Brussels, 23/06/2015 (Agence Europe) - The EU's commitment to multilateralism and its close partnership with the United Nations on behalf of peace, security, the protection of human rights and sustainable development were reaffirmed by EU foreign ministers in Luxembourg on Monday 22 June in an initial informal discussion with UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon. The meeting took place in this decisive year of future global sustainable development and also the 70th anniversary of the founding of the United Nations.
The meeting may have been informal but the priorities of the EU with regard to the UN and for the 70th General Assembly of the United Nations (September 2015-September 2016) were formally adopted by the Council of the EU. These priorities were gathered under three major headings: A Safer World (peace and security, non-proliferation and disarmament, and counter-terrorism); Our Common Future (post-2015 global framework for the eradication of poverty and sustainable development, a climate agreement that is “ambitious and legally binding covering climate change mitigation and adaptation”, human rights and international law, protecting the humanitarian space, gender issues, and maintaining an open, free and secure cyberspace); and Effective Multilateralism (reform and increased efficiency of the UN and strengthening multilateral partnerships).
Speaking after the meeting, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Federica Mogherini said: “We exchanged with him in particular in this crucial year for the UN system: the post-2015 agenda (in September of this year), the climate change conference in Paris (COP 21, 30 November-11 December) and the first conference that is going to be key, the one in Addis Ababa on financing for development (13-16 July)”. She stated, too, that the discussion had also addressed the EU-UN partnership on the major crises which are “Libya, Syria and Yemen”.
The Maltese delegation put down a statement for inclusion in the minutes of the meeting, underlining that achievement and promotion of gender equality, gender empowerment and the rights of women and girls and the prevention and elimination of all forms of discrimination and violence against women and girls in cooperation and development are of capital importance to Malta. (Aminata Niang)