Michelle Bachelet Jeria - Interactive dialogue for the position of the next Secretary-General of the United Nations

Good morning on this very sunny Tuesday. I call to order the informal meeting to conduct an interactive dialogue with Ms. Michelle Bachelet, a candidate for the position of the United Nations Secretary-General. Today and tomorrow's interactive dialogues mark a critical step in the selection and appointment process for the next Secretary-General. while also coming at a pivotal moment for the United Nations. The person we select will be more than the face of this institution. Our choice will send a powerful message about who we are and whether we truly serve all 8 billion people of the world in all their diversity. The multilateral system with the United Nations as its center is under unprecedented political and financial pressure, from a deepening liquidity crisis to fundamental principles of the UN Charter being put into question. The next Secretary-General will be entrusted not only with navigating these challenges, but also with advancing essential reforms to ensure the United Nations is fit for the future. At the same time, the world needs the United Nations more than ever. And it needs a Secretary-General who can provide strong, principled, and effective leadership across all three pillars: peace and security, sustainable development, and human rights. These interactive dialogues, which I convene in line with General Assembly resolution 79/327, offer a unique opportunity for candidates to present their vision for the future of this Organization and for you, Member States and civil society, to ask questions and interact directly with candidates. The interactive dialogues are essential to ensuring a transparent and inclusive selection and appointment process, while underlining the important role of the General Assembly. I encourage each of you to make full use of this opportunity. And I thank all candidates for their active participation, Member States and civil society for their questions and engagement. But these dialogues do not end in this chamber. They are also an opportunity for people around the world, the very people that the United Nations serves, to listen, to engage, and to hold this process to the highest standards. For this decision does not only concern a few, but all of us in and outside the United Nations, who look to this institution to reflect the principles and values it champions. While we will hear the candidates individually, starting today in interactive dialogues, a town hall format will follow later in the process. As reflected in my letters dated March 4th and April 15th, 2026, the dialogue will begin with an introduction by the candidate of their vision and priorities for up to 10 minutes, followed by an interactive exchange. Each interactive dialogue will last up to three hours. The interactive exchange will take place in two segments. We will begin with a one and a half hour discussion focused on leadership skills, abilities, experience, and the need to lead a strong organization that is fit for the future. Following this, we will move into the second segment, which will focus on the three pillars of the United Nations, peace and security, sustainable development, and human rights. In line with revitalization resolutions, civil society representatives will be invited to pose questions in each of the two thematic segments. Before proceeding to hear the presentation of the vision of the candidate, I would like to inform members on how to inscribe to speak in the two thematic segments. Delegations wishing to speak can register their wish to speak by pressing the microphone button. Delegations are asked to do so at the beginning of each of the two segments as announced in my letter. Please do not press the microphone button yet. So you will not be on the list. I will announce when delegation will be asked to press the microphone button at the beginning of each segment. Member States speaking on behalf of groups are invited to approach the list of speakers table and will be given priority. After the conclusion of the first segment, delegations will be again invited to press the microphone button to signify their desire to speak in the second segment. Delegations can speak only once in each segment, whether on behalf of a group or in national capacity. In the second segment, priority will be given to delegations that did not have an opportunity to speak during the first segment. I now invite Ms. Bachelet to present her vision. Please, the floor is yours.

Madame la Presidente, Excellencies, dear friends, good morning, saosha, zoraswiti, bonjour, assalamu alaikum, bom dia.

I have the honor of appearing before you today as the candidate nominated by Brazil and Mexico to the post of Secretary-General. I am deeply moved by the confidence that they have placed in me at this moment of danger and of hope. And I wish all delegations to know that I thank each of them for this opportunity to share a message of renewed hope in the future of the United Nations.

I believe it is my obligation to seek to answer your questions and listen to you today. But before doing so, allow me to share with you my key message: the urgent need for hope. Our world and the order based on international law that sustains it is under strain as never before. My story is but one among millions that bear witness to what happens when law-based order falters. The day of the 1973 coup d'etat in my country, my father, an honorable member of the Chilean Air Force who deeply believed in the rule of law, suffered the consequences when those in power turned against it. Yet it was international pressure and global solidarity that helped restore peace and democracy to my homeland. At a time when we desperately needed hope, the world provided it. Decades later, the people of Chile granted me the honor of leading our nation. And with profound commitment, I now bring the experience of my country, not unlike that of others, to this organization to lead with hope once again. I was elected twice as president of the republic, the first woman in this position. I served twice as cabinet minister in health and in defense, as the first executive director of UN Women, and as high commissioner for human rights. In almost 20 years of public life, both national and international, I have paired the defense of human principles with realistic, practical leadership. Peace and development demand this balance. Trust in the international order and trust in our institutions are mutually reinforcing. Both require robust experience and a firm commitment to the UN Charter. I stand before you to reclaim the urgent need for dialogue, because deliberation and multilateral cooperation have been the operative platform upon which this organization was built, and they remain the bridge to our future. My own vision was born of the difficult and sometimes improbable miracle of dialogue, even when all odds are against it. I know it can deliver because I have seen it transform the impossible into achievable. We must all remember Article 33 of the Charter, which mandates solutions through negotiation, inquiry, mediation, and conciliation. Today, I solemnly commit to upholding this mandate of dialogue in all my actions. I also commit to consistent and full adherence to the Charter, the best assurance all Member States can have of impartiality and the necessary foundation of trust. We need a modern UN focused on real, sustainable and verifiable results, leading through managerial efficiency, coherence and trustworthy leadership. I envision a United Nations that anticipates, prevents, creates and unites with one overarching goal, serve member states and their citizens.

This organization and its complex system. remains the most ambitious, generous and successful collective project by states in history. From civil aviation to humanitarian assistance, from intellectual property to monetary stability, from peacekeeping to meteorology, the UN system is woven into the very fabric of our daily lives. This is where the inspiration for and the cause of our urgent hope lies, that hope that will allow us to unleash the full potential of multilateral cooperation and to unite the peoples of the world around common solutions.

We act in an environment of deep uncertainty, strategic competition, expanded armed conflicts, grave violations of international law and human rights, deepening inequality, disastrous climate change, and technological disruption. Trust in institutions have been severely weakened. And yet, precisely because the stakes are this high, the raw material for transformation has never been more abundant. Fractures expose the architecture that needs redesigning. Disruption forces the imagination that incremental progress never demands. It is not that difficulty carries a silver lining. It is that difficulty is the only forge in which durable solutions are made. So this is the moment that calls for exactly the kind of leadership this organization was built to provide. And it is this conviction that animates my candidacy. The United Nations remain the one place on Earth where every nation, large or small, powerful or vulnerable, can speak to every other nation. The only house where all bases share the same roof. That irreplaceable architecture of universal dialogue is what we must protect and what we must put to work. A shared vision for a renewed UN must look in four directions. Look backwards. We must remain firmly true to the Charter, its purposes and its principles. They are and must remain our common moral and political compass. Renewal and reform must always serve a fuller realization of that founding vision. Look inward. The UN system must commit to transparency, accountability, efficiency, and effectiveness, and align eliminating duplications, streamlining processes, and aligning resources with mandates. The UN80 Initiative is a unique opportunity to strengthen the organization, and I will pursue it with full determination. Look outward. We must reconnect with the peoples of the world. Restoring credibility requires delivering results, effective results, supporting peace and security, advancing sustainable development and defending human rights efficiently and impartially. Look forward. The UN must build its future on institutional excellence, effective service to the people and strong loyalty to its purposes and principles. shaping our collective future, and above all, that of the young people who will inherit whatever we build or fail to build here. The centennial of 2045 is not a distant milestone. It is a working horizon that gives urgency to every reform we undertake today. On peace and security, the priority must be prevention, quiet diplomacy, early warning, sustained engagement with regional actors, and professional mediation can stop escalation before it becomes a catastrophe. The Secretary-General must remain engaged as a channel of communication, even when consensus seems distant. On sustainable development, key priorities are eliminating hunger and poverty, reducing inequality, closing the digital gap and advancing meaningful climate action, leaving younger generations a world capable of offering opportunities, jobs, dignity and hope. On human rights, human dignity must remain at the center of UN action. Human rights are not only the core of a dignified life, they are also preventive tools for lasting peace and global stability. Excellencies. I accepted my nomination to join the millions who desperately need us to hear the urgent call for hope, a hope for dialogue, a hope for inspiration, a determined and passionate hope for igniting faith in United Nations leadership for this turbulent time. Let me remind you of Nelson Mandela's final address to the United Nations, delivered in this very building, where he urged for what he called a workable dream. a hope that leaders would emerge who would not allow that any person should be denied their freedom. It is in this spirit of service that I humbly answer Mandela's call, offering my experience to lead this organization through this unprecedented moment for a more inclusive world. Violeta Parra, legendary folk singer of my homeland, once sang that the two materials that forged her art were, and I will quote, your song, which is also mine, and the song of all, which is my very own." End of quote. It is a dream that finds its voice in the mouth of others, becoming a word and ultimately a shared song. We must not surrender to despair. Just the opposite. We must choose to hope, repair, anticipate, and above all, have the courage to cooperate so the world can prosper again, live in peace, and ensure everyone's human dignity. This is my vision for the renewed future of the United Nations that we bring before you today. I thank you.

I thank Ms. Bachelet. We now proceed to the first segment. Delegations wishing to speak in the first segment are invited to press the microphone button now. Members are reminded that they are encouraged to ask short and focused questions. Intervention should be not more than two minutes for delegation speaking in national capacity and not more than three minutes for delegation speaking on behalf of a group of member states. Time limits will be strictly enforced by automatic microphone cutoff. A timer will be projected on screen. To assist speakers to observe the time limit, their microphone will start blinking 30 seconds before the time limit elapses. As indicated in my letter, after each intervention, the candidate will be given the floor to respond. The response should not be more than two minutes as well. I will remind candidates of their time limits. Civil society questions will be interspersed with questions from Member States. As mentioned before, we will now focus on leadership abilities, experience and skills needed to lead a strong organization that is fit for the future. I now give the floor to the distinguished representative of Uruguay, speaking on behalf of the Group of 77 and China, followed by the European Union and Kyrgyzstan.

Thank you, Madam President Michelle Bachelet.

...attaches great importance to the selection and appointment of the Secretary-General and reaffirms the need to ensure that this process remains open, transparent and inclusive in accordance with the relevant General Assembly resolutions. First, with reference to the United initiative introduced by Secretary-General Antonio Guterres What is your assessment of the proposal and how do you believe it could advance a United Nation that is more effective, efficient, and delivers greater impact on the ground? How would you ensure that any related reforms fully respect the intergovernmental nature of the United Nations, preserve the balance among its three pillars, and do not come at the expense of development mandates or other priorities of developing countries? Second. With the 2030 deadline fast approaching, how would you ensure the full and timely implementation of the Agenda for Sustainable Development, bearing in mind the universality and indivisibility of the goals and targets, the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities, and the commitment to leave no one behind? Specifically, how do you envisage the role of the Secretary-General and the UN Secretariat in advancing this objective? Three, if you were appointed as Secretary-General, how would you ensure equal and fair distribution based on gender and geographical balance as prescribed by Article 101 of the Charter and the relevant General Assembly resolutions, particularly in terms of the overall increase in the representation of unrepresented and underrepresented countries, especially from developing countries, at the senior level appointments within the UN Secretariat and the broader UN system? Four, At a time of shrinking fiscal space, declining ODA, rising debt burdens, and widening development gaps, how would you, as Secretary-General, mobilize the United Nations system to defend and advance the development pillar, accelerate implementation of the 2030 Agenda, and support financing for development in a manner fully responsive to the priorities of developing countries? Fifth, in light of the Organization's persistent liquidity crisis, including warnings of a potential race to bankruptcy, what concrete measures would you as Secretary-General undertake to promote compliance with Member States' financial obligations, ensuring that assessed contributions are paid in full, on time, and without conditions? Finally, the Group of 77 and China underscore the importance of safeguarding the full independence, impartiality, and institutional integrity of the Secretary-General while ensuring that it provides equitable and effective support to all member state representations in the discharge of their responsibilities. Thank you.

I thank the distinguished representative of Uruguay on behalf of the Group of 77 and China. Ms. Bachelet, you have the opportunity to answer.

Well, thank you very much, the G77 plus China group for the questions. I'll try in two minutes to answer whatever I can. Well, for me, the UN aid is essential. I think it's a must because what we do need is an organization that can be relevant, that can be efficient, that can be also transparent and so on. So that's why I think that reducing duplication, I mean, we need the three things, the operational efficiency, mandate rationalization, and structural coherence. And I think we need to also take into consideration that any reform should preserve the balance among the three pillars. Reduce duplication through common services, whether digital interoperability and interdepartmental team, not through cuts that eliminate field capacity. So we need to do whatever we need, but we need to preserve field capacity. We also need to protect the resident coordinator system. analytical capacity, early warning, and humanitarian presence from budget-driven erosion. We also need to ensure that UNAD is an intergovernmental process, reform-driven and owned by member states, not imposed administratively. Assert clarity clearly and publicly that assessed contributions are legal, shared obligations. They're not voluntary. transfer and also promote, I would say, a more balanced financing model, reduce excessive dependence on earmark, because that makes a lot of fragmentation inside inside the system. And we also have to create a systemic, systemic culture of independent, real time evaluation and full transparency linked to management decisions, to resource allocation and to leadership performance. And in terms of the agenda 2030, if I have a couple of seconds, I would say that we need to reinvigorate the UN development system by empowering resident coordinators with real authority, adequate resources, but also clear accountability for results at country level. I believe that we need to ensure that also we need to see which countries are farthest in the possibility of achieving the SDGs. And we need to think on the metrics beyond GDP, because multidimensional vulnerability indices that capture matter what is actually happening. And finally, I have to identify and systematically address SDGs bottlenecks. poverty, hunger, climate, social protection, gender equality and state capacity.

I thank you. I now give the floor to the distinguished representative of the European Union on behalf of the EU and its member states, followed by Kyrgyzstan and Egypt.

Thank you, Madam President, and a warm welcome from the UN's member states, Ms. Bachelet. As leading political, financial, and operational supporters of the UN and multilateralism, the European Union and its member states are deeply invested in the UN Charter, international law, and the UN's success on the ground. We fully expect to be working closely with the Secretary-General, who fully shares these values and principles, who manages to match principle with action, and who has a clear appreciation of the European Union's role in the UN system. At this critical juncture, the United Nations need a Secretary-General who can build trust, accelerate UN reforms, and deliver solutions that make a real difference in people's lives on the ground. It needs a Secretary-General that is fully prepared to defend and promote with equal vigor all three UN pillars and full respect for the UN Charter and international law. The European Union and its Member States support all strands of the UN's work equally. On peace and security, we actively advance the implementation of key UN mandates to our security and defense missions around the world. On sustainable development, we provide close to 50% of all official development assistance and over one third of all voluntary contributions to the UN system to support development and equality. on human rights who remain firmly committed to their universality and indivisibility, while noting with concern that only 1% of the UN system spending is dedicated to human rights mandates at a time that human rights are increasingly attacked. I mention all this to highlight the fact that through our work on the ground, we are fully aware both of the successes of the United Nations, but also of the dire need in a number of areas for reform that protects all three pillars, but also makes them more effective. So, a question to you is the following: How will you ensure the continuity of the ongoing UN-Aid Initiative? If you could reform one thing during your first 100 days in office to make the UN more effective in delivering on any of its core mandates, what would that be? And can you offer an example of a major reform that you promoted successfully in your previous tenures? And what lessons did you learn that could inform your approach to broader UN reform today? Thank you.

I thank the distinguished representative of the European Union, speaking on behalf of the EU and its member states.

Thank you very much for this question. and all the context that has been mentioned. Yeah, well, I do believe, I personally believe very strongly that the three pillars are so intertwined. I know we're gonna discuss about the programming issue later, but I want to say this because for me, it would be very important because I believe there will not be peace, no peace without development and without human rights. So that means that if I'm selected as Secretary-General, I will give the, my biggest efforts, I will strive to ensure that three pillars can get enough support in terms of financing, in terms of political support. And in the sense that what would be the big or the one thing I could do at the beginning, I believe there are some of these issues that depend on member states, and probably one of the most important will be on what is going to be done on mandates, because it's also very important in terms of how the UN will continue developing. And for me, because on all the things that us as candidates will promise, one of the things that will be really important to have since the beginning, our mechanism to follow up of, if I would say, accountability on ensuring that also independent evaluation and assessment of what is being done in terms of the reform. Because usually people from when they get in love with something, if I may say, they tend not to be very self-critical. And I think we need, particularly when we are trying to think how we make the UN more relevant, more efficient, more transparent, but also to save certain costs that are probably better done in another way, and use the savings for exactly human rights or development or peace and security. So I believe that the essential thing would be to ensure that all the mechanisms, all the work that we will do with the different agencies, with the secretariat, will really be follow up and not just give an instruction that maybe it's follow or not, but to be sure to make a very strong follow up that every decision of the General Assembly and of course the decisions that are in the competence of the Secretary General will be decisions that will be fulfilled and achieved.

Thank you. I now give the floor to the distinguished representative of Kyrgyzstan on behalf of the landlocked developing countries, followed by Egypt and the first speaker of the civil society.

Madam President, Madam Bachelorette, Excellencies, distinguished delegates, colleagues, I have the honor to deliver this statement on behalf of the group of landlocked developing countries. Landlocked developing countries, or LLDCs, represent 32 nations and over 500 million people. Their defining challenge is geographic. Without direct access to the sea, they depend on transit through neighboring countries. This results in higher trade costs, longer delays, and greater vulnerability to external shocks. We welcome the convening of this interactive dialogue, which provides an important opportunity to engage with candidates for the position of the Secretary-General at a critical time for the multilateral system. For landlocked developing countries, structural constraints linked to geography continue to shape development pathways. The adoption of the AVASA program of action reflects a renewal global commitment to addressing these unique challenges in a comprehensive and coordinated manner. Its success, however, will depend on effective implementation and strong system-wide coherence. We would appreciate your views on how to strengthen system-wide coherence so that global commitments translate into the measurable progress at the regional and country levels, including through enhanced engagement of the United Nations resident coordinators and country teams and the effective integration of LLDC priorities into UN sustainable development cooperation frameworks. Furthermore, we would like to, uh, we, it will, it will be interesting to hear from you. How you envisage strengthening the capacity, resources, and institutional role of the Office of the High Representative for the Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries, and Small Island Developing States so that it can effectively fulfill its mandates functions, particularly in supporting coordinated follow-up, mobilizing international support, enhancing advocacy, and assisting LLDC in the implementation, monitoring, and review of the program of action, at all levels, including with the involvement and support of the United Nations resident coordinators and country teams. In conclusion, the Group of Landlocked Developing Countries looks forward to hearing concrete and actionable proposals on how to ensure effective implementation of the Programme of Action and to advance the development prospects of LLDC in a meaningful and sustainable manner. I thank you.

I thank the distinguished representative of Kyrgyzstan. On behalf of the landlocked developing countries, please.

I thank the representative of the LDCs countries. And you're right, geography must not determine destiny. But it is the possibility that the multilateral system exists precisely to correct the accidents of geography and history. And I will hold to that promise. I know that all the particular situations that LMDC countries had to confront in terms of being able to develop, to fulfill their capacities, and to be able to improve people's life. And I would say that I intend to, this transform it not in a rhetoric phrase, but into concrete and instrumental implementations with resources, with review graduation transitions, also to prevent abrupt losses of concessional access. Because many times, countries, when you just look at that GDP, they lose all the possibilities of concessional support. The other thing is, I believe that we need to strengthen particularly the Resident Coordinator system, because one of the things we need to make this not only a beautiful speech, but a reality, is that the UN system with every at the country level, work with the national priorities and support those national situations that can really help them, those countries thrive. Of course, we have the AWASA program, but also, I think I would champion also the Almaty program, addressing connectivity, logistics, and climate vulnerability barriers. And I will say that, of course, you mentioned also the seats, the LDCs, and others, and I truly believe Because I that also is important, as I mentioned, I think before in another question, I'm talking about agenda 2030 of the SDGs, that when we look at the need to reform these financial institutions, we also need to look at if the way the metrics being used for countries who had a very particular vulnerability is the metric that should be used. And I think that we need to, being the president of the Republic, I have to say, with Uruguay and Barbuda and Antigua at the time, we push for the OECD to change the criteria, that people should not be graduated according only to their GDP, but also to their vulnerability situation. And I truly believe this is something that the international community and the international financial institutions need to take into consideration, because if we don't change the way the financial institutions are working, those countries will never have all the support they need. So I will fight in all different levels to support the situation of countries that are more vulnerable than others because of either geographical conditionation or because they're small states or because they're small islands or because they're least developed countries.

Thank you. I now give the floor to the distinguished representative of Egypt on behalf of the Arab group. followed by the civil society girl up.

Thank you, Madam President. I have the honor to make this statement on behalf of the Arab Group. Our group remains ready to cooperate constructively with all candidates in order to strengthen the role of the United Nations and enhance its abilities to face current international challenges, as well as strengthening the principle of the Charter and maintain international peace and security and sustainable development. Our group would like to ask the two following questions. Madame Bachelier. How do you envisage your role, if in office, regarding enhancing the efficiency of the U.N. system and its integrated efforts regarding the Palestinian question, which -- in order to implement relevant international resolutions and restore or allow for peace in the region? Second, regarding the growing conflicts in the world and challenges pertaining to respect of international law and the UN Charter, how do you envisage ways to strengthen respect for these rules, especially when it comes to the humanitarian aspect, and allowing at the same time to strengthen the role of UN organs, namely UNRWA, so that these agencies can play their mandate fully? or rather implement their mandate fully. Second, regarding the current -- or in light of the current crisis at the United Nations and resources allowed for development, as well as the growing debt burden, how will you enhance the role of the United Nations in supporting the fact that member states will honor their financial commitments towards the United Nations? And what are the means that you will use in this regard?

I would like to ask the following question.

There is a sense that the international legal.

Order is in crisis, and the fundamental rules of international law, like sovereignty, non-intervention, the non-use of force.

And freedom of navigation, are being challenged.

Is there a role for the incoming SG?

To reaffirm the commitment to the international legal order to ensure enforcement of international law.

Thank you, Madam President.

I thank the distinguished representative of Egypt on behalf of the Arab Group. Ms. Bachellet.

Yeah, well, thank you very much for these questions. I would say, first of all, my personal involvement. I do believe that the next Secretary-General has to be somebody who is really present. First of all, should we prevent conflict from happening, but should also be, if I would say, very, even physically present in the field, in the places where we need solutions to problems and where there are resolutions of General Assembly, in terms of being sure that and making sure that they are implemented, they are a reality and not only a resolution that could be kept somewhere and not being a reality for the country. So that is something that for me is really important. to ensure my personal commitment and my personal, I would say, to use, if I would say, what the Secretary-General of the UN has. It's true that you mentioned that there's a lot of questioning of things that in the past were supposed to be, that were taken for granted in terms of the world order. But I think that having been true, that's true, the Secretary-General is somebody who has the moral voice, who has also a diplomatic stature that can be heard by and received by powerful and not so powerful countries, that has the possibility of being there with their leadership and try to make a difference and trying to ensure the possibility of everyone. And so I would say I would always have full political support to the system. That is some way that I believe that things that are not really many times going well can go better. And in the sense that as well, for me, humanitarian access in places where they're having crisis and the ones you mentioned is one of the things we need to protect and prevent from being hollowed out. One of the problems that I see, even though I completely agree on the UN 80, is that what we need to ensure and that it will not hollow out issues that are really important to happen. And one of those is that organizations like UNRWA and others who are doing a great humanitarian assistance can having the resources, the political support, and also the capacity to do the job we have entitled them to do. In terms of the global order, well, one of the things that I know that this is something that is not only the task of the Secretary General. Member states have a very important role to play. But I'm still a believer that multilateralism is essential, and it's essential more than ever. and that we need to put our voices together. And that's what I make my first intervention. I was speaking about dialogue to inspire hope, because I do believe that multilateralism is that what this building and this place represents is the only way to deal with the challenges that we have in front of us. I know that there's a lot of trends that goes in other direction in different areas. You mentioned some of them. But I truly believe that the SG has to speak out, has to convince member states and the parties, try to show why to have a rules-based order where everybody feels protected, represented, is not only the just thing to do, but the smart thing to do if we want a peaceful and better world for everyone.

I thank you. I now give the floor to the distinguished representative of the first civil society. We will hear a pre-recorded video by Girl Up.

Hello, my name is Pacha Canchay and I live in Ecuador. In my work as a Girl Up youth leader promoting public accountability in Ecuador, I am aware that heads of institutions such as the Secretary General operate in environments where political constraints may limit action. What is one decision you have taken in your career where you prioritize impact over political experience, and how will that shape your leadership if elected?

Please.

Well, what you ask is the history of my life. I have never thought that I should have to make decisions that will make me stay in some place if that doesn't have an impact. I truly believe that what the world needs is somebody who is not fighting for the post, but is fighting for the principles, the values. and for a better world for everyone. And particularly, that is what I always done. And if I'm selected Secretary-General, I will have the same attitude and the same, if I would say, conduct. Because I have had the honor to be in so many issues that the only reason to try to be a candidate for SG in a world that is not easy, you can agree with me on this, is because I really believe that if you are a Secretary-General, it has to be worthy for the people of the world.

Thank you. I now give the floor to the distinguished representative of Norway on behalf of the Accountability, Coherence and Transparency Group, followed by the Solomon Islands and the Kingdom of the Netherlands.

Thank you, Madam President, and good morning, colleagues. First of all, thank you, Madam Bachelot, for the presentation of your vision this morning and for your commitment to participation in this process. I have, as mentioned, the honour to ask two questions on behalf of the ACT group, which is a cross-regional group comprised of 27 small and mid-sized countries committed to a transparent and accountable UN and seeking to improve the working methods of the Security Council and its relationship with the General Assembly. the General Assembly has a joint role in the selection and appointment process for the next Secretary-General. In its resolutions, it has underlined the importance for candidates to embody the highest standards of efficiency, competence and integrity. The civil society coalition 1for8billion has also published a set of five principles for integrity for Secretary General campaigns. that has specific actions towards transparency, accountability, engagement, and independence in the campaign. 148 Billion have written to and asked all the candidates to commit to these principles. Are you willing to do so? And if not, why? The second question is about your leadership in conflict prevention. What specific early warning indicators will trigger your personal intervention in an emerging conflict? And thank you so much.

I thank the distinguished representative of Norway, speaking on behalf of the ACT Group.

Thank you very much, Madam. I would say that the principles put forward by 148 Billion reflect the same standards of transparency, independency, and, I would say, accountability that I believe most guide all the selection process and the conduct of the Secretary-General's office. And I believe it's the same issue that the General Assembly is asking for. I do believe that civil society plays a really important role in holding both candidates and the organizations accountable. And their voice in this process, I believe, is legitimate. And the principles for integrity are consistent with what the General Assembly itself has called for. But I would go further and said that this principle should not end with the campaign. A Secretary-General who commits to them during candidacy, but abandons them once in office, would undermine exactly the trust that the organization needs to rebuild. So if I am selected, I would carry this commitment into the office itself. The second question you are asking me, it's about, well, as I mentioned, and I've been speaking about it in many places, I have considered that one of the more important things of the Secretary General is to prevent things from happening. We know that prevention is really important in terms not only that you save lives, but also it's important even in terms of what means to go into a peacekeeping operation because you were not able to prevent. And there's a lot of things we all know, and the charter explains which are the main mechanism that the Secretary General, and of course, also the United Nations can use in terms of early warning system, in terms of mediation, of good offices, et cetera, et cetera. And I truly believe that we have a deficit on early warning signs. And in terms of the capacity of the system to read, if I may say, those early warning signs. And I've mentioned in some meetings that I've been in countries, what I could feel, I don't know if English sounds well, but I had the nose that something was happening. I could tell that it would be a coup d'etat. And I asked the country team, and I asked the National Commission of Human Rights, and everybody told me, "Are you crazy? No way." Three weeks later, there was a coup d'etat in that country. So I always was, being High Commissioner, I was insistent that we need as UN to have more capacity on identifying. And let me mention just some. First of all, I think the possibility of, I mean, when, you know, peace agreements are ended, I mean, there's no possibility to continue doing. Political disruptions, when you see, for example, human rights violation like forced killing, enforced disappearance, or hate speech against certain communities. Also, when you see that the defense issues, the security forces, for example, start doing things that are not the normal ones, that they braid people with the children, that they get more militarized and so on. Or when, for example, the justice system does not remains, if I would say, it's not operating, it's not working for people's rights and to ensuring justice. That doesn't mean that you have to add A, B, C, D, and then I will go there. But because you have to analyze it because of the context, the history, and so on. But with many of those and others, and I hope to, if I'm selected, to really be able to do a lot of development of the resident coordinator system or others to read what's going on in the country. And I will be there every time it's needed.

I thank you. I now give the floor to the distinguished representative of the Solomon Islands on behalf of the Pacific Islands Forum, followed by the Kingdom of the Netherlands and Singapore.

I have the honor to address you today on behalf of the members of the Pacific Islands Forum represented with presence in New York. We thank the President of the General Assembly for this valuable opportunity to engage directly with the candidates for the Secretary-General. The Pacific region faces many challenges, some shared by members across the Assembly, others unique to our region. But no challenge is more pressing than climate change, which will disproportionately imperil lives, livelihoods, security and the well-being of Pacific people. Secretary-General Guterres' visits to our region helped him to appreciate the gravity of this threat and to mobilize international attention. It also allowed him to appreciate the region's leadership and to hear firsthand from our communities on the work they are doing to bolster resilience. During his visit to Tonga for the Pacific Islands Leaders Summit in 2024, Secretary-General described the Pacific region as a beacon of solidarity and strength, environmental stewardship and peace. The Pacific and the UN have had a long history of collaboration, and we want to ensure that this partnership continues and is prioritized under UN's new leadership. We have two questions for all candidates. First, how would you use the office of the Secretary-General to draw attention mobilize action to address the unique vulnerabilities of small island developing states, including Pacific SIDS, in particular the impacts of climate change. Second, the UN is often pulled towards crises that dominate headlines. As realities unfold more slowly with irreversible consequences, how will you balance urgent conflicts with existential threats such as climate such as impacts of climate change? What criteria will guide your decision where attention and political capital will be directed to? I thank you.

I thank the distinguished representative of the Solomon Islands. Please, Ms. Bachelet.

Well, I think that for the Pacific Island, but also for the Caribbean and SIDS, for low-lying nations as well, Climate change is not a policy debate. It's a question of survival. And I will never treat it as anything else. I think that it can be used, the full moral authority of the Secretary General office to sustain urgency around the 1.5 goal in every multilateral forum, bilateral heads of states engagement, but also public communications. I think the Secretary General has a voice that can be heard. We also believe that we must support the most ambitious interpretation of the Paris Agreement. I signed the Paris Agreement as President of the Republic, and I truly believe we need to continue working strongly on that and all the reviews and impulse mechanisms connecting the IPCC's finding to political accountability. I also believe that we need to establish, in collaboration with the UNFCCC bodies, multilateral development banks, governments and civil society, a transparent, publicly accessible tracking system for climate finance commitments. What was delivered, in what form, and to which countries? I also think that we need to champion grant-based rather than loan-based climate finance for the most vulnerable countries. Because I think we need to reject the injustice of requiring in-depth nations to borrow to adapt to climate impacts they didn't produce, they didn't cause. I also think that we need to support the lost and damaged fund as a recognition of the principle of climate justice and advocate for adequate capitalization commensurate with the scale of the need. I also believe what The Secretary-General should use every relevant bilateral and multilateral engagement to raise climate finance delivery at a standing political priority. So I would say climate change, but we used to work, talk in the UN before, like the triple planetary crisis, you know, climate change, pollution, and also loss of biodiversity, because they're all very intertwined. has been for many years one of my oceans and how we protect marine areas has been one of my important issues that I've been dealing with for many years. So I would ask, Secretary General, if selected, I will work very strongly with SIDS and Pacific Island and all the countries that are going through this existential development that is climate change. And of course, in the case of seats, translate the Antigua and Barbuda agenda into real financing reform, incorporating, as I said before, vulnerability into all access criterias. And I will insist in all the multilateral places and all the bilateral places that climate change should not be something that is forgotten because it is, I would say, the biggest threat to humanity.

I thank you. I now give the floor to the English representative of the Kingdom of the Netherlands on behalf of the Benelux countries, followed by Singapore and the next civil society organization, 148 Billion.

Thank you, Madam President. I have the honor to speak on behalf of the Benelux, a longstanding regional partnership comprising Belgium, Luxembourg, and my own country, the Kingdom of the Netherlands. I align with the statement of the European Union. And I thank Ms. Bachelet for sharing her vision and her long-standing commitment to human rights. We particularly value your emphasis on prevention, accountability, and the centrality of human rights across all pillars of the UN. We see strong resonance with our belief that the Secretary-General must serve as a guardian of the UN Charter and international law, and as a voice of moral authority, especially in times of increasing geopolitical tension. We consider that the UN needs, above all, a Secretary-General with proven leadership and reform credentials, capable of guiding a complex organization in a time of geopolitical tension and financial pressure. We attach particular importance to a Secretary-General who can strengthen trust in multilateralism and the international legal order. act as a strong convening power across all three pillars, and who can proactively contribute to prevention, peacebuilding, and mediation. At the same time, we see a need to strengthen the UN's financial sustainability, accountability, and system-wide coherence. We would be interested to hear more about how you would approach modernizing UN management systems and financing, ensuring greater transparency, efficiency, and coherence across the system. particularly in the light of the ongoing discussions on UNAT. And finally, could you share your early thinking on the composition of your senior leadership team, including Deputy Secretary-General? How would you approach considerations such as regional balance, gender, and the specific qualities needed to support your priorities and the good functioning of the UN? I thank you.

I thank the distinguished representative of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. On behalf of the Benelux countries, please, Ms. Bachelot.

Well, some of the things I already mentioned, I believe, is that one of the things that the next Secretary-General has to do is to try to build trust within the United Nations, among countries. And my intention is to speak with all member states with the PRs to come to the General Assembly every time I'm invited, of course, to inform of the different things that the Secretary-General is doing on different areas that are on the competence of the Secretary-General, but also to analyze which could be not only in terms of what we need to do on the UNAD, in terms of what I already mentioned, improving efficiency, managerial situations, and avoid duplication and so on, and fragmentation. But also, of course, we need to do much more in terms of how we finance the system. And in that sense, I do believe that I will need to speak And also, if I am selected, I will need to speak that before I come to office, because I've heard that the Secretariat will not have much money when it starts next year, to ask for member states to do what they have to do. The assessed contributions are not voluntary. They are by the shutter. It's a legal commitment. So member states have to do it, but also do it in the moment it's needed, because If countries pay their assessed contributions in December, it's very difficult that they will be able to be used during the year that is finishing. But I think I will use my best offices, good offices in this regard as well, to try to talk to them why it's so important So the UN can really do the mandates that we have, being in peace and security, being in development, and also being on the human rights area. Well, human rights, you know, has only 4% of the budget, of the regular budget. So it's not much, but still we need to preserve it because we need also to be in the middle of all what we do in the UN. In terms of... And of course, there's many, many things, and also, if you think on financing for development, that will be something probably we'll speak later on during the session, but there are a lot of different mechanisms that have been identified in many UN conference that I think we should push for them to become a reality. In terms of the composition of my group, I wouldn't be able to tell you the names of the person, I will give you the criterias. The criteria for me is that what the Charter asks us to do. The Charter says that the Secretary General has to choose. First of all, I have to say nobody can by himself have all the answers to everything. And you need a good team, a good team that is committed, that really understands. and that feels that the only way we go through is if we work together and we push in the same direction as secretariat, but with member states as well. The second thing that I would say is that, of course, there is a need of improving representation, geographical representation, and of course, gender parity. Secretary-General Guterres have done a lot in terms of gender parity at certain levels, and I think that needs to continue as a criteria. And there's a lot of countries who feel unrepresented or underrepresented. And I will be particularly active in looking for having candidates that will apply to different posts that really are part of these countries who do not feel represented. How can somebody trust the UN if the UN does not represent the world? inside its own secretariat. So for me, this is an essential task that I will achieve.

I thank you. I now give the floor to the distinguished representative of Singapore on behalf of the Small States Group, followed by the civil society organization and then Kenya.

Thank you very much, Madam President, and a warm welcome to Madam Bashley. I have the honor to deliver this statement on behalf of the Small States Group, which is a cross-regional grouping of small states comprising both developed and developing countries. Madam Bashley, we are living in a volatile and dangerous period in international relations characterized by geopolitical tension and conflict. For small states, an effective multilateral system founded on the principles of the UN Charter and international law is not an option, but an existential necessity. The next Secretary-General will play a critical role, not only in defending the UN Charter, but also in reinvigorating and reshaping the role and relevance of the United Nations. We look to the Secretary-General to safeguard the interests of all Member States, especially the interests of the smallest, weakest and most vulnerable members of the UN. We do not want a world of might is right. where international law and sovereignty and territorial integrity of small states are violated with impunity. The members of the SSG stand ready to work with the next Secretary-General and all member states to strengthen the role of the UN and to defend international law and multilateralism. In the interest of brevity, please allow me to go directly to the questions now. First, what steps will you take to strengthen the role of the General Assembly, especially at a time when the Security Council has been unable to take decisive action? And specifically, Madame Bachelot, how will you support and strengthen the office of the President of the General Assembly? Second, the SDGs and the Pact for the Future are landmark outcome documents which provide a roadmap for global action and partnership. How will you accelerate the implementation of the SDGs and the Pact for the Future? Thirdly, we are at a critical moment when public perception of the United Nations seems to have become critical and even cynical in many countries. How do you plan to galvanize support for the work of the UN, especially among younger people who represent the future in all our societies? Thank you.

I thank the Singapore representative of Singapore, speaking on behalf of the Small States Group. Please, Ms. Makbouchi.

Well, I believe that Pact of the Future has a really important role in terms of ensuring that we can be successful to accelerate the Agenda 2030 and the achievement of the DSGs. And I will do my best in terms of organizing the part of that is in my competence, that it is, that what could be in my competence, that will be how we organize the internal system in terms of the rest and coordinator system in terms that they work with every, I mean, this is a universal political and moral compact, the Agenda 2030 and the Pact for the Future. But every country does not have the same obstacles and the same problems to be able to solve their shortcomings. So I believe this needs to be done. I mean, I need to push for it has to be work at the local level, at the country level, where the UN community system will work with the countries for the national priorities. and look at what are the bottlenecks they have in each particular issue to see how the EU system can be really, really helpful in supporting with good strategies to build capacity in case that's needed and to put the money where it's also needed. I think that is something that we need to do in terms of really making this a reality. And the second thing that I would say is that we-- sorry, I'm trying to-- I'm trying to understand what I wrote down. Sorry, just a second. And the last one. And I was trying to identify the third one. And I think in terms of the Office of the PGA, I believe they should have appropriate funding, recognized also as the voice of the most universal and democratic organ, and work closely with the PGA. That would be my main issues. And the third was... Strengthen the role of the General Assembly. No, no, that's already answered. No, the last one was... Oh, sorry, madam. Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah, about youth. And no, it was more than youth. It was how, what are you going to do so the world trusts the United Nations, particularly youth, but also trust. What I believe is that the only way to rebuild trust in the United Nations as a system, first of all, is to be able to deliver results. If people in the world sees that the United Nations is dealing with the most delicate situations and having results, having trust, support people that are having that are with hunger, support people that are living under terrible conditions, support and play the biggest possible role. That's what general, but the whole UN system in the solution of conflict, that's the only way that the world will believe that the United Nations is a meaningful organization, but also young people who will have hope that the world can be better also for them.

I thank you. I now give the floor to the distinguished representative of the next civil society organization, One for 8 Billion, followed by Kenya and Germany.

Thank you. Aditi Gorur with the One for 8 Billion campaign. During Secretary-General campaigns, candidates face considerable pressure from powerful member states, especially on the allocation of senior UN jobs. This violates the UN Charter as well as multiple GA resolutions, and it's resulted in certain countries enjoying a monopoly on top UN roles for their nationals. We believe that the next Secretary-General should have the freedom to build the best possible team from a diverse global talent pool. If appointed, what steps will you take to ensure that there are no longer national monopolies on top UN jobs? Thank you.

I thank the distinguished representative of the civil society organization 148 Billion, Ms. Bachelet.

Well, I think the main step that you can have is to have the conviction, as I said before, that you need the senior post, be it from CB, from special envoys, from different organs, depending on the Secretary-General, but also inside the Secretariat, in terms of senior post, that they will really represent the world. And I believe that should be like that. And I have to say it's sometimes not easy. Sometimes it will mean a political cost. But if you are convinced that you want the world to see the UN as really as representative of the diversity of countries that we have, of the diversity of situations that are not the same when you are dealing with different challenges, being it peace and security, being development with human rights, or being in the possibility of a small state to be able to thrive. I think you need to have people in charge that will really be able to represent those perspectives and to ensure that the Secretary General never forgets and also plays a role that no one in the UN forgets those situations and can play an important role in trying to improve the conditions of all of those countries. And in that sense, I have to say, being a president of the republic, my first time, it was a story in my country as well, where there were certain ministries that were like for certain parties. And I thought that was not a good idea. I think you need always rotation. First, representation of diversity, geographical, gender parity, but also representation. And so what I'm saying, I'm not afraid of doing that. I've done it in the past and I will do it if it's necessary, because it is necessary in the UN. That's my conviction and my commitment.

I thank you. I now give the floor to the distinguished representative of Kenya on behalf of the UNAD global group, followed by Germany and Uganda.

Thank you, Madam President.

I will ask the following question on behalf of the UN80 Global.

Group, a cross-regional group comprising of Barbados, Indonesia, Jordan, New Zealand, Norway, Mexico, Senegal, Singapore, and my own country, Kenya.

Excellency, Ms. Bachelet.

If elected as the next Secretary-General, what will you do to meaningfully restore trust between the Secretariat and Member States, the Executive Office of the Secretary-General, and the rest of the system?

And global confidence in the United Nations.

I thank you.

I thank the distinguished representative of Kenya on behalf of the UN80 Global Group.

Well, thank you for that question. I believe that the best possibility to rebuild confidence is to have a very strong honest, permanent dialogue with member states, even with member states that you know where there's no consensus, because I truly believe that that is really important. That's the only possibility for dialogue and to build trust. Trust can only be built on transparency, on honesty, but also honoring one's values and one's words. This is who I am. This is what I will do. Values are really important as well. But I think one of the important thing, but that happens in politics as well, I have to say. People get disappointed of the politicians because they promise things when they're campaigning, and then when they come into office, they will win, they don't see them anymore. And I'm not that kind. I'm a person who wants to do what I have said I want to do, because that makes me feel that I'm a person who can be trusted. That is how I am. And also the same with the rest of the system, to work honestly on the issues that you have committed to do, to solve different shortcomings and problems particularly in this very difficult moment for the UN in terms of financial restrictions and the need, of course, of a reform. But also, in terms of the reform, I think it's really important. I mentioned before, but I would love to mention again because of your question, is that the reform has to be owned and felt owned by member states. It's not something, I mean, of course, the Secretariat has been doing a lot of things, you're going to approve it or not, you're going to discuss many of those issues, but it's the Secretary-General's role to implement what's decided by member states. And that's why I believe that we can really work in a very good relationship. But to build respect on the world, I insist, we need to deliver. If the United Nations is seen that doesn't deliver, if the Security Council is seen deadlock and that doesn't deliver, and you see what's happening in the world, people will not believe in the UN. So I think there's a lot of challenges we need to deal with to be able to ensure, but first deliver at the ground. The second thing that is needed is a very strong field presence of the Secretary-General. Many people ask, is it the Secretary or is it a General? Yes, in the Charter it says that the Secretary General should be the chief administrator, and that's true. Some say it's the top diplomat in terms that represent the world, that is also needed, but also a General in the sense of being in the field, of working very strongly in prevention, and working very strongly where conflicts arise, but also where we have all kinds of other issues like lack of development and problems with human rights. I feel that it has to be a very present Secretary-General.

I thank you. I now give the floor to the distinguished representative of Germany on behalf of the Group of Four, followed by Uganda and Austria.

Madam President, thank you very much. And Madame Bachelet, Excellency, thank you very much for speaking to us today and presenting your vision. I have the honor to speak on behalf of the Group of Four, consisting of Brazil, India, Japan, and my country, Germany. As the G4 plays a pivotal role in moving forward the reform of the Security Council, my question pertains to that. The Security Council, of course, bears primary responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security. But as its composition does not reflect today's geopolitical realities, the relevance and the effectiveness of the Council are questioned, have been questioned. What role do you foresee for the Secretary-General on the question of reform of the Security Council and what specific initiatives do you intend to maybe take if you are selected? And I would like to add one question in my national capacity. You've spoken about your vision and you have spoken on UNAT and on the Pact for the Future. I would like to ask you and also give you the possibility to elaborate a little bit further of how you see the organization working, on what topics and what priorities, say, over the next five years or maybe ten years, and how you align the vision that has been decided on by Member States in the Pact, with your vision, and what you think is a priority in terms of making the organization work for those priorities. So what priorities specifically do you have for reform of the organization? Thank you very much.

I thank the distinguished representative of Germany on behalf of the Group of Four. Please, Ms. Bachelin.

Yes. Well, in the Pact for the Future, there was approved the need to reform of the Security Council. And even though, of course, that is the main role of the member states to decide in which direction you go. I think it's a need to think seriously on that reform. So it is better represented what the world is today. So it has the possibility of being more effective, more efficient, and with more representation, I think that can be possible. And that we are able to think also in a better geographical representation, not only numbers of states that can be part of the Security Council, but also from certain regions where they are not part right now as permanent members. And I think that the Secretary General should play a role in terms of, as I said, good offices in terms of talking to member states, talking to the P5, talking to E10, but also to all member states. I mean, I believe that the Secretary-General has to have current meetings with the Security Council, with all together, but also separately with the P5, the 10, to try to see if there are certain possibilities of building certain convergences, certain consensus. The Secretary-General can try to do his best to produce what I would say political viability for certain changes and for certain reforms. It will not be up to him to make the final decision, or her, but it will be to be able to push in the direction that what the world needs. And the world needs a Security Council that can solve the problems that are on its competence. And right now, it doesn't seem so. So we need to ensure that that happens. On the other hand, on the question of on the UN aid, what do I pretend to do in that sense? I think that financial viability is one of the really important issues we have to take care. Of course, make the system more effective, more impactful, accountable, and transparent. One of the things that in my life I've been pushing for, being a minister, being a safe director of UN Women and being the High Commissioner of Human Rights, and of course, being president of the Republic, is that any organization that makes policies, programs, implements them, needs to be a result-oriented organization. When I was a minister, they will give me initiative, activities. And I was always asking, don't give me this, I'm not interested. You have the 100 activities. I know maybe it's five activities, but I know I want to know the outcome, the impact, because what we need is impact and not only numbers of activities that can fill a paper. The same I did with being executive director of UN Women and also High Commissioner of Human Rights. The internal report, but also the report for donors were always about activities. And I always insisted, this is not what we need, we need to know. that if what we are doing on the field, the money we're using in that is really having the impact that we need. If not, we have to change what we have to do. We need to cut this progress and we need to do what is really good. So that I would say will be what will be some of my priorities.

I thank you. I now give the floor to the senior representative of Uganda on behalf of the non-aligned movement, followed by Austria and Palau.

Madam President, I am honored to speak on behalf of the 121 member states of the Non-Aligned Movement, NAM. We welcome the holding of this informal dialogue to exchange views with the candidates of the position of Secretary-General of the United Nations. NAM has a series of questions, but to avoid repetition, since we came down the queue, I'll ask a few of those. Number one, how would you promote a more inclusive global governance and ensure the effective consideration of the needs and priorities of developing countries? Number two, the declaration on the right to development was adopted in 1986 by the United Nations. What is your position on the right to development and how would you advance its implementation within the United Nations? Number three, how do you assess the impact of unilateral coercive measures on the ability of affected developing countries to achieve sustainable development and fully implement the 2030 agenda? What concrete actions would you promote in your capacity as Secretary-General to strengthen the role of the United Nations in opposing such measures, urging their elimination and promoting mechanisms to prevent their application? And next question, considering the importance of safeguarding the full independence, impartiality and institutional integrity of the Secretariat. I know it has been asked, what measures would you propose to ensure that these principles are reflected in the equitable and effective support to all Member State representations in the discharge of their responsibilities? Related to that, which has come also, which was asked, I have 35 seconds. is in terms of the concrete measures you would propose to strengthen multilateralism and international cooperation in the light of the erosion resulting earlier from noncompliance with international obligations. I thank you.

I thank the distinguished representative of Uganda on behalf of the Non-Aligned Movement.

Well, first of all, You remember the Declaration of the Right to Development. And I have to say that according to certain decisions, as High Commissioner of Human Rights, it was on my mandate that I had to ensure that the right to development will be respected. So it's not something that I answered just in theory. I had to deal with that. I think we need to address the historical dimension of the right to development, the structural inequalities. created by colonial histories require specific remedial action, including in reparative finance frameworks, preferential trade arrangements, and technology access. I think that the Secretary-General's advocacy on development finance, trade rules, debt restructuring, and technology transfer is explicitly grounded in the right to development, connecting economic policy debates to their human rights foundations. I always have defended the universality, indivisibility, interdependence of all human rights. So I believe all human rights are important rights, from the social, economic, political, civil rights, and of course, well, the right of now, it has been discussed a couple of years ago, of a healthy environment, and now the right to development. I think we also need to connect the right to development to climate justice. The right of developing countries to pursue their development aspiration while bearing a disproportionate burden of climate impact is a human rights challenge. It's not only an economic and environmental one. And in terms of the unilateral coercive measures, My impression is that the unilateral, I mean, the Charter says exactly when you can enforce certain measures and when not. And unilateral coercive measures usually are not in the spirit of the Charter. And the other thing that we all know is that usually unilateral coercive measures affects people, the normal people on the ground. Doesn't affect the ones you're supposed to punish, the ones who are making, violating rights or so on. And that means that the universal measures, of course, they're not helping to solve the crisis. And many times they are aggravating the humanitarian crisis, affecting more to the more vulnerable. So I think that the international community through the resolution of the UNGA and also the Council of Human Rights have recognized the need to avoid this kind of measures that can be not in the line of the international right and affect the stable development of countries. So I think this is an issue that requires dialogue, requires to understand that the different sensibilities about it, and also to renovate commitment with collective solution that can, if I would say, make multilateral system more strong. Okay, I'll empty it.

Thank you. I now give the floor to the next speaker, the distinguished representative of Austria on behalf of the Group of Friends on the Rule of Law, followed by Palau.

Thank you, Madam President, and thank you, Madam Bachelier. I have the honour to speak on behalf of over 50 cross-regional members of the Group of Friends of the Rule of Law. In recent years, we have witnessed breaches of even the most fundamental provisions of the UN Charter, including the obligation of all member states to refrain in their international relations from the threat or use of force, as well as mass atrocities committed at large scale. All this paired with the failure of the Security Council to take adequate action in response. So the two questions of the Group of Friends of the Rule of Law to you are, First, what concrete, proactive and preventive measures would you personally pursue if elected as Secretary-General to strengthen the rule of law and prevent breaches by Member States of the Charter's principles and of international law? And second, what specific preventive diplomacy initiatives would you launch or strengthen? I thank you.

I thank the distinguished representative of Austria on behalf of the Group of Friends on the Rule of Law.

Well, I believe that we all need to be responsible for the insurance that the rule of law is, that member states are in compliance with the rule of law and on all the principles of the charter and, of course, of the international law. But I believe that when this is not in compliance with the charter, the Secretary-General has many possibilities. One is to talk, to dialogue with the parties who are violating in some way this, or not respecting or not in compliance with it. to ensure that, to try to change that situation. The second is to talk to the Security Council on this situation and with the General Assembly on that to see what can be done. But at the end, if nothing works, the Secretary-General has to speak out, has to speak out calling member states to really respect the charter, to really respect the international law, and the rule of law. And what initiatives in prevention, if I would say in this, I think I mentioned before that we need to be very hands-on the possible crisis to identify which can be the conflict that can arise and where we can do as much as possible from the ground to try to avoid crisis from happening, being it internal crisis or between countries, between parties. We think that, I think that the Secretary General has to talk to the parties in conflict and convince them to find pacific solutions to the conflicts. For that, he needs to understand exactly what's going on, what are the real problems. Sometimes words say something, but the real problems are other. In the past, when I went to a country, I sat down with two different ethnic groups that they were killing each other on the weekends. And I tried to understand exactly what was the problem. And in that case in particular, the problem was the lack of water or the lack of land. Some were farmers, some were herders. So afterwards that, I spoke with the governors and the president of the republic to say, we need to find better possibilities for everyone in your country, because otherwise this kind of problems will continue happening, if I may say. So I always think that maybe because I'm a medical doctor, I always try to understand the root causes and try to see how I work through these root causes to try to prevent things from happening. There's a lot of preventive diplomacy that can be done. And the thing is that we have to be very aware of what is happening. from the ground to the General Assembly, Security Council, but also in the case of the Secretary-General. And of course, at the end, it's not very preventive, though, you always can use the Article 99 of the Charter to call on a very difficult situation to try to bring to attention the Security Council that more needs to be done.

Thank you. I now give the floor to the distinguished representative of Palau on behalf of the Alliance of Small Island States.

Thank you, Madam President, for convening this important dialogue.

And thank you, Madam Bachelet, as well, for your interaction with us today. I have the honor to speak on behalf of the 39 members of the Alliance of Small Island States.

And as a group of countries in special situations, the credibility of the United Nations lies in its ability to.

Respond.

To the unique circumstances of SIDS, correct longstanding inequities, and deliver results for the most vulnerable. In this regard, allow me to pose the following questions.

One, how will you, as Secretary-General, ensure that the United Nations system is more accessible, better coordinated, and tailored to the unique vulnerabilities?

Of SIDS to better and more meaningfully support the implementation of the Antigua and Barbuda agenda for SIDS.

And two, what specific measures?

Will you take to improve on the underrepresentation of SIDS within the UN Secretariat, especially at senior leadership levels? And how will you strengthen pathways for SIDS nationals to shape decision making across the UN?

Thank you.

Please.

Well, I mentioned before some of the issues in terms of the seats. that I really understand that it has a lot of obstacles in terms of development, but also that climate is a very important and existential development challenge for the SIDS. That's why I believe that we need to translate the Antigua and Barbuda agenda into real financing reform, incorporating vulnerability into all access criteria. One of the things I mentioned before that being present with Antigua and Barbuda and Uruguay, we tried to change the criterias for which concessional funding, financing were considered. And I still believe that we need to include not only the GDP criteria, but the index of vulnerability. That it should be a multidimensional vulnerability index. I mentioned this because I did it before. It didn't work at the time. We didn't have success. But I think every time it's more clear. We see it every time. Climate change is not a problem of the future. We have it now. And we see it in many islands. And we see it in the Caribbean countries as well. I'm speaking about that because I'm from Latin America. I see it more easily. But it happens probably in Palau and many other places. That there is a reality that we need to deal with it now. And that's why I really intend I tend to have a strong focus on seeds, LDCs, LDCs, etc. countries to see what else can we do? What are we missing? Why are not getting into the real problems they have you have? And of course, that means also that when you when I organize the teams and particularly in decision making position and top positions, we need to to have representatives of all these countries that feels that they're deemed to to be there and they're not but I have to make a a mention I have been aware of this in the past as well and I will ask member states when you're looking forward to have more representation to to make good candidates to apply the best possible candidate because the charter speaks about competence Integrity capacity and also geographic representation and gender And sometimes I wanted to appoint a woman, but the people who apply were not of the stature. So we need to ensure that the people who apply have the quality that I'm sure there's a lot of people with huge qualities in the seats, but also that represents the values, the principle of the charter. And if I have that, I will be so happy to be able to choose people who represent the variety of the world.

I thank you. One and a half hours have already passed. So while there is still interest from especially groups, we see also the diversity of groups today in this room, but also many, many member states to speak on the first segment. I invite delegation now also to proceed to the second segment to allow sufficient time to hear the candidates response to the question related to the three pillars of the United Nations, peace and security, development and human rights. We heard some questions already on that one. Again, also in this segment, civil society question will be interspersed with question from member states. So delegations wishing to speak now also in the second segment are invited to do so by pressing the microphone button now. As said before, priority will be given to those who have not spoken in the first segment, but many have not spoken in the first segment yet. So don't worry, we have another one and a half hours to continue with your questions and the engagement by member states. I would like to ask again to also watch the time so we can hear everybody with his or her question. I now give the floor to the distinguished representative of Andorra on behalf of the group of the Francophonie Ambassadors, followed by Trinidad and Tobago on behalf of the Caribbean Community. Yes.

Apologies, it seems to be working now. Thank you very much, Madame Bachelot, for presenting your strategic vision. I'll be very brief. We are convinced that the full implementation of the three pillars of the organization is indissociable from effective multilingualism and a renewed multilateralism. which is more inclusive. In this regard, I have three questions on multilingualism, which is key for the implementation of the three pillars. Since the publication of the strategy for multilingualism in March 2024, no administrative guidelines have been adopted yet on this matter. So what kind of initiatives do you tend to do to move forward these strategies? Second question, what specific measures do you envisage to have genuine parity between the working languages of the Secretariat, English and French, and to make sure that multilingualism is fully integrated into activities pertaining to peace and development and human rights? And lastly, how do you intend to use new technologies such as AI to enhance linguistic services using the highly qualified professionals that the Secretariat already has at its disposal. Given all of this, against a backdrop in which there is a need for multilateralism, how do you envisage envisage greater participation of regional bodies within this kind of multilateralism? And how do you intend to work with other stakeholders, such as the International Organization of the Francophonie, to implement the three pillars of the organization, given the current resource constraints? Thank you.

If I am appointed Secretary-General, I would like to improve my French. I will speak in English now.

Well, I think that multilingualism is essential in the UN because it represents what the world is. I mean, we only have six official languages, but we need to ensure at least those six official languages can be-- I mean, people can have access to it so they can have the possibility of speak to feel that they are really being able to represent what they want to say. And that also-- help us understand each other, our cultures, et cetera, et cetera. I think that many things should be done. Even there has been all what you do as a system, that everything works, that they, I mean, the UNAD should not decrease this funding for all these issues to ensure multilingualism. We should have able to have translator, interpreters, we should have money, not, it is, Today we don't have it, not even before liquidity crisis, there was not enough money. As High Commissioner of Human Rights, we couldn't have all documents in six languages because we didn't have the money for the budget. We tried to do our best, but it was really difficult. I try as candidate to put on digital base in the six languages, my vision statement. But I think you also need to ensure that even when you hire human resources that they can bring with different languages. Today, they ask you how many languages you have, but usually they mainly, if you have said two, it's enough. But I think when you're thinking on diversifying your team, that means not only another language, but another history, another tradition, another perspective that can enrich the UN. I also believe that there has to be important possibilities of capacity building in different languages. Because in my experience as High Commissioner of Human Rights in particular, we had colleagues that spoke the official languages, so we can have meetings in their languages that were not the most commonly used at work, that it was English or Spanish or French. And that was really helpful because you could understand exactly what the person representative of that country wanted to say, but also they couldn't feel that they were heard and they would really understand what you're saying. Big countries have translators, but small countries not always have translators. And we also believe that technology could help, but of course, I suppose it had to be an appropriate technology that can really be, make a possibility of incorporating different languages in all digital spaces where people, not only from the UN, but also people from the world, could know what the UN is doing, what they are thinking about it, what initiatives and strategies they are developing on that regard. So I have a very strong commitment with multilingualism, because I feel it's really the possibility to ensure that the world also feels more connected to the UN.

Thank you. I now give the floor to the distinguished representative of Trinidad and Tobago on behalf of the Caribbean Community, followed by Malawi and Timor-Leste.

Thank you, Madam President. I speak on behalf of the 14 member states of the Caribbean Community, CARICOM. We are grateful for the opportunity to participate in this important dialogue and to engage with the distinguished candidate aspiring to the position of Secretary-General. We recognize the magnitude of this responsibility and commend all candidates now and in the future for their willingness to serve the international community at such a pivotal moment. Ms. Bachelet, my delegation thanks you for your thoughtful and comprehensive vision statement, which provides a strong foundation for today's exchange and frames the context for the questions I would raise on behalf of the Caribbean community. Two brief questions. Firstly, how should the United Nations adapt its peace and security architecture to address emerging and non-traditional threats such as cyber conflict, climate-related insecurity, and the spread of disinformation, challenges that increasingly transcend borders and strain existing mechanisms. And my final question pertains to Haiti. Before I proceed, however, and on behalf of the Caribbean community, I wish to express our appreciation to the government of Kenya and to all participating countries for their commitment and support to Haiti as it continues to confront a complex, multidimensional security crisis. Given the complex and rapidly evolving situation on the ground and in light of the specialized gang suppression unit, how do you envision the United Nations role in ensuring that such deployments are effective, accountable, and fully aligned with the protection needs of the Haitian population? More specifically, what safeguards, oversight mechanisms, and community engagement strategies would you prioritize to help ensure that the mission contributes to long-term stability, strengthens national institutions, and maintains the trust and confidence of the Haitian people? I thank you, Madam President.

I thank the distinguished representative of Trinidad and Tobago on behalf of CARICOM. Please, Ms. Bachelet.

Thank you very much for that question. Yes, I think that it's clear for us and the Secretary General, Guterres, has mentioned it many times, and also they're working on a report on how should the peace and security forces and mandates be seen in the current situation. Not only on the shrinking financial situation, that is one, of course, element that should be taken into consideration, but also in terms of the new challenges that peacekeeping forces need to confront, and that clearly, with the traditional conformation of peacekeeping forces, not necessarily are prepared to respond to this. And you mentioned cybersecurity, climate change, and transnational and criminal organizations. Of course, the Secretariat, I think, will develop a report in like four weeks or something like that. But I've been thinking a lot of that on this because as Minister of Defense, I had to, I was aware, and we've sent for the first time, Chile sent people to peacekeeping operation in Cyprus, in Haiti, in Africa, and other places in different contexts. And today, one of the things that every Secretary General has developed a report on peace and security. And well, Kofi, I think it was Brahimi. then Ban Ki-moon another one, and now it's preparing Secretary Guterres. One of the things that we have learned, and I think they're still valid, is that the conflict where you have to deal with don't have a military response. It's not enough a military response. You need a political response because you need political solutions to the problems. And that's why the political component, and the civilian component is as important as the police and armed forces component of a peacekeeping operation. But we need to believe what else we need to do in terms of being able to look at these new challenges. And we need to understand also that probably what we'll have to think about is that not as in the past, the peacekeeping operations were multidimensional, big mandates that do everything, that we'll need to think on with a particular mandate of the particular situation and what is the most priority issue to deal with it. And probably to think on a special force with what is to that particular situation and not sort of a model that is a general model to every country in the world. The second thing on Haiti, and thank you for that question, because Haiti is very close to my heart, being in my region, but also having been there many times and sending a peacekeeping operation there. And there is a huge complexity. I hope the UN, well, there is the BINU there that will continue working on supporting all what is needed through the country team. But also, of course, we will have the GSF, the Gun Suppression Force. that will be supported by this office of the UN to support logistically, operationally. And I think this is really important. One thing, though, that concerns me, to be honest, and I think we need to be very alert on that. Of course, we need to suppress gangs, but 50% of the gangs are children and children and young children probably doing the least important roles on gangs. But there's a lot of children. So we need to, I think, when the work is done by member states like Kenya and others, who have been so generous to go into this job, is to look how these jobs are done and be aware that there's a lot of those combatants that are children. And what are the kind of measures to be taken to avoid that this can be a terrible situation, but Haiti needs to be supported.

Thank you. I now give the floor to the distinguished representative of Malawi on behalf of the least developed countries, followed by Timor-Leste and the next civil society organization.

Excellencies, I thank Madame Mbakari for presenting to us her vision of the position of the Secretary-General. The LDC group welcomes this transparent and inclusive process for the selection and appointment of this next Secretary-General. The LDC group expects that the next Secretary-General must restore confidence in a charter-driven multilateral system, rescue the SDGs in LDCs, and ensure that no financial or political pressure is allowed to weaken the UN's dedicated support to the most vulnerable countries. Madam Pascheri, the LDC Group would like you to share your observations on the following questions, which reflect the core concerns and expectations of the Group. on restoration of a charter-driven multilateralism. In today's deeply divided international landscape, multilateralism is clearly at a crossroads, and many decisions affecting our peoples are increasingly taken in informal or exclusive forums without meaningful engagement of LDCs. This trend undermines the central charter-driven role of the UN and weakens the voice of those most in need, including the LDCs. Our question is, if selected as SD, what concrete steps will you take to re-establish the UN as the central forum for addressing global peace and security, development and financing issues, and how will you ensure that LDCs meaningfully remain at the table to shape these decisions rather than remain on the margins? Secondly, on ensuring adequate resources and support for LDCs. LDCs are recognized as the most vulnerable countries, yet the level and quality of support they receive from the UN and development partners continue to fall far short of what is required to achieve the SDGs and implement the Doha Programme of Action. The implementation gap is widening, especially in areas such as climate resilience, debt sustainability and social protection. The question is, what will be your strategic approach to mobilize and direct adequate, predictable, and concessional resources to ODSs? And how will you reorient the UN development system so that supporting ODSs to achieve the SDGs becomes a visible system-wide priority at country level? The third question, as the UN faces unprecedented challenges from within and outside, what strategic approach will you undertake to rethink...

I thank the distinguished representative of Malawi on behalf of the least developed country. So the last one was UN development pillar. I now give the floor again to Ms. Bachelet, followed by Timor-Leste and the civil society.

Well, if I would say it in a very soundbite way, is that no decisions on LDCs without the LDCs sitting on the table. I think that would be my first comment in terms that I truly believe that we need to ensure that their voices are heard and that not only their voices are heard, but they can influence on the decision making. The second thing is we need to mobilize funds for LDCs and how we do that. I think we need to convince that development of all is in the interest of all. And this, of course, goes only not only to the LDCs, but all the other groups that already have spoken, the SEEDS, the LLDCs, et cetera. This is really important, and I believe that we can do that and we need to do that. It's obvious for many of us when you are not having the possibility of ensuring development, when you are living under climate crisis, there's a lot of these situations that you also described, Madam Representative, is that they feel migration, they feel conflict, they feel a lot of issues that afterwards, if you don't do what you need to do and you have to do, preventing these things from happening, the international community, the General Assembly, and sometimes Security Council will have to deal with it in a more costly manner, costly in terms of lives of people, but also costly in terms of the needs of funding for that. The other thing that I wanted to mention was the issue of, I think, the UN, you mentioned the middle-income countries as well. I think we need to have a UN approach for middle-income countries. Because as we all know, being middle-income usually makes you not beneficiary of many of the financing policy abilities, among others concessional fundings. But we also know that middle-income countries hold the majority of the poor of the world. So again, there's something we're not doing right, because we have a problem there, but the mechanism that we're developing cannot help the ones who need a lot of help. So I do believe that it's really needed to dedicate that, a particular approach to ensure how MICs are not overlooked by income per capita metrics that is happening today. The other thing that I think is important is that It's the pillar of development, the very essence of the UN. If we fail developing countries, the UN fails. So we need to have a strong commitment on this. And one thing that you then mentioned, but for me is really important, and particularly in Africa, is that, and I mentioned in my initial words, is that we need to think on youth. Because in Africa in particular, youth-- I mean, in Latin America and the Caribbean, in parts of Asia, and in parts of Europe, the fertility rates are not very high. But in Africa, it will continue growing, the population. We have a lot of young people. So we need, on one hand, to be part of the processes, being in peacekeeping processes, development process, their voices to be heard, but also creating jobs so they can have hopes and opportunities.

I thank you. I now give the floor to the distinguished representative of Timor-Leste on behalf of the Committee of Portuguese-Speaking Countries, followed by the next civil society organization and Mali.

Excellency, Madam President, Excellency, Madam Bachelet, thank you for giving your briefings on your vision as the UN Secretary-General. I have the honor of speaking on behalf of the Community of Portuguese-Speaking Countries. The CPLP spans four continents and is home to over 280 million people, united by a common language, shared heritage, and strong cultural ties. We are also connected by the ocean, which is central to our economies, our cultures, and our future. We attach the highest importance to the United Nations and the principles of multilateralism. In this spirit, and given the Secretary-General's central role in guiding the organization, We have consistently held that the Secretary-General must be fully committed to advancing meaningful UN reform and upholding the values and purposes enshrined in the Charter. We also underline the need to ensure the full and balanced implementation of the UN main pillars as the foundation for a more effective, credible and responsive United Nations. In this context, we would welcome your views on the following. How would you position the ocean within the UN agenda and advance concrete action in areas such as the implementation of the BBNJ agreement, combating illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing, and mobilizing financing for a sustainable blue economy? I thank you.

I thank the distinguished representative of Timor-Leste. On behalf of the Committee of Portuguese-speaking countries, Ms. Bachellet, please, you have the.

I thank Timor-Leste on representation of the Lusophone. I would like to say something before. I mean, while being High Commissioner, I did not only have meeting with Member States, with groups, but also have, I mean, geographical groups. But also have meetings with the Francophonie, with Lusophonie, with, of course, the Anglophone, and of course, the, et cetera, because I do believe, and of course, of formation as well, because I do believe that it's really important to understand the realities. But talking about oceans, being an oceanic country, my country, we have had, and we have seen on one hand, the risk of climate change on our coast, on our species, marine species, et cetera. So we work a lot on the protected marine areas that were very important to ensure that the ocean could still be a place where you can continue having life of the species. And in that sense, I think the agreement, BBNJ agreement is really important to to continue going through. Chile was a candidate for the BNG headquarters in Valparaiso. I don't know what will happen on that, but what I mean to say is that for my country, this was really, really a very important thing. And I think the BBNJ mentions a lot of commitments that have to be implemented. I think oceans are really It's really critical the entry into force of the BBMG, so we must move to structuring our cooperation on this regard. And in terms of combining EIU, I think full implementation of port states and measures agreement are essential. So there's a lot of things that need to be done on oceans, and if I am selected, I will do my best on that regard.

Ms. Bachelet. Now I give the floor to the next civil society organization and invite the Assembly to view a pre-recorded video by the Organization of Youth for a Secure Cyberspace.

As threats to peace and security go beyond traditional conflict to include challenges such as cyber insecurity and transnational risk.

How will you adopt?

The United Nations peace and security system to remain effective while ensuring inclusive participation of youth and underrepresented regions.

Thank you.

I thank the representative of the Organization of Youth for a Secure Cyberspace. Please, Ms. Basha, you have the floor.

Well, I think we already have, like we have 13, resolution 1325 on women, peace and security. We have also IPS, youth, peace and security. And I think we need to implement that. We need to ensure that young voices are part of this, of these processes. For many reasons. First of all, because of course in many countries where there are issues and conflict of peace and security, the big amount of the population is under 35 or under 30. So you have the strong, the youth voices and the possibility of youth being part of the solution is high, is really important. Secondly, because I believe that they are the people who knows better the problems and can also, I would say, think on solutions. are the people on the ground, because they know the local context, they know the communities. And in that sense, young people can also be a very important part of that. Third, because if we at the same time are looking at the peace and security issue, you look at development, because there's not only why many times conflict arise is because of the lack of opportunity, because human rights are not respected, because there's And youth is part of this and can be part of the ones who can be attracted to some groups that are not the groups that believe in peace or peaceful solution of problems. So I think in all ways, it's essential to have youth in the middle of the situation, but not only like in a, I would say like a show. I really believe that it has to be seriously considered because I really believe it can be an important factor of peace. and it can also be an important factor not only on peace in terms of finishing the conflict, but also on sustainable peace. So that's why I'm thinking it's also a very important issue on security. And also because young people use much more technology than others, can be also a very important issue on cybersecurity.

I thank you. I now give the floor to the distinguished representative of Mali on behalf of the African Group, followed by Australia, and then the first member state in its national capacity, Liechtenstein.

Thank you, Madam President, Excellencies, Madam Bashir, I welcome this dialogue with the membership. I have the honour to raise two set of questions on behalf of the African group. The first set of question will be on peace and security, and the second one will be on development. On peace and security, Africa's exclusion from permanent membership of the Security Council reflect both historical injustice and the ongoing structural inequity affecting decision on issues central to the continent. What is your position on the African common position on the reform of the Security Council, and how would you use the convening authority of the office to advance intergovernmental negotiations? Second question on peace and security. The resolution 2719 of the Council created a framework for the AU-led peace support operation to access contributions, yet implementation has stalled. How would you approach the third year review and how would you address the continued political resistance? The third question I have concerning the peace and security concern, Africa's country future, prominently the peace building commissions. How would you strengthen its role and ensure adequate resourcing for peace building fund? On development, Development remains Africa's foremost priority. How would you review the relationship between the 2030 agenda and the agenda 2063, and how would you ensure UN support is anchored in African-owned development framework? What concrete action will you take to advance reform of international financial architecture, including improving African representation in international financial institutions and addressing bias in credit rating system? Africa loses more through illicit financial flow than it receives in official development assistance. What priority would we assign to addressing these flows and strengthening domestic resources mobilizations? How would you ensure climate finance? How would climate finance mechanism, including loss and damage fund? I thank you.

I thank the distinguished representative of Mali on behalf of the African Group.

Well, I think that on regard of the UN Security Council reform, there are different models, I understand, but all understand the need for adequate representation and addressing historical injustice. So I think it's critical to ensure Africa's voice in the Security Council. In terms of the -- and the same happens with the IFIs. I truly believe that the IFIs need to be reformed in many distinct issues, but on one, it has to have a better representation of the world today and not what happened after the Second World War. So we also need to improve IFIs reforms to that we can have those voices there, analyze exactly, I mentioned before, if the mechanism that today are working in the World Bank on IMF, are the ones that people, countries more in need are needed. And my impression is not. And that the only way to produce those changes is to have in the places where decisions are made, the better representation of the voices of Africa and other places of the world that are not well represented and where the current mechanisms are not working. On resolution 2719, I think this is a great advance because I believe that peace and security needs a bigger alliance between the UN and also regional forces. I believe that also there is places where maybe the UN is not the place to do the job, but it's the regional organizations through its security forces who can do a better job. But it then says the commitment of the UN to support with at least 75% of the budget, I think is a very important advancement that needs to be ensured that it could be that it really will be supported. In terms of what you ask about development and priorities, yes, there will be an important given by myself. and ensure how you can mobilize national resources. There are many countries who are looking forward to look for even internal resources, how they fight tax evasion, how they fight tax avoidance. how they fight illegal flow of money. And that is really important things that we can work together, help building capacity to be able to do so. Also, how they are able to mobilize private sector money in those countries that can also deal with the same issues and go to also understand that everybody benefits when the country is going well. And on finance, I already mentioned that we don't only have the Global Fund for Climate Action, but also the fund of loss and damage that I believe exists. It needs more money. It has to be. But we need to make better use of those funds.

I thank you. I now give the floor as the last speaker for groups to the distinguished representative of Australia, also speaking on behalf of New Zealand, followed by Liechtenstein and Sierra Leone.

Madam President, Excellencies, I have the honour to address you today on behalf of New Zealand and my own country, Australia. At a time of heightened global uncertainty and complex international challenges, the United Nations' ability to fulfil its core mandate rests on its institutional credibility, capability and capacity. Institutional credibility requires bold and principled leadership, including the.

Ability to deploy the Secretary-General's good offices and political courage and effort.

Institutional capability requires a UN that's focused on upholding all three pillars of its work and translates early warning into early action. Institutional capacity requires experienced and ethical management and realistic and fit-for-purpose mandates that sharpen effectiveness and delivery. How do you think the UN80 initiative is working to align leadership, authority and resources to restore confidence in the UN and enable it to deliver results against the three pillars? How would you build on the UN80 initiative to make it more effective? Thank you.

I thank the distinguished representative of Australia, also speaking on behalf of New.

I agree on everything that you mentioned in terms of the need of leadership, authority, moral authority, ethics, et cetera, to be able to lead this organization. I also think that the three pillars are essential, and I also believe that UNAIDS is a must. But having said that, what we have to avoid is that the UN 80 could be used by some people, could be thought on something in terms of hollow out certain mandates to privilege peace and security and underprivileged, if I would say, development and human rights. I already mentioned that human rights doesn't have that much risk because it's so small, the percentage of the of the budget, the regular budget that I mean, I don't imagine that people want to get even less than 4% for human rights. But I do feel and I do see the risk of not including enough financing for development. And particularly, I would say, because I mentioned that I feel that the way to solve problems that are the problems of the real countries is not through general recipes. It's about going into the field to the country level and understand the particular needs and organize the UN country team and the financing on that. Because the reform is not only about savings. Of course, if you have a liquidity crisis, you need to deal with that. But it's also to be able, and that's what I would do, to be able to put the money where the priorities are. So it's not about doing more with less money or to do the same with less money. is to do more and better with the resources that you have and to put the money where it is needed, to ensure that you organize a very, if I would say, a better and more streamlined, a more lean but muscled organization. Because we need a lean organization, we need it strong, because the UN is not strong, and particularly in the field presence, and also in the different levels, we're not going to be able to fulfill what the world expects from us. So, we need to do the UN80, but we need to be aware of the risks that we need to avoid. And those risks are to weaken some pillars that are really needed to have a world that can believe in peace and can also ensure that the people feel that the UN is something that we really need. So, how to make them more efficient? There's a lot of proposals on that, and I agree with all of them, but I will say, member states, the Secretary-General, but mainly member states, because you are the ones who owe the UNAD, please be aware that we need a balance between the three pillars, an adequate balance, otherwise we'll not be fulfilling and we'll not have, we can go back to the basic, yes, but the basis, according to my opinion, is peace and security, is development, and is human rights. And then the UN if they do it fantastically and those things that we need to change because they need to be done better, the money that we save on that, we can use it in a better way in the other mandates as well.

I thank you. Now we come to Member States in their individual national capacity. I would like to remind you that speaking time is now two minutes, also being implemented by microphone cut-offs. I would also like to remind you, Madam Candidate for Secretary General, Ms. Bachelet, please answer within the two minutes because we will end at three, sorry, at 1:10 short, giving fair conditions to everyone. We started a bit later, so we have three hours for the question from the membership. So this means we have 46 minutes left. If you're shorter than two minutes, you give more opportunities to other member states to ask their questions. On this note, we start with Liechtenstein, followed by Cuba, and then the next civil society organization.

Thank you, Madam President, Madam Bachelet, all protocol observed. I have two questions with respect to the two leadership positions you've held within the UN system on UN Women and as High Commissioner for Human Rights. You must undoubtedly be aware that we're currently discussing a possible merger of UN Women and UNFPA. given your really unique experience and expertise because you essentially built that office, UN Women, is this something that you recommend us to do? Is this a good idea? On the second one, I'm interested in your view of the division of work between the SG and the High Commissioner for human rights. I think there is a natural expectation that in the case of massive violations of the UN Charter, people will always look at the SG and to hear the voice of the SG in the case of a violation of Article 2.4 and in cases of aggression. Do you believe there is also a case to be made that the SG has to be vocal with respect to the other more serious crimes under international law? Let's say with respect to the Genocide Convention in cases of massive violations or possible massive violations for international humanitarian law or crimes against humanity? And can you name examples from the past that, in your view, would have met the criteria that you would apply? Thank you so much.

Should I answer? Okay. Well, I haven't read the report that makes an analysis of the merging of UNFPA and UN Women. I have heard rumors, but I haven't read it directly. But I also heard that member states have discussed about this and asked for alternatives, options. I do believe that all alternatives need to be looked at to see what are we looking after? Because one of the concerns that some people have is that the merge could weaken the mandate, in particular on women's rights and women's empowerment and gender equality. This is one concern that member states have and some other people have. I believe whatever decision is made needs to take into consideration what are we really getting out of that. alternative that has been chosen. Is there real duplication? Is there a lot of duplication? Because if there's duplication, it can be solved, not necessarily merged. You can solve, if it's small, the duplication, you can solve it in another way. If not, maybe you have to merge. Is it that the mandates collide with each other? Well, I have the impression that other than violence against women, the mandates are very different, both mandates are very different. So, but I have to say, I cannot give a definite opinion because I haven't seen the studies. eMERGE, some years after a new institution was created, should not be only the consideration of cuttings, if I would say. It should be, not because the money is essential, of course the money is essential, but it should be more substantive. It should be, but because we really believe that eMERGE will produce the best results for both mandates. Otherwise, maybe it's better to look for different options. In terms of the Secretary-General and High Commissioner, I do believe that the High Commissioner always have to be the voice of the voiceless and has to sometimes finger point, sometimes not finger point, and do all the things needed, preventive diplomacy, et cetera. But when we're talking about genocide, atrocities against humanity, Silence is not an option.

I thank you. I now give the floor to the representative of Cuba, followed by the civil society organization.

Madam President and distinguished Ms. Michelle Bachelet, Cuba welcomes the opportunity for these interactive dialogues with the candidates for the post of Secretary-General in an open, transparent and inclusive way. We align ourselves with the statements made by the G77, the NAM and AOSIS, and we'd like to ask the following two questions in our national capacity. First, Faced with the growing escalation of conflict and the proliferation of bellicose narratives, what actions will you take as Secretary-General to promote a culture of peace, the peaceful settlement of disputes, and respect for the principle of the non-use of force? And second, Faced with the persistent failure to comply with financial and climate commitments by developed countries, what role should the UN play in guaranteeing the accelerated implementation of the Cobia commitment and other multilateral agreements, above all to mobilize new, additional and predictable resources and to ensure the effective implementation of those commitments, including debt relief? Thank you.

I thank the distinguished representative of Cuba.

Please, Ms. Bachelet, you have the floor. I would say that the Secretary-General can also use his voice to promote a culture of peace and, of course, to insist on the principles of the Charter. It needs to be the voice of the Charter, the Secretary-General. and insist on what the Charter principles and values are. And it's clear in terms of many of these things that are mentioned in terms of the use of force. But also, I think what is needed is to intensify dialogue on this regard. And in terms of how can the UN guarantee the acceleration of the Seville agreements, in particular on the debt relief, I have mentioned some things that I do believe that the IFIs need to be reformed. And all of this consideration needs to be included. How there can be mechanisms that are more agile to restructure the debt. And to think also on the debt relief or even on the postponement on the debt service on many of countries who are dealing, for example, with natural disaster, climate disaster, or even conflict, armed conflict. So there's a lot of things that can be done. Probably one thing that many countries have been working on is how we think on what we call global public goods and how member states can be developed sort of a fund to deal with this global public goods and among others is climate change and climate disaster and so on. I believe that it's in the benefits of all member states to think on, there are these challenges that affect all of us, so we need to deal, all of us, in terms of with global public goods financing to see this global public goods. But Seville has lots and lots of mechanism. And what we need now, but of course, it didn't include any financing to it. So what we need now is to think of what are we gonna do to mobilize political will That will be my obsession, if I may say, which is critical for reforms to be possible. Without such will, will not be possible. We will not be able if we are not able to mobilize political will and, after that, financial support.

I thank you. I now give the floor to the International Federation of Business and Professional Women, speaking in person here for civil society, and who was chosen, like many other civil society organizations, by a lottery system.

Hi, good afternoon.

Emily Van Vleck on.

Behalf of BPW International, a global network of business and professional women's organizations representing over 100 countries.

Our question today is, how do you intend to position women's economic empowerment as a central driver of peace building and sustainable development within the United Nations systems? and what concrete mechanisms?

Will you establish to engage structured partnerships with global civil society organizations to deliver measurable and scalable impact? Thank you.

I thank the representative of the International Federation of Business and Professional Women. Please, Ms. Pashley, you have the floor.

Well, as you probably know, gender equality, women's empowerment has been one of the issues that I have done my whole life, and I've tried to find out which are the strategies that can work in this regard. And I truly believe as well that women can be very important agents of change and, of course, agents of peace. So on one hand, we truly need to, I mean, there's like 132 countries that already has its own national policies on 1325, and I think in those policies, those programs and plans of action, there should be implemented in terms of ensuring that women can be agents of peace, agents of development, and agents of a more stable and democratic society, because I think women are essential in terms of ensuring that the society goes into the right direction. and what concrete steps that we would do to include civil society. Yes, I believe that we need to work with civil society to identify which are the current conditions. I've heard many things. The people feel that either they do not receive visas or accreditations, and they feel that the accreditation system should be simplified. But more than having a response today, my commitment will be to sit down with the civil society, to meet with them regularly, to see in which way we can solve the obstacles that you deal to be able to have the place that you deserve.

I thank you. I now give the floor to the distinguished representative of Switzerland, followed by Romania and Indonesia.

Thank you, Madam President. Switzerland welcomes this format, which promotes transparency and an exchange between the candidates and all of the Member States and civil society. Thank you, Madam, for your vision and for your availability to participate in this marathon Q&A session. First question, the Secretariat is facing major financial constraints at the moment. How Would you envisage the situation of staff at the moment, devoted staff who are under enormous pressure? The second question, the United Nations Charter defines the role of the Secretary-General as someone whose independence should be protected at all times. How would you react if a permanent member of the Security Council acts in violation of international law? Could you describe a situation in which you would oppose a member of the Security Council and what kind of consequences do you think would follow? Thank you.

The Swiss representative of Switzerland, please, Ms. Bachelin.

I think that it's true that our personnel is facing a lot of difficulties while being on the field, and that's why I do believe that we have to have human resources policies that support them, value them, protect them. But not only that. I also believe that we need to have mobility policies. Having been as High Commissioner, we had colleagues there that were in very difficult duty stations, even duty station where they couldn't bring the family for years. And they wanted to go into other places, easier places, or even headquarters, and it was not possible. And I ask and I talk to human resources here in Europe to say, look, we need to have a mobility strategy. I mean, if people wants to go up in the in the in their career, they cannot be always in headquarters. They need to go to the field. They need to be there with the people. They need to understand what the real conditions are on the ground. So I really believe what we need to do to look all of that, all we can do to support our people. We We also, even during the pandemic, we also created, I would say, mental health support. It was very difficult for our people to be during the pandemic times, but also having the commitment to continue fulfilling their jobs. But also we expect service and effectiveness anyway. So we can protect, support, but also we expect commitment and we expect the possibility of being effective. Yes, that's something everybody asks is, how are you going to deal with the political pressures, particularly from the more powerful countries? how you can avoid political pressures. I don't think political pressures can be avoided, but what you have to do have is a real attitude on how you deal with that. And in my life, I have shown that I can be independent. Every time that was needed, I could be independent, even I received a lot of pressure.

I thank you. I now give the floor to the distinguished representative of Romania, followed by Indonesia and Namibia.

Thank you, Madam President.

I want to use 10 seconds of my time.

To acknowledge the important work, the solidarity that you have put together in this process and, you know, the acknowledging the.

Complementary role of the Security Council, the General Assembly, and selecting the Secretary-General as defined through the revitalization process.

Mrs. Bachelet, I think a number of questions have been addressed.

I want to ask you something about the trend that we see here in the United Nations.

There is an increasing.

We are faced with increasing situations on different topics where consensus is no longer possible or not feasible. And I would like to get your view on the preservation of consensus as a prerequisite for the legitimacy and sustainability of the United Nations, and how do you regard the tentative shift to a more majority-based decision-making processes?

Thank you very much.

I thank the distinguished representative. Romania, please.

I believe that consensus must be chased always, always. We need to -- we have to be -- I don't know if the word is stubborn or persistent, but both of these. You need a lot of persistency to try to get to the biggest possible consensus. Though that means that At the same time, we cannot paralyze. Some people have the opinion that consensus is not synonymous of unanimity. That consensus means the big majority. But that's something that the member states have to decide, how they understand consensus. But I truly believe that, if possible, to get consensus and the big majorities or the whole majority or the big majorities of member states have to one decision is key to the relevance and the importance of what UN is doing. Is it always possible? I'm not sure. Being a president, we try to do that, but sometimes it's not possible. Sometimes not even possible in your own coalition, if I may say. So It's up to you, Member States, to decide how you deal with this issue of consensus. But the only thing I would say, lack of consensus cannot mean silence, cannot mean paralysis.

Thank you. I now give the floor to the distinguished representative of Indonesia, followed by Namibia, and the next civil society organization.

Thank you, Madam President. Excellency, we thank you for sharing your vision, and we also take note of your overreaching vision where the United Nations is to serve the member state and citizens and to put forward dialogue. We believe the role of Secretary General is more critical than ever when multilateralism is facing increasing fragmentation, and the Secretary General must serve as a moral leader and bridge builder. In this regard, Indonesia would like to pose following questions. First, with multilateralism under increasing strain, do you believe incremental reform is sufficient or is there a need for more fundamental recalibration to the system? How will you overcome persistent resistance to change while ensuring the UN adapts to current and future realities? Second, in an era of complex fragmentations, how do you intend to revitalize the UN roles as a prominent forum for open dialogue among leaders to foster mutual understanding and solidarity? And last, how do you envision strengthening meaningful youth participation in shaping global norms and contributing to forward-looking and future-ready multilateral solutions? We look forward to your insights. Thank you.

I thank the distinguished representative of Indonesia. Please.

Well, to be honest, I don't think the UN80 will be the only factor that will make multilateralism important. I mean, UN80 will solve one problem, one part of the problem, that it is that the UN, in terms of managerial issues, in terms of worthy leadership, in terms of relevance, in terms of avoiding all the kind of things that, you know, are producing now, will make it more efficient, more effective, and so on. But I believe multilateralism that has been contested, but some, needs more than the UNAD. And probably it will need something that is not today on the UNAD ambition, and it was never in the UNAD ambition. We know, and many of you have mentioned the world, how it is today, and how the rules-based order have been contested and challenged for many countries, or some countries. And I think the UN80 was not even thought on that direction, it was not the objective. And we don't know where the order of the world what will be the order of the world in some years. We don't know. It is in the process of changes. And nobody knows the evolution. We could want, we would like that we could go into a rules-based order because we believe, and I believe, it's the best for the world. So I guess, apart from the UN, we will need to discuss, if I'm Secretary-General, that other issue. How we ensure that we are having the UN that the world needs in this new context that are completely different than old context. Incremental reform might be the only possibility, but doesn't mean lacking ambition. We need to have the ambition to understand if the UN is the one, if the UN doing what we have done in the past, improving all the mechanism that the UNAD needs to improve, but if there's something else that we need to do. And of course, I believe that, again, that the way of revitalizing the UN is the UN 80, but also the possibility of the UN present, the UN visible, the SDG visible, and also delivering on the result that people are expecting.

Thank you. I now give the floor to the distinguished representative of Namibia.

Thank you, Madam President. Namibia congratulates you on your nomination and acknowledges the positive contributions you have made towards a better world. In September 2024, the world leaders adopted a wide-ranging international agreement in many years, namely the Pact for the Future. A notable agreement that has reinvigorated the multilateral system and has given direction in a number of important global multilateral thematic issues. Yet your vision statement makes no reference whatsoever to this international commitment. My questions are as follows. One, what is your vision to implementing the Pact for the Future and how best can the Secretariat support member states in its implementation ahead of 2028 review of the PACT. Two, in the PACT for the future, world leaders agreed that Africa should be treated as a priority and as a special case as far as the reform of the United Nations Security Council is concerned. What is your understanding of this unique decision taken by member states and how would your office support this implementation? And three, It is commonly held that when women lead, peace follows. And in the true spirit of the women, peace and security agenda, what advantage would you as a woman be bringing in addressing global hotspots that are plaguing the world, particularly in Gaza and Sudan? I thank you.

I thank the distinguished representative of Namibia, please.

Yeah, I mentioned in some of my intervention the Pact of the Future because I really value it. I think it was a great result. It was an agreement that really put the essential important commitments of the international community, of the General Assembly, and I think we need to implement it. I understand the Secretariat is working on ways to implement it, and of course, we will implement it. And and continue in that direction. I believe that it was really important that the Pact of the Future considered that Africa was a priority, because it is a priority. Of course, we all know that Africa has huge opportunities, but also it has challenges, and many of those challenges need to be considered in a very specific way. And also, I already mentioned that on the Security Council, we need a better representation. And if there are regions of the world that aren't well represented, they should be represented. On women and peace and security, yes, women can be very important agents of peace because they are there in the territory, because they're part of the communities, they're very active on that, because women tend to dialogue. That doesn't mean that women cannot fight and cannot be aggressive sometimes or cannot be like any other person. that women understand the importance of dialogue, the importance of peace, because there are the children who will go to war, there are the children who have to go as soldiers, and because they understand also that the importance of a sustainable peace society will provide to their families, to the future generation, opportunities that conflict and war does not provide. So I feel that a woman as Secretary-General can also bring this issue of dialogue and a very strong commitment to use all possible means for pacific resolution of conflicts, all possible means on prevention. And if I'm selected Secretary-General, that will be one of my biggest commitment, one of my biggest, if I would say, one of the things I will give the biggest importance, because I truly believe that much can be prevented.

Thank you. I now give the floor to the representative of the civil society, Center of Studies and Research in International Relations at Faculdades de Campinas, here in person in the room, followed by the Russian Federation and India.

Thank you, Madam President, Madam Bachelet. As a youth researcher from the Global South, I would like to ask what your commitments and as a SG for guaranteeing meaningful, inclusive and sustainable youth participation across the United Nations systems. The youth is a very diverse block. So how do you plan to ensure that youth voices, especially those from marginalized communities, are not only heard, but truly integrated into the UN decision making process? Thank you.

Well, I think that the only possibility for that is that not only you can discuss on which can be the role of youth in, I mean, using the kind of agenda we already have, like youth, peace, and security, but also that should be sort of, not a sort of, it should be a priority. at a country team with the rest and coordinate system to ensure to to to make youth young people participate, not only listening, but also receiving the the commitment, the receiving their opinion, their suggestions, and take it into consideration. Because it's not about bringing young people to be listened and then do anything about it. But I believe that this must be not only at the global level, but also at the regional level, at a national level, but also at the local level, in municipalities, in many places. And I think that the right place to do that is at the national level, and that will be one of my instruction to the RESIN coordinating system to work much stronger with young people at the community level, but also with students, with young professionals, et cetera, so they can really be part of the solutions of society.

I thank you. I now give the floor to the distinguished representative of the Russian Federation.

Madam President, Russia believes it is necessary to choose the best possible candidate that will meet the highest standards of professionalism, competence and commitment to the purposes and principles of the UN Charter in their totality and as they are interlinked. Part of my questions have already been asked by other delegations, and so in that regard, I would like to ask Ms. Bachelet. Does the Secretary-General have the right to be guided by General Assembly decisions that do not enjoy consensus and which go beyond their purview under the UN Charter, particularly when that issue is being considered by the Security Council? Secondly, do you believe that the principles of the UN Charter can be ranked in order of importance? And does the Secretary-General have the right to interpret the Charter and arbitrarily decide in which cases the principles of self-determination should be applied and in which territorial integrity should be applied? Thank you very much.

I thank the distinguished representative of the Russian Federation. Please, Ms. Bachelet, you have the floor.

Well, I think that each organ of the United Nations must act within the competences assigned to it by the Charter, and the whole Charter, not part of it. The Secretariat, being a principal organ of the United Nations, must do it, not more, no less. So this is what I will do if selected. and I will abide by all decisions of the General Assembly and all other organs of the UN. I believe that is my duty as Secretary-General, and I will apply this consistently. On your second question, if there is certain hierarchy or whatever among the principles, well, probably the ICJ, the OLA, the International Justice and Lawyers everywhere could be more placed to opine on that matter. In any case, for me, it is very clear, and I said before, all organs must abide by the Charter in its entirety and in all its interrelations. If selected, I certainly intend to do that as an operational commitment every day.

Thank you. We have now 12 minutes left, so we have to see how many more speakers we can take. The shorter you are, the more speakers we can hear. The next ones on the list are India and Peru. So I now give the floor to the distinguished representative of India, followed by Peru and Mauritania.

Your Excellency, President, distinguished candidate, Excellencies, all protocols observed, a large number of key points and issues were covered in the ongoing discussions. The ninth decade of the UN must be one of leadership and hope. We appreciate your efforts in articulating your vision and plan of action to the member states. I would like to raise two issues and seek your perspectives on the same. One, it is evident that today the UN Security Council framework reflects the realities of a different era. Your vision statement advocates sustaining and advancing ongoing reforms at the UN. I request you to elaborate the steps you plan to pursue in order to realize this objective. Second, your vision statement puts special attention towards small island developing states, LDCs and landlocked developing countries in view of sustainable development. We are keen to know more about your thoughts and approach towards achieving the developmental goals of the Global South. Thank you.

I thank the distinguished representative of India. Please, you have the floor.

I think, first of all, I already mentioned, I think, many of the things in terms of how important it is to me that the Secretary-General understand the different realities and can find the ways of doing things in the best possible way. It's clear for me that the UNAD process had to be really reflecting what's going on and can be implemented with long strength. But of SIDs, LDCs, LLDCs, and PMAs, I truly believe that, first of all, there are enormous amount of all the member states of the UN. They have to have the priority they really need. They have to have the finance, I mean, political priority, first of all, but also from that political priority, And also, as I mentioned before, you also need to ensure that they're well represented in the different decision-making positions at the UN and at the Secretariat, so that their voices are heard not only in certain particular group meetings, like talking about the situation of SDGs, of the-- sorry. of LDCs and SEEDs and so on, but on the daily basis. And I think that also, as I mentioned before, the possibility of ensuring that at the country level, this is really acceptable. But also, I think the structural reforms that combine efficiency, effectiveness, that can strengthen the ability to serve member state is something that will be an important part of my tenure if I'm selected but also prioritizing the needs of the global South.

Thank you. I now give the floor to the distinguished representative of Peru, followed by Mauritania.

Thank you, Madam President. And I'd like to thank Distinguished President Bachelet, for her presentation. Peru is taking part in this dialogue with the staunch commitment to strengthen the UN to ensure that we can urgently address the challenges facing humanity. Inspired by Javier Perez de Cuellar, who was the first Secretary-General to come from our region, we reaffirm the importance of leadership that can generate consensus against the current international backdrop that is marked by increasing complexity, volatility, and uncertainty. We agree with the relevance of the two topics that have been put forward for this dialogue to strengthen trust in the UN and also to promote the three pillars of the organization, peace and security, development, and human rights. Peru, in line with what the act has put forward, we'd like to make the following questions. What is your vision on the role that Latin America and the Caribbean can and should play as a region of peace and democracy to help defend the principles of the UN Charter and strengthen multilateralism? How can we balance the three pillars of the UN within the context of the UN80 process and accelerate the implementation of the 2030 Agenda? What specific measures will you promote to increase the effective leadership of the Secretary-General to contribute to preventing and solving the major armed conflicts that are raging today, and also to address the emerging threats to international peace and security, such as organized transnational crime and the matter of AI governance? Thank you.

I think that the senior representative of Peru, please, you have the floor.

Muchas gracias.

Thank you very much for your questions.

Question, you imply the answer as well. I mean, being Latin America and the Caribbean a zone of peace, I think it has a lot to share on the experience of Latin America and the Caribbean in terms of what works, what doesn't work, and the idea also of to be able to be part of what we call South-South cooperation also. Because many times, even though countries of Latin America and the Caribbean are not rich countries, are not donor countries, we do have great experience on dealing with a lot of things that could be also interesting to share with other countries who might be going through the same kind of challenges. I do believe that it's time after Mr. Perez de Cuellar to have another Secretary General for the region for many reasons. One, because of what the region can bring to the discussions, to the experience, and to proposal, but also because the same that we have been discussing, how we ensure that the world feels, the members, they feel better represented in an organization like the UN, the same happens. when you have a UN Secretary-General that comes from a region that's not the traditional regions, also shows that the UN is looking for the diversity, the representation of all parts of the world. I would, I insist that I will do as much as possible to ensure that the three pillars can be well represented, can be well financed, and can have the political priority that needs to be done, because I'm convinced that without three pillars, we will not achieve neither the, and without the Agenda 2030 that shows and reflects the three pillars, if we don't get there, we're not gonna be able to ensure the needs of people on the planet, and we're not gonna be able to reestablish trust in the United Nations. Okay, and And I do believe that the Secretary General has to be somebody in terms to be present, very active, and in a preventive way in all the areas that you mentioned, in particular, in prevention of solidarity. In our region in particular, we have a very big problem with organized crime, transnational. But because they're transnational, they also need to be seen by many member states, not only as a regional issue.

Thank you. I now give the floor to the distinguished representative of Mauritania.

Thank you, Madam President.

Thank you, Madam Bachelot, for your vision.

Most of my concerns have already been raised, and you have responded.

I have two questions, as follows.

How will you enact policy to lessen climate change impact and food insecurity in the region of Sahel? some of the root causes behind terrorism and instability in the region and in Africa as a whole.

My second question is, what is your view?

And thought on the promotion of tolerance and interfaith dialogue and the combat of Islamophobia.

Thank you.

I thank the distinguished representative of Mauritania. Before giving the floor to Ms. Bachelet, the last speaker we will hear, given the time, is the representative of the United Kingdom. Please, Ms. Bachelet, you have the floor.

Yes, I agree with that. When we're thinking on crisis on the Sahel or problems on the Sahel, we need to look at the root causes. I mean, not only the Sahel, but because you're asking about the Sahel, that's the region where you come from. And I think you mentioned right, there is a mix of climate change issues that produces changes in the agricultural possibilities, but also ethnic groups, conflicts that makes farmers and herders many times not being able to develop adequately their task, produce food insecurity. And food insecurity is a source of conflict. So again, that's why we need to go and think on the needs to balance the three pillars. Because when we talk about conflicts, we need to balance. And it's essentially a matter of political choice, not easy ones, but possible. We need to do that. We need to do action to ensure leadership, and leadership that be true to the charter. I truly believe that it's critical to address the root causes of conflicts in any part of the world and try to support in case of food insecurity to ensure that we can provide food, we can provide ensure, I mean, with different strategies and projects, water. but also how we support agriculture, how we support agriculture with AI, because we know now with AI, we can understand meteorological changes. We can make better decisions in agriculture, for example. We can see what is lacking and we can see what we can do about it to ensure that food is produced, that we have enough water and so on. And on the dialogue between religions, and the fight against Islamophobia. I truly believe on the dialogue of religion of leaders. In my country, I did, I will mention because I'm not talking in abstract, I'm talking of personal experience, we developed a, in the presidential palace, we had a department on interreligious relationships, and it was really very important. All religions that are present in my country were sitting there, of course, Muslim as well, and Jewish, and Christians, and Catholics, and also some others, and it really worked, and it really worked well to find solutions to many problems, even when they have to discuss the reform of the constitution, they did a very important exercise on this, so I truly believe this is possible, And it's very important to fight on all forms of intolerance, of course, including Islamophobia.

I thank you. As a last speaker for the morning session, I give the floor to the distinguished representative of the United Kingdom.

Thank you, Madam President, and.

Thank you, Madam Bachelet, for setting out your vision for the role of Secretary-General and your explanations over the past three hours. And thank you, President Baibok, for convening these dialogues. We welcome this initiative. which offers Member States and civil society an opportunity, a meaningful opportunity, to engage in this important process. Now, I would like to focus on UNAT. You have answered questions so far on the substance and the direction. I would like to focus on the follow-through and leadership. UNAT rightly is framed as a continuous process, rather than a one-off exercise. How would you, as Secretary-General, use your leadership within the organization to ensure that reform remains institutionalized and sustained in order to strengthen delivery across all three pillars of the United Nations. Thank you.

I thank the distinguished representative of the United Kingdom. Please, Ms. Bachelet.

Yes, I agree that any reform has to be continuous. It cannot be a one-day activity. And so you need to ensure that how you organize the work at the UN, I'm talking about the the UN system, follows, first of all, has clear targets and goals and timelines to ensure that these are implemented the way they have to be. But my experience is you also need to change culture, if I may say. You can change some time mechanism, but if you don't change the culture of the people, they might want the next day to come back to what they did always before. And the second thing is to be persistent, persistent, persistent. I had to do a lot of reform while being Minister of Health. And then, you know, one year later, people trying to do the same as before. And it happens everywhere. And also with the police forces, et cetera. So you need constant, if I would say, capacity building on your teams, on the heads, but also on the team, to understand that it's not only something that we do because we're saving money, is because we need to do it better, even with the same resources, we need to do it better. Of course, when you have a liquidity crisis, it's an incentive to do what maybe you didn't do in the past. But I truly believe that culture in terms of how we understand that how we develop the commitment we have with the world is that we as UN do it the better possible way is something that is essential. It's not only about cutting some things, it's not only about duplicating something because you can stop that maybe tomorrow, somebody else will be creative enough and create another duplications. And you also need to be very alert that it is going in the direction that member states have decided to.

I thank you. We have now come to the end of this interactive dialogue. I would like to thank Ms. Bachelet, and as one ambassador said, for this marathon of questions. I would also like to thank you, the Member States. I know that there were many more Member States on the list. So as we are coming back in the afternoon, if you're speaking maybe also to the groups, the sharper and shorter the question of the groups, the more opportunities for Member States. Before adjourning, I would like to remind Member States that the next interactive dialogue will be with Mr. Rafael Marano Gross, It will take place this afternoon at 3:00 p.m. in this same chamber. I wish you all a good lunch. The meeting is adjourned.

Thank you very much.