S/PV.7351 Security Council

I wish to warmly welcome the Ministers and other representatives present in the Security Council Chamber. Their participation is an affirmation of the importance of the subject matter under discussion. In accordance with rule 37 of the Council’s provisional rules of procedure, I invite the representatives of Afghanistan, Algeria, Bangladesh, Brazil, Colombia, Egypt, Ethiopia, Germany, Guatemala, Italy, India, Iraq, the Islamic Republic of Iran, Israel, Japan, Kazakhstan, Libya, Malaysia, Mali, Morocco, the Netherlands, New Zealand, the Niger, Pakistan, Senegal, Spain, Sweden, the Syrian Arab Republic, Tunisia, Turkey, Uganda and Ukraine to participate in this meeting. In accordance with rule 39 of the Council’s provisional rules of procedure, I invite Mr. Jeffrey Feltman, Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs, to participate in this meeting. In accordance with rule 39 of the Council’s provisional rules of procedure, I invite His Excellency Mr. Téte António, Permanent Observer of the African Union to the United Nations, to participate in this meeting. In accordance with rule 39 of the Council’s provisional rules of procedure, I invite Her Excellency Ms. Mara Marinaki, Managing Director for Global and Multilateral Issues of the European External Action Service, to participate in this meeting. The Security Council will now begin its consideration of the item on its agenda. I wish to draw the attention of Council members to document S/2014/9, which contains the report of the Secretary-General on the work of the United Nations to help States and subregional and regional entities in Africa in fighting terrorism. I also wish to draw the attention of Council members to document S/2014/869, which contains a letter dated 4 December 2014 from the Permanent Representative of Chad to the United Nations addressed to the Secretary- General, transmitting a concept paper on the item under consideration. I now give the floor to Mr. Feltman. Mr. Feltman: On behalf of the Secretary- General and as Chairman of the Counter-Terrorism Implementation Task Force (CTITF), I thank Chad for convening this timely debate. Chad is playing a leadership role in the Sahel to address terrorism and cross-border crime. We sincerely appreciate President Deby Itno’s vision and commitment to seeing the United Nations mission in northern Mali succeed, and we deeply regret the loss of the Chadian peacekeepers in recent months This week, we were reminded yet again why we must not tire in our efforts to counter terrorism — the despicable attack on a school in Pakistan by the Taliban. Let us mourn and honour the 126 children killed by countering rhetoric and acts of hatred with concerted international efforts. Terrorism represents today a core threat to international peace and security. Transnational crime is fuelling terrorism with money, arms and support to move across borders and destabilize States, particularly the most challenged. In the Secretary-General’s recent visits to Africa he was constantly reminded that terrorism and cross- border crime cannot be addressed separately. The Secretary-General stressed earlier this year in his report to the Council on terrorism in Africa that terrorists increasingly rely on cross-border criminality to further their agenda and that these linkages “pose a major threat to peace and stability” (S/2014/9, para. 12). Drug-trafficking, organising abduction rings, extracting natural resources, conducting joint financial operations — the ways in which terrorists and organized criminals work together seem boundless. Cross-border crime weakens the authority of the State as it puts into question the Government’s ability to maintain security and provide a peaceful context for economic development. It also creates the conditions that foster corruption and human rights violations, thereby undermining the State’s legitimacy. Our efforts will not bear fruit unless we combine law enforcement actions with measures to strengthen good governance, rule of law and human rights. We will not uproot the ideologies that lead to violence if we do not win over hearts and minds. The United Nations Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy takes precisely that comprehensive approach, particularly in its pillar I, which focuses on addressing the political and socioeconomic conditions conducive to terrorism. The Counter-Terrorism Implementation Task Force supports Member States’ efforts in implementing the Strategy. The CTITF articulates the United Nations response to terrorism and cross-border crime by, first, monitoring and analysing the threat, and assessing the needs of Member States; secondly, implementing tailored capacity-building projects; and thirdly, delivering this assistance in a coordinated and coherent manner to multiply impact. First, in the area of monitoring and assessment, the Monitoring Team of the Committee pursuant to resolutions 1267 (1999) and 1989 (2011) concerning Al-Qaida and associated individuals and entities — one of the CTITF’s 35 entities — plays a key role in analysing the evolving terrorist phenomenon and reporting on it. Recently, it submitted to the Council a report on specific cases of cooperation between crime syndicates and the Taliban and associated terrorist groups. The Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate, which is also a CTITF entity, consistently warns in its country assessments against the strategic spaces that transnational crime opens to terrorists, and has developed valuable initiatives to promote regional cooperation in challenged areas such as the Maghreb, the Sahel, and West and East Africa. Secondly, in the area of capacity-building, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) is implementing a vast array of projects in Africa to strengthen legal regimes, criminal justice cooperation and border controls. The Regional Judicial Platform for cooperation in the Sahel, the West Africa Coast Initiative to create transnational organized crime units, and the Global Firearms Programme are good examples of the valuable work of UNODC in the region. The United Nations Centre for Counter-Terrorism (UNCCT) has stepped up capacity-building efforts to address terrorist threats at the national, regional and global levels. The Centre is supporting Southern and Central African countries to develop regional counter- terrorism strategies to significantly strengthen their ability to jointly combat terrorism and transnational organised crime. These efforts build on the UNCCT- supported development of a joint plan of action for the Central Asian region adopted in 2011, which recognized linkages between terrorism and organized crime. Thirdly, in the area of coordination, the CTITF’s 10 inter-agency working groups devote considerable attention to the transnational linkages of terrorism, including organized crime, and how the United Nations can more systematically address them at the national, regional and global levels. From a global project on assets freezing to a regional one on border controls in the Sahel and North Africa, as well as a national project in Nigeria on countering violent extremism, the Task Force and its working groups decisively contribute to strengthening the capacities of challenged countries and regions. In the same spirit of developing comprehensive responses to current security challenges, the Secretary- General also established an inter-agency task force on drug trafficking and transnational organised crime, co-chaired by UNODC and the Department of Political Affairs. Another coordination tool, the United Nations matrix of CTITF projects and activities, which includes more than 220 projects around the world, serves as a useful tool to better map gaps and needs, efficiently allocate resources and increase transparency and accountability in areas of our activities. As a way to strengthen system-wide coordination and emphasize that terrorism and crime affect the development, human rights and rule-of-law sides of our work, the United Nations has also developed a number of broader initiatives. The United Nations Development Programme and the Department of Peacekeeping Operations are strengthening the rule of law in settings that are at risk of being used by terrorists or criminals to conduct their operations. In one of those settings, the Sahel, the United Nations is implementing an integrated strategy that relates governance, security and resilience to development. Those are just some examples of how the United Nations is confronting terrorism and cross-border crime. Going forward, we need to better understand the implications of terrorist and criminal collaboration, systematize our responses and focus on impact in affected countries and regions. Just as recent peace operations have incorporated cross-border crime analysis into their mission planning, terrorism should be part of the mainstream of the work of the United Nations, particularly through our special political missions, peacekeeping operations and country teams in the field. The need for urgent action to address terrorism and its transnational linkages is, regrettably, well illustrated  — for example, by the intensification of Boko Haram activities throughout the Lake Chad basin region of Central Africa. Over the past few months, Boko Haram has started to take over and control territories in parts of north-east Nigeria, further compounding the threat to regional peace and security. This situation is expected to worsen as cross-border tension and violence persist. All efforts should be made to ensure the swift operationalization of regional and international initiatives to address the cross-border threat posed by Boko Haram following the security summits in Paris, London and Abuja. As instructed by the Security Council, the United Nations Office for Central Africa and the United Nations Office for West Africa will continue to work together, in the spirit of their recent joint mission to Chad and Cameroon. They will assist the countries of the Lake Chad Basin Commission to address the transnational impact of Boko Haram activities on the political, socioeconomic and humanitarian situation in the region. That will include transnational linkages to organized crime. Boko Haram, Al-Qaida, the Taliban, Daesh and their sinister peers make it abundantly clear that the pervasive synergies between terrorism and cross- border crimes foster conflicts, prevent their resolution and increase the chance of relapse. Ensuring that the tools that we have at our disposal are relevant and effective against the new face of international terrorism will be essential to protect innocents, resolve conflicts and promote the principles and values of the United Nations. While I can assure the Council that the Secretary- General and the United Nations family will continue to use, but also to adapt, its expertise and tools to address the multidimensional and interrelated security challenges of terrorism and its transnational linkages, including organized crime, we also count on all members of the Council and all members of the international community to unite in advancing our capacities and coherence, not only to counter but to prevent terrorism.

I thank Mr. Feltman for his briefing. I now give the floor to His Excellency Mr. Téte António, Permanent Observer of the African Union to the United Nations.

At the outset, I would like to acknowledge the presence among us of the Ministers from Nigeria, Luxembourg and Libya, as well as the Secretary for Foreign Affairs of Argentina, the Director General for Foreign Policy of Chile and Ms. Marinaki, Managing Director for Global and Multilateral Issues of the European External Action Service. I should like to convey the regret of the Chairperson of the African Union Commission, who would have wanted to be present and this meeting but could not owing to other obligations. Allow me to reiterate our warm congratulations to the Republic of Chad on his accession to the presidency of the Security Council for the month of December, as well as to thank it heartily for organizing this second high-level open debate on the crucial issue of terrorism and transnational crime. This initiative is particularly relevant as it focuses on the relationship between those two phenomena on the African continent, where the terrorist threat continues to worsen, as well as on the impact on international peace and security. My thanks and congratulations also go to the Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs, Mr. Jeffrey Feltman, for his detailed briefing and for the leadership he has shown since taking office as head of the Department of Political Affairs, including the coordination of efforts in the fight against terrorism. Let me first of all reiterate the African Union’s unequivocal rejection of terrorism in all its forms and manifestations, ans well as to strongly condemn all terrorist acts, which no circumstances can justify. (spoke in English) The African Union welcomes this debate as a unique opportunity to examine how the intersection of cross-border crime and terrorism pose serious challenges to conflict prevention and resolution efforts, especially in Africa. It is certainly no coincidence, Mr. President, that under your country’s presidency of the Security Council this month the question of terrorism has been given a prominent place among the priorities of the Council’s programme of work. This is simply a reinforcement of the importance Chad attaches to addressing this scourge. In that context, we are reminded of the particular leadership role of your country, Sir, as Chair of the African Union Peace and Security Council in the convening, in Nairobi on 2 September 2014, of the special summit devoted to the issue of terrorism held. Cross-border criminal activities on the continent have both contributed to the onset of conflicts as well as further complicated subsequent management and resolution efforts. As we are all well aware, the situation in northern Mali, characterized by limited Government presence and services along its border, provided a conducive environment for cross-border trafficking to flourish and further expand into dangerous forms of criminal activities, such as kidnapping-for-ransom, arms- and drug-trafficking and mercenarism. That environment subsequently became an ideal haven for terrorist groups, exacerbating political strife and ultimately leading to the hijacking of the uprising by criminal and terrorist groups, which had established strong presences in the region. In the Sahel region, consistent reports indicate that drug- and arms-trafficking, human smuggling, kidnapping-for-ransom, the illicit proliferation of arms and money laundering  — all of which are variants of transnational organized crime  — have become intimately intertwined with terrorist groups’ activities and sources of financing. Groups such as the Movement for Unity and Jihad in West Africa (MUJAO), Boko Haram, Ansaru and Al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) have benefitted substantially from the kidnapping of foreigners and affluent nationals for the purpose of securing ransom for their release. The MUJAO, an offshoot of AQIM, which is mostly financed by narcotics-trafficking, illustrates well the lucrative support that the drug market brings to a number of terrorist groups. Furthermore, kidnapping for ransom in the Sahel belt has emerged as an integral financing model for the furtherance of terrorist activities in Africa and globally. It has now developed into an industry that includes the terrorist organization at the core, interacting with a chain of intermediaries, criminal groups and local tribesmen and sympathizers. In Somalia and the Horn of Africa, cross-border crime facilitated Al-Shabaab’s terrorist activities in Somalia and beyond, placing civilians and troops of the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) at great risk. The group’s extended control over the port of Kismayo enabled it to profit from the illegal charcoal trade and the procurement of weapons through international illicit trade networks. The situation in Central Africa is another example of the deadly convergence of threats. The Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) is increasingly implicated in the poaching of elephants and illegal trade in ivory, highlighting the emerging threat of exploitation of natural resources by terrorist groups. We should be alarmed by the irrevocable damage this can have on the environment and the many livelihoods that depend on it. To further emphasize the intersection of cross- border crime and terrorism, the LRA is believed to be using arms emanating from as far north as Libya, which indicates the wide-ranging illicit trafficking networks that continue to operate across the continent. The African Union has not remained idle in the face of these threats. The innovative approaches and mechanisms deployed by the AU serve us today as good starting points and lessons we can share with the Council to its benefit as to that of other relevant organs and bodies of the United Nations. The mechanism for enhancing security cooperation and the operationalization of the African Peace and Security Architecture in the Sahel region, also known as the Nouakchott Process, recognizes the multifaceted and multidimensional approach required in dealing with transnational threats in a sustainable and collaborative manner. The Nouakchott Process has to date facilitated interactions at multiple levels, including the policy and operational levels. The Heads of intelligence and security services of the region met in six sessions to discuss enhancing cooperation and exchange of intelligence, including collaboration with the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA). Border and customs officials also held two meetings in Tripoli, in 2013, and in Ndjamena, last month, to discuss and agree on basic measures and areas of cooperation to combat illicit trade and trafficking in humans, arms and drugs. This is in addition to three ministerial meetings and the Summit held yesterday in Nouakchott, Mauritania. This process is further enhanced by the multidimensional AU strategy for the Sahel region, which addresses conflict prevention and resolution, security and development. The Nouakchott Summit considered the political and security situation in the Sahel-Saharan region as well as efforts aimed at overcoming the challenges at hand and promoting lasting peace, security and stability. In their final declaration, the participants expressed in particular their full readiness to contribute, in consultation with the United Nations, to the strengthening of MINUSMA, through the establishment of a rapid intervention force to contribute to the fight against armed terrorist and criminal groups and to facilitate the successful completion of the stabilization efforts in Mali. It is worth mentioning that in her report presented to the 455th meeting of the AU Peace and Security Council, held at the level of Heads of State and Government on 2 September in Nairobi, Kenya, the Chairperson of the African Union Commission, Her Excellency Ms. Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, outlined the following six main reasons for the emergence and redeployment of terrorist groups in Africa and, in particular in the Sahel-Saharan region. First, poverty, illiteracy and the high rate of unemployment among young people and the general population render them vulnerable to the manipulative messages of terrorist groups and their promises of quick gain. Secondly, the poor working conditions and insufficient training and discipline of law enforcement personnel make them easy prey for corruption. Thirdly, criminal networks are seeking safe haven and refuge in a zone characterized by vast territorial expanses, low and insufficient security coverage and administrative presence. Fourthly, they are seeking new sources of funding, especially through smuggling, drug-trafficking and illegal migration. Fifthly, there is a need to conquer new areas for recruitment and redeployment with the objective of expanding the field of confrontation beyond their traditional zone of operations. And sixthly, the weakness of Government institutions and the existence of long stretches of porous, Largely ill- monitored and poorly-controlled borders, combined with vast, ill-administered spaces of territory, facilitate the illegal cross-border movement of people and goods and provide fertile ground for exploitation by terrorists and transnational organized criminals. In the Horn of Africa, AMISOM and the countries of the region have long recognized the need for a collaborative approach to address the threat posed by the cross-border criminal and terrorist activity of Al-Shabaab and thus established the regular information-sharing and coordination mechanism bringing together the countries affected, neighbouring countries, the troop-contributing countries and the Committee of Intelligence and Security Services in Africa. The Regional Cooperation Initiative for the Elimination of the LRA is one of the AU’s most recent innovative approaches. The AU is currently working through its Post-conflict Reconstruction and Development programme to support Member States in extending basic infrastructure and services to the populations most affected by the LRA so as to increase their resilience and mitigate their vulnerability to predation by the group. That includes addressing the integration of ex-combatants. At the operational level, the African Union Commission has remained actively engaged at the level of solutions aimed at addressing this scourge, which includes steps to mobilize member States towards the full and effective implementation of the AU normative counter-terrorism framework. The Commission also continues to work closely with the African Centre for Studies and Research on Terrorism in capacity-building support, notably for training and assistance in the elaboration of the requisite legislation on the basis of the AU model law adopted in July 2011. Based on those experiences, the African Union wishes to share a few observations and to offer some recommendations, which we believe could further enrich the debate and provide ideas on the way forward. First, addressing cross-border crime in conflict situations should be a priority intervention, especially when it has the potential for further exacerbating it. Whether we are working through a peacekeeping mission or mediation efforts confined to a particular geographical region, we should have an inclusive approach that brings together the concerned neighbouring States to devise and implement measures to mitigate the potential for the internationalization and prolongation of the conflict. Secondly, border communities remain our first line of defence against cross-border crime and transnational terrorist activity. They should be actively engaged and provided with the alternatives, through both quick- impact projects and long-term rehabilitation and development strategies, as a disincentive to crime and terrorism. In that connection, we have to emphasize the critical need for establishing and restoring trust between the State and border communities. Thirdly, terrorist groups, regardless of the ideologies they subscribe to, remain calculating interest-driven entities that will continue to seek safe havens and resources to survive and fund their activities. Judging by our experience, border regions that are poorly governed, where communities have limited or no alternatives, and in which cross-border crime flourishes, remain their optimal choice. We must therefore strengthen our early-warning mechanisms to identify potential situations of conflict that could be exploited by terrorists groups, and take the necessary preventive action. We would like to be clear: the African Union does not advocate closing or restricting bordersm nor does it seek to infringe on the sovereignty of States with regard to the management of their territories. The porous African borders have long served to bring communities together and facilitate trade and have contributed to the prosperity and the enriching diversity of our people. But “porous” needs not translate into threats and risks of crime and terrorism. That is precisely what the AU Convention on Cross-Border Cooperation aims to achieve. The Convention was adopted by the June 2014 Summit of the African Union and provides a cooperative framework to transform border areas into catalysts for growth, to enable socioeconomic and political integration, to ensure efficient and effective integrated border management and to collectively address cross-border crime and terrorism. In conclusion, it is important to recognize that, over time, cross-border criminal activity becomes a self-sustaining enterprise in which the rewards are much higher to be offset by traditional conflict- resolution measures. There is therefore a need for innovative, collaborative and inclusive approaches that are led by the concerned States, based on confidence and transparency among them and without hindrance or restrictions on legal cross-border flows of people and trade. I thank the Council once again for providing us this opportunity to share our perspective at this debate. As this is the last open meeting of the Security Council this year, I would like to thank the outgoing members of the Council — Argentina, Australia, Luxemburg, the Republic of Korea and Rwanda — for their valuable contributions to the work of the Council. Likewise, I would like to extend our warmest congratulations to the new non-permanent members — Angola, Malaysia, New Zealand, Spain and Venezuela — and to reiterate our full confidence in their commitment and ability to bring added value to the Council in the discharge of its mandate to maintain international peace and security, including in Africa.

I thank Mr. António for his briefing. Members of the Council have before them document S/2014/917, which contains the text of a draft resolution submitted by Australia, Chad, France, Jordan, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Nigeria, the Republic of Korea, the Russian Federation, Rwanda and the United States of America. It is my understanding that the Council is ready to proceed to the vote on the draft resolution before it. I shall put the draft resolution to the vote now.

The draft resolution received 15 votes in favour. The draft resolution has been adopted unanimously as resolution 2195 (2014). I shall now make a statement in my national capacity as the Minister for Foreign Affairs and African Integration of Chad. I would like to thank all colleagues who travelled here to take part in this meeting. I would also like to thank Mr. Jeffrey Feltman, Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs, and Mr. Téte António, Permanent Observer of the African Union to the United Nations, for their briefings. I welcome the fact that Chad, as a member of the Security Council for the first time, took the initiative on the first resolution on the dangerous and growing linkage between terrorism and cross-border crime. It highlights the importance of enhanced cooperation among States and the strengthening of capacity- building and coordination of the United Nations in the efforts to combat these two phenomena, which are mutually strengthening in many cases. We welcome the unanimous adoption of resolution 2195 (2014). Terrorism and cross-border crime are two phenomena that have a very negative impact on international peace and security, particularly in the Middle East, in Central Asia and in Africa. The African continent, unfortunately, is facing more and more these two phenomena. In recent years, the terrorist and criminal acts that have been perpetrated by groups such as Boko Haram, Al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb, the Movement for Unity and Jihad in West Africa, Ansar Al-Sharia, the Lord’s Resistance Army and Al-Shabaab, to just mention a few, have stepped up their intensity in the Sahel, in the Maghreb and in West, Central and East Africa. Those groups have shown themselves to be the most dangerous, stepping up attacks against civilians, including women and children, and United Nations personnel, particularly peacekeepers, and their installations and infrastructure. They finance their activities through the payment of ransoms and all sorts of trafficking. The factors that contribute to that state of affairs are, among others, the weakness of States with regard to extending their authority over their entire territory: weak cooperation and coordination between States in legal and security matters; a high level of youth unemployment; and broad poverty. Groups of terrorists and criminals use those weaknesses to recruit and to grow. Faced with the scale of the threat, the actions taken by States and organizations against terrorists and criminals must be reinforced. With regard to Africa, we must seek to strengthen our cooperation and coordination through the mechanisms set up by the African Union, the regional economic communities and individual States. From that point of view, the summit of the Peace and Security Council of the African Union held in Nairobi on 2 September, under the chairmanship of Chad, called upon the African Union Commission to consider, among other measures, establishing a special fund to combat terrorism, establishing special combat units at the subregional and regional levels, strengthening the legal framework for combating terrorism through cooperation among police forces, and establishing an African arrest warrant against those who carry out and abet terrorist acts, as well as a mechanism to help to dry up the sources of funding for terrorism. In that regard, we should point out that one of the principal sources for the financing of terrorism in Africa is the payment of ransoms to terrorist groups. Despite the decision of the African Union against the payment of ransoms and despite Security Council resolution 2133 (2014), we note with regret that terrorists continue to benefit, directly or indirectly, from the payment of ransoms or from political concessions by States whose citizens are taken hostage. Furthermore, drug trafficking, often linked with other forms of organized crime, including trafficking in weapons and in human beings, the illicit trafficking of natural resources, such as wildlife and coal, corruption and money laundering are all a source of growing destabilization and a brake on the development of African States. We must redouble efforts to combat corruption, particularly within services for security, the suppression of fraud, and border control. We have no other choice but to strengthen and ensure respect for our legislative and regulatory measures against such crimes. We remember the Boeing 727 nicknamed “Air Cocaine,” which landed in northern Mali in December 2009, carrying about six tons of the drug. The value of the cocaine transited through Africa, by sea or by air, and using the Sahel route to the Mediterranean coast, is estimated in the billions of dollars. At the national level, Chad is particularly concerned by the crises and areas of tension surrounding it. The Libyan crisis has had, and continues to have, serious consequences for the stability of a great part of the Sahel. We note with concern that the situation prevailing there has allowed terrorist organizations to establish safe havens. The growing threat represented by the barbarians of Boko Haram in Central and West Africa, instability in the Central African Republic and in Darfur, and Al-Shabab’s asymmetric war in the Horn of Africa are all major challenges that require pooled efforts by the countries concerned and greater mobilization by the international community . In that regard, we pay tribute to the commitment of the group of countries neighbouring Libya, not only in supporting peace and reconciliation within those countries, but also for ensuring greater monitoring of the common borders in order to contain the terrorist threat. In that light, Chad is making efforts to ensure security within its borders, despite its huge territory and its limited resources. Together with the Sudan, we have established a joint force that operates joint patrols along our common border to deter criminals and bandits of all natures. Under the Lake Chad Basin Commission we have revitalized the joint multinational force to confront the terrorist threat in the subregion. Chad is also giving particular attention to regional security. The Chadian army has been active in Mali, where, at great cost, it has helped hunt down terrorist groups and narco-traffickers. Chad is very involved, with other States, in the Nouakchott Process, launched by the African Union in March 2013, with a view to strengthening cooperation in security matters and the operationalization of the African Peace and Security Architecture in the Sahel. It lies primarily with us to enhance our respective national capacities with a view to fully ensuring our own security. We must work, with the assistance of partners, on effective operationalization to confront terrorism, cross-border crime and radicalization and violent extremism. In that regard, we would like to pay tribute to France’s engagement at our side, through Operation Barkhane, and to thank the United States and the European Union for their support. Furthermore, we call upon the United Nations entities, particularly the Counter-Terrorism Committee and its Executive Directorate, the Counter-Terrorism Implementation Task Force and the United Nations Office for Drugs and Crime, to redouble their efforts. We urge those States that have the resources to do so to enhance their capacities, particularly in terms of matériel and technical and logistical assistance. That support is particularly necessary for the African States in the Sahel and the Sahara, which have to control immense areas. Most often, criminals and terrorists are heavily armed and are often in complicity with terrorist groups. Beyond enhancing interregional cooperation and coordination to counter the phenomena of terrorism and cross-border crime, including trafficking in weapons and drugs, we must emphasize the fight against poverty. Young people are easy prey for terrorist groups, which have considerable resources coming from drug trafficking and other illicit trades. To put a stop to practices that seriously threaten the security of the continent, it is important for the international community to support development programmes and projects launched within the framework of the United Nations integrated strategy for the Sahel. As we await the Secretary-General’s report requested in resolution 2195 (2014), we hope that the ratification and implementation of conventions, protocols and relative instruments will allow us to respond to the challenges represented by the linkage between terrorism and cross-border crime. I now resume my functions as President of the Council. I shall now give the floor to the other members of the Security Council.

I thank you, Mr. President, for inviting me to open this debate on a topic of great importance to my country and my subregion. I also thank your delegation for the excellent concept note (see S/2014/869, annex) provided to guide our discussions. We have listened attentively to our briefer, Under-Secretary-General Feltman, and we thank him for sharing his insights. My delegation aligns itself with the statement to be delivered by the Permanent Representative of the Niger on behalf of the Republic of Benin and the member States of the Lake Chad Basin Commission: Cameron, Chad, the Niger and Nigeria. I would also like to acknowledge the presence of my colleagues, the Foreign Ministers of Luxembourg, Chile and Libya, and the Deputy Foreign Minister of Argentina. I thank Ambassador Téte António of the African Union for his statement. Cross-border crime and organized crime are, in themselves, threats to the peace and security of States. When they intersect with terrorism, they become an even greater threat, not only to States, but indeed to entire regions. An important dimension of terrorism in my subregion, West Africa, is its transnational character. There is evidence indicating that terrorist groups operating in the subregion have formed alliances among themselves and with organized criminal gangs involved in the trafficking of drugs, weapons and even human beings. That inextricable link between organized crime and terrorism creates significant challenges for West African nations. It is in realization of that that the leaders of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), in February 2013, adopted the Counter-Terrorism Strategy and Implementation Plan to fight terrorism and related criminal acts in West Africa. The Plan also aims to facilitate the implementation of relevant international counter-terrorism instruments and to provide a framework for joint action by ECOWAS member States. As indicated in the concept note (S/2014/869, annex), the link between terrorism and organized crime was clearly underscored by resolution 1373 (2001), which required all Member States to adopt laws criminalizing terrorism and its financing. In that regard, I am pleased to note that we in Nigeria have put in place multiple legal and institutional frameworks to combat the financing of terrorism. In 2004, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission was established to coordinate the national effort in the fight against money laundering and the financing of terrorism. In the same year, the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit was established to analyse currency transaction reports and suspicious transaction reports of financial institutions. In 2009, the federal Government adopted the Anti-money Laundering and Combating of Financing of Terrorism Regulation, aimed at improving the detection of terrorist financing. In 2011, the federal Government strengthened the legislative framework for fighting terrorism with the adoption of the Terrorism (Prevention) Act. The Act provides measures for the prevention, prohibition and combating of acts of terrorism in Nigeria. It also prescribes penalties for terrorists and their collaborators. The Act prohibits terrorist financing and provides for the seizure of funds and property held by individual terrorists or terrorist organizations. In 2013, the Act was amended, and it now designates the Office of the National Security Adviser as the coordinating institution for Nigeria’s counter-terrorism efforts. The Act also requires the Attorney General to maintain international cooperation in Nigeria’s fight against terrorism. The value of international cooperation in the fight against organized crime cannot be overemphasized. In that regard, the engagement of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) is of crucial importance. The UNODC notes that international cooperation could be used as a tool for strengthening sovereignty and security, not for surrendering it. The Office also notes that States can use the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime to cooperate through the sharing of criminal intelligence and financial intelligence. The Convention’s provisions for mutual legal assistance, extradition and the confiscation of assets also offer avenues for mutually beneficial cooperation among States. Through its technical assistance programmes, UNODC has helped States parties to the Convention to strengthen their capacity to combat organized crime. Nigeria commends UNODC for these and other efforts, which help to define its role as a global leader in the fight against organized crime. Similarly, we acknowledge the leadership role of the Counter- Terrorism Committee, the Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate and the Counter- Terrorism Implementation Task Force in the global fight against terrorism. Still on international cooperation, we are working very closely with our neighbours Chad, Cameroon, the Niger and Benin to establish a multinational joint task force to combat the terrorist group Boko Haram, which has become a threat not only to Nigeria, but indeed to neighbouring countries as well. We are also cooperating with our bilateral and multilateral partners, including all the permanent members of the Security Council, and other friendly nations, to deal decisively with the problem of Boko Haram. We are deeply grateful for the assistance we have received, and we are certain that, with sustained international support and our unwavering determination, we shall before long defeat and uproot Boko Haram. In terms of our national response, we have put in place the necessary legal and regulatory frameworks that would make it difficult for terrorist groups and criminal networks to launder money obtained through criminal cross-border activities. However, there is no doubt that this is an ongoing war. Therefore, as terrorists and criminal gangs continue to search for loopholes and systemic weaknesses they can exploit to carry out their nefarious activities, it is our duty to remain vigilant. We will continue to cooperate with our neighbours and international partners in seeking ways to effectively shrink and eventually close the space available for terrorist groups and organized criminal gangs to operate.

I would like to congratulate your country, Sir, Chad, for having organized, during its presidency of the Security Council, this open debate on a very crucial issue: the fight against terrorism and cross-border organized crime, two scourges that mutually reinforce each other, particularly in Africa and the Middle East. The fight against these two scourges is the heart of resolution 2195 (2014), which we have just adopted unanimously at Chad’s initiative, and of which Luxembourg has become a sponsor. I thank you, Mr. Minister, for having invited me to participate in this debate. Finally, I thank the Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs, Jeffrey Feltman, and the Permanent Observer of the African Union, Ambassador Téte António, for their statements. I align myself with the statement to be made by the observer of the European Union. We are witnessing a profound change in the terrorist threat. That is evidenced by the fact that terrorist groups seek to control entire swathes of territory. That was the case in northern Mali, with groups such as Al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb. It is still partly the case in Somalia, with A1-Shabaab. It is certainly the case in Iraq and Syria with Daesh. In all of those cases, there are strong links between terrorist groups and organized crime elements, either in terms of funding, equipment or the use of illicit trafficking networks, including for the trafficking in natural resources, be they minerals, charcoal or oil. What should concern us most is the fact that cross- border organized crime increases the strategic space available to terrorists for operating. Criminals and terrorists may have different motivations, but they largely concur on their methods and the way they operate. Criminals and terrorists thrive where the State is weak or absent, as is the case in many border areas, such as the Sahel. Criminals and terrorists take advantage of instability and conflict. They take advantage of war economies and therefore have a particular interest in prolonging conflicts. Criminals and terrorists seek to destabilize the established State authorities at the central and decentralized levels, not only through violence, but also through the corruption of State institutions, especially security institutions and the judiciary. At the operational level on the ground, criminals and terrorists are increasingly targeting directly missions mandated by the Security Council, which are not always equipped to counter that threat. In certain regions, terrorism has grown stronger by forging links to criminal networks that thrive from profits derived from human trafficking and illicit trade in arms, drugs and natural resources. That transnational threat demands a coordinated response at the international, regional and national levels, as well as greater cooperation and increased assistance to States faced with that double threat. Luxembourg is firmly committed in that regard. We are doing our part to strengthen African capacities to combat the financing of terrorism. By way of example, we supported a training programme in Senegal established by the National Financial Intelligence Unit. In May, in Tunis, we financed a workshop on the freezing of terrorist assets, which was organized by the Executive Directorate of the Counter-Terrorism Committee and the Middle East and North Africa Financial Action Task Force. The report that the Secretary-General will submit six months from now will enable us to better identify the measures required to reduce the profits that terrorism extracts from organized crime. However, it seems clear at this point that our goal should be to strengthen law enforcement and border control institutions as well as legal structures. The Peacebuilding Commission can play an important role in that regard by supporting fragile States in the aftermath of conflict, mobilizing the support of the international community to strengthen those States’ capacities and by encouraging regional approaches and inter-State cooperation. Luxembourg is particularly concerned by the disproportionate impact of organized crime and terrorist activity on children. Because of their vulnerability, children are easy prey for recruiters, as Mr. Feltman noted earlier. For that reason, children associated with extremist groups should be treated first and foremost as victims. Anti-terrorism measures should conform to international human rights and child protection standards, with particular regard for the norms of juvenile justice. The prolonged detention of children for their real or alleged association with an extremist group exposes them to degrading and inhuman treatment. We must join forces to fight that sinister trend. On 15 January 2013, on the occasion of my very first statement to the Security Council as a non-permament member, I spoke of the imperative of combating terrorism (see S/PV.6900). That open debate took place under Pakistan’s presidency of the Council. I wish to take this opportunity to extend my condolences to the Government and the people of Pakistan and to add my voice to that of those who have condemned in the strongest possible terms the infamous terrorist attack committed by the Taliban on 16 December against a school in Peshawar, in which more than 140 victims lost their lives, including 132 children. Today, as our mandate in the Security Council nears the end of its term, and not without a degree of emotion, I reiterate Luxembourg’s commitment to combat the scourge of terrorism. We have come full circle, in a sense. Over the course of the past two years, we have lent our efforts with determination to promoting international peace and security. We conclude our mandate with the hope that we have contributed, however modestly, to achieving that noble goal. I assure the Council that Luxembourg will remain committed and will spare no effort to contribute to promoting security, development and human rights, the three ingredients that are indispensable to assure a better future for all.

I thank you, Foreign Minister Mahamat again for being here with us in person. The United States greatly appreciates Chad’s leadership and its work to focus the Council on the nexus between terrorism and transnational organized crime. I also thank Foreign Minister Wali and Minister Asselborn for their presence here today, which serves to underscore the critical importance of these issues. I particularly appreciated Luxembourg’s attention to the impact of these issues on the welfare of children, an issue that Luxembourg insistently raises with regard to all the challenges we face, and a critical part of Luxembourg’s legacy on the Council. The United States is very eager to support Nigeria and Chad and the other other multinational partners in the effort against Boko Haram, a monstrous movement. While the motivations of terrorists and transnational criminal organizations may differ, their use of brutal violence and the insecurity, fear and suffering that they cause are often remarkably similar. Terrorists and transnational criminal organizations are increasingly learning from one another’s sophisticated tactics to raise funds, to move people and arms and to spread the fear that is a critical source of their power. We see this cross-pollination between terrorist groups and transnational organized crime all around us. Al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM), Boko Haram, the Al-Nusra Front and numerous other terrorist organizations raise tens of millions of dollars annually through kidnapping for ransom. In Somalia, Al-Shabaab has filled its coffers through illegal and environmentally devastating charcoal exports. Of the $250 million worth of charcoal estimated to have been exported from Somalia in 2013 and 2014, 30 per cent is estimated to have gone to Al-Shabaab. AQIM and other terrorist groups regularly obtain arms through Maghreb and Sahel trafficking networks, relying on the same trade routes as transnational smugglers. And extremist groups raise cash through a variety of other criminal activities that cross borders, from selling drugs to stealing natural resources. The Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) is another example of the increasingly similar modus operandi between those groups. While continuing to carry out deadly attacks propelled by its sadistic ideology, ISIL is also increasingly operating like a profit-driven criminal organization. Using fear, threats and attacks, ISIL extorts money from local businesses and traders and robs from banks and households alike. Working through long-established regional smuggling networks, ISIL transports oil across borders, netting roughly $1 million a day through black market oil sales. There are credible reports that ISIL is profiting from Syrian and Iraqi so-called blood antiquities, sold by criminal middlemen to unscrupulous or unknowing buyers worldwide. Those new sources of financing allow extremist groups to diversify their revenue streams and reduce the risk of disruption of the funds they need to carry out their horrific attacks. As terrorist criminal activities become more entrepreneurial and business-minded, the Security Council needs to better understand their tactics. We must develop and deploy a set of sophisticated tools to disrupt those expanding networks and cut off the funds that they are generating. To that end, the Council should prioritize three tasks. First, the Council should build greater international cooperation, needed to fight the inter-related problems of terrorism and organized crime. We have taken steps to address that urgent need, including resolution 2170 (2014), on ISIL, and resolution 2178 (2014), on foreign terrorist fighters. We have established a robust international legal framework under the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime, the United Nations Convention against Corruption and the three United Nations drug control conventions that, taken together and implemented effectively, provide common parameters and tools for recognizing and responding to different forms of transnational crime. Building on that work, the Council should encourage Member States to do more to collectively address transnational threats. For example, greater international cooperation should facilitate the exchange of information and analysis about terrorists and crime networks. For its part, the United States has effectively used the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime as the basis for international legal and law enforcement cooperation against transnational organized crime with more than 55 countries. Our use of the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime and bilateral treaties has led to the return of nearly 30 fugitives to face prosecution in the United States. Greater cooperation is needed both among and within Governments so we can bring together experts from the law enforcement, military, diplomatic and intelligence communities. This is why today the Council called on Member States to work together to secure their borders, counter illicit financing and money laundering and implement international best practices and existing conventions. Secondly, the Security Council should acknowledge that weak governance both encourages and is exacerbated by the terrorist use of crime. Terrorist groups and criminals gravitate towards places with rampant corruption and impunity. For this reason, strengthening the criminal justice systems in vulnerable countries is one of the most effective ways to fight transnational organized crime. Since our collective security is only as strong as our weakest link, we have a shared interest in building stronger, more transparent governance and justice institutions beyond our own borders. Military measures alone will not be enough. Thirdly, the Security Council should call on States to provide assistance to those States most affected by these terrible threats. Tackling these challenges requires deploying all the tools we have, from innovative law enforcement and criminal justice tools to financial measures and sanctions. Yet all States do not currently have the same ability to take these steps. Member States should therefore identify areas where targeted assistance is most needed and focus support in those places. We particularly welcome the role of the United Nations counter-terrorism bodies, particularly the Al-Qaida Sanctions Committee’s monitoring team, the Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, in identifying threat and capacity gaps. We have come through a horrific week, as others have mentioned, of terrorist attacks. On Tuesday, the Pakistani Taliban killed 145 people, 132 of them kids aged 5 to 17. It was an appalling attack on a school. A young student named Zeeshan told a reporter, “I saw militants walking past rows of students shooting them in the head”. On Wednesday, more than 230 bodies of people believed to have been executed by the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant were found in a mass grave in Syria’s Deir ez-Zor province. And yesterday we learned that more than 100 women and children were kidnapped and 35 people killed during a weekend raid in the northeastern Nigerian village of Gumsuri, believed to have been carried out by Boko Haram. We know that we must do more to prevent these attacks, not only in Pakistan, Syria and Nigeria, but in all of our countries. We must dismantle the groups that threaten our collective security, but we cannot achieve that goal without tackling the organized criminal networks that extremists increasingly rely upon to fuel their terror. That is the work before us and we must succeed.

I thank you, Mr. President, for convening this open debate on terrorism and transnational organized crime. We commend you, Sir, for the choice of this particular topic at a time when terrorism and violent extremism continue to challenge the resolve and efforts of the international community. I thank Jeffrey Feltman, Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs, for his briefing and able coordination of United Nations initiatives against terrorism and transnational organized crime. I also thank Ambassador Téte António, Permanent Observer of the African Union to the United Nations, for his briefing and we align ourselves with his statement on behalf of the African Union. We have noted that, despite various findings on the intersection between terrorism and transnational organized crime for the last decade, there is not a dedicated Security Council forum to discuss both topics jointly. Rwanda believes that effective strategies to tackle one should be responsive to the strategies to tackle the other. Organized crimes, such as wildlife trafficking in the Central African region, in particular in the Central African Republic; maritime piracy; drug trafficking in northern Mali; kidnapping for ransom; the illicit trade of charcoal involving Al-Shabaab; the illegal mineral trade by armed groups, including the genocidal movement Forces démocratiques de libération du Rwanda in the Democratic Republic of the Congo; as well as all smuggling by the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant and other terrorist groups in Syria and Iraq, has become the lifeline for terrorist organizations. Even more worrying is the contribution of organized crimes to the instability of countries emerging from conflict and to the collapse of fragile States. In Africa this is true from the West to East African coast, where organized crime has undermined governance and accountability structures, creating a breeding ground for terrorist organizations. It is important that we enhance the capacity of national law enforcement and counter-terrorism institutions and ensure the strong coordination and collaboration of all stakeholders if we are to succeed in the fight against terrorism and transnational organized crime. In this regard, I hope that the Secretary-General report requested by the just adopted resolution 2195 (2014) will enable the Council to make a comprehensive assessment of the nexus between terrorism and transnational organized crime, but also consider its input on conflict prevention and conflict resolution efforts, particularly in Africa, and make concrete proposals on effective measures required to deal with these issues. We welcome the Nouakchott declaration adopted yesterday during the first summit of countries participating in the Nouakchott Process on the enhancement and operationalization of security cooperation and the operationalization of the African Peace and Security Architecture in the Sahelo-Sarahan region. This declaration stressed the importance of an exchange of information and intelligence in the fight against terrorism and transnational organized crime. In this respect, the continued collaboration between the African Centre for the Study and Research on Terrorism and the Committee of Intelligence and Security Services of Africa is critical to eradicating both scourges on the African continent. Border security and management remains one of the core challenges for countries facing the most imminent threat of terrorist attacks, in particular in Africa. Therefore, the lack of adequate capacity to effectively control border security and management easily fuels transnational organized crime and the unhindered movement of terrorist groups with their negative impacts on State authority and sovereignty. In this context, it is encouraging to note that the matrix of the Counter-Terrorism Implementation Task Force on United Nations counter-terrorism projects features prominently important projects addressing the issue of border security and management globally and on the African continent. However, more work needs to be done, including by the Council. We need to use existing Security Council mandates and tools to analytically address organizational and operational connections between networks of transnational organized crime and those of international terrorists and organizations. These exercises could provide opportunities to disrupt global criminal activities and pre-empt terrorist operations. To achieve this, inter-State and regional cooperation assistance will be crucial, since it will require, among other issues, information-sharing and common methods of intelligence gathering and analysis. Organized crimes and terrorism have plagued some of the areas in which the United Nations has deployed its peacekeeping or special political missions, and in most cases those missions have neither the mandates nor the required capacities to deal with the scourges. This is the case of the African Union Mission in Somalia and the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali. It is therefore critical to tailor specific United Nations peacekeeping mandates to specific situations, taking into account the scope of terrorist threats. Meanwhile, we look forward to the recommendations of the High-level Panel on Peace Operations appointed by the Secretary- General. We believe that the report of the Secretary- General expected in mid-2015 will guide the Council in orienting its focus for its future peacekeeping operation mandates, taking into consideration new and emerging threats, including terrorism and violent extremism. Finally, we believe that these debates should remain open for future in-depth exchanges between the Council and troop- and police-contributing countries, considering the political landscapes and geographical presence of United Nations peacekeeping operations throughout the world.

I would like at the outset to thank the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Chad, Mr. Moussa Faki Mahamat, for the invitation to participate in this debate. I would also like to thank, through him, Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs Jeffrey Feltman and the Permanent Observer of the African Union, Ambassador Téte António, for the information that they have provided us. I wish also to welcome here the Ministers for Foreign Affairs of Nigeria and Luxembourg, as well as the other representatives of the countries that make up the Security Council. Argentina condemns in the strongest terms terrorism in all its forms and manifestations and believes that such acts represent a threat not only to international peace and security but also to human dignity; peaceful, civilized coexistence; and stability and the consolidation of democracy, as well as a disincentive to the economic and social development of nations. States must carry out a thorough analysis of the conditions that foster the spread of terrorism, which include, inter alia, prolonged, unresolved conflicts; absence of the rule of law; human rights violations; discrimination for ethnic, national or religious reasons; political exclusion; economic or social marginalization; and lack of good governance, while acknowledging that none of those conditions can excuse or justify terrorist acts. The globalization of horror through the media fuels the spread of fear. However, the military response can never be the preferred option for combating terrorism, as it has already shown its limitations and failures. In line with the United Nations Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy, we require a comprehensive approach aimed at strengthening our collective work relating to, inter alia, the conditions that foster the spread of terrorism and its financing. We must therefore work together for the full validity of the rule of law in every one of our countries, given the urgent need to build a balanced and just global order that is based on effective multilateralism and cooperation, and promoting policies of social inclusion. Argentina notes with concern the attempts made to confuse terrorism with transnational organized crime, as if both had the same nature, methodology and purposes, or as if there were a necessary relationship between them. That is why it is very important to clarify that terrorism is something very specific to which a regime of international law applies, and that it calls for distinctive remedies that cannot be extrapolated to other crimes, which are subject to other legal regimes. Just as the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime — the Palermo Convention — and its Protocols constitute the legal framework to combat transnational organized crime, United Nations international conventions to combat terrorism specify the acts categorized as terrorist. Even though the international community has not been able to reach a universally agreed definition of terrorism, it is nonetheless possible to determine which are the acts condemned by the international community. Argentina has twice experienced international terrorism, driven by fanaticism and destruction. There was an attack against the embassy of Israel in 1992, and against the Asociación Mutual Israelita Argentina in 1994. As the Security Council heard last September from the President of Argentina: “My country, the Argentine Republic, and the United States of America are the only two countries on the American continent to have been the object of savage terrorist attacks.” (S/PV.7272, p. 8) We are convinced that terrorism must be fought within the framework of the rule of law and of respect for fundamental guarantees. We abhor the idea that human rights violations are acceptable in certain circumstances. We also call for the measures adopted by States to combat terrorism to fully respect international law, including in particular international human rights law, international humanitarian law and refugee law. Such measures must also respect the purposes and principles enshrined in the United Nations Charter, such as sovereignty, territorial integrity, the political independence of States and the principle of non-intervention in internal affairs. I wish to express our concern at the threats posed to religious and ethnic minorities with the advance of the so-called Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant, with the consequent harmful effects for regional and international peace, security and stability. The expansion and consolidation of the Islamic State and the spread of sectarian violence are the result of the militarization of the prolonged and uncontrolled conflict in Syria, which has its roots in the inability and unwillingness of local, regional and international players to reconcile their differences through peaceful means, as well as in the massive flow of arms to the parties. Argentina has always called in the strongest terms to the international community to refrain from fuelling the conflict in Syria by providing military equipment. Argentina has also denounced again and again the double standard of those countries that tailor their actions and statements to their own interests and geopolitical considerations. We will always warn about the risks that such actions pose for peaceful coexistence among nations by subordinating the accepted rules of international law, which thus are held hostage to specific objectives according to circumstances. We are also deeply concerned by the advance of terrorist groups in Africa, which hampers the efforts of the States of the continent to promote the economic and social development of their peoples. We firmly condemn each and every one of the repeated attacks in African countries, including those targeting United Nations offices. In Africa, as elsewhere, cooperation and coordination on the part of the international community are required in order to address the terrorist threat. The fight against terrorism requires, first of all, the firm commitment of every State to combat terrorist acts at the national level and not to deliver assistance to the perpetrators of or participants in terrorist-related activities, and to strengthen national legislation, focusing on the prosecution or extradition of perpetrators. Secondly, we must tackle the phenomenon at its roots, especially the conditions of marginalization and political exclusion, and promote the economic and social development of peoples. Argentina is convinced that the United Nations, as the cornerstone of the multilateral system, must be the Organization that leads the actions of States to fight against terrorism. While we value the contribution that can be made by various other forums and initiatives, it is this Organization that ensures the legitimacy of decisions reflected in standards, guidelines or good practices. We are convinced that multilateral action through the United Nations pursuant to the principles of the Organization will allow us to tackle the threat of terrorism with full respect for international law, international human rights humanitarian law and international humanitarian law, and thus achieve a safer world for all. In less than two weeks, Argentina will end its current term as a non-permanent member of the Security Council. Over the past two years, our delegation, headed by Ambassador María Cristina Perceval, has worked to contribute to the realization of the purposes and principles of the United Nations, which also inform my country’s foreign policy. They are also those established by the President of Argentina, Ms. Cristina Fernández de Kirchner, in her speech to the General Assembly at its sixty-seventh session in September 2012 (see A/67/PV.7), in which she emphasized that what we are striving for is a genuine peace, which is built on truth, justice and equality. She went on to assert that peace is impossible where countries are not treated equally and also that we have a clear mission to defend peace and human rights, whatever the country in which they are threatened. In that context, I would like to thank you, Mr. President, and your delegation, as well as the members of the Security Council for the years 2013 and 2014, for the opportunity to work on our agreements and differences in order to shoulder our shared responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security, in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations.

I would like to thank Chad, as current President of the Security Council, and you, Sir, for taking the initiative to convene this important debate on threats to peace and security: terrorism and cross-border crime. Both of the latter are threats to world peace and stability that make it essential that we agree on a strategy that can enable us to deal successfully with its multi-faceted manifestations. The delegation of Chile would like to join those who have once again expressed their condolences to Pakistan in the wake of the horrific terrorist attack in Peshawar. The victims chosen for the attack, and the barbarism with which it was carried out, reflect the extremes that such terrorist logic can lead to. It is also a massive wake-up call telling us all to respond effectively — I repeat, effectively — to the terrible threat that looms over all of us, because an attack of this nature is indeed an attack on the entire international community. In that context, my country greatly appreciates the thorough report on the issue under discussion today, expressed in the concept note distributed by the presidency (S/2014/869, annex). Chile agrees with its main elements, in particular the proposal to initiate a strategic review of the existing tools in order to shrink the strategic space that cross- border crime provides to terrorist groups. Such interaction between terrorism and organized crime, on various levels, for which we have irrefutable evidence, directly undermines our ability to build a safe world. While there is no single consensus on a definition of what constitutes terrorism, we know that we are talking about is an unacceptable and illegitimate political instrument. Some terrorist groups use terms such as “armies”, “resistance fronts” or “political parties” in an effort to gain some legitimacy in achieving their ends. However, it is the means they use in their fight that are reprehensible and that should be fought with all possible energy and force. Time and time again in the discussion of this issue, Chile has pointed out that there can be no justification for terrorist acts. The role of the United Nations in combating these phenomena is fundamental, and it is essential that we reinforce our existing arsenal through coherent and systematic implementation of the international instruments designed to fight terrorism and transnational organized crime. The weakening of States’ authority and capacity through the action of terrorist groups, armed with the proceeds of cross- border organized crime, not only affects the cross- border reality of a State and its citizens, it also alters the geometry of international security, including, of course, United Nations action, conducted through peacekeeping and security operations. As a result, international coordination and cooperation to fight terrorist financing associated with money-laundering by criminal organizations continue to be one of the most significant challenges the international community has faced in this decade. In that regard, we also consider it relevant to take into consideration best practices and lessons learned from the work of the Council’s sanctions committees. Their efforts aimed at controlling the illicit trade in arms and natural resources are an effective tool for identifying cross-border crime and terrorism’s main sources of access and financing. Chile is aware of the various positions that exist on the links between organized crime and terrorism. While acknowledging that not all organized crime groups are terrorists and not all terrorists are organized crime groups, it must nonetheless be admitted that many terrorist groups operate and are financed through illegal activities such as extortion, the use and recruitment of children, the illicit smuggling of migrants and trafficking of humans, kidnapping, arms and drug trafficking, mineral smuggling, fishing and other illegal ways of exploiting natural resources. Furthermore, few terrorist groups can operate without conducting activities linked to organized crime. That is why the involvement of terrorist groups in organized criminal activity for the purpose of financing offers a connection that should be analysed in depth both from an operational and a strategic viewpoint. Terrorism and transnational criminal organizations are capable of undermining societies and the Governments and security of their citizens, including the most vulnerable. In our opinion, preventing and suppressing such activities is a priority, but categorizing such crimes cannot be the only way to address the phenomenon. Once again, we would like to emphasize that some of the most effective tools we have for fighting them are education, the elimination of inequality, inclusive development and continued work with society’s most marginalized groups. Given the complex interaction of these two phenomena, and with special attention to their potential effect on civil society, States and the international system, the strategic review that Chad has proposed will enable us to better understand the links between them and help us to better establish our capacities for their prevention and eradication. For that reason, Chile is very grateful to Chad. Chile will continue to support the fight against terrorism and cross-border crime, out of the conviction that we are thereby contributing to the dignity, peace, stability and inclusive development of our societies.

I would like to thank you, Mr. President, for organizing and personally presiding over today’s important debate. The debate comes at the right time, as the growing nexus between terrorism and transnational organized crime calls for the urgent attention of the international community. My delegation welcomes the adoption of resolution 2195 (2014), the first stand-alone Security Council resolution to address this multifaceted issue. Terrorism and transnational organized crime have long been sources of concern for the international community. While Al-Qaida, the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) and other terrorist groups threaten international peace and security through violence, transnational crime presents mounting challenges to stability, particularly in Africa, hampering socioeconomic development and jeopardizing peacebuilding efforts. What is even worse is the combined threats from terrorism and transnational organized crime as seen in the cases of transnational crimes providing terrorists with financial and other resources to fund their terrorist activities. Against such a troubling backdrop, it is high time for the international community to step up its efforts to sever the vicious links between the two scourges and address them in a holistic manner. First, illicit trade and criminal activities benefitting terrorists should be effectively disrupted. We welcome the focused approach taken in the resolution to address terrorist financing. We take note of recent Council actions, including resolution 2170 (2014) and the presidential statement on terrorism (S/PRST/2014/23). At the level of the Security Council Committee established pursuant to resolution 1267 (1999), deliberations are ongoing with a view to adopting concrete recommendations to deal with ISIL and Al-Nusra Front financing. However, those efforts can be meaningful only when implemented. In the light of that, we call for the full implementation of such measures and other relevant United Nations conventions to prevent and combat terrorist financing through transnational crimes. Secondly, we must close the structural loopholes that terrorists are exploiting. The existence of illicit markets allows terrorists to translate their criminal activities into profits. Weak governance, porous borders and rampant smuggling all enable this increasingly dangerous union. We should step up our efforts to strengthen legal and institutional capacity, particularly vis-à-vis border and customs control. While the primary responsibility lies with each national Government, the problem cannot be tackled by any one country alone. In that regard, we support ongoing regional initiatives such as the Regional Action Plan on illicit drug trafficking, related organized crime and drug abuse in West Africa of the Economic Community of West African States and the African Union’s Plan of Action on Drug Control. We also call for enhanced coordination among the relevant United Nations entities, including the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime and the Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate, to tackle these challenges. Thirdly, we have to address the structural conditions that are conducive to criminal activity and terrorism. Countries grappling with poverty and conflict are more susceptible to compounding threats from transnational organized crime and terrorism. This nexus further complicates their socioeconomic development and conflict resolution efforts. Poverty eradication and sustainable development are essential in that regard. The Republic of Korea believes that the foregoing efforts should be undertaken by the entire international community to defeat terrorism and transnational crime. We will continue to do our part in that common endeavour.

I thank Mr. Jeffrey Feltman and Mr. Téte António for their briefings. I would also welcome Mr. Moussa Faki Mahamat, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Chad, for his initiative in convening today’s open debate and for presiding over it. I thank him warmly and congratulate him more broadly for Chad’s excellent presidency of the Security Council this month. I align myself with the statement to be made by the observer of the European Union. Terrorism is a global scourge that affects all States. This phenomenon is even more worrying when it develops in fragile States or States that are under reconstruction. That is why it is particularly useful for the Council, upon Chad’s initiative, to have an opportunity to address the issue of terrorism and organized crime in Africa. The terrorist threat is increasingly present on the African continent. In the Maghreb and the Sahel, the Secretary-General states in his report (S/2014/397), terrorist attacks increased by 60 per cent in 2013 as compared to 2012. Elsewhere in East Africa, in Kenya, the terrible attack at Westgate Shopping Centre in September 2013 is still fresh in our memories. The growth of organized crime is in itself a threat to the stability of States. It is also a breeding ground for terrorist movements, which now tend to thrive on all types of trafficking — in charcoal by Al-Shabaab in Somalia, in human beings and drugs in West Africa, in arms in Libya — as well as theft and looting that enable these groups to fund themselves, or, as we were shocked to see again this week, kidnappings by the Boko Haram sect in Nigeria. These are among the many situations where the links between terrorism and organized crime combine to give birth to a real gangrene for African States and the world. The international community must do everything possible to prevent some African countries falling into the hands of terrorists or become for them a sanctuary. France has taken on all its responsibilities by intervening in Mali to prevent the progression of terrorists who threatened Bamako. Today, my country has a new strategy for the Sahelo-Saharan zone designed to address all at once the issues of security, development and governance. This strategy covers cooperation with six countries — Senegal, Mauritania, Mali, Burkina Faso, the Niger and Chad — and it aims in particular to strengthen the capacity of States to give them the means to fight against terrorism and large-scale trafficking, but also against radicalization and to facilitate regional cooperation. The French Sahelo-Saharan strategy represents more than €400 million of bilateral development assistance each year. In addition, the French military Operation Barkhane, launched in 2014 at the request of five countries of the Sahel, represents the contribution of France to the fight against terrorism and the improvement of security in the Sahel, with a view in particular to stemming the movement of terrorist groups in the area. But it is crucial that African responses to the various crises be found. Efforts at the regional and subregional level should continue. We welcome, in that regard, the holding of the Dakar International Forum on Peace and Security in Africa, which ended on 16 December and which aimed to bring together stakeholders in the security sector. We also welcome the work carried out by Mr. Buyoya and his team. The diversity of the initiatives on Sahel — the United Nations strategy or those of the African Union and the European Union — is a sign of a strong mobilization on the part of the international community. I also welcome the establishment of the Group of Five Sahel, aimed at coordinating the efforts of key countries. Indeed, we must ensure the proper coordination of these initiatives. At the United Nations, we welcome the ongoing work of the Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate, led by Jean-Paul Laborde, on the issue of borders in the Sahel, and the Integrated Assistance for Countering Terrorism initiative, led by the Counter- Terrorism Implementation Task Force. The work undertaken by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime is also of great importance and must continue. All these efforts are moving in the right direction, but they must be pursued so as to lead to concrete projects in all areas. Capacity-building should be a priority for the United Nations. The United Nations is also called on to help States of the region and African organizations to strengthen their cooperation in the fight against terrorism. We support the operationalization of such initiatives in the context of the African Peace and Security Architecture. Resolution 2195 (2014), which we have adopted today, will give us a better overview of the ongoing United Nations efforts to address the issue of the support afforded by organized crime to terrorism and, on that basis, to strengthen the Organization’s reponse to that challenge. My country has chosen to co-sponsor the text. In general, France will continue to provide national support in the European framework and in the Security Council for initiatives to assist African countries in the fight against terrorism and organized crime.

China welcomes the Chadian initiative to convene today’s open debate on terrorism and cross-border crime. I thank Under-Secretary-General Feltman for his briefing and Ambassador António for his statement on behalf of the African Union. Frequent terrorist attacks have taken place recently in Asia, Africa, Europe, the Americas and Oceania, resulting in numerous casualties and focusing the attention of the international community. The broad geographic spread of terrorist attacks, the brutality of the terrorists, the incitement and recruitment practised by terrorist organizations on the Internet and social media, and their convergence with cross-border crime are posing a grave and real threat to international peace and security. Against such a grim backdrop, the international community should cooperate more closely in the fight against terrorism, strengthen exchanges of information and intelligence, share successful experiences, enhance capacity-building and conduct coordinated activities with a view to effectively fighting terrorism and maintaining international peace and security together. In that respect, I wish to stress the following points. First, in order to effectively deter terrorism, the international community should adhere to a common standard. Double standards and selectivity should not be used in the fight against terrorism. We must also take care not to link terrorism with any particular ethnic group or religion. Counter-terrorism activities should abide by the principles and purposes of the Charter of the United Nations and respect the sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity of the countries concerned. The lead role of the United Nations and the Security Council should be brought into fullplay. Pursant to the United Nations Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy and relevant Security Council resolutions, all countries should adopt effective measures to cut the access of terrorist organizations to people, funds, materials and channels for incitement and propaganda, and adopt integrated measures to eradicate the breeding grounds of terrorism. Secondly, heightened attention must be accorded to Africa, which is at the forefront of the international fight against terrorism. Due to a multitude of historical and contemporary factors, some regions of Africa are experiencing turbulent political and security circumstances. Terrorists are exploiting the situation to infiltrate African countries, thereby posing a serious threat to regional peace, security and stability and constraining economic and social development in the continent. Counter-terrorism work in Africa is an important component of the global counter-terrorism effort. The international community should prioritize it and actively help African countries and regional and subregional organizations to fight terrorism and maintain peace and security on the continent. The international community should effectively help African countries in strengthening their counter- terrorism capacities and provide assistance without political conditions. The United Nations should make it a priority to help African countries in enhancing their counter-terrorism capacities in the implementation of the Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy. Counter- terrorism mechanisms, such as the Counter-Terrorism Implementation Task Force and the Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate, should provide African countries with more assistance. Thirdly, counter-terrorism activities should be well targeted. In some regions, especially in Africa, terrorism and cross-border criminal organizations are closely linked to one another. Terrorist organizations finance their activities by trafficking in arms and drugs and engaging in illicit trade, endangering the sovereignty of the countries concerned and intensifying the spill-over effect of their domestic conflicts, thereby threatening regional security and stability. The regions concerned should engage their counter-terrorism activities in fighting terrorism and cross-border crime simultaneously with a view to severing the link between them. The international community should assist the countries involved, particularly in Africa, in building their border control, customs and counter-narcotics capacities. United Nations special political missions to the countries concerned should raise awareness of these new features of counter-terrorism efforts, actively develop programmes of work, and play a useful coordinating role. The international community should closely follow the cross-border criminal activities of terrorist organizations by using information and communications technologies such as the Internet, and take measures to prevent and combat such activities. Like other countries, China has been a victim of terrorism. We understand the threat posed by terrorism to certain countries, especially in Africa. China supports the ability of African countries to independently choose the paths of their own development that suit their national situations. China supports African solutions, led by Africans, to African problems. China supports African countries in their counter-terrorism efforts. China is a party to the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime. China actively works to fulfil its obligations under the Convention through legislation, law enforcement and judicial measures, and promotes international cooperation in that regard. China will continue to conduct bilateral and multilateral exchanges and cooperation against terrorism and cross-border crime with the international community, especially African countries. China will do its utmost to provide material assistance and capacity-building to relevant countries with a view to advancing their efforts to fight international terrorism and maintain regional and world peace and stability.

Whatever pretexts terrorists may employ to justify their murderous acts, there can simply be no justification for what they do. Terrorism is nothing less but an assault on our very humanity. Horrific events, like the massacre of school children in Peshawar three days ago, reinforce the sense of dramatic urgency for the Council to continue focusing sharply on and acting with resolve against threats posed by international terrorism. In that regard, the initiative of the Chadian presidency to take forward the Council’s counter- terrorism agenda by highlighting the linkages of terrorism with transnational organized crime is commendable and highly pertinent, as it provides a better understanding of how terrorist groups manage to sustain their activities by collaborating with transnational criminal groups, and sometimes by mimicking them. As the concept note (S/2014/869, annex) suggests, from Afghanistan and Syria to West Africa and the Sahel, the linkages between terrorism and transnational crime act as a force multiplier. They strengthen terrorist groups by generating funding and providing logistical support, sharing skills and tactics, to such a degree that that at times the dividing line between them is extremely blurred. These interrelated security threats not only take advantage of instability, but are themselves drivers of conflict. Their combination amplifies the challenges to broader conflict-prevention and -resolution efforts and demands a comprehensive and multidimensional response, as most representatives who spoke before me have stressed. Let me focus today on three key areas, the targeting of which can disrupt those linkages and significantly diminish terrorists’ ability to sustain their activities. The firstis countering money-laundering and illicit financial flows. Various illicit techniques are used to mask the origins and recipients of funds, as well as to divert funds to terrorist groups. States’ abilities to effectively identify and prevent the illicit cross-border movement of cash, to tackle head-on the emerging trends and sources of illicit financing, which are often linked to specific criminal activities, to set adequate regulations for alternative remittances, and to stem the abuse of charities and non-profit organizations for the purpose of terrorist financing is a crucial component of counter-terrorism efforts. In that regard, we would like to highlight the importance of the full implementation of the comprehensive international standards set forth by the Financial Action Task Force, as well as enhanced engagement with similar regional bodies. The second key area is countering illicit activities that are used as a self-sustained means to raise funds. Terrorist organizations increasingly rely on the illegal exploitation of natural resources, drug smuggling, human trafficking for coerced labour and sexual exploitation, kidnapping for ransom, and illegal trade in antiquities, ivory, and wildlife, all of which are typically attributable to transnational criminal networks. Given the diversity of the activities and the environments in which they take place, it is important that law-enforcement measures not be disconnected from those contexts and that they take into account the particular routes, commodities and other specificities. The third area is countering the illicit movement of terrorists, arms and equipment. Over the past few years, we have seen unprecedented mobility and flow of foreign terrorist fighters to theatres of conflict. Their recruitment strategies and methods seem to evolve faster than our responses to the threat, and their reach seems to have no boundaries. On the other hand, the much-too-easy access to illicit arms and weapons and the unhindered flow of such weapons in and across conflict-affected areas suffering from borders that are poorly protected, if at all, is changing the security environment and placing civilians under increasingly higher risk of harm. Effective physical border controls, information sharing and analytical capability at border crossings, as well as effective sanctions and arms- embargo implementation are required in order to disrupt such transboundary flows. We would also like to note that, even if the threats posed by terrorism and transnational organized crime are distinct, the means to counter them are often closely related, be it securing borders, tracking money flows, disrupting illicit ventures or curbing the movement of criminals and terrorists. This reinforces the need for a coordination and coherence in international and regional efforts to respond to these threats, both within and between organizations. That applies to the United Nations system itself, whose entities have developed vast expertise on dealing with these two phenomena separately but need to engage more closely and build on one other’s work, especially with regard to capacity- building. The United Nations presence on the ground should be an integral part of these efforts, and the Council should take that into account when designing mandates for peacekeeping operations, special political missions and in the work of country teams. With regard to disrupting terrorist networks and undercutting their action base, the One United Nations principle is as valid as can ever be. Fragmentation of efforts in a typical silo manner will help neither counter-terrorism nor conflict resolution, nor ultimately development efforts on the ground. Given the scope and nature of the terrorist threat and existing linkages with the criminal underworld, the importance of regional approaches cannot be stressed enough. The African Union-led Regional Cooperation Initiative, the Nouakchott Process, and the activities of the Economic Community of West African States are good examples of regional cooperation in West Africa and the Sahel. The open debate that took place in the Council two days ago under the Chadian presidency (see S/PV.7343) was a good opportunity to reflect on how the cooperation between the United Nations and its African regional partners could be further advanced, including in countering terrorism. Before I conclude, let me express my delegation’s hope that resolution 2189 (2014), which was adopted today and co-sponsored by Lithuania, will make a tangible contribution towards mobilizing efforts at all levels to address the phenomenon. In that regard, we look forward to the Secretary-General’s report with recommendations of concrete options both for strengthening Member States’ capabilities, as well as United Nations activities needed to disrupt the nexus between terrorism and transnational organized crime, and to further discussions on this issue. Finally, Lithuania aligns itself with the statement to be made later today on behalf of the European Union. Sir Mark Lyall Grant (United Kingdom): I thank you, Sir, for having convened this debate and for presiding over it personally. I also thank Mr. Feltman and Mr. António for their statements today. Resolution 2195 (2014), adopted today, addresses a key aspect of the global fight against terrorism. The financing of terrorism, including that benefiting from transnational organized crime, allows terrorists to perpetrate more deadly campaigns of terror. Criminals may trade in illicit goods, but when terrorists benefit from such activities, they trade in a more despicable currency of human lives. Tragically, we see evidence of this every day, including this week, when so many young Pakistani students were gunned down by terrorists in Peshawar. In regions where United Nations peacekeepers are on the frontline, most notably in Africa, transnational organized crime also increases the risk and complexity of their job and undermines efforts towards sustainable peace. The United Kingdom welcomes today’s initiative for three main reasons. First, it is a timely reminder of the existing obligation on United Nations Member States to prohibit all forms of terrorist finance. We have a responsibility to sever the lifelines that support terrorism. The United Nations has a robust set of binding counter-terrorism resolutions. On top of long- standing obligations to suppress terrorist finance, we must work to fully implement recent counter-terrorism resolutions on kidnap-for-ransom, the foreign terrorist fighter threat and the need to defund the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL). I welcome in particular the emphasis that you placed in your remarks, Sir, on the need to tackle the way in which terrorism continues to be financed through kidnapping. We must also fully implement the sanctions regimes adopted under resolution 1267 (1999). It is worth restating that sanctions regimes established by the Council under Chapter VII of the Charter place obligations on all Member States. Secondly, the evolving nature of the linkages between terrorism and transnational crime are of grave concern. It is increasingly evident that groups in many regions of the world, including ISIL, Al-Shabaab and Boko Haram, among others, exploit transnational criminal trafficking groups. In some instances, there is evidence of a growing list of illicit commodities being treated. The trafficking of arms, persons, drugs, oil, artefacts or wildlife offer terrorist groups a major source of finance. All such sources need to be addressed. That is why in 2014 we have rightly expanded sanctions designation criteria in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Central African Republic to cover wildlife and wildlife products, and off the coast of Somalia, we have authorized the interdiction of charcoal trafficking in order to cut off another illicit finance source. Yet it is ISIL that offers the most challenging example of this trend. The profit from oil sales within ISIL-controlled territory is widely estimated to run to tens of millions of United States dollars every month. This illegal trade puts money directly into the hands of terrorists. Thirdly, today’s resolution focuses on the need to continue to provide capacity-building assistance for all afflicted countries and regions. Only a comprehensive and multidisciplinary response to terrorism by Member States will bring lasting solutions, and that includes adequate criminal justice, respect for human rights and international law when prosecuting counter- terrorism, and effective border management. The report we commissioned today can help. It provides an opportunity to take stock of the relevant counter- terrorism tools of the United Nations with a view to developing a more coordinated, comprehensive and impactful international response to the problem. There are excellent United Nations resources to draw on. The Counter-Terrorism Executive Directorate is a centre of analytical expertise, and the Counter-Terrorism Implementation Task Force is a centre of capacity- building expertise. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime also has a pivotal role to play, and the United Nations Counter-Terrorism Centre offers a new source of support to affected Member States. A unified response is required. We must use all the tools at our disposal. I have outlined the United Nations binding international framework for counter-terrorism, the urgency of the threat and the need for counter-terrorism capacity-building. In 2014, the Council has taken steps to strengthen our response in each of these areas, but more still needs to be done. Today’s resolution is a further and welcome step in ensuring that our response tackles every element of the terrorist scourge.

I wish to thank you, Mr. President, for presiding over this very important debate, which focuses on the nexus between terrorism and transnational organized crime. We express our deep appreciation for the efforts of Chad in drafting resolution 2195 (2014), which we have just adopted on the subject. Terrorism in itself is a very serious threat to international peace and security — and all the more so when it is connected to the activities of organized transnational crime. That undoubtedly further undermines the stability, security and sovereignty of affected States, as well as further exposing civilians to greater violence and increasing the difficulty of finding solutions or reaching settlements for conflicts. And it would strengthen the potential for exporting crises to neighbouring States and extending the length of conflicts. Terrorist organizations throughout the world, especially in the Middle East and Africa, have continued seeking sustainable financial resources that they can be used to carry out their terrorist activities and to strengthen their sources of income. In doing so, they have relied on a number of illicit sources. That requires all Member States to accord greater importance and attention to the question of the financing terrorist organizations and to address more rigorously the issue of drying up the sources of financing terrorist organizations. The fact that terrorist organizations use and exploit organized transnational criminal activities is not limited to a particular region. We are now seeing witness terrorist organizations being engaged in organized criminal activities in Somalia, Nigeria, Libya, Yemen, Syria, Iraq, Mali and Afghanistan. The Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant and other similar terrorist organizations in the Middle East constitute a concrete example before our eyes of how these benefit from organized crime. Combating terrorism and organized transnational criminal activities and the connections between them requires Member States to carry out a number of well- thought-out measures, primarily developing adequate criminal justice systems and national legislations as well as adopting development plans in border areas in order to prevent recruitment and engagement in smuggling networks and any cooperation with terrorists. It is equally important for States to freeze funds, assets or economic resources belonging to terrorist organizations without delay. Border-control activities and border-management measures are the foundation for any efforts in that regard. It is very important as well that they should be accompanied by adequate regional coordination and cooperation and information-sharing among the relevant authorities at the regional and international levels, and that they do so also through INTERPOL, which has a very important role to play in that context. In addition, implementing United Nations sanctions regimes, including bans on financing and travel, will establish a firm foundation for addressing this phenomenon. However, sanctions regimes alone are not enough to fully address and combat the issue, as it also requires carrying out security and preventive measures at the national and multilateral levels and United Nations entities increasing their efforts through creating and strengthening well-planned partnerships with Member States that would bring us to a stage of providing the necessary concrete support to States in the area of capacity-building to enable them to fulfil their commitments. Jordan exerts great efforts to monitor and control its borders and to confront terrorists and criminal activities of the organizations in Syria and Iraq. In addition to these organizations’ attempts to infiltrate the borders and to send terrorist elements to carry out terrorist activities inside neighbouring countries, we must also be alert to attempts by the terrorist organizations to establish smuggling networks throughout the region, which would have negative ramifications on all States. Jordan reiterates the calls to other States, international partners and all United Nations entities concerned with counter-terrorism and combating international organized crime to provide the necessary support to help build the capacities of the countries combating terrorism and transnational organized crime in the front lines to enable them to confront this danger, shoulder the burden and increase their capabilities to control their borders. In conclusion, we look forward to the report to be submitted by the Secretary-General to the Security Council on the efforts carried out by the various United Nations entities to address the threat of terrorists who benefit from organized crime in the affected regions, as well as concrete recommendations and options to be provided by the United Nations to strengthen the capacities of States.

We are grateful to the delegation of Chad for its timely initiative to hold today’s meeting on such an important and urgent issue. We should like to thank the Under-Secretary-General, Mr. Feltman, and the Permanent Observer of the African Union, Mr. António, for their substantive briefings. I would like to begin by expressing the sincere condolences to the delegation of countries that have recently suffered from terrorist acts. The horror and senseless nature of terrorist acts becomes especially obvious when children are its victims. This Security Council meeting is taking place against the backdrop of those tragic events, highlighting the urgency of the links between terrorism and transnational crime. Thus cutting off the channels of financing for terrorist acts in the Afghan-Pakistan border region would seriously reduce the capacities of the groups operating in that region, including Tehrik-i-Taliban, which was responsible for the bloody raid in Peshawar. The Security Council has frequently drawn the attention of the international community to the nexus between international terrorism, transnational organized crime and the illegal drugs trade. The risk of financing terrorism from those sources is demonstrated in the recent report of the Analytical Support and Sanctions Monitoring Team of the Security Council’s Sanctions Committee concerning Al-Qaida and the Taliban movement (see S/2014/815), and also in the report on the typologies research project of the Financial Action Task Force aimed at identifying and blocking the illicit funds flowing from the illegal production of and trade in Afghan narcotics. We must also not forget such important income sources for terrorists as the illegal trade in Syrian and Iraqi oil. With regard to the African continent, on which today’s discussion has focused, suppressing the illegal exploitation by terrorists of other natural resources, including gold and other precious metals and stones, remains of particular urgency. Threats of terrorism, transnational organized crime and drug trafficking can be effectively dealt with only through the actions of the whole international community under the leadership of the United Nations. It is also important to further strengthen the treaty and legal basis for international cooperation in countering those threats. With regard to the African region, of particular importance is technical cooperation aimed at capacity- building for law enforcement forces and improving border security. We welcome the active efforts of the Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate (CTED) in coordinating assistance to African and other States. The support for designing real and effective measures to prevent threats related to the financing of terrorism through the proceeds of crime is particularly important. We support the work of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) with the African Union and other regional structures, through cooperation in the anti-criminal sphere. We welcome the Security Council’s adoption today of resolution 2195 (2014), aimed at drawing the international community’s attention to the need to comprehensively combat financing for terrorism through various types of criminal activity and the illegal drug trade. The resolution contains measures to strengthen and further improve the work of United Nations agencies dealing in counter-terrorism and anti-crime. We look forward to the Secretary-General report on the efforts of various United Nations entities in response to the threats of fuelling terrorism from the proceeds of criminal activity on the basis of information provided by UNODC, CTED, the Monitoring Team and other specialized United Nations entities+. Today’s resolution particularly emphasizes the role of public-private partnership. Indeed, at the national level, it is important to create conditions for establishing full cooperation between State and business entities in combating transnational organized crime, corruption and terrorism. We hope that the adoption of today’s resolution will be followed up results-oriented measures by States and United Nations specialized agencies the implementation of which will lead to cutting the links between terrorism and transnational crime.

The links between terrorism and transnational crime and the dramatic impact they have on contemporary conflict is a subject that this Council has not adequately addressed before. I therefore thank you, Mr. President, personally for being here and for Chad’s leadership in convening this debate. I also thank Under-Secretary-General Feltman for his briefing and Ambassador Téte António for his statement. All speakers today have described how terrorist groups and criminal networks each pose an increasing threat to peace, security, development and growth. Combined, the consequences are greater and more complex. No region is immune. The effects are particularly manifest in countries already affected by conflicts, where the consequences of criminal activity often exacerbate their very causes. Weak institutions are corroded further, corruption is more firmly entrenched, legitimate economic opportunities decline and become less appealing, development is hindered, and conflicts are prolonged. The adoption of today’s resolution 2195 (2014) is an important advance. The report requested of the Secretary-General should survey the links between terrorism and transnational crime and should better position the United Nations system to disrupt the ability of terrorists to establish and benefit from those links. The report should define how the Council can play a more effective role In the meantime, the Council can sharpen two of its core tools. Both are important for the report we have mandated from the Secretary-General and also from the Secretary-General’s independent review of peacekeeping operations. The first is United Nations peacekeeping and special political missions. Eight of the eleven countries facing the highest threat from Al-Qaida-affiliated groups currently host United Nations missions. And organized crime is a major threat in almost every theatre in which United Nations missions are present. In addressing the threat, we need to get more serious about the role of those operations. We cannot ignore the elephant in the room, as a recent International Peace Institute report described it. This starts with strengthening mandates in relation to transnational organized crime. Missions also need more tools and training to gather information on and analyse the threat to help host States disrupt illicit activities. United Nations police components can play an important role in building the capacities of host- State law enforcement in that area, as highlighted in Resolution 2185 (2014), on policing, which the Council adopted last month. Skills in areas like criminal investigations, analysis and financial crime are relevant to both transnational crime and terrorism. The United Nations should deploy more serious crime support units, such as the model proposed in the Central African Republic, and the Standing Police Capacity needs more expertise in this area. But the support from United Nations missions also needs to extend to judicial systems. Actual prosecutions and convictions are one of the most important tools in the fight. Strengthening border management is potentially the most challenging task. The Council needs to consider where the United Nations can play a more effective role — drawing on modern technologies, providing capacity-building of border agencies, supporting border community engagement programmes and facilitating regional initiatives. Secondly, one of the most effective tools at the Council’s disposal — sanctions — should continue to be finely honed to deny terrorist groups access to resources and sanctuary and, most importantly, to starve them of funds. As Chair of the Council’s Al-Qaida Sanctions Committee for the past two years, I have consistently tried to highlight that any individuals who materially support the actions of a person or entity on the Al-Qaida sanctions list are themselves eligible to be included on the list and subject to the sanctions. That includes organized criminal groups, even if they have no ideological connection to Al-Qaida. The Council reinforced that point when it identified the key sources of financing for Islamic State for Iraq and the Levant-Daesh in its 19 November presidential statement (S/PRST/2014/23), which Australia brought to the Council. States need to bring those facilitators to the Council’s attention. And, as today’s resolution 2195 (2014) reaffirms, sanctions self-evidently need to be implemented if they are to have any effect. The Council and the United Nations system must deliver more support to key States to ensure they have the technical capacity to implement the sanctions measures. Member States are begging for such assistance. And as Ambassador António has said this morning, that is especially important for neighbouring States when an arms embargo and a peace operation are being set up. Only then will we effectively constrain the ability of terrorists and spoilers to procure funds, arms and recruits. It is also essential that the Council continue to take more innovative steps to enforce the sanctions measures where violations are acute. We have done that in Somalia, as others have mentioned, by mandating maritime interdiction of weapons and charcoal. Charcoal alone has been giving Al-Shabab a financial lifeline to the tune of $80 million annually. There is also a great deal that Member States can do. They can ratify and implement the key international treaties on terrorism and transnational organized crime to provide a stronger platform for cooperation; better align responses to the nature and scale of the threats by making more effective use of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) transnational crime threat assessments; and build technical capacity in law enforcement, border controls and criminal justice. We would add to that capacity in following the money. Going after the proceeds of crime through the use of anti-money-laundering tools, financial intelligence, asset freezes and seizures can be as effective in reducing the incentives of criminal activity as going after the criminals themselves. Finally, stronger bilateral and regional partnerships are fundamental. Strengthening intraregional cooperation builds trust, facilitates information exchange, enhances capacities and eliminates safe havens for transnational crime. We welcome advances in African regional networks that we have been briefed on today. We have seen this work in our own region, the Pacific, with the 18 Transnational Crime Units that make up the Pacific Transnational Crime Network having worked successfully to disrupt illicit drug, firearms and wildlife trafficking throughout the region. As the UNODC has often said, it takes a network to defeat a network. We must strengthen our networks, use the tools we have to maximum effect and above all keep pace with the rapidly changing nature of the threat. To conclude, it is today axiomatic that terrorism and transnational crime are increasingly linked. It is imperative we understand that reality and calibrate our responses accordingly. This must be an ever-more crucial dimension of the Council’s role in maintaining international peace and security. We again thank Chad for the initiative in bringing this to us today.

I am pleased to see you, Mr. Minister, presiding over this important meeting today, as a brother and colleague representing a brotherly country that is very dear to us and with which we enjoy good-neighbourly relations. We thank you for organizing this meeting and for having invited me to participate. I am sure that resolution 2195 (2014), just adopted by the Security Council, will enhance the joint work being done at the international and regional levels to combat terrorism and transnational organized crime. I pay tribute to the ministers present at this meeting: the Ministers for Foreign Affairs of Chad, Nigeria and Luxembourg. I would also like to thank the Under- Secretary-General, Mr. Jeffrey Feltman, and Mr. Téte António, Permanent Observer of the African Union, for their excellent briefings. I wished to participate in this meeting because the subject under consideration is one of the priorities of the Libyan Government at this time. Indeed, Libya is experiencing a moment of unprecedented instability. The new Libyan army is combatting terrorist groups. In cooperation with neighbouring countries, we are seeking to control our borders in order to prevent infiltration by terrorists and foreign terrorist fighters and to prevent transnational crime. Throughout its history, Libya has been the doorway from Africa to the Mediterranean and Europe. Today that is again the case, as evidenced by the extensive legitimate and illegitimate activities and the movements of various elements and individuals within our country for various reasons, including tribal issues and the presence of foreign individuals. Furthermore, Libya attracts those who wish to improve their economic situation and who are determined to emigrate to Europe, even if they need to employ illegitimate means to do so. Therefore, Libya is an important hub in which to combat terrorism and transnational organized crime in North Africa and the Sahel. In recent months, the challenges that face the legitimate Libyan authorities have become quite clear. Indeed, terrorist groups loyal to Al-Qaida control entire Libyan towns and announce to the entire world that they support Daesh in Syria and Iraq. The most recent confrontations between the Libyan army and those terrorist groups have shown that the latter do, unfortunately, include hundreds of Libyans and non-Libyans. In particular, they harbour citizens of neighbouring countries among their ranks. We assert that the terrorism in Libya is international in nature. That international terrorism has spread to Syria and other countries and seeks to spread further into the Middle East, North Africa and the Sahel. An attack was carried out by militia on 13 December in the oil region in the centre of our country; the groups that carried it out seek to transfer control of those areas into terrorist hands so that they will control entire swathes of the territory in central Libya and the Sahel. There is a close relationship between terrorism and other transnational crime, such as trafficking in weapons, drugs and oil, money-laundering and human trafficking. Therefore, it is important to enhance international, regional and subregional cooperation and cooperation with neighbouring countries in border control and to put in place coordination and information exchange mechanisms that can allow us to pursue criminals and prosecute them. Libya understands the importance of cooperation among countries of the region in this area and hosted a ministerial meeting on border control. That produced the Tripoli action plan on regional cooperation and border control, which was adopted by the ministerial regional council, held on 11 and 12 March 2012. Despite the limited resources and capacities of the Libyan army at this stage, we were able to agree upon a certain number of measures to control our borders with all our neighbouring countries. Despite that fact, foreign fighters unfortunately continue to join the ranks of terrorist groups, and weapons continue to enter and leave Libya. That is beyond the control of the Libyan Government, given the lack of our resources to monitor our lengthy borders in uninhabited desert areas. We need to work on international cooperation among all States that have pledged to join the international campaign to combat terrorism and with neighbouring countries who are experiencing this scourge. This international effort must include the provision of weapons to the Government and efforts to dry up sources of funding for terrorism. The situation is growing increasingly dangerous and grave. The statement issued on Tuesday, 16 December, by the House of Representatives, following upon its statement of 11 November, asserted its support for the political efforts being made by United Nations Special Representative Bernardino Leon in the wake of the 13 December attacks, which were even worse than those undertaken last month by the same terrorist group. The statement made the following points. First, the operations undertaken by certain Libyan groups in the name of the so-called Libyan National Council reflect the use of violence to achieve the political aims of groups acting outside the framework of national legitimacy. Secondly, there is a clear link between the Libyan National Council for Relief and Support, Ansar al-Sharia and other Libyan groups. Ansar al-Sharia was declared a terrorist group by the Counter-Terrorism Committee on 19 November. The actions of Libyan people and Government, alongside other entities opposed to the extremists groups that continue to impose bloodshed and destruction on the country, should enjoy the support of the international community. Thirdly, the statement called on the international community, represented by the Security Council, to oppose all trafficking in oil, which constitutes an act of aggression not only against the Libyan people, but also against the peace and security of neighbouring countries and the international community as a whole. In conclusion, Libya is encountering serious challenges and threats, which it is meeting together with other States of the region. Without strong support, we would be unable to combat and defeat terrorism and the country would soon become a cancerous tumor. I therefore call on the Council to take our situation into account by providing the necessary assistance to the legitimate Libyan authorities in extending their control over their borders and territory.

I call on the representative of India.

Let me begin by thanking you, Sir, for organizing this debate on the theme “Threats to international peace and security: terrorism and cross- border crime”. I also thank the Under-Secretary General for Political Affairs and the Permanent Observer of the African Union for their very useful briefings. I will avail myself of this opportunity to also compliment your delegation for the very comprehensive concept note that has been prepared (S/2014/869, annex). India has been a victim of terrorism for over two and a half decades. In our view, which we share with most members of the international community, there can be no reason or motivation that can possibly justify terrorism. Terrorism is the most heinous of crimes, for which the international community can only have a policy of zero tolerance. The fact that terrorism is an international problem that can only be tackled collectively is something that is most clearly known to all of us who have suffered it most. Terrorism is an international phenomenon; it is international in its organization and international in its effects. International solidarity is required to meet an international threat. Countries that have been preyed upon by a global network of terrorism simply cannot cope with the challenge alone. Every terrorist organization — be it Daesh, Al-Shabaab, Lashkar-e-Toiba or Al-Qaida — has an ideological basis that contradicts the basic tenets of humanity. Ideology alone, however, is not enough to sustain terrorists. They need sustained financing and space to operate. These are, unfortunately, provided to them. The concept note rightly draws attention to the fact that financing is often supplemented by illegal resources generated through drug trafficking, piracy, kidnapping for ransom, extortion, and so on. Apart from generating resources, these activities also create conditions for the growth and proliferation of terrorist networks. The revenue generated from poppy cultivation in Afghanistan has more often than not found its way to the Taliban and other terrorist network in that country. The listing of a terrorist organization is supposed to lead to travel bans, the freezing of assets and an arms embargo — in other words, cutting off the lifeline that sustains terrorism. This, unfortunately, does not always happen. Lashkar-e-Toiba was able to orchestrate an attack on the Indian Consulate in Herat, Afghanistan, in May. It is a listed organization. Its role in the attack has been documented in the latest report of the Al-Qaida and Taliban Monitoring Team. Lashkar-e-Toiba obviously does not live on love and fresh air. It has more than adequate funding. Regrettably, there seems to be little that the Council’s sanction committees can do about such open and brazen violations of the sanctions regime. This is an area that would benefit from consideration by the Council. The concept note mentions the strategic impact of terrorism and cross-border crime. It very correctly makes a point that cross-border crimes weaken the State, including its military and police capabilities. Examples from Somalia and Mali, where cross-border crimes facilitate terrorism and make terrorist groups even more formidable than the State, are indeed apt. We also agree with the assessment that there is potential for the Council to explore tools that would degrade the ability of terrorist groups to take advantage of cross- border crimes. Given the gravity and universality of the problem, we would urge open and complete consultation with Member States that are not members of the Council. I take this opportunity to also draw attention to the fact that there is unfinished business in the General Assembly as well. Leaders, at the 2005 World Summit, decided that expeditious action would be taken to finalize the comprehensive convention on international terrorism. That, however, has not happened. The price that we pay for procrastination is in human lives. That should not be allowed to continue. Terrorism takes away the foremost of human rights — the right to life. It is truly a crime against humanity.

I call on the representative of Kazakhstan.

Both terrorism and cross-border crime continue to constitute a serious threat to international peace and stability. The planet is riddled with criminal markets and channels for trafficking in drugs, arms, hazardous materials, including materials with nuclear use, human beings, donor organs and others. The threat undermines economies at all levels, corrupts authorities, fuels conflicts, as well as aggravates drug addiction, sexual exploitation and environmental damages. Unfortunately, this scourge is also capable of undermining the rule of law and good governance, which are so crucial for sustainable development. A phenomenon that is growing at an alarming rate is the close nexus between transnational terrorists and criminals who collaborate and share tactics, benefiting from this interaction. The result is bolstered capabilities, enhanced organizational infrastructure, improved access to resources and expanded geographical reach. One of the most dangerous and challenging threats is the ideological influence and spiritual rhetoric of terrorists on the young generation through information technology and the Internet, as recent examples indicate that terrorist and transnational criminal groups may evolve, converge, transform or otherwise alter their ideological motivations to recruit new members and justify their acts and crimes. The overwhelming extent and nature of criminal-terrorist relationships, which have a direct impact on the national security of individual countries, as well as global security, are a cause of concern to my country also. The potential convergence of criminal and terrorist actors, skills, resources and violent tactics can have devastating consequences in and across regions. Globalization has extended the transnational reach of terrorist and criminal groups. The nature and activities of terrorist organizations, merged with transnational organized crime, are manifested as nuclear proliferation. We are aware of the potential for criminal service providers to play an important role in proliferating nuclear-applicable materials and facilitating terrorism. All these threats and challenges demand long- term coordinated actions by all Member States and other stakeholders through a comprehensive approach and cooperation at the national, regional and global levels. Education, human rights, social protection, economic development, the promotion of tolerance and non-discrimination are also significant and cannot be overestimated as they are crucial components of life betterment, particularly for the young generation. An important role should be played by regional and subregional organizations. Kazakhstan is a party to all the major international conventions against terrorism and supports the practical implementation and improvement of all anti-terrorist mechanisms. Furthermore, Kazakhstan is actively engaged in the practical security measures of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), the Conference on Interaction and Confidence-building Measures in Asia and the Collective Security Treaty Organization. Under the auspices of these entities, law enforcement agencies of Member States fight terrorism and transnational crime through joint practical actions, international and regional exercises, the exchange of best practices and data. We are active members of the Anti-Terrorist Centre of the Commonwealth of Independent States and the Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, as a signatory to the Shanghai Convention on Combating Terrorism, Separatism and Extremism, and all the agreements on combating the illicit trafficking of arms, ammunition and explosives. We work closely with the regional office of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime in Central Asia and other agencies of the United Nations system. In September this year we organized a visit of Mr. Jean- Paul Laborde, head of the Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate, to Astana, which was yet another practical step to improve the cooperation of the United Nations with relevant Kazakhstan law enforcement, financial and special bodies. We engaged in the Joint Plan of Action to implement the global strategy in Central Asia elaborated by several partners — countries of the region, the Counter-Terrorism Implementation Task Force, the European Union and the United Nations Regional Centre for Preventive Diplomacy for Central Asia. At the national level, we adopted in 2013 a State programme for countering religious extremism and terrorism for the period of 2013-2017 and allocated $600 million to its implementation. In conclusion, my delegation reiterates its commitment to being actively involved in combating terrorism, radical extremism and cross-border crime along with other responsible members of international community.

Let me start by thanking you, Mr. President, and welcoming the initiative of Chad, as President of the Council, for convening this open debate. I would also like to thank you, Sir, for your concept note (S/2014/869, annex) and to welcome the thorough briefings given by Ambassador Téte António of the African Union and Under-Secretary- General Jeffrey Feltman. This debate is taking place one day after the first summit of the countries participating in the Nouakchott Process on the enhancement of security cooperation and the operationalization of the African Peace and Security Architecture in the region, co-organized with the African Union. At yesterday’s summit, representatives stressed their concern about the worsening of the scourge of terrorism and violent extremism in the region, as well as the close links that terrorist armed groups maintain with transnational organized crime, in particular human trafficking, money laundering, illicit arms trafficking and drugs. The cross-border movement of terrorists and organized crime groups has a direct impact on international peace and security, and the potential to undermine the sovereignty and territorial integrity and jeopardize domestic and regional stability and economic development and fuels conflicts. Terrorism and international organized crime now feed each other in a despicable race where stability and peace are the left overs. The connection between terrorism and cross- border crime is particularly true in the Sahel region with the threat expanding now into all of West Africa. For example, the Movement for Unity and Jihad in West Africa, an offshoot of Al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb, is one of the best examples of this trend. The link between terrorism and transnational organized crime has become evident as terrorists groups have increasingly exploited the pre-existing, informal or formal trade routes, as well as the illicit markets to generate resources from drugs and armed trafficking. Many countries and regions in Africa run the risk of becoming more destabilized and a ground for terrorist recruitment, training and funding. Furthermore, terrorist groups may gain control of strategic natural resources, such as oil, uranium and diamonds in Africa. The overlapping between terrorism and cross- border crime seriously complicates the Council’s conflict prevention and resolution efforts and hamper the United Nations and African Union peacekeeping and peacebuilding missions. It increases the risk of relapse, makes the protection of civilians difficult and represents a real threat to the safety and security of mission personnel. Obviously, all of that constitutes a broad matter for discussions and has been extensively dealt with by the United Nations, but today we are focusing on the intersection between terrorism and cross-border crime and how to make the best use of the capacity of the United Nations, at the disposal of the Security Council, in order to counter that threat. As a critical pillar of national security, border protection is a matter of national sovereign authority and the responsibility of the State. Through the better protection of their borders, States would prevent the cross-border spillover of illicit trafficking and movement from inside and outside of their territory, and thereby contribute to international peace and security. Mutual cooperation between States in this field can be achieved only through a coherent and coordinated approach that respects the basic principles of sovereign equality, territorial integrity and non-interference in the internal affairs of States. Algeria is fully committed to regional cooperation in fighting the destabilization caused by terrorist and organized crime groups in the Sahel region. In agreement with the Sahel countries, Algeria has consistently advocated an approach that is geared towards targeted and efficient action, based on ownership of the countries of the region, aimed at combatting terrorism and cross- border criminality, while assuming responsibility for security and stability inside their territory in keeping with their international obligations. Algeria’s extensive military deployment on its borders is part of the efforts undertaken by my Government to ensure not only our national security but also that of all our neighbours. Within the countries of the Sahel, Algeria has engaged in a concerted approach through many cooperation mechanisms, such as the so-called countries of the field or the working group on the Sahel, co-chaired by Algeria and Canada under the Global Counterterrorism Forum, and also with the Joint Operational General Staff Committee — known by its French acronym, CEMOC — the Fusion and Liaison Unit and many other forums. We believe that such forums make a great contribution to facilitating and deepening the security cooperation among the countries concerned through coordination and the strengthening of border-control measures as well as through training, equipment and intelligence-sharing. Algeria’s efforts to combat terrorism and improve regional and international awareness and cooperation in that regard predates the manifestation of major acts of international terrorism. My country has sought from the beginning to strengthen efforts against terrorism at the African level and, as a result, many instruments and initiatives have emerged and today are playing a standard role in enhancing the effectiveness of the African response in this field. In that respect, I would recall the establishment of the African Police Cooperation Organization (AFRIPOL), adopted last June and aimed at enhancing inter-State police cooperation so as to address the various challenges related to transnational crime. AFRIPOL should be fully operational next year. Among the other initiatives to be pursued in support of its member States, the African Union called in a communiqué issued on 2 September for the holding of a high-level meeting of member States on the issue of the financing of terrorism, with a view to identifying practical measures to address this problem more effectively. My country has offered to host such a high-level meeting. It is also worth noting the important work done by the African Centre for the Study and Research on Terrorism, based in Algiers, which has made a crucial contribution, inter alia, to preparing an African draft model law to combat terrorism. The Centre is an important partner of the United Nations entities in charge of the fight against terrorism, including the strengthening of African countries’ national capacities and in coordinating and implementing subregional and regional projects. Today the vast majority of United Nations peace operations are deployed in situations of domestic political crisis, complicated by difficult humanitarian and socioeconomic circumstances and exacerbated by the presence of terrorist organizations that are prepared to take advantage of any institutional vacuum or default. Under this undesirable scenario, peaceful States could become failed States. The Secretary-General has noted in his report on the progress made in the implementation of the United Nations Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy, there has been little counter-terrorism expertise available to United Nations peacekeeping operations and special political missions that operate in areas where terrorism is often a core challenge, such as in the Sahel, and asked Member States, when reviewing the Strategy, to consider how they might provide expertise as part of their contribution to United Nations peacekeeping operations and special political missions. Accordingly, we believe that an overall assessment of the United Nations must be addressed by the General Assembly and the relevant United Nations bodies that deal with the corresponding cross-cutting issues in a holistic manner. In that regard, my country is ready to cooperate and address this issue in its broader framework within the General Assembly setting and alongside the High-level Panel on Peacekeeping Operations.

I have the honour today to speak on behalf of the Nordic countries — Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and my own country, Sweden. First I would like to thank Under-Secretary-General Feltman and Ambassador António of the African Union for their comprehensive briefings. The Nordic countries stand firmly behind the United Nations fight against terrorism and organized criminal activities. We welcome today’s discussion and the focus given by the Security Council to these pressing issues. The connection between terrorism and other forms of criminal activity is a serious challenge to international security. This was first recognized 13 years ago in resolution 1373 (2001), but it is, unfortunately, still true today. No country is immune to the effects of this connection, whether it relates to terrorist acts, poverty or the illicit trade in arms or drugs. Terrorism and organized crime generate violence against civilians. Violence is a universal challenge to poverty eradication and sustainable development. There are 1.5 billion people living in countries affected by conflict, violence and fragility. Those countries are furthest away from achieving the Millennium Development Goals. It is estimated that by 2030, more than 80 per cent of world poverty will be concentrated in conflict-affected and fragile States. That implies that violence is likely to be one of the most pressing poverty issues ahead. Combating terrorism and organized crime is crucial in order to eradicate poverty. The Nordic countries are large donors of both humanitarian and development aid, and we are advocating the inclusion of a goal on peaceful, inclusive societies and freedom from violence in the new post-2015 global development agenda. The trafficking of weapons fuels armed conflict and armed violence, and organized crime or terrorist groups in many cases provide the networks needed to move this deadly commodity. The entry into force of the Arms Trade Treaty later this month will add an important new tool to combat this phenomenon. The Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant’s illicit trade in historical, religious and cultural artifacts has generated considerable income and must be countered. The Nordic countries are fully behind UNESCO’s efforts in combating this problem. Trafficking in persons is one of the most heinous and lucrative criminal activities globally. The funds generated are often used to fund other forms of organized crime, such as the smuggling of weapons or drugs. Around 70 per cent of all victims of trafficking are women and girls, who are trafficked primarily for sexual exploitation. The narrative of terrorism is that of hate, intolerance and rejection of human rights, in particular women’s human rights. Countering this narrative and creating resilience is essential. The Nordic countries believe that our strongest counter-narrative is a firm commitment to democracy, human rights and equality. We consider these values as end goals in themselves as well as key drivers of economic and social development. They are cornerstones of peaceful and inclusive societies where no one should feel marginalized or be attracted to violent extremism or organized crime. Our response to the challenges that I just outlined must be interconnected and mutually reinforcing. Multilateral cooperation is essential. Local action is needed on a global scale. The challenge lies in enabling efficient coordination among local, regional and international efforts. Therefore, the Nordic countries welcome today’s debate and wish to thank you, Mr. President, and the Republic of Chad for your timely initiative. The Nordic countries place great value on the efforts of the United Nations in assisting States in strengthening resilience against both terrorism and organized criminal activities. We are strong supporters of the United Nations Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy and other efforts to enhance States’ capacities to counter terrorism within the rule of law, including the protection of and full respect for human rights. We have been active partners in and long-standing contributors to the work of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), including its technical assistance in the field. We support the efforts made by the United Nations to explore additional ways to counter terrorism and organized crime. The Nordic countries recognize that cross-border crime has a strategic impact on terrorist groups through the weakening of State authority and State capacity. Cross- border crime also strengthens terrorist groups by increasing their access to illicit markets. To counter those threats, the Council needs to combine different types of peace operations, counter-terrorism bodies, panels of experts and the other tools available, as well as reach out to relevant institutions such as the UNODC and INTERPOL. We also welcome further consideration of a strategic review of the tools available to reduce the strategic space that cross-border crime affords terrorist groups, as proposed in the concept note (S/2014/869, annex).

I now give the floor to the Managing Director for Global and Multilateral Issues of the European External Action Service. Ms. Marinaki: I am speaking on behalf of the European Union and its member States. The candidate countries Turkey, Montenegro, Serbia and Albania; the country of the Stabilization and Association Process and potential candidate Bosnia and Herzegovina; as well as Ukraine, the Republic of Moldova, Armenia and Georgia, align themselves with this statement. I would first like to thank Chad for organizing this thematic debate on terrorism and cross-border crime, which comes at such a critical and challenging time. In that context, let me stress that the European Union works in a coherent and comprehensive way to tackle both terrorism and transnational organized crime, and that we work very closely with the United Nations and its agencies. I would also like to thank Under-Secretary-General Jeffrey Feltman and Mr. Téte António, speaking on behalf of the African Union, for their informative and thorough statements. I would like to provide the Council with some information on the European Union’s main efforts to address issues of security, counter-terrorism and cross- border crime, all of them interlinked in a way that reinforces their negative impact on countries and their development and causes instability in many regions worldwide. The crisis in Mali is an example of the links between organized criminal gangs and terrorists. The Sahel region’s security and development have been hampered by terrorism, violent extremism and transnational organized crime. There is also a new trend in terrorism that attempts to control territories and act like a State, as is the case with the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) and Boko Haram. We can cite many other examples of connections between organized crime and terrorism, starting with Al-Shabaab’s taxing of piracy and charcoal-trading proceeds in Somalia and the illegal trafficking in oil and cultural goods that constitutes the main funding resource for ISIL and the Al-Nusra Front. It is also widely believed that money derived from poaching and wildlife trafficking is used to fund terrorist purposes. The European Union supports the implementation of United Nations sanctions regimes, in particular that under resolution 2170 (2014), aimed at cutting off ISIL’s revenues. The recommendations of the Financial Action Task Force are also important in that context. In the area of kidnapping for ransom, we welcome the work of the Global Counter-Terrorism Forum (GCTF), in particular the Algiers Memorandum on Good Practices on Preventing and Denying the Benefits of Kidnapping for Ransom by Terrorists and the final conclusions of the Group of Eight summit at Lough Erne in 2013. In June, based on resolution 2133 (2014), the European Union adopted conclusions on kidnapping for ransom. The European Union and its member States are parties to the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime and the United Nations Convention against Corruption, which are milestones in international cooperation on tackling organized crime, particularly money-laundering, the smuggling of migrants and the trafficking of human beings and firearms. We welcome the citing of both Conventions in specific cross-border organized crime cases, since fighting corruption effectively is vital to ensuring good governance and people’s trust in their Governments and institutions. The European Union is fully committed to implementing the United Nations Global Counter- Terrorism Strategy and the relevant Security Council resolutions, particularly 2170 (2014) and 2178 (2014). We support all countries in their efforts to implement those instruments. It is also very important that we not neglect other security threats, especially in Africa, and we therefore welcome today’s adoption of resolution 2195 (2014), which highlights the importance of addressing terrorism and organized crime. I would like to reaffirm the European Union’s commitment to promoting security and development, particularly in Africa. As part of the implementation of our strategy for the development and security of the Sahel, we support countries in that region, especially Mali, the Niger and Mauritania, in their counter- terrorism efforts. We also support the countries of West Africa in their efforts to tackle drug-related transnational cross-border crime. In the Horn of Africa, the European Union is a key supporter of the African Union Mission in Somalia and is implementing a comprehensive counter-terrorism and security package that includes measures on law enforcement and countering violent extremism, the financing of terrorism and piracy. We work closely with other actors, particularly the GCTF, which complements United Nations counter-terrorism efforts. In that framework, the European Union is a co-Chair, with Turkey, of the GCTF’s Horn of Africa Working Group, which promotes coordination between the international community and countries in the region. The European Union also funds a joint project, implemented since March, of the Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime on rule-of-law-compliance investigations and prosecutions in the Maghreb region. We also support many countries around the world in the areas of conflict prevention and resolution, good governance, the rule of law, the promotion of human rights and education, since they form part of the European Union’s development policies. Regarding the enhancement of peace and security, a critical opportunity now exists for the international community to consider ways to support the post-2015 development agenda. Concrete progress in the areas of security, justice, human rights and the rule of law is crucial to achieving sustainable development. Joint security and development efforts, especially those aimed at countering violent extremism and preventing conflict, need to be enhanced. It is our common responsibility to ensure that the rule of law and respect for international law, particularly human rights, refugee and humanitarian law, are essential components of the fight against terrorism and organized crime. At the same time, we must continue to coordinate our shared efforts with the United Nations by addressing both the intersection of cross-border crime with terrorism and its impact on conflict prevention and conflict resolution. Finally, I would like to reiterate that the European Union is firmly committed to the call made today by Under-Secretary-General Feltman that we not only counter but also prevent terrorism.

I now give the floor to the representative of Egypt.

We would like to express our appreciation for Chad’s initiative in organizing this important debate, which enables us to reflect on the challenges facing the international community in combating terrorism. We would also like to pay tribute to the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Chad for presiding over the meeting and for his opening remarks, and to Mr. Jeffrey Feltman, the Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs, and Ambassador Téte António, the Permanent Observer of the African Union, for their introductory statements. Terrorism, in both its magnitude and its diversity, is one of the gravest challenges not only to international peace and security but also to human dignity. It has affected every facet of our societies and national values. It threatens the security and sovereignty of States, as well as the rule of law, freedom and the development aspects of our societies. We reiterate Egypt’s position in condemning unequivocally all acts of terrorism in all their forms and manifestations, irrespective of their motivations or objectives and regardless of the nature of their perpetrators, whether individuals, groups or States. In that context, we denounce the utterly despicable and incomprehensibly vicious attack on defenceless children that took place in the Pakistani city of Peshawar, as well as the recent terrorist siege in Sydney. Those incidents demonstrate the importance of the international community’s being unified against terrorism. We need to offer positive solutions and express resolve to eliminate the terrorist menace, which targets Muslims and non-Muslims alike. Cross-border illicit trafficking in drugs, arms, humans and other illegal trade, goods and services is fuelling terrorist activities across Africa and in other parts of the world. These activities indeed increase the space within which terrorists operate and weaken State capacity and authority, while enhancing terrorist groups’ own capabilities and support and severely hampering conflict resolution efforts. This is particularly evident in the Sahel region, where cross-border smuggling has exacerbated instability and affected conflict dynamics. In that regard, we commend the regional cooperative mechanisms in Africa, including the Nouakchott Process on the enhancement of security cooperation and the operationalization of the African Peace and Security Architecture in the Sahelo-Saharan region, the adoption of the action plan adopted by the first regional ministerial meeting on border security held in Tripoli in March 2012, and the creation of a regional training centre to enhance border security during the second regional ministerial meeting, which was held in Rabat in November 2013. The reality today is that we live in a world where there is no region, country or people that remains untouched by the destabilizing effects and negative influence of cross-border crime and violent extremism. We therefore believe that it is imperative to take the following steps to deal with both threats on the operational level. First, we must exchange information on the measures that Member States have taken to curb cross- border illicit drug trafficking, human smuggling and trafficking, cybercrime, illegal migration, money laundering and the illicit trade in small arms and light weapons. Secondly, Member States must exchange best practices on fighting terrorism in all its forms and manifestations and provide bilateral assistance in capacity-building to the most affected States, in particular in areas related to countering violent extremism and money laundering. Thirdly, we must strengthen cooperation and contacts among the relevant authorities of Member States, including through promoting law enforcement cooperation and exchange of information on legal, judicial and criminal matters. While recognizing the importance of States working closely to combat terrorism in all its forms and manifestations, including by preventing terrorists from benefiting from transnational organized crime, we reaffirm that States have the sovereign right, in accordance with international law, to secure their borders. Egypt emphasizes that respect for the principles of sovereign equality, political independence, the territorial integrity of all States and of non-intervention in matters that are essentially within a State’s domestic jurisdiction should be upheld. Finally, we call for increasing the resources allocated to the Counter-Terrorism Implementation Task Force, the Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime and other United Nations entities dedicated to supporting the development and strengthening of the capacities of national and regional institutions, especially the African Union, in order to combat the criminal-terrorist connection with transnational organized crime, including law enforcement and counter-terrorism agencies.

I now give the floor to the representative of Turkey.

At the outset, we wish to thank the Chadian presidency for organizing today’s timely open debate. Turkey has long emphasized the link between terrorism and such transnational organized crime as drug trafficking, money laundering, human trafficking and migrant smuggling. Today, terrorist organizations continue to benefit and depend mainly upon such crimes, which are cross-border in nature, as a source of financing. In that regard, Turkey supports United Nations efforts to counter organized crime. Turkey is party to the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime and its three Protocols. We are implementing the United Nations Global Counter- Terrorism Strategy and cooperating the Counter- Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate, the Counter-Terrorism Implementation Task Force (CTITF) and other United Nations entities. All the relevant Security Council resolutions dealing with counter- terrorism have been swiftly implemented in Turkey. We welcomed resolution 2170 (2014) and co-sponsored resolution 2178 (2014), which underlines the importance of international cooperation in countering the foreign terrorist fighters threat. With regard to the threat emanating from Daesh and the Al-Nusra Front, Turkey has been taking every measure at our borders to counter increased attempts at smuggling and, as appropriate, to deal with the changing nature of the smuggling networks on the Syrian side. However, I would emphasize that the threat from Daesh and the Al-Nusra Front cannot be eliminated with counter-financing measures alone. These terrorist organizations have been able to strengthen and seize territory because of the crisis in Syria, which has become a magnet for foreign terrorist fighters, with the regime continuing to target its own people and taking advantage of the inaction of the international community. In that vein, we also welcome the initiative to focus on foreign terrorist fighters in Africa. However, the foreign terrorist fighter phenomenon in Africa cannot be taken into account in isolation. It is also pertinent to focus on foreign terrorist fighters travelling from North Africa to join Daesh. Foreign terrorist fighters pose a serious threat to source, destination and transit countries. The threat of foreign terrorist fighters starts the moment these individuals depart from their source countries. In developing countries, especially in Africa, where Al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb, Boko Haram and Al-Shabaab have gained ground, one of the key aspects to tackling terrorism bred by transborder crime is capacity-building, given the increasingly complex and evolving nature of the threat. That is why, as a major contributor to capacity-building efforts in the security sector around the world, Turkey welcomes the resolution adopted today (resolution 2195 (2014)), which stresses the need for more capacity-building. Since 2008, nearly 4,500 participants from 14 African countries have taken part in training programmes organized by the Turkish police. Our relevant authorities regularly provide capacity-building training programmes to countries of the Horn of Africa. The Turkish International Academy against Drugs and Organized Crime, established in cooperation with the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, has been playing an important role in boosting regional efforts to combat drug trafficking and organized crime. We also support United Nations bodies’ capacity- building efforts to counter cross-border crime in the framework of the fight against terrorism. Some of our aforementioned programmes have been implemented in partnership with the CTITF and the United Nations Counter-Terrorism Centre, and we welcome and are ready to contribute to Integrated Assistance for Countering Terrorism projects in the Sahel region. Given the nexus between development and security and peace, and our commitment to assisting countries in need of assistance and our belief that international cooperation is crucial to effectively tackling terrorism and transnational crime, our efforts geared at bridging the gap in capacity-building will continue. At the second Africa-Turkey summit held in Malabo in November 2014, we reiterated our desire to continue collaboration in all areas of peace and security. In conclusion, I would reiterate once again that all terrorist organizations should be combated with equal determination. Terrorism in all its forms and manifestations must be condemned. As we strive to counter terrorist and related crimes, we need to uphold the respect for human rights for all and the rule of law as fundamental bases for our endeavours.

I now give the floor to the representative of Guatemala.

I thank you, Mr. President, for organizing today’s open debate and for preparing the extensive concept note (S/2014/869, annex) to guide us in our deliberations. We also express our appreciation to the Under-Secretary- General for his introductory remarks. We would like today to share some concerns that my delegation has with respect to the focus of this debate. We have seen cases where there is criminality and terrorism establishes itself to take advantage thereof, or where terrorists draw on organized crime to finance their activities. In this regard, we recognize the potential linkages and interconnections between terrorism and destabilizing factors such as transnational organized crime and drug-trafficking. However, in the concept note, all of these phenomena are addressed together, ignoring that the interconnections between them must be treated on a case-by-case basis and that they vary from region to region. Assuming that terrorism and transnational organized crime are automatically linked is not only inaccurate but also dangerous. Saying that there is no country that is not affected by terrorism or manifestations of transnational organized crime would be to send a message that the agenda of the Security Council covers all things, when in reality immediate action by the Council is not necessarily warranted because, quite simply, not all cross-border criminal activity reaches the threshold to constitute a threat to international peace and security. Nor does the concept note do much to recognize the particularities of each one of these phenomena, taking into account that, for example, fighting terrorism is quite different from fighting drug-trafficking or organized criminal groups, not to mention the issue of the cross-border movement of people. Nor do we support new categorizations of terrorists according to the type of criminal activity involved as resolution 2195 (2014), just adopted, seeks to do. It must be recalled that a terrorist’s motivations are different from those involved in transnational organized crime. We would like to believe that when transnational organized crime is addressed by the United Nations system, whether by Council consideration or in a more general context, such efforts would seek to step up cooperation among Member States to combat this scourge. However, by emphasizing coercive measures, controls and regulations, we risk promoting a more defensive approach by sovereign States. These are some of our comments at the conceptual level. In addition, we also have more specific comments to make. First, we believe that this discussion can contribute to our conflict-prevention efforts in maintaining international peace and security allowing us to fine-tune our responses to emerging threats and challenges. Transnational organized crime and the illicit trafficking in weapons, goods and people, like terrorism, are common and shared responsibilities, and we need to work together to prevent and combat these phenomena. This is further justification for strengthening international cooperation and providing technical assistance, in particular to encourage and facilitate the implementation of relevant conventions and protocols. Secondly, a wide range of existing strategies and initiatives have been developed at the national, regional and international levels, making it harder to identify synergies and similarities. This is due not only to the peculiar nature of each item, or the fact that each is discussed in a different expert forum, but also to the fact that each issue is governed by its own legal and legislative context. We must adhere to the instruments that are legally binding for States parties, in this particular case the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime, and not establish new obligations under the pretext of fighting terrorism. Thirdly, different strategies are required to address the specific threats posed by the different types of phenomena, especially suitable strategies to reduce the demand and supply of illicit drugs. Unless these causes are addressed, the problem will be displaced elsewhere or simply replaced by other illegal activities. Governments must therefore strengthen the rule of law in their countries so as to develop social antibodies against transnational organized crime and break the cycle of criminality and underdevelopment definitively. Fourthly, strengthening the capacity of the United Nations to assist Member States to combat these phenomena is only one element, albeit an important of, of the broader arsenal of measures to address this issue. While we recognize that the United Nations has a role to assist the affected States, this should be implemented in accordance with existing mandates, at the request of Member States and with full respect for their sovereignty, under national ownership. Finally, turning to resolution 2195 (2014), we recognize the efforts of Council members to achieve a balanced text and take into account the elements of importance to the broader membership. Likewise, we take note of the request for a report of the Secretary- General on threats posed by this new category of terrorist, who benefit from transnational organized crime. We hope that the concerns raised today will be taken into account and we stress the importance of reports of the Secretary-General remaining within the scope of the Security Council’s responsibilities.

I now give the floor to the representative of Brazil.

I thank you, Sir, for your comprehensive concept note (S/2014/869, annex) and for having organized this open debate. I would also like to thank Under-Secretary-General Jeffrey Feltman and the Permanent Observer of the African Union for their informative briefings. Terrorism must be condemned in all its forms and manifestations. The repudiation of terrorism is enshrined in the Brazilian Constitution as a guiding principle of our foreign policy. Brazil is signatory to 14 international legal instruments against terrorism negotiated under the auspices of the United Nations and has been engaged in prevention domestically and at the regional and subregional levels. The prevention of and combat against terrorism must be undertaken with due respect for the Charter of the United Nations, international refugee and humanitarian law, as well as human rights, including the right to privacy. Brazil also recognizes the importance of preventing and combating transnational organized crime. Brazil is party to international and regional treaties related to transnational organized crime, such as the Palermo Convention, of 2000, and its additional protocols, some of which were adopted by the General Assembly through resolution 55/25. It was a wise choice by the Security Council to favour the concept of transnational organized crime  — consistent with the Palermo Convention and previous decisions by this Council  — over that of cross-border crimes, which raises doubts about its precise definition. Notwithstanding the importance of combating terrorism and transnational organized crime, it should be clear that they are different problems, which require different remedies. While terrorism is essentially fuelled by political and ideological considerations, transnational organized crime is motivated by the expectation of financial gains. Aiming for distinct goals, terrorist groups and criminal organizations usually operate differently and through their own methods. Brazil therefore stresses that there are no automatic or intrinsic linkages between terrorism and transnational organized crime. The interrelationship between them may obviously arise under specific circumstances, but should in no way be deemed universal. It is also important to pay attention to the forum in which these issues should be primarily discussed. International terrorism as a threat to international peace and security should be addressed in the Security Council. Brazil is a staunch defender of the United Nations centrality in the coordination of global efforts against international terrorism. Organized crime, in turn, is primarily a domestic public security issue. Transnational organized crime requires coordinated international action, pursuant to the framework established by the Palermo Convention, its additional protocols and other relevant international legal instruments. It is more appropriately addressed as a matter of enhanced International cooperation than as an issue pertaining to collect security. In both cases, the international community does well in emphasizing prevention. Repressive measures and law enforcement alone cannot offer a comprehensive strategy against those crimes. They could actually be ineffective if not coupled with efforts to tackle the structural factors and root causes that lead to terrorism and transnational organized crime, which include social and economic exclusion. Brazil reiterates its commitment to a multidimensional response to the challenges posed by terrorism and their possible circumstantial linkages to transnational organized crime. We remain convinced that we will succeed only if we join efforts on the basis of shared values and enhanced multilateral cooperation.

I now give the floor to the representative of the Syrian Arab Republic.

I now give the floor to the representative of Colombia.

As this is the first time that my delegation is addressing the Security Council during the Chad’s presidency, I wish you, Mr. President, and your delegation much success. We appreciate the convening of this open debate and the preparation of the concept note (see S/2014/869, annex) to guide our discussions, as well as the briefings given this morning. The Security Council has been progressively addressing the many manifestations of transnational organized crime and, on this occasion, its relationship with terrorism, highlighting the complexity of a topic that does not permit out-of-context generalizations. While we must recognize the potential of transnational organized crime to undermine the stability and security of States, it is equally important to underscore that its manifestations and reach are not uniform everywhere in the world. All States are affected in one way or another by those criminal activities. However, it is not in all circumstances that those activities constitute a threat to international peace and security and thus come under the Security Council’s competence. Along those lines, the Council should avoid simplifying a topic that because of its nature should be addressed on a case-by-case basis, and eschew an approach or the adoption of generalized measures that do not fit specific contexts and do not take into account the diversity of factors that make a situation a threat to international peace and security. As has been recognized on numerous occasions, the criminal activities that we are referring to go beyond the dimension of cross-border trafficking. For that reason, eradicating them requires integrated, comprehensive and balanced focuses and measures that tackle all the links of those illicit activities, recognize the sovereign rights and responsibilities of States, and are in accordance with international obligations accepted by States, including those related to respect for human rights, the management and exploitation of natural resources, border controls, or links between terrorism and kidnapping for ransom. Transnational organized crime and terrorism are in some cases specifically linked. However, they are different criminal activities, and the measures to address them are regulated by specialized international treaties that make up a broad legislative framework and offer the legal tools to combat those matters. Furthermore, the agreements reached in the General Assembly bring together comprehensive concepts that are widely accepted in the United Nations. They facilitate the development of inclusive and balanced strategies. The Organization as a whole should concentrate its efforts on providing assistance that States might need with the goal of achieving the integral application of the obligations arising from those agreements, strengthening capacities and national institutions, bolstering effective cooperation mechanisms, and augmenting the provision of technical and financial resources, as well as the timely exchange of information. Those are some of the reasons that lead to deepening the cooperation of the Security Council with other organs of the United Nations system on a matter that, because of its nature and global reach, requires concerted and coordinated action by the different organs and entities of the United Nations system, pursuant to the principles of the Charter, in a framework of and respect for their respective responsibilities and mandates, and with a clear and objective division of labour.

I now give the floor to the representative of Germany.

Germany fully aligns itself with the statement delivered by the observer of the European Union (EU). Allow me to make some additional remarks in my national capacity. As we are all aware, there is a dangerous global phenomenon that threatens the very existence of States and human lives — the growing violence spread by international terrorism. In light of the recent activities of terrorist organizations, we welcome Chad’s initiative in organizing this thematic debate. Today’s resolution 2195 (2014) aims at fighting the troubling link between terrorism and transnational organized crime, with a particular focus on Africa. Both issues are indeed deeply intertwined. Terrorist groups need money and they need arms. In order to procure those means, they rely heavily on cross-border trafficking. Regional initiatives and enforcement measures remain crucial to fight transnational organized crime at the local level, and they need to be pursued further. In that context, we highly commend ongoing efforts to combat the illicit trade in drugs, a major source of income for terrorist groups. Recently, the West Africa Commission on Drugs presented a cross-border analysis of that problem. The swift implementation of its recommendations remains key. Another important financial factor in the field of transnational organized crime is wildlife trafficking. Wildlife trafficking and poaching are growing at an alarming rate, especially in Africa. Operations are increasingly conducted on a large scale by transnational organized criminal groups, often linked to terrorist organizations. This threat requires an effective, comprehensive and well-coordinated answer by the international community, encompassing countries of origin, transit and destination. As co-Chair of the Group of Friends on Poaching and Illicit Wildlife Trafficking, Germany continues to actively support efforts aimed at addressing and combating wildlife crime, including through a General Assembly resolution. Besides drying up the funding of terrorist groups, we also need to cut off their access to weapons. Illicit arms that flow into North Africa, and the Sahel in particular, pose a great danger, including to our own security. Germany early focused on capacity-building and securing stocks in Libya and the Sudan and is extending its efforts to several other countries in the Sahel region. We support regional arms control cooperation initiatives like the Sub-regional Arms Control Mechanism, which includes the Sudan, Libya, Chad, the Central African Republic and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Over the past few years, we have dedicated substantial funds to further projects in the region and have increased funding again for 2015. We support corresponding initiatives by the EU. Germany will also pay particular attention to that issue within the framework of its Group of Seven presidency. Overall, Germany remains highly committed to assist African States in their efforts to improve their internal security architecture. Under its Peace and Security in Africa programme, the German Foreign Office has funded a variety of projects with a budget of some $200 million over the past six years. Among others, these projects were designed to further foster African Union institution-building and police capacity- building in countries such as Burundi, Mauritania, the Niger, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Côte d’Ivoire, South Sudan and Chad. We are convinced that our current and future efforts will contribute to this resolution’s purpose of fighting transnational organized crime and terrorism.

I now give the floor to the representative of Pakistan.

I thank you very much, Mr. President, for convening this very important debate here in the Security Council. Let me first thank my colleagues for their words of sympathy and support for Pakistan. This debate comes in the wake of the heinous and horrendous act of terrorism in Peshawar, Pakistan, an act that has been widely condemned by the international community. Pakistan also condemns the perpetrators, facilitators and abettors of such acts of terrorism, including that of 16 December in Peshawar. Here at the Security Council, let me convey this message loud and clear: we will defeat terrorism. Pakistan will prevail, no matter what. Our mourning today will only morph into a stronger resolve to fight back even harder. By killing our children, the terrorists have attacked our heart. I assure you, Mr. President, that Pakistan will go for their jugular. Allow me to share the heroic acts performed, even during the cowardly act of terrorism on 16 December, by the teachers, the children and in particular the female principal of the school. They all, instead of trying to save their own lives, chose to stay back and help their peers and the children. That is a testimony that makes me proud, and I am proud to say that that is my nation and those are my people. I am very proud to represent them here at the United Nations. Pakistan possesses an unyielding resolve to fight terrorism. Our mind is very clear, our policy is on the table, and we continue to undertake affirmative action. After all, let me remind everyone that Pakistan continues to spearhead the international war against terrorism. Let me now express the views of my delegation on the subject under discussion today. We maintain a clear distinction between cross-border crime and transnational organized crime. We feel that not all transnational organized crimes are cross-border in nature, and cross- border crimes may not be organized. Nevertheless, we recognize that terrorists can take advantage of the lack of effective border control measures and associated criminal activities. We therefore fully subscribe to the need for effective controls on transnational organized crime and for effective border control mechanisms to prevent the development of any linkages with terrorist activities. We also acknowledge the complicated linkage that may exist among terrorism, criminal activity and effective border controls. We fully share the goals of the international community to successfully address them through appropriate national, bilateral, regional and international measures. Pakistan believes that an effective strategy to achieve those goals must take into account the following points. First, States bear the primary responsibility to strengthen border controls and take effective measures against terrorism and criminal activities. Secondly, bilateral, regional and international cooperation, including sharing of information, is important for achieving the desired goals. Thirdly, strategies need to be tailored to specific challenges presented by dynamics and conditions peculiar to the region. Lastly, it is vital to build the capacities and capabilities of States facing those challenges. Pakistan is fully aware of and responsive to the challenges it faces with regard counter-terrorism and terrorism’s conceivable linkage with transnational organized crimes. Therefore, effective border control measures continue to remain a major subject of our bilateral cooperation with the relevant countries. We have taken a number of initiatives to build regional cooperation in controlling transnational organized crime. Pakistan reaffirms its commitment to counter terrorism in all its forms and manifestations. We will continue to cooperate with the international community in addressing the challenges emanating from the factors that complicate our fight against this scourge, including transnational organized crime. We believe that international measures taken in this regard must respect national sovereignty and the territorial integrity of States and should aim to avoid any duplication of work undertaken by various United Nations agencies and organizations. The international community already possesses the will, the instruments and the infrastructure to deal with terrorism and transnational organized crime. What is needed is the effective implementation by States of the relevant instruments and meaningful cooperation within the United Nations bodies and agencies, working within their specific mandates. To end, allow me to say that Pakistan mourns today, but we shall, God willing, ensure the total annihilation of terrorists and their twisted ideologies.

I now give the floor to the representative of New Zealand.

New Zealand welcomes the firm resolve expressed by Pakistan in response to the atrocity in Peshawar, and I reiterate the comments of sympathy and support that I expressed to the Council three days ago in an earlier debate. I thank you, Mr. President, for convening this debate. It is an important reminder to the Council and the United Nations more generally that terrorism does not sit in isolation from other threats. In many contexts, terrorism and transnational organized crime are closely linked. Funds provided by criminal enterprises are often the lifeblood of terrorist operations, as is the supply of weapons. We have seen that pernicious relationship in West Africa, South-East Asia and elsewhere. To focus solely on terrorist threats at the expense of the wider context in which terrorists operate is not only outdated, but downright dangerous. The most effective efforts to counter terrorism are those that are well calibrated to the contours of the particular threat. This debate and the strategic review that has been called for are opportunities to refocus our attention on ensuring full implementation of existing foundational tools on counter-terrorism, such as resolution 1373 (2001). Furthermore, we should take this opportunity to ensure that the United Nations overall counter- terrorism architecture, particularly its mechanisms for providing or facilitating assistance, supports that implementation in a way that genuinely responds to contemporary terrorism challenges. Once new trends are identified and new measures are agreed, we need to monitor implementation and we must be brutally honest in assessing the effectiveness of what we have decided to do. The illicit activities that help fund terrorism differ from country to country and even between regions. So a one-size-fits-all approach is simply never going to be effective. For example, mineral and diamond smuggling have long been at the heart of conflicts in Africa, although recently, cocaine trafficking has increasingly been playing a role. By contrast, as Germany emphasized a short time ago, in Central Africa, cross-border wildlife poaching may be an increasing factor in conflict dynamics. A clear assessment of relevant risks and vulnerabilities is a crucial step in any response, particularly in conflict settings, but those assessments must be ongoing and, as I said earlier, they must be brutally honest. Bilateral and regional coordination and information-sharing are also essential, as are integrated national mechanisms for confronting those threats. The United Nations must play its part by ensuring that relevant entities, not least the Council’s subsidiary bodies, take a coordinated and coherent approach to dealing with those challenges. National authorities, in particular police and border control, are at the very front line of addressing terrorist and transnational organized crime, but, for many States  — those most affected by those phenomena  — such institutions remain weak. The international community needs to work bilaterally and through appropriate forums to help strengthen relevant national capabilities. New Zealand welcomes the proposed strategic review. We hope that it can shed light on how, and in what circumstances, responses that address terrorism and transnational organized crime can be mutually reinforcing, and we hope that it will include concrete options that the Council can consider. We look forward to the opportunity, as a future member, to doing just that. The review should be relevant to the United Nations efforts across a number of areas, including conflict resolution. New Zealand will therefore look for connections between the review and others that are currently ongoing, such as those on peacekeeping and peacebuilding.

I now give the floor to the representative of Israel.

I would like to thank the Foreign Minister of Chad for presiding over today’s debate. Before I begin, I would like to say a few words about the recent terrorist attacks in Pakistan and Australia. The cowardly attacks on children in a school and on innocent civilians in a coffee shop are a painful reminder that no nation is immune to terrorism. We condemn in the strongest possible terms those heinous and senseless acts of violence. The thoughts and prayers of the Israeli people are with the families of the victims in Pakistan and Australia, and we pray for a speedy recovery for all those who were injured. I want to tell the Council about a small start-up that emerged in our region just a few years ago. Like any new enterprise, it secured funding, recruited talent and acquired the equipment needed for its day-to-day operations. The venture gained momentum and was able to recruit more people, grow its revenue base and acquire more sophisticated tools. Like many start-ups, it turned to social media to amplify its messages and gain greater prominence  — that too fueled further growth. It soon expanded its portfolio to deal in illicit enterprises, including stealing and selling crude oil, kidnapping, smuggling and trafficking in goods. Today, that billion-dollar enterprise is a household name — the Islamic State in Iraq and the Sham (ISIS), also known as Daesh. The meteoric rise of ISIS is just one example of “terrorism 2.0”. Extremist groups are using every tool and means at their disposal to further their radical ideological goals and commit senseless acts of brutality. The haunting images of terrorism will forever be in our minds — school children murdered by the Taliban, journalists beheaded by ISIS, innocent Christians massacred by al-Shabaab and the countless innocent civilians who were victims of suicide attacks perpetrated by Hizbullah and Hamas. In order to effectively counter the threat posed by terrorists, the international community must address every means by which radical groups take root and grow. To confront terrorism 2.0, we must prevent, preempt and undermine terrorism. In other words, we must invest in counter- terrorism 3.0 — a three-pronged approach to combating and preventing terrorism. First, we must cut off the supply lines that originate with organized crime networks. Terrorist groups rely on criminal networks to provide them with weaponry and munitions. Hizbullah, for example, runs one of the largest and most sophisticated global criminal operations in the world. For years, it has funded terrorism through criminal enterprises, including narcotics trafficking and forging currency. In 2008, German authorities arrested two Lebanese members of Hizbullah carrying more than €8 million generated from cocaine smuggling. In 2011, American authorities uncovered an extensive Hizbullah narcotics-trafficking and money-laundering scheme that was generating as much as $200 million a month for the terrorist organization. In addition to raising funds through drug sales, Hizbullah is deeply involved in the trafficking of counterfeit and stolen currency and goods. In 2009, the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation revealed that a Hizbullah member tied to the Philadelphia criminal underworld was trying to sell stolen cell phones, laptops and cars. The international community must develop a robust strategy to interrupt the flow of funds from criminal enterprises to terrorist groups. By severing the connection, we will cut the financial and logistical lifeline that keeps terrorist groups afloat. Secondly, the Security Council must address the State sponsors of terrorism. The fact of the matter is that some Member States in this Organization support, harbour, finance, train and smuggle terrorists and weapons in our region. Qatar is aggressively funding the Taliban in Afghanistan, the Al-Nusra Front in Syria, and Hamas in Gaza. In fact, in Gaza just a few days ago, Hamas held a rally at which Abu Obeida, the spokesman for the military wing of Hamas, publicly thanked Qatar and Iran for their ongoing support. In addition to financing Hamas, Iran is bankrolling Hizbullah with up to $200 million a year to wage war on its behalf. In the last two years alone, Hizbullah operatives have been detained in Nigeria, Thailand and Cyprus for plotting attacks on civilians. And at the instruction of Iran, Hizbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah publicly declared that his forces will ensure the survival of Syria’s Al-Assad regime. The international community can no longer ignore or downplay the global threat posed by Hizbullah. Its founding manifesto pledges loyalty to Iran’s supreme leader, seeks the establishment of an Islamic regime and calls for war against Israel and the West. Terrorist groups will continue to undermine international peace and security so long as State actors supply them with weaponry, financing, training and safe havens. A stable and prosperous Middle East will remain elusive until the Security Council unmasks those rogue regimes and compels them to end their support for terrorism. Thirdly, the international community must broaden and strengthen sanctions against terror groups. More effective procedures are needed to bring individuals involved in terrorist activities to justice. Mechanisms must be put in place to freeze their financial assets and prevent their movement through the territories of Member States. Every democracy walks a fine line between defending civil liberties and upholding the rule of law. It is not easy, but we can never allow terrorist groups to gain the upper hand. The recent decision of the European Court of Justice is an injustice to the victims of Hamas terror attacks. Terrorism is a global problem, and all those who stand for freedom must make a continuous effort to fight it. Terrorism will not retreat on its own. It cannot be stopped by embracing moderates or making concessions. Complacency breeds catastrophe and we will all bear the consequences. For the sake of our children, our nations and our common future, we must stand shoulder to shoulder and hold to account all those who support and engage in terrorism.

I give the floor to the representative of Mali.

As I begin my statement, allow me to express the joy and satisfaction of Mali upon seeing Chad, a brotherly country, presiding over the Security Council’s work for the month of December. Chad is today relentless in its search for peace and security in the Sahel and in the region. We in Mali are deeply grateful to Chad and bow before the memory of the courageous Chadians who have fallen on the battlefield in the north of the country. I would also like to thank Australia for its outstanding leadership of the Security Council’s work over the past month. My delegation welcomes the adoption of resolution 2195 (2014). We thank Under-Secretary-General Feltman for his briefing and endorse the statement made by the Permanent Observer of the African Union, Mr. Téte António. Everyone agrees that terrorism is today the primary threat to peace, security and stability in the world. Almost every day, images of a reality marked by the raw trauma of terrorist attacks carried out around the world — as was the case on Tuesday in a school in Peshawar, Pakistan, where 132 innocent school children died — remind us that the monster of terrorism is far from being defeated. Mali, like all other countries victims of terrorism, has paid and, unfortunately, continues to pay a high price for terrorism following the occupation of its northern regions by terrorist armed groups. In this Chamber, among the most symbolic forums of all, I condemn in the strongest terms those heinous acts, which can never be justified, and express my sincere condolences and the sympathy of the people and the Government of Mali to all the victims of terrorism around the world. With regard to the specific topic of today’s debate, I would like to share with the Council the approach taken by the Government of Mali to the fight against terrorism and cross-border crime. Indeed, in Mali, the authorities have always understood the importance of preventing violent extremism and combatting terrorism. Our holistic approach, which was inspired by other international initiatives, addresses not only with the response to the terrorist threat, but also all other related issues, such as drug trafficking, arms trafficking and hostage-taking, that constitute its lifeline. The Government of Mali has adopted to this end a strategy and clear measures that combine development efforts and the fight against poverty and a repressive arsenal. At the national level, we adopted a law on 23 July 2008 on the suppression of terrorism and cross- border crime, and a law dated 30 December 2010 on combatting the financing of terrorism. Mali has also signed and ratified the majority of universal legal instruments for counter-terrorism and transnational organized crime. At the regional level, the Nouakchott Process is an incentive that has allowed important measures to be taken in order to address the rising wave of terrorism in the Sahel. The first summit of the Process held in Nouakchott on 17 and 18 December made it possible for important decisions to be taken aimed at operationalizing the organization to tackle terrorism and cross-border crime. I take this opportunity to recall the words of the President of the Republic of Mali, His Excellency Mr. Ibrahim Boubacar Keita, at the International Forum on Peace and Security in Africa, which was held from 15 to 16 December in Dakar: “As long as the problem in southern Libya remains unresolved, there will be no peace in our region”. Furthermore, in February, Burkina Faso, Mali, Mauritania and Chad established in Nouakchott the Group of Five (G-5) Sahel. It is a body for the coordination of development and security policies in our shared space so as to fill the security gaps of our individual States. The G5-Sahel summit is taking place today, 19 December, in Nouakchott, and Heads of State and Government of that organization will take important decisions on the topic of our meeting today. In the fight against terrorism, in particular with regard to the fight against violent extremism, we must stress the advantages of dialogue and mutual understanding. We must fight against the allure of intolerance. That is the why the other approach of the Government of Mali is based on the fight against the indoctrination of young people and even the elderly. Indeed, today more than ever, it is crucial that statements for peace replace hate speech. In that regard, I should like to express the gratitude of the Government of Mali to His Majesty King Mohammed VI of Morocco for the training of 500 Malian imams in Morocco. This important initiative of His Majesty, which also applies to other countries, allows the values of Islam — namely, peace, tolerance and the acceptance of difference — to be conveyed and spread. Promoting a moderate and authentic Islam is a tangible response to extremism. The values of true Islam have served as sources of motivation for religious leaders and communities in the northern regions of Mali in order to staunchly oppose the armed terrorist groups. Today, in the north of my country, it is hard to distinguish between terrorist groups and armed groups, and that is the heart of the problem. The Government of Mali remains convinced that solving the crisis in the north requires a political solution, which is also the easiest way to combat terrorism and transnational organized crime, so as to separate terrorists and armed groups. It is in this spirit that the Heads of State and Government of the Economic Community of West African States and the Heads of State and Government of the Nouakchott Process, who met on 15 December in Accra and on 17 and 18 December in Nouakchott, reiterated their commitment to the sovereignty of the Republic of Mali, its territorial integrity, the unified nature  — and I stress the unified nature  — and Republican format of the Malian State. They also reiterated their call on all armed groups in northern Mali, signatories of the Ouagadougou Agreement of 18 June 2013, to distance themselves from terrorist groups. They welcomed the results achieved in the context of the inter-Malian peace talks, which began in Algiers in July, with the support of international mediation and conducted by Algeria, and called upon Malian parties to conclude a peace agreement when the talks resume in January 2015 on the basis of the drafts submitted to the parties by the mediation. It is now up to the Security Council, as stipulated in resolutions 2100 (2013) and 2164 (2014), adopted under Chapter VII, to require armed groups that have signed the Ouagadougou Agreement of 18 June 2013 to distance themselves from terrorist groups. We invite members of the Security Council that are able to bring the necessary pressure to bear to bring the leaders of the armed movements to personally commit to the Algiers process as it resumes next January, so as to conclude a comprehensive and final peace agreement for the Republic of Mali as soon as possible. In conclusion, we reiterate the appeal made to the Security Council by the heads of State and Government of the Nouakchott Process to urgently undertake every measure necessary to strengthen MINUSMA’s capacities, so as to enable it to effectively fulfil its mandate. The leaders of the Nouakchott Process expressed their full readiness, in consultation with the United Nations, to contribute to the strengthening of MINUSMA, in particular through the establishment  — based on the model of the Force Intervention Brigade of the United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo  — an intervention force of contributing countries to be deployed in the northern part of Mali, within MINUSMA and with robust means and rules of engagement, so as to contribute to the fight against terrorist armed groups and criminal groups.

I now give the floor to the representative of Malaysia.

Mr. President, I wish to thank you for having convened today’s open debate and for the informative concept paper (S/2014/869, annex) on this very important subject. I also wish to thank Mr. Jeffrey Feltman, Under-Secretary-General of the Department of Political Affairs, and the representative of the African Union for their respective briefings. We join other speakers in expressing condolences and sympathy to the Government and the people of Pakistan as well as to the bereaved families of the victims of the recent terrorist attack on the school in Peshawar. Malaysia strongly condemns the attack and the senseless killing of schoolchildren, and we would like to express our support for and solidarity with Pakistan and its people in these difficult times. Terrorism and cross-border crime constitute a grave threat to global stability, peace and security. It is evident that terrorism, including its links with cross-border crimes such as money-laundering, arms trafficking, trafficking in illicit drugs, people-smuggling, kidnapping and piracy forms part of a complex set of new security challenges to the international community, which have to be addressed urgently in all aspects and in all forums. We note with concern that there is growing evidence that the presence of terrorist groups involved in cross- border crime tends to complicate the efforts undertaken by the United Nations and regional organizations, particularly in the areas of conflict prevention and resolution. As highlighted in the concept paper, there have been many instances in which the involvement of terrorist groups in cross-border crime contributes to undermining the authority of States, their security and stability, governance, social and economic development and the rule of law. There are also indications that in some instances, terrorist groups make large profits from their involvement in cross-border crimes such as trafficking in arms and illicit drugs, and kidnapping. In this regard, we concur with the proposal that there is a need to look at the strategic impact of the intersection of terrorism and cross-border crime. It is evident that cross-border crime can weaken State authority and its military and policing capability. Cross-border crime can also embolden terrorist groups and make them formidable rivals to the State. As such, we share the view that there is a need for the United Nations to consider looking at all the tools available to it to reduce and ultimately eliminate the strategic space that cross-border crime affords terrorist groups. The proposed measures could, however, perhaps be built on the existing resources and the commendable work already being done, including the Counter- Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate’s analytical expertise and the Counter-Terrorism Implementation Task Force’s capacity-building expertise. More broadly, the effort should also include the relevant United Nations agencies, funds and programmes and United Nations field missions, so that the combined United Nations response would be stronger and more integrated. With such a holistic and synchronized approach, the United Nations has the potential to deliver truly impactful support to the regions and countries most vulnerable to the threat of terrorism and cross-border crime. Malaysia fully supports the four pillars of the approach of the United Nations Global Counter- Terrorism Strategy: addressing the conditions that spread terrorism, preventing and combating terrorism, counter-terrorism capacity-building, and respecting human rights and the rule of law. It is indeed crucial to address the conditions conducive to the spread of terrorism and cross-border crime, which include, among others, poverty; violations of human rights; political exclusion; and socioeconomic marginalization. Groups and individuals in vulnerable and poverty- stricken environments serve as potential recruits for radicalization. Extremists often take advantage of the situation resulting from poverty and marginalization to foster the conditions that enable them to carry out their violent actions. The international community must therefore redouble its efforts to bring the fruits of balanced and sustainable socioeconomic development to areas where such development is lacking. Malaysia condemns terrorism in all its forms and manifestations. We reaffirm the need to combat by all means, in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations and international law, threats to international peace and security caused by terrorist acts and cross- border crime. In the wake of the rampant advance of terror and violent extremist groups–in terms of capturing both actual territory and intellectual or ideological space–Malaysia co-sponsored resolution 2178 (2014) last September. In doing so, Malaysia sought to lend its support to galvanizing international action to combat terrorism in general and the scourge of foreign terrorist fighters in particular. While we acknowledge the sovereign prerogative of Member States in securing their borders, we wish to stress the crucial role of the United Nations in leading and coordinating the effort to address the challenges of terrorism and cross-border crime. In this regard, we believe that the relevant entities of the United Nations system, including the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, the Department of Political Affairs, the Department of Peacekeeping Operations, the United Nations Development Programme and INTERPOL should enhance their collaboration so as to prevent terrorist groups from benefiting from cross-border crime. It is also important for the Peacebuilding Commission and other relevant international organizations to support the development and strengthening of the capacities of national and regional institutions to prevent, investigate, prosecute, judge and punish those responsible for cross-border crimes. We are also of the view that it is imperative for Member States, regional organizations and the relevant international organizations to enhance cooperation and strategies and build their capacity to secure their borders against terrorism and cross-border crime. This can be done through cooperation in the form of exchanges of information, capacity-building, technology transfer and confidence-building measures. In conclusion, Malaysia fully shares the spirit and the sentiment that underlie the convening of this open debate on terrorism and cross-border crime. Malaysia will continue to give its full support and pledge its cooperation to combat terrorism and cross-border crime for mutual benefit among the countries and citizens of the world.

I now give the floor to the representative of Japan.

Mr. President, at the outset I would like to express my appreciation to you for holding today’s open debate on terrorism and cross- border crime and the impact it has on international peace and security, with a special focus on Africa. I am also grateful for the detailed concept paper (S/2014/869, annex) prepared by Chad on this issue. Japan highly values this cross-cutting initiative to have not only operational discussions on specific issues such as terrorism, trafficking and cross-border crime, but also multidimensional and strategic discussions, keeping in mind a broader perspective on conflict prevention and resolution. Japan has been taking the initiative to hold the Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD) for more than 20 years, with the consistent theme of social and economic development in Africa. One of the main pillars of the TICAD process has been the consolidation of peace and stability as a prerequisite for development, in the context of coping with the so-called root causes of conflicts and avoiding the recurrence of conflicts by enhancing good governance. In order to boost that process, Japan held a workshop in Tokyo last month on regional cooperation in criminal justice for counter-terrorism in North Africa and the Sahel, with participants from the countries of the region. In ways such as those we have consistently advocated the importance of establishing peace and security from a much broader perspective, in order to promote development in Africa. Japan supports the idea that the Security Council should be engaged in strategic and cross-cutting discussions, as well as in specific and operational ones, keeping in mind the broader perspective of conflict prevention and resolution. For example, we are of the view that discussions should review the possible links that activities on the ground, such as peacekeeping operations and special political missions, could have with other specific United Nations operations. Such an approach would enhance the effectiveness and efficiency of United Nations actions generally, thus maximizing our efforts. We therefore support the idea of conducting a strategic review, as suggested in the concept note (see S/2014/869, annex), and we would hope that it would be practical and productive rather than conceptual, thus enabling us to make a concrete difference on the ground. In that context, I would like to inform the Council about a concrete project that my Government is undertaking on the ground and that could stand as a good example of a project with a multidimensional and cross-cutting effect. Controlling borders in Africa, especially in the Sahel region, is not an easy task for anyone; owing to the presence of the Sahara Desert, it resembles trying to control a border at sea, creating a problem that goes beyond border countries’ lack of capacity, which is a factor that we should take into consideration. Japan has been promoting the concept in Africa of a one-stop border post, aimed at eliminating cumbersome daily border procedures through an efficient high-technology system that encompasses all border procedures, such as customs, immigration and vehicle clearance. The idea is to promote trade by shortening the time needed for goods to cross the border, by enabling all the necessary procedures to be done at the same time at a one-stop border post, instead of stopping twice on each side for exit and entry. Adapting local systems to a globalized market has indeed made a difference. It turns out that improving procedures at borders has a much broader effect. Measures reinforcing border procedures can have a positive impact on the fight against trafficking in drugs, firearms and persons, the transfer of terrorists, and terrorist financing, while the reverse can also be true, so that measures against terrorism and cross-border crime produce a positive effect by promoting trade and investment. While it is true that we should tackle and take operational measures on the issues in question one by one, it is also true that we should try to implement such specific measures from a more cross-cutting, bird’s- eye view, in order to maximize the effectiveness and efficiency of our efforts. I believe that taking a broader perspective through our one-stop-border-post project is a good example of such an approach, and Japan hopes that that way of thinking will be mainstreamed in future Council discussions. I would like to conclude by reaffirming Japan’s resolve to fight any problem that could undermine international peace and security, including terrorism and cross-border crime. As a responsible member of the United Nations, we will continue to play an active role in discussing more effective and efficient ways to fight such problems together with the international community.

I now give the floor to the representative of Iraq.

We would first like to congratulate Chad on its assumption of the presidency of the Council for this month and to thank the delegation of Chad for holding this important open debate on combating terrorism and on the relationship between terrorism and cross-border organized crime. I would also like to thank Australia for its successful conduct of the business of the Council last month. We also congratulate the delegation of Chad on today’s adoption of resolution 2195 (2014). Today’s meeting focuses on the threatening phenomenon of the mushrooming spread of terrorism, which cooperates with organized criminal networks, which themselves thrive in direct proportion to increased terrorist activities. They are interdependent. There has been a change in the nature of terrorism and its connection to organized crime. Both are conducted across borders, and both constitute threats to the security and stability of peoples. Both undermine economic and social development. Both help to deplete States’ resources. Both undermine democratic governance. They have brought about many humanitarian crises and made it difficult to deliver humanitarian assistance to thousands of internally displaced persons and refugees. Iraq is a case in point; we are a country that is suffering deeply from the effects of those scourges. The report of the Analytical Support and Sanctions Monitoring Team of the Committee established pursuant to resolutions 1267 (1999) and 1989 (2011) concerning Al-Qaida and associated individuals and entities (S/2014/815) indicates that, according to media reports, the Islamic State in Syria and the Levant (ISIL) is the wealthiest terrorist organization in the world. Its strength and funding are derived from criminal means and activities that intimidate and terrorize people through kidnapping, extortion, robbery, the smuggling of valuable historical artefacts and trafficking in women and children, as well as the control of oilfields in Iraq and Syria. The smuggling of oil and Iraqi artefacts, along with the trafficking in persons and human organs, are ISIL’s most important sources of funding. ISIS benefits from existing smuggling networks in the region. Weak border controls, owing to the Syrian crisis, and ISIL’s control of Iraqi cities and territories close to the Syrian border have both contributed to establishing increasing numbers of such organized criminal networks, which move freely across the territories concerned and traffic in archaeological artefacts. We urge States Members of the United Nations to remain committed to complying with resolution 1483 (2003), particularly paragraph 7, which states that “all Member States shall take appropriate steps to facilitate the safe return to Iraqi institutions of Iraqi cultural property and other items of archaeological, historical, cultural, rare scientific, and religious importance illegally removed”. The ISIL terrorist organization exploits areas under its control in Iraq and Syria by looting, smuggling and trading in valuable artefacts in order to fund its terrorist activities. It relies on a network of Iraqi intermediaries, both Arab and Kurdish, as well as networks in the neighbouring countries of Syria, Lebanon and Turkey, to transfer oil, gas and artefacts to countries in Europe and other regions. The terrorist organizations, intermediaries and States that make up this complicated web and illegally and illegitimately purchase the Iraqi property that I just referred to are not bound under Chapter VII of the Charter of the United Nations, and thus they threatens international peace and security. The Security Council should take decisive action to end such activities. It should blacklist the companies and individuals that deal with such partisan entities. There should be accountability in accordance with international law and international legal frameworks. Implementation of resolutions 2170 (2014) and 2178 (2014) would limit the spread of terrorism and transnational organized crime. Transnational organized crime supports a lifeline of financial resources for terrorist organizations. International and regional cooperation and implementation of those two resolutions are crucial, especially in the areas of security, intelligence, border control and capacity- building. Iraq is a glaring example of a country suffering from trafficking of its cultural and religious patrimony. We therefore support the adoption of a bold and firm resolution under Chapter VII of the Charter. We agree that there is a connection between terrorism and transnational organized crime, particularly since we suffer from both phenomena.

I give the floor to the representative of the Netherlands.

Mr. President, I would first like to express my appreciation for your initiative in organizing this important open debate on terrorism and cross-border crime, with a special focus on the African continent. I align myself with the statement delivered by the observer of the European Union. In view of time constraints, I will deliver an abridged version of my statement, the full version of which will be available via Twitter. This week the world was shocked by brutal terrorist events in Australia, Pakistan and Yemen. The Kingdom of the Netherlands condemns these atrocious attacks in the strongest terms. These events remind us of how acts of terrorism can randomly target innocent civilians and how they constitute a threat to peace and security everywhere. These terrorist acts show that terrorism is one of the biggest challenges of our time. Terrorism needs to be addressed globally, and all countries should make efforts to that end. In order for these efforts to be constructive, we need to remain firmly committed to the universal principles of human rights and international humanitarian law. The Government of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is deeply committed to combating all forms of terrorism. Together with Morocco, we chair the Global Counter-Terrorism Forum’s new Working Group on Foreign Terrorist Fighters. This week, the inaugural meeting of the Working Group was convened in Marrakesh, Morocco. We pay tribute to the efforts of the Government of Morocco in this field. In view of our close cooperation, Mr. President, we thank you for having the Permanent Representative of Morocco and me speak in succession today. In our view, the United Nations plays a key role in the international efforts to combat terrorism. This role is threefold: first, to facilitate cooperation among States; secondly, to mainstream preventive and protective measures across the United Nations agenda, including development; and thirdly, to go after the means of financing terrorist groups, their leaders and affiliated persons. The United Nations sanctions regime is, of course, a crucial tool for this purpose. The increasing links between terrorist groups and cross-border crime are of grave concern to the international community. We are concerned that criminal activities are an important financing mechanism for terrorist groups, particularly in certain regions of Africa. The proliferation of arms as a result of the destabilization of Libya has strengthened and emboldened these terrorist groups, and they threaten regional peace and security. The Kingdom of the Netherlands takes this threat very seriously, and we therefore have a large contingent in the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali. As I said earlier this week, we treasure our cooperation with Chad in the field in Mali. In the Global Counter-Terrorism Forum, a special Horn of Africa Working Group addresses both regional stability and specific issues in the Sahel. It is important that more States make use of this Working Group to focus to a greater extent on the specific regional dimensions of terrorism in that part of Africa. As I mentioned previously, countering transborder crime is a key element in that work. We need to collect more empirical data on the links between transnational organized crime and terrorism. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) is well equipped to do this, and its transnational organized crime assessment for West Africa is a prime example. We also suggest making more intensive use of the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime for combating cross-border crime on the African continent. The impact of these crimes is felt by countries in the region. And it is also felt in Europe, which is a frequent destination for trafficking in persons and drugs. The Kingdom of the Netherlands believes it is crucial to forge new partnerships between European and African countries to combat the destabilizing effects of transnational criminal activities. Through the UNODC, the Government of the Netherlands supports affected Governments in data collection and capacity-building for law enforcement agencies. On 21 January 2015, our Mission in New York will host an event to discuss the broader adverse effects of transnational organized crime on the sustainable development of countries. We strongly welcome the participation of African States. The Kingdom of the Netherlands is a partner for peace, justice and development. We therefore cooperate intensively with multilateral and bilateral counterparts on both transnational organized crime and counter- terrorism efforts. We seek to build strategic partnerships for a joint response, promoting peace, justice and development, and we strongly welcome suggestions by countries in the affected regions for ways to cooperate further.

I give the floor to the representative of the Kingdom of Morocco.

I would like, first of all, to congratulate you, Mr. President, on your country’s successful presidency of the Security Council during the month of December, and especially on the pertinence of the thematic choice for the debate, namely, threats to international peace and security: terrorism and cross-border crime. The Kingdom of Morocco takes this opportunity to reiterate its firm condemnation of terrorism in all its forms, stressing that nothing can justify a terrorist act. Therefore, following the Taliban terrorist attack perpetrated at a school in Peshawar, His Majesty King Mohammed VI sent a message of condolence and sympathy to the President of Pakistan, His Excellency Mr. Mamnoon Hussain, and through him, to the people of Pakistan, in which he condemned these despicable acts in the strongest terms, stressing that terrorism is banned by the precepts of our tolerant Islamic religion and rejected by heavenly religions, the principles of humanity and democratic values that hallow the right to life as the supreme principle of human rights. We also condemn in the strongest terms the abduction in northern Nigeria of women and children as well as the killing of several dozens of them by the terrorist group Boko Haram. We reiterate our solidarity with the Government and the people of Nigeria. My delegation welcomes the adoption of resolution 2195 (2014), which will help to consolidate the relevant instruments and resolutions in the fight against terrorism, as well as those relating to cross-border crime. The last decade has seen a resurgence of terrorist acts coupled with a increase in the power of cross- border crime, threatening the stability, sovereignty and territorial integrity of States. Networks of terrorists and criminals who cooperate and are active in trafficking of all kinds  — weapons, human beings, drugs and so on  — spare no effort to weave links for criminal purposes. Our continent, Africa, is no exception, unfortunately, and the Sahelo-Maghreb region has not escaped this scourge. The fact is that as this danger is studied and analysed, the link between drug trafficking, cross- border crime, armed groups, separatist movements, tiny terrorist groups and the financing of terrorism is increasingly confirmed. Drug-traffickers and arms dealers have joined the ranks of Al-Qaida and Al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM). These criminal networks are intertwined and support each other, but they are also globalizing, thereby increasing their abilities to destabilize, massacre and commit atrocities. They threaten peace and security not only in the African region, and especially in the Sahel-Maghreb region, but also at the international level. The Kingdom of Morocco was among the first States to alert the international community to these dangerous connections between traffickers, armed groups and terrorists in the Sahel, calling for vigilance and joint efforts at the subregional, regional and international levels. Our concerns grew from the discovery of the connections between terrorism, trafficking in drugs, weapons and human beings, and the taking of hostages  — innocent tourists, aid workers and even United Nations officials. My country then called for concerted preventative action by the States of the Sahel and Maghreb region to curb the already-visible adverse effects of such activities. Events in northern Mali and the serious infringement of its territorial integrity, the expansion of the terrorist group Boko Haram, whose influence is spreading in the Sahel-Saharan region, and the flow of foreign terrorist fighters and criminals have only confirmed our fears and shown that the threat of instability is not merely hypothetical but immediate and real, with adverse consequences for our entire region. Morocco’s concerns therefore led to our call for concerted action by the States of the Sahel-Sahara and Maghreb region to fight such transnational crime and terrorism together. To tackle the phenomena of terrorism and cross- border crime, my country has developed its own national strategy based around security governance, the implementation of a legal framework, the fight against social insecurity and the reform of the religious sector. Moreover, we have contributed to international efforts  — within the United Nations, as part of the Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy and through fruitful and active cooperation with the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, the Counter- Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate and the Counter-Terrorism Implementation Task Force  — as well as at the regional and subregional levels, through cooperation and exchange of expertise in various fields with allied African countries, and through South-South and triangular cooperation. We have also contributed to international initiatives and discussions in the fight against terrorism, including the Global Counterterrorism Forum. Terrorism and cross-border crime feed on a complex set of interdependent political, economic and social challenges that must be met by strengthening good governance, sustainable development, promoting and upholding respect for human rights, and investment in human capital through appropriate education and training to immunize individuals against crime, extremism and terrorism. That is why my country believes that the implementation of the United Nations integrated strategy for the Sahel requires both the ownership of each Member State of the region and the support of the international community. It is also essential to strengthen border security in the Sahel-Maghreb region to cut off transnational threats and prevent the free movement of terrorists and traffickers in arms, human beings and drugs so as to stop this surge of terrorism in the region. It is with this objective that the Kingdom of Morocco hosted several meetings and conferences, including the ministerial conference on cooperation on border control in the Sahel and Maghreb, held in Rabat in November 2013, which culminated in the Rabat Declaration, calling for concrete steps to improve border security. On 28 and 29 October 2014, Morocco organized, again in Rabat, the Regional Conference of the Geneva Declaration on Armed Violence and Development in the Middle East and North Africa region, under the theme “Ending armed violence for peace and development”, with the aim of emphasizing the crucial need for subregional cooperation. In the context of the Global Counter-Terrorism Forum Foreign Terrorist Fighters initiative, The Hague–Marrakech Memorandum on Good Practices for a More Effective Response to the Foreign Terrorist Fighters Phenomenon was adopted, as my colleague the Dutch Ambassador just mentioned. Morocco co-chairs the Working Group on Foreign Terrorist Fighters with the Netherlands and held a meeting on this subject on 15 and 16 Marrakech, which adopted a vigorous and ambitious plan of action to counter foreign terrorism. In conclusion, because terrorism and cross- border crime are blind to religion, to nationality and to borders, the international community must equip itself with a comprehensive strategy for mobilization and cooperation at all levels. The fight against these twenty-first century scourges must be the ever-vigilant daily task of all of us until they are totally eradicated.

I now give the floor to the representative of the Niger.

I am taking the floor on behalf of the four States members of the Lake Chad Basin Commission and Benin. At the outset, I would like to thank the Chadian presidency of the Security Council for the month of December 2014 for having convened this important open debate on terrorism and cross-border crime, under the agenda of threats against international peace and security, in general, and those relating to terrorism and cross-border crime, in particular. We thank Mr. Jeffrey Feldman, Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs, for his briefing on the very informative report of the Secretary-General on the work of the United Nations system to help States and subregional and regional entities in Africa in fighting terrorism (S/2014/9), as well as Ambassador Téte António, Permanent Observer of the African Union, for his comprehensive briefing. The presence among us today of high-level representatives, including the Ministers for Foreign Affairs of Chad, Nigeria, Luxembourg and Libya, the Secretary of Foreign Affairs of Argentina and the Director General for Foreign Policy of Chile, is eloquent testimony of the importance of the topic under discussion as well as of the need to take appropriate action. As made clear in the concept note (S/2014/869, annex) usefully provided by the Chadian presidency to the participants in today’s debate and the report of the Secretary-General, there can be no doubt that terrorism and cross-border crime are interlinked and mutually reinforcing. Therefore, the connection between the two phenomena is not without negative consequences on subregional, regional and international conflict- prevention and resolution efforts, including those of the Security Council as the body primary responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security, pursuant to the relevant provisions of the Charter of the United Nations. This also raises the issue, as the concept note rightly underscores, of determining whether the tools at the Security Council’s disposal to achieve its objectives remain appropriate for the situation on the ground. In this regard, the States members of the Lake Chad Basin Commission and Benin  — whose populations have for several years suffered serious and frequent attacks against peace and security, including acts of terrorism  — believe that, while we appreciate the multifaceted support provided to our efforts by bilateral and multilateral partners alike, it would be very desirable to carry out an in-depth analysis of the situation. This would allow a more appropriate strategy to be designed. Such reflection is all the more needed now that the United Nations itself is preparing to review its peacekeeping operations in 2015 so as to adapt them to current realities. To that end, it has already put in place a High-level Panel, chaired by Mr. José Ramos- Horta, former President of Timor-Leste and Nobel Peace Laureate. Furthermore, the concept note prepared for this debate contains elements that can serve as paths to follow. We fully endorse the arguments put forward by the presidency in the concept note, according to which cross-border organized crime has enlarged the field of operation of terrorist groups to the detriment of the capacities and authority of the States in which they operate, seriously inhibiting conflict resolution efforts because they are often found in troubled areas. In the region covered by the Lake Chad Basin Commission and Benin, the terrorist activities of Boko Haram, probably in connection with other similar groups, are not only undermining peace and security throughout the entire region and beyond by expanding their activities, but are also making serious inroads into the very stability of the countries of the region. Indeed, in addition to the horrific abductions of 300 young students from Chibok, Boko Haram has also caused thousands of people, especially women and children, to flee their homes and seek refuge in neighbouring countries. The humanitarian situation created as a result cries out to our collective conscience and, given the urgency of the situation, cannot be allowed to continue. To that end, the States members of the Lake Chad Basin and Benin appeal to the entire international community, particularly the Security Council, for a response commensurate the threat to the subregion from the conjunction of the phenomena of terrorism and transnational organized crime, so that this threat may be forever halted and eradicated from the region. Certainly, the partners at the Paris conference on security in Nigeria, held in May, and at the Follow-up Ministerial Conference on Security in Nigeria, held in London in June, expressed their solidarity and pledged assistance to the countries of the Lake Chad Basin Commission and Benin, which have since decided to pool their efforts. Since then, they have taken significant measures to create a centralized intelligence unit and a multinational joint special forces unit that have yet to be made operational. With the unanimous adoption of resolution 2195 (2014), we place great hope that it will be usefully implemented to effectively fight these two scourges of our subregion and elsewhere, especially when the Secretary-General reports on the issue.

I now give the floor to the representative of Ethiopia.

Let me begin by once again expressing appreciation to you, Mr. President, for organizing this open debate to discuss the intersection between terrorism and cross-border crime in Africa and to take a broad look at its implications for regional and international peace and security. I would like to thank the Under-Secretary-General and Ambassador Téte António for their comprehensive and lucid briefings. Ethiopia fully aligns itself with the statement delivered on behalf of the African Union, which extensively covered all the salient issues, and therefore my remarks will be brief. Ambassador António’s statement was indeed very comprehensive. There is no need to repeat what he said. The link between terrorism and cross-border crime has been a matter of real concern for us in Africa, and its ramifications for the peace and security of our continent cannot be overemphasized. Al-Shabaab, Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, Boko Haran and others groups have expanded their terrorist and criminal activities beyond the confines of national boundaries, and various regions of Africa are already suffering the impact of these negative developments. It is not always easy to make a clear distinction between terrorist activities that affect a whole region and other forms of cross-border crimes, because no doubt they feed on each other. In our region in particular, Al-Shabaab is posing threats not only to Somalia but also to the wider region. That terrorist group has been benefitting from piracy, ransom, the illicit charcoal trade and taxes to finance its outrageous terrorist and criminal activities. Although Al-Shabaab has been significantly weakened by the joint military operation of the Somali National Army and the African Union Mission in Somalia, it has nonetheless expanded its activities beyond the Somali borders. It has been launching a series of asymmetrical attacks in neighbouring countries. Of course, we all recall the barbaric Westgate Mall attack last year by Al-Shabaab in Nairobi that claimed the lives of many innocent civilians. The group has also been threatening to launch similar attacks in Ethiopia, and no country of the region is immune to the danger. The meeting of the African Union Peace and Security Council, held at the level of Heads of State and Government in September, noted the regional dimension of terrorism, particularly in northern Africa, the Sahel region, central and eastern Africa. Accordingly, it expressed its serious concern over the increasing terrorist and other criminal activities of extremist groups across national boundaries. That is why it has called for practical and action-oriented cooperation at the regional level, building on the experiences of the Nouakchott Process and other similar initiatives to combat terrorism and cross-border crime, including drug trafficking, illicit trafficking in small arms and light weapons, and others. The exchange of information and intelligence, the enhancement of border security, the establishment of regular mechanisms for cooperation and the sharing of experiences and best practices are indeed very critical to dealing with the threat of terrorism and cross-border crime at the regional level. That is what we are trying to do in our subregion, and we are fully committed to continuing to build on our experience to fight the menace of terrorism and related crimes in all their aspects. At the level of the Council, we believe that the issue needs to be given greater attention than it has hitherto enjoyed. As clearly explained in the concept note (S/2014/869, annex), there is a need to reflect on the existing strategies and available tools so as to enhance efforts to address the nexus between terrorism and cross-border crime. In that regard, we believe that it is imperative for the United Nations and its relevant bodies to assess their cooperation with various regions and identify gaps with a view to devising an appropriate strategy to provide the necessary assistance to build their capacity in addressing this challenge, thereby reducing the ability of terrorist groups to take advantage of cross-border crimes. There is no doubt that, insofar as our region is concerned, there is a critical need to ensure that decisions taken by the Council are effectively implemented. Here, the illegal charcoal trade comes to mind immediately. In that spirit, we support the recommendations outlined in the concept note and look forward to the report of the Secretary-General on United Nations efforts to address the threat of terrorists benefiting from cross-border crime in affected regions, including Africa. That is why we have also sponsored resolution 2195 (2014), and welcome its unanimous adoption by the Council. The real challenge lies with the effective implementation of the resolution, which requires enhanced cooperation and coordination on the part of Member States and other stakeholders at all levels. I hope that we will all rise to the challenge.

I now give the floor to the representative of the Islamic State of Iran.

Let me begin by expressing my appreciation to the presidency of Chad for convening this debate on the theme “Threats to international peace and security: terrorism and cross-border crime”. I also thank the Secretariat and the observer of the African Union for their briefings. The Islamic Republic of Iran condemns terrorism in all its forms and manifestations, including State terrorism. We firmly believe that resort to indiscriminate violence and acts of terrorism, whether by terrorist groups or by State military forces, as well as the killing and injuring of civilians and generating terror and intimidation among the public, constitute criminal acts that cannot be justified in any way. My country has long been a target of terrorism, and we are fully aware of the grave consequences of acts of terrorism for the victims, their families and targeted societies at large. Terrorism has long adversely affected the daily lives of many nations, including mine, and continues to jeopardize the safety, security and general well- being of increasing numbers of people around the world. Despite all the efforts made on various fronts, we are far from uprooting that menace. The threat of terrorism continues to affect our societies. For decades, a number of causes and factors has led or contributed to terrorism under special circumstances. While nothing can justify terrorist acts against innocent people, national Governments and the international community should do their utmost to uproot causes that can create breeding grounds for terrorists. Moreover, terrorism has unfortunately occasionally been manipulated and transformed into a tool used for political leverage against others. Some have not hesitated to work with terrorists whenever they see it benefit their narrowly defined geopolitical interests. We must indeed reject the functional approach to terrorism. While it is often repeated that all forms of terrorism must be condemned by all States, in fact some States are inconsistent in their approach towards terrorism. Those States accord preferential treatment to those terrorist groups that are aligned with their short-sighted political interests. While we reiterate the importance and need of concluding a comprehensive legal instrument to combat international terrorism, the international community must strengthen its efforts to develop such a comprehensive instrument, which has been under consideration for several years. In that context, we believe that a consensual definition of terrorism will strengthen international cooperation against terrorism and end ambiguities concerning that term that are subject to abuse. Today, the violent extremism largely embodied by the Takfiri groups, enshrined in their dangerous ideologies and manifested in their abhorrent brutality and shocking savagery is chief among the threats to peace and security in the Middle East and beyond. We utterly reject stereotypes that attach the name of Islam to bloody and violent acts committed by such despicable groups as Al-Qaida, the Islamic State in Iraq and the Sham, Jabhat al-Nusra, the Taliban, Al-Shabaab, Boko Haram and the like. Those groups are nothing more than terrorist organizations that have emerged from chaos and the assistance rendered to them over the past decade. They have now found breeding grounds, fabricated a new false cause and turned into a monster that is even threatening their creators. Unfortunately, terrorism in our region has also developed into an abhorrent cross-border phenomenon. Therefore we need the engagement of all regional States and international actors to deny extremists access to funds, recruits and other resources they use to spread terror across the region and beyond. That should include resolute actions to end moral and financial support for extremists. The nexus created between terrorists and drug traffickers is also of great importance in the fight against terrorism. During the past few years, my Government has done everything in its power to fight the extremist groups in the region. As a first step, it has secured its border to prevent any movement to or from the areas controlled by those groups. In many cases, Iranian officials have stopped and apprehended individuals who have tried to use Iranian territory to cross over or send material assistance to terrorists. We continue our fight against terrorism with resolution and determination. All members of the international community have the same responsibility to combat terrorism in all its forms and manifestations. In our fight against terrorism, we cannot and should not ignore the need to fight State terrorism. The Israeli regime is one such State that has an unparalleled, perverse record of employing terrorism as a means to further its aims. Israel was founded on the basis of activities conducted by such terrorist organizations as Haganah, the Irgun, the Stern Gang and similar groups that aimed at expelling the indigenous people from the land they sought to occupy. Since then, that regime has never stopped employing terrorism to terrify the inhabitants of the lands it occupies and the peoples of the region. The assassination of innocent individuals has been its favoured tool for terrorizing peoples through all phases of its existence. The continued occupation of other peoples’ lands by that regime and its periodic aggressions to support it lies at the heart of the current situation in the region. There should be no doubt that such Israeli policies are the most important factor creating a space for such terrorists groups as ISIS, Al-Qaida and Jabhat al-Nusra in the region. Finally, let me conclude by reiterating that Hizbullah is part and parcel of Lebanese political life. It is a political party by itself, and is represented in the Lebanese Parliament and Cabinet. Malignant rhetoric has not tarnished and never will tarnish its image and its contribution to the cause of the people in our region, namely, to resist the Israeli regime’s continued aggression.

I now give the floor to the representative of Spain.

Mr. President, I wish to begin by thanking your country, Chad, and your Foreign Minister for convening this open debate on terrorism and transnational organized crime. In particular, we wish to thank you for the initiative of submitting an important and very comprehensive resolution — the first on this topic, the content of which Spain fully endorses. I also offer our deep condolences to Pakistan and the victims of heinous terrorist attack on a school in Peshawar, and to express Spain’s solidarity and willingness to continue working to end the violence and scourge of terrorism. I note the reference made this morning by the Foreign Minister of Luxembourg to the consequences of such crime on children. Terrorist tactics clearly have a disproportionate impact on them. In this sense, I believe it righ to condemn the recruitment and use of children, especially in the context of suicide attacks. Children associated with extremist groups should be treated primarily as victims. Their detention for association, or sometimes under the assumption of their association with extremist groups, is certainly worrisme because they may be exposed to degrading and inhuman treatment. It is important to be very careful to respect international standards of juvenile justice. Unfortunately, terrorism has increasingly demonstrated its global character and the need to fight it through international cooperation. This requirement is even more graphically evident in connection with cross- border crime. Here, capacity-building is particularly important because such crime specifically targets State structures, thereby weakening the principal actor in the fight against terrorism. Besides being the principal agent on the front line against terrorism, the State is also a principal actor in guaranteeing the human rights of its people, and must never abandon respect for those rights and the rule of law in its efforts to address both terrorism and organized crime. State institutional quality is therefore essential in firmly meeting the challenges in the field of criminal justice and in imposing the rule of law against attacks that may not only strike the law itself but also the officials responsible for enforcing it. Even if terrorists do not directly engage in cross- border crime, their connections are obvious, and often benefit from the proceeds of crime, immediately or through transit fees, extorsion or paid protection of criminals. As stated in the concept note (S/2014/869, annex) accompanying resolution 2195 (2014), this scenario enables terrorists to replace the State in various places and functions. Since 2012, Spain has signed various bilateral agreements to combat organized crime, including cooperation in the fight against terrorism. Its agreements of recent years with Côte D’Ivoire, Moldova, Panama and Uzbekistan complement the network of bilateral counter-terrorism cooperation of Spain with various countries of the Sahel and North Africa. Beyond the bilateral environment, however, Spain’s national security strategy considers cooperation to be indispensable in the multilateral arena as an effective and legitimate framework for combattng terrorism and transnational crime, including prevention, capacity- building and the due treatment of victims. This effort is ongoing. Just a few minutes ago, the Spanish police detained three young people who had intended to fly to Syria to join the Islamic State. We work on this every day, in solidarity and coordination, to meet the challenges under discussion today. In the framework of the United Nations, we consider it essential to maintain an ongoing and committed cooperation in the framework of the Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy with the Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate (CTED), the Counter- Terrorism Implementation Task Force (CTITF) and the United Nations Centre for Counter-Terrorism (UNCCT). Under-Secretary-General Feltman this morning summarized the main instruments that the CTED, the CTITF and the UNCCT use in the broad context of the Taliban, Al-Qaida, the Sahel and other regions of Africa or Central Asia. Mr, Feltman also referred to the role of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, with which Spain signed a memorandum of understanding last year to provide technical assistance for projects to prevent international terrorism and combat corruption, drug trafficking and transnational organized crime. In a statement which Spain fully endorses, the observer of the European Union has described the Union’s main activities in the fight against cross-border crime. Here, I will simply note that Spain participates very directly in the implementation of its counter- terrorism programme for the Western Sahel, and the civilian mission EUCAP Sahel Niger, dedicated to strengthening the capacities of the Niger in the fight against terrorism and organized crime. In the context of resolution 2195 (2014), it is also necessary to strengthen cooperation, particularly with Africa. Spain does so in projects with the African Union and the African Centre for Studies and Research on Terrorism with respect to the continental capacity- building for preventing and combating terrorism, to which we have devoted more than $1 million, and to the Serendi centre in Somalia for rehabiliating former fighters of Al-Shabaab, for which we have earmarked €1 million. Terrorism is a criminal phenomenon that requires long-term action and unflagging attention. States face the challenge of being faster than terrorists and criminals in using technological advances to create more effective cooperation networks than they do. Initiatives such as that presented today by Chad and the resolution adopted today by the Security Council show the need for constantly updating and adapting our response to terrorism, which increasingly regenerates itself and assumes new and diverse forms. I therefore commend you, Sir, for your country’s initiative and offer my gratitude to the members of the Security Council.

I give the floor to the representative of Italy.

I wish to thank the Chadian presidency for organizing this timely debate. (spoke in English) Italy fully aligns itself with the statement delivered by the European Union and would like to add a few remarks in its national capacity. The recent attacks in Pakistan and Yemen are yet another terrible reminder of how terrorism threatens international peace and security. We are deeply concerned by the growing ties between terrorism and organized crime, from trafficking in human beings, drugs and arms to kidnapping. Criminal associations and some terrorist groups use the same illegal instruments and channels, starting with corruption. These threats transcend the borders of individual States and require a multidimensional approach — and not only the military option — that addresses the root causes. We therefore need to strengthen Government institutions, the rule of law, governance, border control, arms control and control of financial flows. We also need to promote socioeconomic development, youth employment, respect for human rights, and the fight against poverty and corruption. We reiterate the need for a comprehensive, coordinated strategy at the global and regional levels. Is such a strategy is to be applied, individual States, the United Nations, regional and subregional organizations, and civil society must all work together. At the same time, it is critical to concretely apply international measures aimed at preventing and reducing terrorism and criminal activities. Starting with full implementation of the Palermo Convention and its Protocols, particularly the Protocol against the Smuggling of Migrants by Land, Sea and Air. This is the only universal legal instrument dedicated to this crime. It seeks to prevent and counter trafficking in migrants, protect their rights, and strengthen cooperation between Member States. This commitment was reiterated forcefully at the sixty- ninth session of the General Assembly in the omnibus resolution on organized crime, of which Italy was the main sponsor again this year. It is in this perspective that we recall the support our country lent to the resolution on countering organized crime proposed by the African Union and adopted yesterday. My country has expressed its commitment to fighting the terrorist threat by contributing to the birth of the Global Counter-Terrorism Forum, participating in the main international and regional initiatives, and fully implementing the sanction regimes and resolutions 2170 (2014) and 2178 (2014). Italy is also engaged in countering the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant in Libya, Syria and Iraq. We encourage dialogue and cooperation among countries of different cultures and religious traditions in countering terrorism. Italy also believes that combating terrorism, violent extremism and criminality cannot be independent of efforts to resolve political and institutional crises in the attempt to bring peace to countries torn apart by violent conflicts, and to improve socioeconomic conditions in less developed regions. In West Africa and the Sahel, Italy has implemented complete sets of programmes in the fields of the rule of law, institution-building, and training. Teams of Italian officers have supported projects to build the capacity of law-enforcement agencies in Guinea-Bissau, Mali, Sierra Leone, Senegal and Nigeria. Italy has also promoted customized police-training programmes on border-control techniques and trained African officials at border postings in Italy. With regard to initiatives to break up the marriage of convenience between criminal networks and terrorist organizations, the Italian anti-Mafia bureau signed a memorandum of understanding with its Nigerian partner on countering trafficking in human beings and the related illegal financial income. All these technical assistance programmes are encompassed in the broader framework of development cooperation activities that Italy continues to carry on in several countries of West Africa and the Sahel region. New joint initiatives are focused on the fight against trafficking in migrants in all its aspects. Today’s debate rightly focuses on connections between countering organized crime and countering terrorism. Its outcomes can provide a useful instrument for better coordinating the initiatives that the international community is called on to enact to address all forms of terrorism and transnational crime. Italy will continue to contribute to these initiatives with strong commitment.

I give the floor to the representative of Senegal.

At the start of this solemn exercise, allow me to express my great pleasure at seeing you, Sir, assume such enthusiasm the lofty and esteemed responsibility of President of the Security Council, and to reaffirm on this occasion the support of the Senegalese delegation. The theme that brings us together today — “Threats to peace and international security: terrorism and cross-border crime”  — beyond its timeliness as an urgently pressing issue, deserves our full attention because of the particularly harmful nature of two phenomena that transcend borders. Indeed, while terrorism inexorably feeds on fanaticism and erroneous ideological convictions, transnational organized crime is the bedrock of the mafia activities that cynically seek to destabilize States and the subsequent annihilation of human societies. I wish to commend the relevance and high quality of the briefings made this morning by Mr. Jeffrey Feltman, Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs, and Ambassador Téte António, Permanent Observer of the African Union to the United Nations. Need I recall that terrorism, by its very foundations, objectives and manifestations, has caused the international community untold suffering, most recently through the hateful criminal attack in Peshawar, Pakistan, which my country condemns with all its force. It is important in this respect to highlight and welcome the adoption of General Assembly resolution 68/276, on the United Nations Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy Review and the relevance of the four pillars that constitute its main framework. We also welcome the adoption this morning of resolution 2195 (2014), the first of its kind to be adopted under Chadian auspices, on the item with which we are seized today. This unanimous momentum in the ongoing fight against terrorism has led terrorist organizations to seek other sources of funding, including transnational organized crime. Its threefold security, economic and social impact is a scourge that seriously undermines the foundations upon which our States are based. We therefore welcome the resolute response of the international community to transnational organized crime. This has resulted in the strengthening of the international legal framework through the adoption of the United Nations Convention against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances, and the Palermo Convention and its three Protocols, as well as the strengthening of the operational capacities of States, as reflected, inter alia, by the West Africa Coast Initiative, which, in partnership with the Department of Peacekeeping Operations has assisted the countries of the West African subregion in the fight against drug trafficking since 2009. As is clear from the consideration of the various reports submitted to the Security Council, terrorism exploits cross-border organized crime in many ways. In this respect, the illicit trade in coal by the Al-Shabaab militia in Somalia; the seizure of oil tankers by the Islamic State or the Al-Nusra Front; and drug trafficking by the Taliban or the abductions and ransom demands conducted by several terrorist groups, including Boko Haram and Al-Qaida, eloquently illustrate this fact. I recall that Senegal supports the call of the Security Council in its resolution 2133 (2014) of 27 January 2014, requiring States to consider ways to prevent terrorists from committing kidnappings or from benefitting directly or indirectly from ransom, and to ensure that hostages are released unharmed. In this connection, I vigorously condemn the numerous abuses of terrorist groups throughout the world, especially those in the African continent, where narco-terrorist groups seek to establish international terrorist havens. That was the explicit purpose behind the convening on 15 and 16 December, in Dakar, the International Forum on Peace and Security in Africa, with the aim of formulating concrete proposals commensurate with the security challenges posed by terrorism, organized crime and the traffic in humans and weapons. In the same vein, I note the convening in Nouakchott on 18 December of the first summit of countries participating in the process of strengthening security cooperation and the operationalization of the African Peace and Security Architecture in the Sahelo- Saharan region. The highly significant results achieved at the summit clearly demonstrate the high priority attached by the African continent to the key issue of the fight against terrorism within the framework of a comprehensive strategy to ensure peace and security, the sine qua non of development. Let us make no mistake. Tis strategy against terrorism and transnational organized crime should, even at the risk of being ineffective, be inclusive and participatory. It should, in fact, lead States and peoples, in a gesture of solidarity, to take owbership of the cause of the fight against these two scourges by promoting a genuine awakening of consciousness, especially among young people. It is therefore in our interests to promote a true culture of peace — the indispensable vehicle for dialogue among civilizations and peoples. In the light of all this, the fight against terrorism and transnational organized crime, while they are the primary responsibility of States, should be at the heart of peacekeeping activities and guided by a truly preventive strategy. I would indeed like to convey Senegal’s unshakeable will to work with other stakeholders to build societies free from the yoke of terrorism and transnational organized crime, as they would be founded on the ideals of peace and justice and guided by sustainable development.

I now give the floor to the representative of Tunisia.

At the outset, I would like to thank the delegation of Chad for taking the initiative to organize this important debate on the them “Threats to international peace and security: terrorism and cross- border crime”. I also wish to thank the presidency of the Security Council for the concept note (S/2014/869, annex) prepared for the purpose of this debate. We share most the views and ideas contained in it. In fact, there are many complex links between transnational organized crime and terrorism, which in turn pose a significant threat to regional and international peace and security. This trend is becoming clearer, notably in Africa, with the threat expanding from the Sahel to its neighbouring regions. The terrorist groups in the region are increasingly turning back to existing informal trade routes and black and illicit markets, including for the exchange of arms and drug trafficking, to generate more funds and bolster their capacities and geographic reach, as stated in various United Nations and African Union reports. As terrorism and transnational organized crime transcend national boundaries, the effective prevention and combatting of these threats require a renewed and firm commitment, primarily at the national level. In this context, Tunisia has ratified the relevant international conventions, including 14 international instruments against terrorism; the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime of 2000 and the protocols thereto; and the United Nations Convention against Corruption of 2003. A new draft anti-terrorist law is under consideration by the legislative body. This draft criminalizes acts of support for, the incitement of, training for, the recruitment for, the glorification of, the attempt to commit and complicity in terrorist acts. In the same vein, an anti-terrorism judicial pole has been inaugurated, on 16 December, bringing together investigating judges, the indictment division and the prosecutor, as well as judges who have already been tasked with terrorist cases. On the security level, a national counter-terrorism and organized crime pole has also been put in place with the aim of addressing this phenomenon based on a comprehensive security approach. Tunisia has additionally concluded a number of bilateral agreements on counter-terrorism operations, including with neighbouring States. These bilateral agreements have focused, in particular, on assessing terrorist threats, eliminating the sources of terrorist funding and obtaining available information on terrorists’ plans. It is also working on the development of national electronic identification documents and biometric passports by 2016. Moreover, we are still strengthening our regional cooperation with the Council of Arab Ministers of the Interior, as well as through cooperation with the relevant institutions, including the United Nations counter-terrorism entities. I would like, in this regard, to seize this opportunity to express my country’s gratitude to the level of cooperation with the United Nations counter-terrorism entities, in particular with the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime and the Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate, with a view of further strengthening our national legislation and judicial system to address the complex related challenges. By their very nature, complex links and dynamics and the seriousness of their threats, countering transnational organized crime and terrorism in the affected regions, including in Africa, requires efficient and effective national measures, but most of also concerted actions by countries of the region, as well as enhanced international cooperation by the international community as a whole, building on the principle of national ownership. Renewed international action is indeed required to ensure that terrorist groups do not receive any form of financial or material support. For instance, there are promising African-led initiatives, such as the Nouakchott Process on the enhancement of security cooperation, and the operationalization of the African Peace and Security Architecture in the Sahelo-Saharan region, the African Mechanism for Police Cooperation and the Tripoli Plan of Action of 2012, which demonstrate the full commitment of African countries to work closely together to address the challenges facing the region. Those initiatives need to be further supported by international partners, as highlighted by the communiqué of the Peace and Security Council of the African Union issued in a recent meeting, held on 2 September, on the prevention and combatting of terrorism and violent extremism in Africa. Efforts need also to be redoubled with a view to reinforcing the capacities of the national authorities of the region to effectively police and control their borders, curb illicit arms and goods, and deny terrorists safe havens, as well as to strengthen the national judicial systems to effectively prevent and prosecute terrorists benefitting from transnational crime. Greater assistance should be provided to the countries of the region with a view to helping them to devise comprehensive and integrated national strategies to counter terrorism, transnational organized crime and illicit trafficking, including the mechanisms for their implementation. This is indeed a shared responsibility for the sake of common interest. Finally we consider that the United Nations is at the heart of international cooperation against terrorism and transnational organized crime. We are thus looking forward to the report of the Secretary-General, as mandated by resolution 2195 (2014), adopted today, and in particular its recommendation to reduce the negative impacts of terrorists benefitting from transnational organized crime.

I now give the floor to the representative of Uganda.

Uganda profoundly appreciates Chad’s Minister for Foreign Affairs presiding over this relevant open debate. We also appreciate the statement of Mr. Jeffrey Feltman, Under- Secretary-General for Political Affairs, and indeed that of Ambassador Téte António delivered on behalf of the African Union, which Uganda fully subscribes to. The participation in this open debate of the Foreign Ministers of Nigeria, Luxembourg and Argentina and of Chile’s Director General for Foreign Policy illustrates its crucial nature. Uganda once again presents its condolences to Pakistan, Nigeria, Kenya and Australia for the senseless terrorist killings that they have experienced this month, in addition to the recent victims of the rabid Islamic State in Iraq and the Sham. Uganda is committed to the fight against terror within its borders and the region. Uganda thanks you, Mr. President, for a theme well selected, as, for Africa, it has an added poignant relevance, bearing in mind the worrying contemporary situation on our continent. The theme is relevant because currently 20 African countries are afflicted by terrorism, the majority of which are in the Horn, East and Central Africa, in addition to the Sahel and the western and northern parts of our continent. Additionally, Africa, most unfortunately, humanitarianosts at least two dozen United States State Department-listed terrorist organizations. The experience of organized, systematized terror and terrorism is not new to the African continent. It was clearly manifest in the transatlantic and trans-Sahara slave trades, in addition to the equally nefarious East African slave trade. This form of systematized and organized terror and terrorism affected the lives of millions of our people and resulted in acute societal dislocations whose negative consequences still afflict us today. If we are to sincerely appreciate the reasons why terrorism is prevalent in Africa, then it would be insincere if we were to ignore the legacy of colonialism on the continent. For, of the 20 or so African countries that are affected by terrorism, at least half are landlocked, and, in the main, landlocked African countries tend to be the most underdeveloped and have the lowest global human development indices. This is due in part to the extremely high costs of trade they routinely encounter, that is, when legitimately trading within themselves, or when engaged in regional cross-border trade or, indeed, that of the broader international type. The Balkanization of the African continent, within the context of its having fragile States and political structures, is another factor that fuel the unfortunate thriving of terrorism. Indeed, this unhealthy cocktail — being Balkanized, landlocked, poor and with stateless geopolitical entities — unfortunately encourages opportunistic terror groups with an enabling environment to thrive in, and I have in mind here, among others, terror groups as the Allied Democratic Front, the Lord’s Resistance Army, Al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb and Al-Shabaab. Terrorism-driven intra- and cross-border trade is devastating our continent. Take the example of the elephant population of Garamba National Park, in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. In the 1970s, it was estimated that there were up to 20,000 elephants roaming freely in this vast, exceedingly beautiful nature reserve. However, today, 40 years later, more than 90 per cent of those animals have been indiscriminately slaughtered for illicit trading, namely, but not only, by the Lord’s Resistance Army and other criminal networks. This is indeed a devastating loss not only for the Democratic Republic of the Congo but for all of humankind. For this body, together with the broader international community, to definitely solve the menacing challenges of terrorism in Africa, we must seriously consider providing the following interventions: support the ongoing regional integration efforts, as, for instance, with the East African Community, the Southern African Development Community and the Economic Community of West African States, among others, for those bodies would facilitate the required process of creating viable States, economies and regional legitimate trade. Indeed, the international community must assist these efforts towards regional integration through support for the construction of our physical infrastructure such as roads, rail transport and airports. Such intervention would enable the blossoming of legitimate internal regional cross-border and broader international trade, hence supplanting the terror-driven illicit trade. The political will to create viable State structures through well-conceptualized Marshall plans in situations of weak States or statelessness, in such countries as, for instance, Somalia, Libya, South Sudan and the Central African Republic, is also required. There is also a need for the international community to ensure that illegitimate trade such as poaching and poached commodities such as ivory and illegally mined minerals is also severely constrained. All of this must be done in a spirit of enlightened self-interest. For, as the unfortunate examples of Osama bin Laden and Al-Qaida, and currently the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, clearly illustrates to us all, we ignore the growing terror threats in Africa at our own peril.

I now give the floor to the representative of Bangladesh.

Mr. President, let me join my colleagues in thanking you for organizing this open debate. Recurring acts of terrorism have posed one of the greatest threats to international peace and security in recent years. Millions of people, including women and children, have become innocent victims of terror in our times. We strongly condemn the unimaginably barbaric act of terrorism targeting innocent schoolchildren in Pakistan this week that claimed 141 innocent lives, mostly children. Such senseless, despicable acts of terror, as our Prime Minister, Sheikh Hasina, rightly observed, only enhance our resolve to fight this scourge in a united manner, with a stronger commitment and sincerity. The effective countering of terrorism is a collective endeavour. Because of the advent of technology, terrorism and terrorist threats continue to evolve and manifest themselves differently in different parts of the world. Responses to terrorism need to reflect this reality and be able to adapt constantly. International efforts to combat terrorism must involve addressing the root causes of terrorism. In the process of identifying its root causes, terrorism should not be associated with any religion, nationality, civilization or ethnic group. Addressing marginalization, poverty, social exclusion and racial, cultural and religious discrimination must be part of the strategies to counter terrorism. It also needs to be recognized that terrorism cannot be defeated solely by coercive measures. We have to engage in soft diplomacy and impart awareness, quality education, eliminate inequalities and work with marginalized groups of society as an effective strategy. Similarly, inculcating tolerance, promoting a culture of peace and dialogue among civilizations, and interfaith and intercultural understanding are among the most important pathways to promote cooperation among societies and nations and to successfully combat terrorism. To have sustainable, long-term peace and stability, Bangladesh has been promoting a culture of peace and trying to inculcate a mindset of tolerance, a mindset of love and respect for others, irrespective of ethnicity, culture, caste, religion or colour, free of hatred and intolerance. This cannot be done only by the Government; all institutions and organizations, in particular the media, teachers, community leaders, schools, parents, authors, writers, poets and singers, non-governmental organizations, civil society and religious leaders have to take the lead to create a mindset of tolerance and understanding. The nexus between terrorist networks, non-State actors and transnational criminals poses newer challenges to State apparatuses and traditional lines of national defence. They compel us to devise more innovative, well-coordinated and near-impenetrable strategies to ensure cross-border controls against the illicit movement of terrorists and criminals and the transfer of weapons, ammunition and their means of production and delivery. To be sure, the nexus between terrorists and criminals has been greatly facilitated by the advent and misuse of information technology and easy access to weapons. The Internet has become a fertile breeding ground for terrorist activities. Subversive uses of the Internet must be identified and obstructed. The financing of terrorism through the Web must be halted and the online nexus of terrorist and other organized criminal entities, including through the use of social media, must be dismantled. Bangladesh’s position on terrorism is consistent. We denounce it in all its forms and manifestations, no matter why, how or where it is carried out. Bangladesh maintains a policy of zero tolerance for all forms of terrorism, including financing of terrorism, radicalization and violent extremism, both nationally and internationally. Bangladesh, as a matter of principle, does not allow its territory to be used by any terrorist individual, group or entity against any State or people. We have taken commendable initiatives to end cross- border crimes and terrorism, as well as cross-border financing of terrorism and extremism. In addition, it is imperative that the cross-border trafficking of illegal weapons and ammunition be stopped in order to reduce their supply to terrorists or terrorist networks. It is essential that weapons producers correctly identify every item produced, including arms and ammunition. We recommend that the media name the producers of killer weapons when they report on terrorist acts of killing. Bangladesh also maintains a strong legal, regulatory and institutional regime countering terrorism, including through statutory orders and by enacting laws on anti-terrorism and the prevention of money-laundering, as well as by implementing the United Nations Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy and Security Council resolutions on combating terrorism and financing terrorism, including resolutions 1267 (1999), 1373 (2001), 1540 (2004) and 2178 (2014), and their successor resolutions. We believe that all national, regional and international actions against terrorism should be conform to relevant international human rights and humanitarian laws. We are committed to working closely with United Nations counter-terrorism bodies and their international partners, including at the regional level, in order to achieve greater international cooperation on information-sharing and capacity-building so as to address terrorist threats to peace and security.

I now give the floor to the representative of Ukraine.

I would first like to thank you, Mr. President, for organizing this thematic debate on terrorism and cross-border crime, which comes at such a critical and challenging time. Ukraine welcomes today’s adoption of resolution 2195 (2014), on the linkages between transnational and organized crime and terrorism. Unfortunately, almost every day we are learning, to our deep sorrow, of new victims of the terrorist attacks that are occurring in every corner of the world. That global evil can be eliminated only through coordinated and decisive measures on the part of the international community. Ukraine is deeply concerned about the activities of the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant, the Al-Nusra Front and other terrorist entities associated with Al-Qaida, and the negative impact of their presence, their violent, extremist ideology and the threat that they pose to the stability of the entire region. Ukraine condemns the terrorist attacks committed by Boko Haram in Nigeria, causing hundreds of deaths and injuries, and I would like to take this opportunity to express my nation’s condolences to the victims of the latest terrorist attacks in Nigeria and Pakistan. Ukraine shares the Security Council’s position that terrorism, in all its forms and manifestations, constitutes one of the most serious threats there is to international peace and stability, and that any act of terrorism is criminal and unjustifiable, regardless of its motivation and whenever or wherever it is committed. Ukraine supports the central role the United Nations plays in global efforts aimed at suppressing international terrorism and promoting international cooperation in the area. The Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy continues to be central to addressing the evolving trends of the terrorism phenomenon in an integrated and balanced way. Ukraine is a party to about 20 multilateral conventions and protocols relating to counter-terrorism. Its Government is actively engaged in cooperation on counter-terrorism with many international and regional organizations, including the United Nations, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, the Council of Europe and the Financial Action Task Force on Money-Laundering, as well as the Organization for Democracy and Economic Development-GUAM. Unfortunately, the problem of terrorism has recently involved my country as well. As the Council may know, the Government of Ukraine has been conducting a counter-terrorism operation in the eastern part of the country since March. It is simply incredible that terrorism has emerged in a country where United Nations experts assessed the threat of terrorism as low just a few months before the Russian Federation’s occupation of Crimea and the establishment of the Donetsk People’s Republic and Luhansk People’s Republic terrorist organizations. As it has turned out, foreign factors may have encouraged this evil to grow rapidly. The situation in the world in general, and in my country in particular, has shown that the international community must redouble its efforts in the fight against terror. Ukraine is extremely concerned about the flagrant violations of international counter-terrorism treaties by various States. The Russian Federation continues to flout its international obligations concerning terrorism. In particular, it has completely ignored its obligations under the 1999 International Convention for the Suppression of the Financing of Terrorism and the 1997 International Convention for the Suppression of Terrorist Bombings. As the situation in Ukraine has clearly shown, terrorism can be used as a means of hidden aggression against a sovereign State. We call on the international community to continue to take decisive action aimed at combating State-sponsored terrorism against the sovereignty and territorial integrity of its members. Without adherence to international treaties and genuine cooperation on the part of all States parties, any international counter-terrorism efforts, including those of the Security Council, will be in vain. For our part, I would like to once again underline that Ukraine will remain committed to cooperating at the international, regional and subregional levels with the goal of making the global environment completely intolerant of terrorism and its supporters.

The representative of the Russian Federation has asked to make a further statement.

Today’s discussion has once again demonstrated that our Ukrainian colleagues, as ever, see terrorists, threats of terrorism and transnational organized crime in places where other members of the international community do not. We believe that Ukraine’s abuse of the topic of today’s discussion undermines the chances for creating a united Ukrainian society. We once again call on the Ukrainian delegation to consider that, and instead of using the Council for propagandistic slogans and statements, to focus all their efforts on contributing constructively to our discussion of the very topical issue under discussion here today, that of combating terrorism and its links to cross-border organized crime.

There are no more speakers inscribed on the list of speakers. The Security Council has thus concluded the present stage of its consideration of the item on its agenda.