- CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY -

Mr. President, Excellencies,

I have the honour to speak on behalf of the European Union and its 27 Member States.

The Candidate Countries North Macedonia*, Montenegro^*, Albania^*, Ukraine, the Republic of Moldova and Bosnia and Herzegovina^*, the potential candidate country Georgia, as well as Andorra, and Monaco align themselves with this statement.

As humanitarian emergencies grow in severity, scale, and frequency, the call on the international community for solidarity and collective action to save lives and alleviate human suffering is stronger than ever. The EU and its Member States reaffirm their unwavering support of the global humanitarian system, which was set up more than 30 years ago under UNGA Resolution 46/182.

Principled humanitarian action remains at the core of the EU’s response, whether in the case of natural disasters or human-made crises. We remain fundamentally convinced that the humanitarian principles of humanity, neutrality, impartiality and independence are indispensable in our action.

This holds particularly true in today’s landscape. The unprecedented climate crisis further exacerbates humanitarian needs. We therefore welcome the strong humanitarian focus at COP28 and reaffirm the EU’s endorsement of the two flagship initiatives, the Declaration on Climate Relief, Recovery and Peace and the Charter on Getting Ahead of Disasters.

We also acknowledge that armed conflicts remain the major driver of humanitarian needs, including by triggering record levels of food insecurity and displacement. The operational environment for aid delivery is increasingly constrained. This year, we again see attacks and threats against humanitarian workers. Regardless of whether they are internationally or locally recruited, and whether they are from the UN, the Red Cross movement or from NGOs, humanitarian workers deserve our utmost respect and our concern for their safety and security.

Against this background, I have three messages to highlight today.

First, protection of civilians and civilian infrastructure­—and ensuring compliance with International Humanitarian Law (IHL)—remain the foundation of our humanitarian response.

The principles of distinction, proportionality, and precaution are central to IHL. The requirement of making all efforts to limit civilian harm is also central to IHL. Destruction or damage of civilian objects, including hospitals, schools, power and water infrastructure, are serious violations of IHL. Both the immediate and long-term effects of this harm can stunt the recovery of civilian populations and even drive protracted economic instability.

IHL applies at all times during a conflict. The IHL principle of non-reciprocity means that a party must comply with IHL, even if the other side is not following the same rules. And to give full effect to IHL, it is also important that all those who violate the rules are held accountable. IHL compliance also means that principled humanitarian actors and medical workers must never be targets.

Second, we remain committed to enabling full, unimpeded, and rapid humanitarian access.

In today’s complex operating environment, humanitarians should be fully supported to stay and deliver in a principled and efficient way. It is imperative that the humanitarian space remain open for all necessary aid to reach those in need. In this context, we commend the work of the UN Secretariat, notably OCHA, in developing a more systematic approach to ensure access for the rapid provision of emergency assistance, including through negotiations with all parties concerned.

To address access impediments, it is also essential to prevent any unintended potential negative impact of sanctions and counter-terrorism measures on exclusively humanitarian activities, carried out by humanitarian actors. The EU recently adopted humanitarian exemptions to asset freezes in 10 of our restrictive measures regimes, allowing humanitarian actors, including those outlined in Security Council Resolution 2664, to deliver humanitarian assistance without prior authorisation.[1] We will strive to continue taking such mitigating measures to enable safe and rapid access to people in need.

Safeguarding the humanitarian space is not limited to ensuring physical access, but also requires maintaining the trust of local communities in humanitarians.  Information manipulation, including disinformation and misinformation, undermines the standing of humanitarian organisations and puts their personnel at serious risk. It is in our shared interest to continue countering such harmful practices.

Third, we will continue striving to make the international humanitarian response more effective and efficient. The EU and its Member States reiterate their continued commitment to put people at the centre of humanitarian action. Advancing on the twin priorities of localisation and accountability to affected populations is an integral part of this mission. We will continue to support anticipatory action, which enables preparedness actions before disasters strike. Furthermore, operationalising the humanitarian-development-peace nexus is important, since this cooperation helps to alleviate vulnerabilities and reduce humanitarian needs in the long term.

But in the immediate term, humanitarian needs far outpace available resources. Addressing this, calls for strong political will and creativity, in order to find new approaches to expand and diversify the disturbingly narrow humanitarian donor base.

The EU and its Member States, in the Team Europe approach, have consistently demonstrated a strong commitment and determination to shoulder their share of responsibility. We have established a solid framework of increasing the efficiency and effectiveness of our humanitarian response. We have also mobilised more resources, including a recommendation for EU MS to devote 0.07% of gross national income to humanitarian action. We call upon others to follow suit. This commitment can lead to more equitable responsibility sharing, help increase the financial stability and predictability of humanitarian operations and, most importantly, prevent massive cuts in vital assistance to affected people, particularly in less visible crises.

Let me conclude by underscoring that, at this defining moment for the multilateral system, the EU will work to remain the predictable humanitarian partner we have long been for all of the international community. We look forward to working with the UN system and all partners in safeguarding principled humanitarian action as a vital global public good and a key investment in resilience and stability.

Thank you.

* North Macedonia, Montenegro, Albania and Bosnia and Herzegovina continue to be part of the Stabilisation and Association Process.

[1] https://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/press/press-releases/2023/11/27/humanitarian-action-eu-introduces-further-exceptions-to-sanctions-to-facilitate-the-delivery-of-assistance/