Statement delivered by the Permanent Representative of Argentina, Ambassador María del Carmen Squeff
January 25th
Ladies Co-facilitators:
Allow me first of all to thank the presence and intervention of the President of the General Assembly on the occasion of the inauguration of this new session of Intergovernmental Negotiations on Reform of the Security Council.
On the other hand, I would like to reiterate our congratulations for presiding over our work. Ambassador Wronecka and Ambassador Al- Thani, you can count on our full cooperation.
Argentina associates itself with the intervention made by the distinguished Permanent Representative of Italy, on behalf of the United for Consensus Group, and without prejudice to this I wish to make the following comments in my national capacity.
Ladies Co-facilitators:
It is clear that as a democratic institution, the United Nations permanently faces the need to build legitimacy and representativeness in its organs.
Strengthening multilateralism today means addressing challenges responsibly, through inclusive dialogue and the exchange of ideas, creating broad consensus and preparing the way for legitimate and lasting solutions.
Argentina is convinced that the Intergovernmental Negotiations today constitute the only legitimate platform to advance in the comprehensive reform of the Security Council, since they constitute a realm of genuine dialogue, agreements and consensus building.
A body like the Security Council, acting on behalf of the entire membership, is an integral whole that has a legal and political foundation that requires a comprehensive approach. The intergovernmental negotiations are mandated, according to Decision 62/557, to refer to the five dimensions of the reform.
That is why these five dimensions should be thought about and renewed, avoiding focusing on any of them in an isolated and partial way, in order to achieve a comprehensive reform of the Security Council, satisfactory for all Member States.
At Uniting for Consensus, we are committed to this, we have expressed our position each year for each of the issues that Decision 62/557 invites us to consider and we have exchanged views with our colleagues from other Interest Groups or regional, trying to approximate positions and understand your interests at stake in these negotiations. To reach the broadest possible political agreement we must talk to each other, understand each other and perhaps reconsider some of our positions. Through the different “outreach” initiatives that we have been coordinating with the different Groups, we trust that we will advance firmly towards an agreed solution that cannot be anything other than a consensus solution.
Ladies co-facilitators:
We welcome the suggestion to address at this first meeting the issue of regional representation in the reform of the Security Council. Indeed, it is an issue that shows inconsistencies and questions, on which it is necessary to debate in depth and on which we will surely continue to discuss tomorrow. Among the Groups that promote new permanent seats, the approach to this issue is dissimilar. There are those who apply for permanent seats for their region and those who are considered candidates for permanent seats but do not have a regional endorsement. Likewise, there are those who support each other but assert that regional representation in the category of permanent members does not exist because it does not appear in the United Nations Charter.
My delegation supports the idea of giving greater prominence to the regional representation of the non-permanent members in the Security Council.
The concept of regional representation, in the case of non-permanent members and in light of Article 23 of the Charter, goes hand in hand with a more equitable participation in the Security Council as well as with the principle of accountability. Both principles have been part of a historic position that my country has presented each time the issue of Council reform was discussed.
In this sense, the principles that should govern the election of "non-permanent" members are those very wisely included in the Charter itself, that is: the contributions of the Member States to the maintenance of international peace and security and to other purposes. of the Organization and ensuring equitable geographical distribution.
In United for Consensus, as indicated by the Permanent Representative of Italy, we have precisely proposed a model for the expansion of the Security Council that provides for better participation by under-represented regions, as well as an opportunity for those Member States willing to make an even greater contribution to the work of the Council.
Argentina has always maintained that creating or preserving opportunities for participation should be the main concern of all in this Organization. So much so that the criteria of restricted and exclusive multilateralism do not reflect the new realities.
Ladies co-facilitators:
It cannot be denied that the permanent members of the Security Council have represented only their own national interests, and this because their permanence does not allow transparency or accountability.
Furthermore, Argentina continues to maintain that the incorporation of new permanent members will not ensure greater participation of those who are not currently represented on the body, and that the only way to achieve this objective is through a system based on election, where the will of those represented provides legitimacy to their representatives.
Co-facilitators:
Allow me to conclude that, based on the foregoing, we are not promoting the creation of new categories of members in the Security Council that accentuate inequality among the members of the United Nations and that violate the principle of sovereign equality of States. However, as a result of these negotiations, we are in a position to support longer mandates and the possibility of reelection of any non-permanent member, with a quota per region, if that is the will of the respective majority of Member States expressed in the General Assembly.
Thank you very much.