This month has been a hard one. On 17 July, we learned of the downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH-17 over Ukrainian territory controlled by separatists, killing all 298 passengers and crew. Eighty of the victims were children. The victims were citizens of Australia, Belgium, Canada, Germany, Indo…
I thank you, Mr. President, for Rwanda’s strong leadership of the Security Council this month and for your country’s significant contribution to peacekeeping, a task to which Rwanda’s own history brings both deep empathy and an operational determination. I also wish to thank the Secretary- General f…
The adoption of resolution 2166 (2014) is a decisive step by the Security Council. It is an unambiguous response of the international community to an utterly deplorable act — the shooting down of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH-17, killing all 298 passengers and crew on board, including 80 children. The…
I thank Under-Secretary- General Feltman for his briefing.
Alongside other members of the international community, Australia is deeply concerned about the escalation in hostilities between Israel and the militant groups in Gaza. It is a tragedy that the recent events have led us to that point. It i…
The downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH-17 in Ukrainian territory on 17 July has shocked the world. We have witnessed the tragic death of 298 people. There were 28 Australians on board Flight MH-17. Our nation is in mourning for all the victims. The news that the lives of 80 children were lost is…
We express our appreciation to Rwanda for its leadership on peacebuilding, including the relationship between the Security Council and the Peacebuilding Commission (PBC). I thank Ambassador Vladimir Drobnjak and Ambassador Antonio Patriota for their briefings this morning.
Today’s meeting is a key …
Obviously, we welcome the unanimous adoption of resolution 2165 (2014) by the Council today, and thank our co-authors, Jordan and Luxembourg, for the work done in bringing it to fruition. Decisively, the Council has been united today in recognizing that the humanitarian situation in Syria — already …
It is an honour to represent Australia at this High-level Meeting to review our achievements and measure our progress against the commitments we made in the 2011 Political Declaration of the High-level Meeting on the Prevention and Control of Non-communicable Diseases (resolution
66/2, annex). Non-…
I thank Special Representative Ján Kubiš for his briefing and commend him and the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) for critical support for Afghanistan’s presidential election. I also thank the Executive Director of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), Mr. Yu…
I have the honour to present the report of the Committee established pursuant to resolution 1737 (2006), in accordance with paragraph 18 (h) of that resolution. The present report covers the period from 20 March to 24 June, during which time the Conunittee held one informal meeting and two informal …
I would like to thank Assistant Secretaries-General Zerihoun and Šimonović for their briefings this morning.
Australia welcomes President Poroshenko’s peace plan as a major opportunity for de-escalating the situation in Ukraine. We also welcome Ukraine’s declaration of a unilateral ceasefire and th…
Like others, we welcome Ms. Guebre Sellassie to her first Council briefing as Special Envoy.
Today’s meeting is important in maintaining the spotlight on the ongoing humanitarian, governance and security challenges in the Sahel region and on the United Nations response. As we have been warned time …
I would like to thank Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda for her briefing, as well as for the continuing efforts of the Office of the Prosecutor in relation to Darfur. These briefings are an important opportunity for us to reaffirm that both the International Criminal Court (ICC) and the Council have vital r…
I thank Ambassador Y. Halit Çevik and his team for leading this important review to a strong consensus outcome.
Australia condemns the terrorist attacks by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) in Iraq and the taking hostage of the Turkish Consulate staff. We urge ISIL to release the host…
I thank you, Mr. President, for convening this important debate. We also thank the Secretary-General for his briefing and for his tireless efforts to build a flexible and sustainable United Nations peacekeeping force, able to respond not only to the challenges of today but also to anticipate those o…
I would like to acknowledge from the very beginning the leadership of Michel Sidibé and all his dedicated colleagues at the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), who are very instrumental to all our efforts.
I had the great honour to work with my colleague Ambassador Charles Ntwaagae…
I would like to thank President Meron and President Joensen and Prosecutor Brammertz and Prosecutor Jallow for their thoughtful and informative briefings. I would like to acknowledge their commitment to the cause of international criminal justice. Their effective leadership of the Tribunals that we …
I thank Under-Secretary- General Feltman for his briefing.
Australia congratulates Ukraine on the successful holding of presidential elections on 25 May. The high turnout, in which millions people cast ballots across the country, reflects the determination of the Ukrainian people to chose their own…
In my last briefing to the Council, I spoke of Al-Qaida’s structural changes, noting that the movement no longer follows a centralized command structure. I also emphasized that the threat to international peace and security posed by Al-Qaida emanates from a range of increasingly heterogeneous groups…
I would like to thank the Special Representative of the Secretary-General Zarif for his briefing to the Council on the activities of the United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK) during the reporting period. I would also like to welcome to the Council the President of Serbia, M…
