In New York: “Prove that multilateralism can succeed,” as Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari urged the United Nations Security Council to carry out its commitment to regional peace and implement its resolutions on the Kashmir issue.
Talking on “Improved Multilateralism” in the Security Committee, the unfamiliar pastor expressed that there was a plan thing left neglected by the UNSC — the issue of Kashmir.
“If you want to see the success of the multilateral institution or multilateralism and the success of this very Council, surely you can aid in this process; we believe it to be a multinational agenda—an agenda of this UNSC; Allow the implementation of UNSC resolutions regarding Kashmir to demonstrate multilateralism’s viability, UNSC viability, and the achievement of regional peace, he added.
He stated that Pakistan was of the opinion that greater democratization of the UN, UNSC, and General Assembly would give this organization greater authority and moral standing. The institution would benefit from further democratization and the acceptance of everyone’s sovereign quality rather than the superiority of a few.
He stated, “It does not serve the purposes of the UN to increase the tyrannical power of veto and add more members to its elitist club.”
According to the foreign minister, the primary responsibility for maintaining international peace and security lies with the Security Council.
He went on to say that multilateral solutions administered by the Security Council are the most efficient means of promoting peace and resolving conflicts.
Parties to a dispute cannot simultaneously advocate for multilateral procedures one day and insist on “bilateral” options the next. Pakistan is of the firm belief that, with the active participation of the Security Council and the secretary-general, the major security issues, including those in our region, can be effectively and peacefully resolved,” he added.
In addition, Pakistan’s foreign minister stated that “multilateralism” must be founded on universal and consistent adherence to the UN Charter’s fundamental principles of self-determination, non-use or threat of force, non-acquisition of territory by force, respect for States’ sovereignty and territorial integrity, and non-interference in their internal affairs.
With recent and ongoing conflicts, strict adherence to the charter’s principles has become even more important.
He stated that the council must seek to resolve conflicts and disputes rather than merely “manage” them. He stated that it ought to address the root causes of conflict, like foreign occupation and the suppression of the acknowledged right of peoples to self-determination.
He also mentioned that the member states must carry out the Security Council’s decisions, as required by Article 25 of the charter.
The foreign minister stated that the Security Council must act not only when a conflict breaks out. It must take preventative measures to stop and avoid conflicts before they happen.
The Security Board ought to, he said, presumably, reflect “contemporary worldwide real factors”.
According to Bilawal, the most significant shift in global realities is the appearance of 193 UN members, the majority of which are small and medium-sized states.
The foreign minister emphasized that by expanding the Security Council, they must be fairly represented.
He stated, “We must adhere to the principle of sovereign equality of all-not the superiority of some,” and that the addition of new “permanent members” would numerically reduce the opportunities for the vast majority of UN member states to be represented on the Security Council.
The foreign minister noted that the addition of new permanent members would increase the likelihood of the Security Council becoming paralyzed, and that the Council’s inability to act in the past was caused by disagreements among its permanent members.
“The solution cannot be the problem. Additionally, states that have a track record of not implementing the Security Council’s resolutions cannot be considered for any form of membership,” he added.
He stated that multilateralism has numerous advantages. He asserted that multilateralism’s advantages were crystal clear.
In addition, Foreign Minister Bilawal stated that inclusive multilateral processes within the United Nations offered the most promising prospect for promoting peace and security, economic and social development, and effective responses to the numerous interconnected global challenges in this complex world.
He stated that it was essential to empower and effectively utilize all of the United Nations’ main organs: the United Nations Secretary-General and Secretariat, the Economic and Social Council, the Human Rights Council, the Security Council, and the International Court of Justice.
“Equality and democracy must also be incorporated into the global financial and economic governance structures, particularly the Bretton Woods institutions.” He emphasized that the United Nations General Assembly—the most universal global forum—must play the central role in strengthening multilateralism and enhancing international relations’ equity and justice.
According to Bilawal, the focus of the world should also be diverted away from narrow national ambitions. He argued that, rather, terrorism, the Covid-19 pandemic, climate change, and the existential threats they face as a race should be addressed collectively and multilaterally first and foremost.
“We must confront the rise of the ideologies of hate, xenophobia, populist extremism, racial and religious intolerance, including Islamophobia, which imposes discrimination, violence, and even threats of genocide, against vulnerable minorities in certain countries,” he observed. “The increasing propensity for narrow-minded populism, authoritarianism,” he added.
The foreign minister stated that without achieving the second goal of the charter, their efforts to promote world order, peace, and stability would be futile. economic and social progress across the globe.
He added that nearly a hundred developing nations were experiencing extreme economic distress as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, raging conflicts, and the more frequent and ferocious effects of climate change.
In their capacity as Chair of the G77, the foreign minister stated that they would continue to pursue a comprehensive multilateralism agenda.
They saw a triumph for the creating scene during Pakistan’s chairmanship of the Gathering of 77 and China’s administration of COP27 in Egypt, he said. ” With the addition of the loss and damage funding facility, we witnessed a victory for climate justice,” he added.
