Statement by Dmitry Polyanskiy, First Deputy Permanent Representative of Russia to the UN, during the international online conference "Mankind's Existence Now Depends on the Establishment of a New Paradigm"
Distinguished colleagues,
I thank Mrs. Zepp-LaRouche for her very interesting presentation that gave us a lot of things to process which I am sure we will do. As you know, I am a diplomat, and being such implies a little bit different way of speaking. So I can add to your presentation a couple of observations from political and diplomatic prospective.
It is absolutely sure that COVID-19 has created very serious problems for the whole of the mankind. Solution to them includes saving lives, ensuring common security, biomedical safety, preservation of human environment, which should be comfortable and should pose no life threats. It has become absolutely clear that no state, no matter how powerful and wealthy it is, has all the tools to fight the pandemic. Everyone had to introduce drastic measures that can be potentially harmful for national economies to contain the epidemic. We do not know yet the scope of these consequences that most countries of the worlds will face. This is yet to be calculated.
So far, almost half a year since we first heard about the coronavirus, no one has either a vaccine or efficient treatment proposals so far. We are absolutely convinced that it is not the time for blaming and stigmatization. It is the time for cooperation and supporting each other. Neither is it the time to contest who did what and who was more successful than others. It is not a beauty contest. It is really the time to help share experiences, listen to each other, find ways to work together to face this unprecedented challenge of modern times for the whole of the mankind.
Russia is ready to face this challenge together with our partners. That is why, while taking all the necessary measures to combat the coronavirus at the national level, we also believe it is our duty to provide assistance to others – to our partners. When we were still at a very early stage of the spread of coronavirus at the beginning of February, we donated items of personal protection and medical supplies to China, which was very badly affected at that time. Teams of Russian doctors and virology experts were also sent to Italy and Serbia who back then were in a more advanced stage of the pandemic.
Now my country is also struggling against the pandemic, that is why now we also welcome any assistance that can be rendered to my country. In this regard we cooperate with many countries – China, European states, the US. As you know, early in April we delivered a planeload of humanitarian cargo to New York. We said that it was done with an open heart and that we would accept any assistance that would deem necessary at a later stage, which we understood we would inevitably face. This is how cooperation is organized. Again, it is not a beauty contest, it is not a situation when it can be said that somebody succeeded or somebody failed the exam. It is not the time for this. It should be the time to display readiness, render assistance and give a helping hand. This is how all responsible global actors should behave.
Now that the situation in China has started to stabilize, China is actively helping the whole world including Russia. We welcome this help, and we think this is normal.
Recently a number of African states addressed to Russia asking to help in combating the pandemic. Now all the requests are being considered in Moscow and I am pretty much sure we will come to rescue at a later stage, when we have made a major breakthrough in our fight against the pandemic. That is what we are doing right now.
It is also very important to point out that response to this global threat should also be global. It would be a mistake to fragment and lock response measures within our national borders. We are absolutely convinced that the UN must play a pivotal role here. It is important that we all support WHO as the main specialized UN agency, help it to coordinate global measures and listen to its recommendations. These past months the WHO has become the center of all information about the pandemic. I believe everyone who takes to study the chronology of its actions, statements, and specific decisions, will be convinced that the WHO was efficient. Moreover, the fact that the WHO has played and continues to play a major role in countering the pandemic, is reflected in the recently adopted consensus resolution of UNGA and the final declaration of the G20 extraordinary summit.
It is also important not to forget about the declaration adopted by Group of 77 and China that stresses the coordinating role of the WHO in global efforts. We need to ensure universal medical service coverage through this organization. Again, it is the time to be united rather than blame or stigmatize any country because of what it has or has not done. We should really support the WHO, make it the pillar supporting our efforts to combat the virus now and later on, because some predict there might be repercussions of this pandemic.
The spread of coronavirus has badly impacted the economy. I repeat that now it is yet too difficult to assess the damage and consequences for the economic development of the world and, specifically, certain countries. The pandemic has also badly affected business, trade, investment, as well as currency exchange rates. We are still in the middle of it, so we cannot really start to rectify all this damage and search for viable solutions to this. You can also see that what is happening has increased demand for some products. In some countries those items are in a bigger demand than what can be met. So it is also time for coordination. We believe that G20 should play this role and be the driver of economic agenda to help all of us establish a common framework for mutual economic responses and reload the global economy after this profound shock that has been caused by the pandemic.
Once again, it is the time for deep and frank solidarity regardless of political agendas and preferences. We need to pay special attention to developing countries that face enormous challenges and that should be assisted first and foremost.
There is one more pressing topic in this regard. It is also important that Media and social networks behave in a responsible way. We are mostly speaking about the impact of coronavirus on healthcare systems and economies, but it is very difficult to assess the impact on the minds and perception of users who are now self-quarantined and therefore very hungry for any information. That is why it is especially important that Mass Media exercise restraint and a responsible approach, that it do not spread fake news and unverified information. The consequences of this can be very profound. We attach great importance to this and, at national level, we try to combat all the fake news that is being circulated. We try to counter it with the information that is proven to be reliable.
There is also an important philosophy question of what impacts on human behavior this entire situation will produce. Will we be shaking hands again? Will we be giving each other hugs once the coronavirus is over? Or will we be avoiding close contacts? Will we still keep social distance? This might change the entire way we behave and have serious implications for concrete individuals who are more vulnerable and probably those who are more eager to be embraced by the society and to socialize. We need to think about this. We should avoid going into extremes or changing our civilized behavior.
Another thing is we should avoid the situation where the world would totally go online. Now online services prove to be very useful and they are really in big demand, which is good, because it saves a lot of resources. But it should not replace human-to-human contacts. In diplomacy there are a lot of things that can only be done through personal contacts. There are plenty of confidential discussions that cannot proceed online. Even now, there are a lot of limits to sincere communication and discussion of topics, because so far we cannot meet personally and have to rely on electronic means of communication. It is very alluring to move our activity online and organize meetings without being physically present, without looking at each other and feeling the emotion of each other, but we should not go into that extremity. It is very practical, but very wrong. I think we should be aware of this trap that can await the world after the pandemic is over.
I think I will not be speaking any longer. I would be ready to take any questions. To conclude, I would like to say that Chinese language and Chine were mentioned here several times and will be mentioned again, I am sure of that. The Chinese word for crisis contains a character that also means opportunity. It is very wise and we should not forget that every crisis is not only a challenge, but an opportunity. We should come out of this crisis even stronger than we were when entering it. We must work together. We must forget about certain things that seemed important to us because of emotions or because of wrongly interpreted information, but we need to see the light at the end of the tunnel. We need to understand that only cooperation, coordination and global response is what the mankind needs right now. It is not the time for quarreling, blaming and finger-pointing. It is time to be helping, compassionate, generous. It is time to listen to each other and propose common workable solutions to the world which is in a big need of these solutions.
I thank you and wish every success to this conference.
