YouSaid · the spoken record

Thomas

lines on the record: 30
first: 2002-07-25
most recent: 2023-02-14
sittings or episodes: 4
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

“Going forward, we urge the Security Council to work closely with the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change by inputting into a coordinated approach to address this common concern of humankind and to give adequate attention to the humanitarian consequences of climate-related security risks. Our CARICOM region will continue its pursuit for climate justice, and we call on the international community to assist in protecting our peace and security.”
2023-02-14 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9260Resumption1 (2023) · source
“Nevertheless, there are limits to what we, as a region, can adapt to. As an international community, we must simultaneously plan and organize a system to address the inevitable loss and damage, which are uprooting our peace and security. That calls on us to provide equitable solutions that are in line with countries’ international obligations and rights to address in a systemic manner difficult issues, such as climate change displacement, including the treatment of climate refugees. Having a truly international plan and system for addressing such climate-change-related disrupters to international peace and security will allow for its continued maintenance.”
2023-02-14 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9260Resumption1 (2023) · source
“The potential loss of land territory by small islands because of sea level rise is not a natural phenomenon, but is anthropogenic in cause. Sea level rise therefore does not affect our peoples’ ability to express their right to self-determination through statehood. That would be grossly inequitable and unjust. Thirdly, regarding the protection of persons, there is a legal duty of cooperation, which establishes an obligation for the international community to assist the States that are most affected by sea level rise, which includes the CARICOM States. It should also be noted that our region is doing its utmost to prevent assaults on our peace and security by sea level rise through climate change adaptation actions. That is done to the greatest extent possible with the limited resources at our disposal.”
2023-02-14 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9260Resumption1 (2023) · source
“CARICOM aligns itself with the following positions of the Alliance of Small Island States. First, on the law of the sea, there is no obligation under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea to keep the baselines and outer limits of maritime zones under review or to update charts or lists of geographical coordinates once they have been deposited with the Secretary-General. Moreover, such maritime time zones and the rights and entitlements that flow from them shall continue to apply without reduction, notwithstanding any physical changes connected to climate-change-related sea level rise. Secondly, with regard to statehood, there is a fundamental presumption of the continuation of statehood in international law.”
2023-02-14 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9260Resumption1 (2023) · source
“The flat, low-lying topography and porous limestone bedrock of the Caribbean basin make our region especially vulnerable to sea level rise, with the best available science predicting a very grim reality in the not-too-distant future. The retreat of our coastlines affects vital ecosystems and biodiversity, as well as the lives, livelihoods and communities that rely on them. The effects of sea level rise globally can therefore exacerbate the vulnerability of populations, especially those already in situations of armed conflict, violence or fragility, and whose capacity to cope with climate shocks and changes is limited. That leads us to the ongoing international debate on sea level rise in relation to the law of the sea, statehood and the protection of persons.”
2023-02-14 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9260Resumption1 (2023) · source
“I have the honour to deliver this statement on behalf of the 14 member States of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), for which sea level rise poses an existential threat. Peace and security in the Caribbean region is progressively being decimated by sea level rise. Our economic viability, health, well-being and cultural and social way of life are all under threat, as are the development gains achieved over the years. Historically, sea level rise was merely seen as one of the main effects of climate change, dating back to the early years of the climate negotiations. Today, however, the absence of concrete, collective action on climate change has made sea level rise a devasting and crippling reality for many of our countries.”
2023-02-14 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9260Resumption1 (2023) · source
“It does nothing but undermine a process that requires urgent attention, international diplomacy and respect for legal processes within the society. International sanctions and the strangulation of a country's international finances are tools that do nothing but hurt the most vulnerable people of a society. We must cease the practice of using international institutions built to serve as instruments of cooperation as instruments of war. Might cannot be right.”
2019-02-26 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8472 (2019) · source
“This rule was enshrined in the United Nations Charter for a good reason 4 to prevent States from using force as they felt so inclined, either unilaterally or by a self-selected few. Diplomacy, dialogue and peaceful negotiations should always be encouraged; in fact, history has taught us that diplomacy garners greater results. Any other process, including military intervention, will undermine the legitimacy of the United Nations in promoting peace and risks destabilizing the entire region of Latin America and the Caribbean, resulting in damaging effects for years to come. As we have stated in this Chamber, unilateral declaration of support for one side in Venezuela over the other is blatant interference and uninvited influence in the internal affairs of a sovereign country.”
2019-02-26 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8472 (2019) · source
“The application of aid supply should be free from international political influence and preconditions and should be done in a manner that is consistent with international humanitarian aid relief. The Government of Antigua and Barbuda reiterates that, as States Members of the United Nations, we are bound by principles enshrined in international law. Those principles make it abundantly Clear that no State or group of States should interfere in the internal affairs of sovereign countries. The Charter of the United Nations also makes its abundantly clear, in Article 2, paragraph 4, that "all Members shall refrain in their international relations from the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any state, or in any other manner inconsistent with the Purposes of the United Nations".”
2019-02-26 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8472 (2019) · source
“Settling conflicts in countries is firstly a matter of internal affairs, with no outside interference, and most of all, it is a matter of finding peaceful ways to reach agreements to solve conflicts. The Government of Antigua and Barbuda remains concerned about the events of the past few days that have resulted in the loss ofinnocent lives and increased human suffering, and about the effects that this has had on millions of Venezuelans, including women, the elderly, the disabled and children. Therefore, my Government believes that where there is a need for humanitarian aid, the United Nations should always facilitate any form of aid distribution and support.”
2019-02-26 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8472 (2019) · source
“The Government of Antigua and Barbuda continues to monitor the situation in Venezuela with great concern and appeals to all sides to remain calm and focused on the Montevideo Mechanism, which is being facilitated by the Governments of Mexico and Uruguay and the Caribbean Community. All parties involved should resist any escalation of rhetoric, which does nothing but undermine a regional effort to bring about peace. As we have stated on previous occasions, that matter is of grave concern to Antigua and Barbuda, as well as to all countries within our region. We cannot overstate the importance of our region remaining a zone ofpeace. We have had decades of interference into the affairs of countries within our region that have left the region broken. We cannot and must not return to those days.”
2019-02-26 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8472 (2019) · source
“We support the recommendation that the United Nations should consider mainstreaming drug trafficking into its wider conflict prevention, assessment and peacebuilding activities. And we call on the Secretary-General to provide more information on drug trafficking where it risks threatening or exacerbating an existing threat to international peace and security. In closing, I should like to thank the outgoing members of the Security Council - Burkina Faso, Costa Rica, Croatia, Libya and Viet Nam - for all their contributions over the last two years. And I would also like to welcome the incoming members - Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brazil, Gabon, Lebanon and Nigeria. We look forward to working with them.”
2009-12-08 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.6233 (2009) · source
“And we are working in partnership with Governments in West Africa to address governance and corruption concerns, and to tackle constraints to economic development. We have had some successes but more needs to be done. We must make clear to cocaine users the impact they are having on the lives of people in producer and transit countries. We need to continue to help Colombia to combat its drug cartels. We need to work with international partners and organizations to ensure a coordinated and coherent response. The threat from organized crime is constantly evolving. Criminals are very resourceful in finding new trades, new routes and new methods. We need to make sure our response is equally flexible. We thank Burkina Faso for their draft presidential statement.”
2009-12-08 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.6233 (2009) · source
“This includes developing programmes such as the West Coast Initiative, aimed at taking forward the ECOWAS Regional Action Plan. The United Kingdom Government is committed to supporting these efforts. That is why we have set up a cross-governmental strategy group to mobilize and coordinate United Kingdom counter-narcotics activity in West Africa. We have provided Â£750,000 this year to fund counter- narcotics projects in Ghana, Sierra Leone and Nigeria. And we aim to provide more funding next year. Our Serious Organized Crime Agency has increased its presence in the region to help local law enforcement agencies target traffickers and develop better intelligence. Staff members of our Border Agency have been deployed to airports in Ghana and Nigeria to target drug mules.”
2009-12-08 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.6233 (2009) · source
“In West Africa, organized crime and drug trafficking have the potential to undermine all the good work that has been done to promote economic development, reduce corruption and improve poor people's lives. The clear role that West African States, and their leaders in particular, can play is crucial. That is why we thank the Cape Verdean leaders, for example, for the excellent work they have done on the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Regional Action Plan against drug trafficking. Now is the time to convert this plan into action and to operationalize it on the ground. The United Kingdom stands ready to help in taking this forward. We welcome the work that the United Nations is undertaking in the region through its offices such as the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime and the United Nations Office for West Africa.”
2009-12-08 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.6233 (2009) · source
“We strongly support African Union calls for an end to unconstitutional changes of government. West Africa is also the shortest disembarkation point when travelling from South America to Europe. Organized criminal gangs, particularly from Latin America, have been scaling up their operations and their presence in the region in the past five years. And we know that when their activities are disrupted in one country, they then look to exploit another. These developments have serious implications for West Africa. Organized crime, drug trafficking, the misappropriation of assets and corruption disrupt growth, undermine investment and discourage entrepreneurship.”
2009-12-08 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.6233 (2009) · source
“In that particular context I was pleased to see a decrease in poppy cultivation in Afghanistan by some 22 per cent this year, and an increase in the number of important drugs traffickers being prosecuted by Afghan authorities. But these gains are fragile, so we look to the Government of Afghanistan, with the support of international partners, to consolidate this progress. Today we are particularly concerned about the threat posed by drug trafficking in West Africa and specifically the fact that West Africa has become a significant route for cocaine being trafficked from Latin America into Europe. There are a number of factors that make West Africa particularly attractive to drugs traffickers. Recent events in Guinea and elsewhere have highlighted the fragility of political institutions across much of West Africa.”
2009-12-08 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.6233 (2009) · source
“Let me begin by thanking you, Mr. President, for convening this meeting. We are particularly pleased to see you here today and are grateful to you and the Burkina Faso delegation for all your hard work in promoting an agenda item to which we attach great importance too. I would like to thank too the Secretary-General for his words, and Mr. Antonio Maria Costa for his informative and thought-provoking briefing. We agree that drug trafficking constitutes a threat to international peace and security. We see this, as others have said, in several regions of the world. For example in Afghanistan, the drugs trade is one of the most powerful forces undermining legitimate Government and promoting instability.”
2009-12-08 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.6233 (2009) · source
“In this regard, we encourage Member States to endeavour to put forward to the Secretary-General names of women with the requisite experience and qualifications who can fulfil this task.”
2002-07-25 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4589 (2002) · source
“It is against this background that we support the creation of a senior agenda advisor within DPKO who will serve as a focal point for giving policy advice to gender advisors in the field, as well as feed into the gender policy on gender mainstreaming. We are happy to hear that there are plans to have an agenda advisor in the Under-Secretary-General's Office. We would hope that this gender advisor would be at a sufficiently senior level in order to have access to the Under-Secretary-General. In conclusion, the need to appoint more women as Special Representatives of the Secretary-General has been highlighted. We note that there has been some improvement, but we hope that more will be done.”
2002-07-25 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4589 (2002) · source
“I believe that there should be a more systematic mechanism to enable women's participation in Security Council missions. The missions to conflict areas should endeavour to meet with gender advisors to gain insight into the role of women's groups, as well as to ensure informed decision-making in the formulation of peacekeeping mandates. Most importantly, within DPKO, we firmly believe that there needs to be a greater level of coordination between Headquarters and the field. This would facilitate a more coherent policy on gender mainstreaming and the fact that gender is taken into account in the design and planning of all peacekeeping operations.”
2002-07-25 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4589 (2002) · source
“One tangible way of doing this is, first, to have closer collaboration with the non-governmental organization community and, secondly, the United Nations should continue its thrust towards strengthening the capacities of the non-governmental organizations and women's groups, because, as has been observed, the expertise exists there. But do they have the capacity? Do they have the financing to fulfil their role as women in a very active way in the peace process? Here I want to commend the work of UNIFEM. at the field level in capacity-building and training with non-governmental organizations, and also the work of the departments of women's affairs at the governmental level. Lastly, I address the Security Council in terms of ensuring that women's concerns are incorporated in the Council's mandates and into its decision-making.”
2002-07-25 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4589 (2002) · source
“We have noted at the international level that States Parties to the Statute of the ICC can now undertake national law reform to ensure compatibility with the Statute as a matter of priority and support universal jurisdiction, which plays close attention to crimes against women. This is a positive step. At the field and institutional levels we need possibly to implement other tangible things, too. This leads us into the role of conflict prevention, peace-building and peacemaking. Women have played an instrumental role in early warning and conflict prevention. I need not elaborate on what has been said previously, but I would encourage that there be innovative ways of including women in peace talks and negotiations.”
2002-07-25 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4589 (2002) · source
“There is also a need for streamlined codes of conduct and investigative and disciplinary mechanisms to be coordinated among the agencies both in the field and at Headquarters. I invite representatives to comment on that as well. We see that domestic violence has become more widespread and systematic in conflict and post-conflict situations. We must commend the United Nations efforts in this area in addressing this in a peacekeeping environment. We have seen very positive examples in Kosovo and East Timor. The question is: how can capacities within the peacekeeping operations be strengthened to address this crisis? We could suggest a couple of things: possibly we need more counsellors on staff in peacekeeping operations, as well as more training to deal with domestic violence.”
2002-07-25 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4589 (2002) · source
“This augurs well for ending impunity for violence against women. However, this legal framework should be complemented at the local level by a comprehensive framework aimed at improving existing protection for women and girls. The reports of gender-based violence and related security issues in peacekeeping operations also need to be addressed. I was very pleased to hear the commitment by the Department of Peacekeeping Operations (DPKO) to address this issue. Therefore, training peacekeepers in gender awareness and gender sensitivity before they go to the field, and while they are in the field, is of paramount importance. The training should not only be one shot, but continuous.”
2002-07-25 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4589 (2002) · source
“Is there any way - and this is something that we could throw to the agencies that might be in the room, as well as to the Security Council - in which the Security Council, the United Nations and its funds and programmes could consider practical ways for a DDR structure to take into account the needs of female ex- combatants to ensure their rehabilitation into society? Perhaps we could elaborate whether such programmes exist. Violence against women is also a growing concern, as was mentioned in the presentation this morning. We commend the positive developments in international humanitarian law, including the work of the ad hoc International Criminal Court and the special court for Sierra Leone, in defining rape and other forms of sexual violence as war crimes and crimes against humanity.”
2002-07-25 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4589 (2002) · source
“One of our observations is that there is a narrow definition of who a soldier is or who a fighter is, which often functions in ways that discriminate against and marginalize women and girls involved in the fighting processes. Nowhere is this more glaring than in the implementation of the disarmament, demobilization and rehabilitation (DDR) programmes. This is an issue that we want to stress. As we have noted and seen from experience, DDR programmes fail to make basic accommodations for women and girls. DDR programmes fall short of the expectation of rehabilitating women and girls into society. What often obtains is that the woman returns to a life of poverty, or even faces stigmatization.”
2002-07-25 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4589 (2002) · source
“As we reflected on the findings of both reports which were shared with us this morning - the Secretary-General's study and the assessment report of the United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM), we wanted to offer a few comments and observations. First, we concur that the linkage between gender and peace is pervasive and is a complex issue. Experiences have all pointed to the fact that women and girls share similar experience with men and boys during armed conflict, but that the culture of violence and discrimination against women and girls that exists during peace times is exacerbated during conflict. As was clearly stated this morning, women are combatants, victims and perpetrators of violence. Failure to include them in the peacemaking process will only prolong the conflict.”
2002-07-25 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4589 (2002) · source
“Most importantly, it underscored the need for international attention to what is basically a woman's human rights, as was underscored by our presentations today. We therefore support the view that this item should be regularly discussed on the international agenda and be given prominence in thematic debates every time a conflict situation is addressed. Today's meeting serves as timely reminder that mainstreaming of a gender perspective in peacekeeping operations is yet to be fulfilled beyond a normative level and to achieve more operationalized aspects. It is in this regard that we thank the presenters - Under- Secretary-General Guehenno; Ms. Angela King, from the Department of Women's Affairs; and Ms. Noeleen Heyzer - for their presentations this morning.”
2002-07-25 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4589 (2002) · source
“First of all, let me express my delegation's congratulation to you, Sir, on your assumption of the presidency of the Security Council for the month of July. I also commend you for convening this open meeting on conflict, peacekeeping and gender, an issue which the Security Council and the international community have recognized as being as important to the maintenance of international peace and security as the cessation of cross-border conflicts. It has been almost two years since the adoption of Council resolution 1325 (2002) on women, peace and security, which stressed the importance of bringing a gender perspective to the centre of all United Nations peacekeeping, peacemaking, peace-building, rehabilitation and reconstruction efforts.”
2002-07-25 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4589 (2002) · source