Statement by First Deputy Prime Minister of the Republic of Serbia/ Minister of Foreign Affairs Ivica Dačić at today’s UN Security Council Open debate on maintenance of international peace and security, entitled “Reflect on History, Reaffirm the Strong Commitment to the Purposes and Principles of the Charter of the United Nations”

“Mr. President,
Esteemed Foreign Minister Wang Yi,
Excellencies,
Ladies and Gentlemen,

It is my great honour and satisfaction to take part today in this very important open debate, initiated and organized by China as President of the Security Council. I take this opportunity to thank China, and you personally, Mr. Foreign Minister, for making it possible for us, in the year when we mark 70 years since the adoption of the Charter of the United Nations, to re-consider once again and re-commit and re-dedicate ourselves to the respect and safeguarding of its principles.

The purposes and principles of the United Nations, as enshrined in the Charter, continue to be just as valid and important today as they were at the time of the Charter’s adoption. The expectations to save the world from the scourge of war, respect the dignity of each and every human person and to ensure justice at all levels are not smaller now than they were 70 years ago.
We firmly believe that these goals can be achieved only through strengthening international cooperation in all fields, based on the principles of sovereign equality of States, refrain from use of force, non-interference in the internal affairs of States, respect for territorial integrity, pacific settlement of disputes and through mutual respect and honouring of differences.

Excellencies,

I take this opportunity to point out on behalf of the Republic of Serbia once again its commitment to the Charter of the United Nations and the Declaration on Principles of International Law concerning Friendly Relations and Co-operation among States. The principles of the Charter of the United Nations are ius cogens of contemporary international public law and their full implementation is a precondition of the rule of law.
The Republic of Serbia strongly supports the strengthening of the role of the United Nations in maintaining peace and security and respecting international law. The realization of the basic functions of the principal organs of the United Nations can be efficient only if carried out to the benefit and on behalf of all Member States and will be effective only if decisions are harmonized with the principles of the Charter, specifically the principles of territorial integrity and non-interference in the domain of substantive internal competencies of States.

The Republic of Serbia supports the efforts made to assess and find ways and possibilities to improve the work of all organs and bodies of the United Nations, especially the work and effectiveness of the Security Council in the field of maintaining international peace and security and responding unanimously to most complex security challenges and threats.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

As pointed out on a number of occasions by Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, the 70th anniversary of the United Nations is an historic chance for all Member States to make a contribution to the fulfilment of what is our common goal: making the world better, more developed and just.

Let me re-iterate the main principles that the Republic of Serbia is guided by in its foreign policy: safeguarding the international multilateral world through respect for international law and the rule of law; primacy of peaceful settlement of disputes through dialogue; and the achievement of a higher level of mutual respect and understanding among peoples.

We honour these principles also in our current position of Chairman-in-Office of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE). In this capacity, I would like to point out on this occasion that the partnership between the OSCE and the United Nations is vital for maintaining long-term peace and security in the geographical space from Vancouver to Vladivostok. Co-operation with the United Nations enables the OSCE to achieve progress in confronting both existing and emerging challenges. This approach is firmly grounded on the 1999 Platform for Co-operative Security and the principles reaffirmed in the 2010 Astana Commemorative Declaration. As security challenges continue to evolve, the nature of OSCE co-operation with the United Nations must evolve as well, becoming more pragmatic and action-oriented. Especially in times of economic hardship, enhancing synergies and finding new ways of working together that capitalize on the relative strengths of each organization is critical. Effective, pragmatic co-operation that builds on the respective mandates and strengths of the United Nations and the OSCE is a key objective of the OSCE’s proactive approach.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

The only road to peace and prosperity leads through mutual cooperation, respect and honour, of which we have had an example to convince ourselves in after the difficult and challenging years of the 1990s and, more recently, in Kosovo and Metohija. Tolerance of every kind, especially religious tolerance, is the key for overcoming problems that the present-day world is faced with, regrettably in an ever more ruthless way.

I consider that at the core of respect for international law and the rule of law is, primarily, the respect of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of each and every State, while the solution for every crisis is not military intervention, but dialogue alone.

A sovereign State cannot emerge through cancelling the existence and sovereignty of another. The right to security and all other rights of citizens of a country should never be realized through violating the fundamental rights of others.

Excellencies,

We strongly support the position of China, the President of the Security Council, that we should work continuously and as a matter or priority on promoting peaceful ways of settling disputes as provided for in Chapter VI of the Charter of the United Nations. We believe that coercive measures should be used only as a last resort and only in cases when international peace and security are really threatened or breached. The dialogue being conducted right now between Belgrade and Priština with the facilitation of the European Union demonstrates in the best possible way our resolve and full commitment to the normalization of relations and the quest for a lasting and sustainable political solution for Kosovo and Metohija.

Unfortunately, crises around the world are multiplying, just as is the number of people in need of help; we all should therefore feel called upon to make the United Nations stronger and more efficient, primarily through contributions by all its individual Members. The Republic of Serbia is proud of its leader position in the region of South-East Europe and seventh place in Europe by its participation and contribution to the United Nations missions. As the representative of the country which has its peacekeepers deployed in 8 United Nations missions, I would like to emphasize that the security of the crafters and implementers of global peace must be one of the priorities.

Mr. President,
Excellencies,

At the time when the United Nations was taking shape, oblivious of future threats and challenges, the world was full of hope that the wounds of two World Wars were going to heal. We inherit what came to pass over these 70 years and understand it as a guideline and impetus to our endeavour to make sure that history, in its darkest form, is not repeated.
To uphold the ideals that have guided us all these years, each and every one of us should invest the best efforts to bring about a better world than the one we have inherited. To that end, we firmly believe in the future of the United Nations and the historic role and mission of pro-active multilateralism.

Thank you all for your attention.”