At the outset, it is my pleasure to sincerely congratulate Mr. Dennis Francis and. through him. the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago on his presidency of the General Assembly at its seventy-eighth session. I wish him every success in conducting its work. I assure him of our support for his vision of peace, prosperity, growth and sustainability. I would also like to express to Mr. Csaba Korosi. President of the General Assembly at its seventy-seventh session, my deep gratitude and appreciation for his successful presidency. I would like to reiterate our appreciation and support for the efforts of the Secretary-General. Mr. Antonio Guterres, and for his valuable initiative to promote multilateral action.
Our world today is experiencing a delicate phase with numerous challenges and crises amid growing conflicts and wars, along with deepening geopolitical divisions and obstacles that prevent the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals. In addition, the crisis of indebtedness faced by developing countries has continued, while the poverty and hunger gap is widening between the countries of the North and the South. We must also mention the unprecedented increase in the number of refugees and migrants, the continuing impact of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic and the acute climate crisis. Is that really the world to which we aspire after almost eight decades since the establishment of the United Nations? That image is very distant from the goals and values upon which the Organization was founded.
We call for the creation of new approaches and means that are more effective to meet the challenges of today. We also call for strengthened international cooperation and solidarity on the basis of common but differentiated responsibilities. We would also like to reiterate the need for everyone to truly respect the Charter of the United Nations, international law and human rights, without politicization. That is the way to rebuild trust among States, support multilateral action and achieve security, peace and development. With that in mind, we hope that this session will be a historic turning point and a new start for the multilateral system and international cooperation.
Hundreds of millions of people had great hopes in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, and yet what has been achieved to date is regrettably short of our aspirations. Bearing that in mind. Tunisia supports the stimulus plan of the Secretary-General to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals, and the practical proposal therein that seeks to provide the necessary funding for their implementation. We also appreciate the Secretary-General’s initiative on addressing global crises related to food, energy and finance issues in order to mitigate the impact of the war in Ukraine on food and energy prices. In that context, we would like to recall the appeal of Mr. Kais Sated. President of Tunisia, during the Food Systems Summit, held recently in Rome, to create a strategic stockpile of cereals for the entire world that can be used when necessary.
We need to acknowledge that the international monetary system that was created following the Second World War has clearly failed to provide a global safety net and to guarantee concessional and sustainable financing for developing and least developing countries. Quite to the contrary, that system has disappointed those countries and contributed to widening the gap between developed countries and developing countries that face difficult choices today, including having to use most of their resources to reimburse and service their debt or meet the vital needs of their peoples. That is why we call today for substantive reforms of the international financial system and for a change in global economic governance. That is an essential priority to overcome current imbalances and differences and establish a sound system that invests in sustainable development and future generations. Furthermore, we call for responsible and serious engagement to facilitate the recovery of looted funds from abroad to help the people of affected countries and make them rely on their own resources. It is also important to avoid those kinds of violations in the future.
The challenges facing the world today — the impact of climate change, deterioration of the ecosystem and worsening of national disasters — compel all of us to take urgent action as an absolute priority despite, the fact that our countries are not responsible for the current situation of our planet. In that context. Tunisia appreciates the initiative of the Secretary-General, who called for the convening of the Climate Ambition Summit. We also reiterate the need to continue and step up international efforts to achieve needed solutions. All responsible actors should assume their responsibility by providing climate funding to countries that are most affected.
Illegal migration has worsened in our geographical area due to the inadequate development of many African States. That can be attributed to prolonged conflicts, the effects of climate change and the fact that criminal
networks are exploiting the precarious conditions of thousands of people who are seeking better opportunities in life and are trafficking them, whether in countries south or north of the Mediterranean Sea or sub-Saharan Africa. While reaffirming the need to adopt a global approach to tackle the issue of illegal migration, which includes addressing its root causes rather than simply its consequences, we once again stress the need for all parties to assume their responsibility. That includes countries of origin, transit and destination, as well as regional and international organizations. In that context, we call for the continuation of the process of the International Conference on Migration and Development, which started in Rome based on a Tunisian- Italian initiative. Tunisia has always dealt with the issue of illegal migration to the extent of its ability based on its firm commitment to human rights and respect for international commitments. We assure that Tunisia will not accept concealed settling of illegal migrants. Furthermore, we condemn all irresponsible political or media exploitation of the suffering of victims of illegal migration for political purposes.
Tunisia has not been an exception to what the world has experienced and continues to experience in terms of economic, social and life challenges. We intend to overcome those difficulties, notwithstanding the current difficulties, and to strengthen our resilience and sustainability in cooperation with our brothers, friends and partners, while preserving the guiding principles of our national policies and independent decisions. We will continue tirelessly the process of reform, the strengthening of good governance and the fight against corruption in order to review and strengthen our democracy and the performance of State institutions. We will put an end to the irresponsible political manipulations that we have seen for over a decade. All of that is in response to the aspirations of the Tunisian people, who sincerely expressed them on 25 July 2021. The people will remain attached to their aspirations until this reform process is completed, despite all challenges and pressures. We also intend to strengthen our resilience in the face of challenges, including regional and global challenges, lack of funding, the effects of climate change and the consequences of COVID-19 pandemic. Our country, as part of a presidential initiative, was the first to call for strengthened international solidarity to combat COVID-19, through the adoption by the Security Council of resolution 2532 (2020). co-sponsored by France.
We also will continue our efforts to empower women and young people and to strengthen their participation in public life and decision-making. We are also working on transitioning successfully to a green and blue economy, strengthening digital transformation while providing social protection for all our citizens, and ensuring the fair distribution of economic growth. During this important period. Tunisia will rely on its own resources, and we call on our partners to work with us constructively, as part of our process of reform and modernization, and to support our economic recovery efforts on the basis of our shared interests and common destinies, as well as our intelligent political assessment.
Tunisia also stresses the need to continue the process of reform and revitalization in our Organization. In that context. Tunisia has effectively taken part in the implementation of the Secretary-General’s report on Our Common Agenda (A/75/982). and we hope that the Summit of the Future will be an opportunity to reiterate the commitment of everyone to our common principles in order to build a secure and lasting future for humankind. That also reflects our vision to create a new global order that is more balanced and with no hierarchy among States, because where justice is absent, we see an increase in poverty, wars and terrorism. We need a new global vision on concepts of security and peace that focuses on the root causes of instability and the trends towards violence and war.
The historical injustice and suffering which have been imposed on the Palestinian people for more than seven decades of occupation, as well as its attendant oppression and atrocities are unacceptable, illegal, immoral and inhumane. The same goes for the silence of the international community as the occupation authorities continue to disregard resolutions of international legitimacy and the principles of international law while carrying out their policy of aggression and settlement plans. That is why we once again call on the Security Council and the international community to assume their responsibilities and compel the occupation authorities to respect resolutions of international legitimacy with a view to achieving a just and peaceful solution based on international agreed parameters, putting an end to the occupation and suffering of the Palestinian people while allowing them to recover their legitimate rights to create an independent, geographically contiguous and sovereign State within the borders of 4 June 1967. with Jerusalem as its capital. We all call for the State of Palestine to be a full-fledged member of the United Nations.
Turning to our immediate neighbourhood. Tunisia reiterates its firm commitment to provide all possible assistance to our Libyan brethren with a view to helping Libya overcome its differences and achieve a political agreement based on intra-Libyan dialogue, with the help of the United Nations, to preserve the unity, sovereignty and independence of Libya. We reiterate our rejection of any military solutions and any form of foreign interference, direct or indirect, in the internal affairs of Libya. Along the same lines, we call for convergence of United Nations and international efforts to achieve political solutions in both Syria and Yemen to put an end to the suffering of their brotherly peoples, to bring peace and security to them and to preserve their sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity. Tunisia also calls for an end to the escalation in the brotherly country of the Sudan and for the prioritization of dialogue in order to overcome the crisis. We call on the international community and the United Nations to help Africa to rid itself of the constant crises, for which the continent is only marginally responsible. We reiterate the importance of including a moral dimension in the economic field by taking into account the interests of African countries.
In conclusion. I would like to stress that we are all at a crossroads today. Given the scale of the unprecedented risks and challenges that affect everyone and threaten our world and future generations, the choices we make should be based on our intelligence and longterm vision and on the commitment to our humanity. Those choices should also be based on the belief in our shared destiny and commitment to the United Nations Charter, the principles of solidarity, cooperation and responsibility. Those choices will play a decisive role in restoring credibility in the multilateral system.