Statement by H.E. Ambassador ISHIKANE Kimihiro, Permanent Representative of Japan to the United Nations, Second informal consultation on the declaration to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the United Nations

Mme. Co-facilitators,

I would like to begin by thanking both of you, Ambassador Al-Thani and Ambassador Enestrom, and your teams for keeping things moving despite the difficult and unprecedented situation we are in.
 
I wish to praise you, Mme. Co-facilitators, for producing a carefully-crafted zero draft which elegantly captures the comments made by the Member States, while keeping the text short and succinct, and yet sending an eloquent message to readers.
 
I also wish to thank you for incorporating Japan’s comments on the elements paper into the zero draft. In particular, we highly appreciate that the draft places “people” as an overarching theme throughout the text, which is more relevant than ever against the backdrop of the human security crisis caused by COVID-19. The word “people” or “peoples” appears 11 times in the draft. Maybe we need more.
 
Mme. Co-facilitators,
 
Japan supports the current length of the text as well as its structure consisting of three sections with an action-oriented main section in the middle. On condition that the text maintains its structure and succinctness and that it does NOT become a Christmas tree with plenty of ornaments, I would limit my comments to a strict minimum in order to contribute to an early consensus.
 
First, we support the references to COVID-19 in many parts of the declaration. COVID-19 and its socio-economic impact are threatening the survival, livelihood and dignity of human beings. People are suffering and we need to protect and empower all those in need. These key elements of the notion of human security, as agreed by consensus in the GA resolution on human security (A/RES/66/290), merit mentioning in the declaration. There should also be a reference to universal health coverage (UHC) as a means to prepare for, to prevent and to better respond to future public health crises, in addition to the need for vaccines and medicines.
 
Second, we support the reference to the phrase “build back better” used a couple of times in the zero draft. This phrase originates in the terminology of the experts on disaster risk reduction who were struggling to recover from the disaster caused by the Great East Japan Earthquake and tsunami in 2011. In the current context, what do we need to build back better from? Of course, from the impact of COVID-19, but it should not be limited to coronavirus-related disasters. The world needs to build back better from increasing climate-related disasters and other calamities as well.
 
Third, as we commit to work to ensure peace and security even under increasingly challenging situation, let us not forget that this year marks the 50^th anniversary of the NPT’s entry into force. We should reaffirm our endeavor towards a world free of nuclear weapons.
 
Fourth, there is no doubt that the United Nations must be reformed, updated and strengthened. This declaration must properly address the importance of Security Council reform and the need to take action based on the 2005 World Summit Outcome, where our leaders agreed on an early reform of the Security Council. We must properly reflect the reality of the world today and realize the reform of the Council in the shortest possible time.
 
Fifth and lastly, in order to put the Organization on an even more sustainable footing, it is important to enhance the efficient use of resources. This simple statement of fact should be included in our commitment so that we can ensure sustainable financing of the Organization.
 
Mme. Co-facilitators,
 
These are the minimum five points we propose with the aim of contributing to the fine-tuning of the zero draft. We will submit in writing a concrete language proposal for each point. My delegation trusts your able guidance in bringing us to a consensus at an early stage.
 
I thank you.