Statement
Statement summary
EMMANUEL MACRON, President of France, said his country paid tribute to the peoples of America, Europe, Africa, Asia and Oceania for liberation from the Nazi grip and recalled the recent Paralympic and Olympic Games when the much-wanted Olympic truce did not come to life. “Above all, first and foremost, we need to restore the terms of trust and respect between peoples,” he noted, urging to pay equal attention to those who are suffering and to stave off the possibility of having double standards. “One life is equal to another. Civilian protection is an imperative norm and must remain a North Star at a time when, this year, we are marking the seventy-fifth anniversary of the Geneva Conventions,” he emphasized, calling for refuting the ideas that those who have died in Ukraine are from the North and those who have died in Gaza are from the South, with the same for those who die in the conflicts in Sudan, the Great Lakes region or Myanmar. “We should look for peace everywhere and not accept any differences,” he said.
Underscoring that today’s conflicts call into question the very capacity to ensure that the UN Charter is respected, he observed: “When I see some people want to propose peace by asking for capitulation, it’s surprising.” Urging to provide a common response to the two wars affecting Europe and the Middle East, he said that the Russian Federation is waging a war in Ukraine for territorial conquest. “Nothing that they are doing is in line with the common interest of nations,” he emphasized. “Because who could still believe that they are protected from their neighbours?” he asked, stressing that it is in the common interest of nations that Ukraine be restored in its legitimate right as soon as possible and pledging that France will continue to do everything in its powers so that Ukraine can hold strong, be out of danger and obtain justice.
Turning to Gaza, he said that his country’s position has been to condemn the terrorist attack against Israel by Hamas in October 2023, demanding the release of hostages. Noting that Israel has a legitimate right to protect its own people and to deny Hamas the means of attacking them again, he emphasized that Israel’s war in Gaza has gone on too long, and tens of thousands of civilian victims in Palestine cannot be justified: “There is no explanation possible for this.” Humanitarian assistance must arrive en masse in Gaza, he continued, vowing that France will participate in any initiatives that will save lives. He also promised to ensure that the Palestinian people can finally have a State, as France is committed to a two-State solution. Speaking about Lebanon, he stressed that while Hizbullah for too long has been running a risk of dragging the country into war, Israel cannot without consequence just expand its operations to Lebanon. “We cannot have a war in Lebanon,” he said, urging Israel to cease this escalation and calling on Hizbullah to cease missile launches to Israel.
Speaking about Africa, he said that France has done a lot over recent years for this continent, specifically in the Sahel, where the French Army fought against terrorism. “Europe and Africa have a shared destiny,” he stressed. The same philosophy of partnership is being embodied in the Pacific region, he went on to say, highlighting that the French territories in the Indo-Pacific have unique expertise in the fight against climate change, the protection of biodiversity and clean energy. Touching on the pressing issue of artificial intelligence (AI), he said it should be coordinated by States within an ethical, democratic framework created by the peoples of the planet. “We cannot let some people — a few private actors who are on the cutting edge of this innovation at the moment — think about the future of this for our peoples,” he stated. He also called for making the United Nations more efficient, adding that France is in favour of the Security Council being expanded. “Germany, Japan, India, Brazil should be permanent members, much like two countries of Africa,” he said, specifying that the reform should also change the working methods and limit the right of veto in cases of mass crimes.
President Emmanuel Macron of France deplored on Wednesday what he saw as deepening divisions among the world’s nations, telling the General Assembly that effective multilateralism has never been more necessary to rebuild trust and tackle crises.
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Recalling that global enthusiasm that had greeted the Summer Olympic and Paralympic Games, Mr. Macron regretted that, despite such jubilation, the Olympic Truce seemed “a dead letter”.
“Every day, humanity seems to fragment further,” he said, lamenting the international community’s failure to come together and find common solutions.
To restore the power and hope vested in the words ‘United Nations’, he called for the restoration of trust among nations, and a serious push to see civilian protection as an imperative norm. “It must remain a North Star.”
“Let us not allow the idea to take hold for a single moment” that the suffering of some deserves more attention than the suffering of others, whether in Ukraine, Gaza or Sudan. “We need to show equal attention to all those suffering,” President Macron said.
Regrettably, current ongoing conflicts call into question the international community’s ability to enforce the UN Charter. “When I see some people wanting to propose peace by asking for capitulation, I am surprised that we can even support such an idea,” he said.
Mr. Macron said Russia was waging a war of territorial conquest in Ukraine in disregard of the most fundamental principles of international law. “[Russia] is guilty of serious breaches of law, ethics and honour,” he asserted.
The fate of Ukraine is tied to peace and security in Europe and in the world “because who could believe themselves protected from their strongest, most violent and most greedy neighbors if we let Russia prevail as if nothing had happened?”
Keen to help Ukraine build a just and lasting peace, he said that France will continue to provide it with essential equipment for its defense and will support its remarkable resistance.
Turning to the Middle East, he acknowledged that Israel had a legitimate right to protect its people and to deny Hamas the means to attack it again. But its war in Gaza “has gone on too long [and] too many innocent people have died.”
A ceasefire must therefore be declared as soon as possible, the hostages must be freed, and massive amounts of humanitarian aid must arrive in Gaza, he underscored.
While the international community must evince the political will to ensure a two-state solution to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the immediate risk is that of regional escalation, added Mr. Macron.
"We urge Israel to cease escalation in Lebanon, and for Hezbollah to cease missile launches towards Israel. We urge all those who provide (Hezbollah) with the means to do so to stop,” he said.
“There must not, there cannot be a war in Lebanon,” he underscored.
Finally, Mr. Macron said he favoured expanding the composition of the Security Council. As he saw it, Germany, Japan, India and Brazil should be permanent members, as well as two countries that Africa would designate to represent it. New elected members should also be admitted.
But this reform alone would not be enough to restore the Council's effectiveness, he warned, calling for a change in the body’s working methods, a limitation of the right of veto in cases of mass crimes, and more attention to operational decisions required for maintaining peace.
“The time has come to regain efficiency in order to act better on the ground,” he concluded.
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