Mr. President:
My delegation wishes to thank you for addressing the request from 72 states, led by Canada
and which Costa Rica supported, to convene this urgent meeting. We are also grateful to
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and in particular to Special Envoy Staffan de Mistura and John
Ging (OCHA), for providing information that once again confirms the unsustainable
humanitarian crisis affecting the Syrian people.
Mr. President:
The Charter of the United Nations has granted the mandate of sustaining international peace
and security to the Security Council. However, we have witnessed how the Council has not been
able to reach an agreement to address the critical, ongoing humanitarian situation in Syria.
In this sense, we reiterate our concern for the use of veto in cases where we could be in
presence of mass atrocities . The veto power should be voluntarily restricted, just as
proposed by the Code of Conduct promoted by the ACT Group, which Costa Rica has
subscribed, alongside 111 other Member States.
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Mr. President:
In light of the inaction of the Security Council, other States can’t simply stand by and do
nothing.
The General Assembly, the only UN organ where all Member States are represented, has a
subsidiary responsibility in the maintenance of international peace and security, as
established in Article 14 of the Charter.
It is from the floor of this Assembly that Costa Rica makes a fervent call to all parties in the
conflict to work towards an immediate ceasefire. Said ceasefire must guarantee the safe exit of
all people trapped in the conflict zone as well as access to humanitarian aid for everyone that
needs it. The millions of victims cannot wait any longer. Changing the situation on the ground
should be our goal and priority.
Mr. President:
On previous occasions, the General Assembly has been compelled to intervene in order to
maintain international peace and security. My delegation believes that, if the Security Council
does not reach an agreement to immediately address the humanitarian situation in Syria with
the urgency it requires, Member States should immediately call for an emergency session of the
General Assembly, as has been done before in similar situations, such as the occasion when
Member States adopted the resolution “United for Peace”,’ on November 3 rd , 1950 and well as
in others instances.
Mr. President:
Costa Rica is convinced that all sides of the conflict should focus their efforts to securing a
diplomatic solution through resuming dialogue, and that further harm to civilians must be
prevented at all cost. The first step for this must be a ceasefire. Furthermore, the undeniable
aggravation of the situation caused by the involvement of DAESH and al-Nusrah, should be
jointly addressed by all parts to the conflict and by all means available.
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Costa Rica also reiterates its conviction that any permanent solution must promote
accountability for any crimes against humanity that may have been committed, under the
principle that there is no lasting peace without justice.
Mr. President:
UNICEF and UNESCO have stated that there is a generation of lost children in Syria. Special
Envoy de Mistura has informed us that this could become the most severe humanitarian crisis
in history. We have been shaken by the images of children in boats, in refugee camps, and
under debris. The responsibility to act rests on the shoulders of the Security Council and upon
its failure, on the General Assembly. What are we waiting for?
Thank you very much.