Statement by Ambassador Permanent Representative of Canada to the UN Bob Rae at the 96th UN General Assembly Plenary meeting on item 124 "Strengthening of the United Nations system"

July 21, 2022

AS DELIVERED

Thank you Mr. President,

I would like to speak of three matters, firstly the question of the veto. Second point: the humanitarian situation in Syria. And third point: the obligations of the members of the Security Council.

The facts on the ground, the increasing humanitarian needs, the obligations under international humanitarian law, and the overwhelming support from the international community could not be clearer.

Yet a resolution extending humanitarian access for a year was blocked in the Security Council, in the pursuit of a political agenda. I wish I could say this came as a surprise, but this – the 17th Russian veto cast on a resolution related to Syria since 2011 -  is part of a much larger strategy alongside the Government of Syria to control, to deprive, to punish and to leverage parts of the civilian population for their own perceived influence and political gain. As I said in this chamber less than a month ago, we continue to witness the paralyzing effects of the abuse of the veto. It is undemocratic, and it is anachronistic.

I want to take a moment to thank our colleagues from the missions of Ireland and Norway, who spoke before me this morning, who in the face of all of this, in the face of all of these difficulties, worked tirelessly as the co-penholders on the Syria humanitarian file, along with the other members of the Security Council who stood together to support a 12-month renewal of the cross-border mechanism. We want you to know, my colleagues from Norway and Ireland, that we continue to support you in your efforts.

This single vote, in the Security Council, stood in stark contrast against a resounding and united chorus of voices from the majority of the Security Council, from the UN Secretariat and its agencies, from humanitarian partners and from civil society. There has been some talk of politicization today - how inappropriate that talk is. These are respected international organizations, reflecting the best instincts of humanity. Nothing political about it at all - a simple declaration that said the extension of this lifeline needed to be for at least another year.

The Secretary-General - not a political figure, not a figure who’s subject to partisan influence of any kind whatsoever, a representative of all of us, the Executive Officer of the United Nations itself - called on the Security Council to extend cross-border access for a further 12 months at a minimum. This, he told us, in his own words, was a moral and humanitarian imperative. We also heard directly from partners who pleaded for the same, who told us that they needed the 12 months.

What is most disheartening is that Russia’s cynical veto was cast against a backdrop of rising needs, record levels of food insecurity, and an accelerating economic and social crisis in Syria, a country that’s been in a state of civil war since 2011. By now we all know these numbers, and they’ve been recited again today – nearly 15 million Syrians who are in need of humanitarian assistance. More than 4 million people are reliant on humanitarian assistance in the northwest, and as has been pointed out, more than 80% of these are women and children. And finally, over two and a half million Syrians are reached by cross-border assistance each month.

So, Mr. President, while we welcome the extension until January, and we welcome the fact that food, and vaccines and other vital aid is allowed to continue to reach those most in need, I want to make it very clear that it is Canada’s expectation that the Security Council will renew the cross-border mechanism in 6 months’ time. And it will do so on time, without any politicization, and without any political games, and without the unjust and unjustifiable use of the veto to prevent humanitarian aid from reaching the people who need it.

This is not something we are suggesting, we are urging, or we are calling on the Council – this is what we expect from the 15 members of this body, who act on our behalf, the greater UN membership. In discharging their duties, we expect Council Members to act in accordance with the Purposes and the Principles of the United Nations. And yes, of the Charter.

There has been much talk of the Charter today. The Charter speaks of state sovereignty, of course it does, but it also speaks of human rights, it also speaks of the rule of law. Let us not confuse friendship of the Charter with friendship of aggression, or friendship of impunity. We have to understand that the Charter speaks of many things, but this body is not simply a group of countries that got together under no umbrella of the rule of law, under no umbrella of human rights, with some notion that all countries are free to act at their will, however they want, whenever they want. That is not what the Charter is about. And those who speak of unilateralism, this year what more grotesque example of unilateralism do we have than the unprovoked aggression against an independent sovereign state, the state of Ukraine, by the state of the Russian Federation.

And so it is in this same vein that we want to remind all parties to this conflict of their obligations under international humanitarian law – that all parties are obligated to facilitate the rapid, safe, sustained and unimpeded humanitarian access to all Syrians in need. Resolution 2254, adopted by the Security Council, also calls on the parties to immediately allow humanitarian agencies rapid, safe and unhindered access throughout Syria by the most direct routes and allow immediate, humanitarian assistance to reach all people in need, in particular in all besieged and hard-to-reach areas.

We don’t think that cross-border is or should be the only modality through which humanitarian assistance is delivered to the people in Syria’s northwest. But we also have to understand that over 800 truckloads a month go through Bab al-Hawa, and this dwarfs the five cross-line convoys that have been allowed to be deployed since August of 2021. The cross-border mechanism is essential if we are going to in fact provide the humanitarian assistance that everyone, with some objections, but everyone else sees this as the critical priority for international intervention.

We’re proud as Canadians that our country has provided over 600 million dollars in humanitarian assistance since the beginning of the conflict. We are going to continue to provide that assistance and we’re also going to continue to support a long-term, sustainable political solution to the conflict in line with resolution 2254.

So Canada is going to do its part without hesitation, and without any quibble on our part. It would be nice to see the Council do exactly the same thing in January, to ensure that the people of Syria who are in such dire need continue to be provided with the necessary assistance.

Thank you, Mr. President.