YouSaid · the spoken record

Rama

lines on the record
21
first
2020-02-06
most recent
2020-02-06
sittings or episodes
1
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un-security-council

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  1. “The OSCE and the United Nations can do what the parties to the conflict, and perhaps the facilitators, too, are not able to provide — a better life for the normal people who are going through hell while the back and forth continues. The situation is not particularly promising as it could continue for ages. The meeting rose at 11.55 a.m.”

    2020-02-06 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8714 (2020) · source

  2. “We have been able to make good progress thanks to the use of technology, because while the Special Monitoring Mission personnel cannot monitor the entire border 24 hours a day, video surveillance can. A United Nations peacekeeping operation should therefore be considered by all, particularly as a tool to give the process substance in the minds of all those who must guarantee the ceasefire, given that ongoing work to implement agreements, formulas and formats may take a long time. I was very impressed that one of the Council members today brought up the need to implement something that was already decided in 2008. From 2008 to 2020 — a dozen years — people have died, people have suffered and risking their lives while the conflict is still unresolved and may remain so. That is all I have to say here.”

    2020-02-06 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8714 (2020) · source

  3. “However, while following current developments, it often seems that those principles are being used to fight each other rather than as a basis for coming together to resolve our issues. My final point is that I think the possibility of a United Nations peacekeeping operation in the area under discussion should not be excluded. That is because there is something very disturbing about the situation there. The Special Monitoring Mission has brought about a lot of a lot of change and has, as my Russian colleague said, made an important contribution. However, that is only during the day. Once night falls, it is back to bases and there are explosions and shooting.”

    2020-02-06 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8714 (2020) · source

  4. “In answer to the question of the Estonian Ambassador about how the OSCE and the United Nations can do more, we must cooperate more because, after the United Nations, the OSCE is the second largest organization, with 57 member States, 1 billion people and very many issues. Frankly, we have to do more to make sure that what was agreed in 1975 remains valid. Territorial integrity, stability and sovereignty should be respected. In 1975, I was a pioneer with a red scarf in a country that was the North Korea of Europe — the only country that not only refused to join the OSCE but bashed the Helsinki Final Act as a new law for the degeneration of both the West and the East. Coming from such a place and looking at the world today, I can say that the Helsinki principles are still valid.”

    2020-02-06 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8714 (2020) · source

  5. “They have to get out of the ambulance and walk. There are patients who die while walking in extreme cold — I can say that I had never experienced anything like that — and wind. Ninety per cent of those 10,000 people are elderly people. They have to cross to the other side to get their pensions and for pharmaceuticals. I do not think that it is difficult for both sides to reach a common understanding regarding those people, who belong to God, while they are asking if they are Russians or Ukrainians and eligible for this or that. It would be appropriate to give them the opportunity to bring their dying family members to hospital without having to stop in the middle of the way. So that is what I think we can, and will, try to do during this year.”

    2020-02-06 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8714 (2020) · source

  6. “I do not want to take the difficult path of taking sides but I wish to say something factual, namely, that there is a widespread sentiment based on facts that the Ukrainian side is talking with proxies. That is the problem. Something much more substantial is therefore needed on the Russian side by way of contribution and influence because we all know that it can have an important influence on the sides on the ground. I visited the area and, as I shared with you, Mr. President, one cannot believe the situation, even being there. It is like a post-apocalyptic film, with 10,000 people on average walking to cross a tiny river through a bridge whose width is that of an ambulance, not larger. Incidentally, an ambulance can still not get to its destination because there is not yet an agreement to allow even terminal patients to reach hospital.”

    2020-02-06 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8714 (2020) · source

  7. “I want representatives to know that more than 4 million people on both sides of the contact line, who have benefited from the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine facilitating ceasefires, are part of that tragic daily life. Let me recount that since December 2019, there have been 20,000 incidents, including 7,000 explosions, and 69 people killed after the ceasefire was declared and accepted by the sides. That is not an insignificant number although, in general, the number of casualties has dramatically decreased. I would join those who praised President Zelenskyy because I think that he is contributing, through not easy steps, to opening up a more intense and more fruitful dialogue. The exchange of a large group of detainees on 29 December was particularly important. But I also wish to underline that there is something factual.”

    2020-02-06 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8714 (2020) · source

  8. “Mr. Rama: In his opening remarks, Ambassador Heusgen very kindly mentioned that I play a sport that is all about jumping higher than the others. But I want to make sure that everyone knows that I see the Albanian chairmanship of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) as a mission to remain on the ground. I am well aware that what we, Albania, can contribute to doing in 2020 is not to compete with any of the giants that are involved in formulas, contact groups, forums or formats because it is up to them to push for an ultimate solution. What we can do and how we can add value is not to forget that, while there are discussions at the highest levels and exchanges such as the one we witnessed, there are people dying.”

    2020-02-06 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8714 (2020) · source

  9. “In our work as honest brokers and as Chairperson-in-Office of the OSCE, we will be inspired by our tradition of tolerance, openness and respect. To face today’s broad range of complex challenges, global action must draw on, and coordinate the work of, regional organizations. The OSCE is an effective partner of the United Nations and a venue for promoting the idea that great Power competition must give way to great Power cooperation. I believe that the basic principles of the Helsinki Final Act — respect for sovereignty, territorial integrity and defence of human rights — are still today, as they were back then, a simple and effective recipe for security, prosperity and a future of peace. Our task for the year ahead will be to safeguard those principles.”

    2020-02-06 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8714 (2020) · source

  10. “Yet we see a major obstacle to dialogue in the rise of intolerance, hate crimes and hate speech. To reverse that negative trend and work towards full respect for human dignity and human rights, we will redouble efforts to promote tolerance and non-discrimination. Just before departing for New York, I opened the Tirana Conference on Combating Anti-Semitism. Together we remembered the seventy-fifth anniversary of the liberation of the Nazi concentration camps. We also proudly shared Albania’s experience of providing sanctuary to Jewish people, as we were a rare example of a European country that had more Jewish people after the war than before it. Albania is really proud of its history of interreligious and cultural tolerance, which we see as essential to world peace and security.”

    2020-02-06 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8714 (2020) · source

  11. “Our third priority is dialogue, which some might say is the OSCE’s ultimate purpose. The divisions in our region show how badly we need it. This year is the thirtieth anniversary of the Charter of Paris for a New Europe. To promote its legacy, I will make it my personal commitment to advance dialogue among OSCE States and among and within our societies — about 57 countries and more than 1 billion people, from Vancouver to Vladivostok. Key issues such as risk reduction, incident prevention and environmental protection will feature in debates among OSCE States, international organizations and civil society. We will promote the full implementation of OSCE confidence- and security- building measures to ensure military transparency and rebuild trust.”

    2020-02-06 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8714 (2020) · source

  12. “Combating trafficking in human beings is another area where the OSCE is becoming a global player. As co-Chairs of the Inter-Agency Coordination Group against Trafficking in Persons, we will maximize our action in partnership with the United Nations, marking 20 years since the adoption of the Palermo Protocols. Since its creation, the OSCE has developed remarkable expertise on arms control. In 2020 we intend to prioritize countering the spread of small arms and light weapons and destroying surplus stockpiles of ammunition. Our organization also excels in responding to emerging challenges, such as cybersecurity. In that connection, we have developed an important new set of confidence-building measures to reduce the risks of conflicts resulting from the use of information technology.”

    2020-02-06 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8714 (2020) · source

  13. “Albania’s second priority is implementing our commitments. The instruments and institutions of the OSCE are essential safeguards for human rights and fundamental freedoms. Their impact reaches beyond our region and benefits the broader international community. Promoting the freedom of expression and the freedom of the media, safeguarding the rights of national minorities and combating violence against women are our immediate, urgent priorities. Advancing good governance is another challenge of our time. Corruption erodes the very foundations of our society and is a major threat to stability and prosperity. Therefore, Albania will promote the OSCE’s efforts in combating this phenomenon and host a high-level conference on anti-corruption in Tirana.”

    2020-02-06 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8714 (2020) · source

  14. “Women continue to be disproportionally affected by conflicts in the OSCE area and, of course, across the world. They are also unjustly excluded from peace efforts. Inspired by the twentieth anniversary of the adoption of resolution 1325 (2000), Albania will inject new momentum into promoting the role of women in peace processes. I know at first-hand, in my own Government, how effective the contribution of women leaders is. I hope that this dossier will be one of enhanced cooperation between the United Nations and the OSCE. Other opportunities for reinforced mutual efforts will include countering violent extremism and terrorism, building on the excellent cooperation with the United Nations Office of Counter Terrorism, and addressing transnational organized crime, in cooperation with the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime.”

    2020-02-06 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8714 (2020) · source

  15. “The chairmanship also supports the Transnistrian settlement process and stands by the results-oriented approach to the 5+2 talks to promote progress. Confidence-building measures in the economic, social, education and health fields bring populations on both banks closer together and ease their daily lives. Eventually, they will contribute to a comprehensive settlement based on the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic of Moldova within its internationally recognized borders, with a special status for Transnistria. Across the OSCE region, our organization also plays a key role in early warning and along all phases of the conflict cycle, in particular thanks to the network of field operations. Their action is crucial to preventing a re-emergence of conflicts and to strengthening institutions.”

    2020-02-06 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8714 (2020) · source

  16. “During our chairmanship we are also supporting the efforts of the co-Chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group, where talks last week in Geneva saw the exploration of possible next steps to prepare populations for peace, as well as discussion of the principles and elements that could form the basis of a future settlement in the Nagorno Karabakh conflict. Looking to Georgia, together with the United Nations and the European Union, the OSCE is also a co-Chair of the Geneva international discussions, where we keep de-escalation and dialogue at the top of the agenda. While almost 12 years have passed since the conflict, people on the ground are still affected by security and humanitarian challenges, including restrictions on the freedom of movement.”

    2020-02-06 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8714 (2020) · source

  17. “For that to continue happening, however, there is a need to ensure safe and secure access for its staff on the ground. That requires political will by the sides. I will not stop calling for it. Political will is indeed key to peace, and I could see with my own eyes how the repaired and reopened bridge at Stanytsia Luhanska is relieving the hardship of those living across the line of contact, and how the security and humanitarian aspects of the conflict go hand in hand. Such positive steps need to be replicated and multiplied. Yet the OSCE’s conflict-resolution efforts are broader.”

    2020-02-06 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8714 (2020) · source

  18. “We will also support efforts in the Trilateral Contact Group and the Normandy format. The resumption of dialogue in that format and outcomes of the Normandy summit are steps in the right direction. Still, there continue to be civilian casualties and loss of life, and we need primarily to ensure a full and sustainable ceasefire. What I heard in my meetings in Ukraine was a request for further OSCE monitoring in eastern Ukraine, in the framework of the mandate of the SMM. We will support the SMM in fully implementing its mandate. While travelling to the line of contact, I had an opportunity to observe the practical impact of our flagship operation on the ground. Operating in a challenging and volatile environment, the OSCE SMM offers an essential contribution towards peace.”

    2020-02-06 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8714 (2020) · source

  19. “The OSCE has proven time and again that it can deploy in challenging conflict and post-conflict settings. We will promote the work of our Organization where it is closest to our people. Thus, conflict resolution efforts are at the top of our agenda. The crisis in and around Ukraine remains the most pressing security challenge in Europe, so the unique contribution made by the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine (SMM) to reducing tensions and fostering peace, is essential. Two weeks ago I made my first visit in this new capacity to Ukraine. I met with President Zelenskyy and the entire Ukrainian leadership. I assured my counterparts of our determination and dedication to do our part to advance peace efforts, urging respect for OSCE principles and commitments and the full implementation of the Minsk agreements.”

    2020-02-06 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8714 (2020) · source

  20. “During 2020, it is my resolve as OSCE Chairperson to maximize our practical cooperation. Together, we can address key challenges to international peace and security and promote respect for human rights, fundamental freedoms and the rule of law. For Albania, assuming the chairmanship of the OSCE is a momentous event, marking a step up in our international leadership. While at the helm of the OSCE, Albania’s strategic goal will be to defend multilateralism at a time where we feel that it is under attack. This is the key reason that prompted us to chair the OSCE and that inspires our bid to sit, in the future, in the Security Council. Let me now describe what we intend to do. The action of the Albanian chairmanship will revolve around three main priorities. The first is making a difference on the ground.”

    2020-02-06 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8714 (2020) · source

  21. “Mr. Rama: I am very honoured to address the Council in my capacity as Chairperson-in-Office of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE). This opportunity for an exchange of views on contemporary security challenges has become a valuable tradition and is an expression of the excellent cooperation between our organizations. The United Nations and the OSCE are natural partners. As the world’s largest regional security organization under Chapter VIII of the Charter of the United Nations, the OSCE is an important pillar of the international rules-based order. Our work directly supports the implementation of the global United Nations mandate and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Since 1993, a structured framework has guided our cooperation, reinforced by a joint statement issued in December last year.”

    2020-02-06 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8714 (2020) · source