"We are not without a position, those at war should not expect much from us" - Interview with the Permanent Representative to the UN

2 hours ago

Speaking to Kun.uz in New York, Uzbekistan's Permanent Representative to the UN, Ambassador Ulugbek Lapasov, said that if the organization were so weak, no one would have come to the General Assembly. In his opinion, it is not correct to expect huge results from the UN today, because this structure does not stand above governments. Lapasov votes on resolutions on behalf of Uzbekistan and speaks on behalf of the state at the UN. We are neutral, this is also a position; they did not inform us when they were declaring war, so they should not expect anything going forward either, the diplomat says.

Most of the speakers expressed dissatisfaction with the UN and its Security Council, including the representative of Uzbekistan. According to Ambassador Ulugbek Lapasov, Tashkent is far from blaming the UN. The reason is that, in Uzbekistan's view, the UN is simply a global platform, a structure that unites sovereign states and aggregates their voices.

Here, the diplomat recalled the words of one of the secretaries-general that "the UN was created not to lead mankind to heaven, but to save it from hell," and expressed his agreement with this opinion.

According to Lapasov, the visit of the delegation led by Saida Mirziyoyeva was quite productive.

"The Secretary-General was one of the first to receive Mirziyoyeva; during those two days, for example, Guterres met with more than 80 politicians. In addition, during this visit, we combined the political, economic, and social spheres. We held a major event on demographic issues. People at the UN know the head of the administration and know what is happening in Uzbekistan," the ambassador says.

In her speech at the UN, speaking about the state's position, Mirziyoyeva said that Uzbekistan is on the side of humanity. However, unlike other speakers, she did not talk about stopping the ongoing wars today. According to the ambassador, morally, there is such a call. But the official position of Tashkent is neutral. We are on our own side, he says.

"We are not without a position; there are several ways to express a position at the UN. One can not come at all, but we have always been in the hall. No one called us when declaring war, they did not get our opinion, so why should they expect much from us now? We are not without a position, we are on the side of Uzbekistan. Uzbekistan's interest also lies in Mirziyoyeva's speech," Lapasov says.

In her speech, the head of the administration spoke about the state's current policy, relations with neighbors, peace in Central Asia, climate issues, Afghanistan, social policy, and artificial intelligence.