Delivered by: Her Excellency Lana Nusseibeh, Ambassador and Permanent Representative
UNOFFFICIAL TRANSLATION
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Mr. President,
At the outset, the UAE aligns itself with the statement made by Ecuador in its capacity as E10 coordinator. The UAE welcomes the unanimous adoption of the resolution to extend the cross-border aid delivery mechanism to Syria for an additional six months. We also thank the penholders of the Syrian humanitarian file for their tireless efforts to adopt the resolution without any delay. We value the consensus among Council members on this matter as well as putting the needs of the Syrian people before political considerations.
Mr. President,
The UAE voted in favor of this resolution given the importance of this mechanism in alleviating the suffering of the Syrian people that are facing a deteriorating humanitarian situation.
The mechanism has witnessed many changes in the past years, and there is still room to work on improving the mechanism to better respond to the current conditions on the ground. We must also find solutions that respect the sovereignty, independence, unity and territorial integrity of Syria. This includes increasing the volume and scale of cross-line aid operations and early recovery projects in accordance with Resolution 2642 and the resolution adopted today, and particularly the provision of electricity to Syrians as an indispensable basic humanitarian need.
The UAE also believes in the importance of supporting demining efforts in Syria due to the catastrophic impact of mines on civilians, especially innocent children and humanitarian workers. We will focus on this issue during the upcoming discussions on the mechanism in July and coordinate closely with Syria’s humanitarian co-penholders and Council members.
In conclusion, we hope the Council’s unity today will prevail in all tracks relating to the Syrian crisis that meets the expectations and aspirations of the Syrian people.
Thank you, Mr. President.