Statement by Ambassador James Kariuki at the UN Security
Council meeting on threats to international peace and
security.
Thank you, President, let me thank Under Secretary Voronkov,
Executive Director Gherman, and Secretary-General Stock for their
briefings today. I also thank the Monitoring Team for their work
on the report.
The United Kingdom remains deeply concerned at the prospect of
Daesh resurgence in the Middle East. As the report notes, though
the threat in Iraq and Syria has been effectively suppressed, it
remains a serious threat.
Iranian-aligned militias continue to attack the Coalition Forces
that are directly working to remove Daesh’s malignant influence
in the region, in partnership with the Government of Iraq.
The United Kingdom calls on Iran to use influence to stop these
attacks and de-escalate regional tensions. It is in all our
interests to prevent Daesh from projecting its poisonous ideology
and inflicting death and destruction across the region.
Turning to Africa, the UK is deeply concerned at Daesh’s growing
presence across the continent. We stand ready to support our
African partners and intensify efforts to improve coordination
and strengthen regional cooperation. UN entities play an
important role and we welcome their cooperation with the African
Union to build capacity and squeeze the spaces in violent
extremist networks can flourish. We also encourage cooperation
between UN Global Counter Terrorism Coordination Compact members,
and we welcome INTERPOL’s role in this.
Finally, we must not ignore the disproportionate impact that
terrorism has on women and girls. This year, we mark the 10th
anniversary of atrocities committed against the Yezidi
people.
We commend the important work done by UNITAD with the support of
the Iraqi authorities to investigate sexual crimes by terrorists
against women and girls.
President, we know that Daesh thrive in divided, fragile and
unstable environments. We all have a responsibility to counter
their ideology and provide an alternative future.
