YouSaid · the spoken record

Pressman

lines on the record: 643
first: 2014-10-24
most recent: 2016-10-19
sittings or episodes: 73
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

“Although the process took time, it represents the first democratic transition of political authority resulting from free and fair elections across the entirety of Kosovo's territory. This coalition Government and the process that led to its formation demonstrated the resilience and vitality of Kosovo's democratic and political institutions. The United States appreciates the leadership of President Jahjaga in helping to facilitate the political dialogue that led to the formation of the Government in accordance with Kosovo's Constitution. The new Government, which includes representatives of minority communities, has been tested over the past month by violent protests and by the separation from Government service yesterday of the Minister for Communities and Returns.”
2015-02-06 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7377 (2015) · source
“I thank Special Representative of the Secretary-General Zarif for his briefing. We welcome Foreign Ministers Thaci and Dacic' back to the Security Council. I commend both countries for their continued dedication to the normalization of relations. We particularly welcome Kosovo's continuing integration into the community of States, as demonstrated by its participation in regional meetings and forums in recent months. Specifically, we congratulate Kosovo on its recognition by the International Olympic Committee, and look forward to seeing Kosovo's athletes competing under the Kosovo flag in Rio de Janeiro in 2016. The United States welcomes the successful formation of a Government in Kosovo in December 2014.”
2015-02-06 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7377 (2015) · source
“After all, the best protection from sexual violence in conflict that targets women and girls is building societies where women and girls are respected and have equal access to justice, educational opportunities and health-care services - societies where women enjoy equal protection under the law and equal access to political space. The best protection, to borrow the final words of the woman slaughtered in ISIL's gruesome video, is the difficult and imperative work of building societies that value women's lives and minds and potential as much as their honour.”
2015-01-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7374 (2015) · source
“Women should not only be participating in peacekeeping operations, they should be leading them. While three women lead peace operations as Special Representatives of the Secretary-General - one as Force Commander and one as Acting Head - women head only 19 per cent of all United Nations field missions. While we welcome the deployment of three all-female United Nations police units in Liberia, Haiti and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, we recognize that 97 per cent of military troops and 90 per cent of police personnel in United Nations missions are men. If we are serious about expanding opportunity for women everywhere, we must expand opportunity for women right here. Expanding opportunity and empowering women in peacetime is essential to tackling the unique problems women confront in wartime.”
2015-01-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7374 (2015) · source
“More and more missions are providing more robust gender and conflict analysis in their reporting, but much remains to be done to link analysis and reporting to actionable recommendations, and actionable recommendations to actual action. Largely due to the work of organizations like those present here today, considerations on the risks confronted by women and girls are now being integrated into peace agreements. In 2013, more than half of all peace agreements signed included references to women and peace and security. The number of ceasefire agreements that include sexual violence as a prohibited act has tripled, as compared to only three agreements with such provisions having been signed prior to 2012. Here, too, at the United Nations, there is work to be done.”
2015-01-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7374 (2015) · source
“I mean, can anyone really disagree? But when called upon to act, too often we are too slow or too silent. When reports emerge of an alleged mass rape in Darfur and active obstruction by the host Government of the peacekeeping mission's ability to investigate becomes clear, the Council has an obligation to act. And yet, too often we do not. This must change, as our credibility depends on it, victims need it and justice demands it. We are making modest progress and there have been some developments in our collective efforts. Of nine United Nations peacekeeping operations cited in the last Secretary-General report on this topic, nearly 70 per cent of their military strategic concepts of operations include specific measures to protect the human rights of women and girls.”
2015-01-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7374 (2015) · source
“That means, at a minimum, that we must work to improve early- warning systems, especially for sexual violence, to help peacekeepers identify potential threats and take preventative action. Continued shortfalls in staffing critical peacekeeping missions in South Sudan, Mali and the Central African Republic have left civilians, particularly women and girls, vulnerable. When peacekeepers themselves become a part of the problem of sexual and gender-based violence, rather than a solution to it, it is our fundamental responsibility - indeed, it is a moral imperative - that we collectively ensure they are held accountable in a transparent and swift manner. The Security Council also must do more. It is easy enough for us to agree in an open debate in the Chamber that protecting women and girls in conflict is important.”
2015-01-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7374 (2015) · source
“Yet, again and again, there is a gap between what we say must happen and what actually does. We have seen peacekeeping missions fail to implement their mandates to protect civilians, thereby creating a substantial gap between principle and practice, between mandates and implementation. A report of the Office of Internal Oversight Services found that in 507 attacks against civilians, from 2010 to 2013, United Nations peacekeepers virtually never used force to protect civilians under attack. Thousands of civilians, countless women and children among them, may have lost their lives as a result. United Nations peacekeeping missions must do better when they are given a mandate to protect civilians in desperate need of protection.”
2015-01-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7374 (2015) · source
“In eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, the continued presence of armed groups amid an increasing number of displaced persons and refugees has led to shocking cruelty and rampant sexual violence. In one of the most devastating incidents, at least 387 people - including 300 women and 55 girls - were raped by armed groups in 13 villages in eastern Congo between 30 July and 2 August 2010, that is 387 rape Victims in three days. In the face of this kind of destabilizing cruelty and grotesque violence, the Council has mandated peacekeeping missions in places like the Democratic Republic of the Congo with the very difficult and very important work of protecting civilians. Indeed, 98 per cent of United Nations troops now serve in missions with mandates to protect civilians.”
2015-01-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7374 (2015) · source
“As the Secretary-General documented in his 2014 report on women and peace and security, the threats facing women and children in conflict are worsening, not improving, in many parts of the world. We can and we must work together to turn this tide. Defenders of women's human rights are increasingly targeted. Efforts to silence people like Razan Zeitouneh in Syria and Salwa Bugaighis in Libya are efforts to silence hope, curtail progress, impede justice and infringe upon the dignity of women, not just in Syria and in Libya, but around the world. We know that refugees and displaced persons are mostly women and children. And we know that they suffer disproportionately from sexual and gender-based violence.”
2015-01-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7374 (2015) · source
“The young woman, in what would be some of her final words, offers this advice to women: "Protect your honour more than your lives." The unique horror confronted by women and girls in conflict is as chilling as it is urgent. While conflict does not discriminate on the basis of gender, it does disproportionately affect those who are marginalized, vulnerable or oppressed. In too many societies around the world, for too long, women and girls have been marginalized, vulnerable or oppressed. Ifwe care about addressing the problems encountered by women and girls in wartime, we must be prepared to address the enduring problems of discrimination and inequality of women in peacetime.”
2015-01-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7374 (2015) · source
“In recent weeks, the Al-Qaida affiliate the Al-Nusra Front released a video that appears to depict a woman, arms seemingly bound behind her back, kneeling, while a man declares that she has been convicted of adultery by an Islamic court. The video then shows this woman being summarily shot in the head by a man who himself is clad in body armour. Last year, the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) released its own video that appears to depict a young woman being stoned to death in the presence of her father. In the final moments of the video, she is seen begging her father for forgiveness. She is then led to a hole dug in the earth surrounded by men who throw stones at her.”
2015-01-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7374 (2015) · source
“I thank you, Mr. President, for presiding over this important meeting. I would also like to thank Assistant Secretary- General Kang, Ms. Durham of the International Committee of the Red Cross and Ms. Elman of the NGO Working Group on Women, Peace and Security for their informative and moving briefings and tireless work on this important subject. Shortly after the Secretary-General released his report (S/20l4/693) on women and peace and security last year, the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria released a document of its own - a pamphlet of rules about how jihadists should handle trafficked women and girls, including those sold into sexual slavery.”
2015-01-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7374 (2015) · source
“Let us translate our commitment to the inclusion of women into the actual inclusion of women, and let us translate our hope for peace into the hard work of building it.”
2015-01-14 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7359 (2015) · source
“Peacekeepers are essential to establishing stable foundations for peace and development, and they are increasingly and appropriately being called on to protect civilians in dire need. Protecting civilians is not only an essential element in creating space for peace, it is vital to the credibility of the United Nations in the eyes of local populations and around the world. As such, it is essential for United Nations peacekeepers to carry out their protection of civilian mandates robustly and in a way that gives people confidence that we mean what we say. In that vein, let us mean what we say when we sit at this table and recommit ourselves to the work of the peacebuilding architecture.”
2015-01-14 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7359 (2015) · source
“We hope that the peacebuilding architecture review's advisory group of experts will heed those lessons and develop concrete recommendations to enhance the Peacebuilding Commission's relevance and real-world impact by focusing on achieving results through its core competencies of coordination, resource mobilization and advocacy. As others have noted, 2015 will also see the Secretary-General's high-level review of United Nations peace operations, as well as the global Ten- year Impact Study on Implementation of Security Council Resolution 1325 (2000) on Women, Peace and Security in Peacekeeping. We must challenge ourselves not to hive off our thinking about these issues in silos.”
2015-01-14 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7359 (2015) · source
“We must reflect on those lessons as we undertake the five-year review of the United Nations peacebuilding architecture. We have learned that peacebuilding requires sustained - not sporadic - and coordinated commitment on the part of national, regional and international actors. It requires inclusivity, meaning that women and girls are at the forefront and at the table, not an afterthought or excluded. It means that the international community holds political actors accountable to the agreements they undertake and the agreed frameworks to which they subscribe. And it means that addressing human rights abusers, hate and discrimination head-on is the path to sustainable peace, not a diversion or an obstacle.”
2015-01-14 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7359 (2015) · source
“A lack of vision on national reform, limited political will on the part of the international community and successive weak United Nations presences with little capacity to help develop State institutions further destabilized the country's weak governance structure and undermined social cohesion. Our action last year in authorizing an integrated peacekeeping mission to protect civilians, facilitate humanitarian access and support the State as it seeks to re-establish governance was necessary to stop the ensuing bloodshed. Bolstered by the contribution of troops from Member States from several regional organizations, and by humanitarian donations from around the globe, those collective actions represent the most comprehensive level of international engagement in the Central African Republic to date.”
2015-01-14 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7359 (2015) · source
“Their actions have exacerbated tensions, brought about tens of thousands of deaths and displaced nearly 2 million innocent people, and are bringing that young nation, the newest Member State of the United Nations, to the threshold of State failure. We cannot give up and we cannot allow the parties in South Sudan to abandon their people's aspirations and right to live in peace and prosperity. In standing with the people of South Sudan, we must be unified in our demand that the violence end and those responsible for the carnage be held to account. Until recently, successive conflicts in the Central African Republic received too little attention from the international community.”
2015-01-14 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7359 (2015) · source
“Unfortunately, international efforts have been less successful in producing results aimed at ending the enduring and daily threats to international peace and security in places like South Sudan. Despite a hard-won independence, South Sudan has erupted into deadly and devastating conflict, exacerbating ethnic tensions, eroding hope and provoking a dire and man-made humanitarian crisis. Despite one of the most comprehensive United Nations peacekeeping mandates ever adopted by the Council, historic levels of international support and almost infinite goodwill on the part of international partners, political leaders in South Sudan have prioritized political power and conflict over peace and stability.”
2015-01-14 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7359 (2015) · source
“We must build our peacebuilding efforts to ensure that they are inclusive, because in doing so we will make them more effective. The recent outbreak of Ebola presented a new kind of threat to international peace and security that has indeed demanded an unprecedented response. We commend the critical efforts of the United Nations to mobilize human, financial and technical resources to deliver an integrated response in the post-conflict countries of Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone. The Peacebuilding Commission can play an important role in bringing together key partners to coordinate assistance efforts and maximize the impact of the international community on the ground.”
2015-01-14 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7359 (2015) · source
“Kyrgyz women, with training from UN-Women and the United Nations Development Programme, have formed women's peace committees and become important actors in monitoring tensions and Government response within their communities, again building social cohesion, as well as trust, between local populations and authorities in regions affected by conflict. The full and equal inclusion of women and girls is not merely just; it is essential to building the peace of which we speak. Yet the participation of women in peacebuilding still receives too little attention and is too often underfunded and thought of as an effort to be inclusive rather than a recognition that women's full participation is a precondition for lasting peace. We must change that mindset and, in the process, change minds.”
2015-01-14 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7359 (2015) · source
“In Guinea, as the Deputy Secretary-General noted, the creation of a women's situation room for support to a network of local women's organizations during the 2013 parliamentary elections not only increased women's participation in the elections, it enabled them to take an active part as election monitors and helped build confidence in the entire electoral system. The creation of community-led early-childhood development centres in Cote d'Ivoire enhanced social cohesion by bringing together women of diverse backgrounds focused on the well-being of children.”
2015-01-14 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7359 (2015) · source
“That is why the work ofentities such as the United Nations Peace Fund for Nepal, which has designated 30 per cent of its funding for projects that address the needs of women and girls - including in the areas of land reform, conflict prevention, the rule of law and the reintegration of child soldiers - is so important. A project on land issues ensured extensive participation by women in consultations on land- use planning, a domain from which women had traditionally been excluded. Developments in Nepal demonstrate that appreciable progress can be made with targeted funding, leadership and capacities for gender-responsive programming.”
2015-01-14 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7359 (2015) · source
“For instance, United Nations support for institutions such as the All Political Parties Women's Association, with a target of 30 per cent female participation in all political parties, has increased women's participation in Sierra Leone's elections, thereby building public trust in the election process. And we know that women's full and equal participation, whether in forging peace agreements, electing leaders or leading post-conflict reconstruction, is absolutely critical to sustainable peace and stability. We cannot build peace for half ofa society and expect that peace to be meaningful or lasting.”
2015-01-14 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7359 (2015) · source
“In Sierra Leone, the integrated work of successive United Nations missions and a country team, as well as the engagement of the Peacebuilding Commission, has been critical to breaking the cycle of violence, providing space for a country and a people hungry for peace to turn their focus from war to prosperity, from conflict to electoral contests, from isolation to sustainable development. Sierra Leone has held three peaceful, credible elections since the end of the civil war in 2002, and new institutions, supported by the international community, are finding their place in society and contributing to the important work of building a Government that is responsive to its citizens. Support from the United Nations has been critical to that transition.”
2015-01-14 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7359 (2015) · source
“It is a challenge to us to turn expressions of concern into coordinated actions that ensure that countries recovering from conflict do not relapse back into it, and it is a commitment to the belief that our past can indeed be put behind us and our shared future built together and in peace. We know that when the international community mobilizes in concert with national authorities, together we can change behaviour and assumptions and put a stop to things that some may have written off as inevitable. Peace is built through hard work, As the Secretary- General notes in his report (S/2014/694), we have made significant gains in places and countries as diverse as Cote d'Ivoire, Guinea and Tunisia in our efforts to consolidate peace.”
2015-01-14 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7359 (2015) · source
“We have seen the devastating consequences of that deadly cycle of conflict, from South Sudan to the Central African Republic. But while war and conflict should never be deemed inevitable, too often, too many adopt a cynical passivity in the face of signs of emerging tension or indicators of potential conflict - a passivity that assumes the futility of efforts to prevent potential conflict from metastasizing into actual conflict, and a cynicism that assumes, essentially, that certain places are just destined to fight it out. The peacebuilding architecture is a living challenge to that dangerous cynicism and deadly passivity.”
2015-01-14 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7359 (2015) · source
“Let me begin by thanking the Deputy Secretary-General and Ambassador Patriota for their leadership on this issue and for their briefings this morning. I also thank you, Mr. President - Foreign Minister Munoz - for your presence here today, I also thank Chile for convening this important discussion. Preventing a relapse into conflict was the primary objective for the establishment of the peacebuilding architecture in 2005. A decade later, it remains an urgent undertaking. Others have said this: we know that war is not like the weather. It does not just happen and it is not inevitable. It can be stopped. But we also know that countries that have experienced conflict once have a heightened risk for relapsing into conflict again and again.”
2015-01-14 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7359 (2015) · source
“In the coming weeks and months, we will continue to work with Committee members to ensure that the Security Council's resolution are not violated with impunity. The Committee's outreach work in advising Member States and answering questions about the sanctions is critically important. The Committee and the Panel must continue to remind Member States ofthe need to sustain the full and robust implementation of the sanctions. Our determination to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon remains clear. We are committed to resolving this issue peacefully through diplomacy. Sanctions are critical to that effort, and we intend to ensure that this important body is able to carry out its mandate effectively.”
2014-12-18 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7350 (2014) · source
“Unless or until the Security Council modifies the sanctions, the pace and intensity of this work should remain robust. Recent reporting from the Panel of Experts reminds us why that is so important. We know that Iran is still trying to procure sensitive nuclear technology. We know Iran is still smuggling arms in violation of resolution 1747 (2007). And we know that Iran's leaders forthrightly reject the Council's resolution, as they speak publicly about their destabilizing arms shipments to Syria, Hizbullah in Lebanon and Iraq. Responding effectively to those violations is at the core of the Committee's mandate. Any breach of the sanctions is a serious matter, as it is dangerous, violates international law and undermines the Security Council's credibility.”
2014-12-18 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7350 (2014) · source
“While we continue to believe that the best way to achieve our goals is through diplomacy, we are not going to sit at the negotiating table forever. As we have said many times, we do not just want any agreement, we want the right agreement. Plainly and simply, the negotiations must find ways to ensure that Iran does not, and cannot, acquire a nuclear weapon. As the talk continue, we should consider how the Security Council's Iran Sanctions Committee can best support them. Our advice to the Committee is simple: keep doing what it is doing. During this period the Committee must absolutely continue its vital work monitoring and improving the enforcement of these critical sanctions. Similarly, the Panel of Experts should continue its work in investigating violations and reaching out to Member States.”
2014-12-18 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7350 (2014) · source
“That Committee has helped many countries implement the increasingly robust United Nations sanctions. With the support of its Panel of Experts, the Committee has investigated serious sanctions violations and developed an impressive understanding of Iran's proliferation networks. The Committee has also cracked down on Iran's arms smuggling, stemming the flow of weapons to a volatile region. Yet today, several years later, the international community still does not have confidence in Iran's nuclear programme. To resolve these issues, Iran is now in serious dialogue with the P5+l countries. To give those negotiations the best chance of success, last month we decided to extend them for an additional seven months.”
2014-12-18 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7350 (2014) · source
“I would like to thank Ambassador Quinlan for his briefing and for his leadership of the Committee over the last two years. Because of his diligence and commitment, the Committee's work has been energized. He and his team have done a great job helping the Committee carry out its mandate, improve the transparency of its work and tighten relationships with other international bodies. I ask him to please accept the United States deep appreciation of his efforts. The Security Council established this Committee eight years ago this month, back in 2006, because the international community had serious doubts about the peaceful intentions of Iran's nuclear programme. Since then the Committee's work has been an integral element of our broader diplomatic strategy.”
2014-12-18 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7350 (2014) · source
“In closing, I want to reiterate the depth of my Government's commitment to strengthening African responses to crises on the continent, both bilaterally and through the Council. Today there are more than 67,000 African peacekeepers serving with the African Union and the United Nations in Africa. Their contributions to peace cannot be overstated. They deserve more support from all of us to train, equip and enable their deployment. As President Obama said during our United States- Africa leaders' summit held in August, "The United States is determined to be a partner in Africa's success - a good partner, an equal partner and a partner for the long term."”
2014-12-16 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7343 (2014) · source
“Most recently, in 2013 the United States committed nearly $200 million towards training, equipping, sustaining and airlifting African peacekeepers of the African-led International Support Mission in Mali. In the Central African Republic, we provided critical equipment and airlift to both AU troops and the French forces operating alongside them. In Somalia we have obligated more than $680 million to the African Union Mission in Somalia on top of the more than $455 million in United Nations assessed contributions for the United Nations Support Office for the African Union Mission in Somalia that are attributable to the United States. Other partners such as the European Union, through its African Peace Facility, have similarly provided very robust support, and we look for other partners to do the same.”
2014-12-16 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7343 (2014) · source
“In order to be effective, peacekeeping operations must be accountable, and they must be accountable to the organization that has authorized and funded them. That is why we do not support assessing States Members of the United Nations for the expenses of regional organizations. Such arrangements do not allow the United Nations to exercise critical, and indeed essential, oversight of complex operational undertakings. However, it is also why we continue to champion and invest heavily in support for AU operations through voluntary contributions and bilateral assistance. Since 2009, the United States has committed to providing nearly $892 million to develop African peacekeeping capacity and strengthen African institutions.”
2014-12-16 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7343 (2014) · source
“Under this programme, African partner nations will receive additional support and will commit to maintaining forces and equipment ready to rapidly deploy as part of United Nations or AU missions to respond to emerging crises. The United States is also prepared to provide additional support, including training for headquarters staff in key enabler functions such as engineers, to catalyse the AU's efforts to establish its African capacity for immediate response to crisis, which is intended to facilitate the deployment of tactical battle groups of approximately 1,500 military personnel deployed by a lead nation or group of AU member States. There has been some discussion today about the financing of peacekeeping operations.”
2014-12-16 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7343 (2014) · source
“The recent transitions from African Union-led peacekeeping operations to United Nations-led operations in Mali and the Central African Republic demonstrate once again that the African Union is sometimes in a position to deploy troops to trouble spots much more quickly than others. Without the initial leadership of the AU and the contributions of African, French and other European troops in Mali and the Central African Republic, far more civilians would have died over the past year in both countries. That is why the United States has created the African Peacekeeping Rapid Response Partnership, which envisions a new investment of $110 million per year for three to five years to build the capacity of African forces to rapidly deploy peacekeepers in response to emerging conflict.”
2014-12-16 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7343 (2014) · source
“In September of this year, Vice-President Biden joined other leaders at a summit focused on generating new commitments to peacekeeping to ensure that the whole of the international community does more to share the burden. We have made demonstrable progress in our cooperative efforts to deploy troops quickly to crisis areas when the need arises, but we are still too slow. Delay in our crisis response often means more unnecessary deaths. To be quicker and better, we must work more closely and collaboratively. That is why the United States is committed to improving the Security Council's engagement with the African Union Peace and Security Council. In our effort to do better, to do more and to do so more quickly, we should learn from the past.”
2014-12-16 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7343 (2014) · source
“The Security Council has a unique role under the Charter, but our decisions and actions should be taken in close consultation with all stakeholders, including Member States, regional and subregional organizations and potential troop contributors. Decisions related to the deployment of United Nations or African Union peacekeeping missions must be made on a case-by-case basis, taking into account the unique circumstances of each particular situation. Enhancing the capacity of regional forces to respond is critical, but the ability of regional organizations to deploy peace operations must be seen, of course, as a complement to, not a substitute for, the United Nations own ability to carry out robust peacekeeping operations. We continue to be immensely grateful for Africa's contributions to peacekeeping.”
2014-12-16 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7343 (2014) · source
“We commend the African troop-contributing countries that have answered the call again and again to serve in peacekeeping operations and that have demonstrated a commitment to implement their mandates, including the protection of civilians. While Blue Helmet United Nations peacekeeping is a critically important tool, it is not always the best tool to respond to a particular conflict. That is why so many of us have redoubled our efforts to support regional organizations' capacities, including that of the African Union, to launch and support peace operations when they are needed and consistent with the Charter of the United Nations.”
2014-12-16 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7343 (2014) · source
“From the Central African Republic to Mali, to Somalia, every improvement in the important partnership between the United Nations and the African Union has very real impacts on regional stability and on security. The African Union and its member States have demonstrated important leadership in responding to African conflicts through peacekeeping and preventive diplomacy to stop potential conflicts from becoming actual ones. Peacekeeping, whether it is done by the United Nations or the African Union, or in some cases both, is only as strong as its troop and police contributors. Member States must be willing to contribute the needed troops and resources, and troop contributors must be willing to robustly carry out difficult mandates.”
2014-12-16 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7343 (2014) · source
“I must begin by expressing the United States profound condolences to the victims of the horrific Taliban attack on a school in Pakistan. This gruesome attack deliberately targeted Pakistan's - indeed all of our - most precious and sacred resource, our children. Cowardly and senseless violence like this only increases our resolve to fight terrorism and violent extremism. I thank you, Mr. President, for being here and for convening this important debate. We would also like to thank the Secretary-General and High Representative Buyoya for their briefings. Enhancing the partnership between the United Nations and the African Union (AU) is critical for advancing peace and security in Africa.”
2014-12-16 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7343 (2014) · source
“We must continue to find ways to provide some measure ofjustice to people who have waited far too long to see the crimes against them punished, and we continue to call on the Government of the Sudan and all other parties to the conflict in Darfur to cooperate fully with the International Criminal Court, as required by resolution 1593 (2005). The Prosecutor's words today were clear and candid and her warnings concerning. She has spoken of the danger of investigations going into hibernation due to continued lack of cooperation, obstruction, intimidation - all amid ongoing attacks on civilians. The danger of these cases going into hibernation must be a wake-up call. She has spoken of the lack of progress, and that, simply put, virtually nothing is happening to advance justice for the people of Darfur. This is a travesty.”
2014-12-12 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7337 (2014) · source
“Accordingly, we welcome the Secretary- General's commitment to taking all necessary steps to ensure that UNAMID's reporting is full, accurate and timely and that the Mission's engagement with the public is open, forthcoming and not manipulated. Justice cannot alone bring back the lives lost or undo the damage caused by the killings, rape and destruction of homes and livelihoods. But it serves as an important foundation for healing so that survivors can rebuild their lives, fully participate in the restoration of their communities, and lay a foundation for the rule of law. We cannot abandon the people of Darfur to a Government complicit in and indifferent to their suffering.”
2014-12-12 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7337 (2014) · source
“The review found that in approximately one-third of the incidents that were the subject of the allegations, UNAMID did not provide a full accounting of the facts and, curiously, the details that were omitted were usually details that identified the Government of the Sudan or Government proxies as perpetrators. The review team recommended that the practice of the Mission's "censoring itselfin its reporting to Headquarters needs to be addressed immediately". These findings should be deeply concerning to every member of the Council. The Security Council was recently briefed by the head investigator, and the United States urges immediate action to address the abuses uncovered in this investigation.”
2014-12-12 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7337 (2014) · source
“We again call upon the Sudanese Government to remove immediately all obstacles to UNAMID's full and proper discharge of its mandate, including to its freedom of movement in areas where it is operating in accordance with the mandate the Council has given it. For its part, UNAMID has played a critical role in monitoring, investigating and reporting on the facts on the ground and must remain on the ground without obstruction in order to fulfil its role ofprotecting civilians. In that regard, however, it is important to note, as other colleagues have, that on 29 October the Secretary-General informed the Security Council of the results of a review of UNAMID reporting, following allegations of UNAMID underreporting that had been brought to the attention of the ICC Prosecutor, to which she referred in her briefing today.”
2014-12-12 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7337 (2014) · source
“We are particularly concerned about recent reports of mass rapes in Thabit, North Darfur, which have not yet been fully investigated. The limited interviews of villagers in Thabit to investigate this alleged mass rape were done in the presence of the Government of the Sudan's military intelligence and soldiers, some of whom were recording the interviews. This does not count as an investigation. It is only intimidation. The African Union-United Nations Hybrid Operation in Darfur (UNAMID) has a responsibility to investigate. It has a mandate to investigate, and the Government of the Sudan has an obligation to stop interfering.”
2014-12-12 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7337 (2014) · source
“Further, the scorched-earth tactics that the Sudanese Government has pursued in Darfur were precursors to conflicts in Blue Nile and South Kordofan states, where the Rapid Support Forces have also terrorized civilians. The ICC's task is not an easy one. The Government of the Sudan's lack of cooperation and its disregard for the Security Council's decision to refer the situation in Darfur to the ICC, pursuant to resolution 1593 (2005), is so profound that the Prosecutor's report recounts that a cooperation request with respect to Abdallah Banda Abakaer Nourain was simply returned to the Court by the Government of the Sudan, with the envelope unopened. As Prosecutor Bensouda's report indicates, recent developments remain deeply concerning.”
2014-12-12 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7337 (2014) · source