S/PV.6389 Security Council

I commend the Government of Turkey for having convened this Security Council summit and for its focus on preventing and ending conflict and building peace. Since the end of the cold war, violent conflict has declined. Success in peacemaking and peacekeeping has played an important role in this development. Yet, we still live in a troubled world, with new threats and flashpoints. Often, when violence breaks out, the world turns to the United Nations. We are at the centre of crisis management in hotspots throughout the world. We — this Council and we in the Secretariat — have come a long way in responding to these diverse challenges. We have reinvigorated preventive diplomacy and upgraded the United Nations mediation capacity. We are more nimble in responding to brewing trouble from Guinea to Kyrgyzstan. We continue to make our peacekeeping operations more efficient and effective, including through the New Horizon process. That initiative — which includes the global field support strategy — is designed to help us better adjust to complex situations involving difficult terrain and volatile political contexts, and to better address the resource and technological implications of this work. We have more instances in which peacemaking and peacekeeping are being carried out simultaneously, as in Cyprus. We continue to enhance our pool of envoys, deepen our cooperation with regional partners, help Member States build up their capacities, and support our field missions and regional offices. We have deployed 122,000 civilian and uniformed personnel in 15 peacekeeping missions, and a further 4,000 personnel in 14 political field missions. They continue to deliver on wide-ranging mandates. We have strengthened peacebuilding in order to ensure the sustainability of such efforts. Allocations from the Peacebuilding Fund are increasingly targeted and timely. We are working to protect civilians in armed conflict, both as part of peacekeeping mandates and in our humanitarian assistance. Last month’s shocking mass rapes in Eastern Congo remind us of the difficulty of this challenge. I have asked my Special Representative on this matter, Ms. Margot Wallström, to help us develop more vigorous mechanisms in tackling these atrocities. We have also taken steps to improve the security of the many thousands of our own staff who risk their lives every day to improve the lives of others. These incremental yet significant changes are making our engagement in troubled areas more and more effective. But we must do more. Let me focus on four critical areas. First, we should move beyond the idea of a clear- cut sequence of peacemaking, peacekeeping and peacebuilding. These tools should be deployed in integrated fashion, not kept in separate silos. Conflict seldom follows a tidy path. We must continue to evolve towards a faster and more flexible architecture of response that allows us to customize our assistance to the real and immediate needs on the ground. With respect to peacekeeping, we will continue to work in close partnership with the Security Council and others to advance the New Horizon initiative. Secondly, there is no quick fix for broken societies. It demands patience, resources and a long- term commitment. The United Nations core business must be helping people to solve their conflicts, not just serving as a band-aid to keep troubles in check. Thirdly, we need to further develop the peacebuilding architecture, empower the Peacebuilding Commission and Fund, and promote greater coherence among the many pieces of the United Nations system that make up the peacebuilding picture. Fourthly, we must expand our work on prevention, in particular to improve our ability to read the warning signs and trigger early action. The world needs the Security Council to uphold its responsibility for maintaining international peace and security fully, fairly and without delay. We must do more, and be equipped to do more, to fulfil this cardinal mission. In closing, allow me to note that just yesterday we gathered to recommit ourselves to the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). Let us recognize the close links between that summit and this, and between the MDGs and the work of this Council. Building peace and advancing development are mutually reinforcing. On all these fronts, the Security Council’s leadership will be crucial. Its unity is essential. I pledge my full support as we move forward together.

I thank the Secretary-General for his statement. I invite the Premier of the State Council of the People’s Republic of China, His Excellency Mr. Wen Jiabao, to take the floor.

It gives me great pleasure to attend this meeting of the Security Council. I wish to thank you, Mr. President, for your initiative and the Turkish delegation for its efforts in preparing for the meeting. We live at a time when the trend towards a multipolar world and economic globalization is gaining momentum. New changes are taking place in the global economic and political landscape. The international security situation is generally stable, but due to the impact of the world financial crisis, destabilizing factors and uncertainties are on the increase. Traditional security issues, such as local conflicts, arms races and territorial disputes, remain unresolved and even deteriorate from time to time. Terrorism, transnational crime, cybersecurity, the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and other non-traditional security issues are becoming more pronounced. Faced with these complex and diverse security threats and challenges, we must intensify multilateral cooperation and take stronger collective action in response. That is the consensus of the States Members of the United Nations. China believes that, as the heart of the collective security mechanism, the Security Council should further enhance its authority and assume greater responsibilities, make greater efforts and play a greater role in maintaining international peace and security. In that connection, I wish to make the following four proposals on the work of the Council in the new circumstances. First, we must hold high the banner of peace and promote the peaceful settlement of disputes. That is a fundamental principle that the Security Council should always follow. In a globalized world where the interests and destinies of all countries are intertwined, peace is what we all desire and war is what we all detest. History has shown time and again that dialogue, negotiation and other diplomatic means are the only effective way to settle disputes and achieve enduring peace. In keeping with the purposes and principles of the United Nations Charter, the Security Council should strengthen its good offices and mediation role and make vigorous efforts to persuade the parties concerned to defuse tensions, iron out their differences peacefully and prevent the outbreak or escalation of conflict. Secondly, the Council must improve its working methods and enhance its problem-solving abilities. United Nations peacekeeping is one of the major resources at the Council’s disposal to address conflicts. The scale and mission of United Nations peacekeeping operations have been expanding in recent years, and mandates and functions have become more diverse. It is important to sum up experience and improve the efficiency and effectiveness of peacekeeping operations. The Security Council must adhere to the Hammarskjöld principles of impartiality, consent of the parties and non-use of force except in self-defence. It should consult closely with the parties concerned, step up cooperation with regional organizations, make overall arrangements for entry and exit strategies, coordinate military and political efforts and authorize the deployment of peacekeeping missions at an appropriate time on the basis of thorough analysis of all factors. The Security Council may decide to impose sanctions under the United Nations Charter, but it should exercise caution in doing so. Sanctions are not an end in themselves, and, more often than not, the wilful imposition of sanctions and pressure does not help improve the situation at all. The only right approach is to follow an integrated strategy that accords top priority to diplomacy. Thirdly, we must strengthen coordination and remove the root causes of disputes and conflicts. Disputes and conflicts often go hand in hand with poverty and backwardness. The Security Council should enhance coordination with the relevant United Nations agencies to form synergies and help poor countries afflicted with conflicts accelerate post-war reconstruction, realize economic and social development and improve the livelihood of the people. This can help remove the breeding ground for conflicts and prevent conflicts at the source, thus laying the foundation for enduring peace and security. That should be the direction of the Council’s efforts. Fourthly, we must highlight priorities and resolve hot-spot issues in Africa. Most issues on the Security Council’s agenda relate to Africa, and most of the United Nations peacekeeping missions are deployed in Africa. To achieve world peace and stability, hot-spot issues in Africa must be addressed and security and stability in Africa must be realized. The international community should be more attentive to the needs of Africa, accommodate the concerns of African countries and respect their will and their choices. The Security Council should strengthen coordination and cooperation with the African Union, take more active measures to help settle hot-spot issues in Africa and work with other United Nations agencies to channel more assistance to African countries. The Chinese people love peace, and China is a responsible member of the international community. As early as 2,500 years ago, the Chinese thinker Confucius said, “Peace is the most valuable”. As a nation repeatedly plagued by the scourge of war, we fully appreciate the value of peace, and also the wisdom of “Do not do unto others what you would not have others do unto you”. We have followed an independent foreign policy of peace and committed ourselves to building friendly and cooperative ties with all countries of the world. We stand for the five principles of peaceful coexistence, advocate a new concept of security based on mutual trust, mutual benefit, equality and coordination, and endeavour to build a harmonious world of lasting peace and common prosperity. As a permanent member of the Security Council, China has vigorously called for and worked for the peaceful settlement of disputes and has played a important and constructive role in a range of major regional hot-spot issues, including the Korean nuclear issue, the Iranian nuclear issue, the Middle East and the Sudan. China has taken an active part in United Nations peacekeeping operations. China is the largest contributor of peacekeeping personnel among the permanent members of the Security Council. We have sent a total of more than 14,000 peacekeeping personnel to 25 missions. We have also sent escort fleets as part of the international effort to combat piracy off the Somali coast. China is fully engaged in multilateral arms control and disarmament affairs in an effort to uphold the international nuclear non-proliferation regime. China has also done a great deal of productive work in the global effort to fight terrorism. China is firmly committed to the path of peaceful development. We pursue a national defence policy that is defensive in nature. We will never seek hegemony or harbour expansionist intentions. We will contribute to regional and international development and peace through our own development. We will earnestly fulfil our international obligations and shoulder our due responsibilities. We will continue to uphold the purposes and principles of the United Nations Charter and become more deeply engaged in the peacemaking, peacekeeping and peacebuilding efforts of the Security Council. We will work with other Member States to enable the Council to play a greater role in maintaining international peace and security. Through our experience over the years, we have come to realize that, even as peace and security may seem a distant dream, if we all abide by the purposes and principles of the United Nations Charter, keep in mind our solemn resolve to combine our efforts to accomplish those aims and strengthen our conviction and cooperation, we will move ever closer to the objective of common security and enduring peace for all humankind.

I now invite His Excellency Mr. Yoweri Kaguta Museveni, President of the Republic of Uganda, to take the floor. President Museveni: I would like to thank President Abdullah Gül for convening this meeting of the Security Council on ensuring the Security Council’s effective role in maintaining international peace and security. The United Nations was founded as an organization that would act to prevent conflicts between nations, avert future wars and strengthen cooperation among its Members. In order to ensure prompt and effective action by the United Nations, its Members conferred on the Security Council the primary responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security. The emphasis was on quick and strong action. It is that emphasis that makes the theme for this meeting pertinent. In connection with Africa, however, I want to make two points. First, where the United Nations has acted alone, it has made mistakes, such as in Congo in the 1960s and in Rwanda in the 1990s. Secondly, all the major problems that have been solved in Africa have been regionally led, with the United Nations and other bodies from outside Africa playing a supportive role. The first point is clear enough. It does not need elaboration. It is enough to point out the death of Patrice Lumumba in United Nations hands and its tragic consequences for Congo. Coming to the second point, it should be clear to all that all the major African problems that have been solved have been regionally led: the independence of Mozambique, the independence of Zimbabwe and even majority rule in South Africa, the defeat of Idi Amin, the defeat of Mobutu, the addressing of the Sudan problem, the stopping of the genocide in Rwanda, the resolution of the problem of Burundi, and the addressing of the problem of Somalia, the problem of Liberia and the problem of Sierra Leone. Where the United Nations works with the regional organizations or internal forces within each country, the results are better and durable. There are still several intractable conflicts around the world, as well as new threats such as transnational organized crime, drug trafficking, terrorism and piracy that have to be dealt with more resolutely. The Security Council needs to work on new ways to tackle those challenges through a more concerted and comprehensive approach at the global, regional and national levels. We should avoid situations where the United Nations is unable to act or shows indifference in dealing with any conflict situations or threats, because that will undermine confidence in the United Nations. It is also essential that the Security Council continuously evaluate its diagnosis of conflict situations and reflect on whether the solutions prescribed are correct. There are cases of countries where United Nations peacekeeping operations lasted many years and then wound up, but had to return to address the same concerns. That implies that the approaches used in such countries did not address their core problems. We welcome the ongoing efforts to enhance the effectiveness of United Nations peacekeeping by ensuring that the mandated tasks are appropriate to the situation on the ground. However, more attention still needs to be paid to supporting fragile and post-conflict countries in building the capacity of their national institutions to effectively address security and other challenges. The Security Council should also take interest in human security issues, including social and economic development, that matter to many developing countries. In this regard, priority should be given to strengthening support for national ownership and capacity development, based on priorities identified by the national authorities. Only national actors can address their society’s needs in a way that can enhance sustainable peace, security and prosperity. We welcome the strengthening of the Security Council’s strategic partnership with the African Union and with other regional and subregional organizations, which also play an important role in the maintenance of peace and security. The United Nations should optimize the contribution by those organizations, which have advantages of proximity and the capability to mobilize and respond quickly. In the recent past, the number of missions carried out in pursuit of peace by such organizations has increased. The African Union has shown its commitment to conflict prevention, mediation and resolution in Africa, as demonstrated by its response to conflict situations on the continent. African ownership has been shown through the contribution of political leadership and troops, logistics, and financing, according to the capacity of its member States. However, the major challenge that inhibits the effectiveness of African Union peacekeeping operations, such as the African Union Mission in Somalia, is lack of adequate financial resources. That is one area where more support from the United Nations and other international partners is urgently needed. It is imperative that the long-standing concerns about the need to reform the Security Council be addressed to foster its effectiveness. The Council needs greater credibility, legitimacy and representation. It is an injustice that the entire continent of Africa — 53 Member States, with a population of over 1 billion people — has no permanent representation on this Council. I am here in a seasonal capacity. The Council should also strive to be more even-handed and transparent in its approaches and decisions in order to dispel the perception that on some issues under its consideration, vested interests override fairness. In addition, the Council should engage more with those countries on its agenda or whose situations it is considering, to afford them an opportunity to express their views and concerns. Since the Security Council acts on behalf of the Members States in the maintenance of international peace and security, it is imperative that it live up to expectations by acting promptly and effectively in addressing the current and new threats to international peace and security.

I now invite the Federal President of the Republic of Austria, His Excellency Mr. Heinz Fischer, to take the floor. Mr. Fischer: Emerging from the biggest catastrophe of the twentieth century — a war in which altogether 50 million people lost their lives — the United Nations was founded to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war. The Security Council was entrusted with the responsibility to maintain international peace and security. Over the past 65 years the Council has made an enormous contribution to that noble goal. For those affected by armed conflict, this often is a question of life and death, of security and development and of respect for the rule of law and human rights. No continent has been spared. While in its early years the Council had to deal primarily with inter-State conflicts, the nature of conflicts has changed significantly in recent times. Intrastate conflicts involving non-State actors, as well as transnational threats such as terrorism, organized crime, drug trafficking, proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, et cetera, have created new challenges for the United Nations and the Security Council. Peacekeeping, which as far as I know was not foreseen in the Charter of the United Nations, has developed into a particularly successful crisis- management tool. Over the past decades the character of peacekeeping has changed. After monitoring ceasefires and interpositioning, peacekeepers today find themselves in the midst of conflicts and facing complex tasks and challenges. Recognizing the importance of United Nations peacekeeping, Austria began contributing troops, police and experts to United Nations operations immediately after joining the Organization. Altogether, 90,000 Austrians in the service of peace since 1960 are proof of our unwavering commitment to the maintenance of international peace and security. Our willingness to assume global responsibility furthermore manifests itself in our third term as a member of the Security Council. Confronted with today’s threats, we identified the protection of civilians in armed conflict as one of the key priorities. The effective protection of the civilian population is the precondition for sustainable peace, and as long as United Nations peacekeeping missions are involved, it is also a question of the credibility of the Council. Resolution 1894 (2009) provides a solid basis for further enhancing the protection of the most vulnerable. Creating a favourable protection environment goes beyond protection from physical violence. It must be complemented by activities in the fields of the rule of law, human rights, disarmament, demobilization and reintegration, and the empowerment of local society. The swift implementation of resolution 1894 (2009) will therefore make an important contribution to the Council’s effectiveness in this core area. An equally important topic is the role of women in peace and security. We must seize the unique opportunity of the tenth anniversary of resolution 1325 (2000) this October to renew our commitment and work towards the increased participation, representation and full involvement of women in preventive diplomacy, mediation, peacekeeping and peacebuilding. In this context, I would like to commend Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon for his strong leadership and encourage him to continue to promote the cause of women. These efforts must be accompanied by an increased protection of women and girls, especially from sexual violence. The Security Council has several times reaffirmed its role in fighting impunity for such violations. Let me also thank Uganda for its commitment to further advance the implementation of this landmark resolution during its presidency of the Council in the month of October. The systematic consideration of topics like the protection of civilians in armed conflict, children and armed conflict or woman, peace and security demonstrates the ability of the Council to respond effectively to today’s challenges. Peacekeeping and peacebuilding need to go hand in hand. Finally, I would like to emphasize that prevention is the most effective and efficient way to manage conflicts. We therefore highly welcome the efforts by the Secretary-General to strengthen the United Nations capacity in early warning and conflict prevention and to continue his good offices and mediation activities. As a member of the European Union, we strongly believe in the partnership between the United Nations and regional organizations in this regard. In conclusion, allow me to congratulate you, Mr. President, on organizing this summit and preparing a presidential statement that enjoys our full support. Let me close by reiterating that the Council will exercise its role in a most effective and credible manner when the guiding principle of its actions is the rule of law — clear and foreseeable rules equally applicable to everybody.

I invite the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, His Excellency Mr. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, to take the floor. Mr. Jonathan: I commend your delegation, Mr. President, for convening this meeting to undertake a strategic review of the evolving international security environment. During this review, it is essential for us to agree on a shared vision and provide the highest political direction necessary for the Security Council to more effectively maintain international peace and security. Our evolving security landscape is marked with multiple threats that respect neither borders nor nationalities. They include the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, the illicit trade in and proliferation of small arms and light weapons, and drug and human trafficking, as well as the use of sexual violence as a weapon of war. Ours is also a world of extreme inequality, deprivation, marginalization and exclusion. These problems are compounded by systemic issues such as underdevelopment, pressure on natural resources and difficulties related to social cohesion and governance. The viral nature of conflict spillovers adds to the international security paradigm. These complex challenges call for vision, creativity, commitment and leadership from the United Nations and Member States. The Council should consider repositioning itself to deal with the changing international environment. The recent review of the Peacebuilding Commission and the discussion of the New Horizon Initiative in the Special Committee on Peacekeeping Operations — the C34 — make the case for greater cooperation among the various organs of the United Nations to ensure effective service delivery on the ground. The Council should therefore enhance its collaboration with the General Assembly and the Economic and Social Council and also build partnerships with other relevant stakeholders, especially the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, in finding solutions to the interwoven challenges of peace, security and development. The Council should more readily deal with smaller-scale challenges as it does with big picture issues like global terrorism. Our current security architecture is not the best model for addressing today’s multiple security challenges. The growing human, material and financial cost of peacekeeping is unsustainable. The competing demands of growing poverty and the spread of diseases cannot be ignored. Those factors make a compelling case for a coherent strategic framework to integrate security and development imperatives. We have seen, in Sierra Leone and Liberia, how United Nations agencies can work with political actors to foster stability through the creation of opportunity, the promotion of good governance and the rule of law. Nigeria has learned many lessons about the evolving security paradigm and the causes and consequences of violent conflicts. Within West Africa in the last two decades and in Africa as a whole, we have witnessed the value of preventive approaches to conflict management — a concept this Council embraced under Nigeria’s presidency in July. We are encouraged by the Council’s recognition of the need to optimize the use of the full range of preventive diplomacy tools. By refining our understanding of conflict management, we afford ourselves the opportunity to reflect critically on the tools we need to respond adequately to the task at hand. We are already witnessing the green shoots of change as conflict management models adapt to incorporate preventive perspectives in their design. Through the use of preventive methods, actors such as the Department of Political Affairs and its Mediation Support Unit are making significant contributions to the building of confidence among local communities. The Secretary-General, with the support of the Security Council, is on a right track to establish a United Nations Office in Central Africa. The office will, we hope, replicate the peacebuilding gains witnessed in West Africa through the work of the United Nations Office for West Africa. However, continued instability in places like the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Sudan and the Middle East are stark warnings against complacency. We must acknowledge today that the Council will have little success in freeing peoples from the scourge of war without the contributions of regional and subregional actors, in accordance with Chapter VIII of the Charter. Working together, they can significantly support United Nations efforts to secure stability, as we have seen from the contributions of the African Union and the Economic Community of West African States. Nigeria is willing and well positioned to be a driver for such enhancement efforts. We must consolidate our efforts based on the foundation of what has already been accomplished. Recently many Council members have propelled this process. The United Kingdom and France initiated the ongoing peacekeeping review; Nigeria has pressed for a focus on preventive diplomacy; and the United States, Japan and Turkey initiated a focus on peacekeeping and troop contribution. We encourage the Council to now build in a mechanism to monitor the progress of objectives identified at summit meetings such as this. The vulnerable, the marginalized and the oppressed are calling upon the United Nations for leadership to end the torment of conflict. In answering this clarion call, we must allow the United Nations to serve as “the indispensable common house of the entire human family, through which we will seek to realize our universal aspirations for peace, cooperation and development” (General Assembly resolution 55/2, para. 32). I therefore urge my fellow leaders to be bold, imaginative, pragmatic and unwavering in purpose. Let us be particular in setting our objectives; let us be concrete in marking out our goals. Above all, we must translate our lofty words into concrete action without let or hindrance.

I now invite His Excellency Mr. Haris Silajdžić, Chairman of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina, to take the floor. President Silajdžić: I would like to thank you, President Gül, and the delegation of the Republic of Turkey for convening this high-level meeting in order to make a strategic review of the Security Council’s growing role in the maintenance of international peace and security. I would also like to thank the Secretary- General of the United Nations, Mr. Ban Ki-moon, for his excellent presentation. I sincerely hope that the outcome of our meeting today will serve as a useful tool for future Security Council deliberations. The primary role of the Security Council under the United Nations Charter is to maintain international peace and security. We should live up to expectations and send a unanimous message today that we commit ourselves to developing the means to fulfil this responsibility. Coming from the perspective of Bosnia and Herzegovina, I cannot stress enough how crucial it is that the lessons learned in the past are applied appropriately. The Security Council has erred in the past, and Bosnia and Herzegovina is the most illustrative example of that in modern history. By imposing and maintaining the arms embargo on Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Security Council added to the overwhelming military advantage of Milošević’s regime, which intended to expand his country’s territories, at the expense of the surrounding States, through genocide and ethnic cleansing, regardless of human cost. As a result, according to the data from the International Committee of the Red Cross, 200,000 people were killed, 12,000 of them children, up to 50,000 women were raped, and 2.2 million were forced to flee their homes. May I also remind the Council that 1,350,000 citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina still live outside the country as a consequence. At the time, some powerful members of this Council justified that course by arguing that the lifting of the embargo would add oil to the fire. The result was that the fire was essentially quelled with the blood of the innocent. And then the horrors culminated in the genocide that was committed in Srebrenica in July 1995. In fact, the Secretary-General’s report on Srebrenica from 1999 unequivocally admitted: “Through error, misjudgement and an inability to recognize the scope of the evil confronting us, we failed to do our part to help save the people of Srebrenica from the Serb campaign of mass murder ... Srebrenica crystallised a truth understood only too late by the United Nations and the world at large: that Bosnia was as much a moral cause as a military conflict. The tragedy of Srebrenica will haunt our history forever.” (A/54/549, para. 503) We cannot bring back the dead, but we can give dignity and justice to the survivors. What we say today is not aimed at the past, but at the future. We owe it not only to the victims and survivors, but to our own common humanity. The message that the Security Council sends to the would-be perpetrators of crimes in the name of twisted ideologies must be crystal clear: “your crimes will not pay off”. The errors that were made in Bosnia and Herzegovina have hardly been corrected. To the contrary, the peace and security established by the Dayton Agreement and the progress made in many fields are now destabilized by open calls for secession of one part of Bosnia and Herzegovina. This destabilizing rhetoric was preceded by the testing of the international community’s patience for the last 15 years. Inadequate responses to the constant blocking of State institutions, return of refugees and provocative rhetoric have been tolerated long enough for the perpetrators to believe that the time has come to turn the territories where they committed atrocities, ethnic cleansing and genocide into their own fiefdom. That is a threat not only to the peace, security and stability in which the international community invested so much, but also a test of the international community’s resolve to prevent the escalation and the opening of fresh wounds in my country. It would be a repetition of the mistake to dismiss open calls for changing international borders as election campaign rhetoric. Our ability to prevent is tested once more. As President John F. Kennedy once rightly said, “an error does not become a mistake until you refuse to correct it”. I would also like to say a few words about post- conflict peacebuilding operations. Although all relevant national and international actors should be involved in the process, we consider the political will of the host country and national ownership to be sine qua non conditions for the success of peacebuilding operations. The peacebuilding process is primarily the national responsibility of post-conflict countries. Promotion of dialogue between the parties to a conflict, particularly between decision makers and civil society, is critical for national institutions’ capacity- and confidence-building and for the reconciliation process. Holding all those who committed crimes accountable and bringing them to justice is of crucial importance to the reconciliation process. Another unpleasant reminder is in order here: Ratko Mladić, the chief executioner of the genocide in Srebrenica, is still at large. That does not bode well for prevention and our credibility. Peacebuilding operations should be based on an integrated approach that includes establishment of good governance, rule of law, promotion of human rights, institution-building, security sector reform, economic reconstruction and development, and full reintegration of refugees and internally displaced persons. Furthermore, the role of women and their involvement in peacebuilding efforts should be strengthened in post-conflict societies. In our increasingly interconnected world, the issues of peace and security are inseparable. New threats and challenges emerge on a daily basis. No country can isolate itself from them or tackle them individually. The Security Council therefore must be prepared to deal with challenges in a coherent, comprehensive and just way. The Security Council must meet the expectations and fulfil the hopes of millions of those in need throughout the world. They expect nothing less from us.

I now invite His Excellency Mr. Ali Bongo Ondimba, President of the Gabonese Republic, to take the floor. President Bongo Ondimba (spoke in French): At the outset, I should like to commend you, Sir, and through you your country, Turkey, for taking the initiative to organize this summit meeting, which gives us an opportunity today to assess the role of the Security Council in the maintenance of international peace and security. With developments in the international context, new threats to peace and security in our world have emerged. These include, inter alia, climate change, arms proliferation, international terrorism, piracy, drug trafficking and its corollary, transnational organized crime. The complex nature of these new threats and the now obvious interdependence between security issues and those of development make the role of the Council increasingly difficult and the mandates of its peacekeeping missions less and less effective. If it is to confront these new challenges, the Council must reconsider its methods of operation. From this perspective, I am pleased to propose some ideas that I believe could help the Council to make its action more effective. I urge the Council to emphasize prevention. As members will agree, it is better to prevent crises and conflicts than to have to resolve them. To that end, I exhort the Secretary- General to pursue his mediation efforts and to do everything possible to improve the Organization’s early warning mechanism. On 8 March, at the International Peace Institute here in New York, I emphasized the importance that Gabon attaches to the role of preventive diplomacy. That idea prevailed, for example, when we implemented mechanisms in our subregion to prevent and manage crises and conflicts such as the early warning mechanism for Central Africa, headquartered in my country, and the Council for Peace and Security in Central Africa. Within the framework of its preventive action in Central Africa, the Council would do well to strengthen the capacities of all these mechanisms. I wish here to welcome the imminent opening in Libreville of the United Nations Office for Central Africa, the mandate of which will encompass this mission. Given the complexities of the new crises the Council faces today, the Council must reconsider its approach to peacekeeping. My country therefore supports the Secretary-General’s New Horizon initiative, aimed at making peacekeeping operations more robust. When peacekeeping is inoperative, the Security Council must find a way to impose peace. Such an approach would have been useful in particular in Somalia. Beyond their operational content, peacekeeping missions must have a global and multidisciplinary nature. We thus welcome the inclusion of new components in these operations, such as offices for child soldiers, victims of sexual abuse and the protection of civilian populations. A smooth transition towards peacebuilding requires the Council to take into account both the basic conditions for sustainable peace and the expectations of populations. That is why it is important to establish peacekeeping operations with clear and achievable mandates. These mandates must be endowed with crisis exit strategies based on benchmarks to enable performance evaluations and the fulfilment of identified objectives. Ensuring international peace and security is an immense task that requires increased cooperation between the Council and regional organizations, especially because the latter are more familiar with realities in the theatres of operation. I therefore welcome the existence of an official consultation mechanism between the Security Council and the African Union (AU) Peace and Security Council on questions of common interest. I am also pleased to see that these two organizations are working together to find solutions for peace in Darfur and in Somalia. Africa being the main theatre for peacekeeping missions, consolidating cooperation between the Security Council and the AU Peace and Security Council is a strategic goal. Such cooperation will strengthen the action of the Peace and Security Council, and this Council will benefit from having a partner whose knowledge and mastery of the challenges on the ground will be an indispensable asset. Peacekeeping must be pursued through peacebuilding in order to prevent the resurgence of crises and conflicts. It is thus important that peacebuilding missions in post-conflict countries increasingly include programmes to help re-establish political, juridical, security and socio-economic institutions. I believe that these comprise the foundation for vigorous action by the Council that is more adapted to realities in the field and the expectations of populations facing the multiple scourges that threaten peace and security in the world.

I now invite His Excellency General Michel Sleiman, President of the Lebanese Republic, to take the floor. President Sleiman (spoke in Arabic): At the outset, allow me to express my appreciation to you, Sir, for convening this summit-level. Such an initiative makes perfect sense in the light of Turkey’s pivotal role. I would also like to thank the Secretary-General for his valuable preliminary remarks. In the first year of this century, the world witnessed a devastating terrorist attack on the World Trade Center in this city, which is host to the United Nations. In its eighth year, the world faced a global financial crisis. Despite their severity, these crises did not lead to a general economic collapse. Nor did they portend the outbreak of a world war, as had been the case at the start of the twentieth century. In large part that is thanks to the fact that the international community agreed on common approaches to addressing those global crises through mechanisms for action and solidarity that were based on institutions for joint action on the regional and international levels, most prominently the United Nations and its specialized agencies. Nevertheless, the successive political and economic have revealed flaws and shortcomings in this international system. For one thing, the United Nations in general, and the Security Council in particular, require reform. The global financial system too must be improved. Nuclear deterrence and the balance of terror between the two super-Powers prevented global confrontation after 1945. They did not, however, prevent the outbreak of small, unjust and lethal wars which led to the occupation of territories, the division of States, the displacement of peoples and the death of millions. Among the most salient of these unjust and painful crises is the tragedy of Palestine, which is at the core of the conflict in the Middle East. Indeed, Israel continues to occupy the Arab territories by force and deprive the Palestinian people of their inalienable rights, to carry on with the Judaization of Jerusalem and the blockade on Gaza and to cling to its nuclear arsenal. Israel maintains its occupation of Lebanese territories, violating Lebanon’s national sovereignty. It persists in its threats, implanting spy networks and agents. That calls for a firm and deterrent position from the international community. The Security Council can settle disputes peacefully, in accordance with Chapter VI of the Charter, including through preventive diplomacy and peacebuilding. Improving performance requires a transition from a reactive mode to a proactive mode, notably by trying to address the root causes of oppression and poverty-induced conflicts, and preventing aggressor States from achieving their covetous designs on the territories and resources of others. Such efforts should include consolidating democracy, spreading enlightened and moderate thinking and promoting an environment conducive to good governance, far from fanaticism, racism and arrogance. They should also involve maintaining initiatives to promote dialogue between and rapprochement among civilizations, cultures and religions. Lebanon wishes to become an international centre for the management of such dialogue. We must mention the fact that there are tasks that require only adequate pressure by the international community and the Security Council in particular. Such is the case in south Lebanon, where Israeli forces must withdraw from all Lebanese territories still under their occupation, without any conditions, in accordance with relevant resolutions of the United Nations, particularly Security Council resolution 1701 (2006). In this context, I would like to commend the efforts and sacrifices in south Lebanon by the troops of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon. Lebanon will always be keen to mobilize all its national capabilities in order to defend its sovereignty, independence and safety and to protect its land and waters and its marine resources. Having participated in the 1991 Madrid Peace Conference, Lebanon still looks forward to a just and comprehensive peace in the Middle East, on all tracks, based on the Madrid terms of reference, the relevant resolutions of international legitimacy and the Arab Peace Initiative, in all its provisions. These all preserve Lebanon’s right to regain all its occupied territories without conditions. While Lebanon closely follows initiatives undertaken to reach partial solutions, or beginnings of solutions, made outside the aforementioned comprehensive approaches, it reiterates that it would not agree to any solution for the Middle East cause in which it does not participate or which contradicts its high national interests, particularly its sovereign right to oppose any form of resettlement of Palestinian refugees in its territories. Such resettlement would actually contradict the refugees’ legitimate and human rights. It would run counter to the Taif Accord, which was approved by the Security Council, and to the preamble of the Lebanese Constitution and the Arab Peace Initiative. Furthermore, it would lead to an unjust and tense situation, fuel violence and undermine stability in Lebanon and the Middle East. We should also recall that the international community assumes a huge responsibility to increase the budget of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), which was established in 1949 to address humanitarian issues and aspects of daily life for Palestinian refugees. The Security Council can adopt coercive measures such as sanctions and the use of force when it acts within the framework of Chapter VI of the Charter. However, most oppressed peoples often complain about the Council’s inability to enforce its own resolutions or about its double standards that depict Israel, for example, as a State beyond accountability and above international law. They also depict the United Nations as incapable and paralysed. That requires effective consideration of the causes of such a negative perception and how it might be redressed so as to reactivate the Council’s role and gain the peoples’ confidence it its ability to champion them and bring about justice in a way that dissuades them from resorting to resistance as a legitimate means of self- defence. What we share as nations is the obligation to respect the rules of international law and the spirit of justice. We do believe that the rule that maintains international peace and security and ensures equality and respect for human rights is the force of law and justice rather than the law of force and fait accompli.

I now invite the Prime Minister of Japan, His Excellency Mr. Naoto Kan, to take the floor.

Today, threats to the security of human beings are diversifying, as exemplified by issues such as the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, terrorism and acts of piracy. Furthermore, the context in which such threats originate is becoming more complex. To cut off those threats at the root, we need to fully understand their causes and carefully choose the most appropriate policy options. In April this year, Japan hosted a ministerial meeting in this Chamber, and we came to the conclusion that a peacebuilding strategy is necessary to enable us to work in a comprehensive and integrated manner on political, security and development issues. It is worthwhile for world leaders to engage in discussions on peacebuilding on this occasion. It is testimony to the fact that peacebuilding is an urgent issue and a common goal of the international community. I appreciate the initiative of President Abdullah Gűl of Turkey in this regard. What does true peace mean? Can we call the mere absence of the state of war or conflict "peace"? No, that is not the case. Restoring peace and the lives of people destroyed by war, conflicts and natural disaster leads to true peace. Japan fully supports the people who strive for the reconstruction of societies and the economies in this process of restoration. That is why I firmly believe that the most important role of State leaders is to reduce, to the extent possible, sources of human suffering such as diseases, poverty and conflict. I call this concept the realization of a society where human suffering is reduced to a minimum. I also introduced this idea as a fundamental philosophy during my speech yesterday at the High-level Plenary Meeting of the General Assembly. Japan will take proactive and concrete action towards the realization of true peace. Based on these thoughts, Japan will promote its assistance through focusing on four pillars, namely, peacekeeping, peacebuilding, conflict prevention and human security. First is peacekeeping. As Chair of the Security Council Working Group on Peacekeeping Operations, Japan will lead discussions on enhancing cooperation among countries contributing to peacekeeping activities and on securing the necessary resources for peacekeeping operations. Japan itself is actively contributing to peacekeeping and other related operations. This year, we expeditiously dispatched Japanese self-defence forces to the disaster-affected countries of Haiti and Pakistan. We also decided to dispatch military liaison officers to the United Nations Integrated Mission in Timor-Leste. Let us next consider peacebuilding. The common assumption is that peacebuilding is to begin after peacekeeping ends. However, in order to realize true peace, it is imperative to engage in peacebuilding in tandem with peacekeeping activities from the early stages of the latter. Japan has learned the importance of a comprehensive and integrated approach to peacebuilding through its experience with long-term assistance in peacebuilding in Cambodia, where we were fully engaged from the outset, hosting a peace conference and donors' conferences, and where we continued to provide support through the final stage of the peace process, the Khmer Rouge trials. In the nation-building efforts in Timor-Leste, our contributions based on such prior experience are about to bear fruit. We attach great importance to peacebuilding efforts employing similar approaches in other areas, such as Afghanistan, Iraq, the Middle East and Africa. Of all of these, it is Afghanistan that presents the greatest challenge to the international community in terms of peacebuilding, and it is that country to which Japan is providing the most intensive assistance. In cooperation with various partners, Japan has extended comprehensive and integrated support for the Afghan Government's efforts, focusing on three pillars: the improvement of security, including police training; reintegration through vocational training and job creation for former Taliban rank-and-file soldiers; and sustainable and self-reliant development by means of agricultural assistance, among other programmes. Japan will cooperate with the Republic of Turkey in assisting Afghan police training by providing funding as well as police personnel, with a view to improving security in Afghanistan. We also recently disbursed $50 million in assistance for the reintegration of insurgents. It is our intention to provide assistance, in cooperation with the international community, in such a way that the people of Afghanistan will be able to perceive a tangible improvement in their lives. In the area of conflict prevention, the third pillar, creating a safe and secure environment for people to live their lives and implementing continued confidence- building measures are essential in vulnerable or post- conflict States. The Security Council also must continue exerting its utmost efforts to halt the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction in order to prevent terrorist groups or other organizations from acquiring those weapons. Japan will implement the action plan agreed at the 2010 Review Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons. During a meeting of foreign ministers yesterday, Japan and Australia, together with other like-minded countries, launched a new group on this issue. We will also continue to work on nuclear disarmament and nuclear non-proliferation efforts in cooperation with the international community. The concept of human security, the fourth pillar, is useful in helping the Security Council to cope with these matters. True peace can be sustained only when each individual human being achieves freedom, secures dignity and leads a fulfilled life. Relying on this philosophy, we will continue to contribute to international efforts to protect and empower vulnerable States and people. Finally, it has been 65 years since the birth of the United Nations. The world situation has changed drastically since then. If the Security Council is to continue to play an effective role in maintaining international peace and security in the twenty-first century, the Council itself needs to demonstrate its legitimacy by reflecting the reality of the international community. To that end, Japan will cooperate with other Member States and work actively for the early realization of reform of the Security Council.

I invite His Excellency Mr. Sergey V. Lavrov, Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation, to take the floor.

Let me thank the delegation of Turkey and President Gül personally for convening today's meeting of the Security Council. In recent years, the United Nations and many regional and subregional associations have done tremendous work in the prevention and settlement of crisis situations and post-conflict rehabilitation. Having confronted global and transborder challenges and threats to international stability, such as the proliferation of mass destruction, terrorism, drug trafficking and organized crime, we are now working on new, more effective mechanisms to ensure international and regional stability. In accordance with the United Nations Charter, the Security Council is taking the lead in these efforts. It is important that the Council further improve existing mechanisms to ensure its more effective and prompt response. The experience of settling a number of crisis situations points to a number of basic conclusions. The first and the most important conclusion is that modern conflicts cannot be resolved by force. They should be resolved first and foremost at the political and diplomatic levels through the involvement of all parties in dialogue and negotiations, with none being isolated. We all witnessed in August 2008 the result of unilateral disruption of agreed peacekeeping formats and reliance on force. Secondly, we should spare no effort, material or intellectual, for the early prevention of conflicts and the strengthening of United Nations potential in the area of preventive diplomacy and mediation. It is well known that the prevention of conflict situations is considerably less expensive than solving them subsequently. To this end, active support should be extended to the United Nations Regional Centres for Preventive Diplomacy, relevant regional organizations and associations that provide assistance in the peaceful settlement of disputes and the prevention of transborder threats to security. Thirdly, the success of our peacekeeping and peacebuilding efforts in the Middle East, Afghanistan, Africa, Haiti, East Timor and elsewhere hinges on our ability to take the interests and priorities of the host party into account. No assistance of the international community should be imposed. Fourthly, modern conflicts require complex strategies and comprehensive solutions based on the unity of objectives; the predictability of material, technical and financial support; the effective combination of military and civil stabilization efforts; and close coordination, taking into account regional contexts and the optimal involvement of the potential of regional organizations pursuant to Chapter VIII of the United Nations Charter. It is important to avoid duplication of efforts and, even worse, rivalry. Based on this understanding, we promote cooperation between the United Nations and the Collective Security Treaty Organization and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization. We welcome and fully support regular dialogue between the Security Council and countries contributing troops to United Nations peacekeeping operations. Such dialogue helps us to develop more realistic mandates, adequately assess existing resources and ensure appropriate control. In that respect, we consider the practice of inviting to Council meetings the commanders of military contingents of peacekeeping operations, which we introduced last month during the Russian presidency in the Security Council, to be of particular use. The Russian proposal to further intensify the activities of the Military Staff Committee remains relevant and has enjoyed a positive response from a growing number of States. It provides for the further development of practical cooperation between the Military Staff Committee and the Security Council, the Secretariat and all interested Member States, in full compliance with the United Nations Charter and its Article 47. This would ensure a systemic and professional military expert assessment of peacekeeping activities. In the light of the upcoming drawdown of operations in Chad and East Timor and the downsizing of operations in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Côte d'Ivoire and Liberia, it is especially important to develop effective exit strategies. Such strategies should help to optimize costs and to focus efforts and existing resources on creating conditions favourable to strengthening political settlements, preventing the recurrence of conflicts and ensuring effective post- conflict peacebuilding. Additional attention should be given to the question of how peacekeeping and peacebuilding mandates can be rationally combined and how and when to engage the Peacebuilding Commission, the United Nations specialized agencies and regional organizations. Russian peacekeepers participate in the operations in the Middle East, various regions of Africa, Kosovo, East Timor and Haiti. Our helicopter units have been deployed as part of the United Nations missions in Sudan, Chad and the Central African Republic. Russia provides tangible material, technical and transport support to United Nations peacekeeping operations and conducts training of civil police officers from various regions of the world, including from African countries. This policy is supported by our annual contribution to the Peacekeeping Fund in the amount $2 million. Russia will continue to increase its practical contribution to the peacekeeping and peacebuilding activities of the United Nations.

I now invite His Excellency Ambassador Celso Amorim, Minister of External Relations of Brazil, to take the floor.

I would like to commend President Gül and the Turkish delegation for their initiative to hold this high-level meeting. Sixty-five years ago, the United Nations was founded to prevent another war of great proportions. For many, however, real peace has never come about. Millions still live in a world where conflict and poverty nurture each other. International efforts to promote stability have been hindered by a narrow view, in which peace was only seen as the absence of armed conflict. Today it is clear that peace, security, development, human rights and the rule of law are interrelated. Peace can never flourish where there is hunger and poverty. As much as an exit strategy, peacekeeping operations must have a strategy of sustainability, a strategy that will deliver the real dividends of peace: stability, development and strong national institutions. Peacekeeping and peacebuilding should, to the extent possible, go hand in hand. Let me be clear: we are not advocating that the Security Council be given a mandate to promote development. But, in most cases, the Security Council would benefit from the advice of the Peacebuilding Commission. Other bodies of the United Nations system must also be involved. The coordination between the Security Council and the Economic and Social Council foreseen in Article 65 of the United Nations Charter should be fully exercised. Let me give a couple of examples. In Haiti, where Brazil is proud to have contributed to the United Nations-led stabilization efforts, it is clear that there will be no lasting peace if extreme poverty and deprivation are not adequately addressed — and that was true even before the earthquake. Real stability will prevail only if the window of opportunity created by the United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti is seized to strengthen institutions and to improve the living conditions of the Haitian people. This will require deep involvement of various bodies dealing with economic and social matters, as well as of the international financial institutions, all under appropriate coordination by the United Nations. Guinea-Bissau presents another situation in which poverty and institutional instability hamper peace. The reforms needed by that country, especially reform of its armed forces, will require courageous decisions on the part of its authorities. But it cannot dispense with substantial international cooperation. And in order to achieve these combined goals, proper attention by the Security Council may be needed. Interaction with other United Nations bodies and the ability to cope with complex situations are indispensable to make the Security Council more effective. But that is not enough. It needs to be more representative and legitimate. Its working methods must become more transparent. Security issues that concern the whole of the international community cannot be dealt with as the private domain of a limited number of Powers. Improving the effectiveness of the Security Council depends also on the role of non-permanent members. They must fully participate in the decision- making process. Non-permanent members can bring a diversity of views and regional experiences to the Council. It is not appropriate to call upon them only to ratify decisions already taken by the permanent members. It is also impossible to discuss the Council’s effectiveness without addressing the question of the veto. We are realistic. We are not proposing to abolish the veto. However, imaginative formulas that make its use more difficult or encourage self-restraint are necessary. All of the measures I have set out — a holistic approach to crises, the reform of the Council’s composition, increasing the role of the non-permanent members and restraining the use of the veto — should contribute to making the international community more engaged in the Council’s decisions. Finally, let me say a word on sanctions. Sanctions, in particular economic sanctions, are foreseen in the United Nations Charter for special intractable situations. Therefore, there should be nothing illegitimate about them in principle. But, more often than not, the imposition of sanctions brings about unintended effects and has a negative impact on the civilian population, especially on its more vulnerable sectors. So, sanctions constitute an instrument to be used with great caution and only when all avenues of dialogue and understanding have been exhausted.

I now invite Her Excellency The Honourable Hillary Rodham Clinton, Secretary of State of the United States of America, to take the floor.

I commend the Security Council, the Turkish leadership and the Secretary-General for the important statement that will be issued at the end of this Council meeting, and for the emphasis placed on the centrality of peacemaking, peacekeeping and peacebuilding. I think we have heard today — and will hear from the rest of our colleagues — how important it is to improve these functions as both a humanitarian and a strategic imperative. I am pleased that the statement itself emphasizes reducing and resolving conflicts and also providing better protection to civilians from violence, including protecting women and children from sexual violence. And I am very glad that it is clear-eyed about the current limitations of the United Nations and that it recognizes that all of us, as Member States, have a responsibility to work together to improve this core function. I have seen the good that the United Nations has accomplished all over the world, and I have been privileged to meet many of the dedicated men and women who work under the blue flag in troubled lands very far from their homes: places like Liberia, where United Nations forces have provided the space and security that that war-torn country needed to begin putting itself back together; Pakistan, where United Nations aid workers are assisting people whose homes and livelihoods have been washed away by the floods; and, of course, Haiti, where United Nations peacekeepers, led by Brazil, were immediately back on the streets after the earthquake, despite having suffered grievous losses themselves. Their presence has provided much-needed order, stability and hope in so many places, and we should never forget the sacrifices and service of these soldiers, police officers, advisers and aid workers who do the hard work and face the danger far from this Chamber that we are in today. Last year, President Obama met with the leaders of top troop- and police-contributing countries to thank them and discuss how to make United Nations peacekeeping more effective. And I would like to take this opportunity to reaffirm our appreciation for the contributions of all of the nations that have made financial commitments. We will do our best to work together to improve every aspect of United Nations peacekeeping operations. As the presidential statement says, these undertakings have become increasingly complex. It is no longer enough to just provide peacekeepers. That must be accompanied by effective mediation, peacemaking and peacebuilding. We are concerned about the growing gap between multifaceted mission requirements and the resources available to meet them. Too often, despite their ambitious mandates, United Nations missions lack key capacities. They do not have enough helicopters; they do not have enough medic units; they do not have enough police mentors or crisis response tools. And they are often hampered by inadequate efforts to improve governance and the rule of law. Sending out these missions without the resources and support they need undermines their effectiveness and jeopardizes the safety of United Nations personnel. I also very much wish to associate myself with the comments of the President of Uganda, concerning the fact that we need to do more in cooperation with regional forces and with countries themselves. Ultimately, the countries we are trying to help stabilize and the civilians we are trying to protect, pay the price of our inadequate financing, organizing and executing of these missions. So improvement begins with clear, credible and achievable mandates for all United Nations missions — and, of course, that starts right here. The United States also strongly supports operational reforms that would enable United Nations field missions to deploy more rapidly, with adequate numbers of well-equipped and well-trained troops and police, and with the quality of leadership and civilian expertise they require. We also support management reforms for improved efficiency, accountability and transparency. The United States is expanding its efforts to help other countries train and supply formed police units that have the skills and experience to fulfil these difficult missions. These police units provide a critical bridge between short-term security operations and long-term work on governance and the rule of law. And there should be a special focus on boosting the number of women police officers and peacekeepers, like the Indian women I met who were serving so well in Liberia. The United States is also funding new United Nations efforts to integrate the protection of civilians into every facet of its missions, from strategic planning to on-the-ground operations. It is heartbreaking when we receive reports, either from the United Nations itself or through the press, that civilians near where United Nations troops are stationed continue to suffer horrific attacks and violence. One place where we need better coordination, and where it is absolutely urgent, is the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), where sexual and gender-based violence against civilians has reached unimaginable proportions. Last year, after visiting the DRC and meeting with women who were brutally assaulted and raped, I chaired the Council’s adoption of resolution 1888 (2009), to combat sexual violence in conflict zones. I regret to say we have not made progress. Today I am announcing that the United States will provide new funding to help implement that important measure of resolution 1888 (2009), including the establishment of a Special Representative’s office and the ramping up of its efforts to support justice and accountability. We will also contribute to training and protection to those who work for accountability on the ground in the DRC, and to help the DRC develop and implement its own justice mechanisms. The United States is, as we have been from the very beginning, committed to improving United Nations operations — not just because we think it is the right thing to do, and not just because the humanitarian imperative is so strong in our own value system — but because we actually think it is smart and strategic as well. These missions can help contain and resolve conflicts that would otherwise engulf nations and regions. They can help prevent fragile States from becoming failed States and sources of wider instability. And they can help struggling countries start on the road to becoming productive partners. I look around this Chamber and I see representatives from countries that have known war in the very recent past, that have been torn apart, and still are, by conflict. They have re-emerged, and they have sustained themselves, against great odds; and they are now nations contributing to solving their own and other problems. So, Mr. President, I hope the discussion that you have brought to the forefront by chairing this summit here in the Security Council is not just another meeting, but that we will follow through and do everything we can to make one of the most important missions of the United Nations — peacemaking, peacekeeping and peacebuilding — more effective. The United States will do its part, but we must all do everything we can so that we are supporting those brave men and women wearing those wonderful- looking blue berets — when we see them we are proud of them — and not just sending them to do a mission that from the very beginning is impossible.

I now invite His Excellency Mr. William Hague, Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, to take the floor.

I begin by thanking you, Mr. President, for convening this summit. Given the new security threats and economic constraints we face, this debate provides an opportunity to reaffirm our commitment to improving the ability of the United Nations to prevent conflict, to forge sustainable peace agreements and to keep and build peace. Instability and conflict have a devastating impact around the world. They affect the lives of millions of people and the prosperity of countries and whole regions. Twenty-two of the 34 countries furthest from achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) are in the midst of, or are emerging from, violent conflict. Instability and lawlessness provide fertile ground for extremism, organized crime and terrorism — threats that reach beyond the borders of single States. Delivering national security has become a global effort and a global responsibility. Tackling conflict requires a cohesive, strategic and integrated response. In the United Kingdom, one of our first acts in the new Government was to establish a national security council to coordinate efforts across foreign affairs, defence and international development. In the United Nations we have supported reform to ensure coherence across conflict prevention, peacekeeping and peacebuilding, something that the Security Council, and the whole United Nations system, has collectively sought to deliver in recent years. But the real test is whether such reforms are making a difference on the ground. We strongly commend the dedication of United Nations peacekeepers around the world. In the year ahead, major challenges will continue to place significant demands on these dedicated men and women. Peacekeepers will play a critical role supporting the referendum in the Sudan; and in the Democratic Republic of the Congo we will require still greater effort and innovation from our peacekeepers as they seek to halt attacks on civilians, and in particular on women and children. But peacekeeping alone cannot deliver long-term stability in fragile States. Peacebuilding is critical if we are to address the underlying causes of conflict, such as corruption, ethnic hatred and marginalization. It is critical if we are to strengthen national capacity to manage political disputes peacefully. And it is critical if we are to be better at helping countries re-establish the rule of law, reform security services, shore up good governance and begin economic development. Peacebuilding needs to happen as soon as possible, in order for belligerents and the wider population to have the confidence to invest in a peace agreement. In the year ahead we need to see the conclusion of reform that remains incomplete. The United Nations review of international civilian capacities should set out bold recommendations on how the United Nations can much more quickly deploy the right expertise to post-conflict countries. This includes making much better use of the capacity of regional organizations and Member States, particularly those of the South. We also need to see more effective use of the Peacebuilding Commission. We support the recent review, but we now need to encourage the Commission to take on the really difficult challenges to peacebuilding and provide advice to the Council, and others, on the course of action required to resolve them. In the year ahead Liberia will be a proving ground for the Peacebuilding Commission. It must help build local capacity to maintain the rule of law so that the United Nations can transfer responsibility for security to national authorities. If we are serious about tackling conflict, then the Security Council, along with the rest of the United Nations system, needs to develop a genuine culture of prevention. This is a question of political will. The Council must be prepared to take up fast-moving situations in countries that are not on its agenda. We must support regular analysis of potential conflict by the Secretary-General and his senior staff. We should encourage experts across the United Nations system to share information on potential precursors to conflict. Our human rights specialists must be able to share their concerns with those looking for early signs of conflict, and we must have a stronger dialogue with regional and subregional organizations on ways to prevent conflict, including on issues that drive conflict, such as illicit extraction of natural resources. In the year ahead, if we are to tackle these new threats to security, we will need to deliver regular improvement and lasting impact on the ground. We will need to demonstrate that we are tackling potential conflict in this Council. We will need to show that, by the decisions we take and the actions we mandate, we are reducing the impact of violence on civilian populations, and we will need to be confident that we are building national security sectors so that we can withdraw peacekeeping operations, strong in the knowledge that we have supported sustainable peace.

I now invite Her Excellency Mrs. Patricia Espinosa Cantellano, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Mexico, to take the floor.

We wish at the outset to thank you, Mr. President, for having taken the initiative to convene this meeting of the Security Council to debate at the highest level the issue of strengthening of the role of the Council in the maintenance of peace and security. We also thank your delegation for its guidance of the work of the Council. The evolution of the international context requires the Council to adapt its skills and mechanisms to cope effectively and comprehensively with the new international challenges and threats, recognizing the clear interdependence between development, respect for international law, human rights and security. Today, we face threats — such as international terrorism and transnational organized crime, including illicit trafficking in drugs, arms and persons — that affect the world in a transversal manner. No country remains unaffected, and no one can face them on their own. The Security Council, as the highest legitimate body responsible for the maintenance of international peace and security, in accordance with the prerogatives conferred on it by the Charter of the United Nations, should continue to strengthen its mechanisms and the reach of its decisions in order more effectively to address threats that affect contemporary global stability, instead of being overtaken by reality. Mexico believes that we live at a time when we have the tools and opportunities to promote an environment conducive to tangible improvements in peace and security. As it has rarely done before, the Council now works to reach consensus based on negotiations within the framework of the international law. There is also a positive and constructive relationship among the permanent members, as well as an exceptionally consistent group of non-permanent members committed to international peace and security. These elements show us that it is possible to strengthen the peacekeeping agenda, emphasizing conflict prevention and peacebuilding, and providing the political support necessary to ensure lasting peace. Our work should seek to ensure that the Security Council’s efforts have a positive impact on the field as part of a comprehensive and coherent long-term strategy that builds and strengthens lasting peace and promotes the safety of the civilian population, particularly women and children. We must also continue to encourage respect for the international legal framework, ensuring compliance with the Council’s decisions and confronting impunity, in particular for violations of international humanitarian law and human rights. We believe that there should be a greater emphasis on conflict prevention. Dialogue and the peaceful settlement of disputes are essential to strengthening international cooperation in maintaining peace and security, eradicating the structural causes of conflict and encouraging the development and use of resources in a more rational way. In the course of our participation in the Council’s work, we have particularly emphasized the peaceful settlement of disputes, preventive diplomacy, respect for the rule of law, and transparency in the Council’s working methods, all of which are needed to promote the higher efficiency of this organ’s capacities. Mexico has always promoted the peaceful settlement of disputes and remains convinced that the genuine strengthening of the role of the Organization in the world depends on the validity of Chapter VI of the Charter of the United Nations. Throughout its history, Mexico has been one of its most active promoters, resorting to arbitration and international courts and encouraging the peaceful settlement of disputes through mediation in our region. To a large extent, and thanks to mediation, for several decades Latin America and the Caribbean has been one of the most peaceful regions of the world. Mediation has led to the resolution of political and ideological conflicts and territorial and border disputes. Thus, in 2009 we convened a debate of the Security Council on mediation and the peaceful settlement of disputes. Conflict prevention and post-conflict attention must remain among the primary objectives of the Organization, which must address the causes in a comprehensive and long-term manner. Peacekeeping and post-conflict capacity-building, in particular of civilian capabilities, are key components of the promotion and strengthening of the rule of law. We believe that, in 2010, important progress has been made in maintaining the relevance of the topic on the agenda of the Security Council. The debate on the promotion and strengthening of the rule of law in the maintenance of international peace and security, held in June, is one example of that. It is also important to highlight the Council’s resolutions urging the parties to armed conflicts to comply with international humanitarian law and to protect vulnerable groups. With respect to international humanitarian law, the Council has assumed the role of collective guarantor under the Protocol Additional I to the Geneva Conventions. With full conviction, we have convened two meeting on child protection in conflict situations aimed at protecting their rights and ensuring their return to a safe environment with prospects for growth and development. Also, with the support of the members of the Security Council, in 2009 we have strengthened the tools of this Council through resolution 1882 (2009), among others. As an elected member of the Security Council, and also within the General Assembly, Mexico will continue to contribute in creating conditions of stability and lasting peace at the international level, as we have done since the founding of the Organization, acting under the principles of transparency, democratization and accountability. I conclude by expressing my delegation’s support for the draft presidential statement to be adopted at the end of this meeting, which will undoubtedly strengthen the work of the Council in maintaining international peace and security.

I now invite His Excellency Mr. Bernard Kouchner, Minister for Foreign Affairs of France, to take the floor.

I thank you, Sir, for your initiative to convene this meeting so that we might consider together the ways in which we undertake the United Nations most essential mission — that of maintaining international peace and security. We must be clear-headed. Peacekeeping operations are often criticized, even rejected, by host countries, as we have witnessed recently. Sometimes, they struggle to fulfil their mandates. They are expensive. They are not always as responsive as they should be. And we were all appalled by the impunity with which, even very recently, mass rapes were perpetrated in the Kivus, despite the deployment of a United Nations operation with significant assets. All of this is true. But do not let the trees hide the forest. What would we do without peacekeeping operations? No other international organization enjoys the legitimacy, the capacity and indeed the will to do what the United Nations does on a daily basis throughout the world. Clearly, even if all of us clearly favour prevention, and despite the system’s imperfections, we have not yet found anything better with which to assist and strengthen nascent and therefore fragile peace processes; to assist States in need to restore their capacities, administer their territory and thus avoid a return to conflict; to guarantee the international community’s vigilance and ensure that the most vulnerable are not left all alone in facing the hangman — in a word, to involve the entire international community in the settlement of crises from which we do not want to avert our eyes. This mission is extremely bold, perilous and, some would even say, utopian. If the United Nations does not meet this challenge, no one can do it in its place. It is thus imperative that the Council — which bears, I repeat, the primary responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security — learn from both its successes and its failures and adapt its decisions accordingly. You, Mr. President, rightly voiced the hope that this meeting would cover all aspects related to the maintenance of peace, whether it be the prevention of conflicts, or peacekeeping or peacebuilding when they have ended. Indeed, increasingly, we need to consider all of this together. At the very heart of this process, we have peacekeeping itself. Of course, we are especially wedded to this, because this is one of the major responsibilities of the United Nations, and because the lives of millions of women, men and children depend on peacekeeping operations. Thousands of French soldiers and over 150 gendarmes and police officers serve as Blue Helmets — as Hillary Clinton said earlier, thinking of our berets — and my country contributes to the tune of $585 million to the budget for peacekeeping operations. We have experienced failure. We have experienced success. In certain cases, we have reached the limits of what we could expect of the missions. We have also witnessed tragedies: in Rwanda, in the former Yugoslavia and in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. We must remember these. We have learned those lessons. We are now striving to ensure that peacekeeping operations be based on specific, clear and prioritized mandates, with a clear timeline when possible, and that they be supported by appropriate and sufficient financial, human and technical resources. I am looking across the Chamber at the head of peacekeeping operations, who is looking at me dubiously. We have also adapted the United Nations actions to ensure better protection for vulnerable populations and achieve lasting results. Have we been successful? Not always. Today, the success of the United Nations must be gauged by the yardstick of the protection of civilians. Our credibility is at stake here. The United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the African Union-United Nations Hybrid Operation in Darfur (UNAMID) illustrate the challenges we must face. In the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the protection of civilians remains the priority for the Blue Helmets’ mandate. But the situation is not under control, as the Council is well aware, particularly in the east, as shown by the recurrence of terrible violence against civilians, of which I just spoke — in particular against women, since it is easier. The training of the police and army must lead to law enforcement forces being redeployed to liberated areas, without a security vacuum, and to the authority of the Congolese State, including in the judicial field, being lastingly restored throughout the Territory. In Darfur, attacks against civilians do not take place by chance. They are organized and have been described as crimes against humanity by the International Criminal Court. In the climate of impunity that prevails in that battered region, UNAMID is repeatedly exposed to attacks, which prevents it from protecting civilians sufficiently, even in the camps. The Security Council should reflect on how to respond to that situation. Apart from the primary need to protect civilians, it is also necessary to draw up strategies for emergence from crisis that ensure a lasting return to peace, in particular with regard to the economic, social and political recovery of communities often ravaged by conflict. In line with those developments, we have taken steps to restore the effectiveness of the Security Council. Change is under way. We must welcome that and welcome the commitment of the Secretariat, which was able to adapt to the new modus operandi and the new relationships that the Council wished to establish among all actors. However, there remains much to do. I thank you again, Mr. President, for having organized this meeting. We must continue our work to ensure a stronger chain of command in operations, which has started, in order to improve cooperation among troop-contributing countries and also to ensure stricter political, military and financial supervision of peacekeeping operations. We should improve our work on resources and implementing budgets, as Celso Amorim has just said, by ensuring that when it takes decisions, the Council has a sound understanding of their operational and financial impact and of their future. We should also regularly review the strategy, balance, composition and size of operations. Peacekeeping operations are the expression of the international community’s commitment. I pay tribute to all those who are in charge, involved and sometimes victims. Such operations must establish lasting peace. That is easy to say, but they are not meant to last forever. It is necessary to then secure those achievements and ensure the implementation of a true transition strategy. That is why it is critical that we learn to better manage the transition and withdrawal phases in peacekeeping missions. At that level too, considerable effort has been made in recent years and there have been successes, seen in the gradual transfer of responsibilities to national authorities and the orderly withdrawal of several peacekeeping operations. I am thinking of Burundi, Sierra Leone and Cambodia. Faced with legitimate criticism, we forget the successes. However, we need to make more progress. We are counting on the Peacebuilding Commission, which has been mentioned, to come up with a response to the need to ensure better coordinated activities of the international community in the phases of emerging from a conflict. One thinks that once the operation has ended, the problems are over. They are just starting. The stakes in peacebuilding must be taken into account from the first stages of crisis management in order to anticipate the conditions and mechanisms to emerge from the crisis. That compels us today to assess the risks associated with new threats, such as drug and human trafficking, organized crime and even corruption, which are very likely to destabilize fragile countries. Finally, it must be said, the efforts undertaken by the international community in mandating a peacekeeping operation require resolute commitment by the host State. The political contract entered into must be severed only once lasting peace has been restored. It is never acceptable for a Government to give notice to a United Nations mission or decide on its withdrawal without consultations, in particular without providing credible assurances that it is capable of taking over. I know that it is not easy and that we are faced with similar situations. This debate, which you, Mr. President, have taken the initiative to organize and which will be complemented by an outstanding statement, affords us another opportunity to reiterate our commitment to peacekeeping and our desire to further improve its effectiveness. Rest assured that France will spare no effort in advancing the implementation of our common road map.

I shall now make some brief remarks in my national capacity. Having listened to the members of the Council and the valuable insights they have presented based on their own experiences, I can easily state that the purpose of the meeting has already been well served. This exchange has proven to be particularly important for my country, since Turkey is situated at the crossroads of a host of conventional and asymmetrical risks and threats dominating a vast geography ranging from the Balkans to the Middle East, from the Black Sea and the Mediterranean to the Caucasus and Central Asia. Therefore, Turkey often finds itself dealing with a great diversity of issues affecting its own security and beyond, and tries to help generate peace and stability in that broad area. In doing so, we, like many other members of the international community, rely on and resort to a wide range of tools, including mediation, preventive diplomacy, peacekeeping and post-conflict peacebuilding. Indeed, Turkey has recently become particularly recognized for its active mediation and facilitation efforts. This is no coincidence, because we see such preventive efforts as the most cost-effective and efficient way of resolving potential and existing disputes. We also have the comparative advantage and capacity to do so. As such, we attach great importance to building and improving the preventive capacities of the international community. In the case of ongoing conflicts, on the other hand, we are a significant police- and troop- contributing country in many United Nations and international peacekeeping missions. Moreover, we are actively involved in a broad range of peacebuilding activities, including development assistance schemes, with a view to helping create the conditions for sustainable peace. The lessons we have drawn from these experiences can also shed some light on our discussion today. First, starting with preventive diplomacy, the international community needs to better coordinate its activities. Given the multidimensional and indivisible nature of the current security environment, all major stakeholders need to collaborate among themselves, starting within the United Nations itself. The Security Council, in particular, must reach out to its partners within and outside the United Nations system and make better use of their comparative advantages in the pursuit of our shared objectives. Secondly, the Council’s approach to peace and security should be of a more comprehensive and strategic nature. So far, there has been a tendency to use our operational tools in a more sequential fashion in the order of preventive diplomacy, peacemaking, peacekeeping and post-conflict peacebuilding. Our experience, however, suggests that pursuing such a uniform and linear sequence holds us back in each area and creates inefficiencies. We should instead be able to forge an overarching political strategy, placing all these tools within an integrated, coherent framework. For instance, mediation and facilitation should not be merely seen as a way of reaching certain agreements. It is essential for these efforts to be sustained throughout the implementation of peace accords, too. Similarly, peacekeeping, which has become an increasingly complex and robust undertaking, should not be confined to stabilization operations carried out by police and military forces. In order to ensure lasting success, our peacekeeping mandates must incorporate an early and long-term peacebuilding perspective. In this regard, the critical linkages between security and development, or between human rights, democracy and security, should be taken into account. The root causes of conflicts ought to be addressed early on to create the conditions for sustainable peace and stability. Likewise, the necessary civilian capacities with respect to good governance, the rule of law, human rights, and economic and human development have to be improved at both the national and the international levels. Finally, we have to admit that we operate in a rapidly evolving and somewhat unpredictable security environment. Indeed, the risks and threats facing us constantly change, requiring us to adapt our actions and responses accordingly. Despite dedicated efforts, the Council has so far proven to be somewhat slow in adapting itself to changing circumstances. In order to remedy this shortcoming, the Council needs to interact more with non-member countries and in a more transparent and forward-looking manner. The Council should also endow itself with enhanced early warning and assessment capabilities, as well as flexible resourcing mechanisms. There are many other related topics we might discuss in this context, but in view of the time, let me stop here and reiterate my hope that this meeting will re-energize the Council’s efforts for peace and security. In the uncharted waters of the twenty-first century, there is no doubt that we need a more effective Security Council to fulfil its primary responsibility of maintaining international peace and security. Today’s debate has demonstrated that this common objective is well within reach. We now need to take the necessary concrete steps to materialize it. Turkey will always be a reliable partner of the Council and the international community in this just and noble drive. I now resume my functions as President of the Security Council. The Council has before it the text of a statement by the President on behalf of the Council on the subject of today’s meeting. I thank Council members for their valuable contributions to this statement. In accordance with the understanding reached among the members of the Council, I shall take it that the members of the Security Council agree to the statement, which will be issued as a document of the Security Council under the symbol S/PRST/2010/18. It was so decided.

I wish to thank all of the Heads of State and Government, Ministers and the Secretary- General for their contributions to this important meeting. The Security Council has thus concluded its deliberations.