to 1.5°C. Tonga is currently reviewing its Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), and its Enhanced NDCs will be submitted to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Secretariat this year.
Though the 26th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP 26) to the UNFCCC that was to be held in Glasgow, United Kingdom, has been postponed to 2021, Tonga remains committed to prepare its Long-Term Low Emission Development Strategies (LT-LEDS) which will be communicated to the Secretariat of the UNFCCC at COP 26.
While 2020 is marked as the “Year of Delivery” for powering the sustainable development for our Kingdom through the attainment of 50 per cent Renewable Energy penetration, the project delays caused by the global pandemic, through the sudden halt to the market supply chains, has led to a major disruption on Tonga’s NDCs in the achievement of this target.
However, agreements have been signed for grant funding, by way of public private partnership and the fervent support of Development Partners, will continue to drive Tonga’s SDG7 and its objectives through the composition of innovative technologies such as Solar, Wind, Battery Energy Storage Systems coupled with the Network Rehabilitation and increase accessibility of electricity to the furthest most islands of Tonga.
Mr. President,
Tonga continues to recognize the importance of the ocean-climate nexus, and further continues to note with grave concern the detrimental impacts of climate change on our marine environment.
We endeavour to achieve SDG 14 through advancing our commitment to conserve and sustainably use the world’s ocean, seas and marine resources through measures taken to establish Special Management Areas (SMAs) initiatives, and the implementation of the Tonga Marine Spatial Planning Project. Government has approved the inclusion of a network of 30 per cent Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) for the Kingdom. Tonga progresses well in relation to improved fisheries management and the fight against illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing to secure oceans contribution to food security and the well-being of the country’s economy.
In the fight against plastic pollution, it is worrisome for Tonga to note the alarming 12 million tonnes of plastic wastes that are leaked into our oceans annually. We place great interest in addressing this threat by beginning the process to ban single-use plastics. While this is not only a national and a regional problem, it is also a global problem, requiring a global solution.
Mr. President,
While countries around the world are enforcing lockdowns and restrictions in varying degrees in the fight against the COVID-19, it may not occur to many that the “ocean” plays a pivotal role in this context. According to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (or UNESCO), the bacteria used to detect the presence of COVID-19 is found in the depths of the ocean.
We cannot overemphasize the urgency for action to protect and sustainably use the world’s ocean, seas and marine resources. However, actions can only be meaningful and effective if derived from science-based and innovative information and data. We support the proclamation by the United Nations of the Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development from 2021-2030 which provides an overarching framework that will allow ocean science to support countries in their sustainable development of the ocean.
Mr. President,
Tonga maintains that the baselines which presently determine our territorial boundaries, once established under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, should remain unchanged despite effects of sea level rise and any climate change modification that might ensue. Our Sovereignty must not be compromised to that effect. We continue to support the work of the International Law Commission in the Sixth Committee.
The much anticipated Fourth Session of the Inter-Governmental Conference on an international legally binding instrument under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea on the conservation and sustainable use of marine biological diversity of areas beyond national jurisdiction has been postponed to March 2021, tentatively, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. We look forward to participating in this very important process.
Tonga is greatly invested in engaging as a State Party to the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea in the International Seabed Authority and its continuing work on the draft exploitation regulations with other State Parties and stakeholders to ensure agreement on the appropriate balance between the need to conserve, protect and replenish the environment, and to mine the seabed for minerals that will contribute to the sustainable development of Tonga as a Small Island Developing State in the Pacific.
Mr. President,
Tonga is pleased to have ratified and become a State Party to the following conventions this year: (1) the United Nations Convention against Corruption; (2) the United Nations Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards; and (3) the International Labour Organization Convention No. 182 on the Worst Forms of Child Labour.
Following Tonga’s presentation of its first national review at the High-Level Political Forum in July 2019, it made good progress in the implementation of its SDG targets, however, the intervening devastating impacts of the COVID-19 have impeded progress going forward. These have intensified the vulnerabilities of our country and affected the implementation of some of Tonga’s national outcomes under the Strategic Development Framework, which are ultimately linked to the achievement of the priority areas of the SAMOA Pathway and our SDG targets. Tonga is committed to engaging with the High-Level Political Forum which remains an integral platform, even more so, as we brace to embark on this much anticipated Decade of Action from 2021-2030, geared for accelerated solutions to achieve the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
We acknowledge with gratitude the positive engagement of our Development Partners and all United Nations agencies including the UN Office of the High Representative for Least Developing Countries (LDCs), LLDCs and Small Islands Developing Countries (SIDS); the World Health Organization (WHO); the UN Department for Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA); the UNDP; the UN ESCAP; the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, as well as the Non-Government Organisations (NGOs) and Civil Society Organisations (CSOs).
Mr. President,
Allow me to conclude by reaffirming our commitment to a revitalized post COVID-19 multilateralism in support of the theme for this session. A multilateralism comprised of global solidarity and cooperation, empathy, inclusivity and resilience, noting the importance of protecting vulnerable individuals, addressing inequalities and ensuring universal access to affordable COVID-19 medical vaccine, while building back better, and leaving no one behind.


Excellences, Ladies and Gentlemen, dear Friends, Mr. President
We are celebrating the 75th anniversary of the United Nations. 75 years ago, our predecessors were able to utilize their experience of a devastating world war and took the lead to building a vision of a better world.
A world of prosperity and peace.
A world of global wellbeing.
A world of global cooperation serving future generations.
They established the United Nations.
And here we are today, Dear Friends, a family of nations facing no less devastating threats: a global health and economic crisis, degradation of environment — all that threaten the wellbeing of our kind and our home — our Planet.
The best means of addressing the current global threats is effective multilateralism. Less multilateral cooperation would only magnify problems and challenges we are facing in all our societies.
To face the threats to Humanity nowadays, to build our common resilience, Ladies and Gentlemen, no one can be strong enough alone; we need to be vigilant, active, responsible, brave and wise — TOGETHER.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
In a rapidly changing global environment, we increasingly depend on new technologies and digital infrastructure.
New technologies and artificial intelligence have already become the backbone of our daily lives that keep businesses and essential public services running.
We need to frame them in service of humankind. Slovenia makes an effort in this direction with the very first UNESCO global center for artificial intelligence established in Ljubljana last November.
One of the main challenges is cybersecurity. According to our view, cyberspace should be secure, global, open, free and inclusive.
The fragmentation and weakening of international security regimes is worrying. This should only strengthen our commitment for effective, treaty-based international arms control, disarmament and non-proliferation.
All pressing proliferation issues should be solved by diplomatic and peaceful means.
Precondition for achieving sustainable peace and reconciliation, is to deal with grave violations of Human rights. We therefore support International Criminal Court as a central institution to fight impunity.
We will continue to engage in partnership and cooperation in the UN and other fora.
Slovenia is especially active in landmines clearance efforts, affecting the lives of civilians, in particular children. I am glad to report that ITF Enhancing Human Security, a Slovenian non-profit organization, managed to maintain its operational capacity and presence in the field in the midst of the pandemic.
Mr President,
Sustainable Development Goals are a clear roadmap for green and healthy planet. Slovenia as the EU Presidency in second half of 2021 will put environmental protection very high on the agenda. The COP26 next year should be a real game-changer.
Recently and for the first time, Slovenia contributed one million Euros to the UN Green Climate Fund.
Excellences,
Slovenia shares the awareness of biodiversity loss as an urgent global challenge.
We put the right to clean drinking water in our constitution. We recognize preservation of water resources as a key element to protect biodiversity.
On Slovenia’s initiative, the UN proclaimed a World Bee Day, celebrated on 20th of May, recognizing the importance of bees and other pollinators for food security, biodiversity and sustainable development.
My personal advocacy to environmental protection is both global and local, based on introducing public debates on climate change, establishing committee for climate policy and supporting youth movements.
I would like to reaffirm Slovenia’s and my personal commitment to stop an unprecedented rate of biodiversity loss and halt climate change effects.
This is why I join the “Leaders Pledge for nature”.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
The COVID-19 crisis brought about a stark realization of the importance of solidarity and cooperation — among ourselves and within multilateral organizations, such as the World Health Organization.
COVID-19 pandemic has left devastating social and economic consequences. Lives depend on accurate and timely information. A full exercise of the rights to freedom of expression, access to public information and the protection of journalists are key to wellbeing of our societies.
My country, Slovenia, came into being, inspired by the quest for democracy and fundamental rights. We know — and the current COVID-19 crisis has confirmed — that human rights can never been taken for granted.
The situation of the most vulnerable groups — those without sufficient health care and those that are prosecuted and historically marginalized, has further worsened.
We need to stress once again that there is no place for discrimination based on any personal status in modern societies.
Nobody should be left behind.
As we mark 25 years of adoption of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action we celebrate gains in gender equality and women empowerment.
Dear Friends,
75 years ago our mothers and fathers said “never again”. They said “NO” to another total war, pointless deaths and suffering, no to nationalistic and extremist tendencies, no to a life in uncertainty and fear.
I — as well as many of you, grew up in peace and prosperity, in a world, built on the values and ideas of the UN founders. Yes, the UN has failed to prevent all the conflicts, could and should oftentimes react quicker, better, more determined. Nevertheless, we have to agree that the world has been a better place since 24 October 1945 because of the United Nations.
However, Ladies and Gentlemen,
The world today is a very different place than 75 years ago. Today’s world is less predictable and less secure than it was yesterday.
Amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, the very fact that we are celebrating this important anniversary in this unprecedented way — each of us from her/his different part of the world, clearly indicates that we are capable to adapt. Adapt to do our joint work for the one humanity and the one planet that we all share.
Let me therefore take this opportunity to reaffirm Slovenia’s commitment to the multilateral cooperation in the framework of the UN and other international and regional organizations, including within the scope of its EU membership and presidency in 2021.
With this in mind, it is vital that progress is made on respect for human rights, international law and the rule of law and on a comprehensive, inclusive, and sustainable development of our societies.
The world is increasingly connected and interdependent. The COVID-19 crisis has undoubtedly shown that.
We, and the UN as an institution, have to change and grow with it. I am convinced we can best address global challenges through our joint action.
75 years ago, our predecessors have built the first bridge. Today our world is a tight network of bridges, and I ask you, for the sake of the present and future generations, for the sake of your loved ones and yourself, do not tear them down.
I wish to congratulate all of us.
I wish to congratulate and thank our predecessors, who were brave and visionary enough to start it all.
I wish to congratulate generation of our parents and our own generation to keep it going despite all the obstacles.
And I wish our youth, who is slowly taking over, the courage and wisdom to do better than us.
I would like to give the final word to the eminent Slovenian novelist Boris Pahor, also known as the oldest known survivor of the Nazi concentration camps, and who is at its 107 years of age still outspoken fighter against all totalitarianisms.
He says: “Humanity has enough wisdom and power to find a path to lead us out of the crises, towards becoming a more ethical human being.” I believe him.
HVALA! Thank you!“


Your Excellency, President of the 75th Session of the United Nations General Assembly,
Your Excellency, Secretary-General of the United Nations,
Distinguished Heads of State and Government,
Esteemed Delegates,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Rarely have the United Nations and multilateralism been tested as they are being tested during this year of the UN’s 75th anniversary, the year where the world is grappling with the COVID-19 pandemic.
Rarely, has there been a more pressing time for creative thinking and innovation to respond to modern challenges.
The painful lessons learned since the outbreak of the pandemic underscores the urgent need for continued collective approaches.
To be effective, our joint efforts need to be coordinated and delivered through a revitalised and more inclusive multilateral system, comprising of the voices of all stakeholders, including the youth, civil society and the private sector to ensure a global all-of-society approach.
I say revitalised because the existing set-up has, despite the lessons of past outbreaks of viruses, failed to respond adequately to COVID-19 with devastating consequences.
Seychelles stepped up to the challenge despite being faced with an economy crippled by the collapse of tourism, our primary industry.
We introduced a series of unprecedented measures to save the lives of our people and mitigate the economic destruction,minimising unemployment and securing workers’ incomes. To ensure an inclusive approach that factors in the specific needs of different stakeholders in Seychelles, we consulted with the private sector, trade unions, civil society and inter-faith organisations as required.
We were joined in this undertaking by the tourism businesses, a key driver of Seychelles’ economy and who continue to play an instrumental role in drafting Seychelles’ tourism comeback together with Government. However, everything Seychelles has done to date to minimise the impact of COVID-19 will not be sustainable in the longterm because of the depletion in our foreign exchange reserves.
It took us 44 years since Seychelles’ independence to attain the quality of life we enjoyed before COVID-19, and just 4 months for COVID-19 to paralyse our tourism industry and with it much of our economy.
We foresee a 14 per cent budgetary deficit for this year instead of the 4 per cent surplus we projected before COVID-19. The Seychelles economy was set to grow by 3.9 per cent this year but will now end 2020 at -15.2 per cent.
We estimate it will take at least five years for Seychelles to return to where we were before COVID-19, assuming the world gets a vaccine that ensures the novel coronavirus is no longer a global public health threat.
I turn to the multilateralism theme for this debate; a multilateralism which we recognise as crucial to a globally-coordinated response to COVID-19 and to us emerging from the pandemic more resilient, and hopefully, more compassionate.
SIDS have made heroic efforts to shore up jobs as unemployment grows and provide social safety nets for our people in response to COVID-19 with the limited capacity and resources that we have.
However, we cannot maintain these in the long term, often at the cost of worsening our debt burdens as part of a looming global debt crisis.
The shortage of effective global solutions for SIDS as the United Nations celebrates its 75th anniversary is alarming.The ultimate test of multilateralism lies in the way we assist vulnerable economies today, for it ultimately decides whether we attain the future we want.
We call on all relevant stakeholders to take immediate, substantial and tailored actions to allow us to manage the crisis and address its grave socio-economic impacts while preserving our development achievements and reinforcing our resilience to future shocks.
Such actions should include building capacity for small island developing states to cope with and recover from external shocks such as pandemics like COVID-19, other forms of disasters, and impacts of climate change.
International financial institutions should re-examine their eligibility criteria to tailor SIDS’ access to concessional financing to take into account our extreme vulnerability to economic, climate and now public health shocks that put us at particular risk and disadvantage.
Seychelles backs AOSIS, the Alliance of Small Island States, in its call for a SIDS Compact, which caters for our specific and persistent constraints and vulnerabilities.
Such a compact will require the design of new, and enhancement of existing financial instruments to guide SIDS economies through the current crisis, create a responsive system where we maintain our gains, reinforce resilience to climate change and achieve sustainable development.
The massive global economic restructuring now underway presents the world with a unique opportunity to pursue a holistic and transformational approach to address the numerous escalating global crises we face while making the most efficient use of our resources.
Our recovery efforts should aim to take us to a more sustainable and resilient future which requires a recognition that economic recovery depends on ecological health. Reviving economic activity should not be at the expense of environmental sustainability.
One of the jobs Seychelles has offered workers made redundant by COVID-19, for example, is the planting of hundreds of thousands of trees across our islands. This measure is in keeping with the call by the world’s scientists to protect our natural environment at all costs. This is how we can restore planetary health and the balance between human and ecological wellbeing.
We cannot have a healthy recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic if we do not heal our poor relationship with our natural environment. As the saying goes human health depends on nature’s health.
We understand this well in Seychelles where the two main pillars of our economy, tourism and fishing, depend on the state of our natural, and especially our ocean, environment.
So, on March 26 this year as the pandemic raged across the world, Seychelles went ahead and delivered on our 2012 Rio+20 commitment to protect 30 per cent of our giant exclusive economic zone of 1.34 million square kilometres by 2020.
It was a recognition that even while we dealt with a public health emergency, we cherished the importance of nature to our people’s physical, economic and social wellbeing.
We should adopt a similar approach to climate action to maintain and increase climate ambition in the context of the pandemic and prevent a post-COVID rebound in greenhouse gas emissions.
While the effects of climate breakdown will continue to impact us long after we’ve dealt with the pandemic, COVID-19 presents a new opportunity to take action on climate change as countries make drastic changes to infrastructure, jobs and investment.
Achieving the 1.5-degree Celsius goal remains critical if we are to leave no country behind.The drop in greenhouse gas emissions and improvement in air quality during the pandemic is only temporary, and research shows it will have a negligible impact on the climate crisis.
We do not know how long the COVID-19 pandemic will last, but we know we are heading towards a temperature increase of approximately 3 degrees Celsius if business continues as usual. This will have devastating consequences for us all, especially SIDS and other vulnerable countries.
COVID-19 is not the biggest global challenge of our time. Climate change is the number one threat to humanity.
The postponement of COP26 to November 2021 does not mean a postponement of climate action and of urgently-needed efforts to raise climate ambitions.
Seychelles’ updated Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) or climate pledge to the Paris Agreement will accordingly have a whole chapter on harnessing the ocean that surrounds our islands for nature-based climate action.
Seychelles’ NDC will champion blue carbon ecosystems such as mangroves and the vast expanses of seagrass meadows, which form part of our new marine protected areas.
It will enable us as a big ocean state to contribute to the global fight against climate change far more than when we relied solely on land-based actions.
Seychelles’ protection of nearly a third of our EEZ for ocean conservation, sustainability and climate action shows that countries’ responses to the health and financial crisis caused by COVID19 do not need to be at the expense of nature and climate.
Seychelles agrees that we need international solidarity and cooperation more than ever in the face of the worst human and economic crisis of our lifetime, a multilateralism that works for both developed and developing countries.
Many argue that society is unwilling to make the behavioural changes necessary to address climate change effectively. Countries’ responses to COVID-19 show otherwise; we have changed in previously unthinkable ways.
We must not lose sight of the fact that the stimulus packages aimed at rescuing economies from the coronavirus crisis will determine the shape of the global economy — a more financially stable, socially inclusive and low-carbon economy — for years to come.
If we are going to talk about a multilateralism that counts for everyone, it must deliver an equitable recovery that prioritises innovation, science, health, wellbeing, opportunity and a liveable environment for all countries and societies.
The future of multilateralism depends on a transformative global response to the COVID 19 pandemic.
A transformation which will take us all, the most vulnerable countries and fragile economies included, into a more sustainable and resilient post-COVID world better equipped to meet the goals of the 2030 Agenda and the Paris Agreement on climate change, and for small island developing states.
I thank you all.


President of the General Assembly,
Secretary-General,
Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,
First of all, Mr. President, we wish you every success at the seventy-fifth session of the General Assembly. You can count on Peru’s firm support of the General Assembly in fulfilling your tasks in such a noble leadership role.
In such difficult times for humankind, on behalf of the Government and the people of Peru, let me convey our unequivocal solidarity and sympathy to the people who, owing to the COVID-19 pandemic, have lost loved ones, relatives, friends and co-workers, and the front-line actors — doctors, nurses and police and military personnel — who have sacrificed everything, including their own lives. I also pay tribute to and am grateful for those who, far from their families, continue to fight every day to save lives at the risk of losing their own. And we reaffirm our commitment to continue in the joint and unrelenting effort to combat this unprecedented health crisis.
The severity and magnitude of the pandemic and the highly contagious and unknown nature of COVID-10 will not allow for anyone to be safe until we are all safe. I therefore encourage all of us to join the struggle in a concerted and effective manner by recognizing the vaccine and treatment against this virus as global public goods and ensuring timely and equitable access to the medicines and equipment needed to address the pandemic.
It is therefore urgent to reach global agreements on those basic goals. That will strengthen the foundation of the multilateral system and ensure that the commitment we made in 2015 to leave no one behind is fulfilled.
Mr. President,
Two and a half years ago I assumed the Presidency of Peru in accordance the Constitution after my predecessor submitted his resignation before the Congress of the Republic.
Since then, the Peruvian people and my Government have faced together various crises. We have had to combat organized corruption to safeguard democratic governance, and now we are combating the unforeseen and devastating COVID-19 pandemic.
In addressing the latter, our responses have been based on constitutional principles in strict respect for the law and fundamental rights, while taking into account the sense of urgency and the determination of the people.
We have been fighting the scourge of corruption head-on with a set of national reforms to transform the institutions in need of them. In order to support that effort and owing to the transnational nature of the scourge of corruption, together with the Heads of State and Government of countries in the hemisphere at the 2018 Summit of the Americas, we resolutely adopted the declaration, entitled “Lima Commitment: democratic governance against corruption” to expand our obligations and strengthen cooperation on our continent.
Likewise we have promoted together with Colombia and other friendly countries, the convening of a special session of the General Assembly against corruption to be held in June 2021. We advocate the adoption at that session of a clear and action- oriented political declaration that will make international judicial cooperation and assistance more effective, especially with regard to corruption involving large assets, which, among other measures, will encourage the criminalization of corruption in the private sector and among legal entities, among others.
Mr. President,
Any serious governance crisis could be overcome within the constitutional framework by dissolving Congress and calling for elections within the time limits established by law so that citizens could renew their congressional representation in a democratic and transparent manner. Democracy and the separation of powers have been preserved and strengthened through this mechanism in my country.
With the same commitment to the rule of law, national general elections have been called for in April 2021. I will therefore complete my term within the time frame provided for in the Constitution and will hand over my Office to my successor on 28 July 2021 — the date on which Peru will celebrate the bicentennial of its independence.
The lessons learned from this crisis have led my Government to commit to dialogue under the Peru Pact — a democratic space for reflection within the National Agreement forum — to reach consensus among political actors and citizens on five specific issues that will promote a renewed governance agenda in view of our bicentennial of republican life: establishing a unified health system; guaranteeing quality education; promoting economic growth; reforming the justice administration systems; and combating poverty and extreme poverty.
Mr. President,
As it is aware of the historical social gaps and weaknesses in the health-care system, my Government was one of the first in the region to take robust measures to contain the spread of COVID-19. They have saved thousands of lives despite elevated and distressing rates of death and contagion, while allowing for reversing decades of shortfalls with regard to infrastructure and investment in public health. We have fought to contain the disease while, at the same time, strengthening our response capacity.
Six months after the struggle began, the number of people who have been infected with and died from COVID-19 is beginning to drop sharply in Peru, and we are firmly committed to stay the course until the end.
Despite Peru’s macroeconomic strength, the pandemic has deepened inequalities and exposed structural weaknesses caused by the disruption. We are therefore implementing the largest economic containment and recovery plan in our Republic’s history, as well as one of the largest in the region, with an investment equivalent to 20 per cent of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP).
The plan includes bonds, subsidies, liquidity and tax relief measures to sustain family spending, as well as to safeguard employment and the payments chain, thereby benefiting 8.5 million homes and more than 700,000 businesses, 98 per cent of which are micro-, small- and medium-sized businesses.
We have also developed public spending measures to create work to produce and restore 1 million jobs. In addition, we are stepping up various infrastructure projects through Government-to-Government contracting.
Those measures have been decisive in addressing COVID-19 and will support a rapid and safe recovery, with GDP growth estimated at 10 per cent in 2021 and a return to prepandemic levels in 2022.
Mr. President,
In addressing this multidimensional crisis, the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development remains the road map, which guides our decisions to overcome challenges made more complex by the pandemic. Such is the case with regard to increasing levels of poverty.
Peru maintains its commitment to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals, as stated in the second Voluntary National Review presented here in July, in which we reported on the progress and difficulties in implementing the 2030 Agenda.
Mr. President,
The COVID-19 pandemic is the greatest global challenge that humankind has faced since the end of the Second World War. I am convinced that we must strengthen multilateralism through the United Nations (UN) and WHO, based on lessons learned. That will benefit global health governance and international cooperation to make universal health coverage a reality, as an objective of sustainable development.
In keeping with that commitment, Peru supports the COVAX Facility initiative, the Access to COVID-19 Tools (ACT) Accelerator Facilitation Council, the Vaccine Alliance (GAVI) and the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI). We encourage competition in the areas of vaccine and treatment discovery, which will involve researchers, academics, Governments, the pharmaceutical industry, philanthropists, and volunteers, to yield results that will collectively benefit us as global public goods serving all of humankind.
As it is committed to democracy and respect for human rights, Peru will continue to make regional diplomatic efforts with other stakeholders to support the peaceful restoration of democracy and the rule of law in Venezuela, as the first step to overcoming the multidimensional crisis affecting the country. Through its political mechanisms, the United Nations can provide its extremely valuable humanitarian support to contribute to the political resolution of the regional crisis before it becomes a chronic issue, which no one wants to see, especially the Venezuelan people who are suffering from the crisis.
Mr. President,
Peru is particularly vulnerable to climate change. That is why my Government adopted the Framework Law on Climate Change in 2018 and is committed to the national implementation of the Paris Agreement, establishing road maps for 91 adaptation measures and 62 mitigation measures.
The conservation and sustainable use of the Amazon is another priority for my country, including strengthening its resilience and adaptive capacity in addressing climate change and safeguarding the country’s vast biological diversity.
Accordingly, in December 2019, we promoted the presidential summit at which the Leticia Pact was signed, and, a few weeks ago, together with leaders of the Amazon, we adopted the regional plan of action, with an integral vision for combating deforestation and illegal activities, strengthening capacities and including indigenous peoples and local communities in its development.
Mr. President,
As a founding member of the United Nations, Peru has an unwavering commitment to the maintenance of international peace and security, which guided its recent and constructive membership in the Security Council for the period from 2018 to 2019. Accordingly, we support the Secretary-General’s Action for Peacekeeping initiative and his call for a global ceasefire.
Our commitment to the general and complete disarmament of weapons of mass destruction is equally strong. We are part of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons regime and a member of the major international regimes on conventional arms control and nuclear non-proliferation. We are in the process of ratifying the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, as we are convinced that the prohibition of nuclear weapons and tests remains a moral imperative for the planet and humankind.
Mr. President,
Let me conclude on the seventy-fifth anniversary of the United Nations by remembering Ambassador Javier Perez de Cuellar, an illustrious Peruvian, who left us in March. We are filled with pride that this emblem of international diplomacy served as Secretary-General of the Organization for two consecutive terms, which were characterized by a constructive thaw in bipolarity and the resolution of numerous conflicts.
We remember his calls for us to fulfil our obligations based on the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations and work collectively for the resolution of our differences. His Pilgrimage For Peace, the title of his memoirs of his leadership in the House, will continue to inspire all to promote peace, sustainable development, protection of the environment, safeguarding human rights and the international rules-based system.
Strengthened multilateralism aimed at sustainable development — as we agreed in the 2030 Agenda — aimed at giving future generations a better world for all will certainly be the best tribute we will be able to pay him.
Many thanks.


In the name of God, the Merciful,
H.E. Mr. Volkan Bozkir, President of the General Assembly
H.E. Mr. Antonio Guterres, Secretary General
Ladies and Gentlemen, Heads and Members of delegations,
I wondered while preparing this statement what more could I tell you, after all that I have said in previous statements, about the perpetual tragedy and suffering being endured by my people — which the world is witness to daily — and about their legitimate aspirations — which are yet to be fulfilled — to freedom, independence and human dignity, as enjoyed by the peoples of the world.
Until when, ladies and gentlemen, will the question of Palestine remain without a just solution as enshrined in United Nations resolutions? Until when will the Palestinian people remain under Israeli occupation and will the question of millions of Palestine refugees remain without a just solution in accordance with what the United Nations has determined over 70 years ago?
Ladies and Gentlemen,
The Palestinian people have been present in their homeland, Palestine, the land of their ancestors, for over 6000 years, and they will continue living on this land, steadfast in the face of occupation, aggression and the disappointments and betrayals, until the fulfilment of their rights.
Despite all they have endured and continue to endure, despite the unjust blockade that targets our national decision, we will not kneel or surrender and we will not deviate from our fundamental positions, and we shall overcome, God willing.
We have accepted the rule of international law and UN resolutions, and we have done so in spite of the historic injustice that we have borne from 1917 to the present day, and even though these resolutions only acknowledged as Palestinian the territories occupied in 1967. Yet, the Israeli occupying Power, with the support of the present US administration, wants to substitute this basis for a just solution with the US ‘Deal of the Century’ and the planned annexation of over 33% of the land of the State of Palestine, in addition to the annexation of occupied East Jerusalem, including Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. We have rejected this deal, as did the international community, as it contravenes international law and UN resolutions, which recognized, inter alia, the existence of the State of Palestine in 2012 as part of the international order.
We have always sought a just, comprehensive and lasting peace, and we have agreed to all the initiatives presented to us. I have personally dedicated my life to achieving this desired peace, notably since 1988, followed by the Madrid Conference and the Oslo Accords in 1993, and to this very day. We accepted and remained committed to the Arab Peace Initiative, as it provides for peace, security and coexistence once the occupation ends. We did all of this for peace.
What did Israel, the occupying Power, do in return? It violated all agreements signed with us, undermined the two-State solution through its oppressive practices of killing and maiming, arrests, home demolitions, asphyxiating our economy, and systematically acting to alter the character and identity of occupied Jerusalem, attacking its Muslim and Christian holy sites, notably Al-Aqsa Mosque, and pursuing its settler colonialism on our land and against our people, ignoring the Arab Peace Initiative for peace and actively attempting now to kill another opportunity for peace through reckless unilateral measures.
Finally, it announces normalization agreements with both the UAE and Bahrain, in violation of the Arab Peace Initiative, and the terms of reference of a comprehensive, lasting and just solution in accordance with international law. The Palestine Liberation Organization has not given a mandate to anyone to speak or negotiate on behalf of the Palestinian people and the only path to lasting, comprehensive and just peace in our region requires ending the occupation and securing the independence of the State of Palestine on the 1967 borders with East Jerusalem as its capital.
In this regard, I call on the Secretary-General of the United Nations to undertake, in cooperation with the Quartet and the Security Council, preparations to convene an international conference with full authority and with the participation of all concerned parties, early next year, to engage in a genuine peace process, based on international law, UN resolutions and the relevant terms of reference, leading to an end the occupation and the achievement by the Palestinian people of their freedom and independence within their State, with East Jerusalem as its capital, on the 1967 borders, and resolving all final status issues, notably the question of the refugees, based on resolution 194.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Those who believe the Palestinian people can coexist with the occupation or be subdued by pressure and diktats are under an illusion, as are those who are being misled to believe that they can circumvent our people, who bear this struggle and are its only address. Let everyone know there will be no peace, no security, no stability and no coexistence in our region while this occupation continues and a just, comprehensive solution to the question of Palestine, the core of the conflict, remains denied.
In Palestine, ladies and gentlemen, there is a living nation, creative, civilized, peace-loving, aspiring passionately to freedom. A nation that has been able — despite the occupation that besieges our lives — to build an active and modern society, that believes in democracy and the rule of law and has been able to preserve its national existence and identity despite all the political and philosophical differences between its diverse components. Here we are, despite all the obstacles that you know too well, preparing ourselves to hold parliamentary elections, followed by presidential elections, with the participation of all factions and political parties.
We will continue creating life and hope under the flag of national unity and democracy. We will continue resisting all attempts and plans to erase us, and we will secure our rightful and natural place among nations and exercise the rights granted to us by international legitimacy, including our right to resist this occupation in accordance with international law.
We will continue building the institutions of our State and consolidating them on the basis of the rule of law. We will continue combating international terrorism, as we have done for years past. We will remain faithful to peace, justice, human and national dignity under all circumstances.
I salute the great Palestinian people that bravely pursues the struggle for freedom and independence. I salute our martyrs, prisoners and wounded. I salute Jerusalem and our people who remain steadfast in its holy sites. I salute our people in the besieged Gaza Strip. I salute our people in the refugee camps everywhere. I salute all those who stand with us and with our rights from all countries, nations and organizations.
Peace be upon you.


Mr. President, Distinguished members of the General Assembly, Ladies and Gentlemen, Introduction
On behalf of the Government of Tuvalu, I congratulate you on your election as President of the 75th United Nations General Assembly. Tuvalu has full confidence in your leadership. Let me also take this opportunity to thank the president of our 74th session, Professor Mohammed-Bande for a successful session under his leadership, despite the challengesto the work of the general assembly due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
I also want to express Tuvalu’s solidarity with all countries in the fight against the covid19 pandemic.
Mr. President,
Theme of UNGA75: Multilateralism
We acknowledge the international cooperation and solidarity that is underway to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic. My country has benefitted from these assistances and I wish to thank our bilateral and multilateral development partners who are continuing to help us through these difficult times.
The social and economic impacts of the pandemic will be felt for many years to come. Recovering will be a long and costly process, especially for the most vulnerable. Global solidarity, effective international cooperation and political commitment are critical to sustain our response to recover and to build back better.
We therefore congratulate you for the priority you have given to multilateralism in the theme of our 75th UNGA, “The future we want, the United Nations we need: reaffirming our collective commitment to multilateralism — confronting the COVID-19 through effective multilateral action”.
Mr. President,
The COVID19 Challenge
The advent of COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated our social and economic vulnerabilities and costs of development as a SIDS and an LDC. It came at the time when my country was still trying to recover from the aftermaths of tropical cyclone Tino in January and tropical cyclone Harold in April of this year.
While Tuvalu is still COVID-19 free, the ripple effects of this deadliest virus has come at a huge cost to our economy. Unemployment in our fisheries and tourism sectors has soared and remittances dropped significantly. Food security was affected as supply chains were disrupted. We have to reallocate domestic resources to roll out economic stimulus assistance and limited social protection payments.
Concretizing the Multilateral response in a UN we need and a future we want.
Central to our global recovery is a vaccine to save lives and stop transmission. We acknowledged the important work on developing a vaccine for the covid19 and welcome the efforts to ensure that it is available and affordable to the most vulnerable. In this respect I applaud the important work by the COVAX Facility Advance Market Commitment to accelerate the development and manufacture of COVID-19 vaccines and to guarantee fair and equitable access for every country in the world.
COVID-19 has significantly disrupted economies and societies right across the world. Indeed, COVID-19 has reshaped the contours of the normal way of things, placing us on a “new normal”. Therefore, we must not only think outside the box, but we must also work outside the box. The UN members must work collaboratively together to build back better countries and economies that:
(i)	are inclusive and leave no one behind;
(ii)	protect the health and wellbeing of all;
(iii)	preserve our natural and marine environment;
(iv)	are low emissions and climate smart; and
(v)	build our resilience to future crisis
Mr. President,
Our United Nations has in place systems and processes that should and can place us well to face both health and economic crisis. We have the 2030 Agenda for sustainable development and the SDGs. We have the Paris Agreement. We have the SAMOA Pathway for SIDS. We have the Istanbul Plan of Action for LDCs. We have the resources and the technology that we need. But it requires strong political commitment and immediate and ambitious action.
As we enter the Decade of Action, the world is off tracked to achieving the SDGs by 2030. We need to recommit ourselves to these mandates and build a genuine and durable partnerships we need to achieve them.
The digital economy is essential to support transformation to sustainable development. Many countries are yet to realise the full economic potential of a digital economy which in many ways will ensure the development and self-sufficiency of people at all levels.
At the centre of our development is people. Substantial advances in human capacity are needed through improvements of education and healthcare. This should result in productive societies with higher income and better standard of living.
Responsible consumption and production will allow us to do more with fewer resources. We need to adopt a circular economy approach and reduce demand on depleting global resources.
While COVID-19 is our immediate crisis, climate change remained the single greatest threat to the livelihoods, security and wellbeing of the Pacific and its peoples in the long run. Pacific Islands Forum Leaders last year reaffirmed this commitment in the Kainaki II Declaration for Urgent Climate Change Action Now. The shared prosperity and security of our Blue Pacific can only safely exist if the international community pursues efforts to limit global warming to 1.5 °C.
The transformation and investment response to the COVID-19 pandemic must also serve to build our resilience to the impacts of climate change. If we failed this, then we are putting additional debt into our already exhausted capacities, which can further exacerbate climate crises going forward.
Decarbonization remains central to our effort to combat the impacts of climate change, and help build the resilient of small and vulnerable economies and societies. We need clean and affordable energy for all through energy efficiency, more renewables and electrification. The Paris Agreement’s 2020 commitments to update NDCs and to develop low emissions development strategies remain critical. They should be synergized with covid19 recovery efforts that accelerate transition to decarbonization and build resilience.
Investing in building resilience to natural disaster is important for our region. In 2019, our Pacific Islands Forum Leaders endorsed the establishment of the Pacific Resilience Facility whose purpose is to finance small disasters resilience projects in our local communities. The facility will be initially capitalized by donor funding after which the fund will be self-sustained providing small grants to fund projectsto enhance resilience. The facility replicates the number of successful national trust funds in some of our Pacific Island countries. The facility invites interested development partners to contribute to and to form the basis of development partnership on resilient building with our pacific region.
COVID-19 exposed the vulnerability of our food security systems. For atoll nations like Tuvalu, agriculture is difficult with rising sea levels. For the last few years, with the assistance of our development partners, we have invested on new agricultural food production systems that are more resilient to climate change and sea level rise. We acknowledge the recent work of the Peacebuilding Fund in this area and would encourage further assistance to scale up of this initiative to develop food security on atoll nations.
Access to grant financing and debt relief initiatives are crucial aspect of overcoming poverty and fulfillment of the 2030 Agenda and the SDGs. It is critical to provide fiscal space for the LDCs and SIDS to recover from the pandemic.
Mr. President,
The COVID-19 pandemic is a global problem that needs a global response. We believed that we need a UN that is networked, inclusive, with effective multilateralism that would aid efforts for a recovery and the continued implementation of the SDGs.
It is regrettable however that the Republic of China (Taiwan), with its exemplary response to the pandemic continues to be kept out of the UN system. Taiwan has managed the pandemic well and has reached a level comparable to OECD countries on several SDG indicators. Taiwan is in a much better position than most to help the international community build back better.
Tuvalu strongly supports the ROC’s readmission into the UN as a founding member of the UN, and its active participation in UN specialized agencies including the WHO and ICAO.
It is also regrettable that the people of Cuba continued to face the economic burden of the long unilateral economic embargo. Keeping these measures in place robbed Cuba of the international collaborations and assistance to recover and build back better. It neglected the human rights and the spirit of cooperation espoused in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
Mr. President,
Tuvalu remains committed to multilateralism. Working together as a global family with the full respect of human rights, together we can build a future that is responsive and resilient to health, economic and environment crises.
I thank you Mr. President
TUVALU MO TEATUA


Mr. Secretary-General,
Excellencies,
Distinguished delegates,
This year we commemorate the 75th anniversary of the United Nations in both dramatic and critical time.
The greatest challenge of our age — the COVID-19 pandemic — continues to cause deep suffering among the people around the world and has seriously affected the global economy.
In the wake of this unprecedented human tragedy, on behalf of my country- fellows I extend the profound gratitude to all medical professionals and frontline staff-members who work very hard to protect us.
The current global emergency is a stress test for all of us that has triggered health, humanitarian and socio-economic turbulence. COVID-19 has exposed our past mistakes and failures.
We have witnessed a critical collapse of global cooperation in response to this crisis, trade protectionism and political nationalism, coming close to what some have already called a state of “global dysfunction”.
The whole world is on the verge of dramatic upheavals that may lead to irreversible consequences. Lack of mutual confidence, misunderstanding of international competition, trade wars and sanctions really undermine the prospects and hopes for a better world.
Let us be frank — in the post-Cold War world we largely missed the chance to build a truly just, people-centered international system. The fate of our future generations depends on the understanding of this reality, primarily by us, the leaders of states.
Therefore, it is our moral obligation to reflect on the paradigm of building a “New World”. Now we are in a make-or-break moment for the humankind. Born a century before the UN establishment, a great Kazakh poet and philosopher Abai proposed his own formula on global interaction: “Адамзатқа не керек: сүймек, сезбек, кейімек, қарекет қылмақ, жүгірмек, ақылмен ойлап сөйлемек”. Which means: “All that the humanity needs — love, compassion, bold actions, deeds and thoughtfulness”.
In this context, allow me to share some points on our collective response to current challenges.
Mr. President,
Right after the coronavirus outbreak, the UN’s various funds, programmes and agencies have stepped forward to combat the crisis. However, the international
community obviously needs to do more. Firstly, to build a strong global health system priority must be given to upgrading national health institutions through timely and coordinated support from developed countries and UN agencies.
Secondly, we must take the politics out of the vaccine. It is not too late for reaching a COVID-19 vaccine trade and investment agreement that would protect global production and supply chains.
Thirdly, it may be necessary to revise the International Health Regulations to increase the World Health Organization’s capacity, and to develop national capabilities in preventing and responding to diseases.
Fourthly, we suggest that the idea of a network of Regional Centers for Disease Control and Biosafety under the UN auspices be closely examined. Kazakhstan stands ready to host such a regional center.
Last but not least, in light of the global pandemic, launching of a biological weapons control system is becoming more acute than ever. Kazakhstan proposes to establish a special multilateral body — the International Agency for Biological Safety — based on the 1972 Biological Weapons Convention and accountable to the UN Security Council.
Distinguished delegates,
We need urgent concerted efforts for a truly global economic recovery. I join the Secretary-General’s call on rescue package amounting to 10 per cent of the world economy and share his view that the response to the pandemic should be based on a New Global Deal to create equal and broader opportunities for all.
We believe that the suspension of debt repayments by the poorest countries will help reduce uncertainty. International financial institutions need to implement innovative solutions like debt-to-health system swaps.
I hope that the upcoming High-Level Meeting on Financing for Development will produce concrete measures.
Landlocked developing countries have been particularly hard-hit by COVID-19 which has severely damaged trade and supply chains.
As the current Chair of the LLDC Group, Kazakhstan has proposed a UN Roadmap to reinvigorate implementation of the Vienna Programme of Action. The highest expectation of our people is practical deliverables within Agenda 2030.
We need prompt and well- coordinated steps to get back on track for an accelerated SDG Decade of Action — probably the most critical decade of our generation.
The very basic target, zero hunger is to be provided unconditionally. In this context, we note the importance of convening a Food Systems Summit in 2021.
The Islamic Organization for Food Security, initiated by Kazakhstan is ready to assist the international humanitarian campaign through the creation of food reserves.
We should renew our commitment to leave no one behind, especially women, youth, children, elders, persons with disabilities, disproportionately affected by the crisis.
The largest disruption of education systems in history should be stopped from becoming a generational catastrophe.
Civic engagement and private sector involvement are also critical for solving current pressing problems.
During past months we have witnessed strong solidarity all over the world through volunteering.
To acknowledge the role of volunteers, I propose the United Nations to proclaim an International Year of Mobilizing Volunteers for Development. In Kazakhstan I announced the current year as a Year of Volunteers.
Mr. President,
There are two more crises that are looming right behind the pandemic. One of them is the nuclear non-proliferation and disarmament crisis. Kazakhstan has been the role model of a responsible state by willingly abandoning its nuclear arsenal and shutting down world’s biggest nuclear test site.
However, continuous erosion of the non-proliferation regime leaves us in a dangerous position.
Kazakhstan, therefore, expects all Member States to join its appeal to nuclear powers to take necessary and urgent measures to save the humankind from a nuclear disaster.
In this respect we appreciate an active role played by relevant UN institutions including the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization.
We believe that legally-binding negative security assurances should be given to every non-nuclear-weapon state. That is why we urge all P5 countries to ratify the respective Protocols to the Nuclear-Weapon-Free-Zone Treaties, including Semipalatinsk Treaty.
Another existential crisis for our civilization is the climate change. It is not only a dangerous problem in itself, but is also a “threat multiplier”. The climate emergency is a race we are losing. But the post-COVID recovery gives us unique opportunity to put environmental protection at the forefront of international agenda. We must unite around the UN’s six climate positive actions.
Kazakhstan is very vulnerable to the various effects of the climate change. The tragedies of Aral Sea and Semipalatinsk Nuclear Test Site, the rapid melting of glaciers, and desertification threaten not only Kazakhstan and Central Asian region, but also the entire world.
Although Kazakhstan is highly dependent on fossil fuels and has a long way to go to meet Paris 2030 targets, our commitment to develop a decarbonized economy has no alternative.
We will reduce our greenhouse gas emissions by 15 per cent by 2030 through economic overhaul and industrial modernization.
And yet, in next five years we will plant more than two billion trees. To address these global crises, we need to restore an atmosphere of trust between Member States and strengthen multilateral institutions. Lack of trust between nations has become toxic for international relations.
It is a moral duty to demonstrate our commitment to the basic purposes and principles of the UN Charter.
Due to the immensely growing demand for confidence-building, Kazakhstan aims to transform Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia into a full-fledged organization for security and development in Asia.
The world community should increasingly promote an ideology of tolerance, mutual understanding and cultural diversity. It is a key to countering hatred and intolerance.
We once again stress the need for creating a unified coalition to counter another global challenge — international terrorism.
We invite all countries to join the Code of Conduct for Achieving a World Free of Terrorism.
Kazakhstan was among the first to repatriate our women and children from war-torn Syria and Iraq. It was not an easy decision, but absolutely necessary one.
It is our strong belief that the United Nations must lead the global effort to overcome the pandemic, accelerate recovery and improve prospects for global governance.
Therefore, each and every UN agency should reinstate its efficiency and relevance to the tasks ahead of us.
We have no alternative but to live up to the great challenge of building a more robust and forward-oriented UN.
The criticism of the United Nations is not always fair. The UN does exactly as much as the political will of the Member States allows.
Excellencies,
Though different, each of these three crises is in fact a governance challenge. To achieve truly just and people-centered world, measures at the international stage should be accompanied by the dedicated efforts at the national level.
Kazakhstan is determined to build an economically strong, democratically advanced and human-oriented “Listening State”. Therefore, we conduct political and economic reforms that are expected to give a boost to the development of our society to meet up the expectations of our people.
We have decriminalized defamation, adopted new laws on political parties and on the peaceful mass meetings.
To fulfill a fundamental right to life and human dignity we decided to join the Second Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights on the abolition of the death penalty.
Another priority is ensuring equal opportunities for women and youth, protection of children.
We have reduced our Gender Inequality Index value by two times and have introduced a mandatory 30% quota for women and youth in election party lists.
We have helped 4.5 million fellow-citizens who temporarily lost their income during pandemic having allocated for this goal $1.1 billion. Over a million people have received food and household packages. It was an unprecedented measure in our part of the world.
Regional cooperation has always been our main focus and commitment. Central Asia is undergoing rapid transformation through significant expansion of regional cooperation in various fields.
No doubt that a prosperous, strong and united Central Asia is beneficial both for regional and global stakeholders.
As to regional stability, the rational use of transboundary water resources is instrumental. We thus propose the establishment of a Regional water and energy consortium.
To coordinate development agenda in the region we intend to institutionalize a UN-led regional SDGs Center in Almaty.
Mr. President,
We must remember that in crisis comes an opportunity. We can build back for a better, greener, more efficient, fair and inclusive world. The emphasis must be shifted on the root causes, preventive measures, and increasing the efficiency of our limited resources.
All the efforts should be guided by the moral imperative — to Put People First.
Kazakhstan will always remain a strong supporter of the UN and will actively participate in fulfilling our collective aspiration for a better and happier future.
Thank you for your attention.


Mr President, Secretary-General, Distinguished Delegates, Ladies and
Gentlemen,
Let me congratulate Mr. Volkan Bozkir for the election as the President of the seventy-fifth session of the General Assembly. You can count on Finland’s support, as you lead this important body during these exceptional times.
And the times are exceptional indeed. At the start of this year, nobody could have foreseen that we are not able to gather in New York this September. The COVID-19 pandemic has hit all of us hard. Extending around the globe, it is affecting every continent and state, all people, and all areas of life.
A pandemic is by definition a global challenge. It requires a global response. No country is able to combat this common enemy alone. No one is safe, until all are safe.
An effective global response can only come from all of us together. From the United Nations. I would like to reiterate our unwavering support for the UN system in general, and the World Health Organization in particular, for their efforts to manage the fight against the pandemic. I also would like to express my appreciation for the strong leadership Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has shown during this crisis.
Mr. President,
Although the COVID-19 pandemic is far from over, it has already taught us a number of important lessons. Firstly, it has shown that we have to take health security much more seriously. Before the next pandemic emerges, we need better prevention and better preparedness. In this work, the Global Health Security Agenda can provide the WHO with valuable support.
Secondly, it has unfortunately revealed how we are tempted to react to immediate threats — nationally, not internationally. When this pandemic broke out, our initial reaction was not to unite behind multilateral efforts. Instead of a much- needed global response, we witnessed a series of national responses. Faced with a completely new situation, this may have been understandable. But it does raise concerns on how we will be able to combat other global challenges.
Thirdly, however, and this is more encouraging: the past six months have also proven our capability to radical measures when needed. In order to contain the pandemic, governments, societies and individuals were suddenly prepared to change their behavior. As soon as the magnitude of the threat was perceived, unconventional solutions were sought.
This gives us hope. Where there is a will, there is a way.
We must not lose sight of the even more persistent existential threat to humanity. Climate change. Our lives may have been on lockdown this year, but climate change has not stopped for a moment. The urgency of bold and swift climate action is growing by the day. Our commitments to the Paris Agreement must prevail. We must redouble our efforts for their implementation.
We must make a virtue out of necessity. As the entire world now needs a recovery strategy, we have to make sure that we choose a road towards a sustainable future. Instead of returning to our unsustainable habits, we truly have to “Build Back Better and Greener”. The Secretary-General’s six principles for “Building Back Better” have our full support. All recovery measures must be assessed from the perspective of their climate and environment impacts. The Paris Agreement, the 2030 Agenda and the Convention on Biological Diversity need to guide our way forward.
Finland is ready to do its share. The Finnish Government stands firmly behind its aim to make Finland climate neutral by 2035, and thus the world's first fossil-free welfare society. We will continue to integrate sustainable development into our state budget. We are determined to transform Finland into a socially, economically and ecologically sustainable society during this decade.
And we continue to work actively in international partnerships. The Coalition of Finance Ministers for Climate Action, led by Finland and Chile, has grown to include more than 50 countries. This cooperation helps countries to integrate climate considerations into economic, fiscal and financial policies.
Mr President,
Precisely when the demand for global solutions is rising, our ability to provide them is weakening. Multilateralism suffers from inward-looking nationalism and great-power competition alike. The institutions we have built together over decades are under growing pressure. International agreements, norms and principles are increasingly challenged and interpreted in ways which weaken both their potential and their legitimacy. Ultimately, if respect for the commonly agreed rules disappears, there will be not much left of a rules-based order.
We need to reverse this trend. More than ever, we need effective multilateral cooperation. More than ever, we need the United Nations. It is not only the common responsibility of all of us — the member states — to make it stronger. It should be obvious that it is our common interest, too.
It is equally obvious that all international institutions need to adapt to changing circumstances. New actors and new technologies create new kinds of challenges. Old structures and old instruments alone will not be sufficient to respond to them. But discarding existing frameworks would create a dangerous vacuum.
Nuclear weapons are becoming a particularly worrying example. With one agreement after the other lapsing, we soon risk losing even the last elements of nuclear arms control. It would be of fundamental importance for the nuclear weapons states to find a way to build mutual understanding and trust. Also in this regard, we support the idea of a closer dialogue between the permanent members of the Security Council. And it does not stop at arms control. At the end of the day, the entire UN system cannot function unless the P5 countries are able to work together.
Excellencies,
As any global crisis, the COVID-19 pandemic, too, can have negative effects on peace and security across the world. It can intensify existing conflicts, stall peace processes and wake up dormant tensions. But it can also offer opportunities for peace. The Secretary-General’s call for a global ceasefire was a strong appeal for conflict parties to lay down their weapons. And as this year marks the 20th anniversary of resolution 1325 on Women, Peace and Security, we should further emphasize an inclusive approach to peacebuilding.
In addition to conflict resolution, we must invest more in conflict prevention. Every conflict avoided is one conflict less to be resolved in the future. Finland advocates the use of mediation for both purposes. We are ready and willing to offer our good services in this regard. Finland also remains committed to the peacekeeping operations and special political missions of the UN.
Ladies and gentlemen,
For the rules-based order, the rule of law is essential. All steps towards its consolidation in international relations have meant progress for humanity. Silence and looking away only empower perpetrators and let them escape justice. We need to end impunity for the gravest crimes. This should apply to all, including the strong and the powerful.
No government should use the crisis as a pretext to violate human rights or to limit democratic and civic space. No government should adopt measures that undermine the respect of the rule of law and of international commitments.
The Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, the most progressive document ever on the rights of women and girls, was adopted twenty-five years ago. Unfortunately, this anniversary is not the only reason why it is so topical this year. The pandemic has hit women particularly hard.
The harsh economic and social implications for women have reversed the progress achieved during the last decades. The attempts to undermine women’s and girls’ rights, especially sexual and reproductive health and rights, continue.
In order to get back on the right track, we must live up to the commitments we have made. In addition to the Beijing Declaration, this also applies to the Istanbul Convention, a ground-breaking legal instrument addressing violence against women.
For Finland, advancing women’s and girls’ rights and gender equality is of fundamental importance. In the Generation Equality process, Finland has a leading role in bridging the digital divide between genders.
In the broad value base of Finland’s foreign and security policy, human rights are at the forefront. This, and our long-term commitment to promoting human rights, is why my country is seeking a seat at the Human Rights Council from 2022 to 2024.
Secretary-General, Mr. President,
At 75 years of age, the Charter of the United Nations remains a remarkable blueprint for the future — for a more peaceful, more sustainable and more just world. But the promise comes with an important condition.
In its Article 2, the Charter states: “All Members, in order to ensure to all of them the rights and benefits resulting from membership, shall fulfil in good faith the obligations assumed by them”.
As much as our environment has changed over time, this principle continues to be true. Only fulfilled obligations lead to rights and benefits. Pacta sunt servanda. Agreements must be kept.