News

Mr. President, I brief today against the backdrop of many unsettling developments in the region. Nonetheless, we should not lose sight of the Israeli-Palestinian issue. With peace negotiations suspended since the end of April…

Mr. President, Distinguished Members of the Council, On 25 May, according to reports, slightly more than 60 per cent of Ukraine’s eligible voters cast a ballot in the country’s early presidential elections. An unprecedented…

Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen, Dear Friends, Allow me first to convey to you all the best regards and wishes of success from Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. I would also like to congratulate the Ministry of Foreign…

Mr. President, Members of the Council, The situation in the Central African Republic (CAR) has greatly deteriorated since the last United Nations briefing to the Council. The attacks by the anti-Balaka against Bangui, on 5…

Good evening ladies and gentlemen. I am delighted to be back in Bangladesh at the behest of the Secretary-General. Since my arrival on 7 December, I have had discussions with a range of national stakeholders. I have met with…

Mr. President, When intensive Israeli-Palestinian negotiations resumed earlier this year, tensions were to be expected along the way. Nobody predicted this would be an easy process. And indeed, four months since their…

Mr. President, The Council meets today at a moment of heightened Middle East diplomacy. Discussions are ongoing on both immediate crises and longstanding sources of tensions in the region, from the Syria catastrophe to the…

Friends and colleagues, Let me begin by thanking Brookings, and in particular Strobe Talbot, Martin Indyk and Bruce Jones, for the invitation to speak about the UN’s diplomacy in today’s crises. I credit Martin, in fact, for…

Your Excellency, Mr. Didier Burkhalter, Vice-President of the Federal Council and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Government of Switzerland Your Excellency, Ambassador Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, Director-General of the United…

Mr. President, Members of the Security Council, Thank you for this opportunity to brief the Security Council on recent developments in Somalia and on the findings of the Technical Assessment Mission, as requested in…

Mr. President, Last week, this Council heard briefings which described in grim detail the tragedy unfolding inside Syria and its dramatic humanitarian consequences in the absence of a political solution that could bring about…

I am visiting the Central African Republic today to express the grave concern of the United Nations about the deteriorating security and human rights situation in the country and to convey the solidarity with the people who…