Federal Foreign Minister Heiko Maas will represent Germany for the first time this Friday as a member of the UN Security Council.
He participates in a debate on climate change in the most important body of the United Nations. Germany has been one of the ten rotating members of the Security Council since 1 January. In addition, there are five states that have veto power in all decisions: US, Russia, China, France and the UK.
The Security Council is primarily concerned with securing peace and resolving conflicts worldwide. Because of large differences between the US and Russia, his ability to act is currently very limited.
Germany also wants to play a mediating role in the body. „Where we can provide for understanding, we want to do that,“ said Maas on Thursday the German wave. „But it’s not just about Russia and the US. It is also about the question of what role does China play, including in disarmament issues. And we will be very committed in the coming weeks and months. “
Maas thus alluded to the dispute over the INF treaty prohibiting nuclear medium-range missiles. The US accuses Russia of violating new cruise missiles. US President Donald Trump wants to terminate the contract on 2 February, if Moscow does not give in. But Russia and the US also have a common problem with the treaty: it does not apply to an emerging nuclear power such as China, which can continue to deploy new medium-range missiles.
In addition to climate protection, Germany also wants to make arms control a priority of its membership in the Security Council. Another issue is the protection of women in conflict. At a Thursday event, Maas called on the United Nations to do more in this area. Sexual violence is used as a weapon of war in Syria and other conflicts, he said. „This is the perfidious reality of almost all conflicts of our time.“
Among other things, Maas wants to support initiatives that document crimes against women in order to bring the perpetrators to justice. „For lack of processing up to today promotes a“ culture of impunity, „he said.
For Saturday, the US has requested an emergency meeting of the Security Council on the power struggle in Venezuela. Whether Maas will still attend, if the meeting should take place, was still unclear on Thursday evening (local time).
