The Diplomat
The President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez, spoke yesterday at the thirteenth Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) with a defense of “real and effective” multilateralism to face “pandemics” and climate change and to achieve “peace and security”.
Yesterday kicked off the two-day meeting between leaders from Europe, Asia and Oceania, which this year has been hosted by Cambodia (which holds the rotating ASEM presidency) via videoconference under the theme Strengthening Multilateralism for Shared Growth. The summit, which is normally held every two years, was scheduled for 2020, but had to be postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The main issues addressed at this meeting are COVID-19, health and socioeconomic recovery; multilateralism and the rules-based international order (particularly trade); climate change, connectivity, women, peace and security, regional issues, and inclusive and sustainable growth and development.
ASEM is made up of 51 countries from Europe, Asia and Oceania, including the 27 EU Member States, as well as the United Kingdom, Norway, Switzerland and Russia. The association also includes China, India, Japan, South Korea and the ten ASEAN countries, as well as Australia and New Zealand, the ASEAN Secretariat and the European Union. The EU was represented by the President of the European Council, Charles Michel; the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen; the Prime Minister of Slovenia (in his capacity as rotating President of the EU Council), Janez Janša; and the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell.
During his speech, Pedro Sánchez warned that “only from a truly multilateral society can we achieve collective progress, which is necessary to fight pandemics and climate change, and to achieve peace and security”. In this sense, he warned of the need to continue promoting equitable vaccination “from multilateralism” and recalled that Spain has already donated more than 30 million doses of vaccines and has committed to donate 20 million more during the first quarter of 2022.
Likewise, the President of the Government underlined the Government’s commitment to the fight against climate change, “a common problem that must have shared responses from the highest level of multilateralism”. “We must significantly increase our ambition in line with the Paris Agreement. The time to act is now. We cannot wait any longer,” Sánchez continued. For this reason, he recalled, Spain has committed to increase by 50% the contribution to the Green Climate Fund to reach 1.35 billion euros per year from 2025. The Green Climate Fund, created in 2011, is the financial mechanism of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. Spain has been a member of this body since 2010.
Finally, Pedro Sánchez warned that world peace and security will only be preserved in a “truly” multilateral society and recalled, in this regard, that Spain, Sweden and other countries promoted in 2020 the Joint Declaration Together for a Strengthened Multilateralism, which proposes concrete actions in fields such as health, inequality, protection of the planet and work for peace and security.
“History teaches us that no country achieves far-reaching goals alone. It is important to draw lessons from today’s challenges and learn that we need renewed global action, real and effective multilateralism,” he said. “Spain is fully aware and therefore firmly committed to this goal,” he concluded.
