Ministry Statements & Speeches:
Thank you, Chair.
We would like to start by thanking Argentina, Austria, Brazil, Italy and Singapore for taking the initiative to propose this new agenda item “Strengthening and promoting the international treaty framework” and for the consultative approach they have taken in doing so.
New Zealand is a party to around 1,700 treaties and we greatly value the role that the Secretariat plays in registering these treaties, as well as the Secretary-General’s important role in acting as depositary for many of them. These roles add transparency and coherence to the international legal order and assist in providing clarity on the extent of States’ obligations.
We are conscious though that these are time consuming and resource intensive tasks. The process of registering treaties annually in particular involves a significant amount of work for both States and the Secretariat. It is therefore important that the regulations to give effect to Article 102 of the Charter of the United Nations are up to date and reflect current practice and technological developments.
We think a review of the regulations would be beneficial for both States and the Secretariat. We thank the Secretary-General for his report A/72/86 outlining the areas for consideration by the General Assembly. We look forward to further discussion of this important topic.
Thank you.