UN Security Council to hold debate on multilateralism during China's presidency

UNITED NATIONS - The UN Security Council will hold a debate on multilateralism with the attendance of UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on March 19 during the presidency of China.

Briefing the press on the monthly program of work on Monday, Zhang Jun, China's permanent representative to the UN and president of the council for March, said the rise of unilateralism has shaken the international order, shaken the rule of international law and shaken the central role played by the UN.

"So while commemorating the 75 anniversary of the UN, we do need to work even harder to preserve multilateralism," he stressed, adding that multilateralism creates a platform for the world to tackle all the challenges it faces, and it creates a better environment for the UN to play its role.

With regard to the debate, he said the meeting will focus on seeking a political settlement of disputes, and Guterres, President of the UN General Assembly Tijjani Muhammad-Bande, and International Court of Justice President Abdulqawi Ahmed Yusuf have been invited to speak at the debate.

"On that occasion, all member states are invited to address that event. We do hope that through that event, we can reaffirm our strong support to multilateralism, and we'll further strengthen our efforts in promoting political settlement of dispute," Zhang said.