YouSaid · the spoken record

Mansour Ayyad Alotaibi

lines on the record: 27
first: 2020-05-27
most recent: 2021-06-18
sittings or episodes: 3
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

“Furthermore, we reaffirm the support of the State of Kuwait for a more transparent, efficient and accountable Security Council through the efforts of its members, including the Informal Working Group, and our readiness to support these efforts in any way we can.”
2021-06-18 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2021/572 (2021) · source
“As I have stated before and from my personal experience as a former chair of the Informal Working Group, I can testify with certainty that tangible and effective change in the working methods of the Council can only be achieved through cooperation and a genuine desire on the part of all members, as we have witnessed since the start of the pandemic. I hope that we shall continue to see such flexibility, creativity and willingness to pursue innovation and change after the pandemic has come to an end, thereby continuing to increase the Security Council’s effectiveness, capability and transparency. We urge all members of the Security Council to continue to adapt Council working methods to their needs, building upon current developments, while maintaining high standards of transparency and accountability.”
2021-06-18 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2021/572 (2021) · source
“We are pleased to see the Security Council and the United Nations as a whole transitioning in orderly fashion from virtual meetings to in-person meetings as the restrictions imposed on New York City due to the COVID-19 pandemic are lifted. Following the outbreak of the virus and its impact on our working l ives, the Council successfully adapted to the exceptional circumstances, showing considerable ingenuity and flexibility by developing new, temporary working methods. This is a positive example of what can be achieved when Council members come together and engage constructively to ensure the continued effectiveness of Council work.”
2021-06-18 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2021/572 (2021) · source
“I am delighted to see the Council going to such lengths to ensure that its annual report to the General Assembly is submitted on time. However, we shall continue to encourage members to ensure that its substance is more analytical and detailed. Another topic which we believe is important to consider is the issue of due process within the context of the Security Council’s sanctions committees, including the role of the Ombudsman in this regard; this issue is of considerable importance to many Member States outside the Council. If Council measures or press statements are embargoed by certain members and consensus cannot be reached, we should encourage select groups of Council members to make joint oral or written public statements, particularly when pressing issues are involved.”
2021-06-18 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2021/572 (2021) · source
“As such, if informal consultations have been scheduled, members of the Council might be encouraged not to speak in public. If members are disposed to make public statements, they might be encouraged to be brief and to leave more substantive discussion for informal consultations. The President could consult with speakers before determining the format of a Council meeting. For example, if a speaker indicates that he has certain information which he would prefer to convey to members of the Council confidentially, the session could adopt the format of a private or informal consultation. In addition, the Secretariat, penholder or President could advise on the desirability of holding meetings on the basis of mandated reporting cycles and decide whether or not it is necessary to hold a Council meeting that particular month.”
2021-06-18 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2021/572 (2021) · source
“We continue to stress the importance of the “penholder” issue and the need to develop a process of fair distribution of responsibilities among members of the Security Council: a large amount of work still needs to be done to ensure active and fair participation of all members in decision-making, noting that this issue has been debated intensively by the Informal Working Group in recent years, including during the time that Kuwait was its chair. I am pleased that Saint Vincent and the Grenadines has continued the debate within the framework of the Group and we hope to see tangible outcomes in the near future. Striking a balance between transparency and efficiency remains an important issue and one that needs further discussion, particularly in view of the increase in the Council’s workload in recent years.”
2021-06-18 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2021/572 (2021) · source
“It is essential to continue to ensure full implementation of note 507, including the eight presidential notes agreed in December 2019, when Kuwait was chair of the Informal Working Group, which contain various suggestions on a number of issues and topics designed to improve the transparency and efficiency of the Counci l. These include, inter alia, increasing the transparency of the Council’s informal sessions and activities and of the selection process for heads of subsidiary bodies and visiting missions, as well as several additional proposals designed to enhance the preparedness of incoming members of the Security Council.”
2021-06-18 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2021/572 (2021) · source
“In line with the goals and guidelines set out in the concept note circulated by the President of the Security Council, permit me to share with you the following proposals and: In the light of the aforementioned provisional measures applied to Council working methods last year and as we work towards a return to normality, we believe that the Council could still retain some of the innovative practices developed during the pandemic to make its work more flexible and efficient, including continuing to allow some speakers to participate in meetings by video link, if unable to attend in person.”
2021-06-18 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2021/572 (2021) · source
“As we have seen, this unprecedented global health crisis has had an enormous impact on the work and performance of the United Nations, including the Security Council over the past year. We welcome the provisional measures adopted by the Council to adapt to the situation, while maintaining continuity of operations in line with article 28 of the Charter of the United Nations. I should like to commend the leadership of Ambassador Inga Rhonda King, Chair of the Informal Working Group on Documentation and Other Procedural Questions, for ensuring continuity of its meetings and business during this period.”
2021-06-18 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2021/572 (2021) · source
“At the outset, I should like to express my gratitude and appreciation to Estonia, president of the Security Council this month, and to Saint Vincent and the Grenadines for holding this open debate on the working methods of the Security Council. I am delighted to see that the practice of holding an annual open debate on this important subject is continuing, pursuant to paragraph 100 of note S/2017/507 of the President of the Security Council, despite the extraordinary circumstances we continue to face due to the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic. The State of Kuwait adds its voice in favour of the joint statement circulated by New Zealand on behalf of several former elected members of the Security Council. This is the second open debate on Security Council working methods to be held against the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic.”
2021-06-18 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2021/572 (2021) · source
“Since the outbreak of the pandemic, the State of Kuwait has been a part of the international efforts to confront COVID-19. It has expressed its full support for the appeal of the Secretary-General for a global ceasefire on more than one occasion and has participated in various regional and international meetings on combating the pandemic. To date, the State of Kuwait has provided $100 million to support global efforts to combat the virus. I renew the commitment of the State of Kuwait to support all international efforts aimed at preserving human life, protecting people’s health and overcoming COVID-19. I must take this opportunity to thank and appreciate all health professionals around the world and front-line responders for their noble and courageous efforts to confront COVID-19.”
2020-07-02 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2020/663 (2020) · source
“We also need to work to build the health capabilities of vulnerable countries and societies; provide medical and preventive supplies and equipment to enable health systems around the world to confront the pandemic; ensure continued delivery of humanitarian aid, in the light of the pandemic’s spread, to those in need in areas of conflict and natural disasters; and strengthen conflict prevention measures. It is difficult to achieve those goals without a comprehensive and effective system of multilateralism that contributes to coordinating the efforts of the entire United Nations system, regional organizations, international financial institutions and other multilateral entities in order to overcome the most difficult common challenge facing our world today.”
2020-07-02 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2020/663 (2020) · source
“Furthermore, there is no doubt that the pandemic might have repercussions at the political level related to the ability of countries and Governments to respond effectively and efficiently to limit its spread and provide the necessary medical care to those in need. In addition, we see that the pandemic has complicated the way forward for political processes in some conflict areas. Faced with those impacts of COVID-19, we urgently need collective and joint action and to unite efforts and visions in order to overcome this deadly disease by utilizing all the tools we have at our disposal and mobilizing the energy of experts, scientists and specialists to find a vaccine and ensure its equitable distribution, especially in developing countries.”
2020-07-02 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2020/663 (2020) · source
“The effects of the pandemic are expected to touch on many of the issues discussed at the United Nations in general, and in the Security Council in particular. On the humanitarian front, we are witnessing that the humanitarian situation has started to deteriorate in a number of conflict-stricken areas and areas that suffer from fragile health systems as a result of years of war and destruction. Likewise, the spread of the virus will have economic and social effects that may reverse the development gains some countries have achieved, which may exacerbate the root causes of armed conflicts, such as unemployment, poverty, inequality and competition for natural resources.”
2020-07-02 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2020/663 (2020) · source
“We have seen some other initiatives aimed at mobilizing international efforts to reduce the spread of the virus and its effects on societies and people, especially the most vulnerable, such as women, children, people with special needs and displaced persons. But there is still more that can be done in that regard. The world needs more serious and decisive stances. In that regard, we welcome the adoption by the Security Council of resolution 2532 (2020), on this global health crisis, which we believe constitutes a threat to international peace and security. We note that the Council previously held clear positions on other health crises, such as Ebola and HIV/AIDS. I would like to pay tribute to the efforts of Tunisia and France in the past few months to adopt a Council resolution on COVID-19.”
2020-07-02 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2020/663 (2020) · source
“The pandemic is, as described by the Secretary-General, the biggest challenge facing the world since the Second World War. It is also a living example of the close links between pandemics and security. That requires all of us to join efforts to confront epidemics and global health crises and to limit their harsh impact, through cooperation and coordination via the international multilateral system and regional and international organizations. A global crisis such as this requires global solutions. We all witnessed the Secretary-General’s historic appeal on 23 March 2020 for a global ceasefire in areas with armed conflict in order to focus together on the real battle in our lives — addressing COVID-19.”
2020-07-02 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2020/663 (2020) · source
“At the outset, I would like to congratulate you, Mr. President, on your country’s assumption of the presidency of the Security Council for this month. We are confident, Sir, that you will steer the work of the Council successfully. I would also like to thank Germany for choosing today’s topic of discussion and for the preparation of the concept paper for this important meeting (S/2020/571). The world is living in unprecedented times as a result of the outbreak of coronavirus disease (COVID-19). The pandemic poses a transboundary threat, has had an impact on all aspects of our lives — health, economic, social and political — has led to the death of half a million people and has infected 10 million more all over the world.”
2020-07-02 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2020/663 (2020) · source
“In conclusion, we urge all members of the Security Council to intensify their efforts to ensure that innocent civilians do not pay the price for conflicts in which they have unwittingly been caught up and that the protection of civilians agenda is implemented fully. As we mark the seventy-fifth anniversary of the founding of the United Nations, it is vital that we unite our efforts and mobilize the political will needed to strengthen the protection of civilians trapped amid endless conflicts around the world. Kuwait stands ready to continue to support those efforts.”
2020-05-27 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2020/465 (2020) · source
“Thirdly and last, we welcome the Secretary-General’s increased focus in his report on new technologies and their impact on armed conflict. Some digital technologies have contributed to the protection of civilians and provided a range of opportunities for clear reporting on the number of victims and cases of missing persons. They have, however, also been misused by certain parties to conflicts, aggravating violence in some areas. We therefore call on the Security Council to stress the need to address the harmful misuse of digital technology and ensure that those new tools are used in compliance with existing obligations under international law and the Charter of the United Nations.”
2020-05-27 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2020/465 (2020) · source
“Secondly, we recall that violence and armed conflict, along with other factors such as bureaucracy and certain obstacles caused by sanctions and counter- terrorism measures, continue to hinder access to humanitarian aid. We therefore call on the Security Council to urge the parties to armed conflicts to ensure that humanitarian aid and goods are delivered to civilians in need wherever they are, and to condemn ongoing violence against humanitarian workers and assets, including killings, attacks, arbitrary detention, theft and the commandeering by the military of humanitarian sites. We call again for use of the veto to be refrained from when it comes to questions of access to humanitarian aid for civilians in need and under siege in times of conflict.”
2020-05-27 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2020/465 (2020) · source
“It is clear from the report of the Secretary-General that the suffering of civilians could be greatly reduced if all parties to conflicts respected international humanitarian and human rights law. There must be accountability for crimes committed in violation of that law so as to ensure that justice is served and victims have recourse to legal redress. As underlined in the report, those factors remain the most pressing challenges to strengthening the protection of civilians. We therefore urge the Security Council to continue to take effective measures to ensure compliance with international law and to develop the accountability measures necessary to strengthen effective protection of conflict-affected populations, in particular in the light of the COVID-19 pandemic.”
2020-05-27 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2020/465 (2020) · source
“Member States should therefore ensure that they have appropriate national laws and policies to prevent persons from going missing. We encourage all parties concerned to take the measures necessary to address this issue in line with resolution 2474 (2019). Aside from the issue of missing persons, the Secretary-General paints a bleak picture in his annual report of the current situation with regard to the protection of civilians. The global civilian death toll and numbers of wounded and displaced persons remain unacceptably high. In that regard, Kuwait would like to underscore the following points. First, we reiterate the importance of ensuring compliance with the relevant provisions of international law and accountability for violations in situations of armed conflict.”
2020-05-27 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2020/465 (2020) · source
“In it, the Council calls on all parties to armed conflict to take appropriate measures to prevent persons from going missing, to actively search for persons reported missing, to enable the return of their remains, and to ensure impartial and effective investigations and the prosecution of offences linked to missing persons as a result of armed conflict. Another aim of the resolution is to reaffirm the relevant rules of international humanitarian and human rights law. We welcome the level of detail in the section on missing persons in this year’s report of the Secretary-General (S/2020/366), but note that there has been no let- up in the alarming number of cases of persons who have gone missing in armed conflicts over the past year.”
2020-05-27 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2020/465 (2020) · source
“During that time, it has contributed actively to the protection of civilians agenda by sponsoring, alongside the Netherlands, Sweden and Côte d’Ivoire, resolution 2417 (2018) on conflict and hunger. It also sponsored resolution 2474 (2019), on missing persons in armed conflict, which was adopted unanimously on 11 June 2019. That resolution, which was inspired by a desire to strengthen the institutional and normative framework for the protection of civilians and by our country’s own bitter experience, which continues to be a source of suffering for many Kuwaitis, was the first to be issued by the Council specifically addressing the issue of missing persons in armed conflict.”
2020-05-27 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2020/465 (2020) · source
“The virus not only poses a grave threat to the health of us all. It is also exacerbating the security and safety challenges facing civilians because of ongoing armed conflicts. For that reason, the protection of civilians agenda has taken on even greater importance. Kuwait welcomes and continues to support the appeal by the Secretary-General, António Guterres, for an immediate global ceasefire in the light of the pandemic. It urges the Security Council, as the United Nations body entrusted with maintaining international peace and security, to support that call. This meeting marks the first time that Kuwait has participated in an open debate of the Security Council on the protection of civilians in armed conflict since its term as a non-permanent member of the Council for the period 2018–2019 came to a close.”
2020-05-27 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2020/465 (2020) · source
“This annual open debate provides the Security Council and, more broadly, States Members of the United Nations with a unique opportunity to have a frank discussion about the cur-rent situation with regard to the protection of civilians in armed conflict, enhance compliance with international law and related accountability measures, and propose tangible steps to ensure that the protection of civilians agenda is implemented by Member States, the United Nations and other stakeholders, based on the Secretary-General’s annual report on the subject, in particular given the new challenges we face with the spread of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Today’s meeting is taking place in unprecedented circumstances, as the United Nations and the international community continue to combat the spread of COVID-19 worldwide.”
2020-05-27 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2020/465 (2020) · source
“First, I would like to thank Estonia for convening the open video-teleconference on this important subject and to express appreciation to Her Excellency Mrs. Kersti Kaljulaid, President of Estonia, for taking part. Kuwait aligns itself with the joint statement circulated by Switzerland on behalf of the Group of Friends on the Protection of Civilians.”
2020-05-27 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2020/465 (2020) · source