United Nations Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed urged countries to protect the UN Charter in a powerful speech to the Danish Parliament on Thursday, urging countries to "stand up for a rules-based order" - or pay the price.
The UN's founding document "is our moral compass," she said, calling for renewed commitment to multilateralism rooted in solidarity, international law, and human dignity.
She stressed the need to invest in peace - which the Security Council and General Assembly have both affirmed through resolutions on Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity, and in support of the two-State solution between Israelis and Palestinians.
These are examples of how the Charter's values "have been brought to life", however "the very foundation those resolutions rest on is being attacked."
Yesterday, Venezuela - tomorrow Greenland?
Ms. Mohammed said that "dangerous nostalgia is what's threatening international cooperation now, that the rule of law can be interpreted by the whims and caprices of a strong arm."
She noted that Secretary-General António Guterres recently reminded that the Charter is not an à la carte menu and all countries have an obligation to uphold it.
Today, it is smaller countries who are "holding the line on the Charter" because they understand that "if the rules don't protect the vulnerable, they offer protection to no one," she said.
"You either stand up for a rules-based order, or you pay the price of ignoring it. Yesterday, the price was Venezuela, tomorrow it may be Greenland," she warned.
Fund sustainable development
The international community must also work to accelerate sustainable development.
Geopolitical tensions are threatening gains made in slashing poverty, reducing child and maternal mortality, and increasing girls' access to education, she said.
Furthermore, "trade wars are closing off markets that have lifted millions out of poverty. And we're watching a global rollback of the hard-won rights of women and girls."
Last year, military spending reached a record high of $2.7 trillion, yet funding for basic development needs faces a $4.2 trillion annual shortfall, which must change.
Davos echo chamber
"Davos this week will see the rich getting richer - profits going into the hands of very few. Last year, the wealth of billionaires grew by $2 trillion dollars while the poorest half of humanity owns just two percent of global wealth," she added.
Ms. Mohammed pointed to the UN conference on financing for development, held last year in Spain , which "showed us how to create fiscal space for sustainable development, address the debt crisis, and reform the international financial architecture that keep so many outside."
Support UN reform
The Deputy Secretary-General underscored the need to "reset the UN to preserve multilateralism".
In this regard, the UN80 Initiative on system-wide reform aims to build a global body "that delivers more effectively, with greater impact, amid the reality of fewer resources and greater needs on the ground in countries."
She asked all countries, including Denmark, to "lead the charge and commit to a reformed UN that delivers on the promise of the Charter and the realities of today."
