The central theme of the sixty-
eighth session of the General Assembly is sustainable
development. With its three main pillars this constitutes
a comprehensive agenda, even more comprehensive with
all of its prerequisites: conflict prevention, bringing
peace and security to war-torn countries and bringing
perpetrators to justice through the implementation
of international law. Helping the weakest to help
themselves, shaping economies that pay focused
attention to social-agenda and environmental issues
and that effectively use e-technologies, protecting
human rights and supporting the rule of law and
democracy — these are all integral parts of sustainable
development.
The report of the High-level Panel of Eminent
Persons on the Post-2015 Development Agenda notes
that Governments bear the primary responsibility for
assuring sustainable development and for improving the
lives of people in their territories. Sustainability can be
truly implemented, however, only if we instil it in the
core thinking of Governments, societies, individuals
and the international community as a whole.
Let me start with what is clearly and without a
doubt the most unsustainable situation in the world at
the moment: the conflict in Syria. It has been repeated
thousands and thousands of times, and must continue to
be repeated over and over again, that the use of chemical
weapons is unacceptable under any circumstances
and requires complete and unreserved condemnation.
It is clear that chemical weapons must be destroyed
quickly and verifiably. Therefore the Organisation for
the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons and the Security
Council must — and I emphasize must — move forward
and agree on the legally binding terms to resolve that
issue, preferably under Chapter VII of the Charter, as
soon as possible.
Even without the use of chemical weapons, the
military actions and brutality which have occurred in
Syria have created suffering and a humanitarian disaster
of unimaginable proportions. More than 110,000
people have been killed, and millions of refugees and
internally displaced persons are scattered around the
This record contains the text of speeches delivered in English and of the interpretation of
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region. About 7 million Syrians are in urgent need of
assistance.
While there is no quick or easy fix to that complex
situation, we must keep doing what we can to ease
human suffering. Estonia is one of many countries that
have been focusing on helping those who have been
forced to flee from their homes and protecting the most
vulnerable members of society: women and children. I
would also like to praise the good work of UNICEF, the
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, the
Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs
and humanitarian workers in Syria who often by risking
their own lives, have been able to organize and deliver
assistance.
Evidence collected by the Human Rights Council’s
Independent International Commission of Inquiry
indicates that war crimes, crimes against humanity and
gross human rights violations have been systematically
committed in Syria. Estonia is among the countries
that joined the Swiss initiative in January, asking the
Security Council to refer the situation in Syria to the
International Criminal Court. It is the responsibility of
the international community to protect, if a Government
fails to do so.
In contrast, let me turn to a country and conflict
where hope has been restored recently. That presidential
elections in Mali were carried out in a peaceful and
transparent manner has paved the way for optimism.
The newly elected President has many important tasks
ahead, beginning with reconciliation between the
southern and northern parts of Mali. I wish Mr. Keita all
the luck and energy he will need to rebuild his country,
and I can assure him that Estonia stands among the
countries that will continue to help if needed.
I venture to say that another country whose
future looks promising is Afghanistan. I believe that
responsibility and ownership make people masters
of their own fate, and I can see the willingness of
Afghans to avail themselves of that opportunity. The
international community must continue to assist that
country in order to ensure that their efforts will bear
fruit. As a long-term partner of Afghanistan, Estonia
remains committed to assisting with the training and
financing of Afghan security forces after 2014, while
continuing to support educational progress, women’s
empowerment, the rule of law and health care.
It is also sadly true that conflicts can at times
be alarmingly sustainable. For years, Estonia has
emphasized that protracted conflicts around Nagorno
Karabakh and in Georgia and Moldova must not fall
off the radar screen of the international community.
Without the will of all the involved parties, no lasting
solutions can be found.
Every year, over half a million people die as a result
of illegal or irresponsible arms transfers. Enormous
amounts of money and resources are spent on arms,
often at the expense of far more vital needs. We view
the adoption in June of the Arms Trade Treaty, within
the framework of the United Nations, as a historic
milestone for the world community.
As a responsible member of the international
community, Estonia strongly supports and contributes
to the activities of the International Criminal Court
and the ad hoc tribunals established by the Security
Council. We continue to call for more States to ratify
the Rome Statute and the amendments to the Rome
Statute relating to the crime of aggression. Universality
is key to ensuring that the perpetrators of the worst
crimes of concern to the international community are
held accountable. Accountability and the prevention
of atrocities have been the priorities of Estonia as a
current member of the Human Rights Council. In the
Council, we also focus on the rights of women and
children and on their disproportionate suffering during
armed conflict.
The post-2015 sustainable development agenda
should transform the Millennium Development Goals
(MDGs) into Sustainable Development Goals. In the
meantime, we have learned that the MDGs should
have focused more on reaching the poorest and most-
excluded groups in society. The main challenge of the
post-2015 negotiations will be to formulate and reach
global agreement on one concrete and measurable
set of development goals that would keep the three
dimensions of sustainability in its core and maintain a
strong focus on poverty eradication. The targets should
leave no one behind and be applicable and achievable
in every country.
In many societies, women and girls are the main
drivers of development. Not allowing them to fulfil their
potential through education, decent job opportunities
and essential health services is to disregard the
potential of one half of humankind. It is also important
to remember that persons with disabilities have been
one of the most excluded segments of our societies,
although they often have serious difficulties with access
to basic social services and decent job opportunities.
Official development assistance will continue to
play an important role in the sustainable development
of many countries in the future, but it cannot compete
with the flow of international private investment nor
with domestically mobilized resources. Therefore,
synergies between different sources of finance,
better policies and strong national ownership are
necessary. Nonetheless, the main drivers of sustainable
development are inclusive and responsible economic
policies. A key enabler of growth is the bold use of
modern integrated circuit technology solutions. They
promote better governance, access to public services,
job creation, transparency, accountability and civil
society participation.
That brings me to two issues of worldwide
importance: cybersecurity and Internet freedom. The
two are intrinsically linked and in no way incompatible.
Moreover, they will require a multi-stakeholder model
of Internet governance. Freedom of opinion and
expression, online or offline, is a cornerstone of every
democracy and constitutes a fundamental human right.
Last year, the Human Rights Council affirmed that very
same principle. I am glad that the United Nations Group
of Governmental Experts on Cyber Issues affirmed that
international law is essential in promoting an open,
secure and accessible cyberspace.
In our fight against cybercrime, it is essential to raise
awareness and to work on prevention by everyone, from
private computer users to large critical infrastructure
and cloud providers. Raising the awareness of political
leaders and national governments is equally important;
cybercrime may have serious consequences for national
security as well as national wealth. Yet the Council of
Europe’s 2001 European Cybercrime Treaty — renamed
the Convention on Cybercrime because participants are
from all over the world, and also known as the Budapest
Convention — remains thus far the only legally binding
international instrument that addresses cybercrime.
Needless to say, the more countries accede to it, the
more functional it will become. We find it odd that
those countries with the largest sources of cybercrime
have not acceded to the Convention, while in other
areas they stress the primacy of international law.
The United Nations has had and will continue to
have a leading role in making the world sustainable. Yet
Governments can do and must do their own fair share.
Estonia, for example, proudly continues to support the
initiatives of civil society in contributing to sustainable
development. Approximately one half of the world’s
countries have joined our 2008 initiative “Let’s Do It!”
to make people’s environments cleaner and our planet
environmentally happier.
Let us remain alert and tuned in to every single
detail that prevents us from advancing our common
well-being, be it in developed or in developing countries.
Let us be united in that common effort.