Mr. President, Mr. Secretary General, distinguished colleagues,

Thank you, Mr. President, for organizing this additional session on the UN80 initiative. And thank you Mr. Secretary-General, for the UN80 reform initiative and for taking even more time to discuss it. In addition to the EU statement last week, let me add a few remarks in national capacity.

At its 80th anniversary the UN stands at a crossroads. Clearly, the UN work is more needed than ever: to promote peace and security; to redouble efforts on SDGs; to defend human rights. On the other hand, the UN is under pressure itself.

Against this background, we strongly support your UN80 initiative, Mr. Secretary-General. That is what our Chancellor and or Ministers assured you of last week in Berlin. That is our message here today as well. We support you in your goal “to make the UN more effective, nimble and fit for today´s challenges”.

A high level of ambition is of paramount importance. We believe that the more effectively the United Nations can deliver both normatively and operationally, the greater the trust it will garner among all member states.

We know, UN80 is not a cost-cutting exercise. The main objective for the UN80 initiative is to strengthen the resilience and the ability to act of the United Nations. We need to make sure that all three pillars are being strengthened and not being played off against each other. The Pact for the Future describes what the UN will be doing. UN80 describes how the UN will do it. The Pact and the reform now are two sides of the same coin

It is imperative to take along UN Member States. Also in that sense we appreciate today´s session. Only if the membership is on board we will be able to succeed in this mission.

After the reforms, we hope that on the expenditure side, we will have a UN that is more efficient, effective and accountable and agencies that cooperate better. On the revenue side, we aim to see a broader donor base and new incentives for timely and complete payments. In the end, the United Nations and its programs and agencies can only succeed if they concentrate on their unique selling points where they can really make a difference. Also, we should avoid duplications so as to use diminishing resources to the maximum effect. Now is the time for bold decisions. We see room for increased efficiency through scale effects in administrative functions.

Mr. Secretary-General,

While we support a high level of ambition in reforms, our direction is clear: it is one of support and strengthening the UN. We hope that after your UN80 initiative, the UN will be more resilient and more able to act. We stand ready to do our part as member state when it comes to increase efficiency and effectiveness in the delivery of mandates. Germany is and will continue to be a reliable supporter of multilateralism – You can count on us for your endeavor.

I thank you.