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Mr. President, Mr. Secretary General, excellencies, I ask every nation here. Are we still willing to work together? The principles in the UN charter, affirmed by each one of us taking our seat in this hall, are now tested, not by argument, but by neglect or ill intention. The credibility and effectiveness of multilateral institutions is imperative for small nations. It is past time to better turn the urgency expressed in political declarations and resolutions into results, not repetition. We speak from our own experience when we underscore the importance of acting together. An institution that takes decisions collectively must also be accountable collectively. Mr. president, the United Nations is long overdue to reflect and renew the same spirit with which our Marshallese people first came to the United Nations by delivering an apology and acknowledgement of the harm caused by impacts from the 67 nuclear weapons tested on our islands during our time as a UN Strategic Trust territory between 1946 and 1958.
Everyone is being armed, from Asia to Europe, from Africa to the Americas. No country is immune. They have serious economic and social impact and are already having undesirable consequences for all of us and also for the parties involved. This is a senseless crisis because it's harmful to everyone. We must put an end to this collective masochism, and we must do it quickly to close this chapter, which is a chapter of widespread, widespread harm, we all have a duty to learn from the lessons of the crisis of the 1970s and avoid repeating what happened then. We will be judged by how we handle this challenge. On the one hand, it is urgent to put an end to the protracted conflicts and on the other hand, starting now, we must discuss and decide on complementary ways to mitigate the impact of this energy crisis and prevent its preventing it from being prolonged. It is my belief that it would also be beneficial to discuss the mechanism by which international oil prices are determined.
Mr. President. Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen. We must acknowledge that the challenges that we have faced for decades, namely food insecurity, disease armed conflict, or natural disasters are still with us. Thus for Madagascar. As for many other nations, the new emerging challenges must not overshadow the priorities that still require our attention. The theme of this 81st session calls upon us to assume our shared responsibility for our destiny, and for that of future generations, with clear vision placing collective action, the common good, and the welfare of humanity at the center of our responses to the profound transformations shaping our world. In light of these intersecting transformations and challenges, the question of trust in our collective action arises with renewed urgency. Indeed, we must admit, taking into account. All the hopes and expectations that we, the peoples of the United Nations, have placed in our organization. That trust has gradually eroded over time. The most vulnerable populations affected repeatedly or continuously by health crises, food insecurity and hunger, the impacts of climate change and conflicts exacerbated by current geopolitical tensions sometimes come to feel a certain skepticism regarding our collective capacity within the United Nations system to respond to the scourges of our age. Mr. President.
Friends, the United Nations is entering its ninth decade at a moment of great uncertainty and challenge for the global community. Conflicts are having devastating effects on the most vulnerable. The impacts of the climate crisis are felt in every corner of our world. Hard won rights are being rolled back. Narrow self-interest is breaking the bonds of solidarity, which have so often lifted us to meaningful progress. The international legal order is under tremendous strain. New and emerging technologies that offer unlimited potential could also, without human intervention, create unprecedented dangers. In such moments of uncertainty, it can be easy to question our foundations, to retreat, to turn inward, to say that international cooperation is too difficult, that multilateralism does not work, that the problems of others are not our problems. But that would be the wrong conclusion, because the answer to a world under strain is not less international cooperation. It is more. The answer to the weakening of principles is not to abandon them. It is to defend them. And if our multilateral system is not working effectively, the answer is not to walk away from it. It is to make it stronger, fairer and fit for the world we live in. That is Ireland's position, and that is what all of us, as members of the United Nations need to deliver on. We should also remember what our collective commitment to the United Nations has achieved. The multilateral system anchored in the United Nations Charter has been the foundation of many of humanity's greatest achievements. It has driven advances in poverty alleviation health care, education, social protection, and food and nutrition security. It has championed human rights and dignity and insisted that accountability matters. It has given voice to the marginalised Mr. president, the people of Ireland understand that we live in an interdependent world, that the challenges we face are interconnected, cross borders and require collective solutions. Ireland currently holds the presidency of the Council of the European Union. Our stewardship of the European Union's agenda is deeply rooted in the principle of strength with unity, and this principle is at the heart of our vision for the United Nations, as well as our unwavering commitment to the pillars which guide its work. Peace and security. Human rights and development. These pillars equally bear the weight of our shared ambition for a better, fairer and peaceful world. Collectively, however, we are not delivering on their ambition. We are not staying the course. At a Time and global needs are increasing and becoming more complex.
Our world shaped by uncertainty, disruption and rapid change, but also by hope, innovation and opportunity. For Samoa, the theme is a promise the world must keep. Can trust be restored? Can transformation protect the vulnerable? The answer lies in the first words of our UN charter we the peoples. We must always put people at the centre of our decisions. For us, this is underpinned by the core values of our Samoan culture. The first Samoa and our faith such as respect, dignity, love, protection and service. Excellencies, every decision in this hall shapes the world that every child inherits. We meet at a pivotal moment in history. Profound and transformative changes are not only necessary, but inevitable. Across many societies, people are increasingly asking whether global institutions are delivering on the promises made to them. We must prepare ourselves to face the challenges ahead with resolve, and use the opportunity to herald in much needed reforms for the benefit of all, and leaving no one behind. For Samoa, multilateralism remains the cornerstone of our international engagement. Only through genuine cooperation and mutual trust can we craft solutions that no single nation could achieve alone. The UN initiative has merits, but also its risk, if not fully assessed and understood. Any reform must strengthen delivery on the ground by eliminating duplication, improving coherence and accelerating impact. Critically, such reforms must not weaken the operation of the UN Multi Country Offices or the Resident Coordinator system. We also are more reaffirms its unwavering commitment to the United Nations as the premier forum to address global crisis. We also caution against premature decision taken without the full consideration and endorsement by Member States.
Lesotho is increasingly experiencing severe floods and droughts, resulting in unparalleled land degradation and extensive damage to critical infrastructure. Despite contributing minimally to global greenhouse gas emissions least developed countries like Lesotho bear a heavy brunt of climate impact. Global warming and rising sea levels pose terrible threats, particularly to small island developing states. We stand in solidarity with these nations and call for greater global action. To cope with these climate related challenges, we call upon developed countries to honour their commitments by providing new, adequate, predictable and accessible climate finance. Further, we urge developed countries to transfer environmentally sound technology and to strengthen capacity of developing countries to effectively mitigate and adapt to the adverse effects of climate change. Climate justice demands nothing less. Just energy transition is therefore an imperative if one is to be spared from the terrible threat of climate change. Under the visionary leadership of His Majesty King Letsie III, Lesotho has launched the His Majesty King Letsie III Just Energy Transition Fund, designed not only to decarbonise our economy, but to transform it from one historically reliant on migrant labour to one rooted in renewable energy exports. The fund seeks to attract investment to build new energy generation capacity, unlock energy independence and lay a new foundation for national prosperity that benefits every Mosotho. We therefore call for partnerships to mobilise the requisite resources for clean energy projects, which can create significant employment opportunities for our youth and women. As the first Member state to pilot the UN blueprint for national AI and data strategies from design into national implementation, Lesotho stands ready to share the lessons of that journey with fellow developing countries, particularly across Africa and among least developed and landlocked developing countries, charting similar paths towards digital sovereignty.
Tuvalu acknowledges the efforts of the international community to address the climate crisis, but the pace and scale of global actions remain insufficient. With a temporary overshoot of the 1.5°C target now inevitable, a fast, fair, just and orderly transition away from fossil fuel is even more urgent and require serious attention. Although the science may be clear that methane mitigation is the only scalable near-term solution capable of rapidly slowing global temperature rise and buying time for long term CO2 decarbonisation strategies to take effect. Tuvalu will insist that CO2 mitigation must also remain a top priority, and that both methane mitigation and CO2 mitigation should be vigorously pursued simultaneously. Therefore, the call for a fossil fuel free Pacific and the Funafuti call for climate justice and climate actions are critical Pacific led instruments championing Pacific regional survival and global climate actions. Towards that objective, Tuvalu is determined to play its part in driving greater ambition, including the hosting of the Leaders' Segment event of the Pre-COP31 next month and co-hosting with Ireland in Tuvalu next year the Second Conference on Transitioning Away from Fossil Fuels. Tuvalu reminds states of their legal obligation to take appropriate action to protect the climate system from greenhouse gas emissions, as failure to do so constitutes an internationally wrongful act, as confirmed by the ICJ advisory opinion. Tuvalu welcomes the operationalization of the Loss and Damage Fund and call on countries to honour their pledges and commitments. Adequate, predictable and timely financing is essential to ensure the fund can fully deliver on its mandate and provide meaningful support to those most vulnerable to climate related loss and damage including non-economic loss and damage. Finance, therefore, must be provided as grants at the scale required to address the climate impacts already unavoidable, and the increasing loss and damage caused by further warming. Tuvalu stands ready to work with all nations to advance climate ambitions and strengthen resilience and ensure that no country is left behind.
Mr. President, when Sweden joined the UN in 1946, the world was emerging from the devastation of war. The lesson from that catastrophe was clear peace must not be taken for granted. Defence of sovereignty and territorial integrity has been at the heart of Swedish foreign policy ever since. Eight decades later, these principles are once again being challenged. Bad faith, conflict and utter contempt for the common rules are weakening the institutions that we built together. These are times of upheaval. The number of armed conflicts is growing and civilians are paying the price. In Ukraine, Sudan, Yemen, Palestine, Lebanon, Myanmar, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and many other conflict zones, millions are suffering. Mr. President, Russia's aggression against Ukraine is a blatant violation of international law. It strikes at the heart of the very principles upon which the United Nations was founded. Sweden's support for Ukraine is felt deeply throughout our entire society. It comes from our people, our civil society and the business community. We will support Ukraine for as long as it takes. Russia has not only violated the UN charter, it has repeatedly violated international humanitarian law and human rights law. Attacks targeting civilians, forcible transfer of and deportation of children, conflict related sexual violence and torture, the list is far too long. Ensuring accountability for these violations is crucial. If there is anything that we have learned from history, it is that there cannot be a just and lasting peace without accountability. Sweden stands firmly behind the ICC, its independence and integrity and recognises its vital role, not least in Ukraine. Russia must also be held accountable for its breaches of the Chemical Weapons Convention, both on and off the battlefield. Russia's war of aggression against a peaceful neighbour is one of the biggest strategic mistakes and moral failures of the 21st century. Four and a half years after launching its full scale invasion, Russia has failed to achieve its objectives. Its economy is under strain and its casualty numbers are devastating. Ordinary Russians are withdrawing their funds from the bank, and a substantial share of Russia's young people are dying on the frontlines. The impact of Russia's war of aggression extends far beyond Ukraine. Russia intensified its systematic attacks on civilian infrastructure and on vessels in the Black Sea this summer. This has once again disrupted global food supply chains, exacerbating an already dire situation for vulnerable people across the globe. To President Putin and Mr. Lavrov, I say this the path to peace is clear. The choice should be easy. Withdraw your troops.
You have brought us together to restore trust and manage transformation. To achieve this, we now require serenity, clarity, and unity— serenity because the international order is going through a profound transition, clarity because this organization faces an unprecedented financial situation and conflicts that are ongoing, and a technological revolution that is progressing quicker than our ability to govern it, and unity because none of these challenges can be addressed by one country acting alone. As a developing island country, the Dominican Republic is well aware of vulnerability. Situations that happen far away from our coasts can directly impact the dinner tables of our families.
The system must thus become more inclusive, equitable, and responsive to the realities of the middle-income countries. Mr. President, the world is experiencing increasing devastating floods, heat waves, frequent hurricanes, and prolonged periods of drought. At times, it feels that we are at war with Mother Nature. At this point, Namibia reiterates its solidarity with the government and people of Nepal following the recent flood in that country. Namibia continues to face significant climatic changes as a result of climate change, including recurring droughts, rising temperatures, and growing pressure on agriculture and water resources. Yet, Namibia contributes less than 0.01 percent of the global greenhouse gas emissions, and it bears a disproportionate share of the impact of climate change like other developing countries. In the spirit of climate justice, we call for a greater responsibility by those who have contributed the most to the global greenhouse gas emissions, including through increased support for countries that are most vulnerable to climate impact. It is through sustainable climate financing that we will be able to achieve Sustainable Development Goal 13 to combat climate change.
Let me begin by paying my deepest respect to all the martyred freedom fighters of Bangladesh. I respectfully remember the contributions of those who have made the ultimate sacrifice in the struggle to establish democracy, justice and people's rights in our country since independence. I also pay my sincere respect to all those who were martyred and injured in the mass uprising of courageous students and people in July August 2024 against fascism. After more than a decade and a half of movement and struggle against fascist rule and exploitation, and through the sacrifice of thousands of lives, Bangladesh is now free from fascism in a free, fair and impartial national election held on 12th February this year. The people entrusted the Bangladesh Nationalist Party BNP with the responsibility of governing the country. I congratulate the democracy loving people of Bangladesh. We believe that the people are the source of all our political power. Standing on this world stage of the United Nations, I am somewhat nostalgic at this moment. It was from this very world stage that my father, Shaheed, President Ziaur Rahman. The proclaimer of Bangladesh's independence and my mother, former Prime Minister Begum Khaleda Zia, addressed the world on behalf of the country and its people. Today, I too, stand here to speak for the interests of my country and its people, and in the hope of a peaceful world community. In this age of globalization, whatever happens in any part of the world has, to varying degrees, a negative impact on every country.
We also want to make sure that developed countries can fully fulfill their commitment to development and financial action. For Mozambique, as one of the countries that is more vulnerable in the world, climate change translates into losses in life, displaced families, destroyed crops, and damaged infrastructures cyclically. The cyclones demonstrate that resilience is now an environmental, economic, and food security, social, and development issue, and increasingly one of peace and security in all the world. We therefore reiterate the need to increase funding for adaptation, facilitate access to climate funds, operationalize the loss and damage mechanisms, and invest in early warning systems and resilient infrastructure. Mozambique remains highly vulnerable to extreme weather events— floods, inundations, cyclones— and we are concerned with the El Niño that might have potential severe impacts in the central and southern parts of the country, especially when it comes to drought, food insecurity, and livelihood. Their preparedness and international cooperation will be essential to mitigate these impacts in a context where humanitarian needs are already facing a severe funding shortfall in the whole world. Mr. President, digital transformation remains or demands the same solidarity that we are talking about, because Africa must not limit itself to supplying the minerals that fuel the world's innovation hubs. We need to have investment in connectivity, computing capacity, scientific research, training of young people in Africa, technology transfer, governance, ethics for AI, in the spirit of partnership that builds capacity and promotes autonomy of our sovereign states.
One of my favorite bands when I was growing up was Talking Heads. And little did I know that the time that David Byrne iconic song We Are On a Road to Nowhere would ring so prescient for decades later. For the first time, for the first time in the history of our species, we have created a technology that openly challenges the supremacy of the human mind as the pinnacle of our evolutionary development. I will not dwell on the positive, transformational potential of this revolutionary technology, whether in disease eradication, productivity enhancement or fighting climate change. However, it is simply impossible to ignore the fact that at present, the risks of an unchecked and unregulated advance in artificial intelligence could greatly outweigh its potential benefits When the people developing the technology tell us openly that, left unchecked, AI could outrun our ability to control the systems. The same people admit that we only understand a tiny fraction of what goes on in these models. Alarm bells should ring very loudly for all of us. In simple words, the AI bosses are telling us that they have no idea on how recursive self-improvement. The ability of AI to constantly create better versions of itself actually works. Add to that the possibility of massive job destruction, the likelihood of unprecedented wealth creation in the hands of very few, and the impact that AI may have on the very nature of human relationships, especially for our kids. And you have all the ingredients of an unprecedented political and social upheaval. The idea that big tech companies will find some voluntary arrangement to self-regulate the development of AI is naive. It flies in the face of everything we know about the history of capitalism The prize for the winners is simply too great to believe that benign consideration for the well-being of humanity will outweigh the relentless drive of capital to constantly seek better returns. And given that the leading AI models are being developed here in the United States, this is primarily an issue for the US government to address. Unfortunately, there are precedents from which we draw lessons. In the 1940s and the 1950s, the American government heavily regulated another technology so powerful that its creators believed it could bring about either a golden age in human flourishing or the end of the world. That technology was nuclear. The same needs to happen now, and it needs to happen fast. AI companies need to be licensed based on specific requirements, adherence to human values, transparency, and most importantly, safety. In order for a new plane to fly, it has to undergo a myriad of rigorous tests approved by the regulator The same is not true for a frontier artificial intelligence model. At the same time, I take the call by leading AI executives for a voluntary pause in the development of their models. Very seriously, but only, I repeat only as a temporary measure to buy time for a powerful regulatory authority to be set up. Liberal capitalism has a history of reining in market excesses. Whether it was breaking a powerful monopolies, or setting rules and standards to allow the market to operate with an eye on the common good. And the same needs to happen now. And as much as the cooperation of China and the rest of the world is necessary to address this huge challenge, the fate of artificial intelligence and the impact it will have on humanity as a whole will not be decided in Brussels, in Tokyo or Brasilia. It will be decided primarily here in the United States. With great power comes great responsibility.
As a country experiencing the adverse impacts of climate change firsthand, Mongolia has remained steadfast in contributing to global collective efforts to protect and preserve our natural environment. In this regard, Mongolia is successfully implementing a series of national policies and initiatives, including the Billion Trees, Food Revolution, White Gold, Blue Gold and Healthy Mongolian aimed at restoring degraded land, expanding forest resources, protecting soil, water and pasture land, ensuring food supply and security, and supporting sustainable rural development. Mongolia's Billion Trees national movement goes far beyond tree planting and afforestation. It is a comprehensive, nationwide initiative aimed at combating desertification and land degradation, scaling up land restoration, expanding forest resources, protecting soil fertility, water resources and biodiversity, mitigating the adverse impacts of climate change, improving food supply and creating employment opportunities. Furthermore, the United Nations General Assembly resolution initiated by Mongolia proclaiming 2026 as the International Year of Rangelands and Pastoralists, provides a new opportunity to raise global awareness of the importance of rangeland ecosystems, support the livelihoods of pastoralists, strengthen sustainable food systems, conserve biodiversity, and preserve the cultural heritage of nomadic peoples. In this regard, Mongolia, with its millennia old tradition of nomadic pastoralism, took the initiative to convene the Global Pastoralist Gathering and Conference in Ulaanbaatar. The gathering brought together around 400 herders from 57 countries, whose opinions and fruitful discussion of challenges and solutions culminated in the adoption of Ulaanbaatar Declaration. Moreover, in August, Mongolia successfully hosted the 17th session of the conference of the parties to the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification in Ulaanbaatar under the theme Restoring Land, Restoring Hope. Restoring Mother Nature to its pristine state and creating conditions for future generations to live in a healthy environment with confidence and contentment, must be a noble duty of humanity. Mother nature and healthy soil are the guarantee of humanity's existence and the foundation of food and water resources, livelihood and sustainable development. Healthy soil means healthy food and healthy food means healthy people. Therefore, desertification, land degradation and drought should not be viewed merely as environmental issues, but should be addressed holistically in connection with food supply and security, water resources, livelihoods, sustainable development, and global peace and security. In this spirit, as the presidency of UNCCD COP17, Mongolia has advanced the Steppe Action Agenda built upon three interconnected flagship initiatives the Rangelands Flagship Initiative, the Water Land Nexus Initiative and the Nature based Solutions for Sustainable Infrastructure Initiative. Particularly, we regard the Rangelands Flagship Initiative as a landmark global movement that opens a new chapter in the history of rangeland conservation. This initiative is special in raising global awareness that the protection, sustainable management and restoration of rangelands are of strategic importance for building resilience to climate change, ensuring food security and maintaining balanced ecosystems. The nomadic way of life that we Mongols have inherited and carried forward over thousands of years embodies a comprehensive set of values and wisdom for living in harmony with nature and preserving it in its pristine state.
So can businesses. So can peace processes. And so can this General Assembly. Excellencies, The third great power test is the climate crisis. In many ways, it is the most profound intergenerational power imbalance of all: One generation consuming the future of the next. One group profiting, while those least responsible suffer first and worst. Three years ago in the mountains of Nepal, I sounded the alarm on accelerating glacier melt – warning that the rooftops of the world are caving in. Some dismissed it all as overstating dangers. But – as tragic events have shown – impacts are arriving sooner, hitting harder, and spreading further than many anticipated. Now we face a near certain breach of the 1.5 degree limit, with a supersized El Niño speeding straight for humanity. The dangers are real. But so is the hope. The last decade has fuelled one of the most promising shifts in power of our time. The rise of clean energy. The sun belongs to no one. The wind cannot be embargoed. Innovation can come from everywhere. This is a profound rebalancing of power relations. Renewables are now the cheapest source of new electricity in most of the world. And the most viable path to energy security, independence and sustainable growth. Excellencies, A future beyond fossil fuels is in sight. The question is how. Will it be a just and orderly transition built on international cooperation – or chaotic and costly leaving people and countries behind? Today I call on every government to adopt a national plan to transition away from fossil fuels aligned with 1.5 degrees, with clear timelines and protection for affected workers and communities. We know fossil fuel interests won’t step aside on their own. For decades, Big Oil has treated the atmosphere as an open sewer – and cashed in on the consequences. Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, five major Western oil companies have pocketed nearly half a trillion dollars in profits. Compare that with just 34 billion dollars in international public adaptation finance for developing countries in the latest year reported. Meanwhile, everyday people are paying more for energy, food and insurance. We have seen this kind of abuse of power before. When the harms of Big Tobacco became undeniable – governments acted. The climate crisis demands the same determination. Those who polluted the most – and profited the most – must do far more to repair the damage they caused. Polluters must pay. And to the leaders, cities, civil society and citizens working to hold them accountable: You are on the right side of history. Keep going. And governments must keep going on all fronts: To end deforestation. Invest in grids and storage. Cut methane emissions. But these actions are not enough: We need climate justice with a focus on adaptation and finance. Developed countries must respect their commitments. They must triple adaptation finance. And make the Loss and Damage Fund work at scale. We must also ensure that the mining of critical minerals does not dig deeper into the inequities of the past. Producing countries and affected communities must retain a far greater share of the value created from their resources. No more plundering.
Solomon Islands therefore recognises the need for an inclusive and transparent international governance framework on AI. Mr. president, year after year, Pacific leaders have stood at this podium and urged the world to act on climate change. And yet, global action continues to fall short of what the science demands. For every passing COP, the impacts grow more severe. Our islands are being lost to the sea. Disasters are more frequent and more devastating. Food and water security is under threat and communities are being forced from their ancestral lands. Solomon Islands knows this reality firsthand. This year, Tropical Cyclone Maila, a category five storm, tore through our communities, destroying homes, schools, infrastructure and livelihoods. My government has just approved US$9.38 million for shelter recovery. That is money our essential services urgently need now diverted to deal with the impacts of this climate extreme. Like many Pacific Island countries, we are trapped in a relentless cycle of response, recovery and rebuilding. This is not sustainable, nor is it just. My people did the least to cause this crisis, yet they pay its earliest and heaviest price. That is the moral ledger that lies before this assembly. Last year, the International Court of Justice confirmed in its landmark advisory opinion that states have legal obligations to protect the climate system. Major emitters must make deep emission cuts and transition away from fossil fuels. Climate finance, including support for loss and damage, must be grant based and channelled through our national budget systems. Project based financing of climate action is unsustainable and out of step with the scale of a crisis we did the least to cause. Vulnerable countries should not have to choose between climate action and educating our children, caring for the sick or securing food and water. Yet that is the choice we face with every dollar we spend. We therefore call for the full capitalisation of the Pacific Resilience Facility, and an ambitious and timely third replenishment of the Green Climate Fund. Our region has long led on climate action, and we will continue to lead. The Pre-COP31 meeting, to be hosted in the Pacific by Australia in partnership with Fiji and Tuvalu, will bring the reality of climate change directly into the heart of the global process. I call on all parties and partners to come to that meeting and to COP31 with stronger commitments and concrete action. The communities on the frontline of the climate crisis deserve nothing less. Mr. president, Solomon Islands welcomes the convening of the second high level meeting on sea level rise and the adoption of the first political declaration on sea level rise. Every day our people are defending their coastlines, strengthening their resilience, protecting their food and water security and their cultural heritage, and, where there is no other choice, relocating. But we cannot do this alone. I call on this assembly to match the courage of our Pacific communities with collective international resolve to scale up adaptation and resilience finance, and to support communities facing climate mobility needs.
Mr. President, Uganda fully supports the ongoing intergovernmental negotiation on the United Nations Framework Convention on International Tax Cooperation and its protocols on cross-border services and tax dispute resolution, and we urge all member states to negotiate constructively. Uganda has commended the implementation of its Fourth National Development Plan as part of our national strategy to accelerate economic transformation and achieve sustainable development. This strategy is anchored on four high-impact growth pillars, including agro-industrialization, tourism development, mineral exploitation, and science, technology, and innovation. Our goal is to drive double-digit growth over the five-year period and ultimately grow our economy tenfold to a GDP of 500 billion US dollars by 2040, creating jobs and enhancing the quality of life of all Ugandans.
In recent days, the debate has acquired a new sense of urgency and gravity. The message from the UN's Independent International Scientific Panel on AI, researchers in leading AI companies, and independent experts is increasingly clear: our ability to govern this technology is not keeping pace with its development. AI can bring enormous benefits to humanity, but without effective safeguards, it can also cause immense harm. We must therefore hold on to a basic principle: human beings must remain in control of technology, not become a subject to it. Technology should advance our common goals, and no system should ever operate beyond human responsibility and accountability. Nor we can allow an unchecked race for technological dominance to determine the future of AI, with the pressure to move first, pushing safety, oversight, and responsibility aside. More than 80 years ago, the Manhattan Project showed how rapidly a scientific breakthrough can transform the balance of power, and how difficult it is for politics and international rules to catch up. Artificial intelligence confronts us with a different technology and different risks, but with a similar lesson: governance that comes only after the fact may come too late. If AI is to serve humanity, it must develop within a framework of international rules. No country and no company can meet this challenge alone. We need common standards, meaningful public oversight, and clear mechanisms of accountability. The choice is not between innovation and rules. It is between innovation governed by rules and innovation governed by the logic of the race. Ladies and gentlemen, artificial intelligence is not the only challenge that no country can manage alone. The same is true of climate change. This year has once again reminded us of the growing impacts of extreme weather affecting people and communities across the globe.
No national effort alone can suffice, in view of the global conditions that today determine the development of our nations. Today the global economy is facing an energy crisis resulting from the high prices of oil. That crisis is having a direct impact on our people. This is the only forum in which the voice of a country of 11 million inhabitants is heard.
Mr. President, the sustainability of our oceans and fisheries is closely linked to the changing climate, and the pressures we face on our marine resources are increasingly compounded by its impacts. Climate change remains one of the most pressing challenges to our development and way of life. Sea-level rise, coastal erosion, saltwater intrusion and extreme weather events continue to place pressure on our communities, infrastructure, water security and livelihoods. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Sixth Assessment Report reinforces the urgency of these challenges and particularly the risks faced by small island States. Through our long-term national development vision, the Kiribati Vision for 20 years, and our national priorities under Te Motinnano policies, we continue to invest in resilient infrastructure, water security, coastal protection, disaster preparedness, renewable energy and community-based adaptation. Our objective is clear: to continue building a wealthy, healthy and peaceful Kiribati, where our people can live with dignity, in peace and with opportunities. Renewable energy is increasingly important to Kiribati’s development and energy access. We therefore see greater investment in renewable energy as an important opportunity to reduce our reliance on imported fossil fuels and strengthen the resilience and sustainability of our energy sector. But national action must be matched by international action. We call for greater ambition, stronger support for adaptation and climate finance that is adequate, predictable and accessible, particularly for Small Island Developing States. Kiribati recognises the importance of international law in addressing climate change. The International Court of Justice Advisory Opinion on climate change advances climate justice by affirming that all States have binding duties to protect the climate system and achieve deep, rapid, and sustained greenhouse gas reductions consistent with limiting warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius. We welcome growing recognition that climate resilience must be locally owned and driven. The Pacific Resilience Facility is a Pacific-led, Pacific-owned mechanism that strengthens the region’s capacity to finance climate and disaster resilience. The Pacific’s co-hosting of COP31 with Türkiye later this year further demonstrates the value of local action.
If AI is available only to a few, new divisions will appear. Entire communities may be left behind. The growing use of AI-powered weapons and autonomous systems also requires urgent attention. One principle must remain clear: machines should never be allowed to make life or death decisions on their own. Just as the international community developed rules for nuclear, chemical, and biological weapons, we also need strong international frameworks for these new technologies. The United Nations can and should play a leading role in this effort. AI is not only a potential threat on the battlefield; it is already having a negative impact on society, especially in education. An entire generation of young people is being affected. Recent assessments show declining test scores across the vast majority of countries. This is a concerning trend that deserves open and serious discussion on international platforms such as the United Nations. At the same time, we should not see AI only as a risk. It can be also a tool for peace. It can help us analyze information, identify patterns, and overcome language barriers in real time. It can support better decisions, faster responses, and more effective prevention. With responsible use, proper human oversight, and good governance, we can move this technology away from the battlefield and toward diplomacy, mediation, and conflict prevention. And prevention matters. Every conflict we prevent saves lives. It protects development. It preserves human dignity. Once violence begins, every solution becomes harder, more costly, and more painful. There is no need to reinvent the wheel when we reform international institutions. AI may be revolutionary, but we did not need to reinvent the personal computer in order to build it. The same is true in global politics. We should improve what already exists, not start again from zero.
Mr. President, Africa has the youngest population on Earth. That is an extraordinary asset if we invest in it. But what is a demographic dividend today can become a demographic crisis tomorrow if opportunity does not keep pace with aspiration. Youth unemployment remains one of the most urgent challenges of our time. Managing it is a shared responsibility. Botswana calls upon the United Nations Development Programme, the International Labour Organization, and all relevant multilateral institutions to make technology transfer, skills development, and capacity building funded priorities. As we will all agree, the credibility of our multilateral commitments will be properly tested in development finance. When countries have the means to invest in their people, and when international institutions respond effectively to shared threats, trust is strengthened. But when commitments remain out of reach for those who need them most, confidence in the system weakens. Getting these fundamentals right is central to restoring trust, managing transformation, and building a United Nations that delivers for all. The global financial architecture must therefore evolve to reflect the economic realities of the 21st century, including financing demands created by climate change, technological transformation, and the imperative for sustainable development. Developing countries frequently face borrowing costs several times higher than those of wealthier nations because the system was not designed with the circumstances of the Global South in mind. That sustainability is a question of development and fairness. When nations spend more to service debt than invest in education, job creation, or provision of healthcare, trust in the system erodes. Botswana calls upon this assembly and the international financial institutions to pursue reform of global financial governance. This would give developing countries a meaningful voice and provide fair and predictable access to concessional finance. We call upon the United Nations and its financial partners to mobilize private capital through innovative and blended financing agreements that de-risk productive investment in developing economies. This is enlightened fairness and sound economics. Capital should help create opportunity where its impact can be felt. Mr. President, health is where the promise of international solidarity is tested most directly, and Botswana speaks from hard-earned experience.
This is the goal of our National Development Plan 2024-2028, which has five pillars: security and governance; human capital; resilient infrastructure; economic production; and environmental sustainability. These pillars are not only a planning framework, but are also a renewed social contract with our population. At the heart of this ambition lies our youth. Our youth is our greatest asset, our greatest responsibility. A well-trained and employed youth, involved in decision-making, is the best guarantee against recruitment by armed groups. The same is true for women, whose role in peacebuilding is not a bonus but a prerequisite. Mr. President, my country, like so many others, is experiencing the impact of crises surrounding it, from refugee movements to pressure on our borders. The war in neighboring Sudan has pushed more than 27,000 refugees to settle around the city of Biro alone.
Restoring trust, mutual respect and equality before the law is our collective responsibility. During this 81st session. Mr. president, distinguished participants, a year ago, we called in this very hall for peace to be the foundation of development and human rights. 12 months later, we must acknowledge that the gap between our commitments and reality remains evident everywhere around the world, from the Middle East to the Sahel, through the Great Lakes region, in Eastern Europe and Latin America, civilian populations continue to pay the high price of conflict, driven by interests that are often hidden. The devastating war in the Middle East, marked by massive civilian losses and destruction of critical infrastructure. Has spread to Syria and Lebanon As a result of Israeli military operations and has had major global economic consequences. In addition to its worldwide impact. The conflict threatens the food and energy security of vulnerable countries, such as the Union of the Comoros, which remain highly dependent on imports and whose population face declining purchasing power And this demands greater international solidarity. Given this shared insecurity. Mr. president, ladies and gentlemen allowing the conflict in the Middle East to continue directly weakens the United Nations by calling into question its ability to maintain world peace and by undermining its credibility amongst the peoples we represent. The theme of this 81st session acknowledges that something is broken, and that is why confidence must be restored. Through concrete actions that uphold the rule of law and collective security. It is time to move beyond power politics and establish a new human ethic that transcends divisions of race, color and belief. Whilst safeguarding our shared ecosystems. Created in 1945 from the ruins of the Second World War, our organisation was founded to guarantee peace, security and sovereign equality of states in strict respect for international law. Without these principles, it would be little more than an empty forum Since our last meeting here in September 2025, the genocide in Palestine has continued. Hundreds of thousands of Palestinian civilians, women, children and elderly have lost their lives and entire populations stands on the brink of extermination. The international community will regain its credibility first by taking urgent action to silence the guns to protect civilian lives. Whether Israeli, Palestinian, Lebanese or Syrian And ultimately implementing United Nations resolutions, including the two state solution. With Israel and Palestine coexisting peacefully This is a prerequisite.
Where writing and law were born. And one of the founding members of the United Nations. I stand here to renew my country's commitment to the United Nations Charter and principles, and to present Iraq's vision for its future, its region, and the world at this critical juncture. Iraq, perhaps more than others. Has experienced wars and the damage they cause. We have lived through the conditions they create, along with the siege and terrorism imposed on us. Our people have paid a hefty price and lost the lives of their children, their resources and their development opportunities. Despite these difficulties that have made our country over several decades an arena of war and conflict. Today we are confidently presenting our vision for the future. Iraq aspires to exercise its influence and have an impact as an effective economic power in the region. And as a bridge for dialogue and cooperation among the peoples of the region.
It is a responsibility that grows more urgent each day, especially as UNEP's latest findings make clear that the world is now certain to exceed 1.5. This reality must strengthen our resolve to deliver what we have promised, prepare our communities for the impacts science tells us are inevitable. Small island states, young people, scientists, civil society, indigenous communities, and responsible partners have already raised climate ambition, exhilarated the shift to renewable energy, and exposed the true cost of inaction. We have called for ambition that matches science, demonstrated that ocean stewardship can protect while supporting livelihoods, and insisted on a stronger voice for small island states in decisions that shape our future.
Ours is a concerning financial situation. It's affecting the UN's operational capacity, and that is prompting questions about how effective the UN really is. Indeed, these questions are being asked about peace operations, just as they are about the SDGs. The implementation of these is lagging behind and significantly so. In view of this reality, it is true that some might be tempted to view multilateralism as a relic and might be tempted to move outside of that of multilateralism to take action in isolation. Senegal does not espouse that view. On the contrary, it is precisely because the world is beset by a whole host of unprecedented crises that we need a UN that is stronger, more representative and more effective. We will not settle crises by allowing the multilateral system to become ever more piecemeal. We will not achieve peace. If we simply stage power struggles. We will not guarantee a just international order. If we ensure that if we see might being right being replaced by might, doing all of that would imperil the very raison d'etre of our organisation that is dialogue, conflict prevention, the peaceful resolution of disputes, cooperation and respect for international law. In this vein, and with this in mind, the UN 80 initiative provides us with a historic opportunity to usher in the structural and normative transformations that we need to see. However, reforming the United Nations must not stymie its ambitions. On the contrary, it must make it less bureaucratic in how it functions. It must remove red tape, make it more agile, and make it more effective in its expenditure. And there must be better synergies between headquarters and the field, so we can better serve the people we represent. Senegal supports that very dynamic. That was the rationale behind our contribution to efforts to strengthen the UN system. We've used our own resources to build a UN house some 30km away from Dakar. This is a cutting edge institution and the site will house all UN system entities in the region, and that will foster greater coherence and effectiveness in the UN's work. However, a stronger organization and ensuring it is stronger also involves member states upholding their financial contribution pledges and making good on their assessed contributions. President, the years are ticking by, but our efforts to reform governance have yet to produce a significant impact. The status quo when it comes to reforming the Security Council bears witness to that fact. We all agree that the composition of the Security Council is out of step with the realities of our time. We agree that the expansion of the Council should not lead to further inertia, but given the fact the Council is lacking legitimacy and that is indeed the hallmark of the Council's current structure, we cannot simply issue observations. We are in at a juncture where there is an urgent need for action. It's a matter of justice, credibility and balance across the international system, and this is indeed the rationale which underpins the SL weenie consensus, which outlines the African position in connection with the so necessary reform of the UN Security Council. In that vein, Senegal is presenting its candidacy to a non-permanent seat on the Security Council for two 2032 2033. However, beyond reform, the organisation also needs experienced leadership to steer its work in these times of crisis and uncertainty. The UN needs a secretary general able to speak to one and all, able to listen and to build bridges between member states. That is the vision embraced and espoused by Macky Sall, former president of the Republic of Senegal. Here I wish once again to express my support for his candidacy. I wish to reiterate Senegal's request that you, as Member states, support his candidacy. Ladies and gentlemen at a time when our organisation is seeking to rebuild trust, Senegal continues to believe in the vision of a world based on peace, justice, the dignity of each and every human being and human brotherhood. The world does not need unilateral posturing. It needs a fairer, more inclusive and more effective multilateralism. Addressing our challenges requires bridges and not walls, dialogue and not confrontation. Cooperation and not isolation and not might. That is the very spirit in which Sen Senegal will host the Youth Olympic Games in Dakar 2026.
And then we had talked about artificial intelligence and global security. Today, I want to agree with President Trump that we are now talking about a call for practical, practical AI to be renamed superintelligence. S I we commit to that. Mr. president, the illicit flow of firearms and narcotics is a major security concern for Trinidad and Tobago and the wider Caribbean. Although the region does not manufacture these weapons, the availability fuels gang violence, organised crime, drug trafficking and loss of life across our societies. While serving on the council, Trinidad and Tobago will advocate for greater international cooperation to address the sources, movement and diversion of illicit weapons, stronger tracing mechanisms, information sharing border and maritime cooperation and deeper cooperation among source transit and destination countries to disrupt weapons, narcotics and international financial flows. Trinidad Tobago will bring the experience of the Caribbean to the council, where the impact of illicit farms demonstrates how transnational organised crime can threaten the security and stability of states, even in absence of traditional armed conflict. On the priority area, a super intelligent and global security should not Tobago encourage a greater consideration of the implications of S, I and emerging technologies for international peace and security, including cyber attacks, disinformation and deepfakes, autonomous weapons, criminal misuse of sea, and threats to critical infrastructure.
However, innovation must be governed by responsibility and accountability. Emerging technologies, particularly artificial intelligence, are advancing faster than our current capacity to govern them while retaining human agency and control. This raises critical questions regarding accountability, safety, environmental impact, and the risk of a widening digital divide between those who can shape these technologies and those who are excluded from their benefits in total. The Kingdom of Eswatini remains committed to building a more resilient, diversified, and inclusive economy.
President, this week has also seen an intense debate on harnessing the potential of artificial intelligence. But perhaps what we are discovering in these conversations are our own limits to understanding what the potential might be. Reporting from the most powerful and well capitalised AI companies tell us that we are on a precipice, either of a technology fuelled utopia or an apocalypse. Whether we achieve one or the other, unfortunately has been treated as a secondary priority to the AI race, one that has no clear finish line and, for that matter, a dubious prize. Liechtenstein supports the regulation of artificial intelligence. Unless we have a clear understanding of the methods, processes and purposes of the huge variety of AI systems, how can we risk the consequences to human rights, to our environment, to the long term capacities for our critical thinking, and ultimately, to the future of the human species? We are already seeing the impacts on civilians as armed forces increasingly integrate AI capabilities into their targeting systems in warfare. AI tools have to be made for humanity, lest we become the source material for AI systems to use, or merely the victims in its crosshairs.
There are acute humanitarian, environmental and economic challenges. My country Mauritania. Knows full well the importance and sensitivity of this moment. We would like to stress with humility from this common home that brings us together from the United Nations, that we all shoulder this responsibility before history. We have to leave to the future generations a better world than the one we've inherited. We are capable of that. Once we redirect ourselves to the path of peace through renewing our common and joint effort. The United Nations must regain its effectiveness to serve peace and security, especially common security. We can do that if we rightfully address the deep transformations that are reshaping the entire international landscape. The. These are the provisions of the 2030 agenda, its goals and objectives, and the expanded scope of knowledge, the accelerated technology, and their subsequent results and impacts. We can do that if we return with wisdom to what our Founding Fathers have been guided upon the common principles and purposes that gather us under the umbrella of the United Nations for more than eight decades.
We have devised resilient, flexible economic plans and remained committed to our development projects, despite the severe adverse impact of the war and the heavy price it has exacted. At every juncture and in every crisis, we have chosen to combine resilience with flexibility and to place the interests of our nation, our people and those residing on our soil above all else. Our values are not mere slogans we proclaim, but a reality we live by. They are values that we put into practice. At their core is the conviction that the dignity of the nation cannot be compromised, and that wisdom and firmness are two sides of the same coin. This approach is firmly anchored in our nation. This approach has been championed by the leaders of Qatar, from the founder, Sheikh Jassim bin Mohammed bin Thani, to His Highness Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Thani, our Emir from 1995 to 2013. May Allah have mercy on his soul. He passed away this year and was mourned with profound affection and gratitude by his people and all peace loving nations and people across the region and around the world. On this occasion, I would like to thank the United Nations General Assembly for convening a special session in honor of his memory and in recognition of his legacy. The experiences and challenges we have confronted have demonstrated that resilience is the outcome of prior planning, preparedness and investment in people and national capabilities. Accordingly, over the years, we have worked on assessing risks, securing supply chains, strengthening the capabilities of our national institutions, developing strategic reserves and forging trusted international partnerships. Recognizing the nexus of peace, security, development, human rights and the rule of law, the State of Qatar maintains its investment in development, education, health, security and economic diversification in conformity with the Qatar National Vision 2030. Your Excellencies. There can be no talk of a just international order, as long as Palestine remains a blind spot within it.
Climate disasters and extreme weather patterns threatens our people, our prosperity, and our hard won development gains. In the last year, 2 million people in the Southern African Development Community suffered a combined and debilitating impact of floods, cyclones, wildfires and disease outbreaks Our responses are severely constrained by a climate finance architecture stacked against developing nations. Global action on disaster resilience and predictable financing for a just energy transition is essential if international cooperation is to deliver for all. Our continent has the world's largest reserves of critical minerals.
Mr. president. Economic and climate vulnerabilities are having an impact on stability and security in Africa. These are coupled with ongoing security challenges and can fuel tensions and conflict. This is why development questions, questions of peace and security must be tackled in a complementary and interlinked fashion. Lasting security cannot be boiled down just to its military dimension. It requires us to act on factors causing vulnerability, and it requires us to promote dialogue prevention and mediation. Along these lines. The president of the Council, His Excellency for Essozimna Gnassingbé, has striven to promote dialogue, to bring people's positions closer and to contribute to find political solutions to crises that affect regions in West Africa and in the Sahel, for example. Our country is working hard to encourage exchanges and to contribute to the emergence of lasting political responses in the Great Lakes region. Togo as part of African mediation, is also making its contribution to de-escalation, to restoring trust, and to the quest for lasting responses to disputes. These initiatives reflect a conviction in the face of crises. We need to maintain spaces for dialogue. We need to foster political and diplomatic means. Mediation is not a weakness. It is an expression of responsibility. Togo has made dialogue and preventive diplomacy the pillars of its foreign policy. In our West African subregion and the African level. Togo is working unfailingly to promote mediation, stability and the peaceful settlement of disputes We are convinced that no lasting solution can be imposed from the outside without actively listening to local and sovereign realities and what's going on on the ground. Africa is not asking for others to act in its place. It is asking for its efforts to be recognized, assisted and supported.
Mr. president, Your Excellencies, peace and development are inseparable, which compels us to consider strategies that can help accelerate the implementation of the 2030 agenda. The important decisions adopted under the Pact for the Future and the Seville Commitment can help advance development programmes in Africa. However, in order to achieve concrete results in these areas, it is essential to ensure affordable financing, debt relief, technology transfer, capacity building and a greater participation of international financial institutions. African countries spend far more resources on the exorbitant cost of debt servicing than they are able to invest in health, education, infrastructure development programmes. This situation obviously limits productive investment, deepens inequalities and economic disparities, and threatens economic and social stability. In view of this, it is imperative to correct these distortions and I therefore reiterate the call for the immediate reform of the international financial architecture in order to make it fairer, more equitable, democratic and geared towards the progress and wellbeing of humankind. These challenges are inherently complex, and are further exacerbated by climate change, which has a severe impact on Africa with severe and prolonged droughts, floods, desertification, food insecurity and population displacement. This situation clearly illustrates the need to establish predictable, affordable and additional climate financing without further aggravating the debt of developing countries.
Again, listening, partnering, protecting Australian values at work, in practice. Colleagues. Last year, Australia took the considered decision to join other partners and recognise the state of Palestine. It was motivated by the determination to try and end a cycle of violence that has stolen too many innocent lives. We know the only viable path to peace and security in Palestine, in Israel and in the broader Middle East is through a two state solution where the people of Israel and the people of Palestine can raise their children in freedom and safety. We will continue to speak out against actions that damage that prospect of peace, including illegal settlements in the West Bank. Just as we continue to oppose any role for the terrorists of Hamas in Palestine's future, the conflict in Iran has taken a severe toll on the Middle East and has had a devastating impact on the global economy. Australia has been consistent in our calls for a ceasefire and for the Strait of Hormuz to reopen and restore the freedom of navigation and trade.
After two decades of tensions, Latin America wants this history to have a happy conclusion. Delegates. This Assembly cannot remain indifferent to the wars and conflicts that are raging around the world. These open conflicts do not only threaten the stability of many regions, rather, they damage the entire world. Chile, like many countries represented in this chamber, imports almost all of the oil it consumes and has been directly affected by manifold wars. I'm not talking here about abstract geopolitics. The impact is expressed in the cost of bread transport and harvests inflation that refuses to hold still, taxes that do not decrease, investment delayed and jobs that don't arrive, entire countries that were really taking off and triumphing have once again ground to a halt and seen stagnation settle in for wars that they didn't start and that they can't stop. Therefore, our appeal to you is direct. Wars must stop. Wars do not only drain the blood of those that fight them, they plunge people into poverty. Indeed, they do that for the whole world. We all lose with wars and we've lost too much. The United Nations has a role to play, and it must do so with the character and the dynamism that it has not yet shown. Delegates.
Climate action must go hand in hand with development, poverty reduction and job creation. Adaptation, water security and food security must receive the priority they deserve, especially in Africa and the countries most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. Drawing on Egypt's experience and hosting the climate conference in Sharm el-Sheikh and the decision it adopted, we can affirm that the gap no longer lies in diagnosing the problem, but in implementation, especially in translating commitments into financing flows, projects and technologies that reach the countries and communities most in need. In a world where geopolitical and technological transformations are accelerating, this must not lead us into more dangerous arms races.
Ladies and gentlemen, one of the biggest tests for the UN's relevance is Russia's aggression against Ukraine. For more than 12 years ago, since the illegal annexion of Crimea and occupation of eastern Ukraine in 2014, a permanent member of the Security Council of the Russian Federation has been perpetrating a war of aggression at the very heart of Europe. That aggression disregards the principles of the United Nations Charter to its very core. It violates the respect of sovereignty and territorial integrity of states, and the prohibition of the use of force against another state. The consequences of Russia's aggression, however, extend beyond Ukraine and Europe. For example, by increasingly targeting Ukraine's Black Sea ports, commercial shipping, crane infrastructure, and alternative export routes, Russia is putting global food security at grave risk. As such, this is a concern for all of us, and rightly so. Russia's actions have been condemned by a large majority of this Assembly. But condemnation is not enough. We need to collectively force Russia into peace in Ukraine, to force into a negotiation table by raising the cost of its aggression. For this, we can and should use the diverse instruments at our disposal, be they economic, diplomatic, or political. I strongly encourage more of my fellow heads of state and government to use this occasion to call on Russia to cease its aggression. Those of you who have done so already, be it the Global South or North, you have my appreciation. The principles of the UN Charter cannot be trampled on. It is our collective task to stand up for them. We should also support the efforts of international mechanisms to document the war crimes, ensure accountability, and provide assistance to those whose rights have been violated. Estonia is doing its part. We have completed all national procedures and taken the lead in discussions in Strasbourg to establish the special tribunal as soon as possible. A UN member state whose armed forces have been repeatedly cited in the UN Secretary's Report for Grave Violations Against Children and Conflict-Related Sexual Violence should have been no place in UN peacekeeping operations. This is a matter of ensuring that perpetrators' actions have consequences. But it is equally a matter of training trust in and the integrity of UN peacekeeping. I fervently call on the UN to stop reflecting and instead take appropriate actions immediately. Ukraine requires assistance in defending itself, but also in rebuilding the country. Estonia, together with its partners, have worked closely to support Ukraine's cybersecurity and resilience. In responsing to evolving threats through the Tallinn mechanism and the IT coalition, Estonia is also proud to be hosting the Ukraine Recovery Conference in 2027, organized in cooperation with our closest friends in the Nordic-Baltic region. Building on the outcomes of early conferences, next year's event will be advancing in practical terms long-term international support for Ukraine and its recovery. As such, it will be a multilateral effort and example of true cooperation for international peace and security. My fellow leaders, while in the situation in Ukraine and Ukraine's security that affects Estonia most directly, we are neither indifferent nor unaffected by the impact of other wars, threats, and conflicts. The situation in the West Bank and Gaza remains of great concern. Innocent civilians and children must not bear the devastating human cost of war. Estonia has consistently called for upholding international humanitarian law and ensuring safe, rapid, and unhindered access of humanitarian aid for those in need. We remain a stable donor in UNRWA and are committed to a credible political process leading to a negotiated two-state solution, with Israel and Palestine living side by side in peace, security, and dignity. We have provided food aid to hospitals in Gaza and stand ready to offer our digital transition expertise in its future reconstruction. Estonia has consistently condemned the act act by Iran against our close partners, the Gulf states, and has shown its readiness to contribute to ensuring freedom of navigation in the region. This is an issue that affects us all. We also see instrumentalization of migration as a means of exerting pressure on countries, whether on the European Union's eastern and southern borders or elsewhere.
Regional integration and thematic coalitions can and should support it. Now, let me finish by saying that artificial intelligence is the most consequential technology in the history of mankind. It will impact science, the economy, politics, security, and the very essence of our humanity. Humans can and should be in the driver's seat. We have a choice. We can compete, cooperate, or slow down. For me cooperation is the best way forward. This is why Norway and Finland have, together with leaders from nations around the world, launched a call for companies, governments, regional organizations and the UN to develop mechanisms to control frontier AI models.
Madam president, first let us turn our attention to escalating international tensions. The situation in the Middle East has been growing increasingly tense and free and safe navigation is increasingly under challenge in the Strait of Hormuz, which is an international public good. Japan, in cooperation with the international community, has been continuing to engage in diplomatic efforts with a view to achieving an early de-escalation of the situation across the Middle East. Furthermore, supply concerns regarding fuel, chemical products and medical supplies are causing significant impact on people's lives and business operations. Due to disruptions in the supply of fertilizers, the risk of food crisis is mounting, with Africa and Asia being hit particularly hard.
Dear friends, as you know, climate change has become a global challenge. The average temperature of our planet and the number of climate related emergencies are rising rapidly, while the negative impact on energy, agriculture, food security and the economy as a whole has reached a significant scale. Kyrgyzstan is a mountainous country. We are particularly vulnerable to the effect of melting glaciers, and this is not an abstract threat. It is an environmental challenge of the regional significance. I believe it is extremely important and necessary to unite international efforts in addressing climate challenges and the problems facing mountainous regions. In this regard, the 21st 23rd October 2027, Bishkek will host the second Global Mountain Summit, Bishkek plus 25. Taking this opportunity, I invite all of you to participate in the summit. The summit will serve as the concluding event for the five years of action for the Development of Mountain Regions for 2023 2027 term. During my meeting with United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres in Bishkek on 31st August 2026, I proposed organizing this summit jointly with the organization. These efforts demonstrate our country's leading role among mountain states and its commitment to unite international efforts to address their challenges. Therefore, Kyrgyzstan stands fully ready to serve with the United Nations as the voice of small and developing countries in addressing the climate related challenges affecting mountainous regions. Distinguished heads of delegations. Continuing the topic of climate change, I would like to draw your attention to another environmental challenge. As we all know, global problems and disasters often have their origins at the local level.
All those who provide them with support, financing or arms must be held accountable. Mr. president, there can be no way to sustain peace and development without effectively addressing the challenge of climate change, which is no longer a future threat. It is already affecting water and food security, as well as the stability of territories, economies and the living conditions of populations. Despite its limited contribution to greenhouse gas emissions, Morocco remains among the countries most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. Accordingly, in line with the vision of His Majesty King Mohammed VI, may God assist him The Kingdom has adopted a proactive policy based on the continued construction of dams, the interconnection of water basins, seawater desalination, the reuse of treated wastewater and the rationalization of water resource management, particularly in the agricultural sector. This national effort forms part of an international commitment to climate action. On that basis, the Kingdom has set for the period 2026 2035, a target of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by up to 53% by 2035, while placing adaptation and the strengthening of territorial resilience at the top of its priorities. This effort has extended to the African continent, which suffers from the devastating effects of climate change. The Royal Initiative to establish three African climate commissions for the Congo Basin the Sahel region and the African island states, has generated promising momentum to strengthen African climate action and coordination among the states of the continent in addressing these challenges. However, addressing climate change cannot rely on national efforts alone. It requires the provision of affordable and accessible financing, technology transfer and genuine international solidarity, enabling developing countries to fulfill their responsibilities towards present and future generations alike. Mr. president, Madam President, the Palestinian question remains a constant priority in the foreign policy of the Kingdom of Morocco, based on its belief in the justice of this, that this is a just cause and its central to achieving peace and stability in the Middle East region.
Yet the measure by which we are assessed sees none of it. It sees income and it sees nothing else. It does not capture the full story of my nation, the true cost of our geographic isolation, the fragility of our limited economic base, or the devastating impact a single disaster can have on our people and our progress. In January 2027, Naoero will be considered a high income country in the OECD system. That does reflect real progress. But progress should not be punished because 58% of our revenue comes from bilateral arrangements that are not ours to renew. 87% of the food our people eat is purchased and imported. We have one runway, one port, one road that connects everywhere. None of that appears in how we are assessed. That is why we strongly support the Multidimensional Vulnerability Index, or MVI, and the United Nations efforts to pilot the tool. Its full implementation is essential to ensuring that countries like ours are fairly assessed and adequately supported. It recognizes that vulnerability is complex and it must be seen, measured and acted upon. Mr. president, we acknowledge the significant progress made by some development partners and financial institutions in adopting vulnerability assessments and reviewing the eligibility criteria. The Asian Development Bank, ADB, weighs vulnerability alongside the income and its own policy names my nation as the clearest example of why income alone conceals what small island states face. As a country that is ranked the fifth most vulnerable country in the world on the index and the most vulnerable in the Pacific, we welcome these developments as positive steps. But a gap remains. Not all have taken the necessary steps to truly recognise our realities. I therefore urge all who have yet to do so, including the World Bank, to weigh vulnerability alongside income in decisions on eligibility, as the ADB already does. If the international community is truly serious about restoring trust and managing transformation, it must demonstrate that commitment where it matters most with those who are most vulnerable.
The UN80 Initiative is a constructive start. But it is only a start. Moving positions on a budget sheet may deliver savings. Merging or renaming bodies may reduce duplication. Streamlining structures may improve efficiency. These steps are important and often necessary for good housekeeping, but they are not enough; we need to dig deeper to address the problems beneath the superstructure, because the United Nations’ reform challenges are chronic and fundamental. On 24 November 1949, four years after the founding of the United Nations, this Assembly adopted resolution 310 (IV), entitled “Problem of the Proliferation and Overlapping of the Programmes of the United Nations and of the Specialized Agencies”. It urged Member States “to refrain from initiating new projects other than those which are urgently required and which can be effectively carried out”. Yet we have not paid sufficient attention to our own decision. We have since created thousands of mandates, of which 4,000 are still active, irrespective of whether they were required or could be effectively carried out. We cannot continue treating a chronic ailment with temporary painkillers when what we need is a deeper diagnosis and a more profound plan for transformation, even if that plan proves painful. And here I must be equally candid: this will happen only if Member States take charge. Time and again, we say that United Nations reforms must be Member State-led. But too often, Member States fail to take the wheel. Passive ownership is not enough. If we do not claim proactive ownership of this place, we cannot expect it to heal. So let us engage. Let us take charge, fix our own house, respect sovereignty of Member States, and together deliver the transformation we need. (BRIEF PAUSE) As we decide what must change, we must also recognize what already works. Again and again, Member States tell us that the United Nations works well at the country level, emergency situations, and in keeping and building peace. We should build on that success. We should strengthen the United Nations’ country-level work and draw increasingly on local capacity, including qualified national institutions and individuals. We should ensure that all activities at country level, from development support to peacekeeping, are properly integrated and produce the highest synergy. We should ensure avoidance of turf battles among different parts of the UN, and exercise care to select resident coordinators that are fit to lead the teams. We want to have full value for money. The Organization’s financial viability is also a chronic concern. We must ensure that it receives sufficient resources on a sustained basis and that all countries pay their dues on time and without conditions. We must also recognize that dues to the United Nations come from hardworking people around the world. Every penny must therefore be properly accounted for. Every penny must be invested to achieve impact on the ground for the people we serve. (BRIEF PAUSE) The role of the Member States, supported by the Secretariat is essential to delivering our work, but not sufficient. This brings me to my third point: building a more open and inclusive United Nations. We know that the United Nations of today, and the world it serves, are profoundly different from those of 1945. Nowhere is the pace of change more evident today than in artificial intelligence.
I would like to call this a partnership of constructive contributors. I am not seeking to propose a new organization nor an exclusive grouping. The idea is to respect the functions of the existing international order and the UN, work together in a flexible and open manner, in areas where each country has particular strengths and expand our ties of cooperation into new areas. By continuing to build on the achievements of collaborating separately yet together, we can move beyond geopolitical rivalry, deadlock and fragmentation, and rebuild trust in multilateralism. The United Nations must evolve with the times. Agreements reached at the negotiating table must translate into real change on the ground, so that people around the world can feel their impact in their daily lives. We must reduce duplication across organizations and programs, accelerate decision making, and direct limited resources where they are needed most. In this spirit, the Republic of Korea supports the UN 80 Initiative, which will improve efficiency, prioritize field operations and deliver greater results. We also support the reform of the UN Security Council so that it operates in a more effective, democratic and accountable manner. The Republic of Korea will live up to its responsibility and position to deliver results that can be vividly felt by people around the world, across the UN's three pillars of peace development and human rights. Through the Busan Global Partnership Forum, we will continue to support inclusive growth, share Korea's development experiences, such as the Saemaul Undong, and continue to make sustainable and innovative investments.
We now have capable people, institutions, policies that are proudly guiding our national transformation agenda. We must also ask ourselves why we continue to mobilize vital resources to respond to crisis, while investing far less in preventing them. The UN office for Disaster Risk Reduction estimates that every $1 invested in proactive measures, resilient infrastructure or early anticipatory actions saves between 3 to 15 USD in future damages and response costs. Therefore, we cannot remain trapped in a cycle of financing the consequences of the conflict while neglecting the peacebuilding or responding to humanitarian emergencies. While underinvesting in resilience and anticipatory actions. Prevention is more cost effective, it's more humane, and it's more sustainable. Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen. Now El Nino is strengthening and is likely to bring another period of significant climate stress across the world, with disproportionate impact on nations like Somalia. We must learn from what has happened before and be better prepared, not simply respond after the destruction it leaves in in its wake. As a community of nations Mr. President. Excellencies and gentlemen. Somalia is successfully leading on its own national development Our government is implementing the National Transformation Plan, strengthening public financial management, expanding domestic revenue, and investing in the capability of our national institutions.
Today, however, these ideas are not only being called into question; they are being attacked by political actors and governments that want to take us back to a dark past. And I don't need to point them out; we all know who they are and what their modus operandi is. They start by questioning the rules, then they break them, knowing full well that nobody will dare to hold them accountable. They cut their contributions to multilateral bodies like this one. They point to their leaders and officials. They obstruct these organizations' ability to act, to then write them off as useless entities that we can do without. What they're doing, nevertheless, is a planned and coordinated demolition attempt that is presented as something that we can't stop and that's necessary. However, the reality is that it runs counter to the structural currents of history and is based on three misguided pillars. The first of these pillars is selfishness, the absurd belief that the world is a zero-sum game, where some winning must imply that others losing. The second pillar is ignorance, disregarding scientific evidence and assuming that there are countries that are so powerful that they can abuse all of the others and they don't need anyone else to prosper. And the third pillar, the worst in my opinion, is cruelty. Cruelty that isn't even moved when it sees the ribs of a starving child or a hospital reduced to rubble. Over these 8 years, I've seen these selfish, ignorant, and cruel forces grow. I've seen how they took off their masks and seized power in many places. And then I saw them start illegal wars, massacre innocent civilians. I've seen them treat millions of human beings like livestock and take away aid from those suffering the most, from poverty and disease. I've seen them pollute the atmosphere and also the ocean as if it's their own property, and conspire to destroy this organization and everything it represents. I'm saying this because bearing witness to these things has changed the way that I understand the world. However, it hasn't led me to lose hope. Because also, over these 8 years, I've seen wonderful things that allow me to still have confidence in humanity. For example, I've seen millions of people mobilized to defend nature, peace, and civil rights. I've seen thousands of activists and public servants confront these reactionary powers, knowing full well that they're putting their professional careers and even their own lives at risk. I've seen scientists make progress that we thought was impossible. And I've seen many governments do things right, opting for cooperation, social justice, and environmental sustainability. All of this has taught me something that I want to share with all of you, and that is that humanity is not intrinsically good or bad. Humanity can actually be both. And every day, every year, and in each and every crisis, we must decide how to act. The United Nations is one of these spaces where these decisions are made at the highest level. And the UN doesn't always do it well. Of course, I myself, on several occasions, have called out the contradictions and lackings of this body. However, with the same belief, I must call out the fact that the majority of the voices that today insist on criticizing the United Nations are not describing its failure; what they're doing is trying to cause its failure. And I must also say that multilateralism is the best tool that humanity has to manage its diversity and its interdependence, especially in a globalized and multipolar world like the world we're living in today. And this is why what we need to do is up- ramp up our trust in this organization. We must renew it and strengthen it so that this century it can play the same key role that it played last century. And doing this will not be easy. However, the good news is that all of the guidance we need is right here, in the United Nations Charter. In this charter, they wrote the best chapters. Our forefathers wrote it, the men and women who saw the world burn, and even then, they died to imagine a better future. These men and women laid down their wisdom and their hope in this charter. And they didn't ask us to keep it in a glass case. They asked us to fulfill it. They asked us to defend it, and for us to turn back to it in times of uncertainty and extraordinary difficulty. And today is one of those times. And therefore, it's our duty to rise to the courage and the ambition present in this text, in the United Nations Charter. And this is why, ladies and gentlemen, we need to reform the Security Council so that all of the regions in the world have fair representation, and so that we can do away with the right of veto of the permanent members. Because as the UN Charter sets out, no country should be judged in its own case, no matter how powerful they are. We therefore need to strengthen all of the other main bodies and reorganize the agencies' funds and programs, and provide them with more resources and more executive capacity so that they can have a more decisive impact on the great challenges that beset humanity. We must strengthen bodies like the International Criminal Court so that they can investigate, prosecute, and punish those that break the rules.
The admission of the African Union to G20 is certainly a major step in the right direction. However, it is not sufficient to meet this need for representation. As a member of the Security Council of 2026-2027, we reaffirm our support for the common African position, enshrined in the Eslawini Consensus and the SIRT Declaration. That is to say, two permanent seats for Africa, with all of the associated privileges, including veto rights as long as they exist, and two non-permanent additional seats, in order to make the Council more representative, more legitimate, and ultimately more effective. This need for representation goes hand in hand with a need for responsibility, and it is in this spirit that the DRC intends to fully exercise its responsibility when it comes to choosing the next Secretary-General, whose mandate ought to be part of the transformation of our organization and help adapt it to the priorities of a world in profound evolution. This same ambition is our driving force within the francophone world, through the candidacy of Ms. Juliana Amatulumumba for the position of Secretary-General of the OIF, with the vision of a renewed francophonia that is closer to its peoples and capable of strengthening trust between its members and to tackle the challenges we are facing. For the DRC, it is precisely in the gap between the trust we are calling to be restored and the transformation that we hope to manage that the real impact of our international commitments is measured. Our country is at the heart of several of these transformations, and sometimes at the intersection of their very contradictions.
It's not about territories. It's about the existence of a Jewish state at any boundaries. And yet at the time, right at that time, we were threatened with annihilation by three Arab armies that were about to invade us. You know what Israelis were doing at the time They were digging mass graves in preparation for the thousands and thousands of casualties in preparation to bury our dead. At the time, I was an Israeli high school student in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, five days before the war broke out. I flew back to Israel. I found a country in total blackout. Israel braced for impact. I flew back to see my brother, Jonathan. Yonatan. Yoni. He was a 21 year old paratroop officer and like the rest of his the rest of the army, his unit was already mobilized. I went to find him. I was told the paratroops are encamped in the orchards, the orange groves around Ramla. So I went there and I asked some soldiers, do you know where Yoni Netanyahu is? Nope, nope. Then one guy said, oh, you mean the young guy? Yeah, he's in the next grove. So I went there and suddenly at the end of a long row of trees, I saw my brother. He was absolutely shocked to see me. Bibi said, Bibi, what are you doing here? We ran, we hugged each other and over a cup of a cup of makeshift military coffee, I asked him the question that was on my mind. The question that was on everybody's mind. So I said. What's going to happen? He paused, and then he said something I'll never forget. We're going to win, he said. We have no other choice.
It helped Namibia achieve independence, supported Cambodia's transition from conflict, disarmed combatants in Sierra Leone and Liberia, and helped Timor Leste take its place among sovereign nations. More than 2 million peacekeepers have served under the UN flag, proving that peace can be built, protected, and sustained. Its impact reached further into the lives of ordinary people. The United Nations system helped eradicate smallpox, vaccinated generations of children, fight hunger and disease, expand access to education and bring clean water and humanitarian assistance to communities across the world. Since the year 2000, deaths among children under 5 have fallen by more than half. These achievements matter. They changed borders, ended wars, defeated disease, and transformed lives. They tell us that multilateralism works when nations summon the will to make it work. The United Nations has not fulfilled every promise of its charter, but without it, our world would have been poorer, more dangerous, and less free. That is why Kenya speaks today, not from despair in this institution, but from conviction in its possibilities. Yet conviction in what this institution can be requires us to confront what this institution has become. Distinguished delegates, last year the world recorded 65 state-based armed conflicts, the highest number of documented incidences in eight decades of global conflict data.
The responsibility for the world we will leave to future generations. It is our duty to future generations to leave them a clean, safe environment. Poland supports environmental protection efforts, recognizing their impact on security, including food security. Caring for the natural environment is undoubtedly our duty, but fulfilling this duty must not lead to the weakening of our economies or the shifting of problems beyond our borders. Pushing for ambitious environmental policies without considering their global consequences may result in deindustrialization, longer supply chains, and the relocation of production to countries that do not apply comparable standards. This path does not lead to genuine climate protection. It merely leads to the export of emissions to other parts of the same globe, accompanied by job losses in the country of origin and the erosion of production capacity. We need solutions that combine environmental responsibility with economic competitiveness and economic security. In this spirit, it is worth recalling the message of Saint Francis of Assisi, who saw nature not as a resource to be exploited, but as a gift entrusted to humankind, our common home, for which we are responsible as its guardians and stewards. To put it short, ladies and gentlemen, we cannot give away the protection of our environment to fanatics. Careful, nature is much older than the left-wing concepts. It stems from an ethic that took shape long before the emergence of post-Marxist ideologues.
We must equally reform the Secretariat to better support peacekeeping and the resolution of conflicts. We've been told that there are more conflicts today than at any time since the United Nations was established, and regrettably, these conflicts are in almost every corner of the planet. The Oslo Peace Institute reported that in 2025 last year. 245 000 individuals faced battle related deaths. That is almost Barbados's population. I'm told that this makes it the third most violent year in the post-Cold war era. My friends, the scale of human tragedy is mounting, and whether it is in Gaza or the West Bank or Lebanon, or Yemen or Sudan or Ukraine or elsewhere. Last Here we fared. That there was a risk of conflicts in the Middle East widening even further, and the conflicts continue. These fears, regrettably, have come to pass and with a global impact. Nevertheless. Indeed, conflicts are more protracted and more fragmented. And when coupled with hunger and unsustainable debt and a warming planet, it becomes a veritable hell for the citizens of those countries Increases in energy and transport costs and in interest rates have spurred inflation. It means that no one, even on the other side of the world, can escape the hardships in meeting their daily needs. The truth is, until there is a two state solution that respects the rights and territories of both the Israelis and Palestinians, we will continue to live on the edge in this world. And you may well ask, how have we gotten here? We need to address with laser like focus each and every one of these conflicts. Legitimacy demands that of us. And let us let the UN deliberately and systematically deploy nimble mediation teams led by political leaders, current and retired. On behalf of the Secretary General and enjoying the Secretary General's confidence and authority and the respect of Member States. This, my friends, will help lift the heavy weight necessary to end these multiple conflicts and to bring peace and dignity to those affected populations. We know that many hands make light work and we can't ignore it. These conflicts need to be supported by a quicker and technology enhanced observer force, capable of rapid deployment to monitor and support ceasefires and peace agreements to be given the resources. These peacekeeping forces must be given realistic mandates, predictable financing and true partnership. Let us work my friends together with the parties to these conflicts, to build dialogue and to bring opportunities for investment and jobs to the affected populations so that they too, can live properly. And as for the wider international legal order, we know that countries of every size and capacity depend on a system in which rules are made collectively and applied consistently and fairly But if we don't act early enough, we have trouble. And that is why we say that the UN must receive the resources and the resolve to act before the guns speak, and not after the guns start to fly. My friends, without an equitable rules based order, smaller states like mine will simply cease to exist in this world.
We are already the victims of climate change. We must do it for them, and even more so for our children. Last but not least, we must hold fast and not yield on artificial intelligence. There are some who wish to make us believe that only two powers, the US and China, will be taking the decisions. They want us to believe that just a few economic actors will make all the decisions, the kinds of economic innovations that will be implemented, whether they want to take a break or not, the kinds of innovations that happen. Some of these technological developments might attack the security of our states, our hospitals or banks. They say that just a few will decide what kind of society we live in. No, no. Starting in 2018 at the G7 with our Canadian friends, we launched the Global Partnership for Artificial Intelligence under the auspices of the OECD to kickstart discussions on the need for regulation. At the AI summit in 2025. The AI Governance Summit. The next edition will be held in Switzerland next year. There was also the Indian edition. We advocated for two very simple things for everyone in the world to have their own LLM model capabilities, calculation capabilities, AI capabilities, so that we can craft a way of auditing these models instead of being reliant on just a few private actors. And in fact, Europe was the first with the AI Act to take forward these principles, to take forward these models, and we must continue down that path. Therefore, I wish to emphasize a particular point. Our young people and our children. We've spent far too long not protecting our young people and adolescents. And as a result, we're living with the consequence. Their capacity to learn is in decline. We're seeing mental health problems. The facts are stark, and the correlation is clear cut. That's why we've kickstarted a large scale initiative aimed at protecting our young people, our adolescents, to stop them accessing social networks before the age of 15. Underway in various countries. And I wish to commend our Australian colleagues, the first to take legislation on this front. We must continue down this path and see it through, but let's not wait for the consequences to come raining down on AI. We must act now to protect our children and our young people. Look at the impact chat bots have on our children. This is why, together with Kenya, Spain Australia, we've built a coalition on children's rights in the era of AI. We are mobilizing already this afternoon and also at the Paris Peace Forum on the 10th and 11th of November of this year. Governments, organizations, public and private actors, academics, private companies everyone will be rallying behind this agenda. So I hope to see you on the 10th and 11th of November in Paris. Going beyond that, we can clearly see the race that is underway in cutting edge models we must all be investing in. France is proud to have a competitive frontier model, and we will continue supporting them. So that we can have this kind of model. But we must also forge new kinds of cooperation. And I very much hope and wish for all sovereign states committed to their independence. India and Brazilian, African Gulf states, Singapore. The list goes on. This independent coalition, which I mentioned earlier, I don't want anyone to become the vassal of one of the great powers. Rather, we must come together to build an open source frontier model, a cutting edge model. Using all of the calculation capabilities you have pooling them. Our investment capabilities must be pooled to build a cutting edge, open source AI model, which we will share. We should not depend on somebody else. This is the agenda we must take forward and this through cooperation. Furthermore, there are other areas where we must set new rules AI in outer space, AI and defense, and cyber security. This has very serious consequences which affect the very heart of our national security. In Evian at the G7. Many of us lend our support for the call launched by our Finnish and Norwegian friends, and we want to continue within the framework of the G7, but also working closely with our UK colleagues who will hold the chairmanship of the G20 next year. We want to set a cooperation agenda on AI so as to protect the most sensitive components thereof, which affect our national security. We are coming to an agreement to build a new international architecture. We did this on chemical weapons. We did this when it came to other risks, and we must do the same when it comes to outer space defense, cyber security issues on which we must take control. And we need very specific kinds of cooperation, a specific framework for cooperation between member states in these areas, so as to be able to take this cooperation forward within a specific framework. We must not yield on this either.