UN, October 4. /TASS/. Proposals on the reform of the United Nations should be well-thought-out and agreed with all states, Russia’s UN envoy, Vasily Nebenzya, told the UN General Assembly’s Tuesday session devoted to the organization’s reform.
The UN General Assembly on Tuesday discussed UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres 48-page review of the organization’s activities and its response to global challenges and complicated problems. Guterres earlier said he had laid down a set of proposals intended to increase the efficiency and flexibility of the global organization and revive the practice of preventive measures in all spheres of its activity.
Speaking at the session, Nebenzya said that Russia supports in principle the UN chief’s commitment "to make the UN better."
"However, considering the sensitive nature of any changes in this direction, we are convinced of the need for the reform initiatives to be clear and well-thought-out, and of the need to agree the possible transformations with all member states," he said.
"This is the only way to turn the report’s call for strengthening multilateralism in international policies and increasing the organization’s clout into a practical action," the Russian envoy added.
He described the UN chief’s report as substantive, adding that it is focused not only on the organization’s work in the past year, but also on its future objectives.
At the same time, the Russian diplomat disagreed with a number of conclusions and proposals, calling them "questionable."
One of such questionable issues was the praise for the Joint Investigative Mechanism to investigate crimes in Syria, which the document describes as an unprecedented step.
"The UN General Assembly created it in breach of the UN Charter, exceeding its powers. We again call on the UN Secretary General and member states to refrain from supporting it in any form," Nebenzya said.