Joint Nordic Statement to be delivered in the veto debate of the General Assembly
Check Against Delivery
President,
I have the honour to deliver this statement on
behalf of the Nordic countries, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden and my own
country Denmark.
We thank you for convening this debate following
the veto cast by Russia in the Security Council on 24 April. The Nordics
co-sponsored resolution 76/262 on the ‘veto initiative’ and we continue to
underline its importance as part of efforts to make the Council more
transparent and accountable.
We regret Russia’s unjustified use of the veto.
This is the 6th veto cast in the Council during the first four months of this
year alone. Russia’s veto blocked a timely initiative by Japan and the United
States that sought to reaffirm the obligation of States Parties to the Outer
Space Treaty not to place nuclear weapons in orbit around earth. Upholding this
obligation would help prevent an arms race in outer space, and avert a grave
danger for international peace and security, while promoting the peaceful exploration
and uses of outer space.
With its veto, Russia prevented the Security
Council from fulfilling its primary
responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security.
President,
Nuclear weapons in space would pose a
significant risk to us all..
It is our common goal to ensure that outer
space is a safe, stable, secure and sustainable environment for all States. As
a State Party to the 1967 Outer Space Treaty, we expect Russia to act in
conformity with this common goal.
The resolution underlined the existing
commitments under the “Outer Space Treaty”, which 115 countries have ratified,
including the five permanent members of the Council – as well as our five
Nordic countries. It reaffirmed the obligations of all State parties not to
place any objects carrying nuclear weapons or other weapons of mass destruction
in orbit around the Earth, or station such weapons on celestial bodies or in
outer space in any other manner. It sought to ensure that a nuclear device
should never be developed for that purpose.
President,
Upholding the commitments of the Outer Space
Treaty is as important now as ever, and it is key to ensuring the common
interest of all humankind in the exploration and use of outer space for
peaceful purposes. The Nordics reaffirm the applicability of international law,
including the United Nations Charter, the 1967 Outer Space Treaty, and
international humanitarian law, as well as the consensual voluntary principles
developed within the UN framework to outer space.
[As already stated by others,] the veto does
not relieve Russia of its obligations under international law, including the
1967 Outer Space Treaty. And, we continue to call on all States that have not
yet done so, to accede to the Treaty.
President,
The
Council does its work on behalf of all UN Member States. Its decisions affect
us all, and it should therefore be held accountable by us all.
The
founders of this esteemed organization envisioned the veto power as a mechanism
to foster consensus and prevent unilateral actions that could threaten global
peace and stability. As a permanent member of the Council, Russia bears a
special responsibility to exercise its veto in accordance with the letter and
the spirit of the Charter.
I
thank you.