President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has issued a message for the 73rd anniversary of the founding of the United Nations (UN).
Stating that the humankind face grave challenges in a wide range today, from climate change to ethnic cleansing, hunger, xenophobia, epidemics and terrorism, President Erdoğan underlined that these global problems are affecting more developing countries, in particular, countries with limited economic opportunities in Africa and Asia.
President Erdoğan emphasized in the message that it is impossible for any country to combat alone to these challenges that threaten mankind's common future and disrupt the search for a global justice. "Common problems can only be solved through joint efforts," he added.
"The need for the reform of the Security Council cannot be postponed anymore"
In his message, Erdoğan said: "In this sense, the UN is the primary platform able to produce sustainable solutions to humanity’s common problems, despite shortcomings experienced in recent years."
"The need for the reform of the UN established seventy-three years ago, and especially the Security Council, the UN organ responsible for ensuring global peace and security, stands at a point which cannot be postponed anymore."
"The sufferings previously experienced in Rwanda, Bosnia-Herzegovina and Kosovo, and the massacres that have been going on for eight years in our neighbor Syria are among the most concrete indications that the Security Council has failed to fulfill its responsibilities."
"Turkiye is hosting four million refugees (including three and a half million Syrians) who ran away from conflicts, is the main country that feels most severely problems posed by the bottlenecks in the UN institutions."
"At the heart of our struggle under the slogan "the world is bigger than five" lies our wish for a more inclusive, fair, democratic and transparent structure of the Security Council," the President said.
Stating that Turkiye takes a leading role in many activities including mediation, peacekeeping operations, counter-terrorism activities, humanitarian and development assistance, activities regarding migration and refugees and the Alliance of Civilizations under the roof of the UN, President Erdoğan underlined that Turkiye also takes steps to convert Istanbul into a UN hub and continues its efforts for the relocation to Istanbul of several UN agencies' regional offices.
"With these considerations, I wish that the works of the United Nations will bring peace, welfare, and prosperity to our world and on this occasion, I celebrate the 24 of October United Nations Day with my heartfelt wishes," said President Erdoğan at the end of his message.
ILKHA