United Nations
UN says Ukraine radioactive waste site struck
The United Nations’ nuclear watchdog says missiles have hit a radioactive waste disposal site in the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv, but there are no reports of damage to the buildings or indications of a release of radioactive material.
In a statement late Sunday, International Atomic Energy Agency Director General Rafael Grossi says Ukrainian authorities informed his office about the overnight strike. He says his agency expects to soon receive the results of on-site radioactive monitoring.
Read:Putin puts nuclear forces on high alert, escalating tensions
The report came a day after an electrical transformer at a similar disposal facility in the Ukrainian city of Kharkiv was damaged.
Such facilities typically hold low-level radioactive materials such as waste from hospitals and industry, but Grossi says the two incidents highlight a “very real risk.” He says if the sites are damaged there could be “potentially severe consequences for human health and the environment.”
UN says over 100 ex-Afghan and international forces killed
The United Nations has received “credible allegations” that more than 100 former members of the Afghan government, its security forces and those who worked with international troops have been killed since the Taliban took over the country Aug. 15, Secretary-General Antonio Guterres says.
In a report obtained Sunday by The Associated Press, Guterres said that “more than two-thirds” of the victims were alleged to result from extrajudicial killings by the Taliban or its affiliates, despite the Taliban’s announcement of “general amnesties” for those affiliated with the former government and U.S.-led coalition forces.
The U.N. political mission in Afghanistan also received “credible allegations of extrajudicial killings of at least 50 individuals suspected of affiliation with ISIL-KP,” the Islamic State extremist group operating in Afghanistan, Guterres said in the report to U.N. Security Council.
Read: Afghan police rescue physician from kidnappers' clutch, arrest 8 suspects
He added that despite Taliban assurances, the U.N. political mission has also received credible allegations “of enforced disappearances and other violations impacting the right to life and physical integrity” of former government and coalition members.
Guterres said human rights defenders and media workers also continue “to come under attack, intimidation, harassment, arbitrary arrest, ill-treatment and killings.”
Eight civil society activists were killed, including three by the Taliban and three by Islamic State extremists, and 10 were subjected to temporary arrests, beatings and threats by the Taliban, he said. Two journalists were killed — one by IS — and two were injured by unknown armed men.
The secretary-general said the U.N. missions documented 44 cases of temporary arrests, beatings and threats of intimidation, 42 of them by the Taliban.
The Taliban overran most of Afghanistan as U.S. and NATO forces were in the final stages of their chaotic withdrawal from the country after 20 years. They entered Kabul on Aug. 15 without any resistance from the Afghan army or the country’s president, Ashraf Ghani, who fled.
The Taliban initially promised a general amnesty for those linked to the former government and international forces, and tolerance and inclusiveness toward women and ethnic minorities. However, the Taliban have renewed restrictions on women and appointed an all-male government, which have met with dismay by the international community.
Afghanistan’s aid-dependent economy was already stumbling when the Taliban seized power, and the international community froze Afghanistan’s assets abroad and halted economic support, recalling the Taliban’s reputation for brutality during its 1996-2001 rule and refusal to educate girls and allow women to work.
Guterres said: “The situation in Afghanistan remains precarious and uncertain six months after the Taliban takeover as the multiple political, socio-economic and humanitarian shocks reverberate across the country.”
He said Afghanistan today faces multiple crises: a growing humanitarian emergency, a massive economic contraction, the crippling of its banking and financial systems, the worst drought in 27 years, and the Taliban’s failure to form an inclusive government and restore the rights of girls to education and women to work.
“An estimated 22.8 million people are projected to be in `crisis’ and `emergency’ levels of food insecurity until March 2022,” the U.N. chief said. “Almost 9 million of these will be at `emergency’ levels of food insecurity -– the highest number in the world. Half of all children under five are facing acute malnutrition.”
On a positive note, Guterres reported “a significant decline” in the overall number of conflict-related security incidents as well as civilian casualties since the Taliban takeover. The U.N. recorded 985 security-related incidents between Aug. 19 and Dec. 31, a 91% decrease compared to the same period in 2020, he said.
The eastern, central, southern and western regions accounted for 75% of all recorded incidents, he said, with Nangarhar, Kabul, Kunar and Kandahar ranking as the most conflict-affected provinces.
Read: Islamic world pitches ways to aid desperately poor Afghans
Despite the reduction in violence, Guterres said the Taliban face several challenges, including rising attacks against their members.
“Some are attributed to the National Resistance Front comprising some Afghan opposition figures, and those associated with the former government,” he said. “These groups have been primarily operating in Panjshir Province and Baghlan’s Andarab District but have not made significant territorial inroads” though “armed clashes are regularly documented, along with forced displacement and communication outages.”
Guterres said intra-Taliban tensions along ethnic lines and competition over jobs have also resulted in violence, pointing to armed clashes on Nov. 4 between between Taliban forces in Bamyan city.
In the report, the secretary-general proposed priorities for the U.N. political mission in the current environment, urged international support to prevent widespread hunger and the country’s economic collapse, and urged the Taliban to guarantee women’s rights and human rights.
US pledges to put Russia on defensive at UN Security Council
The U.S. worked Sunday to ramp up diplomatic and financial pressure on Russia over Ukraine, promising to put Moscow on the defensive at the U.N. Security Council as lawmakers on Capitol Hill said they were nearing agreement on “the mother of all sanctions.”
The American ambassador to the United Nations said the Security Council will press Russia hard in a Monday session to discuss its massing of troops near Ukraine and fears it is planning an invasion.
“Our voices are unified in calling for the Russians to explain themselves,” Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield said of the U.S. and the other council members on ABC’s “This Week.” ”We’re going into the room prepared to listen to them, but we’re not going to be distracted by their propaganda.”
Ukraine’s ambassador to the U.S., Oksana Markarova, warned that Russian President Vladimir Putin is bent on waging an “attack on democracy,” not just on a single country. It’s a case that some senior foreign policy figures have urged President Joe Biden to make, including at the Security Council.
Read:Russian roar on Ukraine rings hollow to Latin America allies
“If Ukraine will be further attacked by Russia, of course they will not stop in Ukraine,” Markarova said on CBS’s “Face the Nation.”
Any formal action by the Security Council is extremely unlikely, given Russia’s veto power and its ties with others on the council, including China. But the U.S. referral of Russia’s troop buildup to the United Nations’ most powerful body gives both sides a stage in their fight for global opinion.
Russia’s massing of an estimated 100,000 troops near the border with Ukraine has brought increasingly strong warnings from the West that Moscow intends to invade. Russia is demanding that NATO promise never to allow Ukraine to join the alliance, and to stop the deployment of NATO weapons near Russian borders and roll back its forces from Eastern Europe. NATO and the U.S. call those demands impossible.
The head of Russia’s Security Council, Nikolai Patrushev, on Sunday rejected Western warnings about an invasion.
“At this time, they’re saying that Russia threatens Ukraine — that’s completely ridiculous,” he was quoted as saying by state news agency Tass. “We don’t want war and we don’t need it at all.”
Ukraine’s foreign minister, Dmytro Kuleba, countered that on Twitter, saying: “If Russian officials are serious when they say they don’t want a new war, Russia must continue diplomatic engagement and pull back military forces.”
The United States and European countries say a Russian invasion would trigger heavy sanctions.
On Sunday, the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Sen. Bob Menendez, said that in the event of an attack, lawmakers want Russia to face “the mother of all sanctions.” That includes actions against Russian banks that could severely undermine the Russian economy and increased lethal aid to Ukraine’s military.
The sanctions under consideration would apparently be significantly stronger than those imposed after Russia annexed Crimea from Ukraine in 2014. Those penalties have been seen as ineffective.
Menendez also raised the prospect of imposing some punishments preemptively, before any invasion.
“There are some sanctions that really could take place up front, because of what Russia’s already done — cyberattacks on Ukraine, false-flag operations, the efforts to undermine the Ukrainian government internally,” the New Jersey Democrat said on CNN.
The desire to hit Russia harder financially over its moves on Ukraine has been a rare area of bipartisan agreement in Congress. But Republicans and Democrats have been divided over the timing of any new sanctions package.
Many GOP members are pushing for the U.S. to impose tough penalties immediately instead of waiting for Russia to send new troops into Ukraine. The Biden administration and many Democratic lawmakers argue that imposing sanctions now against Putin would remove any deterrent to invasion.
Sen. James Risch of Idaho, the ranking Republican on the Foreign Relations Committee, told CNN he is “more than cautiously optimistic” that Republicans and Democrats will be able to resolve their differences over the timing of sanctions.
Russia has long resented NATO’s granting of membership to countries that were once part of the Soviet Union or were in its sphere of influence as members of the Warsaw Pact.
Read:Russia says US ignored its security demands over Ukraine
NATO “has already come close to Ukraine. They also want to drag this country there,” Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Sunday, “although everyone understands that Ukraine is not ready and could make no contribution to strengthening NATO security.”
Ukraine has sought NATO membership for years, but any prospects of joining appear far off as the country struggles to find political stability and attack corruption.
Sen. Dick Durbin, an Illinois Democrat and member of the Senate’s Ukraine Caucus, suggested that Ukraine’s backing off its NATO aspirations could expedite a diplomatic solution to the current crisis.
If Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy “decides that the future membership, if there’s to be one in NATO for Ukraine, and the question of the Russian occupation of Ukraine are two things to put on the table, I think we may move toward a solution to this,” Durbin said on NBC.
Ukraine has not shown signs of willingness to make concessions on potential alliance membership. It is not clear whether Durbin’s suggestion has broader backing.
Lavrov also underlined Russia’s contention that NATO expansion is a threat, saying the alliance has engaged in offensive actions outside its member countries.
“It is difficult to call it defensive. Do not forget that they bombed Yugoslavia for almost three months, invaded Libya, violating the U.N. Security Council resolution, and how they behaved in Afghanistan,” he said.
The U.S. and NATO have formally rejected Russia’s demands about halting NATO expansion, though Washington outlined areas where discussions are possible, offering hope there could be a way to avoid war.
Rabab Fatima elected UN Women Executive Board President
Permanent Representative of Bangladesh to the United Nations Ambassador Rabab Fatima has been unanimously elected as the President of the UN Women Executive Board for the year 2022.
With this election, Bangladesh takes up the Presidency of the UN Women Executive Board for the first time.
Read: Bangladesh deeply committed to human rights, fundamental freedoms: Rabab Fatima
Ambassador Fatima earlier served as the President of the UNICEF Executive Board in 2020 and as Vice President of the UNDP/UNFPA/UNOPS Executive Board in 2021.
The election of the five-member bureau was held in New York on Tuesday, which also elected the Permanent Representatives of Argentina, Ukraine, Iceland and Sierra Leone as the Vice Presidents.
The Executive Board provides strategic guidance to UN Women, the UN agency dedicated to gender equality and empowerment of women.
As the President of the Board, Bangladesh will be able to contribute further to the work of the UN Women.
Ambassador Rabab Fatima thanked the Board members for electing her, and for their confidence in Bangladesh’s leadership to address the challenges that continue to affect women and girls across the globe, especially during the time of the pandemic.
“There is no time to waste. We must ensure that all COVID recovery plans are gender-responsive, and that all stakeholders – public, private, NGOs - are mobilized to ensure that. We also need to provide UN Women with the necessary direction and resources so that it can continue to be at the forefront of all such efforts," said Ambassador Fatima.
She assured UN Women that the new Executive Board will work hard to support UN Women in this challenging time.
Read: Ambassador Rabab Fatima presents credentials to Peru
The Ambassador applauded UN Women’s remarkable contributions in advancing gender equality and the empowerment of women worldwide.
She also paid tribute to all staff and colleagues of UN Women globally, who have been carrying out their important work, with dedication and courage in the midst of the pandemic challenges.
UN Women Executive Director Ambassador Sima Bahous welcomed the new President and said that UN Women looked forward to benefiting from her experience and wisdom.
She expressed optimism that Ambassador Fatima would spearhead the bureau’s guidance to the work of UN Women.
Prof Yunus receives ‘Champion of Global Change Award’
Nobel laureate Prof Muhammad Yunus has received ‘Champion of Global Change Award’ given by the United Nations Foundation in recognition of his enlightened leadership and innovation to enhance human dignity, equity, and justice.
The United Nations Foundation gave this year’s Champion of Global Change Award to two winners on December 9, 2021.
Read:Prof Yunus gets highest viewership in Tokyo Olympics opening ceremony, says Yunus Centre
Another winner is Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Director-General of the World Trade Organization.
The Award recognizes the extraordinary contributions of individuals and organizations striving to further the work of the UN and advance its goal of a more peaceful, just, and sustainable world for everyone, everywhere.
The Awards were presented in New York at ‘We The Peoples’ event, named after the inspiring opening words of the UN Charter, and to honour the profound vision of the UN’s founders.
This awards’ motive is to save future generations from the scourge of war, reaffirming the faith in human rights and equal rights, ensure justice and international law, and promote social progress and freedom.
Read: Prof Yunus renews call for ensuring vaccine equality breaking profit wall
UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina J Mohammed presented the Award and interviewed Professor Yunus on stage focusing on his campaign for creating a Three Zero World.
Previous honorees of Champion of Global Change Award include: US Presidents Barack Obama and Bill Clinton, UN Secretaries-General Kofi Annan and Ban Ki-moon, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, and Goodwill Ambassador Angelina Jolie.
UN adopts Dhaka's flagship resolution on Culture of Peace
The United Nations has unanimously adopted Bangladesh’s flagship resolution on the ‘Culture of Peace’.
The Permanent Representative (PR) of Bangladesh to the UN, Ambassador Rabab Fatima, introduced the resolution in the General Assembly on Thursday.
Ambassador Fatima said that "the resolution this year assumes greater relevance and urgency as they continue to grapple with the unprecedented, multifaceted challenges posed by the Covid-19 pandemic".
Also read: UNGA adopts historic resolution on graduation of Bangladesh from LDC category
The resolution was first adopted on 13th September 1999, during the first tenure of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
Since then, Bangladesh has been facilitating this resolution in the Assembly every year and also convening a high-level forum on the Culture of Peace at the Assembly.
India promotes culture of peace as part of commitment to global order, says MEA
India promotes a culture of peace as a part of its commitment to global order, according to the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA).
Culture of Peace is the cornerstone of the global order to build inclusive and tolerant societies. Under the auspices of the United Nations, the promotion of a culture of peace has expanded into a global discourse, according to the statement issued by MEA.
READ: Bangladesh, India to have much to do in next 50 years: Doraiswami
The observation came in the light of the 76th Session of the United Nations General Assembly's Agenda item 16 on Culture of Peace.
India will continue to spread the message of humanity, pluralism and democracy. We reiterate our call to fight negative forces of intolerance, violence and discrimination together, said Ashish Sharma, First Secretary in the statement.
Continuing this rich heritage, India has promoted this culture, inter alia, through tolerance, understanding, respect for all religions and cultures - all this under the overarching umbrella of pluralistic ethos and democratic principles. This is enshrined in our Constitution, the MEA's statement said.
READ: Indian Foreign Secretary Shringla in city
For millennia, India has regularly provided shelter to those persecuted in foreign lands and allowed them to thrive in India and it's is not just about a culture, but a civilization in itself. the statement further added.
UN peacekeepers face greater threats from complex conflicts
The more than 87,000 personnel in U.N. peacekeeping missions are confronting greater threats today because conflicts have become more complex and are driven by an increasing number of factors ranging from ethnic tensions and the impact of organized crime to illegal exploitation of resources and terrorism, the U.N. peacekeeping chief said Friday.
Jean-Pierre Lacroix said in an interview with The Associated Press that even compared to two or three years ago, “most of our peacekeeping missions have a political and security environment that has deteriorated.”
In addition and “equally important," he said, is that the conflicts are “multi-layered" and very often local and national, but also regional and global. He pointed to Africa's impoverished Sahel region, which is seeing increasing terrorist activity, as an example.
Read: UN official: Myanmar people want UN sanctions, peacekeepers
What is causing this change in how U.N. peacekeepers have to operate are a number of factors starting with increased political divisions among the U.N.’s 193 member nations, he said.
The drivers of conflict are increasing, Lacroix said, and there are also what he called “conflict enhancers,” including digital technologies, the impact of fake news and misinformation on conflicts, and “armed groups using increasingly sophisticated means to undermine our actions.”
The U.N. currently has 12 far-flung peacekeeping operations — six in Africa, four in the Middle East, one in Europe and one in Asia — with the more than 66,000 military personnel from 121 countries joined by over 7,000 international police and 14,000 civilians.
Lacroix said peacekeepers continue to make “a huge difference” in countries where they oversee cease-fires like Cyprus and south Lebanon in terms of preventing conflict, and “they also make a huge difference in terms of protection of civilians, even though we would like to be able to do more.”
But the undersecretary-general for peace operations said the drivers of conflict “are massively impacting the conflicts in which we’re involved.”
“They pose increasingly important threats to countries in which our missions are deployed, and frankly to the region where we are operating,” he said.
“Are we equipped enough as a multilateral system to address these threats?" Lacroix asked rhetorically. “I’m not sure. I think there’s probably more that should be done in those areas.”
He called an upcoming ministerial meeting on U.N. peacekeeping in Seoul, South Korea on Dec. 7-8 an important opportunity to improve the performance and impact of peacekeepers and “the effectiveness of our tools,” and to mobilize international support for these efforts.
Lacroix said “a significant number” of ministers and senior officials from all U.N. member states are expected in Seoul, stressing that high-level participation is “critically important” as an expression of support for U.N. peacekeeping, which is funded by a separate U.N. budget amounting to $6.38 billion for the year ending June 30, 2022, as well as voluntary contributions.
He said the peacekeeping department has circulated a list to U.N. member nations of what it needs to improve the protection of peacekeepers against ambushes, improvised explosive devices and attacks, and to protect their camps. The list also includes improved medical support and equipment to make peacekeepers more nimble, mobile and reactive, especially more helicopters, he said.
Lacroix said there are two other very important areas: improving the missions’ ability to collect and process information to better prevent threats instead of having to react to them, and increasing the number of women in peacekeeping operations “because we know for a fact that more women in peacekeeping means more effective peacekeeping.”
He said it will be “tremendously important” to have governments support the department’s “strategy for the digital transformation of peacekeeping because we strongly believe that if we make the best possible use of these new technologies, then it can be a game changer for peacekeeping.”
Read: Another UN peacekeeper killed in Mali, 5th in a week
To do that, he said, the U.N. has to improve what he called “the digital literacy of peacekeeping and our peacekeepers,” which means more training.
If the peacekeeping department and peacekeepers are better at using digital technology, the men and women in the field can be better protected, Lacroix said.
“We can probably better communicate and also counter misinformation,” and the U.N. can better collect and process information “in a way that can enable effective action," he said.
But Lacroix said if peacekeeping is to succeed — “which is to create the conditions where peacekeeping missions can leave” — it is “critically important” that governments support political efforts to achieve this goal.
He said there must also be a recognition that more and more peacekeeping operations are part of broader efforts and partnerships that can build different capacities, including security, or help provide humanitarian assistance in places like Congo, South Sudan or Mali.
“We have to make sure that we are playing a role where you can make the best possible difference, and other partners have to have that same approach, and we need to be complementary to each other,” Lacroix said.
Inclusive politics essential for every country’s prosperity: British Minister
UK’s Minister for South Asia Lord (Tariq) Ahmad of Wimbledon on Monday expressed optimism that the citizens of Bangladesh will have an open and vigorous debate about the country’s direction as Bangladesh approaches its next election period.
“Inclusive politics are essential for every country’s prosperity, something that the Father of the Nation (Bangabandhu) Sheikh Mujibur Rahman knew very well,” he said, adding that the constitution (Bangladesh) emphasizes both transparency and due process which is a real guiding right to everyone.
The British Minister said Bangladesh, on Bangabandhu’s legacy, has built something quite remarkable and there is an opportunity for this great nation to go even further.
He made the remarks while delivering keynote speech at a programme titled “Bangladesh-UK: Partners in Progress' with Foreign Secretary (Senior Secretary) Masud Bin Momen as the chair. The event was held at the Foreign Service Academy.
Lord Ahmad, also the Minister for the United Nations and the Commonwealth at the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO), said as a steadfast friend and partner of Bangladesh they value this unique relationship and friendship.
“Our message is simple - to all of you from all of us. I assure we’re partners for today and for the future. As close and honest friends, we look forward to further strengthening this unique partnership,” he said.
Read:'Bangladesh a compelling case for UK investors'
Addressing root causes of conflicts critical: Dhaka
Permanent Representative of Bangladesh to the United Nations Ambassador Rabab Fatima has said social and political exclusion of Rohingya minorities in Myanmar has blown into a crisis with serious humanitarian and security ramifications for the region.
“Addressing the root causes of conflicts is critical for breaking the cycle of recurring violence,” she said while addressing the Security Council High-Level Open Debate titled “Maintaining international peace and security: exclusion, inequality and conflict” on Tuesday.
Read: Bangladesh deeply committed to human rights, fundamental freedoms: Rabab Fatima
The open debate was convened by the delegation of Mexico, the current President of the Security Council, to deliberate on the possible role of Security Council in addressing inequalities, exclusion and conflict. The President of Mexico chaired the open debate.
At the meeting, the Bangladesh Ambassador underscored that the underlying factors of conflicts may vary across economic, political, and cultural spectrums.
As such, she said, there must be a whole of UN approach for encouraging a nationally-driven and multi-stakeholder solution towards durable peace.
The Ambassador stated that the Security Council has a critical role to play in mitigating inequalities and exclusion when they lead to international or regional conflicts.
In the context of maintaining international peace, Ambassador Fatima said the UN peace operations and special political missions can bring a great strength to preventive diplomacy because they have the firsthand information from the field, which can strengthen early warning systems against any impending crisis.
Read: Rabab Fatima calls for international solidarity against terrorism
Ambassador Fatima recommended that the Council should invest more in implementing the WPS and YPS agendas in order to ensure inclusion.
She emphasized upholding the rule of law at the global level and in this regard recognized the role of the International Court of Justice, and other international legal bodies and tribunals.
“It’s imperative that the Council demonstrates its firm commitment in upholding the sanctity of ICJ and other legal bodies,” she said.