Statement by H.E. Ms. Carolyn Schwalger
Permanent Representative of New Zealand to the United Nations
Security Council High-level Open Debate
on 'Practicing Multilateralism, Reforming and Improving Global Governance'
18 February, 2025

Thank you, President. 

I have the honour to deliver this statement on behalf of a group of 61 Member States: Albania, Australia, Austria, Bahrain, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Cabo Verde, Canada, Costa Rica, Croatia, Czechia, Denmark, Dominican Republic, Djibouti, Ecuador, El Salvador, Estonia, Fiji, Finland, Georgia, Germany, Guatemala, Jamaica, Jordan, Kuwait, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Liberia, Libya, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Maldives, Malta, Marshall Islands, Mexico, Monaco, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Palau, Poland, Portugal, Republic of Moldova, Romania, Timor Leste, Turkiye, Samoa, San Marino, Singapore, Slovakia, Spain, St Kitts and Nevis, St Vincent and the Grenadines, Sweden, Switzerland, Qatar, Ukraine.   

We welcome today’s Open Debate as a timely opportunity to consider the central tenets of the United Nations as embodied in its Charter – effective multilateralism, the maintenance of international law, and the rule of law.  

Founded in the ashes of World War II, the United Nations is, fundamentally, an international peace and security organization. And it is this Council that has the primary responsibility in this regard. 

And yet we are faced with a reality where the Council is increasingly unable to live up to this responsibility. Major crises and conflicts are too often met by inaction or paralysis. 

We have also continued to witness with alarming frequency the use of the veto whereby the Council is prevented from taking effective action in line with its mandate.

The application of the veto – not to mention those resolutions discarded due to the threat of a veto – undermines multilateral approaches. 

This favours contestation over cooperation on matters of international peace and security. Its effect is one of disillusionment and mistrust.

President,

Despite their imperfections, we remain committed to finding ways to contemporise our multilateral institutions so that they are best positioned to respond to the collective challenges we face, particularly as they relate to international peace and security. 

We are pleased that the Pact for the Future contains many elements that, when implemented, will better enable the Council to deliver on its mandate. A mandate that requires the Council to act on behalf of all of us. 

We have all agreed on the urgency of further and meaningful Security Council reform.

The Pact calls for the full implementation of the Charter, highlighting Article 27.3 which obliges ‘parties to a dispute’ to abstain from voting  on relevant Chapter VI resolutions. If any lack of clarity on the scope or definition of this clause is the reason this Charter obligation has not been honoured in full, it must be addressed as a matter of priority.

Importantly, the Pact also includes language which aims to strengthen the relationship between this Council and the General Assembly. The General Assembly, where all 193 Member States are represented, is the very embodiment of multilateralism. 

Under the Charter, the Security Council is afforded primary but not exclusive responsibility for international peace and security. 

Chapter IV makes clear that the General Assembly too has a role and responsibility in this regard. The Pact is explicit on the ability of the Assembly to take action. 

General Assembly Resolutions 377 and 76/262, on the Emergency Special Session and the Veto Initiative respectively, established important platforms for action in the General Assembly.

President

The Pact also requires us to revitalize the General Assembly while we in tandem work to reform the Council. 

Our goal must be to ensure that the UN as a whole is able to act on matters of international peace and security, fulfil the mandate we have given it by signing the Charter, and deliver for the people we serve. 

The Council and Assembly must work more closely as envisioned in the Charter, and in the spirit of multilateralism. The General Assembly must strengthen its peace and security role when the Council cannot act. The recently published ‘Assembly for Peace’ handbook, commissioned by the President of the General Assembly, outlines the breadth of precedent that the General Assembly can draw from in this respect. 

The Council in turn should increasingly recognize General Assembly action on matters of international peace and security, and draw inspiration from General Assembly products and actions in the formulation of Council resolutions and products. 

Finally, delivering on our collective commitment to multilateralism and the international rule of law hinges on the implementation of the commitments made at the United Nations.

Thank you.