President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih, on Monday, addressed the United Nation (UN)'s high level meeting to commemorate the 75th Anniversary of the organisation.
During the virtual meeting, President Solih emphasized on the need for multilateralism, to overcome challenges as a result of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
Furthermore, in reference to the vulnerability of small island developing states, he noted the importance of international support in reviving economies and to ensure social protection of its citizens.
As we celebrate our 55th anniversary as a proud member of the @UN, Maldives remains fully committed to the values championed by the UN. We will always stand with our international partners and act in the spirit of internationalism enshrined in the UN Charter.
— Ibrahim Mohamed Solih (@ibusolih) September 21, 2020
- speech begins -
"Mr President, distinguished heads of states and governments, excellencies, ladies and gentlemen.
75 years after the creation of the United Nations, I am privileged to speak as the president of one of its smallest constituent states, the Republic of Maldives.
Since our admission, the Maldives has been a proud member state that has embraced the international order heralded by the UN".
We proactively engage with our international peers on every major global issue, from climate change to counter-terrorism, to trade and regional institutionalism.
We have carved out a piece for ourselves as a leading representative of small island states such as those comprising overseas, in which capacity we continue to remind the international community of their moral obligations to the planet and to the existential risks posed by the climate emergency.
Mr President, the Maldives is fully committed to the vision conceived by the UN's founders and outlined in its charter.
The world immediately preceding the 1945 San Francisco conference was an ugly one, and ravaged by warfare and international strife.
The United Nations was pivotal to leaving behind those dark chapters in history and heralding the most peaceful and progressive era humanity has ever known. One founded upon the charter's principles of sovereign equality and self-determination and imbued with the multinational spirit of its founders.
We must keep alive that same multilateral spirit, if we are to address one of the greatest global challenges since the creation of this organisation - COVID-19.
The task immediately confronting the world community is recovering from the disease's impacts. Vulnerable countries such as the Maldives and other Small Island Developing States, in particular, will need the international communities' assistance to first revive our economies predominately based on tourism and at the same time, to build our resilience by diversifying our means of income and ensuring social protection.
We are in turn committed to working with our international partners, and standing shoulder-to-shoulder with the rest of the world community, in confronting this and future challenges, as we have always done, as a proud member of the United Nations". - End of transcript -
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