EU Statement – UN Security Council Arria-formula: Upholding the Sanctity of Treaties for the Maintenance of International Peace and Security

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Chair,

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

The Candidate Countries North Macedonia*, Montenegro*, Serbia*, the Republic of Moldova, Bosnia and Herzegovina* and Georgia align themselves with this statement.

We welcome this timely debate on an issue of utmost importance for the maintenance of peace and security. The EU Treaties, the international law instruments that have served as our own ‘basic constitutional charter,’ have ushered our continent in an era of peace and prosperity for decades. We know first-hand that respect for and compliance with international law obligations undertaken by way of Treaties has profound impact on ensuring peace and creating conditions for solidarity, responsibility, international cooperation, and sustainable development.

The binding effect of treaties concluded by the EU is enshrined in EU Treaties, obliging the EU and EU Member States to comply with international treaties concluded by the EU. Most important for this debate, the EU Treaties explicitly provide that the EU shall contribute to ‘the strict observance and the development of international law, including respect for the principles of the United Nations Charter’ (Article 3(5) TEU; see also Article 21(1) TEU). 

To put it another way, in accordance with the EU Treaties, the EU and its MS have a legal obligation to comply with the UN Charter with the aim ‘to ensure peace and security, respect for human rights and sustainable development for all’. This includes respect for the powers of UN organs, such as the primary responsibility of the Security Council for the maintenance of international peace and security, that entails a special responsibility of its permanent members to that effect. It also requires our strong support for the International Court of Justice (ICJ), the principal judicial organ of the United Nations, as one of the main pillars of the international justice system. We recall that the ICJ’s orders and judgements are binding for the parties to a dispute and must be implemented.

Chair,

The UN Charter, a truly global treaty, has been the bedrock of international law for over 80 years. We are at a moment of unprecedented challenges and widespread violations of the UN Charter. In the face of adversity, the EU and its Member States have stated that we ‘will continue to uphold the rules and principles of the UN Charter, including those of sovereignty and territorial integrity, political independence and self-determination. These principles cannot be negotiated or compromised.’

They remain our shared values and commitments. Upholding and defending them is both our joint and individual responsibility. It is also our common global interest. For this, we all need to be outspoken and address violations of these principles and the Charter when they occur. It is up to each one of us, and collectively together, to fulfil the Charter’s purposes through our commitment and action. In these critical times, we must succeed in building a “critical mass” of unity and solidarity around the UN Charter and with each other. This won’t be easy. But when we succeed in curtailing polarization on things that may have traditionally divided us, the UN Charter, international cooperation, and international law will not be turned into dead letters, and those relying on raw power will have to contend with a very different reality: One where might does not make right, but where “right makes might”.

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