Sweden, 2012

Our world is changing rapidly.

The black-and-white photos that were taken when

this Organization was created back in 1945 are truly

testimonies from another era. That was a time when

computers had barely been invented. The Internet

was decades away. And it was not always easy for

the representatives at that founding conference in

San Francisco to establish contact with their faraway

capitals for instructions that might be needed.

These days, we have instant access to the global

information network. Tweets are being written as I

speak. There are more connected devices than there are

people in the world, and development is accelerating in

every respect. In 2012, we who are gathered here have

all become representatives of the connected nations of

the world. But, connectivity also carries risks, as we

saw recently in our interconnected financial system,

Recently, we also all followed with horror and

disbelief the fact that an odious film clip posted

somewhere on YouTube could lead to outrage and deadly

violence 10,000 miles away. But the opportunities

created by connectivity are vastly more important

than the risks. Globalization, marked by more open

societies in a more open world and facilitated by the

enormous advances of science and technology, has

been an incredible force for good. Mobile banking

brings financial services to East Africans. Skype

reinforces messages from the Arab street. Virtual

marketplaces unleash entrepreneurial talent. More

contact, more movement and more trade — a more

open world — have already lifted hundreds of millions

of people out of poverty and despair, and more is

certain to come.

In this world of connected nations, people around

the globe, including tens of thousands of Swedes of

Syrian origin, are following the tragedy unfolding in

Damascus, Aleppo and Homs with intense concern. We

have all been reminded of a simple truth — violence

is easy to start but very difficult to stop. What began

as a popular protest has now turned into a civil war,

which, if unchecked, brings the risk of sectarian

fragmentation across the wider region. We must do

everything possible to prevent that from happening.

We call on the divided Security Council to put global

responsibilities above narrow national interests. In the

strongest possible terms, we urge the Al-Assad regime

to stop killing its own people and start respecting its

obligations as a Member of the United Nations. And

we remind those responsible for deadly violence and

abuse that they should rest assured that they will be

held accountable one day.

There is no alternative to a political solution.

Together with our European partners, we offer our

full support to the Joint Special Representative,

Mr. Lakhdar Brahimi. Syria is a society that is rich

in culture, history and traditions. Damascus is one of

the oldest continually inhabited cities in our world. To

preserve and protect the mosaic that Syria represents

is vital to its future, and, I would argue, to all of our

futures.

But we must also help those now so tragically

affected by what is happening. A thousand people are

being killed every week, according to the latest reports

we are receiving. We are witnessing an enormous human

tragedy. More than 2.5 million people are in need of

humanitarian help. More than a million people have

been displaced inside Syria, and there are a quarter of

a million refugees in the region as a direct consequence

of the current crisis. The regime must give unhindered

access for assistance to the displaced and suffering, and

the countries that have generously opened their borders

should be commended and supported. Sweden, which

is one of the world’s largest humanitarian donors, has

contributed massively, and we stand ready to further

increase our support here and elsewhere around the

world where people in need are suffering.

In this world of connected nations, the human

rights of every child, woman and man are a matter of

concern for us all. Protecting and promoting human

rights is one of the central duties of the international

community. Not only is that a question of protecting

individual human beings — their life, their freedom,

their future — but it is also crucial to promoting peace,

stability and prosperity around the globe. And critical

to those efforts is working for gender equality and the

empowerment of women, because it is right, because it

is smart and because it is fundamental to realizing the

economic and political potential of society.

Sweden, the largest financial contributor to

the work of the Office of the United Nations High

Commissioner for Human Rights today, is a candidate

for a seat on the Human Rights Council for the period

2013-2015. As a Council member, Sweden would be

an active and reliable partner. We would work with

everyone who shares our conviction, reach out to those

who disagree and support those who need it. But in that

area as well, we must adjust to the world of connectivity.

The human rights and fundamental freedoms enshrined

in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights must

apply in the modern world of today. Sweden will take

every opportunity to champion freedom of expression

online and the immense development potential that is

vested in the Internet and all of the new communication

technologies. Earlier this year, the Human Rights

Council decided that the rights that apply off line apply

online as well, and called on all States to promote

and facilitate access to the Internet. That landmark

resolution (Human Rights Council resolution 20/8) was

unanimously adopted in Geneva, and I hope that it has

been duly noted here in New York as well. The fight for

freedom on the Internet is the new front line in the fight

for freedom in the world.

In this world of connected nations, we share a planet

with common development challenges. The world’s

poor — indeed, all of us — need development that is

inclusive, equitable and sustainable. The international

community has met three of the Millennium

Development Goals well ahead of time, but we are

lagging significantly behind in others. And while we

accelerate efforts to reduce child mortality and improve

maternal health, we have started to look beyond the

immediate future. Sweden welcomes the high-level

panel on the post-2015 development agenda and looks

forward to contributing to its recommendations.

In Rio, world leaders recently launched a process

for working towards sustainable development goals.

It is up to all of us to take that agenda forward: to

involve scientists and business, to explore the potential

of information and communications technology and

innovation, to pursue all three dimensions of sustainable

development and to ensure that democracy and human

rights are part of the equation. And as an active partner

and a major donor, Sweden will certainly do its part.

In this world of connected nations, geography is

sometimes of little consequence. Distances might at

times seem enormous. But the melting Arctic ice cap

in the North can pose an existential threat to small

island States in the South. The Arctic today is warming

twice as fast as the global average. And right now as

we gather here, the Arctic Sea ice cover has receded

so much that it has reached a new historical minimum.

There is less ice this autumn in the Arctic than ever

before in recorded history.

The impact of climate change is global. The world

is not on track for keeping the increase in global

average temperatures to below two degrees Celsius.

We therefore urgently need progress in the negotiations

under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and effective implementation of the

globally agreed outcomes. Sweden calls on everyone in

this Hall to do their utmost to contribute to ensuring

that that occurs, and developed nations should take the

lead.

There are severe challenges, but there are also great

opportunities. Technology brings new possibilities — to

reduce emissions, increase growth, and move towards

a truly sustainable future. As the current Chair of the

Arctic Council — comprising the eight nations whose

landmass extends beyond the Arctic Circle — Sweden

will make its contribution. Together, we will set an

example of positive cooperation in an area drawing

rapidly increasing global attention and where, not long

ago, many were predicting competition and conflict.

We live in a new era. What happens in the Levant,

the Arctic or elsewhere has immediate implications

for us all. In order to deal with the challenges of this

era, the connected nations of this world need a strong

United Nations — a United Nations to discuss the

issues of today and to truly seize the opportunities for

collective action in order to shape a better tomorrow; a

United Nations where we convene in these days to say

that, while ridiculing what by others is held sacred is

mean and offensive, it can never be used as an excuse

for violence, destruction and death.

But the United Nations — our United

Nations — needs to step up to the challenge. The

Security Council must assume its responsibilities, in

Syria and elsewhere. Member States must empower the

United Nations to become better at conflict prevention

and peacebuilding, and ensure that it can deliver

development results effectively and as one.

It is up to us, the Member States, to meet our

international human rights obligations, not just in order

to protect the individual human being, but because

respect for human rights is also, as we have bitterly

learned throughout history, critical to peace and

security.

In these times of accelerating global change, with its

great risks and even greater opportunities, Sweden will

remain a steadfast member of this global Organization

and, together with our partners in the European Union,

we will continue to promote an effective multilateral

system with the United Nations at its core.