Colombia Takes UN Security Council Presidency
Speaking at a news conference presenting the Council's program for June, Leonor Zalabata, Colombia's ambassador to the United Nations, said her country's leadership would draw on lessons from its own experience with conflict resolution.
"Colombia will exercise the presidency of the Security Council on the basis of a premise that has deeply characterized our own history, and that is that peace is not a linear process; rather, it is one that is built collectively, gradually," Zalabata said.
She noted that Colombia is assuming the presidency during a period marked by "growing geopolitical tensions, multiple conflicts, and humanitarian crises exacerbated by the increasingly significant impacts of climate change and a growing fragmentation of the international system."
Reaffirming Colombia's commitment to the UN Charter, international law, human rights, and international humanitarian law, Zalabata said the presidency would be guided by principles including sovereign equality, respect for national sovereignty, political independence, territorial integrity, noninterference, and the peaceful resolution of disputes.
According to Zalabata, Colombia's priorities for the month will focus on three key areas: advancing peace through dialogue, promoting a people-centered approach to addressing conflict and inequality, and strengthening multilateral cooperation to tackle global challenges.
As part of its program, Colombia will host two open debates. The first, a high-level session chaired by Foreign Minister Rosa Yolanda Villavicencio, will examine women's participation in peace efforts under the theme "Peace Is Decided with Women."
Zalabata said the discussion will emphasize the importance of the "full, equitable, equal, safe and meaningful participation of all women in prevention, mediation and peacebuilding."
A second ambassadorial-level debate will focus on conflict prevention and safeguarding education for children affected by war.
"If we don't defend children, we are not then guaranteeing a future for humanity," she said.
Throughout June, the Council is also expected to hold regular meetings on the Middle East and review developments in Libya, Yemen, Sudan, and the Central African Republic.
Colombia's month-long presidency will conclude at the end of June, when leadership of the UN Security Council passes to the Democratic Republic of the Congo in July.
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