Foreign
GERMAN Chancellor, Olaf Scholz backed international efforts to bring peace to Ukraine in his speech at the United Nations.
“At the same time, we should be wary of phony solutions that represent peace in name only,’’ he warned in the general debate of the UN General Assembly on Tuesday evening.
“For peace without freedom is called oppression.
“Peace without justice is called dictatorship.
“Moscow must finally understand that,’’ Scholz said.
Scholz again called on Russian President Vladimir Putin to end the war.
In his speech, he also called for a reform of the UN Security Council, which has been blocked for a long time, to include more influence from Africa, Asia and Latin America.
Since the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine, 19 months have passed with no end in sight.
However, peace efforts are being made, especially by countries that see themselves as neutral and that have not imposed sanctions on Russia.
These include Brazil, India and Saudi Arabia.
In August, representatives from more than 40 countries met in the Saudi port city of Jeddah to discuss ways to achieve peace among them the U.S. and EU states.
This has been the first time, Russia’s most important ally, China thinking of achieving peace among them.
Scholz said of these efforts: “Precisely because this war is having unbearable consequences around the world, it is good and proper that the world is involved in the quest for peace.’’
However, the chancellor has warned from the outset about a dictatorial peace against Ukraine’s will.
Ukraine is demanding the complete withdrawal of Russian troops from its territory, including from Ukraine’s Crimea peninsula, which Russia annexed in 2014.
“Let’s not forget: Russia is responsible for this war. And it is Russia’s president who can end it at any time with a single order,’’ Scholz stressed.
“But for him to do that, he must understand that we the states of the United Nations are serious about our principles.’’
In the multipolar world of the 21st century, he said, there was no longer room for revisionism and imperialism.
Scholz again advocated a reform of the UN Security Council.
He said the UN did not sufficiently reflect the reality of a multipolar world.
“Nowhere this is more evident than in the composition of the Security Council.’’
It is clear that Africa, Asia and Latin America deserved more weight in the body.
“Under this premise, we can negotiate a text with various options.
“No country should block the results of the negotiations with excessive demands. And we won’t do that,’’ the chancellor stressed.
The Security Council is the most important body of the UN and is responsible for conflict resolution and peacekeeping.
It comprises 15 of the 193 UN member states.
Five nuclear powers are permanent members and have the right to veto all decisions: the U.S., China, Russia, Britain and France.
Some of the other 188 member states alternate in the other 10 seats every two years.
Germany applies for a seat every eight years, the next time for 2027-28.
The German government has a claim to be considered as Europe’s largest economic power when the permanent seats are expanded.
For years, the body has been considered largely incapable of action due to mutual blockades by the U.S., China and Russia on central issues.
A fundamental reform of the Security Council has been discussed for decades without any progress.
Scholz is pleased that more and more partners including three of the five permanent members of the UN Security Council had declared that they wanted to make progress on the reform issue.
By this, Scholz obviously meant the U.S., Britain and France. (dpa/NAN)
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-September. 20, 2023 @ 12:18 GMT |
Tags: Olaf Scholz
