MINSK, 23 September (BelTA) – Belarus' Minister of Foreign Affairs Vladimir Makei has taken part in the ministerial meeting of the Group of Friends in Defense of the UN Charter that discussed unilateral coercive measures, BelTA learned from the press service of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Vladimir Makei communicated Belarus' stance on the use of unilateral coercive measures. He noted that such measures threaten international security and well-being of people and therefore are unacceptable.
The foreign minister commended the initiative of Venezuela to establish the Group of Friends in Defense of the UN Charter and expressed his profound gratitude for convening the first ministerial meeting of the Group.
“Belarus has been on the receiving end of unlawful unilateral coercive measures, especially since August 2020. We have been consistently standing against the practice of using unilateral coercive measures as a foreign policy instrument and have been promoting their unconditional eradication in accordance with the principles of international law. In this regard, we fully support the initiative of the Group of Friends to strengthen the role of the UN Charter as well as strict adherence to the purposes and principles enshrined in the document,” the minister noted.
“We fully agree that today the world is facing a tendency towards unilateralism and arbitrary actions, including the imposition of unilateral coercive measures. Such measures pose a growing threat to global security and affected countries, in particular. They hit the hardest the least protected groups in those countries. One of the main purposes of our meeting today, which we consider as a joint response, is exactly to raise awareness of the detrimental effects of unilateral coercive measures, particularly on health and well-being of ordinary people, women, children, persons with disabilities and persons in vulnerable situations,” Vladimir Makei continued.
He added that Belarus is ready to contribute to the activities of the Group and to make its work visible and relevant.
As BelTA reported earlier, Vladimir Makei is visiting New York on 21-28 September to participate in the 76th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA 76).
The program of the visit includes participation in the General Debate of the 76th session and the UN Food Systems Summit and the ministerial meeting of the Group of Friends in Defense of the Charter of the United Nations to discuss the topic of unilateral measures.
Vladimir Makei is set to hold bilateral meetings with his counterparts from Europe, Latin America, Southeast Asia and senior members of the United Nations on the sidelines of the General Assembly session.
