S/PV.7992 Security Council

The Security Council will now begin its consideration of the item on its agenda. Members of the Council have before them document S/2017/561, which contains the text of a draft resolution submitted by the Plurinational State of Bolivia and Japan. 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 2365 (2017). I shall now make a statement in my capacity as the representative of the Plurinational State of Bolivia. Bolivia welcomes the Security Council’s unanimous adoption today of resolution 2365 (2017), on mine action, which has been one of the goals of the Bolivian presidency of the Council this month. The resolution just adopted represents is an important precedent, since it is the first time that the Security Council has adopted a resolution on the subject. This is a significant step forward on the issue, whose basis rests on the presidential statements of 30 August 1996 (S/PRST/1996/37) and 19 November 2003 (S/PRST/2003/22) and the conventions signed and ratified by a majority of Member States over the past 20 years, such as the Convention on the Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines and on Their Destruction. The resolution’s principal aim is to point out and define the threat that those objects pose to the security and physical integrity, indeed the lives, of civilian populations, peacekeeping and humanitarian personnel and all who work in conflict zones. It also calls on all parties to armed conflicts to immediately put an end forever to the indiscriminate use of anti-personnel mines, the explosive remnants of war and improvised explosive devices and urges them to protect local populations from all the problems created by such devices. It also calls on all Member States to comply with their various international obligations with regard to mine action. In considering the mandates of peacekeeping and special political missions, the Security Council regularly requests reports on the mitigation of threats posed by dangerous explosives such as anti-personnel mines, the explosive remnants of war and improvised explosive devices. Bolivia firmly believes that mitigating such threats is essential to ensuring the success of missions and to promoting peacebuilding and stabilization efforts in countries in conflict. Over the past few years mitigation efforts have expanded from anti-personnel mines to the explosive remnants of war and, more recently, to the emerging threat of improvised explosive devices. It is important to emphasize mitigation, including the five pillars of mine action — risk education, victim assistance, weapons and ammunition management, stockpile destruction and the promotion and strengthening of national capacities and institutional support. In addition to the five pillars, we note the increasingly important link between mine action and other substantive areas, such as disarmament, demobilization and reintegration and the reform of the security sector. We also promote the establishment of effective governance and the rule of law. In that connection, we welcome the work of the United Nations Mine Action Service as one of the key players mitigating the risk of such explosives. It is deployed in peacekeeping missions and special political missions at the request of the Security Council and heeds requests for assistance from affected States. Mine action affects not only the security of those immediately exposed to such threats but also contributes significantly to maintaining peace and bolstering stability. Those activities supplement relevant international conventions. The clearest example is the 1997 Convention on the Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines and on Their Destruction, also known as the Ottawa Convention. Bolivia is a signatory to that Convention and has ratified it. We call for the universalization of the Ottawa Convention and all other mine-action conventions through accession by all Member States. We also ask that all Member States redouble their efforts to honour their international commitments. Finally, Bolivia firmly believes that resolution 2365 (2017), adopted today, will serve as a precedent in recognizing the threat posed by landmines, explosive remnants of war and improvised explosive devices, as well as the importance of mine action in the maintenance of international peace and security. Bolivia thanks the members of the Security Council for their participation and contributions. I now resume my functions as President of the Council. I shall now give the floor to those Council members who wish to make statements.

Japan would like to express its high respect for Bolivia’s tenacious efforts. We value the fact that Security Council members have been able to discuss this important matter seriously and extensively. Resolution 2365 (2017), adopted unanimously today, clearly recognizes that the growing threat posed by landmines, explosive remnants of war and improvised explosive devices undermines international peace and stability. I hope that it will provide additional guidance to stakeholders, including Member States, to allow them to move forward. Japan has long placed mine-action assistance among its top diplomatic priorities. On 28 June, Japan signed an exchange note with Colombia, providing $9 million of grant aid in support of the Government’s demining efforts through equipment and technical expertise. Japan is determined to continue to play a leading role in mine action, in collaboration with other stakeholders, and sincerely hopes that resolution 2365 (2017), which Japan co-sponsored, can, along with other international instruments, contribute to our primary goal, namely, to realize a landmine-free world.

I thank you, Mr. President, and Bolivia for your efforts to raise the profile of this important issue by putting mine action on the Security Council’s agenda. That has led to the adoption today of resolution 2365 (2017) — the first on mine action — which we welcome. As we stated during the open debate on 13 June (see S/PV.7966), the terrible legacy of landmines and explosive remnants of war in the communities where they are found cannot be overstated. Sweden fully shares the concerns expressed regarding the serious post-conflict humanitarian problems caused by landmines and explosive remnants of war. It is essential that we step up our efforts to minimize the occurrence, effects and risks from that threat. Sweden underlines the obligation of all States to respect, and ensure respect for, international humanitarian law. Sweden is a State party to all the relevant conventions banning or regulating the use of non-controllable mines, anti-personnel landmines, cluster munitions and the handling of the explosive remnants of war. We believe that the full implementation of those conventions is the most effective means for countering the risks associated with the use of such weapons. We remain firmly committed to the international frameworks put in place to end the scourge of the explosive remnants of war. We will continue to work for their full universalization and urge others to join us in that endeavour.

I join others in congratulating you, Mr. President, and your delegation for bringing this item to the attention of the Security Council, and in particular for guiding the process that led to the adoption of resolution 2365 (2017) — for your transparency and inclusiveness and for providing early drafts of the text — which allowed all delegations to share their observations and contribute to the negotiation process. I hope to see many more such matters conducted in a similar fashion in the Council. My delegation voted in favour of resolution 2365 (2017), given the matter’s bearing upon the maintenance of international peace and security. Uruguay emphatically condemns the use of anti-personnel mines and other weapons that cause indiscriminate damage to large numbers of civilian victims by any actor and under any circumstance. We also call for their prohibition and elimination. We would have liked the resolution just adopted to have included language referring to the Convention on the Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines and on Their Destruction — also known as the Ottawa Convention — and, more specifically, to have called for its universalization with a view to ensuring its full implementation. Nevertheless, despite the efforts of some delegations, that was not possible. Uruguay, like all members of the Ottawa Convention, is firmly committed to its full implementation and believes that its universalization is of the utmost importance. Promoting its universalization is a priority for addressing the danger that such weapons pose to the international community. There are approximately 30 countries that have not yet acceded to the Convention, some of which are major players in the international arena. Uruguay urges all States that have not yet signed the Convention — especially those that manufacture, sell and possess such weapons — to do so without delay. We also encourage all Member States to honour all the relevant international obligations and keep their commitments under international law and international humanitarian law.

At the outset, I would like to congratulate you, Mr. President, for your excellent leadership during the month of June. It has been a very busy month and a very productive presidency. We look forward to China’s presidency in July. We thank the Bolivian presidency for promoting the adoption of resolution 2365 (2017) under the very relevant topic of mine action. We think that the Security Council should underpin and reinforce mine action as an activity that makes a difference on the ground, thereby mitigating and eventually eliminating the threat that mines, explosive remnants of war and other unexploded ordnance pose to civilians. Peace without mine action is incomplete peace. That is a quote from the statement made by Secretary- General António Guterres on the occasion of the International Day for Mine Awareness and Assistance in Mine Action. We agree with that statement and consider mine action to be a multifaceted activity that requires a comprehensive approach. The disarmament, humanitarian and development aspects of mine action need to be reinforced. Bringing stability to areas of crisis, providing humanitarian assistance to affected populations and contributing to the attainment of the relevant Sustainable Development Goals should all serve as the central goals of our common effort in mine action activities. We believe that the text we adopted today meets most of those requirements. As Chair of the Mine Action Support Group for the period 2016-2017 and as an active member of the Ottawa and Oslo Conventions, Italy is committed to their full implementation and attaches the utmost importance to their universalization. Advocacy for the universalization of the Ottawa and Oslo Conventions is a key activity in making a difference on the ground. In that regard, we would have liked to see more ground covered by the Council in the resolution, including references to cluster munitions, which are ammunition that, if they fail to explode on impact, lie silent in the ground and remain a threat for generations to come. Lastly, a stronger reference to international humanitarian law and to humanitarian principles would have reinforced the document. However, we are thankful for what emerged, and we commend the Bolivian presidency for bringing that very important topic to the Council for the very first time. We also thank you, Mr. President, for your flexibility, which enabled the adoption of today’s important resolution.

My delegation voted in favour of resolution 2365 (2017), as it believes in the importance of mine action in maintaining international peace and security. I thank the delegation of Bolivia for bringing this important topic to the attention of the Security Council and for demonstrating openness during the negotiations that led to the adoption of resolution 2365 (2017). Because it calls for cooperation among States, the United Nations and other actors, including civil society, and because it covers humanitarian and sustainable development issues, resolution 2365 (2017) provides opportunities for, in particular, countries affected by the presence of land mines, the explosive remnants of war and improvised explosive devices to address such challenges for the benefit of the people and communities concerned. As a major contributor of troops to peacekeeping operations, Senegal also welcomes the fact that the resolution reiterates the threat posed by improvised explosive devices to peacekeepers, who increasingly operate in volatile and unpredictable environments. As a State party to the Ottawa Convention, my country has destroyed all of its anti-personnel mine stockpiles, in compliance with its international obligations, and will continue to raise awareness on the issue by working side by side with its international partners, in particular the 161 other States party to the Convention, in an effort to ensure that that legally binding international instrument becomes universal, as it is vital to the protection and dignity of civilians. In the light of the growing number of asymmetrical threats, we call for a surge in political will — including from countries that manufacture such weapons — with a view to limiting or completely eliminating explosive weapons, which pose a genuine threat to international peace and security. We hope that the adoption of resolution 2365 (2017) is just the first step on the path to even more voluntary and robust mine action measures.