The UN Charter is being “violated with impunity” in Gaza where the death toll continues to rise and the situation is worsening daily, threatening a “complete regional escalation,” Moroccan Foreign Affairs Minister, Nasser Bourita, said on Wednesday.
Speaking at the UN General Assembly in New York, Bourita questioned the utility of the UN Charter given the increasing violations of international law in conflict zones.
“Is the Charter on the verge of becoming a declaratory document of good intentions?,” the Moroccan FM asked rhetorically.
“Respect for the Charter does not mean selectively applying certain principles to the detriment of others, or creating a like-minded group that defends the Charter’s principles ‘à la carte,’” he went on. All of these principles “must be applied if we hope to ensure peace and a prosperous, sustainable future for generations to come,” he declared.
Bourita called upon the international community to acknowledge the limitations of the existing UN Charter and to “consider other alternatives for global governance.”
The Moroccan diplomat asserted that it is time to revisit the Charter to better align with the new realities of the world. Bourita referred to a similar message by King Mohammed VI at the UN Millennium Summit in 2000.
The King said After a long wait, it will be necessary to reform the UN Charter by updating some of its outdated provisions while preserving the universal principles that guided the founding of an organization with unique characteristics, destined to play a leading role in the macro-management of global issues.”
Bourita’s statement comes at a time when the world is seeing the highest level of armed conflict since World War II, with some conflicts threatening to engulf whole regions such as the Middle East.