Statement by Gennady Kuzmin, Deputy Permanent Representative of Russia to the UN, at the open VTC of UNSC members on UNITAD
Mr. President,
We thank Mr.Khan for the briefing. We have closely studied the fifth report of the Investigative Team that he is head of.
Combating terrorism is key to stabilizing the situation in Iraq. It is principally important that external stakeholders should remain committed to the sovereignty of Iraq and coordinate their actions with Baghdad.
In this regard, we welcome the incoming information about the Team cooperating with Iraqi authorities. Such cooperation stands at the core of the UNITAD mandate. Security Council created this international mechanism to support Iraq’s domestic efforts aimed at holding ISIL terrorists accountable within the framework of the country’s national judicial system.
At the same time, we have to underscore that so far the Team has refrained from handing the evidence over to Iraqi authorities to have them bring action against terrorists. At the same time, according to the Report, a number of countries are already using materials of the Investigative Team. It is our understanding that the Team is waiting for Iraqi Parliament to pass a special law on international crimes. However, this “standby mode” should not affect the implementation of the main part of UNITAD’s mandate. I must stress that resolution 2379 does not bind Iraq to criminalize particular sort of deeds. What the resolution does – it clearly defines the status of Iraqi authorities as main recipients of evidence collected by the Team. We would be very interested to see in future reports information about Investigative Team transferring the collected evidence to the local system of justice within the framework of effective legislation and legal proceedings. We do not think it would be right to give preference to other jurisdictions only because the legislation of the affected state ostensibly falls behind. No legal system may be considered perfect.
We would like to remind once again of the importance of receiving evidence firsthand. First of all, UNITAD should count on its own capacities and the assistance of Iraqi government. Cooperation with NGOs can only provide auxiliary help. Excessive dependence on NGO-sourced information can build up a distorted image of the committed crimes and steer the activity of the Investigative Team, a body created by the United Nations, to suit the interests of particular organizations and their sponsors. Therefore we would appreciate if the Security Council received a full list of partner organizations.
I will finish my speech by making a positive point.
We have noticed that despite impediments caused by COVID-19, the investigative activities of the Team are gaining momentum. We see much useful know-how that the UNITAD uses to collect and process evidence. We hope in the near future it will allow to discover the real scope and character of crimes committed by ISIL in Iraq.
Thank you.
