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President Ilves: the UN Security Council needs to be reformed

25.09.2014

"These recent developments force us to seriously reconsider the role of the United Nations. We cannot ignore that the Security Council has been paralyzed as international justice has been manipulated and multiple crises have escalated," told the President of the Republic, Toomas Hendrik Ilves, in his address at the General Debate of the 69th United Nations General Assembly.

"The UN Security Council needs to be reformed. Its work methods and principles must be revised, with special attention to the openness, accountability and transparency of its processes," told President Ilves, while reminding that the permanent members of the UN Security Council bear enormous responsibility in guaranteeing international peace. "No permanent member should abuse the veto to circumvent the principles of the UN Charter," stated the Estonian Head of State.

The international agreements upon which the stability of the post-Second World War security architecture has relied have been compromised, repeated the Estonian Head of State.

He reminded that the Charter of the United Nations, from 1945, declares: "All Members shall refrain in their international relations from the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any state." In the Helsinki Final Act of 1975 all trans-Atlantic countries agreed not to use force to change borders or challenge the political independence of any state. In the 1990 CSCE Charter of Paris for a New Europe, all signatories, from Vancouver to Vladivostok, agreed to "fully recognize the freedom of States to choose their own security arrangements".

By annexing Crimea and invading Eastern Ukraine, one of the signatories has violated all of these agreements, President Ilves emphasised. "Thus, we find ourselves in a completely new and unforeseen security environment. The Ukrainian crisis is not solely a conflict between two countries. It is not even solely a European issue. If instead of agreements and laws, raw, brutal force will apply in international relations; if changing state borders by force will become an accepted norm, then the stability of the whole world is threatened," he added.

"We cannot allow anyone ever again to divide countries into their "spheres of influence". The community of nations is only secure when its smallest members can feel secure. We cannot, will not, accept threats and intimidation in 21st century international," said the Estonian Head of State. He also mentioned that on August 31st this year, 20 years passed since occupation forces left Estonia, yet just a few days later, on September 5th, an Estonian police officer was abducted by foreign security services on Estonian territory and taken by force to Moscow where he is still held in the infamous Lefortovo prison.

In his address at the UN general Assembly, President Ilves also spoke about fighting terrorism, ensuring human rights, empowering women and action against gender-based violence, Internet freedom, restricting the spread of the Ebola virus and climate change.

Full text of the address by President Ilves is available here.

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