President Karis will be giving his first address to the UN as head of state late on Wednesday evening Estonian time, in which he will focus on the UN’s roles in resolving crises, making a stand against Russia’s war of aggression and supporting Ukraine.
“Estonia has always championed a world order based on international law and where the same rules apply to everyone,” he said. “Russia, a permanent member of the UN Security Council, is breaching one of the fundamental principles of the UN Charter in its war of aggression in Ukraine: the ban on the use of force against another sovereign state. In doing so it has presented one of the biggest challenges in history to a world operating according to these rules and, as a result, it has highlighted the need for reforms within the Security Council. The question is simple, and yet so far unanswered: how do you stop an aggressor who, as a permanent member of the council, has the right of veto?”
President Karis will be taking part in a number of other events while in New York: a high-level event entitled ‘Accelerating the Future of Digital Cooperation’, which is being organised by Estonia, Norway, Germany, the UN Development Programme, UNICEF and the World Bank; a discussion among leaders of the Christchurch Call, an initiative to stop the spread of material with terrorist content, launched by France and New Zealand; and a reception being hosted by his American counterpart, President Joe Biden.
During his time in New York, the Estonian head of state will be joining his fellow presidents from Latvia and Lithuania in meeting with UN Secretary-General António Guterres. A four-way meeting between the three Baltic heads of state and their Polish counterpart is also planned. The visit will furthermore see President Karis attending bilateral meetings and getting together with local compatriots at New York’s Estonia House.
President Karis’ wife Sirje Karis will be participating in the programme for the spouses of the heads of state assembling in New York, including receptions being held by the wives of the Ukrainian and Turkish presidents and, with her husband, the reception being given by President Joe Biden.
