Ministerial Meeting of the Non-Aligned Movement

– As delivered –

Statement by H.E. Mrs. María Fernanda Espinosa Garcés, President of the 73^rd Session of the UN General Assembly

20 July 2019

Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen:
It is always an honor for me to address the Non-Aligned Movement.
As President of the General Assembly, I would like to express my deepest appreciation for the great support that I have received from this Movement and its members in the fulfillment of my duties. I would also like to acknowledge the work of Venezuela in leading this Movement.
Today, I will refer to three key points.

First, I would like to emphasize that the Non-Aligned Movement became and continues to be, since its inception, a strategic partner for the United Nations.

With almost two-thirds of the United Nations members and 55% of the world’s population, its participation is essential to respond to the great challenges that humanity is facing: eradicating poverty, reducing inequality, protecting the environment and guaranteeing health, education and decent work for all.

Furthermore, this Movement coincides with the United Nations on the vital goal of maintaining peace and preventing conflicts, promoting dialogue, cooperation and fair solutions.

The ideals that support their actions have not ceased to be relevant; in fact, they are needed more than ever. The Movement must continue to uphold sovereignty, the right to self-determination, international solidarity and the right to peace and development of all peoples, including those who remain under foreign domination and occupation.

Excellencies,

I would like to acknowledge the Movement for having promoted the declaration of the “International Day of Multilateralism and Diplomacy for Peace” that we celebrated for the first time, last April, in a high-level plenary meeting of the General Assembly. On that occasion, with your support and leadership, we achieved a clear message in defense of an international rules-based system.
The mandate of the United Nations General Assembly, promoted by NAM, took place in a critical moment, when we are facing the risk of the re-emergence of extreme nationalism, confrontational narratives and threats of use of force or imposing unilateral coercive measures that go against international law, all of which undermines the principles of the United Nations Charter and threaten the dignity of our peoples.

This leads me to my second point.

Multilateralism and international law are the only effective formula to achieve a sustainable and lasting peace.
In these 73 years, the United Nations, the beating heart of multilateralism, has created paramount universal agreements that have positively transformed the lives of millions of people and that allow us to move forward in building a fairer and more equitable and peaceful world order.

With the footprint of the Movement, with 88% of the Peacekeeping Mission personnel, the United Nations have contributed to prevent and peacefully solve countless conflicts, helping to strengthen international peace and security.

However, the strength of that international architecture requires a renewed commitment. The only path – the best path – is to reaffirm our commitment with dialogue and diplomacy for peace and keep working to achieve a multipolar world order, with a sound multilateralism that allows us to face the global challenges that no State, no matter how great or powerful, can solve on its own.

Next September 13 I will convene the high-level meeting on the “Culture of Peace”, 20 years after the emblematic Declaration and Action Programme on the Culture of Peace. It is an opportunity for the Members of the Movement to join the efforts to achieve sustainable peace.

And lastly, I would like to make a call for action: we must revitalize the work of the United Nations.

We must double our efforts to make it more effective, more agile, and more transparent so that it can respond to the hopes of the peoples for which the United Nations was created. That is what “bringing the United Nations closer to the people” means, a purpose that, in fact, has entirely guided my work as President of the General Assembly.

I invite you to strengthen your support for the revitalization of the United Nations General Assembly, the most democratic and representative organ of the United Nations, and to take the most appropriate measures to modernize its structures and the day to day work of multilateral diplomacy. The political commitment of this Movement is essential to move forward in that sense.
Next year, the 75th anniversary of the United Nations will be an ideal an occasion to reinforce our commitment with the Organization and the adherence to the rules and principles of international law.

Excellencies,

I concur with the Prime Minister of India, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, one of the founders of our movement, and I quote:

“The power of the Non Aligned nations assembled here is not military power…
Or economic power…
Nevertheless it is power.”

This has not lost its validity and it is, in fact, what keeps us strong and continues to move us forward into the future.

I wish you a fruitful meeting and I reiterate that, as President of the UN General Assembly, I will continue to advocate for a culture of peace and for the respectful dialogue between nations, with the conviction that these are the best mechanisms for us to walk together towards a better future for all.

Thank you.