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Statement of the Nordic-Baltic States delivered by the Permanent Representative of Lithuania H.E. Mr. Rytis Paulauskas at the 80th Session of the Third Committee of the General Assembly Interactive Dialogue with the Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion or Belief on Monday, 27 October 2025.

Mr. Chair,

I am honoured to deliver this statement on behalf of the Nordic-Baltic states.            

We thank the Special Rapporteur for her report, emphasizing the imperative of guaranteeing freedom of religion or belief for people without permanent settlement.

According to the report, people on the move, often displaced as a consequence of war crimes, crimes against humanity or genocide, are often overlooked, subjected to exclusion or other hostilities and biases, frequently in violation of international law.

We are deeply concerned about the situation of religious and ethnic communities, including Indigenous Peoples, in territories affected by conflict and occupation. For example, members of all ethnic and religious communities in temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine, particularly the Crimean Tatar Indigenous People, face systematic repression by Russia, including discrimination on the grounds of religion or belief, arbitrary detention, forced conscription, and the destruction of cultural heritage. Crimean Tatars remain excluded from legal protections and are disproportionately subjected to frontline mobilization.

It requires our concerted efforts to protect freedom of religion or belief in line with international obligations and confront mistreatment during internal or external displacement and violations based on these grounds. 

Madame Special Rapporteur,

What measures can the international community take to compel countries to guarantee the right to freedom of religion or belief for persons on the move and to prevent deliberate targeting of persons belonging to religious minorities and Indigenous Peoples, such as the Crimean Tatars?

Thank you.