YouSaid · the spoken record

Craft

lines on the record: 305
first: 2019-09-12
most recent: 2020-10-15
sittings or episodes: 47
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

“President Trump and I want the Syrian people to know that the United States continues to stand with them, but I want to close today by addressing my 14 colleagues. One day, maybe soon, maybe years from now, there will be a time of reckoning for those who knew that babies were freezing to death in Syria and did nothing, for those who knew children were dying in air strikes on schools and did nothing and for those who knew millions faced a shortage of critical medicines and did nothing. But the Council can act, which means that each country represented here has a choice. They can feed the hungry, shelter the weary and heal the sick or they can sit back and watch them suffer and die and be forever remembered for doing so. Which will it be?”
2020-02-27 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8734 (2020) · source
“The shameful fact is that Russia and China have knowingly rejected the most effective means of saving the most lives in favour of unreliable or specious options. There is no reason to believe that the Al-Assad regime will responsibly manage humanitarian assistance funding, and we should not put a single dollar of that funding in its hands. Having killed hundreds of thousands of its own people, the regime cannot be expected to consent to rapid, impartial and unhindered deliveries of cross-border and cross-line aid. That is why we all must be prepared to renew United Nations cross-border operations throughout Syria, which is precisely what the Secretary-General has recommended to the Council.”
2020-02-27 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8734 (2020) · source
“The most feasible alternative crossing location identified by the Secretary-General’s report is Tall Abyad. That is the exact same crossing that the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs recommended, and that the United States supported, just a few months ago. We encourage the Council to explore this alternative from a principled humanitarian position, as it has the potential to save thousands of innocent lives. In all of this, we cannot forget that the crisis did not simply happen. It was imposed on the Syrian people by two of our members. The now closed Al-Yarubiyah crossing was fully functional. It did not need an alternative. It remains the best, most direct option to provide cross-border aid to north-east Syria.”
2020-02-27 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8734 (2020) · source
“Barring further Council action, medical supplies will run out for the 1.9 million civilians in north-east Syria left stranded by Russian and Chinese vetoes. These individuals now count among Syria’s most vulnerable, and most are children. They have been courageously served by UNICEF throughout the conflict but it is critical that UNICEF be allowed to continue providing vital aid to young Syrians who are starving, freezing, sick and displaced. The Secretary-General’s report names alternatives to the cross-border mechanism that would rely on the Al-Assad regime to manage and distribute vital resources. But we know better. The truth is that we cannot depend on the Al-Assad regime to deliver any cross- line assistance regardless of what roads or airports it may now control.”
2020-02-27 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8734 (2020) · source
“In the light of the Al-Assad regime’s relentless and escalating pursuit of a military solution with the aid of Russia and Iran, United Nations humanitarian operations are more important than ever. The Bab Al-Hawa and Bab Al-Salam border crossings authorized by resolution 2504 (2020) are now the only humanitarian lifelines for millions of Syrians trapped in the north-west. They are the only lifelines because they are all that Russia would accept in negotiations without shutting down the entire mechanism. With the closing of the Al-Yarubiyah crossing, it is imperative that the two crossings still operating be renewed by July. The consequences of closing Al-Yarubiyah are grim and mounting, as the Secretary- General’s report (S/2020/139) details.”
2020-02-27 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8734 (2020) · source
“Reports from Idlib in the most recent days are stomach-turning. According to The New York Times and The Washington Post, Syrian boys and girls are being killed in regime attacks on schools. Aid workers cannot reach affected areas with food or water. Parents are burning their own clothes to keep their children warm. Families are digging out caves for shelter. Babies are freezing to death. Yet, as Lowcock noted on Tuesday, the members of the Security Council cannot agree on how to deal with this problem. But what is the source of our disagreement? Is it that nearly all Council members object to handing down death sentences to thousands of innocent Syrians, while our Russian and Chinese colleagues, whether explicitly or implicitly, do not?”
2020-02-27 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8734 (2020) · source
“It is a human-made humanitarian nightmare. “There is nothing that will protect a baby against the bombs being dropped on the tent they are sleeping in.” Those are the words of Mark Lowcock two days ago when he was asked what could be done to end the catastrophe in Idlib. It is a wretched image. But for so many Syrians, tragically, he is describing what has become a daily reality. Shelter, food and medicine are desperately needed. But they are no match for Russian air strikes. If we are to end the humanitarian crisis in north-west Syria, we must concentrate all our efforts on immediately establishing a durable and verifiable ceasefire, brokered by a fully empowered United Nations. That will require Russia to ground its planes at once and to tell the regime to pull back its forces.”
2020-02-27 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8734 (2020) · source
“In the days ahead, the United States will not spare any effort, including working with allies, to isolate the Al-Assad regime diplomatically and economically and to deliver the relief, the resources and ultimately the peace that has been kept from the people of Idlib province for far too long. The questions I ask before the Council today, then, are: what will tomorrow’s headline be, and what are we going to do about it?”
2020-02-19 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8727 (2020) · source
“Today, they will likely hear the Russian Federation and those officials who claimed to represent them dismiss their suffering as insignificant and even imagined, or perhaps the Russian Federation and the officials who say they represent Idlib province will acknowledge the suffering of the people of Idlib but claim that it is unrelated to the campaign of the terror they have waged against these innocent people. This is falsification in pure form, and it is a disgrace. The people of Idlib deserve far better from those who claimed authority over them, but I want to ask them not to give up hope — not yet.”
2020-02-19 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8727 (2020) · source
“On that note, for too long, we have outsourced the work of establishing ceasefires to Russia and its Astana format. It was not clear before but it is certainly no longer appropriate to trust the Astana group to end the violence. The clearest path we see to an immediate end to violence in north-west Syria is for the United Nations to take full charge of a new ceasefire initiative. This should be the most urgent priority of the Secretary- General and of United Nations Special Envoy Pedersen. Let me close by taking a moment to address the men, women and children in the Idlib province.”
2020-02-19 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8727 (2020) · source
“The United States supports the legitimate interest of our NATO ally, Turkey, which has done more than any other country to assist Syrian refugees. We understand its concern about additional refugee flows as a result of ongoing hostilities. We unequivocally reject statements by Russian officials in Moscow that falsely blame Turkey for the escalation of violence in north-western Syria, and there is no doubt that the Al-Assad regime and Russia — not Turkey — are responsible for orchestrating and executing this military offensive. As our Special Representative for Syria Engagement, Jim Jeffrey, stated last week in Ankara, the United States will continue to coordinate with Turkey on diplomatic approaches to restore a ceasefire to the Idlib de-escalation zone and achieve a pullback of Al-Assad regime forces to the 2018 Sochi ceasefire lines.”
2020-02-19 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8727 (2020) · source
“Further military actions aim to sideline the Security Council and prevent it from implementing resolution 2254 (2015), a resolution aimed at just and lasting peace and endorsed by the Russian Federation. President Trump and the United States of America strongly desire to see Russia end its support for the Al-Assad regime’s atrocities in Syria and instead commit to a political resolution of the conflict. The outcome of the conflict will have a significant bearing on the credibility and moral authority of the Council. If we do not abide by the unanimously adopted commitments set out in resolution 2254 (2015), and if we do not restore the former Idlib de-escalation zone, then what can we be trusted with? What kind of precedent are we setting? It is at best a deeply troubling one.”
2020-02-19 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8727 (2020) · source
“Speaking candidly, it is a marvel to me that our Russian colleagues can speak of ceasefires and political solutions in this Chamber with a straight face when their own warplanes have struck hospitals and the homes of children. Indeed, every passing day without a real ceasefire further dims the prospect of a United Nations- facilitated political solution. The Al-Assad regime is already declaring a military victory and has promised to continue its assault in north-western Syria, this while children are freezing to death in the fields in Idlib. The Council cannot allow Syria, Russia and Iran to continue pursuing the subjugation of Syrian civilians, as failure to end the Al-Assad regime’s assault through a United Nations-brokered ceasefire risks the lives of millions of internally displaced persons, most of them women and children.”
2020-02-19 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8727 (2020) · source
““It’s like the end of the world” — The New York Times; “’Breaking point’; babies freezing to death amid Idlib push” — Al Jazeera; “These people are begging the world to listen to their plight” — CNN; “Turkey-Russia standoff in Syria leaves millions of refugees caught in chaos” — Wall Street Journal. Nearly 1 million Syrians have been forced to flee their homes in the past 90 days — 1 million people in 90 days. And so I ask, how much longer will we tolerate these headlines? The unyielding military campaign of the regime, Russia, Iran and Hizbullah amounts to a wholesale rejection of United Nations and Security Council efforts to facilitate a political process in Syria.”
2020-02-19 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8727 (2020) · source
“In conclusion, today we renew our call for leaders in Yemen to de-escalate hostilities. That is the only way to end the suffering and destruction that have plagued Yemen for far too long.”
2020-02-18 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8725 (2020) · source
“On a positive note, the United States is appreciative that the United Nations has been able to conduct two medical air-bridge flights, transporting 31 critically ill Yemenis to Jordan. We thank Jordan for its role in helping those vulnerable people receive care. Such life-saving measures are essential and should continue with the helpful support of Jordan and other regional partners. We also welcomed the 16 February announcement that the parties have agreed on a plan to complete the first official large-scale exchange of prisoners since the beginning of the conflict. We encourage them to expeditiously complete the remaining steps that will lead to the exchange. We hope that those developments will bring the parties one step closer to resolving the conflict.”
2020-02-18 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8725 (2020) · source
“All Yemenis in need deserve life-saving assistance. They must not make it impossible for us to continue providing aid in the areas they control. The conditions for doing so are clear. In addition, we reiterate our call for the Houthis to allow the United Nations to board, inspect and maintain the FSO SAFER oil tanker, which experts assess poses a serious threat of creating a major spill. In their quest to extract benefit from the situation, the Houthis block United Nations efforts to assess and remedy the danger, while risking an environmental disaster that would quickly become an economic and humanitarian catastrophe. If that occurs, the Houthis alone will be to blame.”
2020-02-18 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8725 (2020) · source
“We may be forced to consider suspending or reducing our assistance in northern Yemen as early as March, unless undue Houthi interference ceases immediately and access to vulnerable populations improves. We continue to ask the Houthis to take steps towards ensuring minimum conditions for principled humanitarian operations. They include lifting access restrictions, eliminating illegitimate levies on aid projects, allowing unimpeded the assessment and oversight of projects, approving backlogged agreements with NGOs and implementing biometric registration. The United States stands by the efforts of the United Nations and other aid agencies to provide humanitarian assistance based on the principles of humanity, neutrality, impartiality and independence. To the Houthis, we repeat our appeal from last month.”
2020-02-18 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8725 (2020) · source
“For any who would point to reports that the Houthis have agreed to rescind the project levy, they should know that the Houthis have made clear to those on the ground that they expect funding, in some manner, from the non-governmental organizations (NGOs). The United States applauds the efforts of the United Nations and other humanitarian organizations to keep vulnerable Yemenis alive in that restrictive environment. However, we understand that Houthi interference now prevents the guarantee of assistance delivery in the areas they control. In the light of those entirely avoidable circumstances, donors are faced with the difficult dilemma of how to continue delivering aid while remaining responsive to taxpayers.”
2020-02-18 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8725 (2020) · source
“While all of us around the table call for a return to talks, Iran shows its true colours by continuing to send advanced weapons to the Houthis, in violation of the Council’s arms embargo. The United States is also extremely concerned about mounting Houthi interference with the work of aid partners in northern Yemen, which limits the ability of the United Nations and other humanitarian organizations to deliver assistance to the most vulnerable Yemenis. Houthi actions, including the imposition of 2 or 3 per cent per project levy amount to a flagrant rejection of a principled humanitarian response.”
2020-02-18 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8725 (2020) · source
“Furthermore, the Secretary-General noted in his report on the implementation of resolution 2231 (2015) that the unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) used in the attack contained components consistent with known Iranian UAVs. There is only one reasonable conclusion that can be drawn from those findings: Iran launched the attacks on Aramco facilities from Iranian territory. Iran also continues to undermine the prospects for a political solution in Yemen. Just last week, the United States Navy interdicted 358 Iranian-made missiles and other weapons on their way to the Houthis. We have made that evidence available to the United Nations and other international partners.”
2020-02-18 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8725 (2020) · source
“The United States is also concerned about the Houthis’ purported ban on the new Yemeni rial notes in Houthi-controlled areas, which will have a devastating impact on the exchange rate and the overall Yemeni economy. That measure serves only to harm ordinary Yemenis, and the Houthis should resort reverse it. Turning to sanctions, the report released last week by the Yemen Panel of Experts of the Committee established pursuant to resolution 2140 (2014) (S/2020/70) contains a number of findings with serious regional implications. The Panel concluded that the Houthis did not carry out the 14 September attacks against Saudi oil facilities.”
2020-02-18 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8725 (2020) · source
“I thank Special Envoy Griffiths and Under-Secretary-General Lowcock for their briefings and for the continued efforts of their teams. I also thank Ms. King for her comments. The United States is troubled that the implementation of the Riyadh Agreement has been slow. We call on the Yemeni Government and the Southern Transitional Council to promptly implement the agreement, and we welcome continuing Saudi facilitation of that process. We are dismayed about the ongoing escalation between the Houthis and the Saudi-led coalition and the potential loss of progress towards a political solution it portends. We urge the parties to exercise restraint and abandon the path of escalation, as it looked like they might just a few weeks ago.”
2020-02-18 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8725 (2020) · source
“Continuing to leave this conflict unresolved benefits only the extremists, who seek to radicalize younger generations and perpetuate the cycle of terrorism. But peaceful coexistence is not out of reach. By committing to extending freedom, dignity and opportunity to all Palestinians and Israelis, we can build the future we have all sought for so long. Only that way can the weapons of war at last be beaten into ploughshares, and can peace — true, lasting peace — descend on this land that is holy to so many. President Trump has stated that he wants President Abbas to know that if he chooses the path to peace, America and many other countries will be there.”
2020-02-11 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8717 (2020) · source
“Council members have heard me say repeatedly that the United States will always stand by Israel, ensuring that its security is never threatened and that its prosperity is protected. That has not changed, and it never will. The people of Israel have no better friend that the United States, and I want them to know that as they forge a new path to peace, we will be with them every step of the way. But I want to make clear that the United States also stands by the Palestinian people and supports their will for a better future for themselves and for their children. My fervent hope is that after today’s rhetoric clears, Palestinian leaders will see this plan for the opportunity it is, roll up their sleeves and seize this chance to sit down with the leaders of Israel to begin a new conversation.”
2020-02-11 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8717 (2020) · source
“The United States believes that this plan is realistic and implementable, and I will repeat here what senior adviser Jared Kushner has asserted on multiple occasions: this plan is not a take it or leave it; it is not my way or the highway; it is not set in stone. Rather, it is an opening offer. It is the beginning of a conversation, not the end of one. The United States stands willing to support all efforts to begin this conversation, and moving forward we hope that all parties will keep an open mind, listen and engage. I am optimistic that all Council members will give this approach a fair hearing rather than revert to the old habits that have not produced and cannot produce the peace that we all seek. Above all, we hope that the Israelis and Palestinians will have the courage to sit down together to talk to one another.”
2020-02-11 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8717 (2020) · source
“The plan proposes historic levels of economic investment in the future State of Palestine — more than $50 billion in total. Such an investment would reverse the brutal cycle of poverty that has trapped thousands of Palestinian men, women and children for decades. As President Trump said two weeks ago, he wants this plan “to be a great deal for the Palestinians. It has to be”. In laying the foundations for widespread economic opportunity, the United States plan is more than a path to Palestinian independence. It is a blueprint for the construction of a flourishing Palestinian State. This is not a proposal of peace in theory but of dignity in practice.”
2020-02-11 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8717 (2020) · source
“Israel’s acceptance of the plan and its conceptual map represents a historic step towards the establishment of a Palestinian State with a capital in East Jerusalem. This vision shows respect for the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan’s special role in Muslim holy shrines in Jerusalem and ensures the ability of Muslims from around the world to worship at the Al-Aqsa mosque. I would emphasize especially to those who expressed concern that the plan offers something deeply meaningful to the Palestinian people: a realistic prospect for seeing, in their lifetime, a self-governing and fully recognized Palestinian State. The plan also recognizes that a political resolution to the conflict is not enough to ensure that the Palestinian people have opportunities to thrive, opportunities they need, opportunities they deserve.”
2020-02-11 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8717 (2020) · source
“Instead, we are here to offer partnership based on shared interests and values. Such a partnership must begin with an understanding that real peace is never something theoretical. It is not something to be found on pieces of paper but in concrete experiences of security, economic opportunity and freedom. For too long, we have made the mistake of assuming that documents filled with high-level principles or theoretical concepts alone will lead to the kind of peace that provides for the dignity of all people. But I am here to tell the Council today that this kind of peace, concrete, lasting, dignity-honouring peace, is intrinsic to the plan proposed by President Trump on 28 January. This vision for peace is different from any of its predecessors because it is specific and realistic.”
2020-02-11 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8717 (2020) · source
“To keep hope alive, there must be a willingness to compromise, to engage in good faith, but we are not here to merely promise hope. Anyone can promise hope. We are here to deliver on hope, because that is what leaders do. It is what we are called to do today. But once we have said our piece today, I want us to begin thinking about what is going to happen tomorrow. Rather than respond directly to today’s fiery rhetoric, now is the time to set the table for a new conversation, a conversation during which we do not talk at each other but with each other a conversation that is a starting point, not a finishing line. And when I speak of a conversation, I want to be clear, as the President stated. We are not here to lecture. We are not here to tell other people how to live, who to be or how to worship.”
2020-02-11 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8717 (2020) · source
“Since the formation of the United Nations, the Council and the General Assembly have demonstrated their belief in the importance of Middle East peace through countless hours of debate and by adopting more than 800 resolutions addressing this issue, but neither these debates nor these resolutions have resulted in a true and lasting peace. So with a record of failure this spectacular, it would be folly to suggest that this time was well spent and that what is needed now is more of the same. That is why President Trump has proposed a new vision for peace that poses a tangible challenge to the status quo. Given that challenge, it is understandable that emotions are running high today and that strongly worded statements are being made. I heard President Abbas speak of hope. I heard his words about the importance of hope.”
2020-02-11 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8717 (2020) · source
“I want to begin by welcoming President Abbas today to the Council and also to thank the Secretary-General, Mr. Mladenov and Ambassador Danon and my Council colleagues for their comments. How the Council allocates its time defines who we are and what we believe is important. This is especially true of today’s meeting, because finding a solution to the conflict between Israelis and Palestinians is important. It is important to President Trump. It is important to me personally. Based on our recent conversations, I know that it is very important to each member of the Council, and it is vitally important to both Israel and to the Palestinian people.”
2020-02-11 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8717 (2020) · source
“As long as Donald Trump is President and I am the United States Ambassador to the United Nations, they will have the untiring and unflinching support of the United States of America.”
2020-02-06 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8715 (2020) · source
“For one, Turkey, as our ally in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, has the full support of the United States to respond in self-defence to the Al-Assad regime’s unjustified attacks on Turkish observation posts that resulted in the deaths of Turkish personnel. For our part, the United States will continue to withhold reconstruction funding in regime areas of Syria. I am here to say that the Trump Administration will spare no effort in our campaign to isolate the Al-Assad regime both economically and diplomatically for as long as it continues to reject the political process outlined in resolution 2254 (2015). I want to conclude by speaking directly to the Syrian people. There can be no doubt that these are dark days, but they are not alone and they are not forgotten.”
2020-02-06 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8715 (2020) · source
“For months the United Nations warned Council members of an impending humanitarian catastrophe in north-west Syria if violence continued unabated. That catastrophe has now arrived. Up to 700,000 people have been displaced by Syrian and Russian attacks in north-west Syria since September 2018. More than 500 civilians have been killed since the beginning of April. Barring drastic change, it will get worse. While the regime appears to be fully inoculated against any sense of shame or guilt for the misery it has caused, it should be under no illusions that cruelty and violence will go unanswered.”
2020-02-06 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8715 (2020) · source
“The first step is to lend our full support to the United Nations immediate efforts to establish a nationwide ceasefire and ensure that vital United Nations cross-border humanitarian assistance, authorized by resolution 2504 (2020), can continue to reach the millions of civilians trapped by the Al-Assad regime’s assault. The United States believes that the United Nations should use its neutrality and impartiality to secure a ceasefire in north-west Syria. In launching that assault, the Al-Assad regime has not only exacerbated a dire humanitarian situation in the region but also risks a wider escalation of the conflict. That only puts more Syrian lives in danger and threatens the hope for a political solution in line with resolution 2254 (2015).”
2020-02-06 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8715 (2020) · source
“We know that because it is Russian warplanes that have routinely terminated Russian-brokered ceasefires and because it is Russian bombs that have destroyed Syrian hospitals and driven Syrian children from their homes. The sheer scale of destruction, both endorsed and facilitated by Russia, shows that neither it, nor Iran nor the Al-Assad regime can be trusted to deliver a ceasefire, let alone a political solution. With no faith whatsoever in the Astana format, we therefore call on the Special Envoy to turn his attention to securing an immediate, comprehensive and verifiable ceasefire in north-west Syria as a means of preserving the progress of the Constitutional Committee’s vital work. It is essential for all parties to move forward on the full implementation of resolution 2254 (2015).”
2020-02-06 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8715 (2020) · source
“In response to that message, we come here today with a message of our own because here, in this Chamber, if the Security Council is to retain even a shred of credibility, we simply cannot ignore the resolutions we adopt. In 2015, the Council not only adopted resolution 2254 (2015) but did so unanimously. Today all elements of that resolution, including the Constitutional Committee, are in the crosshairs. Therefore, our message today is the following: the situation in north-west Syria demands an immediate, comprehensive and verifiable ceasefire. If there is one thing we know, however, it is that the Astana format cannot be trusted to deliver such a ceasefire.”
2020-02-06 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8715 (2020) · source
“I thank Mr. Geir Pedersen and Mr. Mark Lowcock for their briefings. The United States joined the United Kingdom and France in calling for today’s meeting because we are appalled at the Al-Assad regime’s escalation of violence in north-west Syria. The Trump Administration condemns in the strongest possible terms the Al-Assad regime, Iran, Hizbullah and Russia’s barbaric and unjustified military offensive. To be quite clear, what we are witnessing is deliberate lethal violence against thousands of innocent children, women and men. It is violence that seeks only to terrorize and subdue, and it sends a chilling message: the Al-Assad regime and its allies are rejecting the Security Council’s efforts to restore stability in Syria through a United Nations- facilitated political process.”
2020-02-06 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8715 (2020) · source
“On these points, we should all be able to agree. As parties to the Berlin conference affirmed, the Libyan people deserve to determine their own future, free from toxic foreign interference. It is the Council’s responsibility, indeed its mandate, to enable UNSMIL and Special Representative Salamé to help them do just that.”
2020-01-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8710 (2020) · source
“In the light of the recent developments, we reiterate in this context that no group should be allowed to hijack Libya’s national oil production. It is the Libyan people who suffer when the country’s revenues collapse. The disruption of Libya’s oil production has already caused electricity and water shortages. Shortages of fuel and cooking oil will likely soon follow. The current blockade on Libya’s oil production must be lifted. Moreover, threats to civilian lives and aviation must end, and displaced people must be allowed to voluntarily and safely return to their homes in a sustainable and dignified manner. It is unacceptable that they have not yet been able to do so. There is an urgent need to reaffirm the truce agreed upon in Berlin and to convert it into a lasting ceasefire under United Nations supervision.”
2020-01-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8710 (2020) · source
“Any ceasefire must create space for serious and concrete discussions among Libyans about how to resolve the issues that have fuelled the conflict. Among these difficult tasks are the dismantling of extremist militias and the rooting of Libya’s economy in transparency and the rule of law so as to benefit all Libyans, as well as efforts to prevent groups or spoilers from hijacking the political process. Looking further ahead, we continue to urge all sides to participate in UNSMIL’s planned intra-Libyan political dialogue and to finalize the representation with the inclusion of women and youth leaders as soon as possible. A political solution for the conflict will require an inclusive Libyan-led and Libyan-owned process.”
2020-01-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8710 (2020) · source
“We join the United Nations in calling on countries to live up to their Berlin commitments and we demand that Member States comply with their obligations to implement the United Nations arms embargo. This entails an immediate and permanent halt of all deployments of personnel, fighters and military equipment to Libya. We also call on Libyan parties to honour the fragile truce that they themselves respected over the past few weeks. Engagement in UNSMIL’s planned 5+5 talks will be an important signal of how dedicated each side is to reaching a solution that avoids even more unnecessary bloodshed. Both parties need to commit to participating. While working towards a ceasefire is a critical step, it should not be the end goal. We cannot turn our attention away from Libya as the 5+5 discussions are launched.”
2020-01-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8710 (2020) · source
“During today’s briefing, we learned of further blatant violations of the United Nations arms embargo, including the deployment of foreign fighters and mercenaries and the delivery of weapons, ammunition and advanced systems to the parties from Member States. Violators include — and I must stress this — several countries that participated in the Berlin conference. It is past time for those who have violated existing Security Council resolutions, including the United Nations arms embargo on Libya, to face real consequences. These egregious violations worsen an already volatile situation in Libya, deepening the pain and hardship faced by ordinary Libyans on a daily basis. They must stop.”
2020-01-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8710 (2020) · source
“I thank the Special Representative of the Secretary-General, Mr. Ghassan Salamé, for his update on the increasingly alarming situation in Libya. Less than two weeks ago, international leaders gathered in Berlin, where they called for a sustained ceasefire and clearly committed to supporting effective United Nations monitoring when a lasting ceasefire is achieved and to rejecting toxic foreign interference in Libya. The United States looked to the participants at the Berlin conference to abide by the commitments that they made to maintain a truce and support renewed negotiations led by the United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL). Regrettably, the promise of the Berlin conference is already under threat.”
2020-01-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8710 (2020) · source
“It only encourages further instability, which puts the peace we all seek at greater risk. I have said before that Israel has no better friend than the United States and I will say it again today — whether it is reminding the world what Israel has done to make substantive contributions to global peace and prosperity or what Iran is doing to frustrate efforts towards peace. President Donald Trump and the American people together will do what is required to stand by our partner, our ally and, indeed, our friend again and again.”
2020-01-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8706 (2020) · source
“Yet, despite a long history of advocating for the obliteration of Israel and aggressively undermining regional peace and security, Iran too often escapes serious scrutiny by this organ. When Iran attacked tankers in the Persian Gulf and energy facilities in Saudi Arabia last year, the Council was silent. When Iran provided weapons to the Houthis and Hizbullah, the Council was silent. When Iran sought to prop up the Al-Assad regime’s brutal repression of its own people, the Council was silent. It is not as though Iran’s malign behaviour occurs without the Council’s knowledge. It has been well documented by the United Nations or is simply out in the open. Our failure to address Iran’s central role in destabilizing the region sends a powerfully damaging message to those who seek lasting peace and prosperity in the region.”
2020-01-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8706 (2020) · source
“Indeed, while the world criticizes Israel, Israel is making the world a better place. The Council should not lose sight of that fact. I will not allow us to and instead I call upon my colleagues to embrace a more appropriate focus for a Council dedicated to international peace and security — a focus on the regional actor fuelling division, violence and hatred; the regime that funds and trains militants focused on the destruction of Israel; the regime that provides weapons and other support to the Houthis and Hizbullah, props up the Al-Assad regime and seeks to interfere with Iraq’s fragile democracy; the regime that guns down its own citizens when they protest the corruption, lies and mismanagement of the leadership.”
2020-01-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8706 (2020) · source
“This week and next week, in New York and around the world, we will be commemorating the seventy-fifth anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz. No one in this Chamber should need reminding of the horrors that occurred just beyond Krakow and across Europe during the Second World War. Those are the horrors that lead us to say never again. While we can never forget the unparalleled horrors of the Holocaust, Israelis consistently look to the future and the ways in which they can improve the lives of all people. Israelis have won 13 Nobel Prizes, including in chemistry and economics. They have improved drip- irrigation technologies that allow countless individuals in the desert environment around the world to be fed. They have enhanced surgical technologies that improve the success of medical operations.”
2020-01-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8706 (2020) · source
“I thank Under-Secretary-General DiCarlo for her briefing. Addressing these issues in a fair manner is not easy and we appreciate her efforts and those of her team to do so. I also thank Assistant Secretary-General Mueller for her briefing. As I have stated on many prior occasions, if we are to see genuine progress in our work to help bring peace to the Middle East, the Council must treat this issue more even-handedly. Given the likelihood that we will hear continued criticisms of Israel that are unfairly one-sided, I wanted to take a few moments to shed light on Israel’s contributions to the international community and to appreciate publicly all that has been overcome in order to make those contributions.”
2020-01-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8706 (2020) · source