Association for Defending Victims of Terrorism – UN website reported, Rules-based multilateralism is not a simple or appealing phrase, a top European Union (EU) official told the Security Council on Thursday, “but our job is to bring it alive”.
Josep Borrell, the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, said that without “global cooperation based on agreed rules” we risk “the law of the jungle, where problems don’t get solved”.
“Every day we see the cost of the absence of multilateral action: reduced access to vaccines, insufficient climate action, peace and security crises that fester”, he said.
According to the EU envoy, the world’s “biggest changes” stem from new technologies, which can be both disruptive and empowering.
Emerging technologies must reflect the values of the Declaration of Human Rights or a “nightmarish scenario” will follow, he warned.
“We all know that conflict prevention and peace building are key”, said Mr. Borrell, urging States to work with countries at risk “before conflict erupts”.
The Security Council continues to be “paralysed by vetoes and political infighting”, said Mr. Borrell, reminding the Ambassadors that theirs is “a serious responsibility, politically, even morally”.
On matters of peace and security, there is no other organization the EU can turn to, he said, calling for it “to match its belated but unanimous support for…a global ceasefire with a full commitment to its implementation”.
Multilateralism, said Mr. Borrell, is “the most effective tool for tackling the most serious and complex global challenges”.
