Minister for Foreign Affairs Maria Malmer Stenergard’s address on United Nations Day

SWEDEN, October 25 - First and foremost, I would like to thank the United Nations Association of Sweden. I greatly appreciate the opportunity to celebrate UN Day with you. So, thank you to Jens Petersson and the United Nations Association of Sweden for the invitation and for the opportunity to speak about Sweden’s voice in the UN. 

One of the first things I had to do in my new role as Foreign Minister was to express Sweden’s voice at the UN by attending the opening of the General Assembly and delivering Sweden’s national address during the general debate. Naturally, this was a great opportunity to meet both global partners and UN representatives of UN agencies, funds and programmes, so early on in my role. This was just the kick-start I needed as a new foreign minister.

In the national address, I highlighted Sweden’s great engagement in the UN and on global issues. Sweden is and will continue to be a close – but demanding – partner of the UN. And the UN is and will continue to play a key role in Sweden’s work with global issues. 

The reason for this is simple. Sweden’s strong defence of international law, including the UN Charter, builds upon the realisation that both our own and other countries’ security depends on it. A multilateral system that is predictable and equal for all is therefore a core Swedish interest. 

And the core of the multilateral system is the UN, which celebrates its 79th anniversary today. Although there are still areas where international law needs to evolve, the UN and UN Charter continue to be cornerstones of the world we live in today. The UN and UN Charter remain relevant and absolutely crucial reference points in international relations. 

Russia’s aggression against Ukraine – a fragrant violation of the UN Charter and international law – clearly demonstrates why the Charter is so important. Sovereignty, territorial integrity and the sovereign equality of states are concepts that mean something. Not just in theory, but also in practice. Just ask our Ukrainian friends. 

Support to Ukraine is the Government’s top foreign policy priority in the coming years. At a concrete level, for me that meant speaking with global partners during the UN General Assembly High-level Week in order to maintain and strengthen support for Ukraine in the UN, and to hold Russia accountable for its ruthless war of aggression. 

Sweden is therefore actively contributing to initiatives to support Ukraine within the UN, such as the important resolutions adopted by the General Assembly against Russia’s aggression and the importance of accountability. We are also participating in the core group of countries working to establish a special tribunal for Russia’s crime of aggression against Ukraine.

Just like Ukraine, we want to see a just and sustainable peace based on international law, including the UN Charter. 

Sweden stands up for the UN Charter and its principles, regardless of geography. This was a consistent theme in my conversations in New York in September. It is about having respect for the rules of international law during conflicts, but also about support for fundamental norms in UN and Member States’ day-to-day– in shipping and trade systems, and in the daily work to promote democracy, human rights and gender equality. 

***

The current global situation is one where a number of negative trends are mutually reinforcing one another. 

Geopolitical tensions, Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, the war between Israel and Hamas and the escalating situation in parts of the Middle East are impacting the work of several UN institutions. 

The cooperation climate within the UN is heavily influenced by increasing polarisation between Member States, leading to deadlocks in the UN Security Council, for example. We see that some countries do not want UN operations in their countries – look at Mali, for example. 

In addition, poverty is rising, climate change is becoming more tangible, and attempts are being made to reinterpret international law, including human rights. 

In 2023, there were more conflicts than at any time since the end of the Second World War. From Ukraine to Sudan, Gaza and the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. And, while conflicts are on the rise, the number of signed peace agreements has decreased over time. 

What’s more, we see democratic backsliding in many countries. We see a deterioration regarding human rights and freedoms and the rule of law in many countries. We see how attacks against women’s, children’s and LGBTIQ people’s full enjoyment of their human rights are on the rise in many countries. The latter is also a clear part of the advance of autocracy. 

This is a trend that must be reversed, and also something that I highlighted in my speech at the General Assembly in September. Both on that occasion and now, I want to be particularly clear that gender equality is a core value in Sweden’s foreign policy and a top priority for Sweden in the UN. 

Respect for human rights, provisions of services relating to sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) and empowering young girls and women are all tangible contributions to promote gender equality. This is work I want done for the sake of my daughter, and for the sake of other people’s daughters too.

In simple terms, our free society must stand up to those who wish to exploit our freedom in a bid to restrict the freedom of others. Everyone should be able to live safely and freely, regardless of religious beliefs or personal convictions, regardless of skin colour and regardless of who they love. This is of such importance to the Government that we have begun work on a national action plan for equal rights and opportunities for LGBTIQ people. 

However, this work also needs to be done at global level. Sweden supports the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), the UN’s primary agency for promoting sexual and reproductive health and rights. We also support UN Women, which delivers strong results in its coordinating role in the UN system within the field of gender equality. Happily, Sweden is expected to chair the UN Women Executive Board next year. We are taking on this role in an important year, when the global platform for gender equality, Beijing Platform for Action, turns 30.

***

The UN conducts a countless number of life-saving operations – sometimes visible, but often under the radar. Through its institutions, funds and programmes, the UN contributes to stability, development and respect for human rights all over the world. 

UN Field Missions in countries affected by crises, conflicts and disasters are a major part of the UN’s activities and contribute to stability and help to prevent the root causes of conflict and refugee flows. 

This includes UN Peacekeeping operations. Here, research shows unequivocally that there is a demonstrably positive correlation between reduced levels of violence – including violence against civilians – and peacekeeping operations being in place.  

The environments in which these peacekeeping operations operate are often arduous. The peacekeeping United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) plays a crucial role in creating security in southern Lebanon, in a situation where the international community is trying to push for de-escalation. It is completely unacceptable that UNIFIL has been subjected to attacks. 

The UN is also central to the humanitarian system, both through its own operations and by creating conditions for other actors to operate. This in a situation where the world’s humanitarian needs are increasing as a consequence of conflict and climate change, for example. UN humanitarian efforts save lives, alleviate suffering and improve the situation of millions of people all over the world, every day.

Sweden is one of the largest donors of core support to many of the UN agencies, including UNRWA and other humanitarian organisations that are working to mitigate the enormous suffering of the civilian population in Gaza. It is crucial that this assistance reaches those in need. The UN’s principal legal body, the International Court of Justice, has ordered Israel in decisions on legally binding provisional measures to improve humanitarian access so that assistance can reach those who need it. 

Sweden gives its full support to the International Court of Justice, and supports the international community’s continued efforts for a negotiated two-state solution.

We are and will remain an important partner and donor to the UN’s humanitarian, peacekeeping and peacebuilding operations. For example, Sweden is supporting the UN’s efforts in Sudan, where the world’s largest humanitarian crisis is currently ongoing. 

Half the population – around 25 million people – are in need of humanitarian assistance and around 11 million people are displaced. These are inconceivable numbers. 

Sudan received a lot of attention at the General Assembly meetings during the High-level Week in September, and Sudan’s population is Sweden’s largest recipient of humanitarian assistance this year. Much of this support is being channelled via the various UN programmes to help the Sudanese people and support the most vulnerable.

***

Despite our size, Sweden is part of the group of major donors to the UN system. While we support the UN, Sweden is not uncritical of its shortcomings. Precisely because we are a friend of the UN system, we also make demands and give criticism where it is due.

As a strong, reliable and demanding partner, Sweden is working to ensure that the UN develops and improves its work – both as a development assistance partner in the field and as an actor for peace, security and respect for human rights. 

Sweden pushes for a UN that is more effective, transparent, organised and resolute, both at headquarters and in the field. And now, in September, a number of important steps have been taken in the right direction. 

Not least by adopting the Pact for the Future, UN Member States have agreed to undertake reforms to ensure that the UN can address both current and future global challenges more effectively. 

Given the world’s challenging situation and increasing polarisation, it is a great achievement that Member States were able to agree on such an ambitious and forward-looking Pact for the Future. 

The Pact includes commitments on everything from how to speed up the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the Paris Agreement, to how the multilateral system should be reformed.

On these reform issues, the Government believes that the UN Security Council – which has ultimate responsibility for maintaining international peace and security – must be effective, representative and responsible. Sweden supports a balanced expansion of the Security Council with more seats, including African countries, in order to better reflect today’s world. 

Sweden also supports the ongoing reform processes in the international financial institutions to increase the effectiveness and scope of funding, so that we can achieve the SDGs of the 2030 Agenda and implement the Paris Agreement.

We need to step up our efforts if we are to implement the SDGs – at the moment, things are not moving fast enough. As one of the world’s most generous development assistance donors, Sweden is helping to accelerate the implementation of the SDGs through our development assistance. However, more funding is going to be necessary.

In particular, the Government envisages good opportunities to strengthen implementation of the 2030 Agenda by promoting synergies between development assistance, trade, technological innovations and innovative financing solutions, and by harnessing the role of the business community in, for example, the green and digital transitions. The world’s countries bear a high degree of individual responsibility to create the conditions for sustainable growth.

The Pact for the Future also addresses climate issues, which will soon be discussed at the Baku Climate Summit. How can we combat, mitigate and tackle climate change, and how can we assist the most vulnerable countries in this work? These questions will continue to be on the agenda. UN agreements such as the Paris Agreement are cornerstones of global climate efforts, and Sweden wants to see an ambitious implementation and accelerated pace. 

***

The global architecture of arms control, disarmament and non-proliferation is also under severe pressure in these troubled times. In light of this bleak situation, one positive is that the Member States in the Pact for the Future have reaffirmed their disarmament commitments and objective for a world free of nuclear weapons.

In the Pact for the Future negotiations, I would also like to highlight that Sweden has had a particularly prominent role as a negotiations leader for the Global Digital Compact (GDC), the world’s first comprehensive framework for global governance on digital technology. 

For the first time, the UN Member States have agreed on a comprehensive framework for digital issues, including AI, and how to address the new technologies. 

Through this framework, all the Member States have committed to strengthening international cooperation to bridge digital divides between and within countries and to establish the governance required for digital technologies, including AI. 

Digitalisation has enormous potential to accelerate the implementation of the SDGs. The GDC framework takes this into account, as well as the importance of promoting an inclusive, fair and sustainable digital future for all, where human rights are respected, both online and offline.

As I said, it was very positive that the UN Member States were able to agree on the Pact and the GDC framework during the High-level Week in September. 

We now look forward to taking these commitments forward, with determination and effectiveness. 

Because the UN needs to be as relevant and effective as possible to address our global challenges – both current and in the future.

Because the UN needs to have the best prerequisites to promote and defend human rights and freedoms, and gender equality, and to be able to live up to the goal of “saving succeeding generations from the scourge of war”, as stated in the UN Charter. 

Because, on the United Nations’ 79th anniversary, its added value – despite the challenges – is as great as it was when the organisation was founded. For the world, and for Sweden. This is the added value that the Swedish voice in the UN will continue to promote, defend and develop.