Role of multilateral institutions will be on agenda of proposed summit of 5 nuclear powers - Lavrov
MOSCOW. April 14 (Interfax) - The participants in an upcoming summit of the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council will definitely discuss the future of multilateral organizations, among other things, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Tuesday.
"When the leaders of the five permanent UN Security Council members discuss aspects of strategic stability and security at a top-level meeting that we have proposed, they will inevitably touch upon problems concerning the future functioning and role of multilateral institutions," Lavrov said in an online interview with Russian and foreign journalists.
"Along with the fight against the pandemic as such and the tackling of extremely complex problems in the economies of all countries and the global economy, in particular, the third critical challenge is the future of multilateral institutions and their role, their credibility," he said.
"Perhaps the results of this fight against the coronavirus infection will show what countries and what multilateral institutions have endured the test of this horrible threat, the test of this crisis," Lavrov said.
"I understand your concerns that those egoistic manifestations in the behavior of some countries that we have seen now might prevail and that some will attempt to shut themselves off. The Schengen area countries are discussing with alarm how they will continue to live side by side. And yet I believe a collective approach will prevail. Perhaps not immediately. Perhaps this will take meetings and efforts to persuade, but there is no other way," he said.
"All of us should probably hope and do all we can now so that this crisis becomes a kind of inoculation, if you will, an inoculation against egoism, an inoculation against messianism, and an inoculation against the temptation to continue solving problems at the expense of other countries' interests. Perhaps this won't happen immediately. It would make sense to rely on facts, which have been growing in number, showing how hard it is to oppose such threats on your own. It would also make sense to rely on the power of persuasion," Lavrov said.