Statement by Minister of Foreign Affairs of Belarus S.Aleinik at the meeting of the Group of Friends of the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations (September 21, 2023, New York)

Mr. Chair,
Excellencies, 
Distinguished colleagues and friends, 

At the outset, let me express our appreciation to the Under-Secretary-General, the High Representative for the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations for convening this meeting which provides a unique chance to discuss the challenges and opportunities in our collective quest for peace, stability and development in the world.

At a time of extreme global uncertainty, Belarus commends the important role of the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations in fostering dialogue, tolerance and understanding among different cultures, religions and beliefs.

Belarus supports UNAOC in its unwavering commitment to countering extremism and radicalization and emphasizes the critical nature of UNAOC's efforts to improve media literacy and combat hate speech. Belarus shares UNAOC aspirations to involve youth in its initiatives. Young people represent the vitality and promise of our future, and their active participation in promoting tolerance and understanding is crucial to building a more harmonious and inclusive world. 

But the sad reality is that, despite all collective efforts, confrontation, “new bipolarity” and mistrust are back on the global scene. The world is shaken by wars and ethno-religious conflicts. Hypocrisy and double standards continue to prevail in world politics and international organizations.

Instead of respect for cultural diversity and pluralism, there are continuous attempts by some countries to impose their paradigm of values and views on others. 

Some politicians are trying to convince the rest of the world that the key to successful development of a nation, community, family and individual is the adoption of the Western model of democracy and social order based on liberal theories and the primacy of individual human rights over the interests of society.

But the simple truth is that there is no universal recipe for successful development. 

Our world has never been and will never be black-and-white. Our world order is a diversity of civilizations, it is full of multi-coloured traditions and cultures, it is made up of a variety of lifestyles and ways of thinking.

The vast and rich mosaic of human civilizations represents our priceless heritage which is both a source of enrichment and potential division.

For two decades, Belarus has been advocating for the diversity of paths of progressive development as an enduring value of our civilization, the only one that can ensure stability in this world. The freedom of choice of the way of development is the main prerequisite for a peaceful, just and stable world. This is exactly what the United Nations was established for.

Belarus is deeply concerned about the trend towards unilateralism and arbitrary actions, including the thoughtless use of unilateral coercive measures, which have been applied to more than three dozen sovereign states of the world as a key instrument of foreign policy of some states.

We consider sanctions to be a modern form of neo-colonialism, affecting the lives of more than a third of humanity and which should have no place in international relations between civilized peoples in the 21st century.

Witnessing such a plight in international relation, Belarus is putting forward a number of initiatives.

Above all, we firmly believe that what the world needs most now is a global dialogue on security in the true spirit of San-Francisco, in order to first stop and then reverse the downward spiral of global politics. Success on security matters will, in turn, lead to the lifting of restrictions and global progress in cooperation in all other areas of international life.

In conclusion, the Republic of Belarus reaffirms its full support for UNAOC and its mission to promote dialogue among civilizations.

We stand ready to work closely with UNAOC and all members of the international community to further promote the intercultural understanding, tolerance and peace.

I thank you all for your attention.

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