Security Council meeting 5319-Resu.1

The President

I should like to inform the Council that I have received a letter from the representative of Rwanda in which he requests to be invited to participate in the consideration of the item on the Council's agenda. In conformity with the usual practice, I propose, with the consent of the Council, to invite that representative to participate in the consideration without the right to vote, in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Charter and rule 37 of the Council's provisional rules of procedure.

There being no objection, it is so decided.

The President

I would like to remind speakers that, as indicated at the start of the meeting this morning and given the number of speakers still on the list, it would be helpful if representatives would limit their statements to no more than five minutes so that we can wrap up at a reasonable time this afternoon. Delegations with lengthy statements are kindly requested to circulate them in writing and to deliver a condensed version when speaking in the Chamber. A condensed version is considerably preferable to simply reading a full text at very high speed, which gives the interpreters a lot of grief and is not fair to them.

Mr. Baali (Algeria)

The legal arsenal of international humanitarian and human rights law and the now constant and sustained interest of the United Nations system in general, and the Security Council in particular, in the protection of civilians in armed conflict, provide real assurances that this extremely complicated question will be dealt with in an effective, comprehensive and integrated manner.

Progress has certainly been made since the publication of the first report of the Secretary-General on the protection of civilians in armed conflict. The mandates of peacekeeping operations have been reinforced, and in many cases disarmament, demobilization and reintegration programmes have been implemented.

We must recognize, however, that much remains to be done. Recent events have been a cause for concern in many respects. Women, children and the elderly are continuing to suffer from the devastating effects of armed conflict. The displacement of civilians and refugees, serious violations of human rights, the use of sexual violence as a weapon of war, the conscription of child soldiers, crime in all of its forms, the proliferation of small arms and light weapons, cross-border movements, the difficulty of delivering emergency humanitarian assistance and attacks against humanitarian personnel are characteristic of many of the conflicts besetting the world. We must approach the protection of civilians in armed conflict with a heightened sense of urgency and in a comprehensive, coherent and concrete manner.

In this context, we would like to emphasize a number of points. First, a far-reaching prevention strategy to tackle the underlying causes of conflict would make it possible to provide for the protection of civilians in the long term. Such a strategy would be based on the promotion of sustainable development, poverty eradication, national reconciliation, good governance, the promotion of a culture of peace and tolerance, the rule of law and the observance of human rights. That is what we mean by a culture of prevention.

Secondly, the protection of civilians must comply with the principles of universality and non-selectivity, and must be free from political calculation. Unfortunately, there are situations in which the humanitarian community is doing little or nothing, as in the case of peoples under foreign or colonial occupation -- even though the United Nations bears a special political and legal responsibility in that regard.

Thirdly, we must be firm. We agree that all forms of impunity must be effectively combated with regard to violations of international humanitarian and human rights law involving civilians in armed conflict.

Fourthly, recent events have made clear just how vulnerable humanitarian workers are. More must be done to ensure that humanitarian personnel can enjoy security, gain access to those who are vulnerable and be treated with respect and dignity. At the same time, we must take steps against humanitarian personnel who violate the principles of humanitarian action.

Fifthly, more effective coordination between the Security Council, the General Assembly and the Economic and Social Council remains crucial. It is also important to encourage regional approaches and to strengthen coordination with regional and subregional organizations.

My delegation has considered with great interest the report of the Secretary-General on the protection of civilians in armed conflict (S/2005/740), which refers to, inter alia, the responsibility to protect. We would like to be quite clear and transparent about this. We recall that the September summit mandated the General Assembly to continue the debate on that concept -- a concept about which there is still no unanimity within the international community and whose parameters still need to be rigorously defined. Furthermore, we believe that it is important, when it comes to the humanitarian dimension of the item before us today, to await the outcome of the ongoing analysis of the United Nations humanitarian response capacity.

Finally, we can never overemphasize the importance of complying, everywhere and in all circumstances, with the principles of the Charter and those that underpin international relations.

The President

The next speaker is the representative of Uganda, of whom I now call.

Mr. Butagira (Uganda)

I will try to keep within five minutes, but if I speak for a minute more, it is because Uganda is mentioned many times in the report, and I need to respond.

The delegation of Uganda is grateful to the Security Council for having afforded us the opportunity to take part in this important debate. I should like to thank the Secretary-General for the comprehensive report on this subject and for the commendable proposals to address the poor conditions of civilian populations caught up in armed conflicts.

As we focus attention on addressing humanitarian crises, we should not forget to ask why there is conflict in the first place. In other words, the international community should address the root causes of conflicts, such as poverty and lack of democratic participation.

In Uganda, in addition to the usual causes of conflict, we have been fighting a fanatical, satanic rebel group, the self-styled Lord's Resistance Army. We have told the world that this group is not interested in peace and that they must be eliminated. Despite several peace proposals, Kony and his gang have not responded. Even now, the "celebrated" Betty Bigombe has not used a magic wand to bring Kony to the negotiating table.

This morning Mr. Egeland reminded us that the military option is not a solution. We must be realistic. The group we are being urged to talk to does not want peace. They are simply seeking to manipulate the device of peace talks to give themselves a breather, to get supplies and reorganize themselves to carry out their murderous activities. The international community just watched as civilians were brutally killed. Sadly, even when displaced persons in a refugee camp known as Barlonyo in northern Uganda were massacred in a most brutal manner, not even a word of condemnation came from this Council by way of a presidential statement.

Some of the remnants of these rebels have now fled to the Democratic Republic of the Congo. We call on the Security Council to have them arrested and disarmed. It is sad that very often, instead of blaming the aggressor, the victim -- in this case Uganda -- has been blamed for not ending the war.

Let me now touch on some aspects of the report that make specific reference to Uganda. Paragraphs 8 and 17 refer to displaced persons. It is not correct to assert that 90 per cent of the population in the districts of Gulu, Pader and Kitgum are displaced. Most areas, especially in Gulu and Kitgum, are now safe, and people are returning home. The Government is carrying out reconstruction and rehabilitation programmes in those areas as well as a northern Uganda reconstruction programme. The departments of government are functioning. The town of Gulu, for instance, is one of the fastest-growing towns in the country.

The conditions in the camps for internally displaced persons are far from perfect. The Government, in partnership with some non-governmental organizations, is addressing issues such as sanitation, security and provision of food. It should be remembered that these camps are only a temporary measure to protect civilians from marauding Kony rebels.

Now that Kony has been militarily defeated and the Government is carrying out mop-up operations, these people will soon go back to their homes. In fact, the Government has announced the resettlement of about 700,000 people now in displaced persons camps in Arua and Teso to their home areas. The Government will need international assistance to resettle them. In this regard, the Uganda Government welcomes the recent launch of humanitarian appeals by the Secretary-General, whereby Uganda is earmarked to benefit from a grant of $223 million.

It is asserted in paragraph 20 that the right to freedom of movement in northern Uganda has been effectively eliminated as the result of the Government's establishment of free-fire zones, where persons moving outside desert settlements or camps are automatically considered legitimate targets of attack. With due respect, this is an alarmist statement. There is no such policy. When the Uganda Government unilaterally offered a ceasefire to rebels in order to encourage them to come to peace talks, it designated some areas where the rebels should assemble and nothing would happen to them. Any rebels found outside these areas would be treated as enemy combatants and dealt with accordingly. This restriction, however, was never meant to restrict the free movement of civilian population.

Since the rebels did not respond positively to this good gesture for peace, the designated areas are no longer there. There is free movement of people throughout northern Uganda. The Government is effectively in control of the entire area. The few remaining bandits roaming around are being hunted down. Northern Uganda is not in turmoil, so there should not be the remotest consideration of entertaining any idea of sending peacekeepers there, or any idea of putting Uganda on the agenda of the Security Council, as was suggested by Canada this morning.

It is common knowledge that Canada has been leading a sustained, uncalled-for and unjustified crusade to have northern Uganda put on the Security Council agenda. It is indeed sad and ironic that when we are reaching the tail end of the rebellion there are calls for such a course of action. The military campaign so far has yielded tremendous results. For many months now, there have been no abductions whatsoever by the so-called Resistance Army, nor has there been any recruitment or attacks on internally displaced persons camps. The rebels' capacity to commit such acts has been completely curtailed. The few remnants of the rebel forces are on the run. These are positive developments for which the Government of Uganda should be commended, not demonized. What we need is international assistance to resettle the displaced people. Uganda, therefore, strongly resists any move to put northern Uganda on the agenda of the Security Council. It is not helpful at all. We ask the Council to reject such a suggestion as uncalled for.

Lastly, in paragraph 30, the report states that the Government's inability to guarantee security continues to hamper access to northern Uganda. Certainly this is not correct. The Government has been providing escorts and, where the food programme has justified it, relief convoys as well. In some instances where some relief workers have unfortunately lost their lives as the result of being targeted by the few rebels remaining, those concerned had chosen not to ask for Government escorts, against the Government's advice. No Government anywhere in the world can be expected to guarantee one hundred per cent security to its citizens. Otherwise, every country would be on the agenda of the Security Council.

With the cooperation of Sudan and the region, soon the menace of Kony and his gang will be history. We appeal to the international community to assist in executing the warrants of arrest issued by the International Criminal Court against the top leadership of the Kony gang who have been indicted. Even at this late hour, the peace talks option is still on the table. Further, any rebel who surrenders would benefit from amnesty extended by the Government.

The President

I now give the floor to the representative of Nepal.

Mr. Acharya (Nepal)

Mr. President, I should like to extend my congratulations upon your assumption of the presidency of the Security Council for the current month and to thank you for convening the discussion of this important issue, the protection of civilians in armed conflict. On behalf of the delegation of Nepal, I express our sincere appreciation to the Secretary-General for his fifth comprehensive report on the subject, as well as our appreciation for the presentation today by Under-Secretary-General Jan Egeland.

The safety, security and well-being of civilian populations who are badly affected by terrorism, armed conflict and violence are our common interest. We share the view that national Governments should take primary responsibility for the protection of their civilian populations from violence and terrorist activities. Only recently, our leaders have agreed to devise methods of taking responsibility to protect innocent civilians from genocide, ethnic cleansing, war crimes and crimes against humanity. Protection of civilians, including women and children, in armed conflicts, especially from the threats of non-State actors, remains the primary challenge for us to address effectively. The Security Council should remain engaged as to how such violations by non-State actors can brought under control through international justice.

My own country, Nepal, has been the victim of terrorist activities committed by illegal armed groups who have shown little respect for human dignity and even for human life. In their brutal attacks, civilian lives and livelihoods have been destroyed, as has infrastructure for essential services. Innocent civilians, including women and children, are victims of ruthless killings, maiming, torture, forced recruitment and kidnapping. These activities have not abated, despite the declaration of the so-called unilateral ceasefire in recent months.

I would like to make a few comments with regard to references to Nepal in the Secretary-General's report.

His Majesty's Government is committed to taking the necessary measures to protect the lives and livelihoods of innocent civilians who are the victims of terrorist and disruptive activities. The Government is fully conscious of its responsibility to protect civilians, even in the face of difficult circumstances. The security forces have exercised the utmost restraint in the security operations that are carried out to protect innocent civilians from terrorist and disruptive activities.

His Majesty's Government has given the highest priority to the protection of civilians, including by mobilizing resources to provide the necessary assistance to internally displaced persons. The Government is committed to intensifying its efforts to provide such assistance, taking into account the short-term and long-term perspectives. The Government will implement a comprehensive policy for the welfare of internally displaced persons. We welcome the efforts of the United Nations system to complement national efforts to provide humanitarian assistance and protect innocent civilians, including internally displaced persons in Nepal.

Nepal fully respects and strictly observes the principles of international law on the protection of civilians in armed conflict, through full adherence to international humanitarian law, in particular the Geneva Conventions. Security personnel are given instructions and training on international humanitarian law and human rights. We have also allowed the International Committee of the Red Cross to operate in Nepal with full access to all places in Nepal, including places of detention. His Majesty's Government has allowed unhindered access for non-governmental organizations, human-rights defenders and international humanitarian agencies in all parts of the country. The reference in the report of the Secretary-General to the registration process does not apply to humanitarian organizations that are already operational in Nepal. Non-governmental organizations will be allowed unhindered access to the civilian population without any hindrance if they are registered in accordance with the law.

The office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights in Nepal, which was established under an agreement this year, is fully functional in all areas of the country. It has not reported any access problems, for humanitarian agencies or other entities, in any part of the country. The Representative of the Secretary-General on the human rights of internally displaced persons, who visited Nepal earlier this year, also reported that there is no humanitarian crisis in Nepal.

His Majesty's Government of Nepal is fully committed to protecting civilians and making every effort to restore peace and re-energize the country's democratic institutions, including through the municipal elections scheduled for 8 February 2006 and the parliamentary elections to be held by April 2007, as commanded by His Majesty the King. We believe that those elections will help foster a competitive democratic process, which will pave the way for the better protection of civilians and put an end to the ongoing violence.

Nepal welcomes the humanitarian assistance to the victims of terrorist and disruptive activities. We are of the view that, in making such efforts, the special circumstances on the ground must be taken into account. We support the idea that humanitarian assistance by the international community for victims of violence and internally displaced persons should be provided with the consent of the State concerned, in accordance with the principles of the Charter of the United Nations. Any guidance by the Security Council should take into consideration that direct access to illegal armed groups can be counterproductive to efforts to protect civilians in armed conflicts and can even jeopardize peace and stability.

The President

I give the floor to the representative of Egypt.

Mr. Abdelaziz (Egypt)

I feel honoured to be among the only two permanent representatives sitting at the Council table at this moment.

Mr. Abdelaziz (Egypt)

I shall deliver a summary of my statement -- I hope that the interpreters will be able to follow. That way, I can respect the suggested five-minute time allowance.

The question of the protection of civilians in armed conflict is of great importance to the activities of the United Nations. I welcome the report of the Secretary-General on this issue (S/2005/740). After five years of consideration of this issue, it is our belief that we must continue our work, while remaining committed to certain basic principles.

First, the Security Council should limit itself to the cases of the protection of civilians in armed conflict as defined by the items on its agenda. The Council should not expand its authority by establishing general policies for dealing with humanitarian issues and human rights. The elaboration of such general policies falls within the mandates of the General Assembly and its Main Committees. Thus, we are concerned at the mention in the report and the draft resolution of the possible role of the Security Council in legislating and taking action under the so-called responsibility to protect. Of even greater concern is the fact that the General Assembly, which has been mandated by the Summit Outcome (General Assembly resolution 60/1) to continue its consideration of that issue in all its aspects, has not yet begun that consideration.

Second, the protection of civilians requires the Security Council and the other principal organs of the United Nations to make greater efforts to consider the root causes of conflicts and terrorism and not to limit their action simply to deal with the consequences.

In that regard, we regret that the report of the Secretary-General, which deals with an issue of such importance, fails to make any reference to the role of the General Assembly or the Economic and Social Council or their mandates, in particular with respect to preventive diplomacy and post-conflict peacebuilding.

Third, the report of the Secretary-General notes in paragraphs 19 and 36 that peacebuilding and peacekeeping mandates should be integrated operationally for the protection of the civilians. It is our hope that the Peacebuilding Commission will be the beginning of joint action with the Security Council in a complementary manner.

Fourth, we welcome the Secretary-General's establishment of a group of legal experts to study the accountability of United Nations personnel serving in missions for illegal activities. We look forward to receiving the details of the integrated strategy that aims to provide assistance to victims. We also welcome the proposal to establish an integrated data-collection and classification mechanism. We request that such data be made available to the General Assembly, the Security Council, the Economic and Social Council and the Peacebuilding Commission.

Fifth, we call on the Secretary-General to give special attention to African conflicts, which cause enormous suffering to civilians.

Sixth, the Egyptian delegation is greatly concerned at the situation in Palestine, as reflected in the statistics of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East and other humanitarian agencies working in the occupied Palestinian territories, which are contained in the report of the Secretary-General. In the period from January 2004 to July 2005, Palestinians were subjected to more than 2,000 incidents involving the denial or obstruction of humanitarian access to the Palestinian people. That situation calls for effective measures to prevent such incidents from occurring again and to ensure that Israel, the occupying Power, abides by its obligations until the establishment of an independent Palestinian State.

Seventh, the recommendation of the Secretary-General to impose new, targeted sanctions on States in order to ensure humanitarian access raises many questions. Such situations should be dealt with by means of cooperation with the Member State concerned, using all measures, including the provisions of Chapter VI and Chapter VIII of the Charter, not by imposing sanctions under Chapter VII.

Eighth, Egypt closely follows the work of the Emergency Relief Coordinator and the Inter-Agency Standing Committee to reinforce humanitarian protection capacity and affirms the importance of supporting the Coordinator's role and activities in order to enhance coordination among the various bodies. I express our gratitude to Under-Secretary-General Egeland and Mr. Jacques Forster, Vice-President of the International Committee of the Red Cross, for their important briefings on the issue this morning.

Finally, this issue should be addressed by strengthening the framework of international law, international humanitarian law and the Charter, with a view to finding a balance in achieving the protection of civilians in armed conflicts.

Mr. Duclos (France)

At the outset, it will come as no surprise to you, Mr. President, that I associate myself with the statement that you will be making on behalf of the European Union.

I thank the Secretary-General for his report (S/2005/740) and Under-Secretary-General Jan Egeland for his presentation.

Following your wise recommendation, Sir, I shall not read out the full text that we have prepared; the written version will be circulated to delegations. I shall limit myself to summarizing a few points.

First of all, this annual meeting on the protection of the world's civilian populations has become very important for the work of the Security Council. We owe that largely to Jan Egeland. I believe that every year we become a bit more aware that if we want a strategic vision of global affairs, we need to have several cards at our disposal. We need a card on the balance of power; we need a card on crises; we undoubtedly need a card on non-proliferation and one on energy. But we also need -- and this has been Jan Egeland's contribution for several years -- a card on geopolitics and attacks on people's rights.

Secondly, our most recent draft resolutions on this issue date back to 1999 and 2000. I believe it is useful, now that we have experience, to take account of the shortcomings that we see. We therefore fully support the British presidency in its intention to submit a new draft resolution to the Council. What should be included in such a draft resolution? We will have many ideas to contribute during the discussions, but right now I should like to mention three points.

My first point concerns the responsibility to protect. Because that is something that has emerged since our 2000 resolution -- namely, at the September summit -- I have noted some misunderstandings about it in certain statements by previous speakers. I believe that what the British presidency proposes is not a reopening of the debate on that subject; we all agree that the concept will be refined, as agreed at the summit, within the framework of the General Assembly.

That said, the Security Council is not exempted from taking into account the major political and philosophical progress represented at the meeting of heads of State or Government: a basic agreement on a balanced vision of what is now called the responsibility to protect. We believe that it would not be unusual for the Security Council to refer to that notion, because it commanded a consensus among our heads of State or Government. Of course it is a notion that should guide the work of the Council, particularly in its role in the protection of populations.

Secondly, a very important development since 2000 has been the establishment of the International Criminal Court. That is particularly important because the Council utilized one of its prerogatives recognized in the Rome Statute to transfer the situation in Darfur to the Court's jurisdiction. In my view, that means that, now that that has been done -- and it was a unanimous decision by the members of the Security Council -- all of us, regardless of our position on the Rome Statute, have an obligation to cooperate with the Court so that it can carry out its role with regard to the matter of Darfur.

I also believe, more generally speaking, that the precedent represented by the transfer of Darfur to the International Criminal Court is perfectly in keeping with the recommendations made by the High-level Panel on Threats, Challenges and Change. That is to say, the International Criminal Court is among the instruments at the disposal of the Security Council to manage certain crises. Here again, it is not necessary to be a party to the Court to recognize its usefulness, particularly when it is activated by the Council under certain circumstances.

Thirdly, the protection of civilians requires that we devote special attention to the most vulnerable in armed conflicts -- for example, women and children. As we all know, my delegation feels a special responsibility with regard to the issue of children in armed conflict. The Security Council has taken decisions concerning that subject, in particular, in establishing a monitoring mechanism. In the coming months, it is important that that follow-up and assessment mechanism begin to function. We believe that that should be one of the tasks to which the Council should be the most attentive and most vigilant.

Those are the few points that I wanted to make by way of summary. I would refer delegations to our written contribution for the remaining points.

Mr. Wolf (United States)

The Secretary-General's report (S/2005/740) and Under-Secretary-General Egeland's presentation -- which is very much appreciated -- paint a disturbing picture. But we are encouraged that this meeting helps to reaffirm the international community's commitment to the protection of civilians in armed conflict.

The world continues to be plagued by violent conflicts, with civilians now the major category of casualties of war worldwide. We would like to stress, however, that the primary responsibility for protecting civilians lies with States and their Governments and that international efforts should complement Government efforts rather than assume responsibility for them. Improving the protection of civilians from the devastating effects of armed conflict depends largely not on what we say or do here, but on what Governments do to protect their own people and on how they allow others to assist.

Let me now turn to some specific cases of concern. We continue to be gravely concerned about the ongoing crisis in Darfur, and especially about the impact of conflict on civilians in that region. While large-scale organized violence has substantially diminished, civilians continue to be subject to lawlessness and banditry, and women and girls continue to be raped. More than 2 million people remain displaced from their homes. In addition, humanitarian workers and peacekeepers have been increasingly targeted.

Sadly, there have recently been casualties, both deaths and injuries, among African Union peacekeepers who have been working to restore order in Darfur. This continuing insecurity has a direct detrimental impact on the international community's ability to deliver assistance and provide basic services for the victims of the conflict.

The situation in Darfur illustrates the urgent role that all parties to a conflict, but especially States, must play to safeguard civilians, including those who are internally displaced. Clearly the Sudanese Government has not fulfilled many of its responsibilities towards its people in Darfur, and the rebel groups continue to put them at risk as well. It is also important to reiterate that internally displaced civilians living in camps can continue to face serious human rights violations.

Several other countries, including the Democratic Republic of the Congo, have delicate situations of transition, where many protection challenges have increased. United Nations peacekeeping and assistance missions, together with support from non-governmental organizations, help ensure that civilians in these regions are not denied the dividends of peace.

We are encouraged by the fact that the Security Council has been more consistently addressing the regional dimension of civilian protection. Furthermore, Security Council resolutions and peacekeeping mandates regularly identify key protection issues, including the deliberate targeting of civilians; forced displacement; the use of sexual and other forms of gender-based violence; the recruitment and use of child soldiers, in violation of international law; the need for unhindered humanitarian access at reasonable times and places; and the safety of United Nations and associated humanitarian personnel.

We are grateful to the delegation of the United Kingdom for their efforts on this draft resolution. We look forward to continuing negotiations on the text. As we once again reaffirm the commitment to reinforce and strengthen the protection of civilians in armed conflict and in resulting situations of humanitarian crisis, let us ensure that our words and intentions become actions.

The President

I shall now make a statement in my national capacity as the representative of the United Kingdom.

I have the honour of speaking also for the 25 members of the European Union and 10 other countries that have aligned themselves with this statement: Bulgaria, Romania, Turkey, Croatia, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Serbia and Montenegro, Iceland and Ukraine.

The full text of my statement will be circulated. I shall, to honour my own commitments, try to keep my statement slightly briefer than the full text.

First of all, I would like to join others in thanking Mr. Egeland for his briefing and Mr. Forster for his participation. The subject of today's debate is of huge importance; five years after the last Council resolution on this issue, the situation for civilians caught up in armed conflict remains critical.

It is time, we think, to take stock of what lessons have been learned, what progress has been made, what gaps need to be filled, and how best we can fill them. The European Union therefore supports the initiative that my delegation has taken within the Security Council to pursue this through a new draft resolution.

The gaps are very clear -- prevention, protection, humanitarian access, impunity -- and they can be filled only by combined action: action by parties to conflict, action by individual States concerned, action by the international community, and action by United Nations agencies and peacekeeping and peace support missions. At a political level, it requires us all to be alert and active.

We have to do better on prevention. Timely and adequate briefings to the Security Council by the Special Adviser, by the High Commissioner for Human Rights, by the Emergency Relief Coordinator and by other relevant parts of the United Nations system will help the Council act sufficiently early on in conflict situations to effectively protect civilians at risk.

As regards protection, parties to conflict must comply fully with the requirements of international humanitarian, human rights and refugee law, especially concerning the prohibitions on physical attack, sexual violence, the use of child soldiers and forced displacement. They must also ensure that specific measures for the protection of civilians are included in peace agreements. The United Nations must give peacekeeping missions the mandates and the resources to protect civilians, in particular those under imminent threat of physical attack.

Humanitarian access is a crucial part of protection. The right to food and the right to health are fundamental human rights, but the denial of humanitarian access is increasingly used as a political tool, and even as a weapon of war. All parties to conflict -- as well as neighbouring States -- must, as our draft resolution proposes, provide unimpeded access to humanitarian assistance and take all necessary measures to guarantee the safety, security and freedom of movement of humanitarian personnel. United Nations peace support operations must have the mandates and resources to ensure the provision of humanitarian assistance.

The investigation of crimes under international law committed against civilians, and the bringing of their perpetrators to justice, is vital -- vital to deter future abuses, vital to provide some form of redress to victims, and vital to ensure that a page can be turned in a country's history. As the investigation by the International Criminal Court of atrocities committed in Darfur and northern Uganda shows, we cannot stand by while people -- no matter how high their rank -- get away with the most egregious crimes.

At the world summit three months ago, our heads of State and Government reached a historic agreement on the responsibility to protect populations from genocide, war crimes, ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity. My Government and the European Union regarded this outcome, embracing the concept at the highest level, as one of the most important of the summit. The responsibility to protect is a distinct concept, carefully set out in the World Summit Outcome. But it is clearly relevant to the issue of the protection of civilians in armed conflict, and it is only appropriate that it should be recalled in the draft resolution on which we are working.

Protection of civilians also includes the special protection needs of displaced persons, women and children. The draft resolution calls on parties to conflict to take concrete measures for the safe and sustainable return of displaced persons and calls for peacekeeping missions to have the mandates and the resources to guarantee this by, for example, providing security for and around displaced-persons camps.

Given the increasing incidence of sexual violence, child abduction and the use of child soldiers, it is more important than ever to have a strong message, as in the draft resolution, to all parties to a conflict to refrain from such actions. Peace support operations should be mandated to employ all feasible measures to prevent such crimes and to address their effects where they take place.

Finally, it would be wrong to address the issue of the protection of civilians in armed conflict without raising the issue of illicit small arms and light weapons. The European Union looks forward to working with other Member States in 2006 to review the United Nations Programme of Action to Prevent, Combat and Eradicate the Illicit Trade in Small Arms and Light Weapons in All Its Aspects to ensure that it remains relevant. We welcome the growing support, in all parts of the world, for an international treaty to establish common standards for the global trade in conventional arms.

I now resume my functions as President of the Security Council.

The next speaker on my list is the representative of Norway, to whom I give the floor.