Conference on Disarmament

International Women’s Day

Geneva, 8 March 2024

EU Statement

Mr. President,

I have the honour to speak on behalf of the European Union.

The candidate countries North Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, Albania, Ukraine, Republic of Moldova and Bosnia and Herzegovina[1] and Georgia, the EFTA country Norway, member of the European Economic Area, as well as Armenia align themselves with this statement.

On International Women's Day, we reaffirm here at the Conference on Disarmament our commitment to gender equality and the full, equal and meaningful participation of women and girls in disarmament efforts. We emphasize women’s invaluable role in promoting peace and security, and recognize their indispensable part in advancing disarmament objectives.

While civil society space is shrinking across the world, women and girls peacebuilders have continued to be at the forefront of peace-building efforts, playing a critical role in resolving conflicts, mediation, promoting reconciliation, and fostering stability in their communities and nations. Their contributions reaffirm the essential role that women peace builders and peacebuilder networks play, and should be fully participating in all tracks of peace processes. Therefore we must ensure the full, equal and meaningful participation of all women, young women and girls, in the public and private sector, political decision-making, peace processes, activism and advocacy and as agents of change in all areas of society.

The EU places the Women, Peace and Security (WPS) agenda at the centre of the full spectrum of the EU Common Foreign and Security Policy, as an essential tool in ensuring that the rights, agency and protection of women and girls are observed, upheld and advanced, at all times. More than ever, it is imperative to deliver on the principles outlined by the WPS agenda. The world faces alarming security and conflict shifts and geopolitical power competitions. Advanced technology and cyber warfare, as well as climate change redefine how we think about security. At the same time, we are witnessing the weaponization of energy, food, migration movements, and information on a global level, while there are attempts to weaken the rules-based multilateral order. Against this backdrop, women’s leadership and their full, equal and meaningful participation at all levels of decision-making is essential. Mainstreaming a gender perspective in responding to these security threats is more important than ever.

As we strive for progress in disarmament, let us reaffirm our commitment to advancing gender equality, empowering women, and ensuring their full, equal and meaningful participation in disarmament diplomacy.

In this vein, the EU reiterates its full support for the technical change to the Rules of Procedures of the Conference. This change is no more than linguistics, and no new rights or obligations will affect any of the delegations of the CD membership.

I thank you, Mr. President

[1] North Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, Albania and Bosnia and Herzegovina continue to be part of the Stabilisation and Association Process.