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AMBASSADOR RICE: Thank you, Foreign Minister Kim, for chairing this important debate. And
thank you, Secretary-General Ban, High Commissioner Pillay and ICRC Director Spoerri for your
statements.
Protecting civilians in armed conflict is a fundamental responsibility of the international
community and a core function the UN Security Council in carrying out its charge to safeguard
international peace and security. The United States knows that its security is diminished
when masses of civilians are slaughtered, refugees flee across borders to escape brutal
attacks, and murderers wreak havoc on regional stability and livelihoods. Regrettably, history
has taught us that our pursuit of a world where states do not systematically slaughter
civilians will not arrive without concerted and coordinated action.
And so, nearly a year ago, President Obama announced at the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum
new actions the United States is taking to implement his landmark policy directive on
atrocity prevention. Under the President's leadership, my government has implemented
unprecedented steps to enhance our capabilities and structures for preventing heinous crimes
against civilians, from strengthening our early warning and preventive diplomacy to
sanctioning perpetrators and pressing for accountability. Our new Atrocities Prevention
Board, a committee of senior officials from across the U.S. government, is overseeing
this critical work and ensuring that we are focused on emerging situations of concern.
But while national action is necessary, it is not sufficient. International, collective
action is required, and we look forward to strengthening our cooperation with the United
Nations and member states to that end.
Few are more likely to be the victims of mass atrocities than civilians caught in armed
conflict. Time and again - and all too often- the world bears witness to the horror of mass
killings, *** violence and gross human rights abuses of innocents in conflict. Therefore,
protecting civilians in armed conflict must remain a top priority of this Council and
the United Nations as a whole. Though we must never relent in this effort, we are encouraged
that the United Nations has made strides in enhancing UN tools to protect civilians. We
commend the Secretariat's efforts to help UN field missions develop operational guidance
and mission-wide strategies to implement their civilian protection mandates. The recently-released
UN study entitled Protection of Civilians: Coordination Mechanisms in UN Peacekeeping
Missions highlights several mechanisms for executing protection of civilians mandates
successfully. Simple but practical tools - many focused on internal procedures and mission
structure - enable mission focal points to integrate mission activities in support of
protection mandates. The UN Mission in South Sudan, for example, produced an integrated
strategy that led to an innovative early warning system and County Support Bases that enable
better protection of rural populations.
Mission-wide strategies depend on missions really understanding the threats and violence
civilians face in their area of operation. When peacekeepers know their local environments
well, they are better able to protect civilians. Such detailed knowledge requires active and
sustained engagement with local populations. We encourage UN missions with protection mandates
to assess in their reports and briefings to this Council the threats and vulnerabilities
facing civilians in their area of operation. We also urge mission-wide strategies to anticipate
and outline steps to counter any escalation in violence against civilians that could culminate
in mass atrocities. UN missions should proactively explain their role in protecting civilians
to local communities.
Beyond a sophisticated understanding of their areas of operation, peacekeepers need strong
training in civilian protection. The United States invests significantly in peacekeeper
training, and we urge all peacekeeping training centers to adopt the UN's innovative training
guidance on protection of civilians. Such training should be standardized and required
for every peacekeeper.
For all that UN peacekeepers and field missions can do, let us not forget that national governments
always bear primary responsibility for protecting their own populations. In some countries,
governments are manifestly failing in this responsibility, often because of insufficient
capacity or will to address the problem. In some countries, moreover, governments condone
and even perpetrate atrocities against their own people. Through our statements, resolutions
and diplomacy, this Council must continue pressing governments to fulfill their obligations.
In this regard, I want to highlight the horrific attacks by the Syrian regime on the Syrian
people, including the widely reported targeting of hospitals and health centers and the use
of ballistic missiles against civilian populations. The carnage unleashed by Asad merits universal
indignation and strong action from this Council. When the people of Libya were on the verge
of being slaughtered by a brutal dictator, this Council acted, prevented a massacre,
and saved countless lives. This should remind us that for civilians in conflict, Security
Council action can mean the difference between life and death.
In the 2005 World Summit Outcome Document and in UN Security Council resolution 1674,
all UN Member States accepted a shared responsibility to protect populations from genocide, ethnic
cleansing, crimes against humanity, and war crimes. While we continue to elaborate application
of this principle, when governments manifestly fail to protect their civilians, the international
community must not dither but rather act decisively to assume its responsibility collectively
to protect.
Another fundamental but often overlooked principle of protecting civilians is ensuring humanitarian
access. No UN Member State, nor any non-state actor, should ever prevent timely, full, and
unimpeded humanitarian access to populations in need of assistance. Yet the Government
of Sudan has refused for now a year and a half to permit the safe and unhindered provision
of international humanitarian assistance to address the acute humanitarian emergency in
Southern Kordofan and Blue Nile states, particularly the SPLM-North controlled areas, which is
largely of Khartoum's making. Since 2011, more than 214,000 refugees have crossed into
Ethiopia and South Sudan and 695,000 have been displaced within the Two Areas. This
is appalling and unacceptable. In this and other such situations, we commend the service
and dedication of the humanitarian workers who help the world's most vulnerable at great
risk to themselves. Attacks against humanitarian workers are deplorable and should be condemned
wherever committed.
Mr. President, we fully support the Secretary-General's call for this Council to be more active in
addressing violations of international law and to strengthen accountability. The United
States strongly rejects impunity and supports efforts to hold accountable violators of international
humanitarian and human rights law. Our longstanding support of international tribunals and efforts
to document ongoing atrocities in such places as Syria reflect this commitment. Recent events,
including the conviction of Charles Taylor by the Special Court for Sierra Leone and
the International Criminal Court's judgment against Thomas Lubanga Dyilo of the Democratic
Republic of the Congo, show us that accountability for those who commit atrocities and justice
for their victims is possible. Yet, too many perpetrators remain free. This Council needs
the facts and strong reporting to help bring to justice the perpetrators of crimes against
civilians.
President Obama has declared that preventing mass atrocities is a core national security
interest and a core moral responsibility of the United States. The protection of civilians
is a fundamental element of the Security Council's obligation to ensure international peace and
security. It is clear that we must keep our attention focused squarely on the practical
steps we can take to enhance the protection of civilians in armed conflict and redouble
our efforts to ensure that this Council is not sitting on the sidelines when civilian
populations are in grave danger.
Thank you, Mr. President.