YouSaid · the spoken record

Kerry

lines on the record: 74
first: 2013-09-27
most recent: 2023-06-13
sittings or episodes: 5
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

“But I am convinced that it can be found through a broadly supported diplomatic initiative aimed at a negotiated political transition, a transition that has been accepted by the Security Council and by participants of the Permanent Five, consistent with the Geneva communique, which would unite all Syrians who reject dictatorship and terrorism and want to build a stable and united society. So, in conclusion, I call on all Governments concerned, including Russia and Syria, to support a United Nations initiative to broker a political transition. Further delay is unconscionable. The opportunity is before us, and if we can succeed in marginalizing the terrorists in Syria and in bringing the country together, we can all of us together do exactly what this was set up to do - the Security Council and this institution.”
2015-09-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7527 (2015) · source
“But the reality is that Al-Assad has rarely chosen himself to fight ISIL. As the terrorists made inroads throughout large swathes of Syria and Iraq, raping, enslaving and murdering civilians along the way, the Syrian regime did not try to stop them. Instead, it focused all of its military power on moderate opposition groups that were fighting for a voice in Syria. Make no mistake: the answer to the Syrian civil war cannot be found in a military alliance with Al-Assad.”
2015-09-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7527 (2015) · source
“We know that the terrorists can neither unite the country nor govern it. We know that Al-Assad can neither unite the country nor govern it. Neither extreme offers the solution that we need and want. What is more, our ability to develop a credible international political process would be a farce from the beginning, incredible enough that it would not stop people from fighting, if it were perceived as a way to extend or strengthen Al-Assad's hold on power. As President Obama said on Monday, the United States is prepared to work with any nation, including Russia and Iran, to resolve the conflict, but we must recognize that there cannot be, after so much bloodshed, so much carnage, a simple return to the prewar status quo. My colleagues from the Government of Russia have argued that we must support Al-Assad in order to defeat ISIL.”
2015-09-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7527 (2015) · source
“The parents were outraged by the fact that their children, demonstrating peacefully, had been beaten up, and they went out with their kids, and they were met with bullets. That is how this whole thing began 4 people in a country looking for a future who are instead met with repression, with torture, with gassing, with barrel bombs. Al-Assad will never be accepted by those whom he has harmed; it will never be possible for him to become a legitimate leader in future or to lead a reconciliation or unification of the country. That cannot happen until he makes clear his willingness to actually heal the nation, end the war and decline to be part of the long-term future. Today we must be focused on finding a solution that will stop the killing and lay the groundwork for a Government that the Syrian people themselves can support.”
2015-09-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7527 (2015) · source
“One thing is certain: the vast majority of States represented around this table know that the ISIL forces and ISIL itself cannot be defeated as long as Bashar Al-Assad remains president of Syria. It cannot happen by definition of the lines of this battle. It cannot happen because of who has lined up with whom and because of the nature of these protagonists. The reason for that is defined in the beginning by how this fight itself began. This fight began when young people, young Syrians looking for a future, wanting nothing more than opportunity in jobs and education, went out to demonstrate for the future and to claim the aspirations of young people, and Al-Assad sent his thugs out to beat them up.”
2015-09-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7527 (2015) · source
“That is what we will do. Over the coming weeks, we will be continuing our flights out of Incirlik base in Turkey to apply constant pressure on strategic areas held by ISIL in north- west Syria. We will also be sustaining our support to anti-ISIL fighters in north-east Syria. These efforts will put greater pressure on ISIL's operational areas, and we will ensure, through precision airstrikes, that ISIL leaders do not have any sanctuary anywhere on the ground in Syria. So ISIL will soon face increasing pressure from multiple directions across the battlefield in Syria and Iraq. But as we have said from the start, and as the Geneva communique (S/2012/522, annex) codifies, this fight cannot be won in the military sphere. It will require a political solution to the crisis of Syria.”
2015-09-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7527 (2015) · source
“In addition, we continue to admire the courage and the resilience that has been demonstrated for four long years of struggle by the legitimate opposition to Al-Assad. Let me remind the Council that coalition air operations are grounded in well-established military procedures firmly based in international law and the requests of neighbouring States for collective self- defence under Article 51 of the United Nations Charter. The foundation has not changed, and we will continue our mission with the full sanction of international law. Pursuant to these procedures in Syria over the past year, the coalition has now conducted nearly 3,000 airstrikes against ISIL targets, and we are now in position, with France, Australia, Canada, Turkey and other coalition partners joining the campaign, to dramatically accelerate our efforts.”
2015-09-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7527 (2015) · source
“Let me be clear: the coalition that we have built, more than 60 countries strong, has been taking on ISIL for more than a year by liberating Sinjar mountain, liberating Kobani, liberating Tikrit, where now more than 100,000 residents have been able to return to their homes and resume their lives, defending Mosul dam, defending Haditha, protecting Baghdad, rescuing endangered minorities, killing ISIL leaders and facilitators, and taking away the entire northern border of Syria for ISIL east of the Euphrates River. At the same time, we have mounted a comprehensive campaign to cut terrorist financing, curb the recruitment of foreign fighters and expose the lies that ISIL has perpetrated. Today, even as we speak, south of Kirkuk, Kurdish peshmerga are heroically liberating villages from ISIL under the cover of coalition airstrikes.”
2015-09-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7527 (2015) · source
“Moreover, we have also made clear that we would have grave concerns should Russia strike areas where ISIL- and Al-Qaida- affiliated targets are not operating. Strikes of that kind would bring into question Russia's real intentions in fighting ISIL or protecting the Al-Assad regime. We have informed Russia that we are prepared to hold these de-confliction talks as early as possible this week. But let me be clear: the United States and the coalition will continue our ongoing air operations, as we have from the very beginning. We have conducted a number of strikes against ISIL targets in Syria over the past 24 hours, including just an hour ago, and these strikes will continue.”
2015-09-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7527 (2015) · source
“Both resolutions 2139 (2014) and 2165 (2014) - everyone around this table voted for them - clearly require humanitarian access to besieged areas and specifically call for an end to barrel bombs and the use of starvation as a weapon of war. I would now like to add a few thoughts specifically pertaining to Syria, ISIL and Russia. The United States supports any genuine effort to fight ISIL and Al-Qaida- affiliated groups, especially the Al-Nusra Front. If Russia's recent actions, and those now ongoing, reflect a genuine commitment to defeat that organization, then we are prepared to welcome those efforts and find a way to de-conflict our operations, thereby multiplying the military pressure on ISIL and affiliated groups. But we must not and will not be confused in our fight against ISIL with support for Al-Assad.”
2015-09-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7527 (2015) · source
“Meanwhile, we have to continue our efforts to alleviate the immediate hardships that terrorist are causing. While we have been pushing humanitarian relief into areas, the international community absolutely has to do more. We are staring at a humanitarian catastrophe unfolding not in one or two places, but simultaneously in multiple places. The humanitarian disaster that we are witnessing, in and of itself, should be enough reason to take on ISIL. Over the past several days, that has been a major topic of our discussions here. But it has to remain a core concern for all of us in the weeks to come. Every Nation can do more.”
2015-09-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7527 (2015) · source
“There are countless countries in which 60 to 65 per cent of the population are under the age of 30 or 25, and in other cases under the age of 18. Unless they find opportunities and options, their minds will be stolen and their opportunities will be robbed forever by bad actors who grab them in that vacuum. We also need to improve governance and enhance economic opportunities so that radicalization is less likely. Too many places still see too much corruption, and corruption robs the populations of their due and possibilities. In each of those areas, we intend to work hard with all members of the Security Council and with others not present to improve our chance for success by working with the concerned elements of civil society, including non-governmental organizations, religious leaders and the private sector.”
2015-09-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7527 (2015) · source
“We welcome the large number of nations that have joined as international actors in thecounter-ISIL coalition, the Global Counterterrorism Forum and other regional organizations. But, obviously, more needs to be done. We have been able to counter some foreign fighters and keep them from travelling, but still too many of them have been able to travel and reach their destinations. We have been able to slow down and stop some elements of the financing, but too much money is still able to reach terrorist activities and actors. Our goal is to take urgent actions against immediate threats, while also facing up to longer-term measures that prevent the recruitment of future generations of terrorists, improve governance and enhance economic opportunities so that radicalization is less likely. That is an enormous challenge for all of us; we know it.”
2015-09-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7527 (2015) · source
“The latter is particularly challenging in this world ofconstant media and non-stop access, 24/7/365. We are living in a very different world, and terrorists have learned how to exploit media in all kinds of ways. We also need to exert pressure in support of peace, perhaps one of the most important components of our responsibility, in places such as Libya, for instance, where instability fuels the kind of chaos and fear in which extremist organizations thrive. We see that now with the presence of ISIL in Libya. Accordingly, that is the fundamental strategy that we have laid out for countering violent extremism. We have adopted that strategy. We are strongly engaged in implementing it.”
2015-09-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7527 (2015) · source
“We all oppose the atrocities that they commit, and we all want to end the suffering that they continue to inflict. There is no debate about that. The question that we face is how one best does that. There are basic principles that we believe should guide our strategy. First, in confronting terrorism, we have to take a comprehensive approach. That was quite eloquently spoken about by our Heads of State at the summit on countering violent extremism that President Obama hosted. There was a great deal of discussion. I thought that there were some very articulate statements about how one should approach the root causes. We have to deny safehavens, disrupt the flow of foreign fighters, block access to financing and expose the lies that terrorist groups propagate.”
2015-09-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7527 (2015) · source
“I thank you, Mr. President, for this chance to address my colleagues on the Security Council. I appreciate the fact that Russia's presidency has chosen to focus on this issue. I welcome the opportunity to talk about the urgent challenge of countering terrorism in the Middle East, North Africa and elsewhere. This is a topic that the Council has explored many times. Going back to the attacks of 11 September 2001, and even prior to that, we have come together fairly often to condemn terrorism and to take concerted action to counter violent extremist organizations. Therefore, this is not a debate about goals - I do not think. We all oppose the aggressive ambitions of organizations such as the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) and FAl-Qaida, as well as well as groups that imitate them or are affiliated with them.”
2015-09-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7527 (2015) · source
“We say with one voice that atrocities carried out with the world's most heinous weapons will not be tolerated. And when institutions like the Security Council stand up to defend the principles and values that we all share, and when when we put violent regimes on notice that the world will unite against them, it will lead not only to a safer Syria, but to a safer world.”
2013-09-27 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7038 (2013) · source
“We must work together with the same determination and the same cooperation that have brought us here tonight in order to end the conflict that continues to tear Syria apart, even this very day. We must continue to provide desperately needed humanitarian aid, and neither Al-Assad nor anyone else should stand between that aid and the people who need it. Only when we do those things will we have fulfilled our responsibility to the Syrian people and to ourselves. Only then will we have advanced our own interests and our own security and that of our allies in the region. Only then will we have shown that the Security Council is meeting its responsibility to enforce international peace and security. So we are here united tonight in support of our belief that international institutions do matter; that international norms matter.”
2013-09-27 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7038 (2013) · source
“But thanks to the cooperation within the five permanent members of the Security Council, and thanks to our friends and partners around the world, many of whom are here in this Chamber, the Council has shown that when we put aside politics for the common good, we are still capable of doing big things. Provided the resolution is fully implemented, we will have eliminated one of the largest chemical weapons programmes on Earth from one of the most volatile places on Earth. The Al-Assad regime carries the burden of meeting the terms of this agreement, and when it comes to those who murder their own citizens, the world's patience needs to be short. But make no mistake - the rest of the world still carries the burden of doing what we must do to end mass killing by other means.”
2013-09-27 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7038 (2013) · source
“Syria cannot select or reject the inspectors. Syria must give those inspectors unfettered access to any and all sites and to any and all people. We also wanted a resolution that would be enforced, and, again, that is what the Security Council has adopted. We are here because actions have consequences, and now, should the regime fail to act, there will be consequences. Progress will be reported back to the Security Council frequently, and, in the event of non-compliance, the Council will impose measures under Chapter VII of the Charter of the United Nations. Just two weeks ago, when the Syrian regime would not even acknowledge the vast supply of chemical weapons and say that they existed, this outcome, frankly, would have been utterly unimaginable.”
2013-09-27 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7038 (2013) · source
“Our aim was also to hold the Al-Assad regime publicly accountable for its horrific use of chemical weapons against its own people on 21 August, and this resolution makes clear that those responsible for that heinous act must be held accountable. In the resolution just adopted, the Council has, importantly, endorsed the Geneva communique (S/2012/523, annex), which calls for a transfer of power to a transitional governing body, paving the way for democratic elections and a Government that can be chosen by the people of Syria to represent the people of Syria. We sought a legally binding resolution, and that is what the Security Council has adopted. For the first time since Syria's civil war began, the Security Council is spelling out in detail what Syria must do to comply with its legal obligations.”
2013-09-27 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7038 (2013) · source
“I also want to thank my good friends and counterparts, Foreign Secretary Hague and Foreign Minister Fabius, who have been partners every step of the way. Our original objective was to degrade and deter Syria's chemical-weapons capability. The option of military force that President Obama has kept on the table could have achieved that, but tonight's resolution in fact accomplishes even more. Through peaceful means, it will for the first time seek to eliminate entirely the nation's chemical-weapons capability and, in this case, specifically Syria's. On-site inspections of the places where those weapons are stored will begin by November, and under the terms of this agreement those weapons will be removed and destroyed by the middle of next year.”
2013-09-27 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7038 (2013) · source
“As a community of nations, we reaffirm our responsibility to defend the defenceless, those whose lives remain at risk every day that anyone believes that they can use weapons of mass destruction with impunity. Together the world, with a single voice, is imposing for the first time binding obligations on the Al-Assad regime requiring it to get rid of weapons that have been used to devastating effect as tools of terror. This important resolution reflects what President Obama and President Putin and colleagues around the world set out to do. I want to thank Foreign Minister Lavrov for his personal efforts and cooperation beginning before Geneva and continuing through this week so that we could find common ground.”
2013-09-27 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7038 (2013) · source
“Five weeks ago, the world saw rows upon rows of murdered children lying on a hospital floor alone or beside their slain parents, all wrapped in unbloodied burial shrouds, and the world's conscience was shocked. But our collective resolve hardened. Tonight, with a strong and forcible precedent-setting resolution requiring Syria to give up its chemical weapons, the Security Council has demonstrated that diplomacy can be so powerful that it can peacefully defuse the worst weapons of war. So tonight we are declaring together, for the first time, that the use of chemical weapons, which the world long ago determined to be beyond the bounds of acceptable human behaviour, is also a threat to international peace and security, anywhere they might be used, any time they might used, under any circumstances.”
2013-09-27 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7038 (2013) · source