Ambassadorial-level Meeting of the Group of Friends in Defense of the UN Charter - Launch of the Geneva Chapter
Geneva, 17 March 2023
Following the decision adopted by the Foreign Ministers of the Member States to the Group of Friends in Defense of the Charter of the United Nations to expand the scope of work of the grouping beyond New York, today the Geneva Chapter of the Group of Friends was officially launched, at the ambassadorial-level.
Geneva serves as the headquarters to multiple international organizations, including the World Health Organization and the International Labour Organization, as well as to the UN Human Rights Council and the UN Conference on Disarmament, among other forums, all of which are multilateral spaces in which the Group of Friends – Geneva Chapter looks forward to coordinate positions and advance both in the preservation, promotion and defense of the prevalence and validity of the Charter of the United Nations, as well as on the strengthening of an effective and inclusive multilateralism.
Participants in the meeting, representing the 20 Member States comprising the Group of Friends, highlighted the importance of launching the Geneva Chapter, particularly at times when international forums are being tried to be both weaponized and politicized, with the purpose of advancing agendas of dubious nature.