10th Conference of Ambassadors of Turkey

– As prepared for delivery –

Statement by H.E. Mr. Miroslav Lajčák, President of the 72^nd Session of the UN General Assembly, at 10th Conference of Ambassadors of Turkey

 

Thank you all for having me here, at Turkey’s Tenth Ambassador Conference.

In particular, I want to express my thanks to His Excellency, Mr. Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu, Minister of Foreign Affairs.

Minister Çavuşoğlu, we have worked together on many occasions. And I am honoured you invited me to address your team of distinguished ambassadors today.

Over the past year I have served as the 72nd President of the United Nations General Assembly. And, today, I will talk on the following three points.

First: The main priorities on the international agenda.

Second: The process to reform the United Nations.

And, as my third point, I want to talk about why we need this multilateral system in the first place – and where it could go in the years to come.

But before I do any of that, I will point something out. Which is that Turkey plays a very unique role, on the international stage. For centuries, it has influenced political, social and financial developments, around the world. And that is why I am glad to have the opportunity to discuss some of these issues with you – the Ambassadors of Turkey. Simply because we need you all on board, if we want to move forward.

So, for my first point, I will focus on priorities. What are the hot topics at the United Nations?

1/ Well, I will start with migration.

A few years ago, the world was in the middle of a crisis. More people were fleeing their homes than any time since the Second World War. And, frankly, we didn’t know how to respond. But not only that. This spike in the movement of people highlighted a glaring gap in our international system: we realised that we had no global mechanism for what was, clearly, a global phenomenon.

That is why, two years ago, world leaders adopted something called the New York Declaration. This committed us to creating two new global frameworks – one on refugees, and one on migration.

And it has been the second – the Global Compact for Migration – which has kept my team and I very busy over the past year!

We have gone through an extensive process, to bring it to life. There has been a lot of talking…a lot of consultation….a lot of meetings… and a lot of negotiations. But, in July, we arrived at a final document.

And I want to stress how crucial Turkey was to the process.

Because, when it comes to the movement of people, no other country has the same experience as this one.

Turkey is now home to more refugees than any other country in the world. This includes over 3.5 million Syrians.

And many best practices have been developed. Specialised support has been rolled out for women. And, work to reintegrate Syrian children into the education system has been ramped up.

Turkey has been willing to share its lessons learned. And, in doing so, it has reminded us of just how much is at stake – and how we cannot afford to continue with business as usual.

Now, we are on the verge of adopting the world’s first comprehensive framework dealing with migration. And I am confident that everything will run smoothly between now and the International Conference in Morocco, this December. But we cannot take that for granted. We need to keep our eyes on the prize; we need to keep and increase momentum. And I know we can count on Turkey as a partner in these efforts.

2/ The second priority I want to talk today about is peace.

The United Nations was born from the death and destruction of the Second World War. And it was based on a very noble idea: that all countries would talk through their differences, rather than bringing them onto the battlefield.

In a way, this promise has been kept. There has not been another world war. But, in many other ways, it has not. And, we cannot escape the evidence of our broken promises – especially given where we are meeting today.

The Syrian border is just a few hundred miles from this hall. And, for the people on the wrong side of this border, the ideal of dialogue over conflict likely seems very far off.

But we are trying to learn from past mistakes. That is why we are widening our focus – and moving from conflict response to prevention.

And there is no doubt about it: this will demand a new approach. We will need to invest in the drivers of peace. We will need much stronger early warning mechanisms. And we will need to make mediation and diplomacy top priorities.

And, this is where Turkey comes in. This country is a champion of mediation. It has influenced international policy, through its role as Co-Chair of the Group of Friends of Mediation. It has also been a key player, in political mediation, on the ground. And I know that people on the other side of the border are counting on these efforts to continue, in the year ahead.

Minister Çavuşoğlu – I want to pause here to thank you, sincerely, for participating in our meeting on Peacebuilding and Sustaining Peace in April. You gave support to a more preventive approach to peace. And I hope we can continue to work together, towards this ideal.

3/ The third priority I will mention today is Sustainable Development.

The Sustainable Development Goals….the SDGs….the Global Goals…We use these phrases so often at the UN. And we expect everyone to know what we are talking about.

And this makes sense – in theory. When we adopted the 2030 Agenda in 2015, we decided to make it universal. Which means that every government in the world is, automatically, committed to it. And that every person in the world stands to benefit.

But there is a difference between theory and practice. Actually, not everyone knows about the SDGs. And not every actor – from governments to businesses – have taken the necessary actions, to make these goals a reality.

But there are some good signs. As of this summer, 112 countries have volunteered to report on their progress, in implementing the SDGs. This makes up well over half of all countries that are members of the United Nations – and it has provided a lot of good practices, for others to learn from.

Another sign of hope was the establishment of the world’s first Technology Bank in Turkey. This is testament to your country’s solidarity with the Least Developed Countries. And it has allowed the world to reach its first SDG target. But the establishment is not enough. We need to follow this up with financial commitments.

And this is, really, the crux of the issue, when it comes to SDGs. Not all progress will come from money; we also need laws, policies and follow-up. But none will come, without it.

So, we need to put our attention on financing for development. And, if we want to have any chance of meeting our 2030 deadline, we need to do it urgently.

And, this, I believe, means more partnership with the private sector. I invited major business actors to the United Nations in June. And the message I got was very simple: there is a lot of interest. But more effort is needed from us – the ones who negotiated the SDGs – to turn that interest into action.

4/ The final priority I want to mention is people.

Actually, they made up the number one priority of my presidency. And that is why I dedicated the entire session of the General Assembly to the theme of “focusing on people”.

People are obviously core to the UN’s mandate. The very first line of the UN Charter says “We, the peoples”.

But we need to be realistic. The people who drafted this very Charter did not represent everyone. And the people within the United Nations do not represent everyone.

The international system was not built for, only, diplomats or officials. It was built for everyone.

A woman in a rural village…..a family running from war…..a young person looking for a job.

These people do not always get represented at our meetings or events. But everything we do must be for them. And I believe we need to use any tool we have – from Twitter chats to civil society hearings – to ensure their stories are heard.

­­­­­So, those are the main priorities I want to highlight.

And now I will dedicate the second part of my speech to the issue of reform.

A lot has changed, since the UN was created, in 1945.

…We have entered the Information Age.

…Our global financial system has crumbled, and been pieced back together.

…Technology has transformed the way we talk, interact and do business.

…Globalisation has brought us closer together.

…And terrorism has woven its ugly way into both our vocabulary and our lives.

So, the world is changing. We cannot just sit back and wait for our international system to change along with it. This is not how things work. Instead, we need to stand up – and make it happen.

And we are doing this.

At the United Nations, we have seen three main tracks of institutional reform: management, peace and security, and development.

The reform of the development system is the furthest along. After reaching a the final resolution last May, efforts to bring this decision to life have begun. Major change will be seen in the work and reporting lines of the UN’s main chiefs in the field – who we call the Resident Coordinators.

There are still a lot of tasks to do. Some of them must come from the United Nations’ Secretariat. For example, the Secretary-General, Antonio Guterres, will soon release an implementation plan – to clarify some of the finer details.

Others must come from the Member States. And any of you that serve in multilateral posts will know that I am talking about one thing in particular here: funding. It must be adequate, predictable and sustainable if real change is to be seen.

We have also seen major progress on the side of management reform. Soon, the United Nations system will have two new departments. They will help to make processes and decision-making simpler. Other efforts will work to increase the Organisation’s transparency.

And changes to the United Nations’ peace and security pillar are ongoing. The aim is to reduce any duplications or fragmentations in this area of work. We will also see closer coordination of political and peacebuilding activities – which reflects, I think, the reality of peace on the ground.

Obviously I can’t mention reform at the United Nations without addressing the elephant in the room. And, here, I am talking about the process to reform the United Nations Security Council. I know this is a major priority for Turkey. And I imagine that you are frustrated with how little movement is being seen.

But there is some hope. This year, for the first time, we have finished our negotiations without a brand new outcome. Instead, we built on the work of previous years. That – at least – shows some positive signs, for the future.

But let me be very clear. The entire United Nations is judged on the performance of the Security Council. So even though there is some progress to report – it is not enough.

Now, I want to end my point on reform with a success story. Every year, diplomats come together, to find new ways to strengthen the work of the General Assembly. In UN lingo, this is called the “revitalisation” process.

Even though it sounds very technical – it has a real impact, on our lives.

The General Assembly is probably the only body in the world with the potential to be truly universal. Instead of a select group of countries – chosen for their size, power or influence – all Member States of the United Nations have a place at the table. They have the same voice, the same platform, and the same vote.

I see the Assembly as a system of checks and balances…. A way to make sure that the power of the minority cannot silence the voice of the majority.

And this is why efforts to strengthen the its work can positively impact the entire international system.

Year after year, the revitalisation process has had results. The most recent example was seen in June. For the first time, candidates to take over my presidency engaged in an interactive dialogue with member states. This brought an important selection process out into the open. And shows that transparency is, more and more, being pursued at the UN.

So, now I have talked about the priorities of our international system. And about efforts to bring this system in line with with the world around it.

But I still haven’t addressed the overarching reasons of why.

Why do we need all of this – in the first place?

Well, I think we can find the answer by looking at the main challenges facing the world today.

Climate change….international terrorism….irregular migration….cyber attacks…or the threat of nuclear war.

These are not local issues. They do not stop at national borders. And they are not confined to any one region. Actually, they are global phenomena.

And there is no way to make one person – or one country – immune. It doesn’t matter who, or where, we are. A farmer in France….an entrepreneur in Kenya…a UN official in New York…..or a diplomat in Ankara – all of us stand to gain or lose, together.

But this has led us to a kind of paradox. Because as the incentives to work together rise…..so do the voices of resistance.

I think that multilateralism is actually under attack.

And I think this is because we have forgotten why – and how – we established it, to begin with.

The United Nations was not created out of some vague principle or ideal. Actually, we built it for our own survival.

World War Two was coming to an end. Parts of the world had been reduced to ruins and rubble. And the bounds of humanity had been tested beyond anything we had ever seen before.

We needed to find a new way. One which could bring us together, to talk through our differences . One which placed dialogue and cooperation over strategic alliances and competition. And one which allowed us to work together, for shared objectives – instead of tearing each other apart for our own, short-sighted gains.

So, I believe multilateralism is not only crucial to solving the major global challenges that face us.

But that it is also essential to our own survival.

And that is why the current trends – of unilateralism…bilateralism… transactionalism – are so dangerous.

And I believe there are two main ways to counteract them.

First, to ask: what is the alternative? Because, let’s face it: multilateralism is not a panacea. There are problems.. there are gaps..and there are inefficiencies. And we need to call these out – and work for change. But the trouble arises when criticism is not constructive. When it is meant to undermine and create divisions – without offering any alternative.

The second opportunity I can see, to counteract these trends, is the resurgence of real dialogue.

Dialogue is at the core of our multilateral system. But, in some ways, I think we are facing another paradox. Today we have more communication tools in our hands than any generation in history. Yet, we are talking to each other less and less.

Too often we are limiting real, interactive dialogue to those who already agree with us. And for everyone else, we are turning to prepared scripts, red lines or repetition of well-known views.

This means our conferences and events can get a bit boring! But, actually, the risks are higher than that.

Because, we are not using our multilateral system for the reason it was created. And this could lead us into a vicious cycle: if we refuse to talk to those who disagree with us…yet talking is the only way to resolve disagreements….where can we go, except in circles?

And the thing is: the appetite for real dialogue is, I believe, there.

As President, I started a pilot initiative based around dialogue. I invited Ambassadors to the UN, from every country in the world, to meet in early-morning, interactive sessions. We called these sessions “Morning Dialogues”. And they dealt with many issues on the international agenda – from gender parity to reform. We asked everyone to leave their talking points and speeches at home. And, actually, the results were very positive. Not only did we hear many new ideas, for the future of our multilateral system. But we also saw high levels of interest from all delegations.

This shows that we are ready and willing to return to real dialogue, if the stage is set. And I see this as another hopeful sign, for the future.

So, excellencies, dear colleagues, I will conclude here.

Thank you again for welcoming me and my team to Ankara.

Although I am finishing up in my role as the President of the General Assembly, I am sure many of us will continue to be in contact – particularly as Slovakia prepares to take on the chairmanship of the OSCE.

I talked a lot today about dialogue and multilateralism.

And a lot of my speech was idealistic. But I also want to address the realities. I know that Turkey’s experience with multilateralism, at the European level, has not always been smooth.

But I think if we believe in the principles of dialogue and cooperation for mutual gain, the future will be brighter for us all.

Thank you all again.