Thank you, Madam President.

Madam President, we gather today in the name of prevention. International peace and security is under threat, owing to the unabated development of ballistic missile and nuclear weapons technology by North Korea. Despite concerted and good faith efforts by the US to negotiate a solution, this year has seen 13 sets of illegal ballistic missile tests.

We gather today also to send a message to Pyongyang: it is not too late. You can prevent the situation worsening. You should seize this diplomatic opportunity that has already been repeated in the Council this session. The united expressed will of the Security Council is that North Korea should begin a process of complete, verifiable and irreversible denuclearisation. The UK will continue to work with international partners to support this goal.

Madam President, it bears repeating what is at stake. As the China Permanent Representative said, this is truly and quintessentially a matter for the Security Council and only the Security Council of international bodies can really deal with such a challenge deriving from weapons of mass destruction and proliferation. It’s a vital issue. It is hard to discern, Madam President, what lies behind the provocative and dangerous moves by North Korea.

Since May 2019, they have tested three different types of short range ballistic missiles, and these tests have demonstrated substantial progress for this illegal and reckless weapons programme. As other representatives have said, each test is a violation of United Nations Security Council resolutions. And the Council needs to support the rigorous enforcement of its sanctions in the face of such violations. And I just wanted at this point to endorse what the French representative said about the humanitarian angle with which we agree wholeheartedly. The sanctions regime imposed by the Council will remain in place until North Korea takes concrete steps towards denuclearisation. Further breaches of Security Council resolutions, whether they’re ballistic missile launches, space launch vehicles or nuclear tests, will only harden the resolve of the Council. There are further implications in possessions of such weapons. It’s in no member state’s interest to see North Korean technology and expertise proliferate across borders. As next year we face the anniversary of the Non-Proliferation Treaty, it becomes a very important moment to resolve this issue.

Madam President, we should not forget the suffering of the North Korean people. The human rights situation in North Korea is disturbing. They are the worst offender on the Global Slavery Index, and 179th out of 180 in the Reporters without Borders World Press Freedom Index. Human rights has a critical role to play, and we urge North Korea to concentrate on improving the lives of its most vulnerable people.

Madam President, all states have an obligation to enforce this council’s sanctions. We urge action to address the continued reports of fuel shipments to North Korea in violation of the mandated annual imports cap. And we urge vigilance against North Korea’s illegal fundraising activity, including its use of cyber attacks. And we remind states, if I may, Madam President, that all North Korean overseas workers earning income should be repatriated by 22 December this year.

Madam President, our message as a Council must be united and it is clear. Continued development of programmes in violation of Security Council resolutions will not be tolerated. We urge North Korea to change course, to engage in meaningful negotiations with the United States and to begin a process of complete, verifiable and irreversible denuclearisation.

Thank you.

Thank you, Madam President.

Madam President, we gather today in the name of prevention. International peace and security is under threat, owing to the unabated development of ballistic missile and nuclear weapons technology by North Korea. Despite concerted and good faith efforts by the US to negotiate a solution, this year has seen 13 sets of illegal ballistic missile tests.

We gather today also to send a message to Pyongyang: it is not too late. You can prevent the situation worsening. You should seize this diplomatic opportunity that has already been repeated in the Council this session. The united expressed will of the Security Council is that North Korea should begin a process of complete, verifiable and irreversible denuclearisation. The UK will continue to work with international partners to support this goal.

Madam President, it bears repeating what is at stake. As the China Permanent Representative said, this is truly and quintessentially a matter for the Security Council and only the Security Council of international bodies can really deal with such a challenge deriving from weapons of mass destruction and proliferation. It’s a vital issue. It is hard to discern, Madam President, what lies behind the provocative and dangerous moves by North Korea.

Since May 2019, they have tested three different types of short range ballistic missiles, and these tests have demonstrated substantial progress for this illegal and reckless weapons programme. As other representatives have said, each test is a violation of United Nations Security Council resolutions. And the Council needs to support the rigorous enforcement of its sanctions in the face of such violations. And I just wanted at this point to endorse what the French representative said about the humanitarian angle with which we agree wholeheartedly. The sanctions regime imposed by the Council will remain in place until North Korea takes concrete steps towards denuclearisation. Further breaches of Security Council resolutions, whether they’re ballistic missile launches, space launch vehicles or nuclear tests, will only harden the resolve of the Council.

There are further implications in possessions of such weapons. It’s in no member state’s interest to see North Korean technology and expertise proliferate across borders. As next year we face the anniversary of the Non-Proliferation Treaty, it becomes a very important moment to resolve this issue.

Madam President, we should not forget the suffering of the North Korean people. The human rights situation in North Korea is disturbing. They are the worst offender on the Global Slavery Index, and 179th out of 180 in the Reporters without Borders World Press Freedom Index. Human rights has a critical role to play, and we urge North Korea to concentrate on improving the lives of its most vulnerable people.

Madam President, all states have an obligation to enforce this council’s sanctions. We urge action to address the continued reports of fuel shipments to North Korea in violation of the mandated annual imports cap. And we urge vigilance against North Korea’s illegal fundraising activity, including its use of cyber attacks. And we remind states, if I may, Madam President, that all North Korean overseas workers earning income should be repatriated by 22 December this year.

Madam President, our message as a Council must be united and it is clear. Continued development of programmes in violation of Security Council resolutions will not be tolerated. We urge North Korea to change course, to engage in meaningful negotiations with the United States and to begin a process of complete, verifiable and irreversible denuclearisation.

Thank you.

Thank you, Mr President. I would like to thank the President of the International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals, Judge Carmel Agius, and Prosecutor, Mr Serge Brammertz, for their briefings to the Security Council today. 

It has now been two years since the Residual Mechanism assumed full responsibility for the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia’s residual functions, alongside those of the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda. During this time, the Mechanism has continued to make commendable progress in carrying out its mandate. However, there is still more to do to guarantee the legacy of the ICTY and the ICTR. 

2020 will be a significant year for the Mechanism, with their ambitious plans to conclude the Stanišić and Simatović retrial and Mladic appeal at their Hague branch and the Ingabatware and Turinabo et al. cases in Arusha. This will be in addition to their other mandated functions. We commend the ongoing work to find efficiencies and to harmonise and apply the most effective practices and approaches across the branches, including the unified judicial database, making it a truly unified institution.

The United Kingdom will continue to support the Mechanism for the remainder of its mandate. However, there is much to do since, as well as ongoing cases among other things, witnesses need protection, missing persons need to be found and domestic prosecutions need assistance. The Mechanism will need the ongoing support of Member States to ensure its mandated functions are completed.  

Mr President, I am pleased to note that the process for appointing a successor to Judge Ben Emmerson, for whose contribution the United Kingdom was grateful, is well underway, and we hope will be concluded soon, bolstering the judicial roster of the Mechanism. At this point, may I also take opportunity to thank Peru for its effective chairing of the informal Working Group of International Tribunals. 

Mr President, we congratulate the Mechanism on the successful conclusion of its first review hearing and welcome the outcome in the Ingabatware case. We also welcome the subsequent indictments against Ingabatware and the five accused in the Turinabo et al. case.  It is vital that witnesses are protected and the integrity of the proceedings conducted by the Mechanism is maintained. We therefore welcome these important steps to hold accountable those who interfere with witnesses. We note the decision yesterday, mentioned by the President, that the Ingabatware contempt case will be joined with the Turinabo et al. case, and are pleased that this will not result in a significant delay to these cases. 

I would also like to remind Member States of the importance of cooperating with the Office of the Prosecutor to find the eight remaining Rwandan fugitives still at large so they can be transferred to the Mechanism without further delay. We agree with the Prosecutor that this is vital to international peace and security.  Acting to apprehend fugitives must be treated as a priority by states if the painstaking work undertaken by the Prosecutor’s office is going to lead to concrete results. We also at this stage express our serious concern at denial of the Rwandan genocide as mentioned by the Prosecutor. 

Turning to The Hague, we note the progress made in the Mladic and Stanišić and Simatović cases and are pleased that these are due to conclude by the end of next year. 

However, despite some progress between some countries of the Western Balkans, we are disappointed that regional judicial cooperation, denial of war crimes and glorification of war criminals remain significant challenges to accountability and ending impunity in the region. When Leaders signed the Joint Declaration on War Crimes at the 2018 London Western Balkans Summit, they agreed to underline the importance of “supporting, and removing impediments to, effective regional cooperation” and to “rejecting use of hate speech and glorification of war crimes”. The United Kingdom calls on them to ensure they are taking every step possible to honour their commitments, including improved co-operation with the Mechanism.

In this week marking International Genocide Remembrance Day, it seems particularly appropriate for us all to seek to work together to try to ensure that the Mechanism makes progress in its very important work.

I thank you, Mr President.

Thank you, Mr President. I would like to thank the President of the International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals, Judge Carmel Agius, and Prosecutor, Mr Serge Brammertz, for their briefings to the Security Council today. 

It has now been two years since the Residual Mechanism assumed full responsibility for the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia’s residual functions, alongside those of the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda. During this time, the Mechanism has continued to make commendable progress in carrying out its mandate. However, there is still more to do to guarantee the legacy of the ICTY and the ICTR. 

2020 will be a significant year for the Mechanism, with their ambitious plans to conclude the Stanišić and Simatović retrial and Mladic appeal at their Hague branch and the Ingabatware and Turinabo et al. cases in Arusha. This will be in addition to their other mandated functions. We commend the ongoing work to find efficiencies and to harmonise and apply the most effective practices and approaches across the branches, including the unified judicial database, making it a truly unified institution.

The United Kingdom will continue to support the Mechanism for the remainder of its mandate. However, there is much to do since, as well as ongoing cases among other things, witnesses need protection, missing persons need to be found and domestic prosecutions need assistance. The Mechanism will need the ongoing support of Member States to ensure its mandated functions are completed.  

Mr President, I am pleased to note that the process for appointing a successor to Judge Ben Emmerson, for whose contribution the United Kingdom was grateful, is well underway, and we hope will be concluded soon, bolstering the judicial roster of the Mechanism. At this point, may I also take opportunity to thank Peru for its effective chairing of the informal Working Group of International Tribunals. 

Mr President, we congratulate the Mechanism on the successful conclusion of its first review hearing and welcome the outcome in the Ingabatware case. We also welcome the subsequent indictments against Ingabatware and the five accused in the Turinabo et al. case.  It is vital that witnesses are protected and the integrity of the proceedings conducted by the Mechanism is maintained. We therefore welcome these important steps to hold accountable those who interfere with witnesses. We note the decision yesterday, mentioned by the President, that the Ingabatware contempt case will be joined with the Turinabo et al. case, and are pleased that this will not result in a significant delay to these cases. 

I would also like to remind Member States of the importance of cooperating with the Office of the Prosecutor to find the eight remaining Rwandan fugitives still at large so they can be transferred to the Mechanism without further delay. We agree with the Prosecutor that this is vital to international peace and security.  Acting to apprehend fugitives must be treated as a priority by states if the painstaking work undertaken by the Prosecutor’s office is going to lead to concrete results. We also at this stage express our serious concern at denial of the Rwandan genocide as mentioned by the Prosecutor. 

Turning to The Hague, we note the progress made in the Mladic and Stanišić and Simatović cases and are pleased that these are due to conclude by the end of next year. 

However, despite some progress between some countries of the Western Balkans, we are disappointed that regional judicial cooperation, denial of war crimes and glorification of war criminals remain significant challenges to accountability and ending impunity in the region. When Leaders signed the Joint Declaration on War Crimes at the 2018 London Western Balkans Summit, they agreed to underline the importance of “supporting, and removing impediments to, effective regional cooperation” and to “rejecting use of hate speech and glorification of war crimes”. The United Kingdom calls on them to ensure they are taking every step possible to honour their commitments, including improved co-operation with the Mechanism.

In this week marking International Genocide Remembrance Day, it seems particularly appropriate for us all to seek to work together to try to ensure that the Mechanism makes progress in its very important work.

I thank you, Mr President.

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