Remarks by the President of the 78th session of the General Assembly,??
Mr. Dennis Francis,??
to the First Committee (Disarmament and International Security)
2 October 2023
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Your Excellency, Ambassador Rvtis Paulaskas, Permanent Representative of Lithuania,
Madame High Representative,
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Excellencies, Distinguished Delegates,
Let me begin by congratulating you, Chair, and the other bureau members, on your deserved election to guide the First Committee through its work programme during the 78th?Session.
My Office and I look forward to working closely with you during this Session, to ensure that?together?we address some of the most pressing concerns of our times.
It is a great honour indeed for me to join you this morning to address the First Committee.
Your work underpins one of the key pillars of the?United Nations; and is critical for our joint pursuit of?peace?and?prosperity?in the world.
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As you are aware,?peace?and?prosperity?are among the four pillars I selected for the theme of the 78th?Session.
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The just concluded High-level Week was not only the busiest in recent memory. It was one that also saw impressive engagement by Governments at the highest level; an engagement to which?it?is?absolutely crucial?to restore and strengthen a Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ-led multilateral system?anchored in?the Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ Charter.
But we are also mindful that the High-Level Week and the 78th?Session takes place against the backdrop of greatest geopolitical crisis we have seen in decades.
As I have said repeatedly since assuming office ¨C among other threats to our peace and security, spanning?Africa?to the?Middle East?as well as the situation in?Haiti?¨C the continued violation of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of a fellow Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ member ¨C?Ukraine?¨C constitutes a serious violation of the Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ Charter.
The?nuclear threat, meanwhile, is a real existential threat that casts a dark shadow over all that we seek to do in sustaining global peace and security.
Amid these challenges, the First Committee has the great responsibility to break the deadlock and bring the disarmament agenda back on track.
As you begin your work, I urge all Member States to recommit to?the?peaceful resolution of conflicts ¨C?and importantly?¨C to a world free of nuclear weapons.
The?rise of nuclear stockpiles is a deeply disturbing trend ¨C taking place alongside technological advancements that have made nuclear weapons even more deadly.
We know these munitions are?singularly?inhumane. A weapon that can wipe out all of humanity is not?simply?a weapon. It is a life-threatening?verdict?against all living beings.?
I must implore Member States to refrain from inflammatory rhetoric on their use.
I urge you instead to fulfill the promise of the NPT and to bring the CTBT into force.
Excellencies and Distinguished Delegates,
Our efforts towards sustaining?peace?must not stop here.
We need stronger accountability and regulation on?conventional arms control, as well.
Resolute action is needed ¨C including from this Committee ¨C to counteract the?misuse, illicit transfer and accumulation of conventional weapons.
The growing reliance on?incendiary weapons?¨C despite the ban on their use ¨C is equally concerning.
These issues must be addressed responsibly, in accordance with the?Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons.
Lethal autonomous weapons systems, meanwhile, are raising new ethical concerns over outsourcing decisions on life and death to weaponized software, while the malicious use of cyberspace is also on the rise.
To reduce cyber attacks, I urge Member States to redouble their efforts to implement the agreed framework of responsible State behaviour.
Excellencies and Distinguished Delegates,
Our focus on accountability must extend, as well, into outer space ¨C and its sustainable use.
Space is our common heritage, and it must be used for peaceful purposes only. Importantly ¨C as also recommended in the Secretary-General¡¯s report on Our Common Agenda ¨C?sustainability?for all must be embedded into all efforts.
However, we see the growth of orbital debris, satellite congestion, commercialization of space through the exploitation of? resources, and the deployment of anti-satellite weapons.
At the same time, proper regulation is sorely lacking.
It is?clear?we need legally binding rules to govern our solar system and the deepest reaches of the cosmos.
Excellencies and Distinguished Delegates,
This year, the Committee for Programme and Coordination was not able to agree on 10 programmes ¨C which the Main Committees should now consider.
I urge you ¨C Chair, and the Committee ¨C to urgently examine the relevant open programmes and to share your conclusions with the Fifth Committee as soon as possible, to allow the latter to take your input into account.
It would be remiss on my part to conclude without recalling that this Committee can ¨C as it did in the past ¨C rise to the occasion.
In1946, the First Committee came together ¨C in a collective push for?disarmament?¨C which culminated in the submission of?the very first resolution ever adopted by the General Assembly.
To maintain its relevance and resourcefulness, the First Committee must?in the same spirit?unite and?recommit?to the shared interests of humanity.
I encourage you to?again?choose joint priorities over national agendas.
And ¨C?together, I repeat, together ¨C ignite common solutions that break the chains of conflict and intransigence that are holding our collective sustainable development hostage.
This is truly the imperative of our time.
I thank you.