YouSaid · the spoken record

De Mistura

lines on the record: 707
first: 2008-01-21
most recent: 2018-12-20
sittings or episodes: 34
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

“As numbers of casualties are rising, rescue workers struggle to remove people from under the rubble. Even tools that might have been able to mitigate some of the suffering of civilians have reportedly been destroyed in the attacks against the civil defence stations. Information received from sources on the ground suggest the following numbers to date, allegedly due to airstrikes on areas held by armed opposition groups. We cannot verify them, but these are the figures we are seeing at the moment: 213 fatalities in Aleppo province, 139 fatalities in eastern Aleppo and 74 fatalities in rural Aleppo, all including dozens of women and children. How many airstrikes? Obviously, we have no independent capacity to verify that.”
2016-09-25 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7777 (2016) · source
“Amid intensive airstrikes reported on Friday, following the announcement of the beginning of a Government offensive - an announcement made by the Government itself - the community in opposition-controlled eastern Aleppo even called off their own Friday prayers. Information received by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights indicates dozens of airstrikes on Friday and Saturday, which hit residential buildings across the de facto besieged eastern Aleppo, reportedly causing scores of civilian deaths and injuries, including those of many children. First responders appear overwhelmed and unable to respond to many of the sites. We have seen reports of three of the four centres operated by the White Helmets in eastern Aleppo being hit.”
2016-09-25 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7777 (2016) · source
“As the Secretary-General has reported to the Council, on the evening of 19 September as well there was a horrific attack against a humanitarian convoy travelling to Oram Al-Kubra, killing 20 humanitarian Syrian workers and drivers, including the team leader, and destroying 18 out of 31 clearly identified trucks. We condemned that attack in the strongest terms, as did many members around this table, who have offered condolences and have been calling for an inquiry and accountability for those who committed that act. Since that fateful day, we have seen the situation in eastern Aleppo deteriorate to new heights of horror.”
2016-09-25 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7777 (2016) · source
“When the Government unilaterally declared the end of the cessation of hostilities on 19 September, we began to hear reports of the use of barrel bombs and airstrikes in eastern Aleppo, where, I want to remind everyone, 275,000 people are currently de facto trapped. Fair enough, there are 1.6 million people on the other side of Aleppo. But they are not isolated, like those in eastern Aleppo. Only minutes after the Government's announcement, our own team in Aleppo clearly heard the sounds of shelling and bombardment begin. They happened to be there because we had sent them to accompany and assist the truck convoy that was possibly meant to leave Turkey in order to get to eastern Aleppo via the Castello Road, .”
2016-09-25 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7777 (2016) · source
“Let us recall briefly that, following the 9 September announcement of the agreement between the Russian Federation and the United States, which was a complicated agreement that took long time and required long evening and night discussions, the renewed cessation of hostilities that came into effect three days later did indeed reduce violence. Even Aleppo witnessed a reduction in military activities. We heard of families coming out of their shelters and houses to celebrate Bid on the streets. People started to become cautiously optimistic. But there was still sporadic shelling inside the city and some airstrikes in the countryside, but at a lower level. Then, on 18 September, airstrikes resumed on Aleppo city, when five districts were hit, reportedly by five severe airstrikes.”
2016-09-25 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7777 (2016) · source
“It came on the footsteps of two unrelated, but compounding, tragic events. One was the incident in Deir ez-Zor, the second one was the attack on a humanitarian convoy. I can only reiterate the concern expressed by the Secretary-General on the first incident, which was acknowledged as a tragic mistake by the United States, and our shared deep outrage about the deadly attack on the humanitarian convoy. But no incident, irrespective of whether it can be attributed or not, justifies what is taking place before of our own eyes, that is, the unravelling ofthe cessation of hostilities and the simultaneous unleashing of unprecedented military violence, which is affecting innocent civilians as well.”
2016-09-25 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7777 (2016) · source
“Mr. De Mistura: As the Secretary-General has said, these are indeed chilling days for Syria, and for the people of Aleppo in particular. The past week has been one of the worst ones in Syria during the nearly six years of this devastating conflict. Earlier in the week, I had to deeply regret the fact that the meeting of the International Syria Support Group (ISSG) did not yield the results we were hoping for, and actually saw an outcome that put in jeopardy the agreement reached in Geneva by the two co-Chairs on 9 September, which we believed, and want to continue to believe, was meant to reinvigorate the concept and the implementation of the cessation of hostilities. The ISSG meeting took place in the middle of news that the Government of Syria had declared an offensive in eastern Aleppo - now de facto besieged.”
2016-09-25 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7777 (2016) · source
“They should also be present at the next talks. This is an opportunity we would like to offer them. Let me finish by saying, because obviously we cannot ignore the elephant in the room, that all of this will and can be heavily affected if we build on the agreement reached on 9 September between the two co-Chairs of the ISSG, which gave us a lot of hope, and on the basis of which we have been working even harder to renew talks.”
2016-09-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7774 (2016) · source
“I also take note of the High Negotiation Committee's description of its own recent vision statement as a living document, and therefore a document that can evolve. This is the kind of approach that negotiations need to have in order to be developed. I appeal, therefore, to the Security Council to reflect carefully on what the Secretary-General has just said. It was an important statement. It was a statement that he made by choosing his words carefully, because he feels strongly about this terrible conflict, which has been ongoing for five years of his tenure. I have added a few points and I hope that all Syrian parties understand that ifpeace is to be made and they are to save their own country, there is a need for a transition that will require a genuine readiness to negotiate and compromise.”
2016-09-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7774 (2016) · source
“Therefore, ideally, the Government would need to understand that the transition involves a genuinine devolution of power and not just the absorption of the opposition into the current Government. While the opposition should also understand that the transition is not solely about one person or one presidency, but it is actually related to a transfer not only of power from one political group to another, but actually it is about how power should be exercised differently as Syria moves forward through Syrian negotiations. Above all, the sides need to recognize that any transition needs to be all-inclusive and agreed among them - as the Geneva communique (S/2012/523, annex) clearly states - through mutual consent. I take note of the inputs that we have received from both sides, the Government and the opposition, in this process.”
2016-09-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7774 (2016) · source
“Thirdly, it must require the creation of collective transitional bodies to oversee a national ceasefire, humanitarian relief, the creation of a calm, neutral environment to enable free, peaceful political activity to occur in relation to the adoption of a new constitution, and the holding of free and fair elections under international supervision. I know it seems like a dream, but that is the plan, and if we do not do that it will not be possible to actually get there. Fourthly, it must be accompanied by sustained, international efforts to help reconstruct Syria, discussions are already taking place about how to prepare for reconstructing Syria as soon as genuinine and verifiable transition gets under way.”
2016-09-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7774 (2016) · source
“First, it must address how power is to be exercised in practice by the transitional Government, including in relation to the presidency's executive powers and control over Government and security institutions. This is something that the Syrians have to decide, but they need to address it among them. Secondly, the transition must involve power-sharing and a phased and genuinine power-devolution exercise during transition in an agreed manner in accordance with good governance, principles and subject to domestic and international guarantees.”
2016-09-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7774 (2016) · source
“Fourthly, any proposal that I may present would proceed upon the basis that the conflict in Syria cannot be resolved militarly - we say that all the time, but sometimes fail to practice it - but rather only through a a Syrian-owned and -led political negotiating process between the Government and the opposition, in which a framework is agreed based upon mutual consent, capable of effecting a genuine and irreversible political transition leading to a new constitution, and free and fair elections under international supervision, while preserving continuity - we are not looking for what happened in Libya, for instance - and reformed State institutions, in accordance with resolution 2254 (2015). Fifthly, in our View, any viable transition must inevitably do the follwing.”
2016-09-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7774 (2016) · source
“That summary was subsequently endorsed by the ISSG - and I am glad that we have the ISSG; we had been waiting for it for more than a year, and it does provide a lot of support to the Special Envoy, as we were alone before it - as the basis for the next round of intra-Syrian negotiations. The ISSG urged the parties "to reach agreement on a framework for a genuine political transition". It was within this context that on 26 July the ISSG requested that we develop some proposals. As soon as the talks resume, it is my intention to put proposals to all sides as a starting point for negotiations and as a means by which to move to direct talks, and no longer just proximity talks. The Secretary-General has indeed been encouraging me and requesting that I present a draft framework to move the sides towards a transition through negotiation.”
2016-09-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7774 (2016) · source
“These commalities demonstrate how potentially close the visions of each side are, at least on the following point: an open, civil, all-inclusive, non-sectarian, pluralistic, democratic, unified State based upon the rule of law, in which all components of Syrian society are recognized, respected and whose fundamental freedoms are enshrined and protected in a new constitution. These are, at least verbally, what they seem to be agreeing upon. Thirdly, in the third round of our intra- Syrian talks, both sides have accepted that the agenda was indeed a political transition. The Secretary-General referred to the mediator's summary a few minutes ago, which in fact has captured further commonalities on a transition and set out the issues that need to be addressed to ensure a Viable transition.”
2016-09-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7774 (2016) · source
“Over the past two years, the United Nations has engaged extensively with Syrian stakeholders, whether in Geneva consultations or in three rounds of formal proximity talks, technical discussions, shuttle diplomacy in the region and through the International Syria Support Group (ISSG) and the 18 Special Envoys from all over the world, civil society - and, frankly also to a large extent, with the Syrian Women's Advisory Board - with representatives of Syria. I have taken into account all the input from these engagements. Secondly, despite the horrors on the ground, we have been pleasantly surprised by the fact that some points of convergence have emerged from the intra-Syrian talks about what essential governing princples should frame the transition and any end-state consititutional arrangement for Syria in the future.”
2016-09-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7774 (2016) · source
“Mr. De Mistura: The Secretary-General has spoken powerfully about this terrible conflict and the need to open the road to political talks that focus on the fundamental issues for a viable transition. He has requested that I be ready to present to the parties a draft framework of proposals as a starting point - nothing more than a starting point, but an important starting point - for negotiations for a Syrian-owned and Syrian-led political transition. And we are ready. Let me offer now a few observations in this regard. We owe them to the Security Council. First, we believe that the United Nations has done its due dilligence in order to understand the needs and fears of all sides, even if their own starting positions continue to be distant.”
2016-09-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7774 (2016) · source
“It unanimously expressed the international community's grave concern at the continued suffering of the Syrians, the persistent and brutal violence and the perverse impact of terrorist and violent extremist ideology. We are now at the crossroads and we have the possibility of turning the page in the Syrian conflict after almost six years of one of the bloodiest conflicts in recent memory. It is potentially a historic juncture, bringing an end to the killing and destruction and giving new life with renewed hope to the Syrians.”
2016-02-26 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7634 (2016) · source
“Critical fault lines are being addressed now carefully and cautiously, be it which groups will be participating in the cessation of hostilities or which areas are being opened to access and how and on what priority basis. This will remain a complicated, painstaking process, but we should not give up since nothing is impossible, especially at this moment. Going forward, I will continue to heavily count on the ISSG to resolve any possible ambiguities related to the talks as they arise and will keep the Council fully informed on progress as I have done before. Resolution 2254 (2015) was a ray of hope and a moment of hope that remains ongoing.”
2016-02-26 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7634 (2016) · source
“As for the cessation of hostilities, which we hope will be respected, it will not only create conditions conducive to the resumption of meaningful negotiations, but it will also and above all send a long-awaited signal of hope to the Syrian people that after five years of conflict there may be an end and a hope of an end to their suffering. These are all sentiments reinforced by ISSG members in today's meeting and just endorsed, I hope, by the Security Council through the adoption of resolution 2268 (2016). On all these aspects, the United Nations is ready and present to provide support. The Secretary-General has confirmed it, and I reiterate it once again on his behalf. Everyone should do his or her share; we will do ours.”
2016-02-26 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7634 (2016) · source
“The outcomes from both are first good steps - a first step towards sustained and unimpeded access throughout Syria in terms of humanitarian aid, and a first step towards, hopefully, a more durable nationwide ceasefire. I cannot overemphasize how important, determined and sustained political will is the good-faith implementation of the cessation ofhostilities for making this agreement fixed. On the humanitarian issue, it is essential not to lose focus. Our position remains clear - all sieges must end. The United Nations and other humanitarian partners must be granted unhindered and sustainable humanitarian access without preconditions, and civilians must be allowed freedom of movement. The ongoing support of the ISSG and of the Security Council remain therefore critical.”
2016-02-26 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7634 (2016) · source
“Since the recess of the talks, both the Civil Society Support Room, which is a platform aimed at facilitating the participation of civil society organizations in Geneva, and the Syrian Women's Advisory Board have continued their preparations. They will continue doing so and help us - and help me to do my job. Furthermore, UN Women, which has worked closely with us over recent months, has seconded a gender adviser to my office to support both my work and that of the Women's Advisory Board. In conclusion, we have so far, together, maintained the ISSG momentum. It now needs to be sustained. Both task forces are making progress - admittedly, not enough - but progress that would have been unimaginable just two months ago.”
2016-02-26 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7634 (2016) · source
“While the primary focus of the talks is governance, I also intend to ensure that pressing confidence-building aspects that matter most to the Syrian people will continue to be addressed, including the release of any arbitrarily detained people, in particular women and children and individuals who have been kept hostage. I am also bound by the resolution 2254 (2015) to ensure the participation of the broadest spectrum of Syrians. As I mentioned in my last briefing, in addition to consulting with representatives of the Government and the opposition, I have consulted and will continue to consult with civil society representatives and women - Syrian women. They make a remarkable contribution and need to continue to make a remarkable contribution to our work. I will continue this practice.”
2016-02-26 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7634 (2016) · source
“It is therefore my intention to focus on the core issues defined by the Council in resolution 2254 (2015): securing agreements on credible, inclusive, non-sectarian governance, a schedule and process for drafting a new constitution, and elements and a schedule for holding fair and free parliamentary and presidential elections on the basis of that new constitution. We have to build on the momentum that has emerged since Munich to help the parties reach an agreement on these matters in the shortest possible time. I am counting on the ISSG, but also the Security Council, to ensure that the parties come to Geneva again, this time ready to engage, to stay and to stay engaged on the substantive issues. I hope that the draft resolution that the Council may be adopting shortly will send a good signal in that direction.”
2016-02-26 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7634 (2016) · source
“Assuming,therefore,that,Godwilling,the cessation of hostilities largely holds and the humanitarian access continues unabated, I intend to reconvene - based on consultation with the Secretary-General and hopefully with the Council's approval - the intra-Syrian talks on Monday, 7 March, with the same representatives of the Syrian Government in opposition, as well as the groups of individuals associated with the Moscow and Cairo meetings. As I told the parties at the outset of the talks on 29 January, the agenda remains exactly the same. It is based on resolution 2254 (2015), which aims for a comprehensive political settlement through negotiations on a political transition process pursuant to the Geneva final communique (S/2012/523, annex).”
2016-02-26 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7634 (2016) · source
“In turn, a reduction in violence will help create conditions conducive to negotations, and progress on a cessation of hostilities will drastically improve the conditions on the ground, which in turn will lead to a significant scaling up of humanitarian deliveries across Syria. As the Secretary- General concluded in his letter to the Council, the agreement reached in Munich represents a precious opportunity for a speedy and credible resumption of intra-Syrian talks.”
2016-02-26 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7634 (2016) · source
“Daraya is a case in point. For our part, we will do all we can to support that important effort. My teams, both in Geneva and Damascus, will be on a rotating duty as ofmidnight tonight to follow up on it. In adopting resolution 2254 (2015), the Council made it abundantly clear that only a negotiated political solution can bring an end to this horrible five-year conflict. The resolution also acknowledged that there is a close link between a nation-wide ceasefire and a parallel political process, and confidence in a political process will indeed increase the prospects ofa ceasefire. We all know it, and the people of Syria have been telling and reminding us about it.”
2016-02-26 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7634 (2016) · source
“The draft resolution that we hope will be adopted shortly is, we hope, a further manifestation ofthe ISSG's commitment to delivering the parties to the agreement. Tomorrow, Saturday - starting at midnight tonight, in fact - will be critical. There will undoubtedly be no shortage of attempts to undermine the process. We are ready for them. We should not be impressed or overly concerned and should realize that this is part of any ceasefire and certainly ofa cessation of hostilities. The onus, however, remains with the co-Chairs, the relevant members of the ceasefire task force and all of us to work fast to defuse any tension that may arise from potential crossed wires, disinformation or incidents. The parties will have to show restraint in cases where there are still discrepancies in information on the presence and affiliation of groups.”
2016-02-26 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7634 (2016) · source
“My Office, as the secretariat of the task force, will issue periodic public briefings on the task force's behalf on the status of the cessation of hostilities. Today's draft resolution also sets clear reporting requirements. Other parts of the United Nations system will obviously retain their own ability to comment on the situation in Syria within their own mandates, but the briefings will be done here. The initial indication of consent by the parties to the conflict is indeed encouraging, but what we need now is for the parties to abide by the terms of the agreement. We have much work ahead of us to ensure the agreement's implementation, and the international community, the ISSG and the Syrian parties must remain steadfast in their own resolve.”
2016-02-26 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7634 (2016) · source
“The cessation of hostilities agreement, preceded by lengthy and detailed discussions in Geneva and the capitals and the outcome of intense consultations and negotiations, including at the highest level, is in itself a major achievement, and I think the Security Council will recognize that. The communication of the commitment on the part of the Syrian parties, essential to ending the war, is also a very important step. In this room today, the task force members agreed to reach out to their respective contacts among the Syrian parties to explain the functioning of the task force, ensure the confidentiality of the discussions within the task force itself and refrain from making public comments about non-compliance reports under review, in order to give enough time for such non-compliance to be addressed.”
2016-02-26 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7634 (2016) · source
“Fourthly, it will determine and address patterns of persistent non-compliance before referring the matter to senior officials or a higher level. The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe and the United Nations will support those efforts in a secretariat capacity and through a so-called permanent alert centre, better described as an operations centre - a few metres from here, by the way - which will be fielding and disseminating information to the co-Chairs in the wider ISSG. In turn, we, the United Nations, are not expected to characterize, assess and/ or de-conflict information received, a function that will remain with the co-Chairs, which are the Russian Federation and the United States, in consultation with other ISSG members.”
2016-02-26 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7634 (2016) · source
“That means ceasing attacks with any weapons, including aerial bombardment by the Syrian Air Force or Russian aerospace forces against the armed opposition groups that are party to the cessation of hostilities. The ceasefire task force will oversee the cessation of hostilities under the co-chairship of Russia and the United States. Its primary functions will include, first, delineation of the territory held by Da'esh, Jabhat Al-Nusra and other organizations designated by the Security Council as terrorist that are not part of the cessation of hostilities. Secondly, it will issue communications to promote compliance with the de-escalation of tensions. Thirdly, it will assess the nature and credibility of incoming reports of non-compliance in order to determine response measures.”
2016-02-26 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7634 (2016) · source
“This time we want them to stay there and not to move from there until we have gone through at least the first phase of negotiations. Secondly, they will cease their attacks with any weapons, including rockets, mortars and anti-tank guided missiles, against the Syrian armed forces and any forces associated with them. Thirdly, they will refrain from acquiring or seeking to acquire territory from other parties to the agreement. Fourthly, they will allow humanitarian access. Fifthly, they will use proportionate force, which means not unless required to address an immediate threat and if and when responding in self-defence. At the same time, the Syrian armed forces and other forces associated with them have committed to abiding by exactly the same points.”
2016-02-26 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7634 (2016) · source
“In the presence of the ISSG members, the two co-Chairs, who have been working all week with partners in reaching out to the other parties on the ground, have outlined the terms for the cessation of hostilities in Syria announced on 22 February in a joint press release by the Russian Federation and the United States. Today, the two co-Chairs today noted that the principal Syrian parties have announced their willingness to participate in the cessation of hostilities beginning midnight Damascus time, which is basically less than one hour from now. Armed opposition groups have announced their commitment to, first, fully implementing resolution 2254 (2015) and participating - I repeat, participating - in the United Nations-facilitated political negotiations.”
2016-02-26 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7634 (2016) · source
“The simplifcation of approval procedures by the Government still has some way to go and has yet to occur, but we are working on that matter. A constructive meeting took place yesterday between Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhdad and our own team on the issue. We hope to see the results soon. I personally addressed that issue with the Syrian Government myself during my visit to Damascus last week. I will continue to follow up on these matters very closely because they are of vital importance and they are a follow-up to the Munich commitments. Regarding the cessation of hostilities in Syria and the ISSG ceasefire task force, less than three hours ago Ijoined the Russian Federation and United States co-Chairs in the first meeting of the ISSG ceasefire task force in this very room from which I am addressing the Council.”
2016-02-26 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7634 (2016) · source
“Thanks to the prompt operational response of our World Food Programme colleagues and the generosity of ISSG members such as Germany, the United States and the Netherlands, as well as technical support offered by the Russian Federation, we also witnessed the first test-run of air drops in a difficult environment, such as that of Deir ez-Zour. We believe that to date, the task force members have lived up to the commitment they made in Munich by using their influence with the parties to ensure an increased flow of assistance - not enough, but quite an increased flow. Those remarkable efforts were not without difficulties or ongoing serious delays. That is why the task force is addressing those, and we will be working on them. We are still waiting for the approval of an aid delivery for an additional 170,000 people in the besieged areas.”
2016-02-26 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7634 (2016) · source
“Humanitarian issues have taken a centre stage in the latest ISSG deliberations in Munich leading to the establishment of the ISSG task force on humanitarian access, which has already met three times since 12 February. My Office, including my Senior Adviser on Humanitarian Issues, Jan Egeland, and the United Nations country team in Damascus, led by United Nations Resident Coordinator Yacoub El Hillo, have worked hard, together with implementing partners such as the Syrian Arab Red Crescent, to generate a humanitarian plan, as requested by ISSG. In the first instance, urgently needed humanitarian aid was delivered to the besieged areas identified in the Munich statement: Madaya, Zabadani, Moadamiya, Kafr Batna - which is part of eastern Ghouta - Kafraya and Foah.”
2016-02-26 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7634 (2016) · source
“Over the past month alone, the report of the Secretary-General on the implementation of resolutions 2139 (2014), 2165 (2014) and 2191 (2014) (S/2015/862); the report of the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Syria (A/HRC/30/48); as well as the letter of the Secretary-General of 17 February have painted quite a tragic and harrowing picture of the desperate conditions of civilians - including many women, children and sick persons - in communities across Syria that are besieged by the Government, by the opposition or by Daesh. To that, we should add the unprecedented level of internal displacement and the growing number of Syrians embarking on an often fatal journey across land and sea to seek safety and asylum in Europe and elsewhere.”
2016-02-26 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7634 (2016) · source
“Let me give them an idea of the hard work that will have brought us to this stage once the Council has adopted the draft resolution. First, on the issue of sustained humanitarian access and a humanitarian task force, the Council is well aware of the detailed briefings on the overall grave humanitarian situation in Syria.”
2016-02-26 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7634 (2016) · source
“This meeting therefore has a special significance on this hopefully exceptional day and night for the Syrians. Consequently, with your permission, Sir, I will give the Council a rather unorthodox briefing. Rather than walking Council members through the implementation of resolution 2254 (2016), concerning which Council members already have the Secretary-General's letter of 17 February (S/2016/152), I would rather focus on the post-Munich developments, many unfolding almost in real time. As an outcome of the ISSG meeting in Munich, we now have specific obligations for the ISSG members and the Syrians to fulfil. There are now a mechanism in place to that effect, an agreed set of actions and an immediate timetable and timeline. Council members have just deliberated on a draft resolution that, I hope, that will endorse all those steps.”
2016-02-26 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7634 (2016) · source
“Three weeks later, and as a result of the heavy lifting done by members of the ISSG, particularly of the co-Chairs of the two task forces that were formed in Munich on 12 February, aid has been delivered in the past 10 days to almost 110,000 people, and 200 trucks are moving inside Syria in order to reach six locations. The first World Food Programme test air-drop in Deir ez-Zour has also taken place in order to reach an area where there are about 230,000 people under siege by Daesh. Perhaps most importantly, we have had a provisional agreement on the terms of a cessation of hostilities in Syria, as announced by the Russian and United States co-Chairs at the beginning of this week. The cessation of hostilities is in fact meant to come into effect about an hour from now at midnight Damascus time.”
2016-02-26 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7634 (2016) · source
“Mr. De Mistura: On behalf of the Secretary- General, I hope to soon welcome the adoption of a draft resolution that will help all ofus address an issue that we have been jointly working on for at least the past three weeks. We have come a long way since the first meeting of the International Syria Support Group (ISSG) in Vienna on 30 October 2015. Much has transpired since I last briefed the Council on 5 February, the day that I suspended the inter-Syrian talks in the light of the positions articulated by the parties and the lack of progress on the ground.”
2016-02-26 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7634 (2016) · source
“The Geneva consultations have been loud and clear on the profound risk of failing to act now, including the increasing risk of a multigenerational conflict that, with each passing month, reduces the prospects of ever restoring Syria as a unified State, let alone making it even harder to establish a political process. In closing, let me again thank the Secretary-General for being with us today, showing a strong commitment to the issue before us, and I thank the Secretariat and the members of the Security Council for their continued support in our difficult uphill but needed mission. I am obviously ready to go into more detail in a separate meeting later.”
2015-07-29 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7497 (2015) · source
“The effort should be led by a steering committee, and the framework document should also provide for a transitional governing body idea, a procedure for a national dialogue and so on. Such an international initiative will require the support of a contact group, and we will get to that at the right time. In all of these matters, I shall seek the Council's support, and, as the Secretary-General said, stand ready to regularly report to the Council and to the Secretary- General on the progress or challenges that we will definitely face. The consultations have gone some way towards identifying existing common ground. They also still hold the promise that a set of formula negotiations could convene after preparing the ground, if there is political will.”
2015-07-29 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7497 (2015) · source
“The fourth phase will involve public institutions, construction and development, which means that, as we said, we should try to avoid what happened in Iraq and elsewhere when institutions suddenly disappeared and the country got into major difficulties. Those institutions should continue to deliver public services under a top leadership acceptable to all and acting in accordance with the principles of good governance and human rights. We believe that the working groups will start generating movement towards a Syrian-owned framework document on the implementation of the Geneva communique, and those efforts can build on the very useful meetings that took place in Moscow, Cairo, Paris and even Astana recently, and many track- two initiatives.”
2015-07-29 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7497 (2015) · source
“I now intend to invite Syrians to parallel simultaneous thematic discussions through an intra-Syrian working group, addressing the key aspects of the Geneva communique as identified by them in the first phase of the consultations, which will involve ensuring safety and protection for all, ending sieges and figuring out how do so, ensuring medical access and releasing detainees. The second phase will address political and constitutional issues, including the essential principles, the transitional governing body and elections. The third phase will concern military and security issues, including combating terrorism in an effective, inclusive way, ceasefires and integration.”
2015-07-29 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7497 (2015) · source
“But we cannotjust let the situation in Syria continue to drift. That is why, based on the appeal and the urging of the Secretary-General, we need to move in a direction where Syrians come together to stop the violence and to set out on an irreversible path towards a genuine political transition. That leads us to the main recommendations. The Geneva consultation got Syrians to again begin talking to each other - sometimes indirectly through us, but they did. What I am proposing today is actually a deepening - going much deeper into those issues in the Geneva communique' that are not so controversial and analysing those that can be controversial.”
2015-07-29 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7497 (2015) · source
“We have come up with a detailed formula for the phased implementation of the Geneva communique, so that there will be no excuses when a political consensus is reached, including on a transitional governing body, which could assume the functions of a Government; a definition of mutual consent noted in the Geneva communique; the functioning of a military council and a Syrian national congress for national dialogue in a constitutional form, combined with confidence-building measures. Ours is a straightforward interpretation formula for the implementation of the communique. Regrettably, the consultations also confirmed that achieving an agreement on this will be difficult in the current Syrian context. In fact, many have also urged us not to convene a third Geneva conference because we are not yet there.”
2015-07-29 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7497 (2015) · source
“This is the first time, by the way, that the Syrian people have been given a chance, as they told us, to be deeply and intensely consulted. After all, we always ask: Is it Syrian-led and Syrian involved? Well, this was the opportunity. Our recommendations are predicated on the need for regional and international consensus and sustained engagement on the way forward. In response to the Secretary-General's instructions that we should try to operationalize the Geneva communique, my team and I have consulted widely, inside and outside, to verify whether there exists a critical mass for common action. Ultimately, we have tried to visualize from a technical point of view the implementation of the Geneva communique in all its aspects, including a transitional governing body.”
2015-07-29 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7497 (2015) · source
“Sadly, there is still no consensus on the way forward on the communique or even a formalized negotiation. If there were, we would not be discussing it in the Council; we would be working on the negotiations. At the same time, given the deep and deepening tragedy, the United Nations and all of us are obliged to keep the issue alive and not leave any stone unturned. We must also be attuned to the ongoing serious conversations and discussions taking place - we are hearing them around the region and beyond - which may require more time and be linked to developments the Secretary- General just referred to. We have thus tried to develop recommendations guided by the views and analysis shared with us during the consultations.”
2015-07-29 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7497 (2015) · source