YouSaid · the spoken record

Rowe

lines on the record
128
first
1994-12-16
most recent
2007-01-31
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13
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un-security-council

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  1. “We believe that the Security Council could strengthen its partnership with Africa more effectively by what I call introspection. I think, Mr. President, that you used the word "exposing" this morning, and I would like to borrow that word. By "introspection" I mean "exposing" collectively, with one voice: naming names, including those of member States, including Security Council members, which foment conflict in Africa by covert means, which fan the flames of war and destruction through the illegal transfer of arms and ammunition to African countries. Others merely acquiesce when their nationals or agents are involved in this traffic. We believe that the Council should have the courage to at least identify and expose them. We know from experience that internal conflicts in Africa have international dimensions.”

    1999-12-15 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4081Resumption1 (1999) · source

  2. “As regards the four points raised by the Secretary- General on the preventive aspects of the partnership, we could add that the Council should assist him in making more frequent use of quiet diplomacy in addressing some of the conflicts - or potential conflicts - in the continent. The continent itself should throw its authoritative weight behind his initiative in sending, for example, fact-finding missions to potential conflict areas; this could help to defuse many of the potential conflicts and avert a crisis. Having said that, I wish to suggest two points under the rubric of preventive intervention. In a sense, I shall elaborate on part of what some other representatives raised this morning - for example, the Gambia - on the question of intelligence or sharing information concerning arms delivery.”

    1999-12-15 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4081Resumption1 (1999) · source

  3. “We heard a number of good and constructive contributions on the subject under discussion this morning. However, I am not going to take either option, since this is an interactive discussion. Ambassador Holbrooke's immediate response this morning to Ambassador Kumalo's comments gave the meeting this interactive character. I would like to react briefly to a couple of suggestions, some mentioned parenthetically and others in some detail, and to go into more detail on them. Allow me to take the liberty of deviating from the beaten path. I will also be frank. First, let me say that we share most of the suggestions presented this morning in the areas of conflict prevention and resolution in Africa and on what the Security Council could do as a partner for peace and security in our continent.”

    1999-12-15 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4081Resumption1 (1999) · source

  4. “Mr. President, my delegation would like to associate itself with the commendations received by you personally, and by the United Kingdom, for initiating this interactive discussion on how to make the United Nations partnership with Africa more productive. In our view, this meeting and its format are a contribution, albeit a small one, to strengthening the partnership of the Security Council with Africa. We believe that it adds to the objective of observing transparency in the Council's work on African issues. The format should be made a regular feature of the Council's procedure. The unfortunate aspect of speaking towards the end of a long list of delegations is that one is left with the option of not speaking at all or of merely repeating what others have said.”

    1999-12-15 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4081Resumption1 (1999) · source

  5. “It is imperative not only that it monitor the situation there but that it continue its efforts to examine how best to encourage all sides in Burundi to work together for an enduring political settlement.”

    1996-08-28 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.3692 (1996) · source

  6. “With that contingency in mind, the Secretary-General must continue, in conjunction with the OAU, to plan for the prevention of another humanitarian disaster, an outcome which the international community is not prepared to countenance. Australia has sought to play a modest but constructive role in efforts to resolve the present crisis in Burundi and to assist in the process of peace-building in the wider region. To this end, we have contributed financially to the Nyerere peace initiative, to the peace fund of the OAU Mechanism for Conflict Prevention, Management and Resolution, and to the International Peace Academy Conflict Management in Africa Programme. The Council must not become complacent over Burundi.”

    1996-08-28 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.3692 (1996) · source

  7. “Australia continues to support the Mwanza peace process, facilitated by former Tanzanian President Nyerere, and urges the parties involved to resume negotiations under this process. While the hurdles are significant, the mediation efforts of Mr. Nyerere must be given every chance to succeed, representing as they do the most realistic opportunity for pursuing dialogue between the key players. The momentum towards peace established during the early stages of the Mwanza peace process must not be lost. If intervention by outside parties is left as the only means to prevent a slide into anarchy and genocide, there is an obligation upon Members of the United Nations to see that the objectives of such action are clearly defined and that the means of achieving them are sufficient and well prepared.”

    1996-08-28 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.3692 (1996) · source

  8. “In welcoming the regional initiative, the Australian Government emphasizes the importance of implementing measured responses which, as well as seeking to bring about a political solution, ensure that the basic needs of the population can be met. Unimpeded provision of, and access to, humanitarian assistance is imperative if the situation in Burundi is to be stabilized. Further human displacement will have serious ramifications for peace and security throughout the Great Lakes region and its prevention must be regarded as a priority by the international community. Should further upheaval lead to an exodus of refugees from Burundi, the international community must be prepared to come to their assistance.”

    1996-08-28 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.3692 (1996) · source

  9. “In particular, Australia calls upon all sides to exercise restraint, thereby creating an environment which allows for their fears to be put aside and for the restoration of confidence throughout the community. Australia urges the parties to the conflict to recognize that continued violence will not bring peace to Burundi. Australia commends the efforts of countries in the region to find ways to restore peace and democracy in Burundi. My Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr. Alexander Downer, attended the Organization of African Unity (OAU) summit in Yaounde from 8-10 July 1996, as a guest. He was impressed by the determination of African leaders to work for a solution to the situation in Burundi.”

    1996-08-28 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.3692 (1996) · source

  10. “This open debate presents a timely opportunity to examine the situation in Burundi and how the international community can respond effectively to recent developments there. Australia is seriously concerned about recent developments in Burundi. It holds grave fears that unless the parties to the conflict, with the support of the international community, can reach a negotiated settlement, the cycle of violence will escalate, causing violence and bloodshed on a horrific scale and further upheaval and human misery throughout Burundi and the Great Lakes region. We urge all sectors of Burundi's population to engage in constructive dialogue to bring about a peaceful, durable solution to the conflict in Burundi and to achieve, without delay, the restoration of democratic institutions and processes.”

    1996-08-28 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.3692 (1996) · source

  11. “It is important to reflect on Article 24 of the Charter, under which the Council acts on behalf of Member States. Article 24 implies the Council's responsibility to draw on the views of the wider membership of the United Nations on all aspects of its work. Its role as an effective representative body demands at least this. The consultation mechanism we envisage will be important in developing the culture and methodology for identifying and responding to situations that threaten international peace and security and will also improve the means by which the Security Council relates to the general membership of the United Nations.”

    1995-12-20 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.3611 (1995) · source

  12. “Let me be clear: the mechanism outlined by Argentina should not be construed as a means of limiting or interfering with the authority or prerogatives of the Security Council. We envisage that such a consultative mechanism would be achieved by way of a resolution of the Security Council, given the importance of the matter and the need to formalize such a mechanism. To this end, we endorse the proposal made today by the Permanent Representative of New Zealand for the holding of informal consultations between the Security Council and interested Member States on appropriate measures. Consideration by the Council of the perspectives of Member States, particularly those most affected by a matter on the Council's agenda, is a sine qua non for the deliberations of the Council.”

    1995-12-20 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.3611 (1995) · source

  13. “We have also seen the inability to deploy forces quickly when a crisis is emerging. It took many months before the Security Council's decision to enlarge the United Nations Protection Force to protect safe havens in Bosnia was actually put into effect and even then on a scale that was inadequate to the task. We also remain agonizingly conscious of the failure to react in time to prevent the genocide in Rwanda. An enhancement of the consultation process between the Security Council and troop contributors, as well as of the strategic and operational planning capacity of the United Nations, will generate confidence in this Organization's capability and lead to Member States being more prepared to deliver military units for operations established by the Council.”

    1995-12-20 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.3611 (1995) · source

  14. “This is one of the measures that will respond to the lessons we have learned from recent United Nations peace-keeping operations. The past few years have given us examples of peace-keeping operations and mandates that have been driven by the need to be seen to be doing something, that have not been achievable in the field or that have lacked the clarity about the goals and operation which commanders could reasonably expect. We have seen missions undertaken without provision of the necessary resources and the assumption of a role in complex situations where there has been insufficient coordination between Blue Helmet forces and other international actors, whether these be regional organizations, non-governmental aid bodies or United Nations organs or agencies.”

    1995-12-20 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.3611 (1995) · source

  15. “This has been acknowledged in a number of forums, including by the Council in the presidential statement of 3 May 1994, in which it stated: "The Security Council is conscious of the need for enhanced consultations and exchange of information with troop-contributing countries regarding peace- keeping operations, including their planning, management and coordination, particularly when significant extensions in an operation's mandate are in prospect." (S/PRST/1994/22, p. 3) We are firmly of the View that improving and formalizing the consultation mechanism between troop contributors and the Security Council are among the measures necessary to improve the coordination, management and planning of peace-keeping operations.”

    1995-12-20 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.3611 (1995) · source

  16. “Among others, troop contributors play an indispensable and integral part in putting into effect the decisions of the Council and hence are seeking to cooperate with the Council for a common purpose, namely, the implementation of effective peace-keeping operations. To achieve this, a timely and genuine process of consultations between troop contributors and the Council is imperative.”

    1995-12-20 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.3611 (1995) · source

  17. “But even at that time, the Council envisaged that the consultative process outlined in the presidential statement would require review and reassessment in the light of experience, as would the arrangements to improve the quality and speed of flow of information available to support the Council's decision- making. It is of the utmost importance to the health of this Organization that Security Council decisions be fully implemented and complied with and that the ability and authority of the Security Council to respond to threats to international peace and security be strengthened and incontrovertible.”

    1995-12-20 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.3611 (1995) · source

  18. “We are pleased to have worked closely with so many other interested countries in order to find solutions to some of the current shortcomings in the consultation process. In recent years, growing concern has been expressed about the need to improve the consultation mechanisms between the Security Council and troop contributors and more broadly with the overall United Nations membership. Last year, Argentina and New Zealand, supported by a large number of countries, including my own, initiated a much-needed process of reform on this issue. Since that time, we have been pleased to see instances in which the Security Council has listened to Member States and has itself sought to respond to calls for change. The consultative process set out in the presidential statement of 4 November 1994 was a welcome development.”

    1995-12-20 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.3611 (1995) · source

  19. “Australia welcomes the convening of this meeting of the Security Council to consider ways of improving consultations between the Security Council and troop-contributing countries. As one of 34 Member States that jointly forwarded a letter to you, Sir, as President of the Security Council, we should like to express our appreciation to you for promptly scheduling this meeting on the Council's agenda. Australia has worked closely with a large group of other Member States to develop common approaches to the best means by which the consultation process between the Security Council and troop contributors can be improved. Australia fully associates itself with the statement of the Permanent Representative of Argentina on how this can be achieved.”

    1995-12-20 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.3611 (1995) · source

  20. “This has been a valuable debate and one 26 which we see as contributing significantly to the increased effectiveness of the Organization.”

    1994-12-16 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.3483 (1994) · source

  21. “Accordingly, we attach importance to continuing consideration of further reforms to the Council and to the Organization in order to ensure that the Council is more responsive, rather than reactive; that it develops the culture and methodology for identifying and responding to situations that have the potential to threaten international peace and security, before there is war or genocide or mass devastation - in short, means by which this Organization can develop a preventive capacity that draws the Council's attention to emerging global crises and threats, military and non-military. The efforts of the Security Council and in particular of the French Government in taking this initiative deserve our appreciation.”

    1994-12-16 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.3483 (1994) · source

  22. “Further, convening the kinds of public meetings enumerated in the French proposal cannot be a substitute for the continuing improvements in the consultations that are necessary between the Council and troop-contributing countries. The calls for increased transparency are symptomatic of a deeper problem: the need to ensure that the Council has the full confidence, or, as the Permanent Representative of France described it, the full trust of the membership that it represents. This deeper concern is one that cannot be satisfactorily addressed just by increasing the number of public hearings. It can be addressed by ensuring that the expansion of the Council and its future composition reflects decision-making that is truly representative of the perspectives and interests of Member States.”

    1994-12-16 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.3483 (1994) · source

  23. “But there must also be a flow into the Council from the whole community it serves. Its role as an effective representative body demands at least this. Therefore, while we welcome this initiative as a significant contribution to improving the working methods of the Council, we emphasize the importance we attach to continuing to address this question on an ongoing basis. For example, in addition to the public meetings identified in the French proposal, we may need to explore other, more flexible means for securing discussion and a level of participation of Member States especially affected by a situation under consideration by the Council, as envisaged under Article 31 of the Charter.”

    1994-12-16 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.3483 (1994) · source

  24. “The spirit of the Charter and the provisional tules of procedure envisage genuine discussion and a two- way flow, not just of views but of analysis, particularly in respect of States most affected by the decisions to be taken by the Council. In this spirit there will need to be greater degree of participation in the discussions and decisions of the Council by such States, be they troop contributors, States in the region of the conflict, or others. 25 In this context, it is important to remember that, according to Article 24 of the Charter, the Security Council acts on behalf of Member States. It makes sense, then, for the Council to be responsive to the views of Member States. Article 24 implies a two- way flow of information. More information should flow out of the Council to the wider membership on all aspects of its work.”

    1994-12-16 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.3483 (1994) · source

  25. “With the unprecedented number of complex situations to which the Council is being called upon to respond, and the increasing frequency of its deliberations, we now find ourselves in times in which these procedures will be most valuable. In our view, it is important that public meetings should be so structured as to provide a genuine basis for a two-way exchange between the Council and the Member States. Consideration by the Council of the perspectives of Member States, particularly those most affected by a situation, is a sine qua non for the deliberations of the Council. Public meetings should not be used as a stale, uninformative, formalistic procedure devoid of real discussion. We do not see the public meetings as being merely another occasion for the delivery of set-piece statements by Member States or by members of the Council.”

    1994-12-16 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.3483 (1994) · source

  26. “This concern has been reflected in the consistent calls for improved means of communication and consultation between the Council and the overall membership of the United Nations. We have been pleased to see that there have been instances where the Security Council has listened to the Member States and has sought itself to respond to calls for change. The procedure of convening meetings of troop-contributing countries, members of the Security Council and the Secretariat is the most recent positive example of this, and one which we welcomed in a statement to the Council. The importance of public meetings of the Council has long been recognized under the provisional rules of procedure.”

    1994-12-16 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.3483 (1994) · source

  27. “We endorse the objectives of the proposal contained in the letter dated 9 November 1994 from the Permanent Representative of France to the Secretary-General (S/1994/1279). We welcome the recognition contained in that letter that increased reliance by the Council on public debate will enhance the Council's decision-making in formulating responses in connection with the maintenance of international peace and security. Convening public meetings of the Council is a step in the right direction in achieving this objective although we, like others who have spoken, fully recognize that more will need to be done to address the necessary reforms. In recent years growing concern has been expressed about the need to improve the working methods and practices of the Council.”

    1994-12-16 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.3483 (1994) · source

  28. “I wish to congratulate you, Sir, on your assumption of the presidency of the Council for the month of December. Australia welcomes the convening of this meeting of the Security Council and the initiative taken by the Permanent Representative of France in submitting proposals for the convening of public meetings. The convening of this meeting is evidence in itself that public meetings of the Council, in which Member States of this Organization can contribute their views, can and should be held in order to enable discussion and reflection by the Council and Member States on matters important to us all - particularly on matters concerning the maintenance of international peace and security.”

    1994-12-16 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.3483 (1994) · source