I am pleased to be in Lisbon to help launch the United Nations Ocean Conference, generously hosted by Kenya and Portugal.
And I feel that very personally today.
Standing here, my mind goes back to the 1998 World Expo with a focus on the ocean that Portugal hosted while I was Prime Minister. And the present Prime Minister was the Minister in charge of organizing the Expo.
Almost a quarter century later, this conference comes at a critical moment.
Fifty years ago, the United Nations convened the landmark Conference on the Human Environment here in Stockholm.
World leaders recognized that we have a collective responsibility to protect the environment so humanity can enjoy peace, prosperity and sustainable progress.
And indeed, over that time humanity has progressed.
But today global well-being is in jeopardy, in large part because we have not kept our promises on the environment.
Chancellor Nehammer, ladies and gentlemen of the press, Minister Schallenberg, I want to begin by expressing my deep gratitude for your country’s generous support to the United Nations and unwavering commitment to multilateralism.
This support and commitment are more critical today than ever.
We face multiple and interlinked global crises, and a proliferation of conflicts – not least the Russian invasion of Ukraine which is a violation of its territorial integrity and a violation of the Charter of the United Nations.
It is impossible to meet refugees and not be deeply moved by their stories. People that fled bombardments of their cities. One couple was telling me of a bomb that fell in their yard. People that have abandoned everything, including part of the family, because, as you know, men are not allowed to leave the country. So, this tragedy demonstrates that war is a senseless thing, and that this war must stop. There is no military solution for the problems that we are facing. We absolutely need to stop this war and we absolutely need to see international law prevail.
I thank the Government and people of Moldova for your warm welcome on my first visit to Chişinau.
As I told Prime Minister Gavrilita, I am here on a mission of solidarity and gratitude, to thank Moldova for your steadfast support for peace, and for your generosity in opening your borders, your homes and your hearts to almost half a million Ukrainian refugees.
Moldova is not just another country receiving refugees.
The most fragile of Ukraine’s neighbours, Moldova is by far the country that has received the most refugees, as proportion of its own population.
President Zelenskyy, thank you very much for your warm welcome in these most difficult times.
Today, Ukraine is an epicenter of unbearable heartache and pain.
I witnessed that very vividly today around Kyiv: the senseless loss of life, the massive destruction, the unacceptable violations of human rights and the laws of war.
It is vital that the International Criminal Court and other UN mechanisms conduct their work so that there can be real accountability.
BORODYANKA TOWN:
When I see those destroyed buildings, I must say what I feel. I imagined my family in one of those houses that is now destroyed and black. I see my granddaughters running away in panic, part of the family eventually killed. So, the war is an absurdity in the 21st century. The war is evil. And when one sees these situations our heart, of course, stays with the victims. Our condolences to their families, but our emotions are that there is no way a war can be acceptable in the 21st century. Look at that.
It is a pleasure to be back in Munich for the first time in three years.
Unfortunately, the world has grown even more complex and dangerous during that time.
I see five major reasons.
First, geopolitical divides have continued to grow and deepen.
These divides often paralyse the Security Council and create an environment of impunity in which state and non-state actors believe they can do whatever they want.
