YouSaid · the spoken record

Borrell Fontelles

lines on the record: 75
first: 2021-06-10
most recent: 2023-09-21
sittings or episodes: 6
sources: un-security-council

Every line below is reproduced as it was said and linked to the record it came from. Nothing here is summarised or generated. Directory · Search · Corrections

“We are engaging with the United Nations in its efforts in that regard, as well as with the Government of National Unity. We thank the Special Representative for his efforts and hope that the forthcoming Berlin Conference on Libya will give new impetus to the promotion of security and stability in Libya, which is an important part of our security. We remain very active and ready to support a political solution towards the maintenance of a peaceful environment in Libya. We have deployed several instruments in that regard — including the European Union Naval Force Mediterranean Operation IRINI, which was commended by many here today — in support of the implementation of the Security Council arms embargo.”
2021-06-10 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8792 (2021) · source
“It led to positive outcomes and we are forging a strategic partnership that can be a force multiplier for the global good in this century, as Prime Minister Modi said. I think that this meeting was a turning point in our strategic partnership, with a particular emphasis on connectivity, trade and investment. I think that the Indo-Pacific will be at the centre of our cooperation on foreign and security policy. To keep this region stable, open and rules-based, working on security, especially maritime security and counter-terrorism is a very important part of our common endeavour. The same goes for the comments from the representative of Viet Nam. I would now like to turn to Libya, which has been mentioned. We need to do our utmost to promote stability in Libya.”
2021-06-10 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8792 (2021) · source
“However, sanctions applied in the territory of the European Union by its persons and entities do not have extraterritorial applications because we consider the extraterritorial application of sanctions by third States to be contrary to international law. I think that must be clearly stated in response to certain criticisms. I would like to thank the representative of India for the positive words about the European Union’s role, in general, and particularly in the Balkans, Africa and Iran, as well as in the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). The JCPOA was also mentioned by others, especially Russia and China, as they are part of the JCPOA Joint Commission, which I have the honour to chair as Coordinator. We recently held a summit between the European Union and India in an excellent atmosphere.”
2021-06-10 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8792 (2021) · source
“However, European Union sanctions are not punitive, retaliatory or coercive in nature. Rather, they are designed to bring about a change in policy or activity. They are always targeted at policies or activities in order to ensure accountability. Our sanctions are reversible and proportionate to the objective they seek to achieve. As best we can, we reduce adverse humanitarian effects or unintended consequences for non-targeted persons, in particular the civilian populations. Our sanctions are not intended to impede the delivery of humanitarian assistance and humanitarian activities. We have a system of humanitarian exceptions, which is a standard feature of our sanctions regime and is consistent with the system of exceptions used for United Nations sanctions.”
2021-06-10 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8792 (2021) · source
“First, with regard to sanctions and criticism about sanctions, I want to say that the restrictive measures that the European Union imposes comply with international law, including the obligations deriving from international human rights law and international humanitarian law. There are key instruments at our disposal to counter breaches of international law, the proliferation of weapons and the flow of arms into war zones, to combat human rights abusers and to target those individuals who seek to undermine the peace process. In that connection, I want to thank the Council members that spoke positively of the European Union Naval Force Mediterranean Operation IRINI. I also note that the principle of non-interference in domestic affairs is not a licence to disregard human rights, and we must invest in conflict prevention.”
2021-06-10 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8792 (2021) · source
“That is true, but at the same time, we have to recognize that it is easier said than done. And we have to increase our efforts to ease international tensions and to return to some kind of stronger cooperation. In that context, a rules-based multilateral order is at the heart of the return to a more cooperative and peaceful approach. The European Union seeks to work hand in hand with the United Nations and key regional organizations to that end. I want to pay special tribute to the African Union in that regard, and we look forward to working with many United Nations Member States on a bilateral basis. I would now like to touch upon some specific issues that I must comment on.”
2021-06-10 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8792 (2021) · source
“The COVID-19 crisis has shown the importance of reinforcing the Word Trade Organization and promoting development in many formats by combating climate change and a long series of items that have been mentioned. In this regard, it seems difficult to argue seriously that a rules-based world order structured around the principles of international organizations and the key international treaties and declarations is not the heart of the multilateral system, because it is. We must recognize it because we are living through a dangerous juncture in world history. We must understand that we are all part of the same whole, and that we can only survive and prosper by recognizing common interests and goals. We have repeated so many times that no one is safe until everyone is safe.”
2021-06-10 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8792 (2021) · source
“That is the purpose of the European Union, and I am also very grateful that many here today have acknowledged the efforts of the European Union to contribute to a safer and more just world. I am particularly thankful for the recognition that the European Union has been the tool for the transformation of Europe from a continent of war to a continent of peace, which is the most important deliverable and success of what the European Union has represented since its creation. Allow me to give some general and some specific answers. As many here have noted, multilateral frameworks — and not only those provided by the United Nations — must remain the centre of our efforts. This applies to peace and security, but also to health, especially in these times of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic.”
2021-06-10 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8792 (2021) · source
“Mr. Borrell Fontelles: I thank you, Sir, once again for allowing me to present today the views of the European Union on international security to the Security Council, which has maximum international responsibility in that regard. It would be impossible to try to answer all the questions or comment on all the considerations I have heard here. But allow me to say that I am emerging from this exchange even more encouraged than when we started. I am truly grateful to one and all for the comments and expressions of appreciation. I can assure the Council that the European Union is willing to work diligently with each and every one of the countries represented here in order to contribute to global security and prosperity.”
2021-06-10 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8792 (2021) · source
“We will host the next iteration of the Belgrade-Pristina dialogue in the coming days. More broadly, in Europe we do not want geostrategic competition. We want a peaceful, prosperous and stable neighbourhood, free from so-called protracted conflicts and zones of influence. There are many other challenges that I could mention, but then I would just talk endlessly. It is better that I stop here in the interest of time and thank one and all for their patience. I look forward to comments and to our debate.”
2021-06-10 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8792 (2021) · source
“To be clear, six years after all members of the Security Council unanimously supported the Minsk agreements, very little has been done to implement them. Russia is a party to the conflict, and we count on it to take a constructive stance. In that connection, I welcome President Zelenskyy’s initiative to convene the Crimean Platform summit, to take place in the summer. Charles Michel, President of the European Council, will take part in the meeting, which will enjoy the broad participation of United Nations States Members and, of course, European Union members. In our neighbourhood, there is also the Western Balkans. The European Union will not rest until all countries of the region are part of the European Union. To that end, we are fully mobilizing to support reconciliation and reforms as the best antidote to nationalist rhetoric.”
2021-06-10 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8792 (2021) · source
“Recently, the regime resorted to the scandalous forced landing of a civilian plane travelling between two European Union capitals in order to arrest a leading journalist and his companion. This is a major attack on safety, and the European response has been firm and principled. We immediately closed our airspace to planes from Belarus and are in the process of adopting a new package of sanctions. This time, it will also be economic, sectoral sanctions. We have also devised a €3 billion package of economic support that we will make available to a democratic Belarus. Moving on to a country in that neighbourhood — Ukraine. We regret that the situation in the country tends to be instrumentalized for political purposes here in the Security Council.”
2021-06-10 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8792 (2021) · source
“We are working non-stop to revise the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, which we kept alive during the past years in all of its aspects. Nuclear activities and the lifting of sanctions go hand in hand. I am actively engaged with all the main players, and my team is leading the negotiations in Vienna. We are making progress, but the negotiations are intense and slow. There is still a lot of work to be done on a number of issues, including the precise sequencing of steps. Let me end with some cases closer to us, the European Union. First, I want to talk about Belarus. For months, we have seen massive repression of peaceful protesters who took to the streets demanding to elect their President freely and fairly.”
2021-06-10 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8792 (2021) · source
“We are also contributing to the arms embargo with the European Union Naval Force Mediterranean Operation IRINI, which will continue its work on the implementation of the embargo. But we need greater focus on the issue of the withdrawal of foreign fighters and mercenaries from Libya, to avoid the destabilization of the whole region. In talking about the destabilization of the region coming from Libya, the Sahel immediately comes to mind. The Sahel and the Horn of Africa hold the key to African security. Our revised strategy is built around the need for more results and greater governmental accountability. We must continue our engagement, but also take firm actions against those who stand in the way of a peaceful and inclusive transition process. Another issue of capital importance today is Iran.”
2021-06-10 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8792 (2021) · source
“Given the dramatic humanitarian situation, it is essential that the cross-border mechanism remain open. I appeal to the Security Council members to renew it in July, without decreasing the degree of cross-border transit allowed. With regard to Libya, there has been important progress — a miracle maybe — with the Government of National Unity. But the ceasefire is still fragile and needs to be supported by a robust monitoring mechanism, so that elections are able to take place in optimal conditions in December as scheduled. We have been offering support. We welcome the unanimous renewal of the arms embargo, decided yesterday, and the authorization of inspections and the seizure of illegal cargo on the high seas.”
2021-06-10 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8792 (2021) · source
“Last month, we saw a dramatic escalation with enormous human costs. Now we need to build on the ceasefire to resume negotiations towards the two-State solution, which has been mentioned so many times. Let us remember that security is not the same as peace. Security can be attained at a high price, but security alone will not bring about peace. An untenable status quo may turn again into another cycle of violence. Therefore, a negotiated settlement is urgent, and indeed the only way to give rights and security to both Israelis and Palestinians. They both deserve it. And to support the parties, we must revive the Quartet, as we have been trying to do. With regard to Syria, this year we mark the tenth anniversary of the war in that country. During these 10 years, the Syrian regime and its backers have left the country in ruins.”
2021-06-10 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8792 (2021) · source
“And we base ourselves on the conviction that real security depends on people enjoying their rights and freedoms. We will always be on the side of those calling for their universal rights to be respected, sometimes at grave personal risk, in Hong Kong, Venezuela, Myanmar and elsewhere. In many cases, given the refusal by those in power to respect people’s fundamental rights, we have had to impose sanctions. Sanctions are never an end in themselves; they are a tool to push for respect for universal rights. Our sanctions are targeted and do not hinder the delivery of humanitarian aid. Allow me to highlight a few concrete areas where the European Union is deeply engaged and where we need urgent results. First of all, the most dramatic example is the recent situation in Israel and Palestine.”
2021-06-10 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8792 (2021) · source
“The European Union has been and remains a staunch supporter of the United Nations in all three pillars. We have said it many times before, and we mean it: our support is not just in what we say, although that matters, but in financial terms, human terms and political terms. We work with United Nations missions in many theatres. We have 17 operations and missions contributing to United Nations goals with United Nations mandates; 13 of those missions are operating alongside United Nations missions. In addition, we are currently defining our next set of joint EU-United Nations priorities on peace operations and crisis management to strengthen our cooperation and maximize our impact. We are fully committed to the Sustainable Development Goals; it goes without saying.”
2021-06-10 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8792 (2021) · source
“This is about real people’s lives. The price of inaction is going to be paid in conflicts not solved, humanitarian aid not delivered and in lives lost. Sitting on the Security Council is a serious responsibility, politically and even morally. The Charter of the United Nations gave the Council the supreme say on matters of peace and security. For the European Union, there is no acceptable alternative. There exists today no other organization that we can turn to. The Security Council must therefore provide the support and protection that people in conflict zones depend upon. We look to the Security Council to match its belated, but unanimous, support for the Secretary-General’s call for a global ceasefire with a full commitment to its implementation, because implementation is the important part.”
2021-06-10 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8792 (2021) · source
“To give impetus to the success of the two summits, I hope that the Security Council will adopt a resolution on the link between climate change and security, which is increasingly evident, especially in some regions of the world. Last year, I said: “At a time of global crisis, we need a Council that can make critical decisions, not one that is paralysed by vetoes and political infighting.” (see S/2020/489, annex I). Unhappily, one year later, the situation has not improved. In the past year we have seen new conflicts erupting in Tigray, older ones restarting in Myanmar and Nagorno-Karabakh and Israel and Palestine, and also chronic violence continuing in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Yemen, just to mention a few of them. In all those cases, we need the Security Council to provide the necessary decisions.”
2021-06-10 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8792 (2021) · source
“The European Union is partnering with Africa and industry, backed by an initial €1 billion in funding, to boost manufacturing capacity for vaccines, medicines and health technologies. Beyond the pandemic, we know that climate change and biodiversity losses have reached existential levels. Two major United Nations summits later this year, in Kunming and in Glasgow, must deliver decisive action. That will be a real test for the multilateral system. We need those summits to produce real outcomes in line the scale and urgency of the problem. The Security Council has an important role to play on climate, health and their links to peace and security.”
2021-06-10 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8792 (2021) · source
“Where politics gave us stalemates and divisions, science and cooperation gave us the exit strategy: vaccines. We in the European Union are staunch promoters of vaccine multilateralism, with the COVID-19 Vaccine Global Access (COVAX) Facility at the centre. Team Europe — the European Union and its member States — has contributed more than €2.8 billion to COVAX and exported more than 240 million doses of vaccines to 90 countries, more than any other region. The European Council decided to donate at least 100 million doses to low- and middle-income countries before the end of the year. But even that will not be enough. We therefore call on all players to lift export restrictions on vaccines and their components. We must recall that Africa imports 99 per cent of its vaccines. That has to change.”
2021-06-10 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8792 (2021) · source
“One of the biggest questions that we face is how to ensure that the rules that we so need for those emerging technologies reflect the values of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Otherwise, technology will be used against individuals and communities in a nightmarish scenario. We all know that conflict prevention and peacebuilding are key. We must work with countries at risk before conflict erupts and to build sustainable peace after the signing ceremony. Peace has to be sustainable, and sustainable peace compels us to be inclusive, with a particular focus on women and youth. We are in the second year of the pandemic, which has served to underscore the fragility of our hyper- globalized and interdependent world. We need to learn broader lessons about how human health and security and planetary health and security are linked.”
2021-06-10 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8792 (2021) · source
“Every day, we see the cost of the absence of multilateral action on reduced access to vaccines, insufficient climate action and the peace and security crisis, which fester. The root cause is the increasing power politics and ideological contest, leading to the erosion of trust. We must address that deficit in multilateralism and push back against selective and self-serving approaches to multilateralism. The European Union remains committed to the United Nations and to rules-based multilateralism. The core of our strategy is to protect, reform and build a multilateralism that is fit for purpose. The world’s greatest changes flow from new technologies, which can be both disruptive and empowering. We should just think of artificial intelligence, big data and cloud computing or genetic engineering, autonomous weapons and surveillance.”
2021-06-10 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8792 (2021) · source
“Mr. Borrell Fontelles: I am very pleased to speak before the Security Council today about the role of the European Union (EU) in the maintenance of international peace and security. As Council members know very well, we live in a world where the demand for multilateral solutions is much greater than the supply. There is a large imbalance, and we see more divisions, more free-riding and more distrust than the world can afford. Rules-based multilateralism is a term that we understood well at the United Nations and in Brussels. However, it is not a simple phrase, and our job is to bring it alive for ordinary people. We need global cooperation based on agreed rules because the alternative is the law of the jungle, where our problems do not get solved.”
2021-06-10 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8792 (2021) · source