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SECURITY COUNCIL, 73RD YEAR : 8195TH MEETING, WEDNESDAY, 28 FEBRUARY 2018, NEW YORK
No full textThe situation in the Middle East Report of the Secretary-General on the implementation of Security Council resolutions 2139 (2014), 2165 (2014), 2191 (2014), 2258 (2015), 2332 (2016) and 2393 (2017
Humanitarian Response In Syria Must Be Urgently Boosted, Emergency Relief Coordinator Tells Security Council
No full textSecurity Council 8236th Meeting (Pm)5/24/2018 Humanitarian Response in Syria Must Be Urgently Boosted, Emergency Relief Coordinator Tells Security Council | Meetings Coverage and Press Relea…
https://www.un.org/press/en/2018/sc13302.doc.htm 1/5
SC/13302
17 APRIL 2018
MEETINGS COVERAGE
SECURITY COUNCIL >
8236TH MEETING (PM)
Humanitarian Response in Syria Must Be Urgently Boosted, Emergency Relief
Coordinator Tells Security Council
Casting a spotlight on the pressing needs of civilians in Raqqa and Rukban, the Security Council met this afternoon to hear a
brieng on recent developments and discuss ways forward.
While people in those cities comprised 1 per cent of those requiring help, their needs were no less important than the
remaining 99 per cent, said Mark Lowcock, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Aairs and Emergency Relief
Coordinator. In Raqqa, where 100,000 people had returned since October when Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant
(ISIL/Da’esh) had been forced out, conditions were not conducive for returns because of high levels of unexploded
ordinances and improvised explosive device contamination. In addition, there were scant basic services, a lack of electricity
and mobile communications and food insecurity.
Describing other concerns, he said in Rukban some 50,000 people were in need of sustained humanitarian assistance.
Those remaining in the town of Douma and other areas of eastern Ghouta required urgent assistance after years of
deprivation, he said, adding that the humanitarian community had not yet been able to provide help. On 25 March, the
United Nations had requested permission from the Government of Syria to deploy an interagency surge team to scale up
the United Nations operational capacity, he said, adding that he could not overstate the importance of sustaining and scaling
up the international response.
Council members underscored the need for sustained aid deliveries, with some calling on all Member States to make
substantial commitments at the upcoming Brussels pledging conference and to swiftly disburse pledges. Some delegates
said mine clearing should be a priority to ensure safe returns of displaced persons, while many members urged parties to
return to negotiations to nd a political solution to end the conict.
Echoing a common call, China’s representative appealed to all parties in Syria to comply with Security Council resolution
2401 (2018) by ceasing hostilities and coordinating with United Nations humanitarian eorts. Any unilateral action would
violate the basic norms of international law while complicating a settlement of the Syrian issue, he said, urging all sides to
refrain from moves that would further escalate the situation.
The representative of the Russian Federation, noting that Raqqa’s destruction had been due to a United States-led coalition
ght against ISIL, criticized coalition members for their lack of reconstruction in that area. Civilians were regularly killed by
landmines and no assessment of humanitarian needs had occurred until the Russian Federation had insisted on it. In
addition, no practical steps had been taken to provide humanitarian assistance to the population of Rukban, which was
located near an American airbase. Urging the Council and the humanitarian community to address the situation of those
two cities, he said coalition members should outline how they themselves were implementing resolution 2401 (2018).
Meanwhile, the United States delegate said that while the 75 members of the Global Coalition against Da’esh had targeted
ISIL and liberated civilians, the Syrian Government had bombarded its own people. United Nations humanitarian convoys
were welcome at any time in Raqqa and Rukhban, with any delays being the result of the Syrian Government and its failure
to allow deliveries. Condemning the Russian Federation for its “cynical, thinly disguised diversions”, she said it was clear that
it had requested the Council meeting as a distraction from the atrocities committed by the Bashar Al-Assad regime.
Providing another perspective, Syria’s representative said three Council members continued to search for microscopic dust
while ignoring the enormous “elephant in the room”, which was the aggression they had launched against his country.
Raqqa was a martyr city that had been destroyed by those very States, he said, adding that the coalition had never sought to
combat terrorism. Indeed, the point had been to block the Syrian Government and its allies as they attempted to combat
ISIL. Turning to the situation in the Rukban camps, he said coalition forces had prevented the Government from delivering
aid. Moreover, he asserted that the situation in Syria did not require draft resolutions or semi-daily meetings. Instead, the
Council must stand against the occupation of Syria by the United States, Israel and Turkey and aggressions carried out by
the United States, France and the United Kingdom.
Drawing attention to the eects of the crisis on the Syrian people, Equatorial Guinea’s representative said the situation in
Raqqa required the international community’s urgent attention. Calling for sustained humanitarian access and the
intensication of eorts to reach a political solution, he reminded Council members that “the Syrian people have suered
enough.”
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Also speaking were the representatives of Kuwait, Sweden, France, United Kingdom, Kazakhstan, Poland, Côte d’Ivoire,
Netherlands, Bolivia, Ethiopia and Peru.
The meeting began at 4:48 p.m. and ended at 6:38 p.m.
Brieng
MARK LOWCOCK, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Aairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, briefed the Council
on the situation in Syria, including in Raqqa and Rukban. While people in those cities totalled 1 per cent of those requiring
help, their needs were no less important than the remaining 99 per cent. After a United Nations assessment mission on
1 April in Raqqa, where 100,000 people had returned since October when Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL/Da’esh)
had been forced out, reports showed that conditions were not conducive for returns because of high levels of unexploded
ordinances and improvised explosive device contamination. Every week, 50 casualties had been reported due to the
remnants of war. Also, an estimated 70 to 80 per cent of all buildings had been destroyed or damaged. While public
services were slowly resuming, the city lacked electricity and mobile communications while water was being pumped at a
very limited capacity to the outskirts. Meanwhile, up to 95 per cent of households that had returned to Raqqa were food
insecure and health services were lacking. Some schools had reopened, but lacked supplies. United Nations agencies were
planning deliveries of humanitarian assistance and programmatic interventions to support the work of humanitarian
agencies already active in those areas.
In Rukban, some 50,000 people were in need of sustained humanitarian assistance, he continued, noting that there was a
pressing need for better service provision and medical help. Humanitarian agencies were working closely with the United
States, Russian Federation and the Syrian Arab Red Crescent to facilitate deliveries. At the same time, those remaining in the
town of Douma and other areas of eastern Ghouta, under control of the Government of Syria, required urgent assistance
after years of deprivation. The humanitarian community had not yet been able to provide that, he said, adding that access
to reach the people of eastern Ghouta was critical.
Of the 155,000 who had been displaced, he said, approximately 63,000 had moved north to Idlib and Aleppo, resulting in a
25 per cent increase in Idlib’s displaced population. That situation placed incredible pressure on host communities and
humanitarian actors working to provide assistance and services. Those remaining in Afrin were also in dire need of aid.
Despite some positive developments, humanitarian partners were still struggling to gain sustained access to Afrin and
freedom of movement for internally displaced persons remained severely limited. On 25 March, the United Nations
requested permission from the Government of Syria to deploy an interagency surge team to scale up the United Nations
operational capacity. Overall, he could not overstate the importance of sustaining and scaling up the international response.
Statements
VASSILY A. NEBENZIA (Russian Federation), noting that some delegations were constantly calling on his country to provide
updates on its implementation of resolution 2401 (2018), said signicant eorts had been undertaken to improve the
situation in eastern Ghouta, where armed groups had long held populations hostage. “A bloodbath was prevented,” he said,
adding that some 60,000 people had also been helped to return to their homes. Joint work was ongoing between the
Russian military police and Syrian law enforcement ocials, including debris clearance, re-establishment of services and
food deliveries. However, the international community’s attention was also required, he said, calling for additional support
from other Member States.
In contrast, he said, Raqqa — which had been destroyed by United States-led coalition air strikes — had seen no
reconstruction eorts. Civilians were regularly killed by landmines, and no assessment of humanitarian needs had taken
place until the Russian Federation had insisted on it. Buildings were in ruins, thousands of corpses remained buried and no
school, hospital or basic services remained operational. No practical steps had been taken to provide humanitarian
assistance to the population of the similarly damaged city of Rukban, located near an American airbase whose very
existence constituted a blatant violation of Syria’s sovereignty. Urging the Council and the humanitarian community not to
ignore the situation of those two cities, he said members of the coalition should be courageous enough to outline how they
themselves were implementing resolution 2401 (2018) in those cases.
Events over recent days had revealed the hypocrisy of the “troika” — namely, the United States, United Kingdom and France,
he said. By their acts of aggression, those countries and their supporters had taken sides in the Syrian conict. The Russian
Federation was instead working with all sides, committing to implementing Council resolutions and supporting the parties in
making progress in the Geneva talks, which must resume without preconditions and especially without demands for a
regime change. Given current developments, it was hard to imagine that the Government of Syria would want to talk about
the situation in its country with any members of the troika, who sought to declare its President a war criminal. Indeed,
before any progress could be made, “you rst need to undo the damage that you yourself have created”, he said, noting that
the opposition must step back from its destructive position while embracing Council resolutions, and their patrons must end
their militant rhetoric against the legitimately elected President of Syria.
Meanwhile, he said, the establishment of a mechanism to attribute responsibility for the use of chemical weapons in Syria
made no sense, as Washington, D.C., and its allies were already acting like self-appointed executioners on that matter.
Attempts to push the Russian Federation to change its position using air strikes and the threat of sanctions had never
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worked in the past nor would they work in the future. The United States and its allies must end its threats to use force
against Syria, as such actions outed international law and only drove peace farther away. Warning against attempts to
maintain foreign occupation in parts of Syria, loot its resources and stoke divisions between its people, he said military
groups must also separate themselves from terrorists and Western parties should stop manipulating the humanitarian
situation for political purposes.
BADER ABDULLAH N. M. ALMUNAYEKH (Kuwait) said resolution 2401 (2018) had addressed the humanitarian situation
across Syria, demanding a pause in hostilities for 30 days to ensure the delivery of humanitarian assistance and allow for the
evacuation of the sick and wounded. Voicing frustration that it had not yet been implemented, he reiterated the call on
parties to the conict to allow the entry of weekly convoys and for an immediate end to all attacks against civilians, civilian
infrastructure and medical facilities. Urging the Astana guarantors, in particular, to continue to support talks. Welcoming
the Oce for the Coordination of Humanitarian Aairs preparations of plans for providing humanitarian assistance in
Raqqa, he underscored the need to maintain sustained aid delivery to internally displaced persons camps in Rukban.
OLOF ORRENIUS SKOOG (Sweden) said a greater eort must be made to ensure full and immediate implementation of
resolution 2401 (2018) throughout Syria, with the Astana guarantors living up to their commitments. He called on the Syrian
authorities to immediately grant facilitation letters for humanitarian convoys to Douma and to facilitate sustained United
Nations access to camps housing internally displaced persons. Referring also the situations in Raqqa, Rukban, Idlib and
Afrin, he said the humanitarian community was undertaking a Herculean task. However, the acute lack of funding for United
Nations humanitarian operations in in Syria was deeply troubling, he said, calling on all Member States to make substantial
commitments at the upcoming Brussels conference and to swiftly disburse pledges.
KELLEY A. ECKELS-CURRIE (United States) said the 75 members of the Global Coalition against Da’esh that had fought the
terrorist group in Iraq had continued its eradication campaign in Syria. While the coalition had targeted ISIL and liberated
civilians, the Syrian Government had bombarded its own people. Noting that United Nations humanitarian convoys were
welcome at any time in Raqqa and Rukban, the United States stood ready to support deliveries. Any delays stemmed from
the Bashar al-Assad regime and its failure to allow convoys to move. The United States had already provided assistance,
clearing 3,000 remnants of war and contributing 300,000 pounds of food. Pointing out that the Russian Federation had
called the Council meeting as part of a messaging campaign to distract the international community from the atrocities
committed by the Assad regime, she reiterated that in addition to a ceasere, the Council had called for unhindered access
for humanitarian assistance. Yet, the regime had only allowed six convoys. Such calls by the Council needed to be
implemented on the ground, but that required the Syrian Government’s cooperation, she said, condemning the Russian
Federation for its “cynical, thinly disguised diversions”.
FRANÇOIS DELATTRE (France) said the humanitarian situation in Syria screamed for attention, including those eeing safe
areas, the bureaucracy preventing access to camps and conditions in Raqqa, where 90,000 people had returned.
Humanitarian actors needed access to provide much-needed basic services and eorts must continue to remove
landmines. For its part, France was helping with landmine clearance and had contributed €10 million for projects easing
civilian returns to Raqqa. Concerning Rukban, he reiterated an urgent appeal to guarantee unimpeded humanitarian
access. In that context, he supported the draft resolution that his country, United Kingdom and the United States had tabled
on 14 April with a view to making progress on the humanitarian front, put a denite end to the Syrian chemical programme
and begin conclusive political negotiations. That draft had sought areas of convergence to create conditions of real
diplomatic progress in Syria and open the way for true negotiations.
KAREN PIERCE (United Kingdom), regretting to note that some members had used the humanitarian situation to score
political points, recalled that the United Kingdom had contributed a total of $3.5 billion to date for humanitarian assistance.
Her Government continued to provide humanitarian support to Raqqa and surrounding areas and had aided with landmine
clearance. Raising several concerns, she drew attention to the plight of displaced persons in Rukban and urged the regime
to facilitate access to the United Nations and its partners to deliver aid to Douma and eastern Ghouta. She called on the
Council to use recent events to get the political process back on track and was looking forward to the upcoming retreat in
Sweden, which the Secretary-General would also attend.
KANAT TUMYSH (Kazakhstan), welcoming the Oce for the Coordination of Humanitarian Aairs assessment mission to
Raqqa in April, raised concerns that an estimated 100,000 people had returned to their homes in that city despite the wide
presence of unexploded ordnances. Highlighting the signicant destruction of Raqqa and the precarious fate of the Rukban
and Hadalat refugee camps, he warned the Council of a dangerous tendency for those camps to become havens for foreign
mercenaries. Kazakhstan supported the Russian Federation’s proposal to establish humanitarian corridors for withdrawing
refugees from El Tanf and the Rukban camp, based on the example provided by Russian and Syrian military troops during
the assault on Aleppo. Calling on all parties immediately suspend hostilities, implement resolution 2401 (2018) and report
periodically on those eorts, he said the questions of boundaries and territories following Syria’s prolonged war should be
addressed in line with that country’s Constitution in order to prevent the re‑emergence of extremist groups.
PAWEL RADOMSKI (Poland), raising concerns about new internally displaced persons reaching Idlib, said the military conict
in north-west Syria had further complicated the situation on the ground. He called on all parties, especially the Russian
Federation and Iran, to take action towards a cessation of hostility and to comply with all their obligations under
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international law. He also urged the Russian Federation, Iran and Turkey to full their responsibility as guarantors of the
Astana process. There could be no military solution to the conict, in Syria, he said, underlining that a political agreement
remained the only sustainable solution.
ANATOLIO NDONG MBA (Equatorial Guinea) said Council members had recognized the very high number of people eeing
Syria when they had adopted resolution 2393 (2017). In the former ISIL stronghold of Raqqa, military oensives had led to
signicant destruction. Commending World Health Organization (WHO) eorts, he said Raqqa’s residents continued to be
deprived of aid because there were no nearby oces of humanitarian agencies and local authorities were incapable of
providing assistance. The situation required the international community and the Council’s urgent attention, he said, calling
for the provision of sustained access allowing humanitarian convoys to reach Raqqa. “The Syrian people have suered
enough,” he said, calling for the intensication of eorts to reach a political solution centred on the needs of the Syrian
people and in full respect for Syria’s territorial integrity.
THÉODORE DAH (Côte d’Ivoire), echoing expressions of regret that resolution 2401 (2018) remained unimplemented, called
on all parties to ensure its full implementation across Syria including in Raqqa and Rukban. In the former, signicant
destruction, a dearth of basic services and the presence of unexploded ordnance posed serious obstacles for safe returns of
civilians. Calling on the international community to address those situations, he said a needs assessment was urgently
required to better understand the extremely precarious living conditions in Rukban’s internally displaced persons camps.
Such work must be part of a global eort to reach a negotiated political solution based on inclusive dialogue and in line with
resolution 2254 (2015).
LISE GREGOIRE VAN HAAREN (Netherlands) emphasized the urgent need for access to Douma for humanitarian convoys and
for the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) fact-nding mission. Calling for a humanitarian surge
to address the urgent needs of internally displaced persons, she emphasized the situation of more than 180,000 people
displaced by hostilities in Afrin, adding to the strain felt by host communities. Clearing improvised explosive devices was a
priority in Raqqa, while in Rukban, both food and medical aid must reach the remaining displaced persons via the fastest
and easiest route. Resolution 2401 (2018) must be implemented across Syria and eorts must succeed in ensuring
humanitarian access and the protection of civilians, in line with international humanitarian law.
MA ZHAOXU (China) appealed to all parties in Syria to comply with resolution 2401 (2018), cease hostilities and coordinate
with United Nations humanitarian eorts. Equal attention must be paid to the humanitarian situation and to helping
displaced persons to return to their homes. Emphasizing China’s adherence to the peaceful settlement of disputes and its
rejection of the use of force in international regulations, he said any action taken must comply with the
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