EU Statement – UN Arria-formula meeting: Normative gaps linking natural resources and peace: foundations and perspectives
Chair,
I have the honour of delivering this statement on behalf of the EU and its Member States.
The Candidate Countries North Macedonia, Montenegro*, Serbia*, Ukraine, the Republic of Moldova, and Georgia, as well as Armenia, align themselves with this statement.
The EU welcomes the initiative to reflect upon the link between natural resources, peace and security, and also human rights, an important - yet often overlooked - connection.
Critical raw materials are indispensable for energy transition, digital transformation and economic resilience. Rather than sources of instability or conflict, they should become drivers of sustainable development and shared prosperity.
The EU recognises that the current landscape of international standards and initiatives has become increasingly complex. Greater coherence, interoperability and support for implementation can help reduce unnecessary burdens, while maintaining high standards of transparency, traceability and responsible business conduct.
At the same time, any future international framework should build upon existing internationally recognised instruments and avoid creating duplicative or competing reporting and due diligence requirements. The priority should be to strengthen implementation, improve coordination and support producing countries in meeting these standards. One existing model that offers useful lessons is the UN Water Convention, the framework for transboundary water cooperation.
The European Union is strongly committed to preventing international trade in conflict minerals from intensifying or perpetuating conflicts and associated human rights violations and abuses, in line with the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights. The EU Conflict Minerals Regulation was adopted in 2017, and its operational requirements apply since 1 January 2021. The aims of the Regulation are to stop profits from trade in conflict minerals being used to fund armed conflicts and at the same time to make responsible sourcing from conflict-affected and high-risk areas possible, thus promoting sustainable development in the countries concerned.
We are convinced that partnerships should also ensure that producing countries derive greater value from their natural resources, including through local value addition, investment, capacity-building and skills development. This is the approach underpinning the EU's Raw Materials partnerships with partner countries and translated into concrete Global Gateway investments, including the Lobito Corridor, as well as the partnerships on critical raw materials that the EU has established with a number of countries.
The UN Panel’s report on “resourcing the energy transition” should guide the work of the UNSC on this matter, in line with “Principle 7”, which states that “multilateral and international cooperation must underpin global action and promote peace and security.”
Let me further highlight one aspect particularly relevant for peace and security. Conflict diamonds have played a major role in funding some of the most devastating civil wars in Africa. We have come a long way since the Kimberley Process was established, which has had valuable impact in improving the lives of people dependent on the trade in diamonds, reinforcing the message that diamonds belong to the communities that mine them, not to militias. From the very creation of the Kimberley process, the European Union has been committed to ensuring that it continues to fulfil its core mandate of breaking the link between diamonds and conflict. The EU has funded around 10 million euros in projects aimed to reinforce governance in the diamond sector and the development of alternative livelihoods, for example through the Mano River Union - supporting cooperation among Côte d’Ivoire, Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone, and in the Central African Republic.
The EU has also been among the most active supporters of the reform of the Kimberly process and the broadening of the definition of conflict diamonds, leading the work to reform the Kimberley Process in order to help it remain relevant and credible in a changing world. This process aims to capture the evolving nature of conflicts and the realities on the ground, while safeguarding the legitimacy of its Certification Scheme.
Chair,
The EU supports the Council’s focus on this important issue and we are looking forward to the open debate next week.
Thank you.
- North Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, Albania and Bosnia and Herzegovina continue to be part of the Stabilisation and Association Process.