Neutrality plays a key role in ensuring peace, security and sustainable development. Avoiding direct involvement in conflicts and maintaining neutrality help prevent the escalation of tensions and promote international stability. Neutrality promotes dialogue and peaceful resolution of disputes, creating a basis for cooperation and harmony among states. In addition, neutrality promotes sustainable development, as it avoids the destructive consequences of military conflicts and focuses on socio-economic development. Thus, maintaining neutrality plays an important role in maintaining peace, ensuring security and promoting sustainable development at both the international and national levels.
Keywords: neutrality, world, safety, sustainable development, conflicts, cooperation, agreement, dialogue, stability, socio-economic development.
The Group of Friends of Neutrality for Peace, Security and Sustainable development can be seen as a group with an impactful potential in regulating conflicts, making it a valuable entity of the United Nations that is aimed at providing a dialogue, recommendations and also as a group contributing to an Agenda 2030 especially to the goals number 16 and 17 which are Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions, Partnership for the Goals.
Aiming to analyze a potential of this particular group this paper will answer to such question:
Potential of the Group of Friends of Neutrality for Peace Security and Sustainable development in conflict management?
Can a Neutrality and its principles be applied in conflict management process?
This recently established group deserves to be analyzed and potentials revealed so I think this paper will answer to the abovementioned questions in order to draw an understanding how this particular group will function in the future.
The Group was set forth at the 75th session of the UN General Assembly on 7 of December by the side of the Turkmen delegation. The respective resolution A/RES/75/28 titled “The role and importance of a policy of neutrality in maintaining and strengthening international peace, security and sustainable development” drafted by Turkmenistan states: Commemorating the seventy-fifth anniversary of the United Nations, and recognizing the urgent need to promote and strengthen multilateralism and that the United Nations plays a central role in this regard.
Underlining that the national policies of neutrality of some States can contribute to the strengthening of international peace and security in relevant regions and at the global level and can play an important role in developing peaceful, friendly and mutually beneficial relations between the countries of the world.
Notes with appreciation the initiative of the Government of Turkmenistan to establish the Group of Friends of Neutrality for Peace, Security and Sustainable Development. [1]
The respective resolution was adopted without a vote and was welcomed by the UN community, latter the group was itself established under the aegis of the United Nations. According Xinhua News Agency 18 coutries took part in the opening ceremony, and the first sates to join the Group of Friends were Iran, Russian Federation, China, Costa Rica, Ireland, Uzbekistan, Pakistan, Egypt and Qatar. The agency reports that Deputy Permanent Representative of the People’s Republic of China to UN Geng Shuang represented and spoke at the conference for the Chinese party. Referring to China’s position, he emphasized his country’s commitment to multilateralism, peace and development. Geng Shuang assured that China is ready for the broadest cooperation in this and other formats with all parties concerned. He added also the policy of neutrality corresponds to the prospects for the future, meets the purposes and principles of the UN Charter, and ensures that all countries achieve unity and win-win. The creation of the Gathering Neutrality Group will create a useful component for bringing closer mutual understanding and trust, concluding preventive diplomacy and deepening multilateral cooperation between like-minded countries. [2]
The International community has shown how fragile is the world peace and how tensions escalate into a conflicts with complex and sometimes blurry nature. It stands to a reason that world community has an anarchical nature (Thomas Hobbes realism). Considering the current state of nature of conflicts, which is a main agenda of United Nations (UN) and world community, reasonably all states are contributing to resolution of conflicts considering the type and a belligerent parties involved. A conflicts may have a distinct nature and a character, it is essential to find ways to resolve such phenomenon and UN offer such ways via its Charter more precisely via means prescribed Chapter VI article 33 which are: Negotiation; Conciliation; Mediation; Arbitration; Enquiry; Judicial settlement; Resort to a regional organizations or arrangements; Other peaceful means of their own choice; here what UN offers for peaceful resolution of conflicts. [2]
At this point of time conflicts are rarely resolved bilaterally without an intervention of a mediator, in light of the fact that mediators has an immense role in the process of conciliating both belligerent parties. The particular reason for the circumstance of why the role of a mediator is crucial is that mediators should be credible, if both belligerent parties are not demonstrating the will of cooperating with a mediator the process of making peace would be hinged making the mediation process more perplexing.
It stands to reason why this article devoted to the importance of Neutrality, and Neutral states in mediation.This issue gives rise to a number of reasonable question and concerns, such as whether neutrality be applied in conflict management or not, are neutral states relevant to be a mediators, a prominent concern in mediation is neutrality, in the context of self-determination of the belligerent or disputing parties.
Neutrality is a position of impartiality, which implies the same attitude towards the belligerent states and the exclusion of support and assistance to any of the belligerent states to the detriment of another state, or the creation of such conditions under which one of the states can derive any benefit compared to the other belligerent state. In mediation neutrality serves as a core aspect of mediation obviously it stands to a reason that neutral states are best suited for being in a role of a mediators. In a general sense neutrality may be defined as an absence of any bias towards or in relation to either disputing party and its core function as a mediator is distribution of power between the belligerent parties. [3]
The concept of neutrality by its nature is political and legal and dialectically contradictory, which includes operating with such categories as action and inaction, passivity and activity, participation and non-participation, justice and injustice, the principle of equal opportunity and refusal of it, and etc.
Most important issue is reasonably devoted to a Group itself and its potential in conflict management, prevention of root causes and provision of a dialogue and recommendations on how to apply principles of neutrality in conflict management.
The Group aims to facilitate dialogue, trust, cooperation, and understanding among nations. It also seeks to promote the transformative potential of the policy of neutrality to build a secure and sustainable future for all.
The Group’s format and methods:
The Group of Friends has an informal, open-ended nature, and, accordingly, its composition shall be regularly updated, as United Nations Member States, Observers of the General Assembly of the United Nations and the United Nations entities indicate their willingness and interest in joining it;
The Group of Friends shall meet regularly, at least every six months, at the ambassadorial level in New York. Extraordinary meetings can be convened to discuss specific questions, at the request of its members;
The Group of Friends meets once a year at the level of Foreign Ministers at a pre-agreed venue;
The Group of Friends will be coordinated by two co-chairs (Turkmenistan and any member country willing to co-chair) for a term of one year and, upon completion of that term, the principle of geographical rotation will be observed for the transfer of the coordination. [4]
It is important to note that the states could join the Group through diplomatic notes and letters with indication of intent to be a member of the Group. The Group is utmost initiated via positive experience of the currently acting multilateral groups that function on variety of issues of international agenda, and act as an informal association with the aim to consolidate and promote political dialogue therefore strengthening the philosophy of Turkmenistan “A Dialogue is the guarantee of peace” within the United Nations, to develop unexplored tools for strengthening peace and security, to provide practical recommendations on implementation of the principles of neutrality in prevention of conflicts, elimination of their root causes and consequences, to facilitate regular dialogue within the United Nations on practical application of the peacekeeping potential of states building their policies on the principles of neutrality.
The Group of Friends of Neutrality for Peace, Security and Sustainable Development is a valuable platform for promoting the principles of neutrality and for building a more peaceful and sustainable world.
Here are some of the activities that the Group has undertaken:
— Organizing meetings and events:
The Group has organized a number of meetings and events to discuss the importance of neutrality and to promote the development of a code of conduct for neutral states.
— Issuing statements: The Group has issued a number of statements on the importance of neutrality and on the need for all countries to work together to build a more peaceful and sustainable world.
— Working with other organizations:
The Group has worked with other organizations, such as the United Nations, to promote the principles of neutrality.
The Group of Friends of Neutrality for Peace, Security and Sustainable Development is a valuable platform for promoting the principles of neutrality and for building a more peaceful and sustainable world.
Here are some of the ways that the Group of Friends of Neutrality can contribute to peace and security:
— Promoting dialogue and cooperation: The Group can help to promote dialogue and cooperation between countries that are neutral and countries that are not. This can help to build trust and understanding, which can in turn help to prevent conflict.
— Providing mediation services: The Group can provide mediation services to countries that are in conflict. This can help to bring the parties to the conflict together and to find a peaceful solution.
— Promoting the rule of law: The Group can promote the rule of law in countries that are neutral. This can help to create a more stable and peaceful environment.
— Providing humanitarian assistance:
The Group can provide humanitarian assistance to countries that are affected by conflict or natural disasters. This can help to alleviate suffering and to promote peace and stability.
The Group of Friends of Neutrality is a valuable platform for promoting the principles of neutrality and for building a more peaceful and sustainable world. The Group has the potential to make a significant contribution to peace and security, and it is important to support its work.
Here are some of the benefits of neutrality:
— It can help to build trust and credibility. When people see that you are impartial, they are more likely to trust you and believe what you say.
— It can help to resolve conflict. When both parties in a conflict feel that they are being heard and understood, they are more likely to be willing to compromise.
— It can help to promote peace. When countries are not aligned with any particular side in a conflict, they are more likely to be able to mediate between the parties and help to bring about a peaceful resolution.
Group has all futures to become impactful group that may contribute to the establishment of peace and management of security, moreover can contribute to the Agenda 2030. This particular group has it all to promote principles of neutrality, bringing neutrality status to new heights and making more valuable tool for states to apply it in the conflict management.
References:
- UN. (2023 ý. February 27). Letter dated 27 February 2023 from the Permanent Representatives of Belarus, China, Djibouti, Kazakhstan, Morocco, Pakistan, the Russian Federation, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela to the United Nations addressed to the S. Alnan wagty 2023 ý. April 20 ýeri UN Digital Library: https://digitallibrary.un.org/record/4005777
- Amanow, N. (2020 ý. August 29). UN established a Group of Friends of Neutrality on the initiative of Turkmenistan. Alnan wagty 2023 ý. April 20 ýeri Orient.tm: https://orient.tm/en/post/7223/un-established-a-group-of-friends-of-neutrality-on-the-initiative-of-turkmenistan
- UN. (1945). UN Charter. United Nations: https://www.un.org/en/about-us/un-charter
- Cobb, S. &. (1991). Practice and paradox: Deconstructing neutrality in mediation. Law & Social Inquiry, 41–42.
- MFA. (2023 ý. March 15). Final declaration of the ministerial meeting of the group of friends of neutrality published as an official document of the 77th session of the un general assembly. Alnan wagty 2023 ý. April 20 ýeri mfa.gov.tm: https://www.mfa.gov.tm/en/news/3674
