EU Statement - Briefing by the Secretary-General on the UN80 Initiative

EU Statement - Briefing by the Secretary-General on the UN 80 Initiative   - Final -Mr President, Mr Secretary-General, distinguished colleagues, I deliver this statement on behalf of the EU and its member states.  The Candidate Countries Türkiye, North Macedonia*, Montenegro*, Serbia*, Albania*, Ukraine, the Republic of Moldova, Bosnia and Herzegovina* and Georgia, as well as Armenia, Andorra, Monaco and San Marino align themselves with this statement. Thank you, Mr President, for convening us today for this important briefing on the UN 80 initiative. We wish to express our sincere appreciation to the Secretary-General for the briefing and for his continued leadership. Transparency throughout this process is of vital importance.  This is a critical moment for the UN. In a context of growing global challenges and increasing demands on the UN system, we fully support the SG’s ambition to drive and deliver on an ambitious, meaningful and urgent reform. A reform laser-focused on ensuring that the UN will be able to deliver on its core mandate ever more effectively and efficiently in the years to come. Its success is our shared responsibility.  We would like to highlight several aspects that we believe should be considered in this process.  First, and as narratives undermining multilateralism are spreading, let me assure you that the EU remains fully committed to the UN Charter and to the core values that make multilateralism a success: respect for international law, including...