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It is in Sendai that Japan will host the Asia Pacific Ministerial Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction in October next year. To protect the lives of present and future generations, all states must take serious action to tackle global warming. I believe that climate action and economic growth can go hand in hand. Japan has been advancing green transformation GX efforts with the goal of achieving net zero by 2050. Such capabilities include establishing the basis for the production and engineering of materials such as green steel, utilizing the world's most efficient gas fired power generation, and popularizing the adoption of energy efficient data centers. Harnessing Japan's technological capabilities, we will enhance these efforts with a view to strengthening the resilience of the energy supply demand structure and vigorously advance the policy package for wide energy and resources resilience through green transformation or POWERR GX. Furthermore, Japan will contribute to global climate action, including through GX related efforts such as the Asia Zero Emission Community AZEC that simultaneously achieve decarbonization, energy security, and economic growth.
It is exactly these principles that are guiding our efforts for peace and stability in the South Caucasus. Even though the decades long conflict with Armenia brought immense tragedy to our people and left deep scars across our land, Azerbaijan has chosen to look ahead and turn the page of enmity. We offered Armenia peace fully in line with norms and principles of international law, based on mutual recognition of and respect for each other's sovereignty and territorial integrity. Our normalization efforts produced historic results at the Washington Peace Summit last August, where the leaders of Azerbaijan and Armenia signed a joint declaration witnessed by President Trump of the United States of America. Through this declaration, both sides confirmed the end of the conflict and their will to jointly chart a peaceful and prosperous future. The sides also initialled the agreement on Establishment of peace and inter-state relations. Today, we have achieved de facto peace. Moreover, by unilaterally lifting transit restrictions, Azerbaijan facilitates transportation of goods to and from Armenia. We have also established bilateral trade. Azerbaijan provides strategically important oil products to Armenia on a regular basis despite increased volatility in markets and growing international demand for these commodities. As we proceed with the peace agenda initiated by Azerbaijan, our entire region is now turning into a promising anchor of stability, connectivity and tangible economic dividends. To make this process irreversible, it is of crucial importance to eliminate the remaining obstacle, which will allow finalization of the normalization process through the signing of the already initialed bilateral agreement. Excellencies complementing the regional normalization process, Azerbaijan's post-conflict rehabilitation agenda aims to ensure that hundreds of thousands of Azerbaijanis can eventually exercise their right to a safe and dignified return to their homes. Due to large scale reconstruction efforts taken by the government, life is now returning to our liberated territories. Azerbaijan is rebuilding the entire region through smart cities and smart villages powered by green technology. Areas that were once rubble and ashes are now rising as modern settlements. Today, more than 90,000 people live, study and work in the liberated territories. Regrettably, a massive contamination of the territories of Azerbaijan with landmines and other explosive devices remains a serious obstacle. This significantly obstructs the reconstruction and return process. Since the liberation of occupied territories in 2020, more than 400 individuals, including women and children, became victim to landmines. The cumulative toll of landmines over the past 30 years exceeds 3500 persons. Given the scale of the problem, Azerbaijan considers mine action an essential prerequisite for fulfilling human rights and has formally declared humanitarian demining its 18th National Sustainable Development Goal. Similarly, the need to clarify the fate and whereabouts of nearly 4000 Azerbaijanis who went missing due to the conflict is essential not only for accountability and the rights of the victims and their families, but also for post-conflict reconciliation and normalization. Mr. president, in the face of increasingly complex global challenges, our collective response must be inclusive, equitable, and universal.
We will take the lead in shaping AI into a tool for solving the shared challenges we face, such as the climate crisis, public health, food insecurity, and refugee issues. Second, the green transformation. The climate crisis is often referred to as a global group project shared by all 8 billion people on earth. A single country cannot tackle this challenge alone. At the same time, abandoning growth cannot bring everyone on board. The Republic of Korea announced its 2035 Nationally Determined Contributions as part of its active participation in the Paris Agreement and UN Climate Action. The Korea Green Transformation Strategy aims to convert our industrial structure, creating a virtuous cycle in which carbon neutrality leads to new growth engines and decent jobs. We are ready to share our experience and best practices with the international community. Co-hosting the fourth UN Ocean Conference with Chile in 2028 reflects our commitment to leading discussions on the sustainable development of our oceans.
In confronting these threats and dangers, the Sudan has in Egypt a strong supporter of its people and the right to unity, to institutions capable of safeguarding their resources and to justice that upholds their dignity. Mr. president, justice and rules is not complete if the institutions that make decisions do not fairly represent the world they govern. More than eight decades have passed since the founding of the United Nations. Yet the structure of the international system's institutions, particularly the Security Council, still reflect historical balances that have become outdated. Institutions that were created for a different world cannot maintain full legitimacy and effectiveness if they do not reflect the world they are meant to serve today, and represent the concerns and interests of the majority of its population. In this context Egypt continues to advocate genuine and comprehensive reform of the Security Council in accordance with the Ezulwini Consensus and the Sirte Declaration, particularly to mend the historical injustice suffered by Africa. The imbalance in political representation is matched by another imbalance in the global economy. Developing countries are required to accelerate development, create jobs, finance green transitions and adapt to crises while simultaneously facing growing debt burdens, higher financing costs and a shrinking fiscal space. Therefore, reforming international financial architecture is no longer a luxury but a necessity. We need financial institutions that are more representative and responsive. We need expanded concessional financing, greater mobilisation and lending capacities for multilateral development banks and accelerated debt workout in a fair and effective manner. We need innovative financing tools and a fairer system for assessing countries needs and investment risks, thus enabling the mobilisation of private capital without shifting risks onto the most vulnerable countries. Countries should not be forced to choose between debt servicing and financing, education, health care, food security and essential infrastructure. Development is not charity. It is a right and a shared interest. Investing in development is an investment in global stability and in the ability of states to prevent crises before they become cross-border, humanitarian and security crises.
Solomon Islands therefore recognises the need for an inclusive and transparent international governance framework on AI. Mr. president, year after year, Pacific leaders have stood at this podium and urged the world to act on climate change. And yet, global action continues to fall short of what the science demands. For every passing COP, the impacts grow more severe. Our islands are being lost to the sea. Disasters are more frequent and more devastating. Food and water security is under threat and communities are being forced from their ancestral lands. Solomon Islands knows this reality firsthand. This year, Tropical Cyclone Maila, a category five storm, tore through our communities, destroying homes, schools, infrastructure and livelihoods. My government has just approved US$9.38 million for shelter recovery. That is money our essential services urgently need now diverted to deal with the impacts of this climate extreme. Like many Pacific Island countries, we are trapped in a relentless cycle of response, recovery and rebuilding. This is not sustainable, nor is it just. My people did the least to cause this crisis, yet they pay its earliest and heaviest price. That is the moral ledger that lies before this assembly. Last year, the International Court of Justice confirmed in its landmark advisory opinion that states have legal obligations to protect the climate system. Major emitters must make deep emission cuts and transition away from fossil fuels. Climate finance, including support for loss and damage, must be grant based and channelled through our national budget systems. Project based financing of climate action is unsustainable and out of step with the scale of a crisis we did the least to cause. Vulnerable countries should not have to choose between climate action and educating our children, caring for the sick or securing food and water. Yet that is the choice we face with every dollar we spend. We therefore call for the full capitalisation of the Pacific Resilience Facility, and an ambitious and timely third replenishment of the Green Climate Fund. Our region has long led on climate action, and we will continue to lead. The Pre-COP31 meeting, to be hosted in the Pacific by Australia in partnership with Fiji and Tuvalu, will bring the reality of climate change directly into the heart of the global process. I call on all parties and partners to come to that meeting and to COP31 with stronger commitments and concrete action. The communities on the frontline of the climate crisis deserve nothing less. Mr. president, Solomon Islands welcomes the convening of the second high level meeting on sea level rise and the adoption of the first political declaration on sea level rise. Every day our people are defending their coastlines, strengthening their resilience, protecting their food and water security and their cultural heritage, and, where there is no other choice, relocating. But we cannot do this alone. I call on this assembly to match the courage of our Pacific communities with collective international resolve to scale up adaptation and resilience finance, and to support communities facing climate mobility needs.
It didn't dry up due to a natural disaster. This is a consequence of decades of wrong decisions and unjust treatment of nature. New Uzbekistan is creating green areas on the dried seabed to reduce the scale of this problem. We are introducing modern water-saving technologies.
Without this reform, it is becoming almost impossible to mobilize development funding, particularly green finance. Gabon, a country with extensive forest cover and a low deforestation rate, as well as a major carbon sink, therefore calls for greater recognition of its contribution to global climate regulation and the ecosystem services that it provides to humanity. These must be properly valued and give rise to fair, adequate, predictable and sustainable financing. Mr. president, while it's true that digital transformation offers considerable opportunities, it also entails risk infringements of privacy, disinformation, cybercrime and the irresponsible use of emerging technologies.
Everyone is being harmed, from Asia to Europe, from Africa to the Americas. No country is immune. They have serious economic and social impact and are already having undesirable consequences for all of us and also for the parties involved. This is a senseless crisis because it's harmful to everyone. We must put an end to this collective masochism, and we must do it quickly to close this chapter, which is a chapter of widespread harm. We all have a duty to learn from the lessons of the crisis of the 1970s and avoid repeating what happened then. We will be judged by how we handle this challenge. On the one hand, it is urgent to put an end to the protracted conflicts and on the other hand, starting now, we must discuss and decide on complementary ways to mitigate the impact of this energy crisis and prevent it from being prolonged. It is my belief that it would also be beneficial to discuss the mechanism by which international oil prices are determined. I do not have a concrete solution which is very complex and difficult, but I wonder if it makes sense for all of us to be so dependent on speculation and the volatility of financial and futures markets, which affect the entire production sector, even when the instability originates only from a portion or a limited period of that production. Excellencies, we also bear the intergenerational responsibility to accelerate the energy transition in order to reduce dependencies and mitigate the effects of climate change. I will share with you that in Portugal, we feel the devastating impacts of climate change firsthand in the increase in forest fires, coastal erosion, and the degradation of marine ecosystems, and also and more frequently in extreme weather events, new such as storms, high winds and flash floods. That is why we take a strategic approach to the energy transition. More than 70% of our energy production comes from renewable sources. We have anticipated our carbon neutrality target to 2045. We maintain close collaboration and continued support for countries that are particularly vulnerable to climate change, and we are investing in innovative solutions, such as agreements to convert debt into green investment. Climate change and freedom of navigation share a common priority of our policy: the sea and ocean. Protecting the marine environment and its biodiversity, combating ocean warming, addressing the threat of sea level rise and ensuring universal freedom of navigation are essential priorities on the ocean agenda, which is an agenda we all have to pay attention to.
As part of fulfilling our commitment to enhance resilience to climate shock, we were able to produce an improved climate-resilient wheat variety seed. In a very short period, we have transitioned from a wheat importer to one of the largest wheat producers in Africa. At a time where food provision has become a political battleground and the global food supply hangs precariously in the balance, we send a clear message that Africa can feed itself. Since the launch of the Green Legacy Initiative in 2019, we were able to plant 56 billion trees, which is not only expanding our forest coverage but significantly restoring our ecosystem.
Global progress must uphold the spirit of humanity in relations among nations, safeguard their legitimate interests and respect differences in history, culture and development conditions. Third, we must proactively shape technology governance so that progress serves humanity and our common development. Science, technology, digital transformation and artificial intelligence are opening up unprecedented opportunities, but they are also presenting new challenges. The future of technology does not automatically guarantee equitability, and technological progress must help narrow divides and expand development opportunities, rather than creating new forms of dependency or new sources of conflict. We need to develop inclusive, safe, transparent and accountable principles and governance frameworks to ensure that technologies will be in service of the people while respecting national sovereignty digital sovereignty and the right to development. Developing countries must be able to participate substantively in rulemaking, receive support for infrastructure and digital capacity, and enjoy equitable access to the benefits of scientific and technological progress. Vietnam's hosting of the signing ceremony for the UN Convention Against Cybercrime in Hanoi last year reflects our desire to make substantive contributions to global digital cooperation. Vietnam stands ready to work with partners to strengthen cooperation and build capacity in preventing and combating cyber crime so that people may live safely and benefit from technological progress. We also stand ready to support international initiatives on green and digital transformation, and the development of effective governance frameworks, so that science and technology can truly become drivers of shared development.
Our experience in southern Africa has taught us that dialogue is a shared fortitude and not a weakness. In the African tradition, the meeting place is not where courage is abandoned. It is where wisdom is summoned. Lessons can be drawn from the heritage based approaches to peace building and conflict resolution from communities across the world, including within Africa. Military action may alter the battlefield, but durable peace is built through inclusive political processes that restore confidence, address grievances and allow affected communities to shape their socioeconomic and political destinies. Mr. President, Zimbabwe's grateful for the confidence placed in us through our election to the Security Council for the 2027 to 2028 term. My country will assume this responsibility in January 2027 with humility, independency and a readiness to serve, guided by our foreign policy of being a friend to all and an enemy to none. Accordingly, my country will prioritize four priorities in the Council. Firstly, the promotion of preventive diplomacy, mediation, and peaceful dispute resolution while tackling the underlying causes of insecurity. Secondly, we shall advocate for the strengthening of cooperation between the United Nations and the regional organizations such as the African Union and its Peace and Security Council. In this respect, we call for the full implementation of resolution 2719 to ensure predictable, adequate and sustainable financing for authorized African Union led peace support operations. Thirdly, our nation believes that our rich heritage and natural resource endowments must advance industrialization, modernization and the green agenda for the prosperity of all and not to finance conflict. As such, Zimbabwe shall support Africa's Silencing the Guns agenda and strong action against terrorism, organized crime, illicit arms flows, and illegal resource trafficking. Finally, women and young people must shape peace. From the outset, the support of Zimbabwe will also be extended to the women and youth peace and security agendas. The current times demand peace keeping that is grounded in clear political strategies, realistic mandates and adequate resources. Those most affected by the decisions of the Security Council should not be the least heard. There is need not only give a voice, but consider the views of the countries and regions on the Security Council agenda towards our shared aspirations for enduring peace and sustainable development.
Artificial intelligence can accelerate development, but its use must remain consistent with legal frameworks, human dignity and democratic accountability. Renewed nuclear rhetoric makes a firm commitment to the treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons more important than ever. Climate action should be used to strengthen energy security and social cohesion. Our experience shows that the green transition should not be ideological.
For my country, for Cyprus, this is not an abstract principle; it is a painful existential reality. Fifty-two years have passed since the illegal Turkish invasion of Cyprus, an act of aggression violating the core principles of the UN Charter, an ongoing, flagrant violation of international law, with more than a third of the territory of Cyprus remaining under Turkish occupation. For fifty-two years, the tens of thousands of displaced and their descendants are prevented from returning to their homes. For fifty-two years, Varosha remains sealed off, with Turkey still in defiance of its clear and very specific obligations set out in the relevant UN resolutions. For fifty-two years, we are experiencing violations of fundamental human rights, the destruction of religious and cultural heritage, and the organized transfer of settlers amounting to demographic change. Pain and immense suffering are the daily reality of the relatives of the missing persons that, to this day, are demanding answers as to the fate of their loved ones. And for fifty-two years, the principles at stake have remained the same: respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity are not rhetorical vehicles, nor are they to be applied selectively depending on who the perpetrator is. These principles do not become less important with the passage of time, nor do the resolutions of this organization. UN resolutions cannot be upheld in one case and disregarded, fully disregarded in another. And the sovereignty and territorial integrity of a state cannot depend on its size, its power, or the passage of the time. And this is not only a question for Cyprus. It goes to the credibility of the international system itself. If we ask states to believe in multilateralism, if we expect them to be active contributors, then they must be able to trust that the principles and decisions of our institutions will be upheld without exception. Ladies and gentlemen, I listened very carefully to the speech of President Erdogan yesterday: references to international law, to the respect for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all states, to illegal occupation, to the drama of refugees. Yet, in relation to my country, in relation to Cyprus, Turkey is doing exactly the opposite: hypocrisy of the highest form. President Erdogan yesterday also quoted extensively from the UN Charter. But politicians are judged not by their words, but by their deeds. And if Mr. Erdogan wants to quote from the Charter, he must first apply the Charter. The UN Security Council has established the framework for the solution of the Cyprus problem. That framework of a bizonal, bicommunal federation with political equality remains the only basis on which a comprehensive settlement must be reached. And I remain fully committed to achieving a factional and viable solution. I'm ready. I'm ready to resume negotiations from where they left off, building on the substantial work already achieved. The common ground is there: the relevant UN Security Council resolutions, international law, and the law, values, and principles of the European Union. What is now required is political will by all parties and genuine willingness to return to meaningful negotiations, to engage seriously, to build on the body of work already achieved, and to reach a settlement that reunifies our country and our people. A settlement that allows Greek and Turkish Cypriots, Maronites, Armenians, and Latins to live together in peace, security, and prosperity. On my side, let me repeat it, I'm fully committed. Because, ladies and gentlemen, division will not be accepted. This cannot and will not be the future for my country and my people, ever. Our determination to reunify our island is firm. I therefore call on my Turkish Cypriot compatriots to perceive our future together as the opportunity for prosperity. And of course, I call on President Erdogan to give the green light for substantive negotiations within the UN agreed framework. Excellencies, I mentioned several times how change is inevitable. But the choices we make in response to change are ours. For countries like Cyprus, the answer must be cooperation with purpose.
The petition has now been referred to the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council. Mr. president, 64 years after Jamaica proudly raised our black, green and gold flag as politically independent nation, we remain clear eyed about the world around us. We know its dangers, but we also believe deeply in its possibilities. The United Nations must change if it is to remain credible. Jamaica supports the revitalization of this General Assembly. Meaningful reform of the Security Council and greater coherence, efficiency and accountability across the United Nations system. Reform is not an act of disloyalty to this institution. Reform is how we preserve it. Ultimately, however, Mr. President, multilateralism must mean something beyond these walls. For a small state like Jamaica, its value is felt when our people are safer, when opportunity is expanded, when vulnerability does not become a barrier to development, when countries that have acted responsibly are not penalised for shocks they did not create. And when the voice of a small nation carries the same dignity as that of a large one. That is why Jamaica remains committed to this institution, not because it is perfect, but because we're grateful for what it has achieved and we believe in what it can become. Small states can help lead that effort. Our own journey has taught us that vulnerability need not mean helplessness. That discipline creates resilience. That partnership multiplies possibility. And that even in moments of profound crisis, nations can choose to build forward. So let us restore trust through what we do. Let us manage transformation with purpose. Let us bring the same seriousness to preventing crises that we do to responding to them. And let us never lose sight of the simple idea on which this institution was founded, that nations working together can achieve what none of us can achieve alone. That is the United Nations Jamaica believes in, and that is the United Nations we will continue to work towards reforming and renewing.
It transcends borders and generations. Small island developing states are already experiencing consequences that threaten their very existence. Luxembourg may be landlocked, but we are deeply committed to this common effort, including by drawing on the expertise of our financial centre in green finance. Our interests may differ, but our future is shared.
Mr. president, as a low lying atoll nation with no higher ground, sea level rise is an immediate and stark reality. This week's UN high level meeting on sea level rise has helped achieve new understanding in international law. It is the seas that are rising around us and not our islands which are sinking. Our boundaries and baselines of today. The political footprint on the map will endure in the face of aggressive sea level rise scenarios. Our collective stability and security as Pacific Islands Forum members and as a UN member state will be now better addressed. As an atoll nation, our tide gauge is proof enough that far more action is needed, and we are acting. Confronted with rising seas on our most vulnerable shorelines. We completed the Ebeye Seawall and Footpath last week. 1.8km of oceanside protection built with support from the World Bank, the Green Climate Fund and our own resources. Engineered for rising seas, it now protects 8,400 people and critical energy infrastructure, reduces annual coastal flooding losses and anchors resilient future development on Ebeye, including schools, housing and the proposed new hospital, while providing a safe public space that strengthens community wellbeing. It cost $75 million, took 70,000 tonnes of rocks, took more than a decade to do, and it is just one island of over a thousand. We are taking action and we urgently need strengthened partnership to better protect our islands before sea level rise overtakes us. Mr. president, my nation underscores the importance of the law of the sea as a key pillar of our future. Even before we were a UN member, we fought closely both to participate in UN law of the sea negotiations and to secure these rights in our Constitution. Pacific Island leadership and that of all small island developing states has defined every multilateral milestone for oceans and fisheries. And we will continue to do so. As an ocean people, the consequences of getting it wrong are not from distant impacts, but adjacent to our waters, particularly in the North Pacific, both within the International Seabed Authority and unilateral actions. Collectively, the people and voices of Micronesia must be heard. We are joined by Guam, Northern Marianas, Federated States of Micronesia and Palau in expressing our alarm at seabed mining actions where the decisions are made before impacts are well understood and where adequate safeguards remain undefined. The Marshall Islands joins 45 nations seeking a moratorium on seabed mining. Responsible and science driven regulations need to be in place. Going on guesswork for global oceans is beyond dangerous. There are no do overs. The Marshall Islands looks forward to the first Conference of Parties to the Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction, to work across silos to advance high seas protection. We urge wide ratification of the agreement. The Marshall Islands looks forward to supporting its secretariat in a host nation, committed to upholding the law of the sea as a matter of both principle and law, in words and in actions. Mr. president, too often the word geopolitics is considered to refer only to the whims of superpowers and not the reality of our fragile place between them.
For Namibia, effective implementation of the key commitment of the Pact for the Future would be beneficial in accomplishing Namibia's national priorities, namely agriculture, sports, youth empowerment, quality education and training, creative industry, health and social welfare, land, housing, and sanitation. I wish to urge all member states to consider the implementation of the Pact for the Future as a critical international priority for development. As part of our developmental agenda, we are preparing our young people for the emerging industries in Namibia, such as oil and gas, renewable energy, and green hydrogen, among others. Subsequently, this year we have introduced 100 percent subsidized registration and tuition fees for Namibian students entering universities and vocational training centers, and encourage them to take up appropriate courses. The government of Namibia has established the National Youth Development Fund last year. As a result of this fund, young people have set up their own medical practice, law firms, milling plants, and poultry businesses, to mention a few, thus contributing to job creation and poverty eradication. Namibia also takes cognizance of the rapid advancement of artificial intelligence in advancing human progress in line with the Global Digital Compact. However, we call for ethical, responsible, inclusive, and human-centered development and use of artificial intelligence with appropriate safeguards to ensure that technological advancement complements and enhances human capability rather than undermines it.
We also maintain that the vulnerability of small island states should be assessed beyond per capita income, taking into account their specific characteristics and structural constraints. In this context, we call for the Multidimensional Vulnerability Index to be translated into concrete eligibility criteria for concessional financing. We likewise advocate for the full operationalization of the fund for responding to loss and damage, and simpler, more effective access to the Green Climate Fund. The limited institutional capacity of vulnerable countries must not become an obstacle to accessing the very instruments created to support them. In the case of Sao Tomé and Principe, this issue is particularly relevant following our graduation to middle income country status, which was an important milestone and a recognition of the progress achieved in human development. It nonetheless requires appropriate transition measures capable of consolidating these gains and shielding the country from external shocks. It is as part of this effort of consolidation that the energy transition finds its place, a transition that is for us an economic, financial, social and environmental necessity.
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Sierra Leone09/22 · first at about 10 min1 mention
Mr. president, the same principle of fairness applies to Africa's critical minerals. Critical minerals are indispensable to the global energy transition, yet too much value is still added elsewhere. Processing at source, fair value chains, technology transfer and local industry would turn natural wealth into skilled work, stronger economies and hope for our young people. The green transition must not reproduce the extractive terms of the past. For the youth, this is immediate. A young person without work, opportunity or a stake in the future becomes vulnerable to the recruiter, the smuggler and the dangerous journey across the Mediterranean.
That is a brink that we had hoped we had left for good in the last century. How did we reach this point? Well, it is no mere coincidence. It is the inevitable result of actions by certain states aimed at deliberately undermining the system of international relations so that the world would develop not according to the laws of peaceful coexistence, but rather the principle of might makes right and political selfishness. If we truly want to restore trust, we must not hide behind diplomatic niceties, but honestly identify the causes of crises. In 1945, in San Francisco, at the UN founding conference, U.S. president Harry Truman spoke words that today sound like a prophecy. No matter how great our strength, we must deny ourselves the license to do always as we please. If all those with great power had acted as Truman said, we would have avoided many wars and conflicts. Unfortunately, however, the desire to live at the expense of others has remained the dominant narrative in the collective West's development. During the Cold War the balance of power was maintained by a system of checks and balances between the two opposing political systems. But since the 1990s, when that balance collapsed, the policy of unrestrained superiority has begun to grow rapidly, and in recent years this policy has reached its peak. Western countries have effectively trampled on international law and started to force everyone to act according to so-called rules, destroying countries and suppressing unbowed peoples. And these rules are like traffic signs in a city that they themselves have designed. They always have a green light while everyone else faces strict restrictions. But this isn't about metaphors. It is about facts that everyone knows. Yugoslavia, Iraq, Libya, Syria, Venezuela, Cuba, Iran, Palestine. And this is by no means an exhaustive list of the countries that have been or remain the focus of greedy Western interests.
It is time to resume the offensive and inflict a defeat on denialism. Nature reminds us every day that we live on one planet. The glaciers in the Himalayas are melting. The super El Nino may cause torrential rains, droughts and forest fires in different parts of the globe. Its effects will hit the most vulnerable, the hardest. Brazil has been demonstrating that it is possible to combine economic growth with reduced emissions. We have achieved our self-sufficiency in oil and will continue to explore the potential of new reserves, such as those in the equatorial margin. But we will not abandon the environmental agenda. We will move forward with the roadmap for the decarbonization of the Brazilian economy. The Tropical Forest Forever Facility, launched at COP30 in the city of Belém, shows that it is possible to change old paradigms. The forest is worth more standing than destroyed. We will continue to reduce deforestation, which has been cut in half in the Amazon and reaching its lowest level in 11 years. We have the moral authority to reject protectionist measures disguised as commitment to the environmental cause. Brazil is a global reference in green energy. We have the critical minerals and the rare earths that the world needs to make the energy transition. Our natural wealth belongs to the Brazilian people, and it is in their benefit that it will be exploited.
We continue to support its meaningful participation in the World Health Organization, the International Civil Aviation Organization, and other relevant mechanisms, and reiterate that differences across the Taiwan Strait must be resolved peacefully. Mr. President, no generation has a greater stake in our decisions than young people. Half of the world's population is under 30. Yet 67 million young people were unemployed last year, and more than a quarter of a billion were neither in employment, education, nor training. AI, the green transition, and climate change are reshaping their future jobs. We must prepare them. Last year, our Prime Minister introduced this Assembly to our ASPIRE Program, achieving success through personal investment, resources, and education for citizens aged 5 to 18. Built on savings, investment, and financial education, ASPIRE has opened more than 4,000 savings accounts, with our government committing more than US$2 million to give children a financial foundation for adulthood. We are now piloting our financial education curriculum in schools and training teachers for national rollout. We are not simply giving children money. We are giving them the knowledge to make money work for them. Financial independence must not be reserved for those born into wealth.
In light of these upheavals, not all countries bear the same responsibility or the same burden. Those who contribute least to global warming often suffer the heaviest consequences. This paradox is all the more striking, given that some of these countries are also some of the main custodians of the natural assets upon which our common future depends. The DRC is one of these custodians. It is home to a vital part of the Congo Basin, which is one of the planet's greatest climate regulators. Its forests, peatlands, freshwater, and biodiversity provide humanity with considerable ecosystem services. This world heritage will continue to be preserved while we maintain that the communities that protect it ought to be able to benefit from it. Climate finance, in this regard, is a fair solution. However, it ought to be accessible, predictable, and proportionate to the services rendered. Indeed, climate justice cannot consist in further indebting those who already bear the cost of damage they did the least to cause. In the DRC, this ambition is taking shape, especially through the Kivu-Kinshasa Green Corridor, which combines ecosystem preservation, economic development, and improved living conditions of the people. Generating 60 megawatts of electricity, this initiative also aims, by 2027, to create 25,000 jobs and protect 5,000 square kilometers of natural forest. The climate crisis is also a water crisis. Following the African Water Forum held in N'Djamena in July, the DRC has proposed the creation of an African Coalition for Water Security, which aims to strengthen regional cooperation and mobilizing the financing needed to make water a driver of development and for the prevention of tensions. Mr. President, these transformations require considerable resources. Four years from the 2030 deadline, the Congolese roadmap for accelerating the SDGs estimates our needs at more than $70 billion.
Our continent possesses the world's youngest population, vast arable lands, unparalleled cultural vitality and the critical minerals required to drive the global green energy transition. But, Mr. Speaker, let me warn Africa will not remain a passive arena for a new scramble for resources. Critical mineral extraction in Africa must not replicate the colonial era exploitation. We will process our minerals at home. We will build local industries that create dignified jobs for our youth, and we retain the value of our natural resources in Africa. The African Continental Free Trade Area, whose secretariat Ghana is proud to host, is our engine for intra-African trade, structural transformation and industrial growth. As we heal historical wounds, we must address the alarming breakdown of the current global order. We are witnessing a dangerous shift towards unilateralism, lawlessness and the erosion of multilateral norms. The United Nations must learn from the lessons of the League of Nations. The UN charter must reign supreme over the cynical doctrine that might makes right. The veto power must never serve as a license for impunity. Sovereign equality cannot be a privilege that is reserved only for nations that are aligned with global superpowers.
Mr. President, Mongolia consistently adheres to the principle of resolving any conflicts through diplomacy and multilateral dialogue, while maintaining longstanding, friendly relations with the countries of the region. Building on this distinctive advantage, Mongolia held the 11th International Conference of the Ulaanbaatar Dialogue on Northeast Asian Security this year. The Ulaanbaatar Dialogue has evolved into a unique platform for strengthening trust and confidence building across Northeast Asia, facilitating multilateral discussions among government delegates and scholars not only on traditional security challenges such as political and disarmament matters, but also on a broad range of issues including energy, infrastructure, connectivity, green development and humanitarian cooperation.
Migration begins where there is no security, no employment, no education, no access to water, no prospects or no confidence that tomorrow will be better than today. It is not simply a matter of borders. Responsible policy must bring together security, human dignity, development and the real needs of labour markets. Climate policy, too, will have to become more grounded in reality. The green transition is essential, but if we make it socially unsustainable, we will lose the political support that is necessary to implement it.
