MARIS SANGIAMPONGSA, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Thailand, said that when the UN was founded seven decades ago, “we did not envision challenges from technological disruptions, pandemics and climate crisis.”  The Organization must remain relevant.  For the UN to truly sustain and strengthen peace and security, Member States must uphold their disarmament and non-proliferation obligations. Recognizing that various flashpoints around the globe continue to challenge the credibility of the Organization in resolving conflicts, he said that Thailand faces regional challenges caused by the situation in Myanmar.  “We wish to see a peaceful and prosperous Myanmar,” he stressed, spotlighting the continuous work of ASEAN and its Five-Point Consensus.  To that end, Thailand is stepping up humanitarian assistance through the ASEAN Coordinating Centre for Humanitarian Assistance on disaster management.

His country has also been sharing its locally-driven and people-centred development approach — the Sufficiency Economy Philosophy — to advance SDGs, he continued.  This is the best practice in SDGs localization.  Calling for a reform of the international financial architecture, he said that Thailand’s aspiration to become a member of BRICS [Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa] and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) is driven by its desire to build bridges in promoting North-South development cooperation.  Also noting that his country is among the most affected by climate change, he observed:  “Climate disasters have taught us that failure to address this matter will delay the achievement of the SDGs.”  For this reason, the implementation of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction is crucial.

Reiterating Thailand’s commitment to human rights for all, he spotlighted the country’s candidature to the Human Rights Council for 2025-2027.  “At the Council, we will serve as a bridge builder to connect different perspectives,” he said.  In pursuit of creating a safe and secure society for all, Thailand has adopted the Marriage Equality Act and continued advocating for universal health coverage and a pandemic treaty.  In addition, the country is currently serving as a Chair of the Foreign Policy and Global Health Agenda.  Recalling that 78 years ago, Thailand looked at the UN as a guarantor of a more peaceful and prosperous future, he said that, today, the country carried onward the same belief of the United Nations that is “a pioneer of a prevailing peace”.