STATEMENT

STATEMENT TO BE DELIVERED BY THE GROUP OF FRIENDS IN DEFENSE OF THE CHARTER DURING THE INFORMAL PLENARY MEETING OF THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY TO COMMEMORATE AND PROMOTE THE “INTERNATIONAL DAY AGAINST UNILATERAL COERCIVE MEASURES”

New York, 04 December 2025

1. The Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela has the honor to take the floor on behalf of the Group of Friends in Defense of the Charter of the United Nations, whose Member States appreciate the convening of this informal plenary meeting, by virtue of resolution 79/293, which was championed by our grouping and adopted earlier this year with the support of the overwhelming majority of the international community.

2. While we welcome the participation of the President of the General Assembly and the Secretary-General, we regret that an invitation was not extended to other relevant stakeholders, most notably the Special Rapporteur on the Negative Impact of Unilateral Coercive Measures on the Enjoyment of Human Rights. Her participation would have contributed to greater coherence, complementarity, and efficiency across the UN System, consistent with the spirit of the UN80 initiative.

3. Today, as we gather for the first time ever to observe the “International Day against Unilateral Coercive Measures”, we stand reminded of a profound and deliberate connection. 4 December is not an arbitrary date. It is the anniversary of the adoption of the “Declaration on the Right to Development”. This coincidence is intentional and meaningful, as it affirms that unilateral coercive measures constitute a direct, deliberate, and systematic assault on the right to development.

4. The right to development is an inalienable human right belonging to every person and every people. Yet, for more than one-third of humanity, living in over thirty (30) countries, this right is being strangled by illegal policies of what can only beм described as “maximum calculated cruelty”. These unlawful measures obstruct,мamong others, the capacity of sovereign nations to participate in, contribute to,мand enjoy economic, social, cultural, and political development.

5. Unilateral coercive measures are weapons of economic warfare. No justification – political, ideological, humanitarian, or otherwise – can legitimize such actions. They are, as the General Assembly has repeatedly affirmed, illegal, contrary to the Charter of the United Nations, contrary to international law, and contrary to the very spirit of multilateralism.

6. By deliberately blocking access to finance, technology, medicine, food, and essential goods, these unlawful measures cripple the productive potential of targeted countries, sever supply chains, and stifle investment. They represent the single greatest impediment to national development strategies and to the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

7. In this context, it is worth highlighting that the so-called “humanitarian exemptions” are nothing more than cruel illusions. Though they may exist on paper, in practice they are ineffective, unworkable, and largely fictitious, as repeatedly confirmed by UN independent experts. Entire populations face shortages, suffering, and avoidable loss of life. These measures, which deliberately deprive entire peoples of their means of subsistence, deepen poverty, widen inequality, and create the very conditions we have denounced as crimes against humanity. They also inflict grave extraterritorial harm.

8. The severity and global scale of this assault on development, human rights, and international cooperation demands a coordinated, system-wide response. For this reason, on this first International Day, we call upon the Secretary-General to appoint a “Special Advisor on Unilateral Coercive Measures”.

9. Such a high-level focal point is urgently needed to assess the cross-cutting impacts of these illegal measures, ensure coherent system-wide responses, and provide a comprehensive account of their devastating effects on the right to development, humanitarian affairs, economic stability, and global security, including with the support of UN Country Teams. Elevating this issue is essential to ensuring it is no longer sidelined, including within the context of intergovernmental processes here in these very halls or within the UN System as a whole.

10. Today, we also reiterate our unwavering solidarity with all peoples suffering under the weight of unilateral coercive measures, particularly our brothers and sisters in Belarus, Cuba, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Eritrea, Iran, Nicaragua, Venezuela, Zimbabwe, and in all other targeted nations.

11. We once again call for the complete, immediate, and unconditional lifting of all unilateral coercive measures. We urge all Member States to refrain from

recognizing, applying, or giving effect to such illegal practices, including through overcompliance. We further call on international financial institutions and other organizations to cease any form of direct or indirect complicity.

12. Let this International Day serve as an annual global awakening; an occasion to reaffirm our collective commitment to the Charter of the United Nations, to sovereign equality, to international law, and to the inalienable right of all peoples to determine their own destiny, free from coercion, threat, or interference.

13. We remain fully behind this noble and just cause. We will not remain silent while development is denied to millions, while human suffering is manufactured through coercion, and while the Charter of the United Nations is systematically violated.

14. In defending the right to development, we defend human dignity itself. In rejecting unilateral coercive measures, we uphold the very foundations of multilateralism. And in commemorating this International Day, we renew our resolve to achieve a world free of these illegal, cruel, and inhumane policies that must end once and for all, especially if we are true to our pledge of leaving no one behind. We owe this to the millions whose lives and futures are affected, both directly and indirectly.