Use of Veto in Security Council on Syrian Aid President of the General Assembly | United Nations

Csaba Kőrösi, President of the 77th session of the General Assembly

Excellencies, Distinguished Delegates,

It would not have been my wish to convene this plenary meeting of the General Assembly today.

It would have been my wish that the Security Council could have overcome its deadlock on humanitarian aid delivery to northern Syria.

Yet, today’s debate is a clear demonstration that two UN organs – the Security Council and the General Assembly – can and must work together on matters of international peace and security, especially in times of crises.

It is in this context that I welcome the Security Council’s special report on the veto cast last week.

I thank Security Council members for meeting the expectations of all Member States in submitting this special report in a timely manner.

I also express my appreciation to the President of the Security Council for the good coordination with my Office leading up to this meeting.

It is my hope that this spirit of cooperation will continue in the future, to ensure efficiency and coherence between our two mandates

We gather today because a permanent member of the Security Council – the Russian Federation – cast a veto on the renewal of the cross-border mechanism to deliver life-saving aid to people in northern Syria.

Let us be clear about what this means.

The Bab al-Hawa crossing with Türkiye has been used by the UN and aid agencies since 2014, and after the closing of the other three crossings by the Security Council in subsequent years, it has handled 85 per cent of UN aid deliveries.

After Russia’s veto in the Council last week, UN aid convoys there have virtually stopped.

At the same time, humanitarian needs in Syria are soaring.

4.1 million people across Syria’s north have been all but cut off from the food, water and medicine they need to stay alive.

Eighty per cent of them are women and children.

And they are desperate following the two massive earthquakes that rocked the region in February.

These shocks reduced infrastructure to rubble and further displaced many who had already fled fighting elsewhere.

A fresh cholera outbreak has only compounded the harsh daily realities.

The lives of those in need should never be reduced to the tactics of geopolitical games.

I urge Security Council members to keep their needs foremost in your minds.

Lest we forget: our 8 billion constituents are counting on us to act. To act as one UN.

And we have a moral responsibility to do so.

When the UN wavers on issues as clear as humanitarian need it cuts to the core of our credibility.

In fact, it confirms a false perception that we, as a whole, cannot do what is right.

Right by the UN Charter. Right by our collective conscience. Right by our sense of solidarity and compassion.

We must not give this mistaken belief any ground.

Humanitarian action must always be guided by the principles of impartiality, neutrality and independence.

As such, effective humanitarian assistance can never be held hostage by any political interest.

How can the General Assembly help the Security Council live up to its mandate entrusted by the UN Charter?

Which are your proposals for what more the UN as a whole and the Security Council can and should do?

For one, I intend to send the verbatim records of today’s debate to the Council President, as promised during our April debate on the use of the Veto Initiative.

“It is a basic human right to live in a safe place, to feel safe, to be safe,” as Syrian swimmer Sara Mardini reminds us.

Given the extraordinary lengths that Syrians are pursuing just to survive, it is only right that we ask: Are we doing enough to protect human life?

To the Security Council, I call on you to be alive to the realities and oriented towards genuine solutions.

To urgently prioritize long-term cooperation over division.

And the humanitarian imperative over brinksmanship.

Together, we have the power to make a meaningful difference.

The people of Syria are counting on us to deliver.

I thank you.