Pakistan Tuesday called for reaffirming the commitment to multilateralism, warning that very fabric of the world order established under the UN Charter was in "danger of being torn apart" unless timely corrective steps were taken.
"We are meeting today at a time of profound global turbulence," Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Senator Ishaq Dar told a high-level meeting of the UN Security Council, convened by China on multilateralism and global governance.
In his remarks, Dar highlighted the unresolved conflicts in Palestine and Jammu & Kashmir that threaten world peace and stability, and underscored the need for the 15-member Council, the world body's power center, to implement its own resolutions.
"Nowhere is our failure to uphold the Charter and its principles more evident than in the ongoing tragedy in Palestine – in the vicious military aggression in Gaza, the mass killings of civilians, mostly women and children, in the systematic violations of fundamental human rights, international law, and international humanitarian law," he told top officials from around the world. The January 15 ceasefire agreement between Hamas and Israel, Senator Dar said, offers a glimmer of hope, and that all its stages should be fully implemented, leading to a permanent ceasefire and an inclusive political process towards a two-state solution.
"The Jammu and Kashmir dispute is another open wound and an ever present threat to international peace and security," the DPM/FM said, pointing out that for almost eight decades, Kashmiris have confronted brutal foreign occupation and been denied their right to self-determination, as prescribed by multiple UN Security Council resolutions.
The Security Council, he said, has an enduring responsibility to ensure the implementation of its own resolutions.
"Pakistan will continue to work for a peaceful resolution of the Jammu and Kashmir dispute, in accordance with the UN Charter and relevant Security Council resolutions."
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi is presiding over the Security Council's meeting as China holds its rotating presidency for the month of February.
"Under the visionary leadership of President Xi Jinping, China is working actively to address the "multipronged mixed crisis" the world faces today, " Senator Dar said.
"We – the UN's Member States – are all in the same boat. We must help each other avoid the threat of a global war, the use of nuclear weapons, the issues of poverty, the existential threat of climate change."
The Council's deliberations come at a time of growing concerns about multilateralism, with UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warning that the international community was failing to respond to crises, which is damaging multilateralism.
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