YouSaid · the spoken record

Polyanskiy

lines on the record: 2,335
first: 2018-01-31
most recent: 2023-12-22
sittings or episodes: 300
sources: un-security-council

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“In that connection, we would like to draw the Council's attention to the renewed activity of illegal armed groups in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, where civilians, Government security forces and peacekeepers are being systematically attacked. We are also concerned about the reports that after years of quiet, inter-tribal conflicts in the north-east of the country have broken out again. Needless to say, we were all concerned about the series of rebel attacks on peacekeepers at the end of last year. All of those factors should be taken into account during the work on the new mandate for the United Nations presence in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.”
2018-03-19 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8207 (2018) · source
“The primary responsibility for normalizing the situation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo belongs to its citizens themselves, and respect for the country's sovereignty is an absolute imperative. We again urge the Blue Helmets to act in accordance with the basic principles of peacebuilding and not to permit any interference in Kinshasa's internal affairs. Any situation in which MONUSCO supports a particular Congolese party is to be avoided at all costs. We assume that the Mission's main function is to stabilize the security situation, which in itself would also help to improve humanitarian access.”
2018-03-19 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8207 (2018) · source
“Last year Russia sent dozens of KAMAZ trucks to Uganda for use in United Nations humanitarian operations there, and we plan to transfer additional transport units for use in Uganda to the WFP this year as well. With regard to the country's overall situation, we hope that ensuring that the presidential elections scheduled for 23 December are held on time will help to reduce tensions in Congolese society. We call on the opposition forces to cooperate more actively with the Independent National Electoral Commission, recognize its proposed election dates and to refrain from any acts of violence. We are opposed to any efforts to mentor or impose recipes on Kinshasa regarding election issues. Nor should MONUSCO's role go beyond providing technical and logistical assistance to the national authorities in organizing and conducting the elections.”
2018-03-19 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8207 (2018) · source
“To date, we have written off more than $20 billion of underlying debt within the framework of the Heavily Indebted Poor Country Initiative, as well as implementing debt- for-development swaps. We consistently contribute to international assistance programmes for Africa through the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank, the World Health Organization, UNICEF, the World Food Programme (WFP) and the International Civil Defence Organization, and we also provide aid to the health sector. We were one of the first countries to respond to the Ebola epidemic, contributing more than $60 million to combating it. I would like to take this opportunity to express our gratitude to those neighbours of the Democratic Republic of the Congo who have been helping Congolese refugees. We will continue to provide them with appropriate assistance.”
2018-03-19 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8207 (2018) · source
“The situation with regard to food security, sanitation and epidemics is particularly worrying. A new wave of refugees will have negative humanitarian consequences both for the Democratic Republic of the Congo's neighbours, many of which are already dealing with acute humanitarian crises, and the Great Lakes region as a whole. These developments pose new challenges for the humanitarian community that it is unlikely to be able to cope with, considering the current funding available for humanitarian assistance. It will be essential for donors to step up their support for United Nations activities in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and its neighbours. For its part, Russia will continue to support such efforts. In particular, we are taking steps to relieve African countries' long-term debt.”
2018-03-19 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8207 (2018) · source
“Mr. Polyanskiy (Russian Federation) (spoke in Russian): We have taken note of the report by Mr. Lowcock, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, and we are grateful for his informative briefing and those of the other briefers, which were also helpful. We are concerned about the rapid deterioration in the humanitarian situation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It is sad that during the past year alone, according to United Nations estimates, we have seen the number of people in need of humanitarian aid grow by 50 per cent, while the cost of the humanitarian response plan for the country has almost doubled. We agree with the view that the reasons for the worsening humanitarian situation lie in the continuing inter-ethnic clashes and the activities of armed groups in the northern and eastern regions of the country.”
2018-03-19 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8207 (2018) · source
“We recall that they became operational only three years after that concept was approved. Finally, we draw attention to the need to adopt additional measures to ensure the security of peacekeepers. Like many of our colleagues, we are not satisfied with the information provided in the report of the Secretary-General regarding the pace of the investigations into the Semuliki incident. With regard to the mandate, it is necessary to discuss an entire range of difficult issues. For us, it is already clear that last year's reconfiguration of the Mission's strategic tasks neither improved its effectiveness nor helped the situation in the country.”
2018-03-07 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8198 (2018) · source
“And yet in yesterday's meeting with troop-contributing countries (see S/PV.8196), we were surprised to learn of the lack ofjoint operations with Kinshasa against the illegal armed groups. It is regrettable that some of the proposals of the strategic review are already being implemented without the authorization of the Security Council. In that regard, we would like to mention the concept of protecting civilians through the projection of force. We do not rule out the fact that its implementation could lead to complications in communication within the Mission and therefore, unfortunately, to a recurrence of the December incident in Semuliki. Achieving tangible results from new concepts takes time, as was the case with the so-called rapid deployment battalions.”
2018-03-07 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8198 (2018) · source
“We are puzzled by the Secretariat's rationale for its proposal to end the Mission's stabilization efforts and reduce its cooperation with Kinshasa in supporting camps for former combatants. It will be impossible to find a long- term solution to the problem of armed groups without restoring the Government entities in the east and settling the repatriation issue for former combatants. Besides that, the proposal for redeploying units of the Force Intervention Brigade is also unclear. According to the Secretariat, they should be evenly distributed among the four sectors of responsibility throughout the country. The Secretary-General's most recent report (S/2018/ 174) mentions the Brigade only once.”
2018-03-07 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8198 (2018) · source
“The series of rebel attacks on peacekeepers at the end of last year and the overall security situation the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo has led us to question the conclusions and proposals in the report on the Mission's strategic review. Before extending the Mission's mandate, we would like to see more attention paid to the following points. The situation with the illegal armed groups operating in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo is difficult and they are a very long way from being fully neutralized. The Mission's mandated task of protecting civilians from the armed groups running rampant in the east continues to be strategically important, and we think it would be ill-advised to divert its attention from dealing with that to other issues.”
2018-03-07 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8198 (2018) · source
“In that connection, we would like to draw attention to the recent increase in the activity of illegal armed groups in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, which have been conducting systematic attacks on civilians, Government security forces and peacekeepers. Changes in that negative trend should be used as a chief indicator of the country's stability. We were alarmed to learn that after years of calm, clashes between the Hema and Lendu ethnic groups in Ituri province in the country's north-east have broken out again. We have taken note of MONUSCO's decision to establish temporary bases in the area, strengthen patrols and continue consultations with the parties.”
2018-03-07 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8198 (2018) · source
“We hope that ensuring that the presidential elections scheduled for 23 December are held on time will help to reduce the tensions in society in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. We believe that for their part, the opposition forces should cooperate more actively with the Independent National Election Commission, recognize the proposed election dates and refrain from any violence. However, MONUSCO's role in organizing and conducting the elections should not go beyond providing the national authorities with technical and logistical assistance. In our View, the Mission's main job is to improve the security situation.”
2018-03-07 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8198 (2018) · source
“Mr. Polyanskiy (Russian Federation) (spoke in Russian): We welcome Ms. Leila Zerrougui, Special Representative of the Secretary-General for the Democratic Republic of the Congo, in her new role, and are grateful for her comprehensive briefing. We hope that as the new Head of United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO) she will be able to establish a constructive dialogue with the country's authorities and enable the Mission to function more effectively. I would also like to take this opportunity to welcome Mr. Leonard She Okitundu, Vice-Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to the Council.”
2018-03-07 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8198 (2018) · source
“We object to any attempt, through the Council, to introduce wording that would distort that fundamental principle in international law or use it to legitimize unilateral restrictions, regardless of any noble intentions that may be advanced. Our approach to the matter is well known. Unilateral sanctions, especially those imposed in addition to measures already agreed by the Security Council, are a path to nowhere. Not only do they not help to resolve crises but, as practice shows, they only serve to further escalate them.”
2018-02-28 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8194 (2018) · source
“Mr. Polyanskiy (Russian Federation) (spoke in Russian): The Russian Federation supportedthe adoption of resolution 2404 (2018), extending the mandate of the United Nations Integrated Peacebuilding Office in Guinea-Bissau. In taking that decision, we were guided by the importance of maintaining consensus within the Security Council. We also took into account the hopes expressed by our African partners. In that regard, we wish to stress that the acknowledgment contained in the document of instances of restrictions imposed by the Economic Community of West African States on a number of Guinea-Bissau actors does not signify their approval by the Council. Once again, we note the fact that the only legitimate international sanctions are those imposed by the Security Council, in line with Chapter VII of the Charter of the United Nations.”
2018-02-28 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8194 (2018) · source
“If the work of constitutional reform is not completed by the start of the next electoral cycle, the country risks encountering the same problems with the new parliament and President.”
2018-02-14 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8182 (2018) · source
“It would have been more logical to discuss how the United Nations Integrated Peacebuilding Office in Guinea-Bissau (UNIOGBIS) is implementing the provisions of its mandate with regard to building Guinea-Bissau's capacity to combat transnational crime and drug trafficking, after describing the actual state of affairs in those areas. In general, given the overall situation in Guinea- Bissau, we are willing to consider the Secretary- General's proposal to extend UNIOGBIS's mandate. However, we believe that the Special Representative should focus not only on helping the people of Guinea-Bissau emerge from their political deadlock and preparing for the parliamentary elections in May but also on effectively addressing the root causes of the problems in Guinea-Bissau, which lie in its Constitution's structural contradictions.”
2018-02-14 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8182 (2018) · source
“Regarding the possibility of imposing similar measures based on the provisions of Security Council resolution 2048 (2012), we would like to point out that the resolution's main aim was restoring constitutional order, which in practical terms was achieved several years ago now. The result is that the resolution's sanctions measures are very outdated. In our opinion its listing criteria have little to do with Guinea-Bissau's current political situation, and in any case would not be usable against participants in the political process who are acting within the law. We are compelled to conclude that the opinions of the Secretary-General's report on the security sector situation give the impression that things have been left unsaid.”
2018-02-14 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8182 (2018) · source
“We want to emphasize how crucial the Agreement is to mitigating the political hostility and reducing Guinea- Bissau's potential for conflict. We urge the country's executive and legislative representatives to focus on forming an inclusive Government, introducing reforms, especially in the security sector and the Constitution, and increasing their joint efforts to prepare for parliamentary and presidential elections. It will be vital to strengthen the constitutional order and the rule of law and resolve the accumulating socioeconomic issues. We are pleased that the country's political forces continue to act with regard for the law and that the military has remained neutral. We have taken note of the ECOWAS communique of 4 February on imposing targeted sanctions on 19 members of Guinea-Bissau's political elite.”
2018-02-14 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8182 (2018) · source
“Mr. Polyanskiy (Russian Federation) (spoke in Russian): We thank Mr. Modibo Toure, Special Representative of the Secretary-General, for his briefing on the evolving political situation in Guinea- Bissau. We take note of the report of the Secretary- General (S/2018/110) and the briefing by Mr. Mauro Vieira, Permanent Representative of Brazil and Chair of the Guinea-Bissau configuration of the Peacebuilding Commission. Russia supports the efforts ofthe United Nations, the African Union, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and the Community of Portuguese-speaking Countries to normalize the situation in Guinea-Bissau, which is undergoing a prolonged political, social and economic domestic crisis. We are concerned about the lack of tangible progress in implementing the Conakry Agreement.”
2018-02-14 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8182 (2018) · source
“However, we are very concerned about the attempts to delay a resolution of the repatriation issue on the pretext that Myanmar lacks the conditions for the safe, dignified and sustainable return and resettlement of repatriates. Needless to say, their living conditions must comply with humanitarian standards, but the arguments of those who are creating artificial obstacles to the process and inciting refugees by fuelling their anxiety are unacceptable. We will continue to urge all the parties to refrain from violence, emphasize the importance of respecting Myanmar's sovereignty and work to resolve the multilayered and complex problems in Rakhine by exclusively political means, through a dialogue between Naypyidaw and Dhaka and between representatives of all nationalities and faiths.”
2018-02-13 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8179 (2018) · source
“We believe that in the current circumstances it is important to facilitate a resolution of the Rakhine situation, focusing on practical assistance to the Governments of Myanmar and Bangladesh in a spirit of equality and mutual respect. We would like to emphasize that the Myanmar refugee situation is a issue of bilateral relations between Myanmar and Bangladesh that should be resolved through appropriate consultations. We realize that the Dhaka authorities are bearing a tremendous burden with regard to hosting and sheltering this huge number of refugees on their territory, one beyond the capacities of any single country, and the international community must therefore provide Bangladesh with all the support it needs in this area.”
2018-02-13 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8179 (2018) · source
“They visited the Kanyin Chaung economic zone and Ngakunya settlement, as well as refugee transit and reception camps. An inspection of the border zone was even arranged for the first of those groups. The situation regarding the repatriation of refugees continues to be very difficult, but we see some positive signs there too. We note the steps taken by Naypyidaw and Dhaka to implement their agreement, signed on 23 November 2017, on a programme for the return of persons displaced from Rakhine, including the convening on 15 and 16 January of the first meeting of the bilateral working group and its adoption of a plan for the return of Muslims who have fled to Bangladesh. In our View, the document has laid a foundation for solving the most difficult issues related to refugees' repatriation to Myanmar.”
2018-02-13 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8179 (2018) · source
“Regarding the international community attention to the efforts in Naypyidaw to implement the recommendations of the Advisory Commission led by Kofi Annan, we commend the work of the group of advisers under the Myanmar ministerial committee led by Thailand's former Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs Surakiart Sathirathai. The expanded access to Rakhine state being granted to foreign observers is a positive step. In particular, a number of groups of journalists have visited the region in recent weeks, including employees of Russian television. On 6 February, representatives of neighbouring states visited Rakhine, and the authorities organized a similar trip for representatives of the local diplomatic corps on 9 February.”
2018-02-13 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8179 (2018) · source
“The Myanmar authorities' planned social and economic development efforts there have in large part contributed to that, and steps are being taken to create special economic zones in the region. In the town of Maungdaw, in particular, the central market, which has more than 400 trade outlets, has reopened, and 16 closed-circuit television cameras have been installed for security and monitoring purposes. It is important to note that the central and regional authorities are prioritizing housing construction and modernization of road and transport infrastructure. In northern Rakhine, one transit and two reception centres for receiving refugees have been built, with 640 shelters that can provide temporary housing for more than 30,000 refugees.”
2018-02-13 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8179 (2018) · source
“Mr. Polyanskiy (Russian Federation) (spoke in Russian): We are grateful to Mr. Miroslav Jenea, Assistant Secretary-General for Political Affairs, and Mr. Filippo Grandi, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, for their substantive briefings. The complex, multifaceted topics they touched on require a painstaking and consistent approach on the part of the international community and thorough and impartial study by experts. Any labelling or attempts to use contradictory and subjective media reports, often hastily put together, to identify the guilty and condemn them only make it harder for us to arrive at a solution. In our opinion, the situation in the Rakhine national region, including its northern areas adjacent to Bangladesh, remains difficult but in general under control.”
2018-02-13 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8179 (2018) · source
“The United Nations integrated strategy for the Sahel region is a mechanism whose potential for making progress on these issues has not been fully exploited. The extension of the mandate of the United Nations Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus for another six months was an important step, since the mission will be particularly needed during the six-month pause in the direct talks on a settlement between the island's two communities. The slight reduction in the size of its military component should in no way affect its overall effectiveness. In conclusion, we would like to once again thank our friends from Kazakhstan and wish every success to the delegation of Kuwait, to which the baton of the presidency passes in February.”
2018-01-31 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8173 (2018) · source
“At Russia's initiative, the Council began discussing the creation of a new international investigative mechanism to replace the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons-United Nations Joint Investigative Mechanism, whose reputation is tainted. It will be important to ensure that any new entity works professionally and reliably to establish all the circumstances related to the use of poisonous substances, in strict conformity with Chemical Weapons Convention rules, in order to eventually ascertain the identity of the perpetrators of such acts. During the discussion in January of issues in West Africa and the Sahel-Saharan region (see S/PV.8156), we concluded that the countries of the region are all dealing with similar challenges and threats that should be combated through a multifaceted approach.”
2018-01-31 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8173 (2018) · source
“In Sochi, in the past few days, with the support of the United Nations, the partners in the Astana process and the leading regional states held the Syrian National Dialogue Congress, an unprecedentedly major event hosted by Russia. The Security Council has consistently emphasized that it is the Syrians themselves who must determine their country's future, and a wide representation of every stratum of Syrian society such as this is therefore simply crucial to enabling work to begin on such urgent issues as constitution-building. In that regard, our efforts dovetail fully with the logic of resolution 2254 (2015), and we hope that they will have an appropriate follow-up.”
2018-01-31 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8173 (2018) · source
“We firmly believe that breakthroughs will be possible only through coordinated international cooperation and the establishment of a unified agenda. We must strive to unite our efforts to combat terrorism and consolidate our approaches to settling serious regional crises. Russia is ready to participate in that work with all interested partners. Attempts to promote national agendas while ignoring the views of other Member States, which we unfortunately witnessed at the beginning of the month, are counterproductive and only make the quest for lasting solutions to the issues harder. In the past month, with regard to a settlement of the conflict in Syria, a ninth round of negotiations was held under the auspices of the United Nations. We are pleased that there has been no pause in the recent inter-Syrian talks.”
2018-01-31 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8173 (2018) · source
“We were pleased with the consultations on the activities of the United Nations Regional Centre for Preventive Diplomacy for Central Asia, which we see as a comprehensive political tool for establishing dialogue, cooperation and a peaceful resolution of the issues among Central Asian states. It was gratifying that for the first time in three years the Council was able to agree on a press statement regarding the Centre's activities (SC/13179). The quarterly debates on the Middle East have unfortunately confirmed the fact that the crisis trends in the region are still dominant. An episode of serious arrhythmia in the efforts to settle the Palestinian-Israeli conflict complicated the task of restarting a political dialogue. The situation in Yemen is rapidly deteriorating, while the state of affairs in Syria, Libya and Iraq remains difficult.”
2018-01-31 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8173 (2018) · source
“We welcomed the presidential statement on Afghanistan and Central Asia (S/PRST/2018/2), aimed at strengthening peace and stability in the region. It is important that we succeeded in reaching a mutual understanding on conflict prevention in the presidential statement. However, it was also clear that discussion of this pressing issue should continue in the wider format ofthe General Assembly and its specialized committees. We commend the Council's very well prepared mission to Kabul during Kazakhstan's presidency. After a gap of many years since the previous such visit, it once again demonstrated the Security Council's unity on the issue of the Afghan dossier and represented an important milestone in the context of resolving the country's situation.”
2018-01-31 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8173 (2018) · source
“The dangerous situation there, including the increasing risk of Afghanistan's northern provinces becoming a bridgehead for the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant, requires an integrated approach both from the regional Powers and the international community as a whole. We assume that within the framework of initiatives designed to promote Central Asian-Afghanistan cooperation, primary consideration will be given to the positive experience of the Moscow format and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization Afghanistan Contact Group. Mutually beneficial cooperation is what is needed in Eurasia today, and external actors should promote that rather than attempting to drag the countries of the region into a zero-sum game or present them with a false choice between North and South.”
2018-01-31 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8173 (2018) · source
“We believe firmly that the way to put an end to the risks and threats in this area is by observing the fundamental principles of international law and ensuring equal and indivisible security conditions for every country. The current state of affairs in the area of non-proliferation and disarmament urgently needs us to collaborate in the quest for ways to deal with its growing problems while at the same time maintaining cooperation mechanisms that have been proven to be effective and respecting the interests of all States. We greatly appreciated the holding of a ministerial-level debate on Afghanistan and Central Asia (see S/PV.8162). Kazakhstan's particular focus on the issue of Afghanistan has been backed up by Astana's responsible attitude to the quest for answers to the threats to the Central Asian region emanating from Afghanistan.”
2018-01-31 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8173 (2018) · source
“Mr. Polyanskiy (Russian Federation) (spoke in Russian): The Security Council's agenda for the past month has been especially full. We would like to thank you personally, Mr. President, and your entire team for your very professional and effective execution of your functions in the presidency. We appreciate the relevance of Kazakhstan's initiatives, which reflect the Council's central role in seeking and developing effective solutions to very difficult problems related to the maintenance of international peace and security. That applies particularly to the Security Council's meeting on the non-proliferation of weapons of mass destruction (see S/PV.8160).”
2018-01-31 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8173 (2018) · source