Ladies and gentlemen of the media, good morning.

It is a pleasure to be once again with you, the first time in 2024.

As you know, I’m here in Geneva to address both the Human Rights Council and the Conference on Disarmament.

I am not going to repeat my remarks, but my main messages to the Human Rights Council were:

• There is a fundamental link between peace and human rights.  Human rights are under attack on all fronts, particularly in conflicts, as states ignore their commitments to the United Nations Charter, and to international humanitarian law and international human rights law;  
• So civilians are suffering appallingly – and we see this most dramatically in the clear violations of international humanitarian law taking place in Gaza;
• And we must use the Summit of the Future in September to recommit to multilateral governance based on human rights – including the laws of the war.

I’ll also speak to the Conference on Disarmament this afternoon, and my message is the following one:

At a time when we need the Conference more than ever, it is not working as it should. And I will recommend some steps the Conference should take to revitalize the work. 

Thank you very much, and as I promised, I was brief. I am here to answer four questions.