China supports UN with concrete actions: FM spokesperson

Beijing: China’s support for the United Nations (UN) is concrete as it has fully paid its membership and peacekeeping assessments this year, Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Hua Chunying said Friday.

Catherine Pollard, Under-Secretary-General of the UN for Management Strategy, Policy and Compliance, recently briefed the General Assembly on the financial situation of the UN. According to her report, 43 member states, including China, have paid their 2020 annual and peacekeeping assessments in full. Meanwhile, the UN is faced with difficulties including insufficient liquidity and arrears of some member states.

As the second-largest contributor to the UN regular budget and a responsible country, China has always earnestly fulfilled its financial obligations to the UN, Hua said at a press briefing.

“China’s full payment of its membership dues demonstrates its support for the UN with concrete actions,” she stressed.

The timely and full payment of assessments is a legal obligation that all UN member states should fulfill, and major countries should particularly play an exemplary role in addressing financial difficulties of the UN, she said.

As the international community is confronted with many global challenges such as the COVID-19 pandemic, safeguarding multilateralism and the international system with the UN at the core is in the interest of all parties, the spokesperson said, adding that China will continue to support the work of the UN and promote world peace and development with other countries.