Speech by Dr. Benita Ferrero-Waldner on 'The Future of the UN'

I am delighted to be here today - I would like to thank the European Policy Centre and the Konrad Adenauer Stiftung for the invitation, and I look forward to meeting you on other occasions during my term as European Commissioner.

The subject of the future of the UN is not only very important, but it is also a subject which is close to my heart - given my past association with the UN. The establishment of the Panel reflects the Secretary-General's leadership, courage, and commitment to effectively addressing the challenges we are faced with today. I very much welcome this report, not only as it marks the first serious milestone in the current reform debate, but also because of its quality. It is a major contribution to the debate, due to conclude in September next year at the UN Summit. This is a debate in which I feel myself quite involved - in my former capacity as Austria's Foreign Minister I supported Kofi Annan in calling for a revival of the reform debate on several occasions. And I also invited the Panel to a discussion in Baden, near Vienna. I appreciate how much hard work must have gone into producing the report - of course I am not surprised that it is of such high calibre, given the distinction of those involved.

I am of course also pleased to find that many of the proposals made by the European Union in May this year have been taken up. The EU is convinced that only an effective multilateral system can adequately address the new and complex challenges the international community faces today. For that reason, the EU has made effective multilateralism with the UN at its core a central element of its external action. Effective multilateralism is more essential now than ever, and that is why it is one of the major priorities within my portfolio.

The European Union has only just started to discuss its reaction to the report. So I offer you my remarks today purely in my capacity as the European Commissioner responsible for External Relations.

Of course the issue that has grabbed the most headlines is the reform of the Security Council. My own view is that, in the long run, the EU should also have a seat on the Council. But this is a debate which will continue for some time, and I do not want to go into it today.

It is obviously impossible to present you with a comprehensive view of the 130 pages and 101 recommendations. I therefore give you my initial thoughts, which I present to you under three headings - the political and security dimension, the economic and social dimension, and the institutional dimension.

1. The Political and Security Dimension

In general, I share the view of Secretary General Annan that it is high time that we, the international community, moved from a culture of reaction to a culture of prevention.

I fully support the report's references to the criteria guiding the legitimate use of force, and the responsibility of states to protect their people. The report's call for a new security consensus is fully in line with my own personal commitment to the concept of human security. This means putting people and their human rights, as well as the threats they face, at the centre of our policies. I also agree with the assessment of the responsibility to protect incumbent on sovereign states, or on the international community - should states prove unwilling or unable to fulfil their responsibilities. Furthermore, the holistic approach echoes the EU's own commitment to a comprehensive conception of security. We too view security as a shared responsibility.

As for the continuum between prevention, peacekeeping, and peacebuilding, this corresponds to the broad spectrum of activities that the EU is undertaking within the scope of conflict prevention and civilian crisis management. Amongst these I would particularly highlight demobilisation, disarmament, and reintegration of former combatants, which we view as an essential component of any peacebuilding activity.

I was particularly interested by the proposed establishment of a Peacebuilding Commission. Given the experience and commitment of the European Commission to crisis management and peacebuilding, I am convinced that we could play a valuable role in its future work.

I commend the Panel for coming up with a common definition of terrorism, something which has eluded international consensus for so many years. This will be an important prerequisite for our efforts to fight terrorism, within the comprehensive legal framework, which is under negotiation in the UN. We should not forget that a comprehensive strategy would also address the root causes of terrorism.

In a similar vein, I would also agree with most of the report's proposals on combating organised crime. Here we need to support the UN office on drug control and crime prevention in their efforts, including on the important issue of human trafficking.

2. The Economic and Social Dimension

I fully share the emphasis the panel puts on addressing poverty, infectious diseases such as HIV/AIDS, and environmental degradation. This is also an essential element in a comprehensive understanding of security - putting the individual at the centre.

I very much appreciate the importance which the Panel attaches to the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals. This Commission is fully aware of the need to look for more effective means to cope with the existing linkages between poverty, human security, and conflict. This is at the core of our agenda. We believe it is important that all sides reinforce their commitment to these goals and that a concerted effort is made to achieve them by the deadline of 2015.

The European Commission has a broad set of instruments in the areas of economic, trade, environmental, social, and development policy, which it can deploy as a contribution to achieving these Goals. Together with my fellow Commissioners with responsibilities in these areas, we will be examining how best to move forward.

3. The Institutional Dimension

The European Commission and the UN have enjoyed increasingly close cooperation over the years, and I would like to see this cooperation intensified during my mandate. Our current cooperation spans the fields of development cooperation and conflict prevention - we support one another's activities in the field; provide financial support (the European Commission contributes some €700 million per annum to the UN's budget); and involve one another in crisis management operations. This report offers a number of suggestions as to areas in which we can deepen our relations.

One of those areas can and should be the UN's relations with regional organisations. We would like to support the UN as it engages regional organisations further in its work. The EU has developed a broad set of instruments which it can put at the disposal of the UN.

The EU is also interested in seeing other regional organisations develop their capacities, for instance we are currently supporting the African Union's activities in Sudan.

Another important aspect is the reform of the Human Rights Commission. We wholeheartedly support the idea that this should be de-politicised, thus enabling it to carry out its core responsibilities more effectively. In this regard the increased use of experts would be most welcome. I do, however, wonder whether universal membership of the Commission would really enhance its effectiveness. This will certainly be a point for further discussion.

Conclusion

In conclusion, I would like to thank Gareth Evans and his colleagues once again for this excellent contribution to the reform debate. You will find in myself, and in the European Commission as a whole, a committed partner in your efforts to bolster the effectiveness of the UN system.

We in the EU believe that the UN lies at the heart of the multilateralism we espouse. It must be fully enabled to play its rightful, pivotal role in seeking multilateral solutions to global problems.

In the words of Kofi Annan as he addressed the UN General Assembly last year, "The United Nations is by no means a perfect instrument, but it is a precious one".

Even precious instruments require careful retuning from time to time. The opportunity offered by this Report must therefore be seized by the whole international community. If we let that unity of purpose slip from within our grasp, I am sure will regret it for years to come.

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