THE UNITED NATIONS AND THE MULTIPOLAR ORDER OF THE FUTURE

President of I.P.O. delivers keynote address at international forum in North Macedonia

 

Hans Köchler, Diamond Hall, Hotel Hilton Skopje, 5 September 2023

Text of speech  

Mosaic Hall, Cabinet of the President of North Macedonia, 6 September 2023

President Stevo Pendarovski, seated at the front of the table, meets with participants of the forum; facing him at the opposite end of the table: Hans Köchler, President of the International Progress Organization. At the left side of the table, from left: Petar Stoyanov, former President of Bulgaria; Mladen Ivanić, former Chairman of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina. First at the right side of the table: Dr. Hassan Diab, former Prime Minister of Lebanon.

Skopje, 8 September 2023
RE/29000c-is

Contrasting the idealistic mission statement in the Preamble of the United Nations Charter with the geopolitical realities of today, Professor Hans Köchler, President of the Vienna-based International Progress Organization, has called for a major overhaul of the international system. In his opinion, a reformed UN Charter will have to commit all states to respect the principle of peaceful settlement of disputes on the basis of sovereign equality. Addressing a special panel on “Restoring Multilateralism – Challenges and Global Power Shift” at the Skopje Cultural Diplomacy Forum 2023, he explained that the Charter of the United Nations embodies the balance of power of 1945. It privileges the five great powers of that era with special voting rights which are incompatible with the organization’s basic principle of equality and have introduced in the international system an element of anarchy. In connection with the rule that allows Security Council member states to vote also in cases when they are party to a dispute, the great power veto has encouraged the international use of force by the most powerful actors, instead of containing it. If these provisions in the UN Charter are not abolished, the organization will lose its relevance in the emerging multipolar order, the President of the I.P.O. explained. Pointing to the dilemma posed by the right of only five states to veto any amendment to the UN Charter, he warned of the “tenacity of power” in a situation where those with the strongest military are able to act without statutory constraints.

The panel was moderated by Brigadier General Metodi Haji Janev of the Military Academy of North Macedonia. Ms. Ann Linde, former Foreign Minister of Sweden, updated the panel on renewed efforts of international civil society to promote Security Council reform.

At a special Presidential Panel on the Western Balkan, the former heads of state of Albania, Mr. Bamir Topi, Bulgaria, Mr. Petar Stoyanov, Croatia, Mr. Ivo Josipović, Serbia, Mr. Boris Tadić, and the former Chairman of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Mr. Mladen Ivanić, shared experiences of the challenges in their countries’ period of transition, especially regarding inter-ethnic and inter-governmental relations in the region.

At a subsequent panel hosted by the Ministry of Defense of North Macedonia, Ms. Slavjanka Petrovska, Minister of Defense, highlighted the country’s priorities in promoting reconciliation and restoring trust in Europe after the Ukraine war. Among the speakers were Dr. Hassan Diab, former Prime Minister of Lebanon, Ms. Natalia Gavriliata, former Prime Minister of Moldova, and Mr. Elmar Brok (Germany), Chairman of the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the European Parliament (2012-2017).

Upon conclusion of the conference, the participants met with members of the National European Integration Council at the Assembly (Parliament) of North Macedonia. The meeting was chaired by the Council's President, Mr. Aleksandar Nikoloski. Mr. Armin Laschet (Germany), former Minister President of North Rhine-Westphalia and Chancellor-Candidate of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), delivered a keynote address on idea and history of European integration.

The President of the Republic of North Macedonia, Mr. Stevo Pendarovski, received the participants of the forum for an exchange of opinions on the current situation in the wider region, on the war in Ukraine, and on the state of the EU integration process of North Macedonia.

Held under the theme "Promoting International Cooperation, Cultural Understanding & Peace," the three-day forum was inaugurated by the former Macedonian President, Professor Gjorge Ivanov, at whose initiative the meeting was jointly organized by the Institute for Cultural Diplomacy (ICD) (Berlin), the City of Skopje, and the International Center for the Alliance of Civilizations (ICAC) in Skopje.

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I.P.O. documents on United Nations reform