Statement by Deputy Permanent Representative Vladimir Safronkov at the Security Council meeting on the situation in Afghanistan
Mr. President,
We would like to thank you for organizing this debate. We also thank Special Representative of the Secretary-General Mr. Tadamichi Yamamoto for the briefing and analysis of current processes that take place in Afghanistan. We have listened with attention to the statement by Permanent Representative of Afghanistan Adela Raz. Ambassador, we share your assessments. We have also carefully listened to the statement by Dr. Sima Samir. We share many of the assessments contained in the report by the UN Secretary-General. On our part we would like to highlight the following:
We support the UNAMA activities. We assign to this operation a key role in coordinating international humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan. We highly assess activity and selfless efforts of UN personnel in Afghanistan. We hope that UN assessments of the situation in the country will always be based on the principles of objectivity, and the correct identification of the existing challenges, the main of them being terrorism. It is unacceptable to hush up this problem or sugarcoat the reality.
We have concerns about continuous growth of terrorist activity. What is alarming is the remaining presence of IS in Afghanistan, its ability to survive and enhance power even after some defeats in the North. The IS in Afghanistan also gathers under their banners FTFs who flee from Syria and Iraq, and members of other terrorist groups (in Afghanistan there are approximately 20 such groups). We see that IS does not only refuse to abandon its expansionist aspirations, but actually lives up to them, i.a. by creating “affiliate branches” and so called “dormant cells”, i.a. in the North of the country. This poses a real threat to security of our Central Asian friends and Russia’s Southern regions. Against this backdrop, the decision of Security Council Sanctions Committee 1267/1989/2253 chaired by Indonesia to list “ISIL – Khorasan” deems more than reasonable. This step is important, yet not sufficient. There should be more steps coming from the UN aimed at eradicating this threat.
We cannot but be concerned about regular and massive terrorist attacks in various cities of Afghanistan, including the capital. On a daily basis, terrorists kill not only peaceful people, including women and children, but also Afghani military and police officers. We pay tribute to their heroism and courage.
The situation with combatting drug trafficking is in the spotlight of our particular attention. Drug threat remains a serious problem for the region, the world, Afghanistan itself. Drug incomes ensure serious financial recharge for terrorism. We believe it of utmost importance to continue to foster international efforts to combat this evil. As any other global threat, drug challenges can only be overcome if there is a broad and active cooperation, including via channels of specialized bodies.
We remain committed to our obligations to assist comprehensive efforts to counter this threat, i.a. with active participation of the UN Office on Drug and Crime. Our practical steps go in line with this approach, including steps we take within frameworks of such authoritative regional organizations as SCO and CSTO. We will keep contributing to training of drug police officers from Afghanistan, Pakistan, Central Asian countries in cooperation with many countries of the world, including Japan.
Mr. President,
Russia consecutively supports the aspiration of the people of Afghanistan to achieve sustainable peace in the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan. This year Afghanistan and Russia celebrate 100 years of diplomatic relations. Indeed, our countries are bound by a long history of mutual respect, neighborly relations, and collaboration, the groundwork for this was laid back in 1919. Today, same as 100 years ago, we are guided by the desire to help Afghanistan become a peaceful and independent State, free of terrorism and drugs. We will continue cooperation with our friends from Afghanistan in eradicating threats to security that are posed by IS and Al-Qaida, enhancing capacity of civil, enforcement and anti-drug mechanisms.
Russia is genuinely interested in swift promotion of Afghani-led national reconciliation and subsequent stabilization in the country. We are convinced: peace, stability and national reconciliation is something everyone will benefit from: Afghanistan, its neighbors in the region, and the entire world. We stand ready to provide further assistance in terms of promoting the process of national reconciliation. This is the goal we are guided by when we take efforts of our own. Russia proceeded from this logic when organizing and convening a regular session of Moscow Format of consultations that brought together a maximum number of interested stakeholders. We support the aspiration to make the pending peaceful process in Afghanistan as inclusive as possible, attract to it all public and political forces of the country, including the opposition.
We believe that a broad dialogue is a key factor for achieving peace in Afghanistan. In this regard we believe the inter-Afghani dialogue that was launched on 5-6 February in Moscow should be continued. This meeting proved real interest and commitment of all Afghanis to ensure peace and reconciliation.
We proceed from the assumption that some international actors who decided to express themselves based on national reconciliation in Afghanistan, will obey the same rules of the game and account for the best practices that are at hand and that have been developed by the Moscow Format and the trilateral dialogue between Russia, the U.S. and China. What we need is cooperation rather than artificial competitiveness. This is the assistance Afghanistan has interest in.
There is a growing understanding in the world of the importance of the regional dimension of the Afghani settlement. The capacity of authoritative and reliable regional mechanisms should be employed, first of all of the SCO and CSTO.
We would like to point out the mechanism of renewed contact group “SCO-Afghanistan” and commend the participation of Afghanistan as co-Chair of this mechanism in Bishkek in spring 2019.
We believe there is good potential to improve interaction between Afghanistan and CSTO. After many years of conflict, the settlement efforts in Afghanistan require engagement and constructive dialogue of all neighbor-States. There should be no exceptions. There can be no alternative to this, because only good neighborly relations and cooperation based on interaction will make it possible to solve pressing problems of present-day Afghanistan.
Connectivity of international and regional efforts is required as never before. To ensure peace in Afghanistan it will take strategic patience: formula of final settlement with prospects to achieve an all-encompassing agreement should make it possible to ensure national reconciliation of all patriotic political forces, and also unite them. This process should rest upon the fundamental concepts of Afghanistan’s revival and of countering terrorist groups that are more than 20 in number, including the IS and Al-Qaida.
We are sure that when united, Afghanis will be able to put an end to this threat and steer the country towards sustainable development based on well-being of all people, including women, and strenghtening of demographic fundamentals of the society.
What is crucial for all peace initiatives and the upcoming elections scheduled for September, is the task to unite the country and all Afghanis without exception, otherwise the conflict will only escalate. The goal is to preserve a united and indivisible Afghanistan, where tolerance prevails and various groups of population co-exist in peace and harmony. These are the principles on which we are ready for cooperation with regional and international partners.
Thank you.
