🇺🇿Saida MirziyoyevaUzbekistan · UNGA 81 speech

Distinguished Mr. President, Honorable Mr. Secretary-General, Members of delegations, ladies and gentlemen. Today, humanity doesn't live in an easy time. Wars continue around the world. Geopolitical tensions are escalating. Trust is fading. Inequality is increasing. In times like these, countries are faced with a choice. Uzbekistan, under the leadership of President Shavkat Mirziyoyev, has made its choice. That is openness, good relations with neighbors, the dialogue with the world. Openness doesn't translate into weakness. On the contrary, striving for peace means taking responsibility for the future. Ladies and gentlemen, we see countries are posed with the question: which side do you choose? Uzbekistan's response is clear. Our choice is human dignity. we choose young people who are determined to pursue education, acquire a profession, and define their own future, because we do not measure the true strength of a statehood by its military or economic capacity. The country's might is determined first and foremost by the extent to which it can protect human dignity, rights, and interests. Therefore, We view peace, development and human dignity not as three separate goals, but as a single, unified task. Esteemed delegates, today, no nation, however powerful, can address all global problems alone. None of the threats stop at national borders. That is why we need the United Nations more than ever. We need the United Nations capable of implementing decisions, not just making them. We need the United Nations where voices of every country are heard. Uzbekistan supports the UN Secretary-General's efforts within the framework of the UN80 initiative aimed at adapting the organization to modern requirements. We support expanding the composition of the UN Security Council based on modern realities. Next year, Uzbekistan will take up the chairmanship of the Non-Aligned Movement. At a time of escalating tensions, we take this as a responsibility to create new platforms for dialogue. In that spirit, Uzbekistan has offered its candidacy for the non-permanent membership in the Security Council for 2035 and 2036. We count on your support. For us, the international law is not an instrument that changes based on the interests. It's a common rule for all countries. There cannot be universal justice without universal law. Ladies and gentlemen, until recently, Central Asia was often mentioned against the backdrop of unresolved border disputes, water resource management issues and many other conflicts. Thanks to the initiative of the President of Uzbekistan and the political will of the Central Asian heads of state, the situation and atmosphere in the region have completely changed. We began to view each other as partners, not a source of threat. The same is true of President Shavkat Mirziyoyev's approach to the Afghan issue. Viewing Afghanistan solely as a source of danger will not solve the problem, nor is it a way out to leave the multi-ethnic Afghan people alone with their problems. they must be given hope and confidence to achieve a peaceful life. Dear friends, the reforms being implemented by the head of Uzbekistan are primarily based on the criterion of whether people's lives are improving. We measure the results by this very criterion. Over the past 10 years, the purchasing power of our population has doubled. our economy grew from $50 billion to $147 billion. More than $150 billion in foreign investment has been attracted, exports have almost tripled, the poverty rate dropped to 4% and nearly 10 million people were lifted out of poverty. Preschool education coverage increased from 27% to 78%. Higher education coverage grew from 9% to nearly 45%. Average life expectancy rose from 66 to over 75 years. Maternal and infant mortality decreased fourfold. The true value of the reform is reflected in the lives of these people. A child is the state's greatest responsibility. If a child is not born healthy and doesn't receive a quality education, we put the future of not just one person, but the entire society at risk. In the coming days, we will hold a high-level dialogue with the United Nations Population Fund on issues of demographic stability and human capital. And in October, we will bring together the international community in Samarkand around the issues of children's well-being. Ladies and gentlemen, Central Asia has another lesson that it can offer the whole world. That is, the Aral Sea. It didn't dry up due to a natural disaster. This is a consequence of decades of wrong decisions and unjust treatment of nature. New Uzbekistan is creating green areas on the dried seabed to reduce the scale of this problem. We are introducing modern water-saving technologies. We aim to increase the share of renewable energy to 54% by 2030. We do not want the Aral Sea to remain merely a symbol of environmental tragedy. It should become a testing ground for environmental solutions. At the initiative of Uzbekistan, the United Nations General Assembly declared 2027-2036 the Decade of Action for Afforestation and Reforestation. The time has come to back this resolution with practical results. Esteemed President, dear participants, today, humanity stands on the brink of another massive transformation. I speak of artificial intelligence. But one question remains unanswered. Does technology serve humankind, or are we forced to adapt to technology? However, the principle must be clear: humanity and its destiny must be at the heart of technological progress. Artificial intelligence must be inseparable from human rights, security, equal opportunity, and accountability. Technological progress should not force people to change, but rather serve to improve human life. Uzbekistan advocates strengthening international dialogue in this regard. Dear friends, the power is not above the law. Every person who turns to the court, regardless of who they are, must have faith that justice will prevail. A separate international commercial court based on the principles of English law is being established at the Tashkent International Financial Center, We have eradicated child labor and systemic forced labor. We have tightened the responsibility for domestic violence. We also rely on this criterion when it comes to women's rights and opportunities. Therefore, we have created a separate system to support women's entrepreneurship. Today, women make 39% of our parliament. Esteemed heads of delegations, in Tashkent, The Islamic Civilization Center was built at the initiative of President Shavkat Mirziyoyev. We see it not only as a place that showcases the past, but as a house of knowledge, thought and enlightenment. Today, in an era when social networks and artificial intelligence are spreading hatred and stereotypes at a rapid pace, it is important to remind this truth once again. Uzbekistan will consistently continue international cooperation aimed at strengthening dialogue between cultures and religions, enlightenment and tolerance. Dear President, Ladies and Gentlemen, All of us want to live in a world where human dignity is the highest priority. We want to leave our children a better world than the one we have now, a world with high regard to a human dignity. The future, however, will judge us not by the opportunities before us, but the ways we use them. The people and the President of Uzbekistan are ready to contribute to building a world where peace, trust, and human dignity prevail. Thank you for your attention.