Report of the Security Council/Mideast situation – GA debate – Verbatim record (excerpts)

Official Records

General Assembly
Sixty-fourth session

45th plenary meeting
Thursday, 13 November 2009, 10 a.m. 
New York

    The meeting was called to order at 10.15 a.m.

Agenda items 9 and 119 (continued )

  Report of the Security Council (A/64/2)

Question of equitable representation on and increase in the membership of the Security Council and related matters

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 Mr. Al Habib (Islamic Republic of Iran): …

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  Secondly, the veto — and the fear of the veto as a tacit weapon in the hands of a few Member States — is a non-constructive instrument that reduces the possibility of Council action in many ways and in various cases in which action is needed, which has resulted in Council inactivity. The question of Palestine — including, in particular, last year’s invasion and brutal bombardment of Gaza by the Israeli regime — is one of the clearest examples of Council inactivity and intentional delay.

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  Mr. Valero Briceño (Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela) ( spoke in Spanish ): The Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela aligns itself with the statement made by the representative of Egypt on behalf of the Non-Aligned Movement.

  The principal responsibility of the Security Council is the maintenance of international peace and security. In that sphere there are highly important matters, such as the situation in the Middle East and the question of Palestine, in which the Council has shown great failings.

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    Mr. Argüello (Argentina) (spoke in Spanish ): …

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  We support the efforts of the Council to prevent the recurrence of genocide, ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity. The international community is responsible for protecting civilian populations when the State that is obliged to do so is unwilling or unable to meet its obligations. Furthermore, conflicts between States call for new efforts to attain peace in the context of international and humanitarian law. In this regard, we call on the parties to the Middle East conflict to make substantial progress towards finding a just and legitimate solution within the legal framework established by the relevant resolutions of the Security Council.

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  Mr. Loulichki (Morocco) (spoke in French ): …

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  The situation in the Middle East, including the Palestinian question, has been the subject of the Council’s attention. That was especially the case in December 2008 and January 2009, following the tragic events in Gaza and their devastating humanitarian consequences for the Palestinian civilian population. Despite the Council’s unanimous adoption of resolution 1860 (2009), Palestinians continue to await the full implementation of its provisions and the fulfilment of international reconstruction commitments so that they can once again lead normal and dignified lives.

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 Mr. Borg (Malta): …

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  The situation in the Middle East continues to present a formidable challenge in the search for a way to relaunch the Middle East peace process, with the Palestinian question at its core. The grave events that occurred at the beginning of this year in and around the Gaza Strip, resulting in considerable loss of life, have aggravated the deteriorating humanitarian situation there and require a more decisive contribution and involvement on the part of the Security Council in order to fully implement Security Council resolution 1860 (2009) of 8 January. The entire membership of the United Nations looks to and expects the Security Council to embark on reinvigorated efforts and measures in implementing the Quartet’s Road Map.

  Malta joins the other delegations that continue to call for a durable and political solution to the question of Palestine and the Middle East conflict, and for restarting negotiations that can lead to an independent, democratic, contiguous and viable Palestinian State living side by side in peace and security with Israel. My delegation urges Council members to continue to engage all concerned parties to contribute in a more substantive manner in order to put the Middle East peace process back on track again.

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The meeting rose at 1.05 p.m.

This record contains the text of speeches delivered in English and of the interpretation of speeches delivered in the other languages. Corrections should be submitted to the original languages only. They should be incorporated in a copy of the record and sent under the signature of a member of the delegation concerned to the Chief of the Verbatim Reporting Service, room U-506. Corrections will be issued after the end of the session in a consolidated corrigendum.