Statement delivered by Ambassador Trishala Persaud, Deputy Permanent Representative of the Co-operative Republic of Guyana to the United Nations, during the UNSC briefing on Threats to International Peace and Security (Weapons Transfers to Ukraine)
Thank you, President,
I thank High Representative Nakamitsu for the important updates provided.
Today’s meeting comes on the heels of alarming reports of further escalations in the war between Russia and Ukraine.
Media reports this morning of a missile strike that damaged six foreign diplomatic missions in Kyiv and killed at least one individual are deeply distressing. Guyana maintains that any attack directed against a diplomatic facility is unacceptable.
We reaffirm the provisions of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations of 1961, including the inviolability of diplomatic premises, and call for a full and impartial investigation into this incident.
President,
UN agencies, grappling with the humanitarian fallout of this war, have all sounded the alarm about the gravity and scale of the violations of international humanitarian law and international human rights law, being committed in Ukraine.
In addition to reports of human rights abuses, one persistent pattern being observed relates to the almost wilful disregard for the principles of distinction, proportionality and distinction with the use of weapons that are indiscriminate by nature, and where the effects of their use cannot be limited as required under international humanitarian law.
In their latest update, the Human Rights Monitoring Mission to Ukraine (HRMMU) has noted an increase in civilian casualties from the use of aerial glide bombs in densely populated urban centres, including in Kharkiv, Sumy, and Zaporizhzhia.
The Office of the High Representative for Disarmament Affairs has also repeatedly expressed concern about reports of the use of cluster munitions and widespread contamination with mines and explosive remnants of war in Ukraine, underscoring that these weapons can contaminate communities for decades to come.
According to the United Nations Development Programme, Ukraine is now considered the most mined country in the world, with potentially 23 percent of its land at risk of contamination with landmines and unexploded ordnance. It is estimated that clearing landmines and unexploded ordnance in Ukraine is likely to cost over 34 billion US dollars.
Several reports indicate that most civilian casualties recorded to date were caused by the use of explosive weapons with wide area effects in populated areas, such as artillery shells and rockets, bombs, missiles, loitering munitions, and other explosive munitions dropped by unmanned aerial vehicles.
As a State Party to the Convention on Cluster Munitions and Anti-Personnel Mine Ban Convention, Guyana is gravely concerned about the devastating and lasting impact of the use of landmines and cluster munitions. They have no place in our world.
We also emphasize the fact that conventional arms and ammunition are at risk of diversion throughout their life cycle and even more so when they are transferred into an armed conflict. We call upon all States transferring weapons and ammunition into the conflict area to comply fully with their obligations under international law and with the international disarmament instruments to which they are a Party.
Weapons transfers must be conducted within the existing international legal framework, including UN Security Council resolutions, and with adequate controls in place to prevent their irregular transfer.
We also continue to stress that any lasting solution to this conflict will not be achieved through military action but rather through diplomacy and good-faith negotiations conducted in accordance with the provisions of the United Nations Charter and international law.
In conclusion, we reiterate our call for the Russian Federation to withdraw its military forces from the internationally recognized territory of Ukraine and urge the parties to commit to a political and diplomatic process toward ending the conflict.
I Thank you.
