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SECURITY COUNCIL, 73RD YEAR : 8164TH MEETING, TUESDAY, 23 JANUARY 2018, NEW YORK
No full textThe situation in the Middle East This record contains the text of speeches delivered in English and of the translation of speeches delivered in other languages
SECURITY COUNCIL, 73RD YEAR : 8260TH MEETING, WEDNESDAY, 16 MAY 2018, NEW YORK
No full textThe situation in the Middle East This record contains the text of speeches delivered in English and of the translation of speeches delivered in other languages
SECURITY COUNCIL, 73RD YEAR : 8186TH MEETING, THURSDAY, 22 FEBRUARY 2018, NEW YORK
No full textThe situation in the Middle East This record contains the text of speeches delivered in English and of the translation of speeches delivered in other languages
Security Council, 73rd Year: 8182nd Meeting, Wednesday, 14 February 2018, New York
No full textSpeeches Delivered In Other Languages.United Nations S/PV.8182
Security Council
Seventy-third year
8182nd meeting
Wednesday, 14 February 2018, 3 p.m.
New York
Provisional
President: Mr. Alotaibi. . (Kuwait)
Members: Bolivia (Plurinational State of). . Mr. Inchauste Jordán
China. . Mr. Zhang Dianbin
Côte d’Ivoire. . Mr. Tanoh-Boutchoue
Equatorial Guinea. . Mr. Ndong Mba
Ethiopia. . Ms. Guadey
France. . Mrs. Gueguen
Kazakhstan. . Mr. Umarov
Netherlands. . Mrs. Gregoire Van Haaren
Peru. . Mr. Meza-Cuadra
Poland. . Ms. Wronecka
Russian Federation. . Mr. Polyanskiy
Sweden . Mr. Skoog
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland . Mr. Clay
United States of America. . Ms. Tachco
Agenda
The situation in Guinea-Bissau
Report of the Secretary-General on developments in Guinea-Bissau and
the activities of the United Nations Integrated Peacebuilding Office in
Guinea-Bissau (S/2018/110)
This record contains the text of speeches delivered in English and of the translation of
speeches delivered in other languages. The final text will be printed in the Official Records
of the Security Council. Corrections should be submitted to the original languages only. They
should be incorporated in a copy of the record and sent under the signature of a member
of the delegation concerned to the Chief of the Verbatim Reporting Service, room U-0506
([email protected]). Corrected records will be reissued electronically on the Official
Document System of the United Nations (http://documents.un.org).
18-04195 (E)
*1804195*
S/PV.8182 The situation in Guinea-Bissau 14/02/2018
2/20 18-04195
The meeting was called to order at 3.10 p.m.
Adoption of the agenda
The agenda was adopted.
The situation in Guinea-Bissau
Report of the Secretary-General on
developments in Guinea-Bissau and the activities
of the United Nations Integrated Peacebuilding
Office in Guinea-Bissau (S/2018/110)
The President (spoke in Arabic): In accordance
with rule 37 of the Council’s provisional rules of
procedure, I invite the representatives of Guinea-Bissau
and Togo to participate in this meeting.
In accordance with rule 39 of the Council’s
provisional rules of procedure, I invite the following
briefers to participate in the meeting: Mr. Modibo Touré,
Special Representative of the Secretary-General and
Head of the United Nations Integrated Peacebuilding
Office in Guinea-Bissau, and His Excellency Mr. Mauro
Vieira, Permanent Representative of Brazil to the
United Nations, in his capacity as Chair of the Guinea-
Bissau configuration of the Peacebuilding Commission.
Mr. Touré is joining the meeting via video-teleconference
from Bissau.
The Security Council will now begin its consideration
of the item on its agenda.
I wish to draw the attention of Council members to
document S/2018/110, which contains the report of the
Secretary-General on developments in Guinea-Bissau
and the activities of the United Nations Integrated
Peacebuilding Office in Guinea-Bissau.
I now give the floor to Mr. Touré.
Mr. Touré: I thank the Security Council for this
opportunity to introduce the report of the Secretary-
General (S/2018/110) on the situation in Guinea-Bissau
and the activities of the United Nations Integrated
Peacebuilding Office in Guinea-Bissau (UNIOGBIS).
As the report already presents a detailed outline of
recent events in Guinea-Bissau, my intervention will
focus on updating the Council on political developments
since its issuance, while analysing present challenges
and making proposals for the way forward.
This briefing takes place against the backdrop of
a rapidly evolving political situation in Guinea-Bissau.
Over the past several weeks, a series of key events have
occurred with important ramifications. At the country
level, President José Mário Vaz dismissed former
Prime Minister Umaro Sissoco Embaló and replaced
him with Mr. Artur Da Silva. The African Party for
the Independence of Guinea and Cape Verde (PAIGC)
finally held its party congress despite attempts by
national authorities to block it, and re-elected Domingos
Simões Pereira as its leader.
At the regional level, on 4 February, the Authority
of Heads of State and Government of the Economic
Community of West African States (ECOWAS),
pursuant to its decision of 27 January, imposed targeted
sanctions on 19 individuals deemed to be obstructing
the implementation of the Conakry Agreement. Those
individuals and their family members are subject to
travel bans and assets freeze. They have also been
suspended from ECOWAS activities. The ECOWAS
Authority also requested the African Union (AU),
the Community of Portuguese-speaking Countries,
the European Union, the United Nations and other
partners to support and facilitate the enforcement of
the sanctions.
Since the imposition of the sanctions, the reaction
of national stakeholders has been mixed. Those upon
whom the sanctions were imposed have described
them as unsubstantiated and unjust, while those in
favour of the sanctions have characterized them
as a necessary measure to safeguard the country’s
democratic course. Meanwhile, national reactions
to the appointment of Mr. Artur Da Silva as the new
Prime Minister have been generally consistent. On
31 January, the PAIGC issued a statement denouncing
Mr. Da Silva’s appointment as not being in conformity
with the Conakry Agreement. Last week, the Party for
Social Renewal, the second largest party in Parliament,
and the group of 15 dissident parliamentarians of the
PAIGC also issued public statements stressing that they
would participate only in a Government formed under
a consensual Prime Minister, in strict compliance with
the Conakry Agreement. Thus far, the Prime Minister’s
efforts to consult with political parties represented in
the National Assembly on the formation of an inclusive
Government have not borne fruit.
Under my leadership, the group of five
regional and international partners, comprised of
representatives of the African Union, the Community
of Portuguese-speaking Countries, ECOWAS, the
European Union and the United Nations, has continued
14/02/2018 The situation in Guinea-Bissau S/PV.8182
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to harmonize efforts and messaging at opportune
moments with the aim of creating a stable and enabling
environment for dialogue among political leaders. So
far this year, I have convened three meetings of the
group. My efforts, together with those of the partners,
have focused on engaging national authorities and
key political stakeholders in Guinea-Bissau to defuse
escalating tensions, encourage political dialogue in
order to ease the political gridlock, call for the protection
and respect for the human rights of Bissau-Guinean
citizens, and urge all aggrieved stakeholders to pursue
their grievances through legal and constitutional means.
Furthermore, under my direction, UNIOGBIS
continues to play a central role in supporting and
facilitating the regional mediation efforts of ECOWAS
by, inter alia, ensuring the participation of Bissau-
Guinean stakeholders at the ECOWAS Summit in Abuja
in December 2017, providing substantive and logistical
support for the ECOWAS high-level delegations during
their missions to Bissau and regularly sensitizing
regional leaders to ongoing political developments
within the country, while encouraging them to
exert their influence on protagonists in order to
reach compromises.
The absence of a functioning and stable Government
for more than three years has limited the ability of
UNIOGBIS to effectively and sustainably implement
some of its mandated tasks. As recommended by the
strategic review mission headed by the Department of
Political Affairs in 2016 and endorsed by the Council
last year, I have streamlined the UNIOGBIS leadership
and structure to promote better integration and
complementarity with the United Nations country team
and other international partners, while boosting the
Mission’s political capacities, which has enabled me to
exercise my good offices more effectively at the national
level. Those changes have also assisted the broader
United Nations system in Guinea-Bissau in delivering
more focused and integrated peacebuilding support to
national authorities and civil society, including women
and youth.
In this regard, the support provided by the
Peacebuilding Fund has been critical. Going forward,
UNIOGBIS will need to focus its energies on supporting
national leaders in their efforts to appoint an acceptable
Prime Minister, establish an inclusive Government,
organize and conduct timely elections, and implement
the priority reforms outlined in the Conakry Agreement
and the ECOWAS road map.
Until the completion of the electoral cycle in 2019,
Guinea-Bissau remains more than ever a country that
requires a dedicated United Nations presence to prevent
a further deterioration in the political and security
situation at the national level and avoid any negative
consequences in the subregion. In this context, my good
offices, political facilitation, advocacy and mediation
roles, alongside my efforts aimed at promoting respect
for human rights and the rule of law and at carrying
out integrated peacebuilding support, will continue to
be critical.
As the Secretary-General has indicated in his report,
it is vital that the United Nations remain engaged in
peacebuilding efforts in the country while supporting
ECOWAS involvement in resolving the political crisis
for at least one more year. The Secretary-General has
expressed his intention to authorize an assessment of
the current mission at the end of that period and to
present options to the Security Council for a possible
reconfiguration of United Nations presence in the
country. It is my hope that the Council will give
favourable consideration to this recommendation.
The African Union Peace and Security Council
(AUPSC), through its communiqué of 13 February,
has fully endorsed the measures taken by ECOWAS
on 4 February, including the application of sanctions
against political obstructionists. It has also requested
the African Union Commission to coordinate with
the ECOWAS Commission to ensure the effective
implementation of these measures. Moreover, it has
requested that the Security Council endorse the AUPSC
communiqué that endorsed the ECOWAS decision. At
this critical juncture, it would be important for the
Security Council to continue to reaffirm the centrality
of the Conakry Agreement and reiterate its full support
for ECOWAS in its mediation efforts and for the
measures that it has taken against political stakeholders
deemed to be obstructing the resolution of the political
crisis. I would further seek the Council’s support in
underscoring the importance of urgently organizing and
holding legislative elections within the constitutionally
mandated timeline.
Lastly, throughout the past year, the presence of the
ECOWAS Mission in Guinea-Bissau (ECOMIB) has
consistently acted as a stabilizing factor in the country.
I would therefore call on members of the Council and
international donors to support the continued presence
of ECOMIB through to the holding of a presidential
election in 2019, including by advocating for the renewal
S/PV.8182 The situation in Guinea-Bissau 14/02/2018
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of its mandate and the provision of the financial support
needed to maintain its deployment.
I would like to express my gratitude to the
Council for its continued interest in promoting peace
and stability in Guinea-Bissau. I would also like to
commend ECOWAS and its current Chair, President
Faure Gnassingbé of Togo, and the ECOWAS Mediator
for Guinea-Bissau, President Alpha Condé of Guinea,
for their tireless mediation efforts.
Finally, I would like to express appreciation to all
multilateral and bilateral partners, especially to the AU,
the Community of Portuguese-speaking Countries and
the European Union for their commitment to promoting
peace and prosperity in Guinea-Bissau. After several
years of long-term investment in the stability of Guinea-
Bissau, it is time to consolidate and reap the dividends
of our concerted efforts. It is vital that we accompany
this process to its completion.
The President (spoke in Arabic): I thank Mr. Touré
for his briefing.
I now give the floor to Mr. Vieira.
Mr. Vieira (Brazil): I would like to thank you,
Mr. President, for the invitation to address the Security
Council in my capacity as Chair of the Guinea-Bissau
configuration of the Peacebuilding Commission (PBC).
Since my last briefing to the Security Council, on
24 August last year (see S/PV.8031), there have been
several important developments in the country. The
situation in Guinea-Bissau is rapidly evolving, and the
PBC is following it closely.
At the most recent Summit of the Economic
Community of West African States (ECOWAS), held
in Abuja on 16 December, the Heads of State and
Government gave a 30-day deadline for political actors
of Guinea-Bissau to implement the Conakry Agreement.
The situation was discussed again by the Assembly of
Heads of State and Government of the African Union,
held in Addis Ababa on 27 January, in the context of its
thirtieth ordinary session.
After 15 months as Head of Government, Prime
Minister Umaro Sissoco Embaló tendered his
resignation to President José Mário Vaz, who accepted
it on 16 January. On 31 January, Artur Da Silva took
office as the new Prime Minister. The Minister of
Foreign Affairs of Togo, Robert Dussey, led two
ECOWAS missions to Bissau this year. On 1 February,
the ECOWAS mission issued a final communiqué
stating that the nomination of a Prime Minister by
consensus, as determined by the Conakry Agreement,
had not taken place and that the ECOWAS Commission
would start applying sanctions against those who
create obstacles to a political solution. On 4 February,
ECOWAS issued a decision listing 19 names that will
be subject to sanctions, consisting of the exclusion
from the activities of the community, a travel ban, and
the freezing of assets of the sanctioned persons and
their families.
The Guinea-Bissau configuration is actively
engaged in following the situation in Guinea-Bissau and
in providing support for the country through different
initiatives. I am also in permanent contact with the
Brazilian Ambassador in Bissau, who maintains
excellent relations with national authorities, political
actors and United Nations representatives. I would
remind Council members that Brazil was one of the
first countries to recognize Guinea-Bissau in 1974. In
that same year we opened an embassy in Bissau.
In 2017, I organized a working breakfast with
the members of the PBC and four ambassador-level
meetings of the Guinea-Bissau configuration. We
issued three press statements last year on the situation
in the country. I also briefed the Security Council on
two occasions, on 14 February (see S/PV. 7883) and on
24 August.
Between 25 and 28 July 2017, I conducted my
first visit to Bissau in my capacity as Chair of the
Guinea-Bissau configuration. I met many political
actors, including President José Mário Vaz, then-Prime
Minister Sissoco, a number of ministers, members
of all parties in the Parliament, and representatives
of the United Nations. On my return, I stopped in
Lisbon, where I met with the Executive Secretary of
the Community of Portuguese-speaking Countries,
Ms. Maria do Carmo Silveira.
On 15 December 2017, the Peacebuilding Fund
(PBF) approved six new projects for Guinea-Bissau,
totalling $7 million, to be implemented between January
2018 and June 2019. These projects are designed to help
stabilize the country by providing support to the media
and the justice sector, as well as support for national
reconciliation efforts and the participation of young
people and women in peacebuilding and in politics. The
Guinea-Bissau configuration of the PBC discussed and
14/02/2018 The situation in Guinea-Bissau S/PV.8182
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supported these projects in a meeting held in November
last year.
The PBC will continue to support Guinea-Bissau
not only through the PBF, but also through consultations
with different partners, including the World Bank
and other international financial institutions. In this
context, I am planning a visit to Washington in the
coming weeks in order to talk to representatives of the
World Bank about possibilities for cooperation with
Guinea-Bissau.
On Monday, 12 February, I convened a meeting
of the Guinea-Bissau configuration of the PBC to
discuss the most recent developments in the country.
On that occasion, we heard a briefing from the Under-
Secretary-General for Political Affairs and Head of the
Department of Political Affairs, Mr. Jeffrey Feltman.
I would like to thank Under-Secretary-General
Feltman for his presence there. It was a positive sign
of engagement and trust in the role of the PBC. It also
showed his commitment to contributing to a solution to
the current impasse in Guinea-Bissau.
During that meeting, the participants had the
opportunity to discuss the recent developments in the
country, including the decision of ECOWAS to impose
sanctions. They underlined the need for dialogue
and mentioned the role of the region, including the
importance of the implementation of the Conakry
Agreement. Member States also commended the
work of the PBF in Guinea-Bissau. Many participants
stressed the relevance of respecting the constitutional
framework in organizing elections. Member States
welcomed the non-involvement of the armed forces in
the political crisis. Many delegations mentioned the
positive presence of the ECOWAS Mission in Guinea-
Bissau (ECOMIB). Delegations also supported the
renewal of the mandate of the United Nations Integrated
Peacebuilding Office in Guinea-Bissau (UNIOGBIS),
which is expected to happen by the end of this month,
and underlined the importance of the good offices of
the Special Representative of the Secretary-General,
Mr. Modibo Touré.
Finally, I also would like to inform the Council that
it is my intention to visit Guinea-Bissau in the coming
months to consult with a broad range of stakeholders
on how the PBC can support peacebuilding efforts in
the country and help the political actors find a solution
to the current impasse. The exact date of the visit will
depend on developments on the ground and will be
scheduled in consultation with local authorities.
I would like to recall that Brazil is currently the
Chair of the Community of Portuguese-speaking
Countries (CPLP). As was done when I previously
briefed the Council, the CPLP has endorsed my remarks.
I would like to conclude my statement by
reaffirming that the PBC will continue to make every
effort to support Guinea-Bissau and I would like to
outline the following recommendations in that regard.
I reiterate the support of the configuration for the
Bissau six-point road map and the Conakry Agreement
as the framework for the resolution of the crisis. I call
upon the authorities of Guinea-Bissau and key political
actors to show leadership and determination by engaging
in actions that would lead to the implementation
of those agreements. I take note of the efforts of the
region to resolve the political impasse in the country. I
stress the importance of holding free and fair elections,
in accordance with the Constitution of Guinea-
Bissau, and call upon the international community
to support that process. I underline the importance
of renewing the mandate of UNIOGBIS for another
year, as recommended by the Secretary-General. I also
recognize the effective, preventive and deterrent role of
ECOMIB. Finally, I would like to commend the Special
Representative of the Secretary-General, Mr. Modibo
Touré, for his efforts to help ensure an enabling political
environment in the country.
The President (spoke in Arabic): I thank
Ambassador Vieira for his briefing.
I now give the floor to those Council members who
wish to make statements.
Mr. Tanoh-Boutchoue (Côte d’Ivoire) (spoke
in French): I would like to begin my statement by
thanking the Special Representative of the Secretary-
General, Mr. Modibo Touré, for his insightful briefing
on the situation in Guinea-Bissau and the activities of
the United Nations Integrated Peacebuilding Office in
Guinea-Bissau.
I will focus my statement on two main points:
the implementation of the Conakry Agreement by the
Guinea-Bissau signatories and the activities of the
United Nations Integrated Peacebuilding Office in
Guinea-Bissau.
S/PV.8182 The situation in Guinea-Bissau 14/02/2018
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Guinea-Bissau is going through a new phase in the
serious and deep political and institutional crisis of
recent years. My country and West Africa are concerned
about this situation, which is characterized by a
political impasse and requires the Council to act with
greater firmness alongside the Economic Community
of West African States (ECOWAS) and the African
Union to bring the political actors of Guinea-Bissau to
honour their commitments. Indeed, despite the signing
on 14 October 2016 of the Conakry Agreement, which
was supposed to favour the appointment of a consensus
Prime Minister and the establishment of an inclusive
Government, the country is again without a Government
and confronted by a blockage of Parliament and a deep
lack of trust between the President of the Republic and
his party, the African Party for the Independence of
Guinea and Cape Verde.
The stalemate heightens raises concerns not only
of a detrimental delay in the electoral calendar, which
calls for the holding of legislative elections in May
2018 and presidential elections in 2019, but also of the
exacerbation of political tensions and the growth of
the criminal economy linked to drug trafficking. My
country welcomes the ongoing efforts of ECOWAS
to definitively resolve the crisis in Guinea-Bissau, in
strict compliance with the communal arrangements and
constitutional framework of the country. The current
deadlock in Guinea-
Security Council, 73rd Year: 8186th Meeting, Thursday, 22 February 2018, New York
No full textThe Situation In Guinea-Bissau Report Of The Secretary-General On Developments In Guinea-Bissau And The Activities Of The United Nations Integrated Peacebuilding Office InUnited Nations S/PV.8186
Security Council
Seventy-third year
8186th meeting
Thursday, 22 February 2018, noon
New York
Provisional
President: Sheikh Al Sabah . (Kuwait)
Members: Bolivia (Plurinational State of). . Mr. Llorentty Solíz
China. . Mr. Ma Zhaoxu
Côte d’Ivoire. . Mr. Tanoh-Boutchoue
Equatorial Guinea. . Mr. Ndong Mba
Ethiopia. . Mr. Alemu
France. . Mr. Delattre
Kazakhstan. . Mr. Temenov
Netherlands. . Mr. Van Oosterom
Peru. . Mr. Meza-Cuadra
Poland. . Ms. Wronecka
Russian Federation. . Mr. Nebenzia
Sweden . Mr. Skoog
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland . Mr. Hickey
United States of America. . Ms. Eckels-Currie
Agenda
The situation in the Middle East
This record contains the text of speeches delivered in English and of the translation of
speeches delivered in other languages. The final text will be printed in the Official Records
of the Security Council. Corrections should be submitted to the original languages only. They
should be incorporated in a copy of the record and sent under the signature of a member
of the delegation concerned to the Chief of the Verbatim Reporting Service, room U-0506
([email protected]). Corrected records will be reissued electronically on the Official
Document System of the United Nations (http://documents.un.org).
18-04815 (E)
*1804815*
S/PV.8186 The situation in the Middle East 22/02/2018
2/19 18-04815
The meeting was called to order at 12.10 p.m.
Adoption of the agenda
The agenda was adopted.
The situation in the Middle East
The President (spoke in Arabic): In accordance
with rule 37 of the Council’s provisional rules of
procedure, I invite the representative of the Syrian
Arab Republic to participate in this meeting.
In accordance with rule 39 of the Council’s
provisional rules of procedure, I invite Mr. Mark
Lowcock, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian
Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator to participate
in this meeting:
Mr. Lowcock is joining the meeting via video-teleconference
from Geneva.
The Security Council will now begin its consideration
of the item on its agenda.
I give the floor to Mr. Lowcock.
Mr. Lowcock: My colleagues and I have given the
Security Council a lot of updates on the situation in
eastern Ghouta over the past three months. I want to
start today by bringing members some voices directly
from eastern Ghouta. The Office of the Special
Envoy in Geneva has, just in the past three days,
received thousands of messages on instant messaging
applications from civilians there. They are pleading for
help. Here is one of them, from a humanitarian worker
in the area — a person well versed in international
humanitarian law:
“During the past two months, military operations
turned into a process of systematic targeting of
civilians. Most air raids have intentionally targeted
civilian residential buildings. Whole families
have died under the rubble. Today, and as battles
intensify, I call on you, as a father now expecting
my first child to be born, and as a humanitarian
worker trying to maintain what is left of life, to act
to stop the systematic operations against civilians
and open the roads for humanitarian assistance.”
Here are more voices.
“There are entire families being targeted.
A mother and her three children. Four pregnant
women; one died, another is in a critical condition,
the third lost her baby, and the fourth is under
observation. A young girl lost both eyes, and it
is continuing.”
“We do not want war, we do not want war, we
do not want war.”
“Can you hear our messages, voices and fear?”
“Our situation is so tragic. Our basements are
not safe and lack basic needs. Help us, be with us.”
“Instead of saying ‘no more’, the world is
saying ‘one more.’”
As representatives of Member States, all here aware
that their obligations under international humanitarian
law are just that — they are binding obligations. They
are not favours to be traded in a game of death and
destruction. Humanitarian access is not a nice-to-have;
it is a legal requirement. Counterterrorism efforts
cannot supersede the obligation to respect and protect
civilians. They do not justify the killing of civilians and
the destruction of entire cities and neighbourhoods.
The Council has been briefed in minute detail,
month after month, on the scale of the suffering of
the Syrian people. Our reports have indeed been
endless: dead and injured children, women and men;
airstrikes, mortars, rockets, barrel bombs, cluster
munitions, chemical weapons, thermite bombs, suicide
bombs, snipers, double-tap attacks on civilians and
the essential infrastructure they depend on, including
hospitals and schools; rape, illegal detention, torture,
child recruitment and sieges of entire cities reminiscent
of medieval times.
Over the past 24 hours, heavy shelling and aerial
bombardment of multiple communities in eastern
Ghouta have reportedly continued, resulting in the
deaths of at least 50 people and wounding at least
200. According to some sources, the total death toll
since 19 February is close to 300 people. Twenty-three
attacks on vital civilian infrastructure have
been reported since 19 February. At least seven health
facilities were reportedly hit on 21 February. The
only primary health-care centre in Modira town was
reportedly rendered out of service by airstrikes. A
hospital in Duma city sustained significant damage
from nearby barrel bombs. Also in Duma city, an
obstetrics centre was damaged A hospital in Jisrein
town was reportedly attacked, resulting in the death of
a nurse. The two Syrian Arab Red Crescent centres in
Duma city and Harasta town were reportedly damaged
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by the bombardment. Meanwhile — and this is also a point I have consistently emphasized — mortar shelling from eastern Ghouta is reportedly killing and injuring scores of civilians in Damascus city, too.Members all know the statistics of this conflict. They know that half the Syrian population has either fled the country or faced repeated internal displacement. These people have lost everything. They have seen their homes destroyed, their neighbours killed, their loved ones disappear. Everyone knows that the repeated confirmed or alleged chemical attacks in Syria have killed and terrorized Syrian civilians.Eastern Ghouta is a living example of an entirely known, predictable and preventable humanitarian disaster unfolding before our eyes. Everyone knows that nearly 400,000 people are besieged and that they have been besieged for more than four years. Everyone knows that in eastern Ghouta thousands upon thousands of children are facing acute malnutrition the likes of which we have not seen elsewhere in Syria since the onset of the conflict. Everyone knows that more than 700 people are in need of urgent medical evacuation to hospitals just miles away in Damascus city.We have all seen in recent days the images of bombs and mortars raining down on bakeries and medical facilities. According to reports documented by United Nations human rights colleagues, at least 346 civilians have been killed since the beginning of this month and close to 900 people have been injured. Members all heard the Secretary-General yesterday, in the Chamber, describing eastern Ghouta as “hell on Earth” and saying that we cannot “allow things to go on happening in this horrendous way”. They also heard him pleading for “the immediate suspension of all war activities in eastern Ghouta” (S/PV.8185, p. 2).Earlier this week, UNICEF issued a blank statement, as it could no longer find the words to describe the brutality of this war. Its only message was that “no words will do justice to the children killed, their mothers, their fathers and their loved ones.”This appalling violence is happening as we face significantly increased constraints on our ability to reach people trapped behind conflict lines. In recent months we have encountered greater difficulties in accessing people in hard-to-reach and besieged areas, particularly through cross-line convoys, than during any period since 2015. Since 1 December, for nearly three months, we have been able to deploy only three cross-line convoys, reaching just 67,200 people. Only 7,200 of those people were in besieged areas, less than 2 per cent of the overall besieged population. In 2017, through November, approximately 53 cross-line convoys reached people in need, an average of nearly five convoys per month. A cumulative total of nearly 2 million people were reached in the first 11 months of 2017, or around 175,000 people per month. Therefore in 2017 we reached 175,000 a month; in the past three months we have reached 22,000 a month. Those are not reports or allegations. We have complete, factual information on this, because they are our convoys.Moreover, the 2017 access levels were themselves nearly 40 per cent below our access levels in 2016. Access is not only limited on aid deliveries, but we are also seeing growing challenges to our ability to independently assess needs on the ground and to monitor aid delivery.When an entire generation is robbed of its future, when hospital attacks have become the new normal, when sieges of entire cities and neighbourhoods have become a lasting reality for hundreds of thousands of people, the international community must take urgent and concrete action. I have said this before and I will say it again. What we need is a sustained cessation of hostilities, and we need it desperately — a cessation of violence that will enable the immediate, safe, unimpeded and sustained delivery of humanitarian aid and services, the evacuation of the critically sick and wounded and an alleviation of the suffering of the Syrian people.The Council can still save lives in eastern Ghouta, and elsewhere in Syria. I urge it to do so. Millions of battered and beleaguered children, women and men depend on meaningful action by the Council.The President (spoke in Arabic): I thank Mr. Lowcock for his briefing.I shall now give the floor to those members of the Council who wish to make statements.Mr. Nebenzia (Russian Federation) (spoke in Russian): We are grateful to you, Mr. President, for the prompt response to our delegation’s proposal to convene a special meeting on the situation in eastern Ghouta, in Syria. That certainly does not mean that other problematic areas require any less attention. In particular, not long ago, at our initiative, the Security Council discussed the dire situation in Raqqa in detail. S/PV.8186 The situation in the Middle East 22/02/2018
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And in general, over the past month we have revisited Syria’s humanitarian issues more than once. I would like to ask Council members to listen carefully to what I have to say.It is past time to discuss frankly what is going on in this Damascus suburb. The mass psychosis in global media outlets of the past few days, working in coordination to circulate all the same rumours, is certainly not contributing to an understanding of the situation. When eastern Aleppo was in the news, propagandistic disaster scenarios were put forward for it — a city where, after it was liberated from the terrorists, warehouses full of medicines and medical equipment were discovered. At the time we demanded that the Secretariat conduct an investigation, but the report presented to the Security Council was blatantly superficial.We are constantly seeing images of the activities of the White Helmets, who pass themselves off as rescuers. They were long ago shown to be supported by generous foreign assistance, and they work closely with terrorist groups. As a general rule, they serve as the original sources of well-rewarded disinformation. We are given the impression that the whole of eastern Ghouta consists of nothing but hospitals and that it is the hospitals that the Syrian army is attacking. That is a well-known tactic in information warfare. It is a very well-known fact, however, that the militants everywhere make a habit of locating their military facilities in medical and educational institutions, but for some reason that inconvenient truth is not advertised.It would be a good idea to begin with the fact that there are still several thousand defiant militants in eastern Ghouta, including some affiliated with terrorist organizations, mainly Jabhat Al-Nusra. Some time ago, they breached the agreement on a cessation of hostilities with an attack on an armoured tank unit of the Syrian armed forces in Harasta. They are shelling Damascus, and the intensity of the attacks increases daily. Dozens of missiles are launched every day, and not a single area of the capital has been spared. For some reason, those statistics are not being taken into account by United Nations representatives, although the Permanent Mission of Syria distributes them regularly. We have pointed out that in a 20 February statement, an official representative of the Secretary-General described factual information as “reported” (see S/PV.8183). And today the Under-Secretary-General talked about reported shelling. But those reports could easily have been verified by United Nations staff if they had inspected the areas of destruction and visited the victims.The Russian Embassy facilities have been repeatedly shelled, and each time the same delegations in the Security Council have made up excuses to lay off the blame for these terrorist acts. One is compelled to conclude that someone is purposely helping the criminals avoid accountability. Incidentally, we are disturbed by the fact that not so long ago, representatives of some delegations who view themselves as leaders in the protection of human rights and international humanitarian law quite seriously said that the damage resulting from the shelling in Damascus did not reach a level deserving of the attention given to eastern Ghouta. Our immediate response was to ask how many people have to die to attain, as it were, the gold standard of sympathy? There has been no answer. Is it appropriate to pass over the tragedies in Ramadi, Fallujah, Mosul and Raqqa in silence while drumming up hysteria about Madaya, Daraya, eastern Aleppo and eastern Ghouta, encouraging militants to to further humiliate civilians?Incidentally, the coalition forces’ methodical destruction of Raqqa is extremely recent. The memory of it is hardly likely to have faded so quickly. For some reason, when the Coalition bombing flattened Raqqa, no one sounded the alarm, demanded compliance with international humanitarian law or proposed an immediate ceasefire. Yes, the Coalition smoked the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) out of Raqqa. We know that. But with that done, the United States has forgotten about the city. No one is clearing any mines there. Who is aware of the fact that as many as 50 returning civilians are blown up by mines in Raqqa every day? Nor do we see much enthusiasm from these famous activists about the worst humanitarian crisis of our time, which happens to be unfolding against the backdrop of the armed conflict in Yemen.The militants have turned the people who are left in eastern Ghouta into hostages who are not allowed to leave the area under rebel control through the Al-Wafideen checkpoint. The Russian Centre for Reconciliation of Opposing Sides has urged the illegal groups to lay down their arms and resolve their status, but they broke off negotiations yesterday, on 21 February. It is quite obvious that they do not care about the life and safety of the residents of eastern Ghouta, whom they use as human shields to hide behind. Their aim consists of continuing to negotiate 22/02/2018 The situation in the Middle East S/PV.8186
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tactical and logistical advantages for themselves. That does not seem to particularly worry these groups’ foreign sponsors, who might be able to exert crucial influence on them. But no, they would rather maintain the status quo and organize loud campaigns blackening Syria and Russia.Energy is also being wasted on fragmenting the international efforts regarding a settlement in Syria. Instead of giving due backing to the Astana de-escalation process and the Syrian National Dialogue Congress in Sochi, which have become an important support to the inter-Syrian negotiations under the auspices of the United Nations in Geneva, we see ongoing backroom efforts designed to openly undermine the work being done through those platforms. On top of that, exclusive clubs are being created, one striking example of which is the so-called International Partnership against Impunity for the Use of Chemical Weapons, which undermines the established frameworks for international cooperation on non-proliferation. We know that preparations are being made for an unofficial presentation of that initiative in Geneva. We would like to reaffirm our position in that regard, which is that in view of the neutral status of respected international organizations such as the United Nations and the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, representatives of their secretariats should not be associated with narrow initiatives such as these, which do not enjoy universal support.Many are now asking the logical question of how de-escalation in eastern Ghouta and other problematic areas of Syria can be achieved as soon as possible. The delegations of Sweden and Kuwait have come up with their recipe for this, in their role as informal monitors of the humanitarian dimension of the Syrian conflict in the Security Council. Their draft resolution — which has now been officially prepared for a vote, despite the fact that the authors know perfectly well that there is no agreement on it — proposes an apparently simple idea, which is the establishment of a ceasefire throughout Syria for not less than 30 days. We would very much like to know how such a truce will be guaranteed, but we have had no intelligible answers. The important thing, they say, is adopting the decision, and we can come up with the details later. An issue as complex as the Syrian conflict does not respond to such logic. We have been through this before, including, once again, in the case of eastern Aleppo.In principle, a ceasefire would be extremely significant, and not just for ensuring the delivery of humanitarian aid. The challenge is in how to achieve it. What we need here is not resolutions for the sake of resolutions, but measures that correspond to the realities on the ground. We are constantly talking about ensuring that the Security Council agrees on feasible decisions that are not divorced from reality or that cater to populist demands. This is about the credibility of the principal organ of the United Nations, responsible for the maintenance of international peace and security, in accordance with the Charter, whose purposes and principles we were discussing only yesterday. If we could stop the violence in crisis zones with resolutions, we would already be living in a completely different world.It will take long and hard work with the sides to the conflict to stabilize the situation so that the parties can sit down at the negotiating table and come up with the parameters for a ceasefire. There is no other way. It will also be impossible to ensure on paper that in 48 hours, or any other amount of time, humanitarian convoys can get going and mass medical evacuations begin. By the way, specific parameters for normalizing a number of complex issues are currently being formulated in Geneva, including by using the potential of the specialist International Syria Support Group. They include the Rukban camp for displaced persons — where, we understand, the United States military presence occupying the area has finally given the United Nations written guarantees — the Yarmouk camp, where the ISIL terrorists still have a presence, and the Fua and Kefraya enclaves.In that connection, I would like to know if the authors of today’s initiative genuinely do not understand its utopian nature or if there is some other purpose at work here that has nothing to do with a desire to help struggling Syrians. Unfortunately, the story of eastern Aleppo in 2016 suggests that the second is true, and that the aim is to start a fight so as to strengthen international pressure on the Syrian authorities and slander Russia. Besides that, it shifts the focus from the importance of reviving the Geneva process as quickly as possible on the basis of the agreements that the Syrians arrived at in Sochi to indiscriminate accusations against the Syrian Government. Will that improve Geneva’s chances of success?I will say it again to make sure that everyone hears it one more time. Russia will continue to do everything S/PV.8186 The situation in the Middle East 22/02/2018
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possible to achieve peace in Syria and restore stability to the Middle East. We call on our partners to do the same in a spirit of constructive cooperation and in cooperation with the United Nations, rather than continuing to sow confusion, ramp up support for jihadists and tear the region apart. For this draft resolution to be meaningful and realistic, the Russian delegation has prepared some amendments to it that we will now circulated to Council members.Mr. Skoog (Sweden): I would like to thank the Russian Federation for calling for a meeting on the horrendous situation in eastern Ghouta, and Mr. Mark Lowcock for his briefing. I will now make some brief remarks on behalf of Sweden and Kuwait.In seven years of war, the situation in the besieged area of eastern Ghouta has never been worse. I would like to thank the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs for another briefing reminding
United Nations Security Council, Letter Dated 16 March 2018 From The Representatives Of France, Kuwait, The Netherlands, Peru, Poland, Sweden, The United Kingdom Of Great Britain And Northern Ireland And The United States Of America To The United Nations Addressed To The President Of The Security Council
No full textThe Situation In The Middle East This Record Contains The Text Of Speeches Delivered In English And Of The Translation Of Speeches Delivered In Other Languages.United Nations S/2018/234
Security Council
Distr.: General
19 March 2018
Original: English
18-04262 (E) 210318
*1804262*
Letter dated 16 March 2018 from the representatives of France,
Kuwait, the Netherlands, Peru, Poland, Sweden, the United
Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the United
States of America to the United Nations addressed to the President
of the Security Council
We, the undersigned members of the Security Council, are writing to express
our profound concern about the lack of implementation of Security Council resolution
2401 (2018), namely, by the Syrian Arab Republic and the Russian Federation, which
was adopted unanimously by the Council on 24 February 2018.
The resolution demanded that all parties cease hostilities throughout Syria
without delay, desist from attacks directed against civilians and enable the safe,
unimpeded and sustained delivery of humanitarian aid and services and safe,
unconditional medical evacuations. On 12 March, the Secretary-General briefed the
Council on the implementation of resolution 2401 (2018), and despite the unanimous
Council support for the resolution, he reported that “we see egregious violations,
indiscriminate attacks and a failure to protect civilians and civilian infrastructure ”.
He also reported that the provision of humanitarian aid and services had not been safe,
unimpeded or sustained, that such delivery of assistance had been impossible during
the five-hour window declared by Russia, that there had been no lifting of sieges and
that not one critically sick or wounded person had been evacuated by the 15 -day mark.
In short, he said that there had been no cessation of hos tilities.
The Secretary-General noted that, particularly in eastern Ghutah, air strikes,
shelling and ground offensives had intensified after the adoption of resolution 2401
(2018) and had claimed many hundreds of civilian lives. The Secretary-General
reported that the Syrian authorities and their allies had intensified air strikes and
launched a ground offensive after the adoption of resolution 2401 (2018) and that
disturbing reports of chemical weapons use had continued. The Secretary -General
reported that, as well as continuing their campaign of violence, the Syrian authorities
had deliberately obstructed the delivery of humanitarian aid by removing ne arly
70 per cent of medical items from the only convoy that had gained access to eastern
Ghutah since the adoption of the resolution. The Secretary -General noted that the
United Nations was still waiting for authorization to complete the delivery to Duma
for all 70,000 people, initially approved by the Syrian authorities, and he emphasized
that the delivery of all necessary humanitarian supplies, including the medical and
health supplies previously removed, remained urgently needed and must be ensured
without delay.
S/2018/234
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As States Members of the United Nations, we must all be dedicated to
implementing Security Council resolutions. The Council must stand behind its
resolutions and ensure that they have meaning; otherwise, we risk undermining the
credibility of the international system. We urge all Members of the United Nations,
in particular the Syrian Arab Republic and the Russian Federation, as a permanent
member of the Security Council, to fully meet the demands of resolution 2401 (2018),
which, if implemented, could immediately save hundreds, if not thousands, of
children, women and men who have suffered acutely during the past eight years of
the brutal conflict in Syria.
If Member States do not implement the resolution, it is imperative that the
Council immediately pursue decisive action to achieve a full cessation of hostilities
throughout Syria, to facilitate humanitarian access and to protect the Syrian people.
We kindly request that the present letter be circulated as a document of the
Security Council.
(Signed) François Delattre
Ambassador
France
(Signed) Mansour Alotaibi
Ambassador
Kuwait
(Signed) Karel van Oosterom
Ambassador
Kingdom of the Netherlands
(Signed) Francisco Tenya
Ambassador
Peru
(Signed) Joanna Wronecka
Ambassador
Poland
(Signed) Olof Skoog
Ambassador
Sweden
(Signed) Jonathan Allen
Ambassador
United Kingdom
(Signed) Nikki R. Haley
Ambassador
United State
Security Council, 73rd Year: 8225th Meeting, Monday, 9 April 2018, New York
No full textThreats To International Peace And Security. The Situation In The Middle EastUnited Nations S/PV.8225
Security Council
Seventy-third year
8225th meeting
Monday, 9 April 2018, 3 p.m.
New York
Provisional
President: Mr. Meza-Cuadra . (Peru)
Members: Bolivia (Plurinational State of). . Mr. Inchauste Jordán
China. . Mr. Wu Haitao
Côte d’Ivoire. . Mr. Tanoh-Boutchoue
Equatorial Guinea. . Mr. Ndong Mba
Ethiopia. . Mr. Alemu
France. . Mr. Delattre
Kazakhstan. . Mr. Umarov
Kuwait. . Mr. Alotaibi
Netherlands. . Mr. Van Oosterom
Poland. . Mr. Radomski
Russian Federation. . Mr. Nebenzia
Sweden . Mr. Skoog
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland . Ms. Pierce
United States of America. . Mrs. Haley
Agenda
Threats to international peace and security
The situation in the Middle East
This record contains the text of speeches delivered in English and of the translation of
speeches delivered in other languages. The final text will be printed in the Official Records
of the Security Council. Corrections should be submitted to the original languages only. They
should be incorporated in a copy of the record and sent under the signature of a member
of the delegation concerned to the Chief of the Verbatim Reporting Service, room U-0506
([email protected]). Corrected records will be reissued electronically on the Official
Document System of the United Nations (http://documents.un.org).
18-09955 (E)
*1809955*
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The meeting was called to order at 3.05 p.m.
Adoption of the agenda
The agenda was adopted.
Threats to international peace and security
The situation in the Middle East
The President (spoke in Spanish): In accordance
with rule 37 of the Council’s provisional rules of
procedure, I invite the representative of the Syrian
Arab Republic to participate in this meeting.
In accordance with rule 39 of the Council’s
provisional rules of procedure, I invite the following
briefers to participate in this meeting: Mr. Staffan de
Mistura, Special Envoy of the Secretary-General for
Syria, and Mr. Thomas Markram, Deputy to the High
Representative for Disarmament Affairs.
Mr. De Mistura is joining today’s meeting via
video-teleconference from Geneva.
The Security Council will now begin its consideration
of the item on its agenda.
I now give the floor to Mr. De Mistura.
Mr. De Mistura: This emergency meeting of the
Security Council underscores the gravity of the events
in recent days in Syria, of which there are severe
consequences for civilians. It takes place at a time of
increased international tensions, drawing national,
regional and international actors into dangerous
situations of potential or actual confrontation. It is an
important meeting.
There is an urgent need for the Council to address
the situation with unity and purpose. How did we reach
this point? The month of March saw devastating violence
in part of eastern Ghouta, which resulted in at least
1,700 people killed or injured in opposition-controlled
areas, dozens and dozens of people killed or injured
in Government-controlled areas and, ultimately, the
evacuation of 130,000 people, including fighters,
family members and other civilians.
However, in Douma there was a fragile ceasefire,
which continued for most of March. The United Nations
good offices played an important role in that regard.
Since 31 March, the United Nations has no longer
been able to be involved in talks, since, at that time,
the Syrian Government did not agree to our presence,
although we made efforts to propose concrete ways
to address the issues that we understood were arising
in the continuing contacts, including the proposal to
activate the detainee working group agreed in Astana.
However, that proposal was not taken up at the time.
From 2 April, the evacuation of some 4,000 fighters,
family members and other civilians from Douma to
northern Syria took place. However, on 6 April there
was a major escalation in violence. There were reports
of sustained air strikes and shelling against Douma,
the killing of civilians, the destruction of civilian
infrastructure and attacks damaging health facilities.
There were also reports of shelling on Damascus city,
which reportedly again killed or injured civilians. Jaysh
Al-Islam requested our involvement in emergency talks
in extremis, but there was no positive response to that
request when it conveyed the same message to the
other side.
At approximately 8 p.m. local time on 7 April,
reports of an alleged chemical weapons attack in
Douma started to emerge. Pictures immediately
circulated on social media showing what appeared to be
lifeless men, women and children. Non-governmental
organizations (NGOs) on the ground claimed to have
received hundreds of cases of civilians with symptoms
consistent with exposure to chemical agents. The same
NGOs claimed that at least 49 people had been killed
and hundreds injured.
I wish to recall what the Secretary-General,
Mr. António Guterres, noted, namely, that the United
Nations “is not in a position to verify these reports”.
However, he also made it very clear that he cannot
ignore them and that he “is particularly alarmed by
allegations that chemical weapons have been used
against civilian populations in Douma” once again.
He further emphasized “that any use of chemical
weapons, if confirmed, is abhorrent and requires a
thorough investigation”.
I note that a number of States have strongly
alluded to or expressed the suspicion that the Syrian
Government was responsible for the alleged chemical
attack. I also note that other States, as well as the
Government of Syria itself, have strongly questioned
the credibility of those allegations, depicting the attacks
as a fabrication or/and a provocation. My comment is
that this is one more reason for there to be a thorough
independent investigation.
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The Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons has said that it has made the preliminary analysis of the reports of the alleged use of chemical weapons and is in the process of gathering further information from all available sources. My colleague Mr. Thomas Markram, Deputy of the High Representative for Disarmament Affairs, who is with us in the Chamber today, will further address this matter. But I urge the Security Council, in accordance with its own mandate to maintain international peace and security and uphold international law, to, for God’s sake, ensure that a mechanism is found to investigate these allegations and assign responsibility.Returning to the narrative of the events, at around midnight on 7 April, hours after the alleged chemical-weapons attack, Jaysh Al-Islam informed the United Nations that it had reached an agreement with the Russian Federation and the Syrian Government. The Russian Federation Ministry for Defence stated that the agreement encompasses a ceasefire and Jaysh Al-Islam fighters laying down their arms or evacuating Douma. The Russian Federation also reported that up to 8,000 Jaysh Al-Islam fighters and 40,000 of their family members were to evacuate.As I brief the Security Council now, we understand that additional evacuations from Douma are already under way. We have also received reports that some detainees — the ones we had heard about before — had begun to be released from Douma today. We note reports that the agreement provides for civilians who decide to stay to remain under Russian Federation guarantees, with the resumption of services in coordination with a local committee of civilians.I urge the Syrian Government and the Russian Federation to ensure the protection of those civilians so that as many civilians as possible can stay in their homes if they choose to, or leave to a place of their own choosing or return as per international law. I urge that there be, for there should be, an immediate refocusing for the implementation of resolution 2401 (2018). What we have see is basically an escalation before a de-escalation.Clearly, the dangers of further escalation arise from situations beyond Ghouta as well. We have received reports of missiles targeting the Syrian Government’s Tiyas, or T-4, airbase early this morning. No State has claimed responsibility for that reported strike. The United States and France have explicitly denied any involvement. The Syrian Government, the Russian Federation and Iran have suggested that Israel could have carried out the attack, with Iranian State media reporting that over a dozen military personnel were killed or injured, including four Iranian military advisers. The Government of Israel has not commented. The United Nations is unable to independently verify or attribute responsibility for that attack, but we urge all parties to show their utmost restraint and avoid any further escalation or confrontation.We are also concerned about the dynamics in other areas of Syria. Syrians in Dar’a, northern rural Homs, eastern Qalamoun, Hamah and Idlib have all expressed to us their own fears that they may soon face escalations similar to what we have seen in eastern Ghouta. We therefore urge the Security Council and the Astana guarantors and those States involved in the Amman efforts to work towards reinstating de-escalation in those areas and elsewhere in Syria. The indications are the opposite at the moment.Meanwhile, following its operations in Afrin, the Turkish Government has indicated the potential for further operations in other areas of northern Syria if Partiya Yekitiya Demokrat and Kurdish People’s Protection Units forces are not removed from those areas. Military operations in such areas have the potential of raising international tensions. We therefore urge all parties concerned to de-escalate, show restraint and find means to implement resolution 2401 (2018) through dialogue and fully respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Syria. Let me also highlight the fact that we have recently seen — and this is particularly tragic when we consider the efforts all of us, including all members of the Security Council, have made in the last year — the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant launch new operations within Syria, south of Damascus, in rural Damascus, in remote areas near the Iraqi border.I would like to conclude with some bottom lines, if I may.First, civilians are paying a very heavy price for the military escalation. We are not seeing de-escalation; we are seeing the contrary. Today our first priority must be to protect civilians from the war, from the conflict, from chemical weapons, from hunger. We call on all sides to ensure respect for international humanitarian law and human rights law, including humanitarian access across Syria to all people in need. We urge once S/PV.8225 Threats to international peace and security 09/04/2018
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more for concrete respect for resolution 2401 (2018) throughout Syria, which is, after all, a resolution of the Security Council.Secondly, continued allegations of the use of chemical agents are of extremely grave concern. Those allegations must be independently and urgently investigated. Any use of chemical weapons is absolutely prohibited and constitutes a very serious violation of international law, the Chemical Weapons Convention and resolution 2118 (2013). Preventing impunity and any further use of chemical weapons and upholding international law must be an utmost priority for all members of the Security Council.Thirdly, I have to say this very slowly because today is the first time, in over four years of briefing the Security Council in person, that I have reached a point in which I have to express a concern about international security, not just regional or national or Syrian security, but international security. Recent developments have more than ever before brought to the surface the dangers that the Secretary-General warned about recently at the Munich Security Conference, when he spoke of “different faultlines” in the Middle East that are interconnected and crossing each other, of conflicting interests of both global and regional Powers, and forms of escalation that can have absolutely devastating consequences that are difficult for us to even imagine. The Council cannot allow a situation of uncontrollable escalation to develop in Syria on any front. Instead, it must find unity and address the concrete threats to international peace and security in Syria today.I am sorry to have been this brief, but I wanted to focus on one specific concern, namely, the threat to international security related to what we are seeing now in Syria and the danger of the alleged chemical-weapons attacks being repeated. Next time I will brief the Council on humanitarian and other issues and on the political process, which I know we are all interested in focusing upon, but today is the day for talking about security — international security — and peace.The President (spoke in Spanish): I thank Mr. De Mistura for his very informative briefing.I now give the floor to Mr. Markram.Mr. Markram: I thank you for the opportunity to address the Council again today, Mr. President. The High Representative for Disarmament Affairs, Mrs. Izumi Nakamitsu, is away on official travel.It has been less than a week since I last briefed the Council (see S/PV.8221) on the issue of chemical weapons in the Syrian Arab Republic. In the intervening period, new and deeply disturbing allegations of the use of chemical weapons have come to light. Over the past weekend, there have been reports on the alleged use of chemical weapons in Douma, in the Syrian Arab Republic. According to reports that came in yesterday, it is alleged that at least 49 people were killed and hundreds more injured in a chemical-weapon attack. More than 500 other individual cases reportedly presented with symptoms consistent with such an attack. The Office for Disarmament Affairs has been in touch with the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) on the matter. The OPCW, which implements the Chemical Weapons Convention, to which Syria is a State party, is gathering information about the incident from all available sources, through its Fact-finding Mission in Syria. After completing its investigation, the Fact-finding Mission will report its findings on the alleged attack to the States parties to the Convention.Sadly, there is little to say today that has not already been said. The use of chemical weapons is unjustifiable. Those responsible must be held to account. That those views have been stated on many previous occasions does not lessen the seriousness with which the Secretary-General regards such allegations. Nor does it lessen the truth behind them, which is that what we are seeing in Syria cannot go unchallenged by anyone who values the decades of effort that have been put in to bring about the disarmament and non-proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. As the body charged with the maintenance of international peace and security, the Council must unite in the face of this continuing threat and fulfil its responsibilities. To do otherwise, or simply to do nothing, is to accept, tacitly or otherwise, that such a challenge is insurmountable. The use of chemical weapons cannot become the status quo, nor can we continue to fail the victims of such weapons.Just over one year ago, in responding to the attack on Khan Shaykhun, the Secretary-General called for those responsible to be held accountable, stating that there can be no impunity for such horrific acts. Just over one week ago, speaking on behalf of the High Representative for Disarmament Affairs, I noted that unity in the Security Council on a dedicated mechanism for accountability would provide the best foundation for success in that regard. I reiterate that belief here, as 09/04/2018 Threats to international peace and security S/PV.8225
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well as the readiness of the Secretary-General and the Office for Disarmament Affairs to assist.The President (spoke in Spanish): I thank Mr. Markram for his informative briefing.I now give the floor to members of the Security Council who wish to make statements.Mr. Nebenzia (Russian Federation) (spoke in Russian): If you imagine, Mr. President, that I derive pleasure from the subject of my statement today, or from speaking at great length, you are wrong. Unfortunately, however, the situation is such that I have a lot to say today. And you will have to listen to me.We thank Mr. De Mistura and Mr. Markram for their briefings.The Russian Federation asked that this meeting be convened under the agenda item “Threats to international peace and security” because we are deeply alarmed about the fact that a number of capitals — Washington first and foremost, with London and Paris blindly following its lead — are purposely steering a course designed to supercharge international tensions. The leadership of the United States, Britain and France, with no grounds and no thought for the consequences, are taking a confrontational line on Russia and Syria and pushing others towards it too. They have a broad range of weapons in their arsenal — slander, insults, bellicose rhetoric, blackmail, sanctions and threats of the use of force against a sovereign State. Their threats against Russia are brazen, and the tone they take has gone beyond the limits of the permissible. Even during the Cold War their predecessors did not express themselves so crudely about my country. What next?I remember the rhetorical question that President Putin of Russia put to our Western partners, and especially the United States, from the rostrum of the General Assembly in 2015 (see A/70/PV.13), about their careless geopolitical experiments in the Middle East, when he asked them if they at least realized what they had done. At the time, the question went unanswered. But there is an answer, and it is that no, they do not realize what they have done. As they do not realize what they are doing now. It is not only we who are perplexed at their lack of any coherent strategy on any issue. It perplexes most of the people in this Chamber. They just do not want to ask them about it openly. Wherever they go, whatever they touch, they leave behind chaos in their wake in the murky water where they have gone fishing for some kind of fish. But the only fish they catch are mutants. I will ask them another rhetorical question. Do they understand the dangerous place they are dragging the world to?One of the areas where the hostility manifests itself most strongly is Syria. The terrorists and extremists supported by external sponsors are being defeated. Let me remind those responsible that these are the terrorists and extremists whom they equipped, financed and dumped into the country in order to overthrow the lawful Government. Now we can see why this is causing hysteria among those who have invested their political and material capital in such dark forces.In the past few weeks, thanks to Russia’s efforts to implement the Security Council’s resolutions, a massive operation has been carried out to unblock eastern Ghouta, whose residents have been forced to endure the humiliation of the rebel militias for several years. More than 150 thousand civilians were evacuated from this suburb of Damascus, completely voluntarily and under the necessary security conditions. Tens of thousands of them have already been able to return to liberated areas and many have been taken in by relatives. The changes in their demographic composition that the defenders of the Syrian opposition have been screaming about have not happened. That is a lie. Some extremely complex negotiations were conducted with the leaders of the armed groups, as a result of which many left the neighbourhoods they were occupying, with full guarantees for their security. Incidentally, there were several attempted acts of terrorism during these transport operations when militias tried to bring suicide belts onto the buses and were prevented. Others preferred to regulate their status with the Syrian authorities. Thanks to the presidential amnesty, they will now be able to return to civilian life, and may even eventually be able to join Syria’s security forces. That represents the implementation of the United Nations principle of demobilization, disarmament and reintegration.However, not everyone is so keen on such positive dynamics. The outside sponsors — that is, the leading Western countries — were ready to grasp at any straw in order to hang on to any centre of terrorist resistance, however tiny, within striking distance of the Syrian capital, so that the militias could continue to terrorize ordinary residents, taking their food and begging humanitarian aid from the international community. Incidentally, they were not about to S/PV.8225 Threats to international peace and security 09/04/2018
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share medicines with those ordinary civilians, as an inspection of the strongholds left behind by the fighters revealed. As happened previously in eastern Aleppo, the improvised hospital facilities in basements were full of medicines that thanks to Western sanctions were not to be had for love or money in Damascus and other Government-controlled areas. Mass graves and bodies that showed evidence of torture were also discovered. The dimensions of the tunnels that the jihadists used were astonishing. Some of them could easily accommodate small trucks travelling in both directions. Those impressive underground facilities connected the positions of groups that some view as moderate to the strongholds of Jabhat Al-Nusra.On 6 April, at their sponsors’ instructions, Jaysh Al-Islam’s new ringleaders prevented the fourth group of militia fighters from evacuating Douma and resumed rocket and mortar fire on
Security Council, 73rd Year : 8201st Meeting, Monday, 12 March 2018, New York
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Security Council, 73rd Year : 8174th Meeting, Monday, 5 February 2018, New York
No full textSecurity Council, 73rd Year : 8174th Meeting, Monday, 5 February 2018, New Yor