President,
I am honoured to take the floor on behalf of the 27 members of the Accountability, Coherence and Transparency (ACT) Group.[1]
First, we would like to thank the co-chairs of the Ad Hoc Working Group on the Revitalization of the General Assembly of the last session, Ambassadors Cornel Feruță and Mathu Joyini, and their teams for their committed efforts on the negotiations of the resolution adopted in September.
ACT Group is looking forward to continue working towards a more efficient, transparent and inclusive General Assembly at a time when the United Nations is at the crossroads, politically as well as financially.
President,
The most pressing issue the United Nations faces today pertains to peace and security. ACT Group has always maintained that in line with Chapter IV of the Charter the General Assembly has a clear and active role to play in this area. A role we have seen becoming ever more important, especially when the Security Council is unable to act. In this regard, we are pleased to see that Resolution 79/327 recognizes the functions, powers and role of the Assembly in a more detailed manner, enhancing thereby the fulfilment of the GA’s responsibilities in matters of international peace and security.
We have seen the relevance of the Emergency Special Session and the Veto Initiative in ensuring accountability within the United Nations system and strengthening the role of the Assembly. We believe that there are more opportunities for the GA’s active role within these frameworks, including making concrete recommendations to Member States or the Security Council as empowered by Articles 10, 11 and 12 of the Charter.
Another valuable resource for equipping the Assembly to take on its role is the “Assembly for Peace” digital handbook. We encourage all Member States to make full use of. We hope, President, that your Office will continue with its annual update and wider dissemination among Member States as encouraged in Resolution 79/327.
We are pleased that the GA revitalization resolution reconfirms the commitment made in the Pact for the Future to “support credible, timely and decisive action by the Security Council to prevent or end the commission of genocide, crimes against humanity or war crimes and reiterates the call to Member States to refrain from measures impeding such action, including by the misuse of the veto. We encourage the current 130 signatories to the ACT Code of Conduct to consistently adhere to their responsibilities and call more countries to join the Code of Conduct. We especially encourage signatories on the Council to work together to initiate relevant discussions and products.
The ACT Group highlights the importance of ensuring the application of Article 27(3) of the UN Charter, which includes the obligation that members of the Security Council abstain from voting on decisions under Chapter VI and under paragraph 3 of Article 52 if they are a party to a dispute. Past years in particular have seen clear cases of non-observance of this obligatory Charter provision. The Council must fully implement and adhere again to this important provision. The failure to implement it directly affects the effectiveness of the United Nations and contradicts the “no one is the judge in their own cause” principle. We believe that the General Assembly has a role in ensuring observance of the Charter and look forward to working with all those with an interest in taking action to this end.
President,
The Security Council’s Annual Report to the GA serves as an important transparency and accountability measure on the work of the Security Council in fulfilling their mandate to maintain international peace and security. While we welcome the Security Council’s efforts in producing a more comprehensive annual report and the inclusion of a chapter on “Special reports on the use of the veto”, we continue to encourage the Council to provide a more complete, substantive and analytical account of its work to the General Assembly – one that goes beyond a factual summary to include assessment of trends, outcomes of decisions and the impact of implementation on the ground –, including an analysis of the cases in which the veto has been exercised.
President,
In 2026, the General Assembly will appoint the next Secretary General for this organization. Resolution 79/327 made some progress both for the Assembly and the Security Council in advancing the process of the selection of the Secretary General.
Whilst ACT is pleased that for the first time the resolution sets out the general timeline for the overall process, we encourage more specificity in the forthcoming joint letter from Presidents of the Security Council and the General Assembly on the timing for different stages of the process, in both the Council and the Assembly. The predictability of the timeframe for the process is an important transparency measure that eases procedural burdens and improves clarity of the process for Member States, civil society, and candidates alike. Further, given the multitude of issues and challenges facing the organisation, not least the ongoing UN80 reform process, the next Secretary General needs to have sufficient time to prepare for the office. We hope the joint letter will be issued soon.
ACT reiterates the importance of the interactive hearings of the General Assembly with candidates, which are enriched by the full and meaningful participation of civil society. We also encourage the continuation of the successful Townhall held in 2016. The race for the next SG must stretch beyond Turtle Bay. We should not miss an opportunity to enhance public interest and engagement in the work of the UN and its next Secretary General.
ACT group also strongly encourages the Security Council to present two or more candidates for the consideration of the GA, and for the President of the General Assembly to consider ways to assess the level of GA support for the candidates throughout the process. This could be done through advisory votes or similar quantifiable mechanisms in order to indicate which candidates the wider membership may support, not support or have no strong opinion on. This would ensure critical alignment between the two principal UN organs and enhance the complementary roles assigned to both forums in the Charter. Prior to its formal appointment decision, the General Assembly should also hold an additional interactive session with any candidate recommended by the Security Council, ensuring continued engagement with the membership.
The Resolution 79/327 rightly notes with regret that no woman has ever held the position of UN Secretary General and encourages Members States to strongly consider nominating women candidates. ACT strongly supports this call to Member States. After 80 years, we cannot miss the transformative opportunity and show our organisation’s commitment to gender equality at the highest level.
I thank you President.
[1] Austria, Chile, Costa Rica, Denmark, Ecuador, Estonia, Finland, Gabon, Ghana, Hungary, Ireland, Jordan, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Maldives, New Zealand, Norway, Papua New Guinea, Peru, Portugal, Rwanda, Saudi Arabia, Slovenia, Sweden, Switzerland, Uruguay.