The vote on non-permanent membership in the Security Council has become a litmus test for the UN Charter. This point of view was expressed to BelTA by Olga Lazorkina, analyst at the Belarusian Institute of Strategic Research, Candidate of Historical Sciences.
"For many decades, the UN has been a platform for dialogue between representatives of various viewpoints. This is especially important for medium-sized and small countries, which see in it the potential to ensure equal representation of all states", the BISR analyst said. – Belarus has never had illusions that the full implementation of the UN principles is possible. At the same time, it consistently and persistently took an active part in all initiatives aimed at ensuring peace and security".
"Same as in 1945, in 2007, the world community appreciated our country's contribution to global stability", she added. "Despite the pressure from the West, which has been persecuting Belarus since the 1990s, the members of the General Assembly have not put forward any claims about the country's application for non-permanent membership in the UN Security Council."
She recalled Belarusian initiatives at the UN: extradition and punishment of war criminals, the use of scientific and technological progress in the interests of peace and social development, the creation of a nuclear-weapon-free space in Central and Eastern Europe, the UN action program to prevent and eradicate the illicit trade in light weapons and small arms, the UN global action plan to combat with human trafficking. In addition, the World Day against Human Trafficking has been established, which has been celebrated on July 30 since 2014.
"Since 2014, the European Community has chosen Minsk as one of the important platforms for resolving the crisis situation in the region. Thanks to its immutable principles, predictability and contractual capacity, Belarus has received the universally recognized status of a donor to regional security", Olga Lazorkina noted. "Amid rampant political statements that the UN has exhausted itself as a universal international organization, our country persistently conducted a dialogue at various levels on the importance of preserving, in fact, the only hearth at which all countries could gather for a conversation".
"Today, the vote on Belarus, which is one of the founding countries, is part of a narrow circle of sane states, has become a litmus test for the UN Charter. Political blackmail, which is being introduced by a number of states into the practice of the UN, as well as sanctions, is already forming a feedback loop effect. The Belarusian precedent will clearly show all UN members that no achievements matter today, as well as decades of impeccable work", the analyst stressed. "This is a serious reason to think, because only those who are able to show political will and strategic thinking will step into the future".