United Nations, Pakistan has highlighted the urgent need to promote dialogue and diplomacy, discard zero-sum approaches, shun confrontation, and advance mutually beneficial cooperation against the backdrop of an increasingly polarized and fractured international environment.
Delivering Pakistan’s statement at the UN Security Council’s Arria Formula meeting on the ‘Impact of Unilateralism and Bullying Practices on International Relations,’ convened by China, Ambassador Asim Iftikhar Ahmad, Pakistan’s Permanent Representative to the UN, stated that the world today stands at a crossroads with wars, inequality, economic instability, and climate catastrophe threatening peace and security.
“We are also witnessing the unraveling of hard-won norms that have underpinned global peace and cooperation for decades.
“We must revive faith in multilateralism and collective action,” he said.
He asked the international community if it could afford another era of might over right, arguing whether it can withstand further turmoil after the death and destruction witnessed during the ongoing conflicts in the Middle East, Europe and Africa, and other major unresolved disputes.
The Pakistan UN Ambassador said that the United Nations was created to protect, and promote the interests of all nations, big and small, founded as it was on the spirit of cooperation and the common good of humanity. He said that the UN was not established to serve the interests of the powerful.
“History reminds us that enduring peace and sustainable solutions have never come from unilateral actions or coercive practices. They emanate from inclusion, respect, shared purpose and unified responses,” he emphasized.
Ambassador Asim made it abundantly clear that there could not be sustainable peace without development, adding that for the developing world, the promise of the Sustainable Development Goals remains a distant dream — threatened by unfair, inequitable and exploitative trade and financial systems, climate injustice, and a lack of political will from the partners.
Sharing Pakistan’s proposals to strengthen multilateralism, he asked the world to recommit itself to international law and the principles of the UN Charter, stating that these principles are not optional ideals, rather they are the foundation of a just world order.
Ambassador Asim Iftikhar Ahmad called for reforms in the international trading system in a way that it best reflects the aspirations and needs of the developing countries.
“Trade should be a bridge, not a barrier – a vehicle for peace and shared prosperity, not domination or isolation. We must resolve our differences through dialogue, not dictate terms through pressure. Only then can we build genuine trust in the rules-based order,” he emphasized.
He stated that it was through cooperative multilateralism that peace and sustainable development could be ensured. He underscored the need for empowering the United Nations to lead global development cooperation and champion equitable systems of trade, finance, and climate governance.
“Pakistan reaffirms its unwavering belief in multilateralism and in the central role of the United Nations. We believe in a world where cooperation triumphs over coercion, and solidarity replaces silence in the face of suffering. Our vision is simple and clear: a fairer, more peaceful, more compassionate international order – one that serves the many, not just the few,” he said while concluding the statement.
