EU Explanation of Vote: UN General Assembly: Draft resolution on Global health and foreign policy
President, Excellencies,
I have the honour to speak on behalf of the European Union and its Member States.
We would like to begin by thanking Brazil for their able facilitation and strong leadership in this process. We also thank the other members of the core group –France, Indonesia, Norway, Senegal, South Africa and Thailand - for their great efforts and engagement to reach agreement on this resolution.
We strongly welcome this resolution’s focus on tackling the social determinants of health—a critical step toward achieving the 2030 Agenda. Health disparities are rooted in social, economic, and environmental conditions, and addressing them requires cross-sectoral policies, resilient health systems, and a rights-based approach. The EU is committed to promoting health in all policies, and advancing universal health coverage, gender equality and social inclusion to leave no one behind.
We reaffirm that the transition to health sovereignty, with country ownership and responsibility at its core, is essential to achieve sustainable financing and impactful health outcomes. In line with the Sevilla Commitment, strong partnerships can act as an important complement to support this transition. In this regard the EU will continue to cooperate with partner countries in areas of mutual interest, strengthening the resilience of health systems and addressing the root causes of ill health, which is fundamental to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals.
President, Excellencies,
We reiterate our support for multilateralism and the European Commission presented last week the Global Health Resilience Initiative, highlighting that Global health remains a high priority for the EU. We appreciate the overall balance of this text and are therefore pleased to vote in favour of it.
We recognize the efforts regarding references to technology as a step in the right direction. Nevertheless, we have to continue to dissociate from partially caveated references to technology in the text. We stress that technology transfer can only be undertaken on a voluntary basis and on mutually agreed terms. This is essential to secure the most adequate, quick, and efficient response to future pandemics.
In addition, we would like to put on the record that, in our understanding, no precedent is set with PP33 to 35. The EU and its Member States can only recognise references to the World Trade Organization Doha Declaration on the TRIPS Agreement and Public Health that are comprehensive and fully aligned to its text.
Notwithstanding the above, the EU is fully and unreservedly committed to the overarching objective of the resolution, which is to tackle the social determinants of health and, despite these reservations, the EU votes in favour of the text and is committed to its implementation.
In conclusion, we now look forward to the negotiations on two important political declarations on HIV/AIDS and Pandemic Preparedness, Prevention and Response, which can make an important contribution to advancing better health for all. Tackling social determinants of health can contribute to achieve the desired outcomes in both cases.
Thank you.