UN SECURITY COUNCIL OPEN DEBATE - MAINTENANCE OF INTERNATIONAL PEACE AND SECURITY: PROMOTE SUSTAINING PEACE THROUGH COMMON DEVELOPMENT
20 November 2023
Statement by H.E. Mr James Larsen, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Australia to the United Nations
Thank you, President and I express my appreciation for the briefing by the Secretary-General and others earlier this morning on this important matter.
At the halfway point for achievement of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, just 15 percent of the SDGs are on track.
This opportunity to discuss the link between peace and development is a time for all States to recognise that – for peace and prosperity - we must do better.
President,
The great wisdom of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development is in recognising the interconnectedness of the challenges the world is facing.
That social, environment and economic development go hand in hand with fostering more peaceful and stable societies.
The 2030 Agenda provides a common and indispensable framework to tackle these shared challenges.
It was tirelessly debated, negotiated, and reaffirmed by all members at the SDG Summit.
Concrete implementation of the SDGs must be our shared focus.
And it most certainly is the case for Australia.
Australia's new development policy will deliver some 1.7 billion additional Australian dollars in Official Development Assistance over the next five years.
We aim to protect against backsliding, address uneven implementation of the SDGs, and ensure no one and no country is left behind.
Australia has rechannelled some three billion US dollars of our IMF Special Drawing Rights allocation to support vulnerable countries’ development efforts.
We have engaged actively in the development of the Multidimensional Vulnerability Index.
We stand strongly behind efforts to reform the multilateral development banks, and Australia is listening to, and supporting, our Indo-Pacific partners, in building effective, accountable states that drive their own development and stability.
President,
This is, sadly, a time of increased conflict. Weak rule of law, resources scarcity – and now exacerbated by climate change – inequality, and unresolved regional tensions.
These are some of the factors that interplay in complex ways to drive conflict.
We must settle disputes through mutually agreed frameworks, uphold international law, including the UN Charter, and fully respect human rights.
Australia is committed to a New Agenda for Peace.
One which seeks to remedy declines in trust and social cohesion through democratic renewal and strengthening the social contract.
Peacebuilding and the New Agenda for Peace are anchored in respect for all human rights — civil, political, economic, social, and cultural.
In both bilateral and multilateral efforts, Australia promotes and protects human rights.
We strive to improve the inclusion of women and youth in political processes. And we emphasise peacebuilding through reconciliation.
Australia is proud to be a continuous top-ten donor to the UN Peacebuilding Fund.
We look forward to 2025, when Australia will again serve as a member of the Peacebuilding Commission, and 2029, when Australia hopes to serve as an elected member of this Council, demonstrating the priority we place on peace and development.