Strengthening of the United Nations System: Item 124: Special report of the Security Council (A/76/905)

Mr. President,

I have the honour to deliver this statement on behalf of the Benelux countries, Belgium, the Netherlands and my own country Luxembourg.

We align ourselves with the statement of the European Union.

Mr. President,

The Benelux countries welcome the timely convening of this meeting pursuant to General Assembly resolution 76/262 of 26 April 2022, which established a standing mandate for a General Assembly debate when a veto is cast in the Security Council. It is the second time already that this mandate had to be activated, less than three months after its adoption.

We deeply regret the outcome of the vote on 8 July 2022 in the Security Council and the Russian Federation’s use of its veto against the resolution aimed at extending the United Nations mechanism for cross-border humanitarian assistance to Syria for twelve months. We thank the co-penholders Ireland and Norway for all their efforts guided solely by the humanitarian needs of the Syrian people and the imperative to maintain the cross-border mechanism at Bab al-Hawa as an essential lifeline for millions of people in the north-west of Syria.

The Secretary-General and the entire humanitarian community, as well as the vast majority of Security Council members, specifically called to renew the provisions of resolution 2585 for twelve months. Russia, and Russia alone, chose to ignore this call, undermining the ability to deliver humanitarian aid effectively to over 4 million people in need.

It is unfortunately not the first time that the veto has been used regarding humanitarian assistance for the Syrian people. When it was created on 14 July 2014 by the Security Council when it adopted unanimously resolution 2165, the UN cross-border mechanism extended to four border crossings in order to ensure that humanitarian assistance reaches people in need throughout Syria through the most direct routes. Over the last years however, due to the repeated use of the veto, the scope of the cross-border mechanism was gradually reduced. It was first limited to two border crossings in January 2020, after the Russian Federation and Chine cast their veto on 20 December 2019. It was then limited to only one border crossing in July 2020, after the Russian Federation and China cast their veto on 7 and 10 July 2020.

We welcome the compromise found on 12 July 2022 in the form of Security Council resolution 2642, but we worry about the operational impact of a renewal of only six months. Humanitarian actors risk being caught in a perpetual cycle of contingency planning, undermining the effectiveness of and trust in their operations. In addition, cross-border access continues to be threatened by a diplomatic Damocles’ sword, putting an additional psychological burden on those in need. Russia’s use of the veto on 8 July blocked the path towards continuous and predictable cross-border humanitarian access to north-west Syria.

Mr. President,

We need to be clear: our debate today is about ensuring humanitarian access for lifesaving aid to people in dire need. It is not about the principle of sovereignty, which cannot be used to justify the arbitrary denial of consent for humanitarian access. We would like to recall that the cross-line aid operations have broad international support. However, the reality is that those cross-line operations do not suffice to provide lifesaving aid to north-west Syria at the necessary scale.

We acknowledge the need to support resilience, self-reliance and early recovery as part of humanitarian interventions. However, without a political solution in line with Security Council resolution 2254, the conflict in Syria will simply not end. Allow me to reiterate the EU position that unless and until such a solution is firmly underway, the EU will not finance any reconstruction effort, nor lift sanctions, nor normalise relations.

We urge all members of the Security Council and the wider UN membership to uphold the humanitarian principles and international humanitarian law. We urge all Council members to act on the intention expressed in resolution 2642 to extend the cross-border mechanism for an additional six months and ensure more comprehensive and sustainable cross-border access, so that the cross-border aid can continue uninterrupted through the winter, when people need it most.

It is imperative to ensure humanitarian access at a time when more people than ever are in need of life-saving assistance. Millions of lives and the credibility of the United Nations are at stake. Let us work together to live up to our responsibility.

I thank you.