SUMMIT OF THE FUTURE: FIRST READING OF PACT ZERO DRAFT - CANZ GENERAL COMMENTS
6 February 2024
Statement by H.E. Mr James Larsen, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Australia to the United Nations
Thank you Ambassador, good morning excellencies, colleagues,
I am pleased to deliver this statement on behalf of CANZ – Canada, New Zealand, and (my own country), Australia.
Allow me to begin by thanking our co-facilitators for their tireless work.
We acknowledge the huge task of capturing the essence of discussions and input from Member States and other stakeholders and acknowledge that the zero-draft provides an excellent starting point for this process.
CANZ will provide detailed comments as we progress to the chapter-by-chapter discussions. So, this morning I wish to take the opportunity to outline our overall views.
The Pact for the future should be a recommitment to global cooperation. And it should have a keen eye to improving our multilateral system to be effective, inclusive, and resilient.
We believe the draft before us is a good basis for the negotiations. Of course, there are areas of the draft where we would hope to see greater levels of ambition and also areas where we see a need for greater balance between the three pillars of the work of the United Nations.
Let me restate CANZ view on the critical matter of human rights and gender equality. These are fundamental preconditions for every aspect of the Pact for the Future. They are not mutually exclusive: They are catalysts for economic growth and development; for addressing insecurity and sustaining peace; for bridging divides and for transforming a more equitable financial system.
In the process of moving towards the Summit, we would also challenge the co-facilitators and fellow Member States to work towards a more concise Pact, in the hope that it will result in a more digestible and, indeed, accessible and action-oriented product.
As we move through revisions, a common goal should be to consider the number of reaffirmations of prior commitments contained in the text. If the reaffirmations don’t relate directly to new or updated commitments, perhaps they could be removed.
The text should make clear what are existing commitments and what new proposals come out of the Pact to help the understanding of both Member States and the public.
As we have already noted during prior informal consultations, our approach to the Summit of the Future and accompanying Pact for the Future will be guided by the pursuit of practical, equitable, and enduring solutions.
We welcome the clear timeline provided by the co-facilitators to enable timely negotiations. Our capitals are still reviewing the zero draft and will submit written input by the February 12 deadline.
CANZ will continue to work constructively with all delegations throughout the remaining process to ensure we arrive at a Pact for the Future that helps to ensure a multilateral system fit to meet the challenges of the future and worthy of endorsement by our Leaders in September.
Thank you.