Countries are expecting Switzerland to help build bridges when it takes its seat on the United Nations Security Council in January, says Swiss ambassador Pascale Baeriswyl.
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Países vêem a Suíça como “construtora de pontes” do Conselho de Segurança
Switzerland is due to take up one of the ten non-permanent seats on the Security Council for the first time in its history on January 1, 2023. The Alpine state was voted on to the important international forum earlier this year.
The role of the non-permanent members is to remind the five permanent powers – the United States, Russia, China, Britain and France – of their responsibilities and to offer moderate positions, Baeriswyl, Swiss ambassador to the UN in New York, toldExternal linkBlick newspaper in an interview on Friday.
Since UN resolutions require at least nine votes, non-permanent members have an important role to play, she declared.
Switzerland will be very clear “when it comes to protecting international law and human rights,” Baeriswyl said.
The Swiss mandate is “very strict”, she said.
“There may be three, four or five meetings a day, often urgent. There are also negotiations. We still have to finalise Switzerland’s position and think about the best way to position ourselves tactically and strategically,” she said.
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