EU General Statement – UN General Assembly 2nd Committee: UN Convention to Combat Desertification

EU General Statement - UN General Assembly 2nd Committee: UN Convention to Combat Desertification

22 November 2022, New York - General Statement on behalf of the EU and its Member States, delivered by Sylvain Gambert, EU Delegation to the United Nations, at the 77th Session Second Committee Agenda Item 18(e): Adoption of "Implementation of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification in Those Countries Experiencing Serious Drought and/or Desertification, Particularly in Africa"

I have the honor to speak on behalf of the European Union and its Member States.

The Candidate Countries, Montenegro*, North Macedonia*, Serbia*, Albania*, Ukraine and the Republic of Moldova, the potential candidate countries Bosnia and Herzegovina* and Georgia align themselves with this statement.

The European Union and its Member States are joining consensus today on the UNCCD resolution, as we are committed to the global efforts to combat desertification, restoring degraded land and soil, and striving to achieve a land degradation-neutral world by 2030.

However, we would have liked to see a more balanced outcome and we remain convinced that common grounds could have been found through a more constructive negotiation.

Although the European Union and its Member States showed flexibility in order to ensure the consensual adoption of the resolution, we do not agree with the interpretation of the UNCCD COP15 language made in OP11 of this resolution. We are therefore dissociating from that paragraph.

Finally, we would like to thank the facilitators as well as all involved in the negotiation process for their engagement. The European Union and its Member States will continue to engage constructively in the negotiations of this resolution in the next session.

I thank you.

*Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia, Albania and Bosnia and Herzegovina continue to be part of the Stabilisation and Association Process.