🇦🇴João Manuel Gonçalves LourençoAngola · UNGA 81 speech

Your Excellency Antonio Guterres, the UN Secretary-General, Your Excellency, Khalilur Rahman, the President of the 81st General Assembly, Your Excellencies, Heads of State and Government, distinguished delegates, ladies and gentlemen. Allow me to congratulate His Excellency, Khalilur Rahman, on his election as President of the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly. in the hope that with his vast experience and profound knowledge of our organization, he will render a valuable service to the United Nations, which is facing complex challenges that must be overcome in order to retake its key role in addressing the major issues of contemporary international relations. I also congratulate Ms. Annalena Baerbock, who preceded him in the discharge of these noble duties, who did not spare efforts in her term, that she carried out with undeniable competence to preserve the role of the United Nations in addressing the issues that most concern the international community today. I would like also to congratulate His Excellency Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, who has been working tirelessly and devoted himself with persistent dedication to the great global causes, building bridges for dialogue in the search for peaceful solutions to the problems facing humanity today. We highlight his exemplary contribution as a man of dialogue an advocate of the United Nations Charter and international law, a tireless advocate of the need to protect the planet from harmful effects of climate change, and a champion of the global debate on global governance of artificial intelligence. Mr. President, Your Excellencies, The United Nations General Assembly is always held in the month of September. This year's session, however, takes place 25 years after the terrorist attack that destroyed the Twin Towers in New York and struck other targets on the American territory, causing thousands of civilian deaths, injuries, some of whom continue to bear physical and emotional scars to this day. I'd like to take this opportunity to once again to condemn terrorism in all its forms wherever it occurs. In addition to terrorism which remains active in some countries, particularly in Africa, the situation of global peace and security has been worsening year after year bringing us to the present moment in which we note with deep concern that the world has taken a course that brings it alarmingly close to a global conflict. Over the years, Angola has sought to make its contribution to building and consolidation of peace in Africa and the world, but the current situation in no way reflects the aspirations of people for harmony and understanding amongst nations. Among these contributions to peace are several initiatives undertaken in Africa, of which I highlight the 21st Extraordinary Summit of Heads of State of the African Union on the Strengthening of Conflict Prevention and Resolution Mechanisms in Africa, recently held in Luanda, which opened serious and sound prospect for resolving the problems affecting peace and stability on the African continent. Also worthy of particular retention is the holding in July of this year in Luanda, in partnership with the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations, the third edition of the initiative "Call for Peace, End to Wars and Respect for International Law". In this same context, Angola will host next October the Pan-African Forum for the Culture of Peace and Nonviolence, the so-called Luanda Biennial. My country takes seriously the issues relating to peace and resolution conflict through dialogue, respect for norms governing international relations, and defense of international law, sparing no efforts to bringing the conflicting parties closer and build consensus in Africa. We remain available. to render our attention and contribution to resolving the conflicts that persist on the continent. Our paradigm for peacebuilding initiatives is based on the search for realistic and sustainable solutions within the principle of African solutions to conflicts in Africa. We call for effective implementation of the Security Council Resolution 2719, which must ensure a predictable, adequate and sustainable financing for African Union-led peace support operation authorized by the United Nations Security Council, because investing in Africa's capacity to prevent and resolve conflicts is also an investment in international peace and security. Your Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen, this session of the General Assembly is of particular significance to my country as it takes place in the year in which we celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Republic of Angola's admission as full member of the United Nations Organization, which took place in December 1976. That time, it was a historical achievement for the Angolan people who waited more than 12 months from the date of proclamation of the national independence for the country to be accepted as a full-fledged member of the international community. That event of great significance for the history of my country took place in a global context in which Angola became a victim of confrontation between world powers in the struggle for control of sphere of influence within the spirit of Cold War. Our entire journey towards the attainment of peace in 2002 was closely linked to disputes of that period, which hampered the fulfilment of the dreams of Angolans and their plans to building a prosperous nation committed to its own development. These facts belong to the past. but have left us with a wealth of experience and lessons that we have drawn upon to build peace, understanding, and reconciliation among all Angolans, and to chart the course of our foreign policy. Peace and national reconciliation is now a reality, as shown through concrete gestures, including the holding of award ceremonies to honor the main political leaders of the national liberation struggle and representatives of all segments of civil society within the framework of the 50th anniversary of national independence. Still within this framework, A monument in memory of all victims of the political conflict that occurred in Angola from the proclamation of national independence until achievement of peace in April 2002 will be inaugurated in October this year. Mr. President, Excellencies. Nowadays, we are witnessing a downgrading and violation of the rules governing international relations with the logic of force, intimidation and imposition of values stemming from unilateral vision by certain countries in defense of their exclusive interests. Instability being experienced in various regions of our continent is a direct consequence of that stance, as it can be seen in the conflicts currently unfolding in Europe, in the Middle East, in the Persian Gulf and in Africa, while tensions is mounting in the Asia-Pacific region. From what we have observed, we do not discern encouraging signs regarding the likelihood of reaching any peace agreement in the near future in the wars between Russia and Ukraine, in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in the Middle East, and in the Persian Gulf. We condemned the genocide against defenseless population, the elderly, women, children, bedridden patients, health professionals, journalists and workers of international humanitarian organizations who are often deprived of access to most basic human rights and to essential goods for life such as water, food and medicines. The expulsion of Palestinians from their homes and lands through expansion of Jewish settlements in West Bank must elicit the strongest international outrage and condemnation. Attempts to dominate entire countries and regions of the globe by force of arms are leading the world towards a catastrophe. The food security and energy and humanitarian situation of countries and the world in general has deteriorated considerably following the outbreak of wars against Ukraine and more recently against Iran. The toll of these wars is disastrous, judging by the consequences arising from the strangulation of freedom of maritime navigation through the Strait of Hormuz and Bab al-Mandeb, A situation that has created serious risk of disruption to logistics supply chains in general and to food and energy supply chains in particular with devastating effects on the most vulnerable countries. Today we live in an environment of global anarchy in which the use of force prevails over the force of reason and law in blatant opposition to the norms governing international relations. In view of these, there is every need for profound reflection within the United Nations, the only institution on the planet which has legitimacy and which brings together all nations of the world in order to find the best solution for achieving global peace. Our appeal is for us to act with wisdom and courage to restore the central role of the United Nations and its responsibility and irreplaceable mission in maintaining global peace. Ladies and gentlemen, we are concerned by the unjust manner and indicative of great human insensitivity in which Cuba has been treated. over decades, as a victim of an embargo that continues and worsens the living conditions of the Cuban people. Cuba is not a terrorist state. It neither produces nor possesses nuclear weapons, chemical or biological weapons that could constitute an imminent or real threat to the national security of other countries, including the neighboring countries. On the contrary, Cuba contributed to the fall of South Africa's racist and segregationist apartheid regime, a regime broadly and unanimously condemned by the international community, and consequently became one of the signatories to the Quadripartite Agreement of New York of 22 December 1988. As the embargo is chiefly responsible for the calamitous situation in which Cuba and the Cuban people find themselves, And since it is inhumane, unfair and violates all the principles and norms of international law, we once again call for the end to the embargo against Cuba. Ladies and gentlemen, today we are witnessing the direct involvement of certain permanent members of the United Nations Security Council in in the bloodiest and most destructive conflicts in our time in Europe and in the Persian Gulf, which constitutes a cause of concern and a bad example for the rest of the world. Those countries rendered a great service when they freed humanity from the horrors of Nazism, fascism and the Holocaust, and should therefore preserve that capital and legacy as liberators. At a time when good governance of countries is widely advocated, the governance of the world likewise calls for a new, more democratic and just world order, one that is not only based on the power of the restricted club of victors of a war that took place eight decades ago. Since then, the world has come to know a different reality. New countries have emerged, which at that time were colonies, and which today are strong economies with significant advances in science and technology. It is therefore becoming increasingly pressing and urgent to undertake a profound reform of the UN Security Council, in which Africa, Latin America and Asia should adequately be represented as permanent members with all the powers inherent therein. In this context, The Republic of Angola reaffirms its full support to the common African position enshrined in the Azuwini Consensus and the Cirt Declaration. The voice of Africans must be heard in all circumstances, at all times, in strategic decision-making processes on issues of peace, global security, financing for development as well as climate issues and global governance of artificial intelligence. Mr. President, Your Excellencies, peace and development are inseparable. which compels us to consider strategies that can help accelerate the implementation of the 2030 agenda. The important decisions adopted under the Pact for the Future and the severe commitment can help advance development programs in Africa. However, in order to achieve concrete results in these areas, It is essential to ensure affordable financing, debt relief, technology transfer, capacity building, and a greater participation of international financial institutions. African countries spend far more resources on the exorbitant cost of debt servicing than they are able to invest in health, education, infrastructure development programs. This situation obviously limits productive investment, deepens inequalities and economic disparities, and threatens economic and social stability. In view of this, it is imperative to correct these distortions and I therefore reiterate the call for the immediate reform of the international financial architecture in order to make it fairer, more equitable, democratic and geared towards the progress and well-being of humankind. These challenges are inherently complex and further exacerbated by climate change, which has a severe impact on Africa with severe and prolonged droughts, floods, desertification, food insecurity and population displacement. This situation clearly illustrates the need to establish predictable, affordable and additional climate financing without further aggravating the debt of developing countries. Today, peoples and nations have an opportunity to make a qualitative leap in their overall living conditions through fair financing mechanisms for development and tools provided by artificial intelligence in order to improve education, health, agriculture, public service, scientific research and economic productivity. In this regard, I consider that the Global Digital Compact opens new prospects for cooperation to bridge the digital divide expand digital public infrastructure, promote training and innovation, strengthen cybersecurity, and build more inclusive, secure, and human-centered governance of artificial intelligence. To that end, I believe there's a need to strengthen North-South South-South and triangular cooperation in order to make the digital revolution an instrument of inclusion, sovereignty and development rather than a source of dependence and inequality. Excellencies, we are drawing close to the end of the tenure of the current Secretary-General and the appointment of the next one an act of greater importance, given that the person chosen must possess the qualities of independence, integrity, competence and courage to build consensus, uphold the Charter, promote conflict prevention, lead the necessary reforms and seek solutions to address the organization's financial crisis. The Republic of Angola reaffirms its commitment to the United Nations, convinced that only at the level of these institution will it be possible to safeguard the achievements of the recent decades in terms of respect for international law. only within the framework of the United Nations can we make progress in seeking peaceful solutions to the conflicts ravaging the world within a framework in which multilateralism serves as the mechanism for bringing together ideas, political wills, and initiatives conducive to global peace. We, political leaders and rulers of today, will be judged in the future by our ability to replace confrontation with dialogue, predatory competition with cooperation, exclusion with solidarity, and the force of arms with the force of law. Only in this way will we build a more just, peaceful and inclusive international order capable of ensuring progress and well-being of humankind, leaving no one behind. No weapon is more powerful than diplomacy, since all others are used only to destroy lives, infrastructures, dreams and life plans, whereas diplomacy is the only weapon that exists to unite, repair, build and save lives, peoples, nations and humanity itself. For this reason, the United Nations Organization must equip itself with the appropriate tools and means to fulfill the theme of this 81st session of its General Assembly, namely restoring trust, managing transformation, empowering it to become an organization that delivers for all. Thank you very much for your kind attention.