Reform for UN 'inevitable' says Turkish prime minister

Reform for the United Nations to end global conflicts is a “necessity”, Turkey’s Prime Minister Binali Yildirim said on Thursday.

Yildirim arrived in Baku on Wednesday to attend the Sixth Global Baku Forum in Azerbaijan and held several bilateral meetings with Azerbaijani officials.

Speaking at the forum, Yildirim said a UN based on problem-solving, not rivalries, was “an inevitable necessity”.

“The UN Security Council is unable to give the necessary response to [international] rivalries while humanity is dying and chemical gas [weapons] are being used and is unable to end this violence."

He urged the UN to establish a more "confidence building" structure and added, "Global peace and solidarity can only be established if everyone does not preserve double standards to conflicts and produce results based on humanity and human values."

Yildirim said Turkey is a "reliable" country for its allies and friends but also "an actor for peace and prosperity" for the region, not only in the Middle East but also in the Balkans and Caucasus regions as well as in many parts around the world.

The forum was also attended by current and former state officials from 50 countries and welcomed 500 participants.

Yildirim arrived in Baku on Wednesday and held several bilateral meetings with Azerbaijani officials.

This year's forum, organised by the Baku-based Nizami Ganjavi International Centre, focuses on the theme “Bridging Gaps to create Inclusive Societies".

Critics over UN role in Syria

Yildirim cited as an example the fact that Turkey hosts over 3.5 million Syrian refugees.

"If we hadn't done this, the instability in the region was going to escalate, and perhaps it would be impossible to control the ongoing terror events," he said.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has also criticised the UN Security Council, blasting its ineffectual Syrian cease-fire resolution, and calling its composition unrepresentative.

Nagorno-Karabakh conflict

Calling on the international community to increase global cooperation in efforts to establish peace and stability, Yildirim stated the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict remained a "wound" for Azerbaijan.

"Though many international organisations such as the UN and OSCE [Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe] accept this injustice and urged to fix this issue, they failed to take necessary steps on the issue," he added.

Azerbaijan and Armenia remain in dispute over the occupied Karabakh region. 

Following the declaration of Armenia’s independence in 1991, Armenians in Nagorno-Karabakh organised separatist movements from Azerbaijan.

In this period, the Azerbaijani population in Karabakh fell to 20 percent due to forced migration by Armenian military support. The Armenians voted to break-away Azerbaijan in the referendum, which was held on December 10, 1991. The referendum was boycotted by Azerbaijanis. Following the referendum, Nagorno-Karabakh was declared as independent, but the international community did not recognise it as an independent state. A peace process has yet to be implemented.

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev also underlined the necessity of global peace and security. He stated the purpose of the global forum was to strengthen stability, security and coexistence.

Regarding the conflict with Armenia, Aliyev said, "Nagorno-Karabakh is our ancient land. For centuries, Azerbaijanis lived in these territories. Now, in our occupied territories everything is destroyed, our historical monuments, graves and religious monuments. Everything is destroyed."

"This is also a genocide against our culture. The conflict resolution must be based on international law and UNSC resolutions ... Unfortunately, these resolutions are not implemented, and no sanctions were imposed on Armenia."

He urged for the end of the "status quo" in Nagorno-Karabakh and added that nations can only have peace and prosperity if they are independent.