SALEUMXAY KOMMASITH, Deputy Prime Minister of the Lao People’s Democratic Republic, said the international community faces environmental and economic crises as well as armed conflicts, while multilateralism has been undermined by unilateralism.  It is disheartening that the most vulnerable people and countries suffer the most, he added.  Further, the least developed countries, landlocked developing countries and small island developing States that were recovering from the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic are now also confronting climate, food and energy crises.  He asked the General Assembly to stop lecturing, blaming or shaming one another because those behaviours run counter to multilateralism and will only slow solutions.  To that end, he called for necessary reform of the United Nations to render it more effective in addressing the world’s problems.  He said that unilateral sanctions not only violate the United Nations Charter and international law but also hamper development.  The United States must lift the economic embargo on Cuba, he stressed, emphasizing that unilateral coercive measures cause innocent people to suffer.

Turning to sustainable development efforts in his country, he said that the Government presented two voluntary national reviews detailing progress in and challenges to implementing the Sustainable Development Goals through through its National Socioeconomic Development Plans and 2030 Vision and Green Growth Strategy.  Though the country recorded progress prior to 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic undermined much of it. Further, the country is facing extreme weather events due to climate change.  The Government has implemented the revised nationally determined contributions, aiming to reach net-zero emissions by 2050.  To that end, he expressed the urgent need of financial resources and technical support not just for his country but also for developing countries, least developed countries, landlocked developing countries and small island developing States to achieve their commitments to the Paris Agreement on climate change.  He also called for renewed political will coupled with concrete actions taken by the international community in the upcoming COP27 in Egypt to preserve the planet for many generations to come.

He expressed his Government’s support in implementing the internationally development goals and agreed-upon programmes of action for least developed countries and landlocked least developed countries as well as other United Nations development frameworks.  Reaffirming his commitment to multilateralism, he strongly committed to supporting conflict resolutions through peaceful means as described in the United Nations Charter.  More action-oriented solutions and non-politicized approaches must be adopted, he stressed.  Expressing gratitude for States that support its membership in the Economic and Social Council for the 2023-2025 term, he said his delegation will work on advancing partnership towards a more resilient and sustainable world.