The destinies of Ukraine and the United Nations are closely intertwined. In 1945 our country became one of the UN founding members and actively participated in drafting the UN Charter. In its turn, the Organization was the only forum which allowed Ukraine to present itself as a sovereign state during the Soviet period.   

Since Ukraine`s independence in 1991, UN membership has been one of the foreign policy priorities of our country.

Being committed to international peace and security and despite the ongoing Russian aggression against Ukraine, we will continue our active participation at the UN peacekeeping activity in various parts of the world and our significant contribution to the UN activities in such areas as human rights, disarmament and sustainable development. During its membership in the Organization, Ukraine was elected four times as a non-permanent member of the Security Council, six times as a member of the Economic and Social Council, and three times as a member of the UN Human Rights Council. In 1997-1998, the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, Hennadiy Udovenko, served as President of the 52^nd session of the UN General Assembly – the highest position in the United Nations. A comprehensive program of the UN reform was adopted at that session.

By its dedicated and meaningful activities in the Organization and, in particular, the active work in the UN Security Council, Ukraine has earned respect among the Member States as a reliable and predictable partner that firmly and consistently adheres to the Purposes and Principles of the UN Charter and international law.

Today, Ukraine, as never before, needs strong, determined and effective United Nations, especially in protecting fundamental international legal principles such as respect for sovereignty, territorial integrity and the inviolability of borders.

The United Nations is, and must remain, at the very heart of international efforts to maintain peace and address present challenges – transnational terrorism, use of force in international relations, proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, refugee crisis, poverty, human rights violations, environmental fragility. The scope of threats demands our joint resolute response.

Ukraine will remain to be an active participant in these collective efforts.

Ukraine has always advocated the need to reform the United Nations to meet the most urgent global challenges timely and adequately. In this regard, we welcome the efforts of Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, since the first day of his mandate, to develop and implement a robust, comprehensive UN reform agenda.

The UN is not only New York, Geneva or Vienna. It is also Paris, the seat of UNESCO, which remains the focal point for key decisions in the fields of education, science and culture, It is also Nairobi, which houses the United Nations human settlements and environment agencies.

This year's observance of the United Nations Day in Ukraine is marked by the decision of the Cabinet of Ministers of October 18, 2017 to sign the Partnership Framework, which defines the strategic areas of cooperation between the Government of Ukraine and the United Nations for 2018-2022. According to the Partnership Framework, throughout the five-year period the UN system will mobilize 675 million US dollars to fund its project activities in Ukraine.

The UN Office in Kyiv, which houses 17 UN specialized agencies, funds and programmes, implements various projects on a broad range of issues related to sustainable development, environmental protection, democratic governance, human rights, combating HIV/AIDS epidemic. It is known to be one of the largest United Nations offices in the world, with an extensive network of agencies and sizeable personnel.

Let me also highlight the activities of the UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission and the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights in Ukraine, particularly in the area of monitoring and documenting human rights violations in Crimea by the Russian occupying power.