Mr. Chairman,
Cuba supports the statements by the Islamic Republic of Iran on behalf of NAM and by the Republic of El Salvador on behalf of CELAC on agenda item 85 "Report of the Special Committee on the Charter of the United Nations and on the Strengthening of the Role of the Organization."
We appreciate the submission of the Secretary General's Reports and endorse the work of the Special Committee on the Charter and its agenda. We will continue to work with the Chair of the Committee and with the Member States in order to promote their work, in compliance with the mandate of General Assembly Resolution 3349 (XXIX), which gave rise to this Committee.
This mandate becomes more important under current global circumstances, when some countries attempt to reinterpret the principles of the Charter of the United Nations, in order to foster political agendas of foreign intervention and interference in the domestic affairs of States, to the detriment of the integrity and sovereignty, particularly of developing countries.
Mr. Chairman,
Respecting and promoting the rules of the Charter of the United Nations are of vital importance. The leading role of the General Assembly in its capacity as the chief regulatory, deliberative, policymaking and representative organ of the United Nations must be preserved and strengthened.
The Special Committee is the appropriate framework to negotiate any amendment to the Charter of the United Nations, including those resulting from the current process of reform of the Organization. It is the appropriate forum to make recommendations contributing to implementing all the provisions contained in the Charter and to ensuring that all UN Member States and organs act in accordance with its principles and precepts, and with International Law.
In this regard, the Special Committee on the Charter should promote and be open to the full debate of any draft resolution, decision or action submitted by the UN organs, which have implications for the compliance and implementation of the Charter.
Mr. Chairman,
Despite attempts to obstruct the work of the Committee, concrete results have been achieved, such as the agreement to hold an intermediate session to discuss the proposal on the peaceful settlement of disputes, submitted by NAM, which took place in February with numerous contributions from the Member States.
We thank the Secretariat for the support provided and we urge it to create the necessary conditions to comply with the agreements taken in previous sessions of the Committee, enabling forums for the substantive debate of the proposals.
Mr. Chairman,
Although some delegations would like the abolition or reduction of the working sessions of the Committee, the number of initiatives presented this year shows its importance and need. Those who do not want the permanence of the Committee argue that it does not achieve concrete results, obviating that they are the ones who systematically refuse to discuss substantive proposals and hinder the adoption of any decision; simply stating disagreement, without arguing or discussing their positions.
The current situation of the Committee has improved in relation to previous years, but the lack of political will of some States continues, which prevents further progress.
Cuba opposes any attempt to biennialize or reduce the work of the Committee and its agenda. We urge delegations to submit substantive proposals and constructively engage in the debates.
In this regard, we support the current agenda of the Committee and thank the delegations of Belarus, Russia and Ghana, as well as NAM, for their contributions to the work of the Committee, through concrete proposals. We also encourage the delegation of Mexico to submit in writing the proposal made at the previous session of the Committee.
To conclude, we would like to thank the Committee on the Charter and its Chair for the serious and constructive manner in which he has conducted the work of the same.
Thank you very much