Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh chaired an open debate of the UN Security Council on January 9 that focused on adhering to the UN Charter to maintain international peace and security.

Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh (front, right) and
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres (front, left) at the open debate
on January 9 (Photo: VNA)

The ministerial-level debate, held at the UN’s headquarters in New York on the occasion of the UN’s 75th anniversary, was an important part of Vietnam’s presidency of the UN Security Council in January, which is also the first month of its council membership.

Representatives of more than 100 countries delivered speeches at the discussion. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and former President of Ireland Mary Robinson, Chairwoman of the Elders – a group of senior global leaders who work for multilateralism, international cooperation and peace, were invited to speak at the debate.

In his speech, Minh underlined the special importance of respect for and adherence to the UN Charter in maintaining international peace and security to help humankind steer clear of a new world war and promote dialogue to seek solutions to hundreds of conflicts.

He stressed that Vietnam considers adherence to the UN Charter and international law the most important means to nurture sustainable peace, bring about prosperity, and build a law-based world order with fair, equitable and friendly relations among countries.

Minh held that the UN Security Council and its member states should take the lead in observing and implementing the UN Charter.

He called on member states to increase dialogue; uphold multilateralism; maximise the tools that the Charter provided, especially in preventing conflicts and peacefully resolving international disputes; cooperate to enhance the efficiency and role of regional organisations, particularly in coordinating with the UN and its Security Council; and ensure that the making and implementation of their strategies and policies on development, security, defence and external relations are in line with the standards and basic principles of international law and the UN Charter.

At the debate, the UN Security Council adopted a presidential statement compiled under the chair of Vietnam.

This statement affirms the UN Charter’s durable values in maintaining international peace and security, developing international law, and regulating relations among states. Reaffirming the UN Security Council’s commitment to the Charter’s guidelines and principles, the statement stresses that all countries, UN agencies and regional organisations need to act in conformity with the UN Charter, use the Charter’s basic principles as the orientations for making and implementing strategies and policies, and ensure that issues relevant to international peace and security are handled in accordance with the Charter.

This is the first time the UN Security Council has adopted a particular statement on the UN Charter.