President – I extend my warm greetings to you and to the people of Vietnam. I also welcome former Secretary General, Mr Ban Ki-moon as well as representatives from regional organizations. I would like to say hello to Secretary General Guterres and thank You for joining us.
The Covid-19 pandemic has clearly demonstrated that you can overcome global challenges only through joint and coordinated action. Here, regional organisations play a crucial role and the EU leads by example. EU is the biggest donor to the COVAX facility – global initiative to ensure safe and effective vaccines for all the countries in the world. I also welcome the support by regional organizations to the UN Secretary General’s call for a global ceasefire.
Besides the strong partnership with the EU and OSCE, the UN Security Council has also annual consultations with the African Union Peace and Security Council, the League of Arab States (LAS) and Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).
Regional and sub-regional organizations often know better how to mitigate tensions and to deal with the aftermaths of bloody confrontations. They have a key responsibility in preventing violent conflicts and atrocity crimes, they can build pressure to stop atrocities and open a door for negotiations. And for that, they must not stay silent when freedoms are suppressed.
There must be accountability between a state and a society. This is the only road to a less violent world. The unfolding tragedies in Belarus, Yemen, Syria and Myanmar are all clear proof of that.
Entire world observes with pain the army killing its own citizens, including children, in Myanmar. Here the ASEAN has a critical role in pressuring the army to stop the atrocities. It is important that ASEAN will be able to organize a summit dedicated to the grave situation in Myanmar.
President – drawing on the messages of our briefers today, it is also the democratic governance that reassures the peaceful coexistence of states. Multilateral cooperation founded upon the democratic debate, transparent information sharing and confidence building measures, is a way towards more peaceful co-existence.
It is for these universal values, why democratic governance has been embraced across the world in every continent of the world. The number of world population living under democracies has increased from one to four billion over the past 65 years.
The European Union is recognized as one of the best examples of effective regional multilateral cooperation. The EU is committed to multilateralism – with the UN at its core. This method of diplomacy belongs to our DNA.
The respect for territorial integrity and the prohibition of the use of force are fundamental principles of international law at the core of the UN, EU, ASEAN and other regional organizations.
And yet we are observing with deepest concern threats to use military force also here in Europe. We are witnessing increased military buildup by Russia along the Ukraine border and in the occupied Crimea. Most recently Russia announced that under the pretext of military exercises it will block parts of the Black Sea, namely the Kerch strait, restricting the navigation of foreign military and official ships, until October. The situation is aggravated by the fact that Russia does not engage in risk reduction and confident building measures in the OSCE.
Russia failed to explain its military buildup along the borders of Ukraine and in occupied Crimea last week in OSCE. This runs counter to the letter and spirit of the OSCE confidence building mechanisms. Including in particular of the Vienna Document that is to address concerns and reduce risks.
In conclusion, Estonia believes that multilateralism that we see in Europe – born from the ashes of two World Wars – can help to secure and keep peace through active cooperation with the UN and other regional organizations. So I do encourage all regional organization to take a bigger role in securing regional stability and work actively with the UN that is and remains the cornerstone of our multilateral world order. And is a forum where everybody has a voice.