Speech by Terrance Michael Drew, Prime Minister of St. Kitts and Nevis, in the 79th session of the UNGA. teleSUR
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00:00We must rise from these tables, not resign to the idea that the children of Haiti, Congo,
00:08Sudan and Palestine are less deserving of the rights and freedoms that we enjoy.
00:15We are all one people, one world.
00:19We cannot have peace without justice, and there cannot be justice without a just and solid equality.
00:30In the Caribbean, our reality, the rise of the sea level,
00:36which ends our hopes, unbearable waves of heat,
00:42which burns and makes our dreams burn,
00:46we pray for the rains and we receive floods that end our homes,
00:52when the weapons that reach our communities,
00:56causing children to die and mothers to lose them,
01:00we need to fight for action,
01:04and we have to be moved without self-complacency
01:07when we see how the global south dies of hunger while food is wasted in the rest of the world.
01:13The truth is that we are besieged by natural anthropogenic storms.
01:19The business greed, the colonial arrogance and an uncontrolled consumerism
01:25have destroyed the social contract that we have with each other.
01:29We no longer live in peace with nature.
01:32The deception with which we survive is that security and sustainability are independent commitments,
01:39but in reality they are interrelated.
01:42We cannot create safe nations while we allow the climate crisis
01:47to deprive future generations of their right to be born.
01:55Generations ago, the labor movement in St. Kitts and Nevis paved the way for people's emancipation,
02:01an emancipation built on the principles of social, economic and human dignity.
02:08Today, I echo their call.
02:11We must do better.
02:13We must be better.
02:15Our ambitions must be grander, our visions clearer.
02:20When we say leaving no one behind,
02:23acting together for the advancement of peace, sustainable development and human dignity
02:28for present and future generations,
02:31it cannot be a hollow phrase.
02:33It must be a sacred commitment,
02:36a pledge to every soul from the wealthiest nation to the smallest island state.
02:42For when the waters rise in the south, even the north will eventually drown.
02:47When the forests burn in the north, the south too will choke from the smoke.
02:55For it is one planet, one human race.
03:04The pandemic has left scars that still fester
03:09and global economic fragmentation threatens to deepen the divides between us.
03:15From small island states like mine,
03:18the failure to meet these goals is not just a disappointment,
03:22it is a death sentence.
03:25The clock is ticking and we cannot afford to wait any longer.
03:30We must act and we must act now.
03:34Today, the Caribbean embraces for an intense hurricane season
03:38facing the escalating fury fueled by warming oceans and unprecedented storms.
03:46Our brothers and sisters in Grenada, Caricou and Petit Martinique,
03:50St. Vincent and the Grenadines and Jamaica
03:53are still recovering from the devastation of Hurricane Beryl,
03:57which became the earliest formed Category 5 hurricane on record this past July.
04:04In the Pacific, our brothers and sisters there remain exposed
04:09to the incessant battering of typhoons that ravage their islands.
04:15And as I speak, the Southeast United States is being pounded by Hurricane Helene.
04:21Lives and livelihoods hang in the balance
04:24as entire communities brace for the next assault.
04:29Hoteliers, for example, in my own country of St. Kitts and Nevis,
04:33have approached our government stating that with a sense of dread
04:38that they may soon no longer be able to market themselves as beach resorts.
04:43Our famous beaches, once the lifeblood of our tourism-driven economy,
04:48are steadily disappearing under the relentless rise of the sea.
04:54The sands that once beckoned visitors from across the globe are now receding,
05:00swallowed by seas which continue to rise.
05:04The loss will be irreversible if we do not act, and if we do not act now.
05:10The Sustainable Development Goals were meant to shield us from such devastation.
05:16Offering a progressive agenda to build resilience and safeguard all our citizens.
05:23Yet despite their promise, according to the UN's 2024 SDGs report,
05:30only 17% of the targets are on track.
05:35Nearly half are showing minimal or moderate progress,
05:39and over one-third have stalled or even regressed.
05:44The clock is ticking, and we must do more than observe its passage.
05:49We must act before these realities become permanent fixtures in our collective future.
05:56In May 2025, the government of St. Kitts and Nevis will proudly co-host
06:02the Global Sustainable Islands Summit with Island Innovation,
06:07a pivotal event dedicated to advancing sustainable development
06:11on islands across the globe, titled Sustainable Future for Island Communities.
06:18This summit will build on the momentum of SIDS4 conference held in 2024,
06:24tackling the pressing challenges island nations face.
06:28This summit will call to action a space where we share practical solutions
06:34and partnerships that ripple far beyond our shores.
06:39Our islands are sentinels of climate change and the proving ground for sustainable development.
06:47It is with this spirit of shared responsibility and urgent action
06:52that I extend a heartfelt invitation to all leaders of island nations gathered here
06:59to come, to engage, to commit to meaningful change.
07:06A recent and commendable stride toward equity and inclusion
07:12has been the adoption of the MVI, the Multidimensional Vulnerability Index.
07:19This serves as a powerful testament to the potential of multilateralism
07:25when it is both purposeful and effective.
07:29St. Kitts and Nevis stands with the Caribbean community
07:33and the Alliance of Small Island States in welcoming Resolution 78-322,
07:41while urging this esteemed body to rally the necessary political will and resources
07:47to drive its implementation across international financial institutions
07:53and multilateral development banks.
07:56For us small island developing states, the MVI is not just another metric.
08:02It is a lifeline, offering a means to cushion the relentless blows of climatic and economic crises
08:09that disproportionately affect us.
08:12Its full implementation will demonstrate to the world that the United Nations
08:17and by extension the global system remains committed to uplifting those most vulnerable.
08:25It will restore trust in a system that must not only recognize vulnerability
08:31but actively work to address it.
08:35The time has come to reshape the United Nations, to reform its structures
08:42so that they reflect the realities of our modern world.
08:46Too many voices remain unheard, too many nations marginalized.
08:51The UN Security Council must include representations from the region's most vulnerable
08:57to the threats of our time.
09:01Regions such as Latin America, the Caribbean, and Africa.
09:11Nowhere is this change more urgently needed than in the international financial architecture.
09:18St. Kitts and Nevis stands in solidarity with the government of Barbados
09:23in its fight for financial and climate justice, pledging our full support for the Bridgetown Initiative.
09:31This bold framework demands a reformation of the global finance,
09:36making it more responsive to the unique vulnerabilities of small island developing states like mine.
09:44We cannot build resilience without first ensuring that the international system works
09:50for the most vulnerable among us.
09:54In the Caribbean, we continue to call for and guard our zone of peace.
10:01The Argyle Declaration serves as a shining example of how we in the Caribbean manage security challenges.
10:08We go back to basics.
10:10We talk to each other.
10:12Specifically, the Declaration has been instrumental in facilitating dialogue between Venezuela and Guyana,
10:21demonstrating that even the most complex disputes can be navigated through peaceful means.
10:29This model of engagement, one of dialogue and cooperation, is the very essence upon which this institution was founded.
10:38The international community would do well to follow this approach and inject new life into our diplomacy.
10:45And to this end, I reiterate CARICOM's call for an unconditional ceasefire in Gaza to put an end to the suffering.
10:55The only pathway to peace and to secure fundamental human rights and dignity is through the two-state solution,
11:09and St. Kitts and Nevis stand in full support.
11:13Mr. President, as we face these global challenges, we should always remember Haiti.
11:21I want to reiterate that again, Mr. President, that we should always remember Haiti.
11:28Haiti, the beacon of resilience and courage, stands at the crossroads of its next chapter.
11:42St. Kitts and Nevis, alongside the Caribbean community, firmly supports the work of the National Transitional Council
11:50as it strives to create an environment conducive to a multi-stakeholder political solution.
11:57Haiti was there for the downtrodden of the world, lighting the path toward freedom for many.
12:04And now the world must be there for Haiti, not because it is a place of sorrow,
12:10but because it remains a symbol of human endurance and defiance against injustice.
12:17With the establishment of the multinational security support mission,
12:21the Caribbean community seeks to usher in a new day for Haiti's families.
12:26And to this end, I want to thank the government and people of Kenya for their significant contribution.
12:39And of course we want to usher in a new day for Haiti's families,
12:43a day where schools become places of learning, hospitals are places of healing,
12:50and markets are not arsenals for gangs, but havens for community and prosperity.
12:57Haiti's future is not only one of security, but one of sustainability,
13:04and we must rally to give it the peace it deserves.
13:09Mr. President, year after year, this body sends a strong message to the people of Cuba,
13:15a message of hope and a message of support.
13:19The embargo that has isolated Cuba for decades is not right, Mr. President,
13:25and it continues to be a stain on our collective conscience.
13:30Senator Kitson Nevis joins the Caribbean community in calling for an end to this unjust embargo
13:37and for Cuba's removal from the State Department's list of state sponsors of terrorism.
13:44Cuba has long been a friend to the Caribbean, its doctors, educators exemplifying true philanthropy.
13:53And I might state here, Mr. President, that I'm a graduate of the Cuban educational system.
14:00Instead of denigrating the island, we should elevate and learn from its sustainable solutions
14:08that have empowered their people and, in turn, the region.
14:12A stronger, more sustainable Cuba enhances the security and sustainability of the Caribbean.
14:20Mr. President, in the same breath, we must not forget Taiwan,
14:25in the same breath, we must not forget Taiwan.
14:29The people of Taiwan have proven time and time again their firm commitment to sustainable development.
14:36Their theme, the theme of this assembly, leaving no one behind,
14:41compels us to ensure Taiwan's inclusion in the work of the United Nations system,
14:46particularly in the World Health Organization and the International Civil Aviation Organization.
14:54Taiwan's leadership in innovation and technology is not just an asset,
14:59it's a necessity for the global community to meet the challenges of tomorrow.
15:05The United Nations must extend its vision to include Taiwan,
15:09a nation whose exclusion undermines the very principles we stand for,
15:14peace, sustainable development, and human dignity.
15:19Mr. President, esteemed colleagues, citizens of St. Kitts and Nevis, citizens of the world,
15:29St. Kitts and Nevis is not seeking for pity.
15:34St. Kitts and Nevis is not seeking for anyone to feel sorry for us.
15:39We are small, but as we say in our country, we are Talawa.
15:43St. Kitts and Nevis is seeking for partnerships.
15:47We are on a transformative journey to become a sustainable island state guided by seven pillars,
16:00which are water security, energy transition, food security, sustainable industry,
16:07sustainable settlements, circular economy, and social protection.
16:13We are taking bold and tangible actions by building renewable energy desalination plants
16:21for reliable 24-7 water supply, aggressively advancing geothermal energy on our sister isle of Nevis
16:29with the goal of a unified sustainable energy grid for both islands, St. Kitts and Nevis,
16:36and extending it to the rest of the Caribbean,
16:40constructing our first modern climate-smart hospital,
16:45building climate-smart affordable housing solutions,
16:48ensuring that our people have safe, sustainable places to live and to call home,
16:54finalizing one of the Caribbean's largest solar plus storage projects.
16:59We are on track, Mr. President, to meet CARICOM's 25 by 25 agenda,
17:04reducing our food imports and bolstering local food production.
17:09We created, for example, a children's medical fund
17:13to ensure that disadvantaged families can access vital medical care for their children.
17:20And may I state, Mr. President, that as a result of this policy,
17:24St. Kitts and Nevis recorded no death of any child between the ages of one to four in 2023.
17:34We continue, therefore, to advance our education beyond our universal compulsory system,
17:41promoting lifelong learning as key to national development.
17:46All of these and more we are pursuing, Mr. President,
17:50demonstrating to the world that we don't just complain.
17:54We don't want to be a part of just problems.
17:57We want to be a part of the solutions.
18:00We want to be a part of the solutions, and that is why we will continue to seek partnerships, Mr. President.
18:08My friends, we stand at the crossroads.
18:11We can no longer afford the luxury of inaction.
18:15We must meet the moment with the courage it demands.
18:20We must reject business as usual and embrace a new path forward,
18:26one that values people over profit, one that prioritizes the planet over power.
18:33As we gather in this assembly, let us remember, let us remember, we are all stewards of this fragile world.
18:42The rising tides do not respect borders, and the fires of conflict burn without discrimination.
18:50For St. Kitts and Nevis, for the Caribbean, for every small island nation whose future hangs in the balance,
18:59I ask you to stand with us.
19:02Let our voices rise like the oceans that surround us, powerful and unyielding,
19:09calling for a future where peace is not just the absence of war,
19:13but the presence of justice, of sustainability, of hope.
19:19Mr. President, citizens of the world, leaders, all who are present,
19:26together, let us seize this moment and shape the future.
19:33Together, let us stand proud and strong.
19:36Together, let us act now for the moment demands it.
19:40Thank you very much.
19:42Thank you very much.
20:12This is all for the moment. Stay tuned. We're from the south.