Permanent Mission of the Russian Federation to the United Nations
russiaun.ru

We are grateful to you, Sir, and the Venezuelan delegation for the skilful and effective way in which you have fulfilled presidential functions in February. This month was extremely busy because of the heavy work programme proposed by the presidency and because of events developing quickly around the world. The Security Council must still hold some key meetings. Therefore, today’s wrap-up session can only be interim in nature.

We would like to point out in particular the meeting (see S/PV.7621) presided over by the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Venezuela, Ms. Delcy Eloína Rodríguez Gómez. At a time when a clear understanding of the principles of the Charter of the United Nations and its inviolable nature are often lacking, we consider it necessary to clearly reconfirm our common commitment to such provisions, to which there is no alternative. We cannot close our eyes to what is taking place today as a result of the flagrant interference in the internal affairs of many States, through supporting illegal regime change or the violent implanting of alien cultural or social norms. The Council is aware of such examples, and we dwelt on this subject in detail during the meeting on 15 February. Discussions on the principles of the Charter are directly related to all issues discussed within these walls and, on the basis of the Charter, we must agree on the ways in which we will implement joint risk management in the context of evermore difficult international relations. Without respect for the founding principles, this will not be successful.

It was a particularly difficult time with regard to many issues in the Security Council this month. To a large extent, that was related to the challenging tasks we faced and the difficult political nature of the issues we have been considering. However, we would like to point out some issues in which compromise was not reached because of the unwillingness of many delegations to sacrifice their narrow national ambitions for the sake of the common good. For example, for the second time we have not been able to agree on a press statement on the Regional Centre for Preventive Diplomacy for Central Asia. Despite the fact that, generally, there is no doubt in anyone’s mind regarding the importance of United Nations cooperation with regional organizations, on several occasions some delegations have refused to recognize the cooperation of the Regional Centre with organizations that are making a genuine contribution to peace and stability in the region. The Collective Security Treaty Organization and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization are clear examples of the double standards we regrettably encounter in the Security Council.

The discussion on extending sanctions in Darfur cannot be deemed productive either. The authors of the resolution abused their position and tried unceremoniously to impose their national priorities on the text, attempting to restrict entire sectors of that country’s economy. By hiding behind good intentions to establish peace in Darfur and arbitrarily interpreting the recommendations of the sanctions experts, the authors have tried to put pressure on Khartoum, depriving it of its main source of income. However, they fully ignored the views of other delegations on this matter. Such a tactic undermines the unity in the Security Council. As a result, we had to have a particularly technical extension of the sanctions resolution, putting to a vote last year’s text.

The document that was adopted did not include extremely important wording, including as proposed by the Russian delegation, to condemn violations of the arms embargo by illegal armed groups, the recruitment of child soldiers by rebels and attacks on peacekeepers, or an appeal for the complete, as opposed to a selective, implementation of the Doha Document for Peace in Darfur. We hope that this negative experience will be taken into account when we vote on other draft resolutions in the Security Council.

At the centre of global politics and the Council’s work programme in February was the situation in the Middle East, and first and foremost in Syria. It is not surprising given the number of significant agreements that were reached this month, and we worked intensively with the Council keeping its finger on the pulse. The new trend, if it is exploited responsibly, will make it possible to hope for an early resumption of inter-Syrian negotiations under the auspices of the United Nations, as they were forced to come to an artificial pause at the beginning of the month because of the unwillingness on the part of the Syrian opposition to take part in constructive talks. We hope that the grave blunder that such groups were allowed to make by putting forward preconditions will not be repeated.

Close attention was paid to the humanitarian situation prevailing for a number of years because of the conflict and the terrorist movements that have struck that country. We firmly repeat that humanitarian issues must be considered in a comprehensive way without unnecessary politicization, which does not help the Syrians who are suffering. The situation continues to be difficult, but we did bring this month to a close with promising progress in that area, which became possible, including because of Russia’s efforts. On two occasions at the Security Council, our delegation raised the issue of the continuing violations of Syrian sovereignty by Turkey, which are fraught with the risk of an escalation of that conflict. We hope that that signal will be received and understood by those to whom it is addressed and by those who sponsor them. The publication of the first report of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons-United Nations Joint Investigative Mechanism to investigate the use of chemical weapons was another important moment. In our view, in the light of new facts regarding the use by terrorists of poisonous substances in Syria and Iraq and evidence of the free movement of such chemicals in the region, the importance of the mechanism will increase and the geographical scope of its mechanism will broaden.

In conclusion, we would like to wish the Venezuelan presidency a successful completion of its work this month. In a couple of hours, we will meet to discuss a draft resolution that is crucial to a settlement in Syria on the adoption of a joint statement by the co-Chairs of the International Syria Support Group on the cessation of hostilities. On Monday, we will discuss cooperation between the United Nations and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, as well as the work of the United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo.

Right now, however, I would like to take this opportunity to wish the incoming Angolan presidency every success in carrying out its important functions.