Statement of the President of the General Assembly delivered by the Permanent Representative of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh and Vice-President of the General Assembly, H.E. Masud Bin Momen, during the informal meeting of the General Assembly for the Secretary-General to consult Member States on the strengthening of the capability of the United Nations system to assist Member States in implementing the United Nations Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy in a balanced manner as requested in General Assembly resolution 70/291
22 February 2017
Secretary-General Guterres,
Excellencies,
Ladies & Gentlemen,
I have the honour to deliver these remarks on behalf of the President of the General Assembly who unfortunately cannot be here today, as he is travelling overseas.
Thank you for attending today’s meeting.
As you will all recall, the General Assembly in resolution 70/291 of 1 July 2016, requested in paragraph 70 the Secretary-General to – and I quote – “review, in consultation with the General Assembly, the capability of the United Nations system to assist Member States, upon their request, in implementing the Strategy in a balanced manner, including by strengthening cooperation with other international and regional organizations and improving the mobilization of resources necessary for capacity-building projects, with a view to providing concrete suggestions to the Assembly in this regard, by May 2017, for consideration by the Assembly during its seventy-first session”.
As I set out in my letter to the membership dated 3 February, I am convening today’s informal meeting at the request of the Secretary-General in order to enable these consultations to take place.
I welcome the Secretary-General’s outreach to the General Assembly to discuss this critical cross-cutting issue, which impacts not only international peace and security issues, but also human rights and sustainable development.
When Resolution 70/291 was adopted on 1 July 2016, the General Assembly renewed – and again I quote – “its unwavering commitment to strengthening international cooperation to prevent and combat terrorism in all its forms and manifestations, and reaffirmed that any acts of terrorism are criminal and unjustifiable, regardless of their motivation, wherever, whenever and by whomsoever committed”.
Today’s meeting is therefore the first step in the discharge of our duty under this mandate to follow-up the implementation of the Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy, and to enhance the United Nations’ role in combatting terrorism.
Excellencies,
It is a harsh reality of our world, that no country is immune from the scourge of terrorism.
It is therefore imperative that we all work together to strengthen our global efforts to counter terrorism, and step up our implementation of the Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy and its four pillars.
To this end, it is vital that we continue to find ways to ensure that it remains relevant and responsive to emerging threats and evolving trends, including in preventing violent extremism as and when it is conducive to terrorism.
We must also continue to maintain the Strategy’s comprehensive approach, including by addressing conditions that are conducive to the spread of terrorism, and strengthening our commitments to promoting and protecting human rights, due process, and the rule of law.
As the General Assembly recognized during the last review of the Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy, we also need to find ways to facilitate greater coordination among United Nations entities, in order to maximize synergies, ensure coherence, and promote transparency, visibility and efficiency in the United Nations counter-terrorism efforts.
Before I give the floor to the Secretary-General, I would like to briefly take this opportunity to recognize his leadership and commitment to this issue, including by commencing this process, requesting this opportunity to consult with Member States, and by providing specific elements for the discussion.
I encourage Member States to participate actively, and to bring a constructive spirit and a determination to succeed, to this process.
My Office and I stand ready to assist this process in any way we can.
I thank you.