AS DELIVERED

The United States strongly affirms the principle of self-determination enshrined in the United Nations Charter as one of the fundamental values of this organization.

The facts in this case are clear.  The people of French Polynesia, through their democratically elected representatives, have made clear that they do not support this resolution.  The newly-elected government, which takes office today, has notified the General Assembly that this resolution “ignores our autonomy and the will of our people.”  We are surprised that the co-sponsors have continued with General Assembly action on this resolution given the will of the people it purportedly benefits.

For these reasons, the United States disassociates itself from consensus on this resolution.
 

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Link to video message here.

Today, as we commemorate International Day Against Homophobia, we rededicate ourselves to a basic but essential truth – that human rights are universal and must be protected for all.  Homophobia, sadly, is present in every corner of our world.  And, it is a problem we continue to face here in the United States.

At the United Nations, the United States is standing up for the rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender individuals and fighting to ensure that their voices are heard and protected.  The United States was proud to co-sponsor and adopt an historic resolution at the UN Human Rights Council condemning human rights abuses and violations based on sexual orientation and gender identity. 

We will continue to work in every possible arena to protect communities and promote societies in which everyone – especially LGBT youth – can live safely and without fear regardless of who they are or whom they love.  We call on all nations and all peoples to join us in ensuring that human rights are universally protected everywhere every day. 

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AS DELIVERED

Thank you, Mr. President.  Over the last 26 months we have witnessed a brutal conflict in Syria.  The Assad regime, drawing upon an arsenal of heavy weapons, aircraft, ballistic missiles, and—potentially—chemical weapons, has killed or injured untold numbers of civilians who for many months manifested their opposition purely through peaceful protest.  The sustained violence has created a severe humanitarian crisis with more than 1.4 million refugees and 4.25 million internally displaced persons within Syria.

The consequences of this crisis are growing more dire not only within Syria, but across the region. The generosity of the governments and people of Lebanon, Jordan, Turkey, Iraq and others who host large numbers of refugees has been extraordinary, but these countries now face grave threats to their security and an overwhelming economic burden. It is clear that we need a Syrian-led peaceful political transition.

With this in mind, the United States and the Russian Federation announced on May 7 an initiative to bring the Syrian regime and the opposition together in an effort to try to advance a political solution under the framework agreed to in Geneva in June 2012. In our view, the resolution before you is consistent with this latest initiative. Adopting this resolution will send a clear message that the political solution we all seek is the best way to end the suffering of the people of Syria.

We support this resolution, have co-sponsored it, and urge member states to vote in favor of it.

Thank you, Mr. President.

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AS DELIVERED

Mr. President, ladies and gentlemen, good morning. I’m pleased to join so many partners and stakeholders today to discuss progress and the path forward on our shared commitment to combat modern slavery, what we also call trafficking in persons. We’re here today because modern slavery is a crime that hurts our countries and communities. It rips families apart, undermines the rule of law, creates instability, and tears at the fabric of society.

With few exceptions, the international community speaks with one voice when we say there is no place for slavery in the 21^st century. This commitment is enshrined in our cornerstone treaty, the Palermo Protocol. And it has been carried forward by the 2010 Global Plan of Action to Combat Trafficking in Persons. The goal of the Protocol and the Global Action Plan is clear: the abolition of modern slavery.

The United States will continue to meet this call to action by working to prevent this crime, prosecuting traffickers, and protecting their victims. In September, President Obama announced that we would adopt a comprehensive strategic action plan for helping survivors get the support and services they need. My partners at the U.S. Departments of Justice, Homeland Security, and Health and Human Services will lead the way on this five-year plan, working with relevant agencies across government.

This plan goes into effect this fall, and we’ve set out four goals.

First, better coordination and collaboration at the national, state, tribal, and local levels.

Second, make more people aware of this problem, from government and community leaders to the public at large.

Third, ramp up victim identification efforts and make it easier for victims to access support services.

Finally, improve the quality of services for all victims. What does that mean? It means making sure the support we’re providing is culturally appropriate and takes into account the trauma a victim has experienced. It means tailoring solutions to address the short-term and long-term health, safety and well-being of victims. It means making these services available to all victims regardless of their nationality, race, gender, age, religion or disability.

This plan is the first of its kind in the United States. It’s going to improve the way our government deals with this crime. And it’s going to help more victims of trafficking move forward with the lives they choose for themselves.

The victim services plan in the States is going to enable us to better serve all trafficking victims because trafficking in the United States looks like trafficking everywhere else in the world. It is women trapped in domestic servitude. It is men trapped on farms and construction sites. It is women and children suffering at the hands of abusive pimps. It is the victim wondering if authorities are going to help them, or make things worse. But it is also communities coming together to help survivors. It is high school and college students raising awareness through modern abolitionist clubs. It is the action at the local level, with all 50 states now having passed modern anti-trafficking statutes. And it is consumers and businesses looking at supply chains, to ensure that the shrimp, the fish, the cocoa, the palm oil, the cotton that we depend on were not tainted by exploitation and abuse.

The solution in face of this scourge is clear – joint action across nations and across UN agencies. Working together to deny traffickers any safe space. Rejecting servitude in all of its forms, and confronting it not just through development and victim services, but through effective law enforcement so that trafficking victims can see their abusers brought to justice. Because, as Abraham Lincoln famously wrote, “Those who would deny freedom to others deserve it not for themselves, and, under a just God, cannot long retain it.”

The United States is committed to our shared goal of prevention, protection, and prosecution. We will work with our partners in the United Nations and around the world toward our common goal – a world without slavery.

Thank you.

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AS DELIVERED

Thank you, Mr. President.  It is my pleasure to welcome High Representative Inzko back to the Security Council.  Ambassador Inzko, thank you for your comprehensive briefing and for your continued efforts to support the Dayton Peace Agreement. 

Mr. President, the United States is steadfast in our commitment to the success of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and we, like our allies, have invested much in the country since the signing of the Dayton Peace Agreement in 1995. As we reflect on the report presented and on the goodwill we have towards Bosnia and Herzegovina, we wish to address three points.

First, we continue to strongly support the country’s aspirations to integrate into the European Union and NATO, and we had hoped that the new coalition would make these goals their top priorities.  Unfortunately, politicians throughout the country seem more interested in putting their own personal political agendas above the interests of the citizens they were elected to represent. In the Federation entity, ongoing efforts to reshuffle the governing coalition have distracted from the Euro-Atlantic reform agenda. The European Court of Human Rights’ 2009 judgment in the Sejdic-Finci case remains unimplemented, violating the human rights of non-constituent peoples and blocking the country from applying for EU candidacy. Unless the issue is resolved soon, Bosnia and Herzegovina risks holding elections next year in violation of the judgment. And the country still needs to register defense properties to meet NATO’s condition for activating the Membership Action Plan, a process that is being obstructed by politicians in Republika Srpska.  Bosnia and Herzegovina’s lack of progress is all the more visible in the context of its neighbors, all of whom are rapidly moving ahead toward Euro-Atlantic integration.

Second, it has been more than five long years since the Peace Implementation Council Steering Board adopted the five objectives and two conditions for the closure of the Office of the High Representative (OHR).  The so-called 5+2 consists of issues that OHR is uniquely qualified and authorized to oversee and which the political leaders of Bosnia and Herzegovina could easily have completed in 2008 and propelled the state on its way to EU and NATO membership.  Instead, a number of political leaders have focused their energies on deconstructing or undermining Dayton and the various institutions and laws established since 1995 that Bosnia and Herzegovina needs both for the common good of the people and to function as part of a modern Europe. 

The local authorities have a legal obligation to respect the authority of the High Representative and the Dayton framework. Yet Republika Srpska officials have persistently undermined state institutions and made statements calling into question Bosnia and Herzegovina’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. In the Federation, local parties in Mostar have failed to meet their obligation to implement the November 10, 2011, Constitutional Court ruling on the electoral system.  These actions disregard the most fundamental elements of the Bosnian Constitution and the Dayton Agreement. They must cease immediately.

The continuing threats to the Dayton Peace Accords are why we continue to support the presence of OHR until the 5+2 criteria have been met. It is crucial that OHR continue to receive sufficient resources and political support to fulfill its mandate under both the Dayton Peace Agreement and the relevant UN Security Council resolutions. 

Finally, I would like to highlight the continuing importance of justice and reconciliation for long term regional stability, particularly in Bosnia and Herzegovina. We join the High Representative in recognizing Serbian President Nikolic for his recent public apology for the crimes committed in Srebrenica. We strongly support the ICTY as it continues its crucial work to bring to justice those individuals responsible for some of the most heinous crimes of the Bosnian conflict. The January signing of a protocol on war crimes cooperation between Bosnia and Herzegovina and Serbia is another positive development that will help ensure locally-indicted war crimes suspects face justice. 

Other local developments related to reconciliation, however, are more troubling. We are particularly concerned by the continued efforts to construct an Orthodox Church in close proximity both to an exhumed mass grave and the Potocari memorial site and cemetery, where thousands of victims of the Srebrenica genocide are laid to rest. The United States strongly supports freedom of religion, but the construction of a church in such a sensitive location where there is no local Orthodox community can only be interpreted as a deliberate provocation designed to deepen mistrust and fear between ethnic groups.

Mr. President, I again want to express the strong commitment of the United States to seeing Bosnia and Herzegovina move past its troubled past toward a thriving future. We look forward to working with the government of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the international community to see the Dayton Peace Agreement fully implemented and the country irreversibly moving toward its Euro-Atlantic path.

Thank you.
 

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Iran’s upcoming rotation as President of the Conference on Disarmament (CD) is unfortunate and highly inappropriate. The United States continues to believe that countries that are under Chapter VII sanctions for weapons proliferation or massive human-rights abuses should be barred from any formal or ceremonial positions in UN bodies.

While the presidency of the CD is largely ceremonial and involves no substantive responsibilities, allowing Iran--a country that is in flagrant violation of its obligations under multiple UN Security Council Resolutions and to the IAEA Board of Governors--to hold such a position runs counter to the goals and objectives of the Conference on Disarmament itself. As a result, the United States will not be represented at the ambassadorial level during any meeting presided over by Iran.

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AS DELIVERED

Coleman: Well, thank you, Jule. And thank all of you for coming here today. And you‘ve given me an easy job in introducing Susan since Ambassador Rice really doesn’t need much of an introduction at all. I was trying to remember the first time we met, and I think it was almost—or more than—25 years ago. Susan and I were at the same college and in the same PhD program at Oxford, and anyone who knew Susan then—actually, I think anyone who knew Susan when she was probably 18 months or two years old—would know that she was going to go on to have an extraordinary career, which of course she has. She was assistant secretary of state in the Clinton administration. She was a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, and she took a (inaudible) of some young senator from Chicago, Illinois and has been a key member of President Obama’s foreign policy team, a member of his cabinet, and, of course, is his ambassador to the UN. And she has been working a remarkable schedule over the last couple of years to try to keep foreign policy moving in a positive direction, when there have been so many things going on (inaudible). So, thank you, Susan for joining us here today.

The topic of this lunch is “Is Democracy Possible with Extremism?” And, Susan, we can see struggling democracies across the Middle East, in particular, that many are concerned have brought (inaudible) groups into power. And they have been talking about constraining freedom of speech, freedom of religion, and, of course, women’s rights, which always seems to be on that front line of a protracted battle between conservative forces and more moderate forces. When you look at the Middle East today, how concerned are you about women actually losing ground in this so-called Arab Spring or which many would say is now an Arab Winter? And what is the U.S. and the UN doing to try to protect women’s rights in the Middle East?

Ambassador Rice: Well, thank you, Isobel. That’s a hugely important question, and I will answer it. But I want to just say a couple of words if I might. First of all, it’s great to be here with you, and thank you so much for doing this. (applause) We do go back a long way, and we had a lot of fun together as graduate students. And I also want to say thank you and congratulations to Women for Women. I have been a fan and supporter of this organization, along with my husband, for many years. And I wanted to say congratulations on your 20^th anniversary. And I’ve seen the incredible work you do in some of the world’s toughest places, and I have enormous admiration for the contributions that you’re making every day.

And it’s very relevant to the question that you asked because indeed throughout the countries of the so-called Arab Spring, women are struggling. They were an integral part of most if not all of the revolutions that we witnessed and, in some places, the driving force to an extent far greater than many perhaps appreciate. I had the opportunity to witness that first hand when I visited Libya and met with the women who had helped drive out the Qaddhafi regime, but the reality is that they’re facing egregious setbacks in some places and enormous pressures—whether they’re pressures from law, pressures from politicians who trash the role of women and are seeking to reduce their opportunities, whether it’s rape as a tool of war as in Syria or as a tool of intimidation in some instances in Egypt. I meant, it’s really something that does worry me and worries the U.S. government enormously. We recognize that these revolutions are first and foremost those that belong to the people who brought them, and their future is theirs. But we have an abiding interest in key universal values, and those values are things we’re going to fight for regardless of gender, regardless of religion, regardless of (inaudible). We will stand up to protect those who deserve protection, and throughout the Arab world, that includes first and foremost women.

And so the kinds of programs that we are investing in across the spectrum are tools to empower women—supporting their education, supporting their economic opportunity, their political participation. The United States has started something called the Arab Women’s Leadership Initiative under MEPI, which is training women to participate in politics, to be leaders in civil society, leaders of parties. We’re also very much promoting freedom of the press and training women in how to use the modern tools of media to get their voices heard. We are fighting violence against women through support for NGOs that are active in places from Yemen to Libya that are trying to protect women. So we’re trying to cover the spectrum in terms of our focus and attention to this challenge.

But we recognize this is going to be a long-term struggle, as are many aspects of the Arab Spring—I mean, I sometimes refer to this phenomenon from the U.S. point of view as having to keep our hands on the wheel with white knuckles on occasion when things gets exceedingly turbulent and rocky. But at the end of the day, it’s not us driving the vehicle. It’s us sitting there side by side, to the extent we can, in partnership. And I think we need to remind ourselves that over time and with great difficulty and sometimes in far from linear fashion, the progress towards increased respect for human rights, towards democracy is fundamentally in our interests as well as in the interests of people in the region.

Coleman: You mentioned Libya and one of the first things that the transitional government in Libya set up after the fall of Qaddhafi—was, well great, Qaddhafi’s gone. And we’re going to have this whole new government, and we’re going to bring back polygamy. And there were a whole bunch of women who stood there in the crowd saying, “Uh, really, is this our pressing issue?” When leaders in the region go down a path like that, is there some back channel from the U.S., from the UN, saying “hey guys, you know, maybe this shouldn’t be what you’re leading with right now.”

Ambassador Rice: Absolutely, and on that issue specifically, they heard not just from the Untied States and the United Nations but partners near and far. And the attention to that issue has diminished. Obviously, Libya’s got many more challenges—

Coleman: They have a lot of challenges. Afshan in her opening remarks talked a little bit about Afghanistan and the concerns that people feel about the international drawdown of troops, what’s going to happen in Afghanistan, particularly to those who are moderates in the country, who have been promoting human right broadly and promoting greater freedom of a more progressive order, in particular for women. There is a lot of talk and action to roll back some of the rights that women have enjoyed in the country over the past decade. How do you think about Afghanistan, specifically about the role of women there?

Ambassador Rice: Well, we are—if you look at where we are today, in terms of women’s status in Afghanistan versus where we were 12, 13 years ago, it’s extraordinary—simply the life expectancy statistic, which has gone from 44 years of age in 2001 to 64 today. You can see (inaudible) how much progress there’s been—37% of students enrolled in schools now in Afghanistan. That’s not the 50% or the 51% that it ought to be, but that’s certainly far better than what it was. And these gains have been hard fought, and we are absolutely committed to ensuring that they are sustained. We have tried to work that into almost every aspect of our engagement with Afghanistan, so when we negotiated the Strategic Partnership Agreement with Afghanistan, enshrined in that are Afghan commitments to maintaining and indeed advancing the role and the rights of women in Afghan society. And the United States has made clear that our partnership—and the success of it—will be in part a function of how well they adhere to those commitments.

In addition, we have changed the nature of our assistance program in Afghanistan. And we’re in the process of launching through USAID a $300 million, five-year program called Women in Transition, where we’re really trying to build and support the ranks of actually quite highly educated women in Afghanistan, enabling them to get into the private sector, to government roles, to all kinds and forms of leadership. And even as, over the years, our assistance program will necessarily shrink in Afghanistan, proportionately what is dedicated to women is actually going up, and it’s been going up progressively over the last several years, including this upcoming fiscal year (inaudible)—support for women, their health, their education, their economic empowerment, their political empowerment into all aspects of our assistance.

And then one final thing that’s very important because we’ve talked about supporting Afghan-led reconciliation and negotiations, potentially between the government and with the Taliban. We have insisted and the Afghans have insisted that among the few conditions that the Taliban must meet in order to be able to come to the table include respect for the constitution of Afghanistan and specifically including this provision protecting women. So, across the spectrum, we’re doing our utmost to ensure that there’s no meaningful rollback to the progress that’s been made and that progressively it can even be enhanced.

Coleman: One of the tools that the UN has to enhance the role of women, particularly in post-conflict settings, is resolution 1325, which the member states passed more than a decade ago to include women in these peacebuilding initiatives. But it has been slow getting 1325 actually implemented—to get member countries to fully implement this resolution. When you look at a country like Afghanistan or maybe Syria, which is in the midst of a terrible civil war, where are women’s voices in that post-conflict reconstruction—not that we’re at a post-conflict situation in Syria yet? In myriad conflicts around the world, women have been under-represented. How do you think about 1325 and the UN’s role in really making it a reality?

Ambassador Rice: Well, I think it’s been a mixed bag. I mean, there certainly has been some progress since that resolution was adopted, and the progress that we’ve seen is in the increased number of women who are leading the UN’s peacekeeping and peacebuilding missions—we’ve had women special representatives to the Secretary General, the highest level official in-country running the peace processes and the peacekeeping missions in places from Liberia to Cyprus, Central African Republic, Burundi, and various other places.

We just had, I think encouragingly, the appointment of former Irish President Mary Robinson as the Secretary General’s Special Representative, Special Envoy for the Great Lakes Region. And she just briefed the Security Council earlier this week for the first time, and she is, for those who know her, an incredible dynamo. And she’s approached this very differently, of taking the bottom up as well as the top down approach to peacebuilding between the people of Congo and Rwanda and Uganda and bringing in civil society and very consciously and explicitly bringing women to the table as the centerpiece of peacebuilding efforts. She’s doing it differently because she, one, understands the principles and the objectives in trying (inaudible) that she’s been living in and practicing her entire life, so she’s bringing that unique perspective. And we also have gender experts and many more such people focused on women and women themselves in negotiating processes. It’s about now half, but it should be more than half. It should be all of them. And that’s only one piece of it. When you look at women’s representation in parliaments or in legislatures around the world, it’s on average only about 20 percent. It’s better than it was; it’s not nearly enough. Where the UN has been involved in promoting elections and supporting elections and political processes, that number is slightly higher—about 23.5 percent—but the reality is there is a huge amount more to do.

Now, there’s one other piece of the women’s empowerment agenda within the umbrella of 1325 that the U.S. has been particularly active on, which has made somewhat more rapid progress, and that’s the drive to confront sexual violence in conflict. And we passed resolutions 1888, 1889, and many others that created a special representative of the Secretary General (inaudible) to combat sexual violence across conflict areas (inaudible) reporting on the treatment of women and violence against women in conflict zones now. We have women protection advisors embedded in peacekeeping operations throughout the world. So we’ve seen more tangible progress in that area than in the broader universe of women’s political empowerment. But it’s something that the United States and a number of countries are very much committed to, and we’re working to accelerate that progress.

Coleman: Ambassador Rice is on a tight schedule, and I know you only have time for one more question. So let me just ask about UN Women, which is a special organization within the UN that rolled up several women-oriented elements within the UN and had Michele Bachelet as its first head, who has now stepped down to run again as president of Chile. What do you think is going to (inaudible) and what would you expect for it to achieve in the coming years?

Ambassador Rice: Well, I’ve been lucky because I was around when UN Women was created, and I’ve seen its early birth and infancy. And it has made a meaningful difference. It’s barely three years old, but what’s happened is that women’s issues and women’s concerns used to be scattered across the UN system in a very disparate and uncoordinated way. And there was no one venue, no one leader to look to ensure the concerns of women were mainstreamed throughout all the UN does. And when UN Women was created—and we were very keen on its creation— (inaudible) one big reform was not just to bring everything under one roof but to elevate the sets of issues that relate to women and basically insist and demand that they be integrated throughout the rest system.

Now, that was hugely aided by, as you mentioned, the leadership of Michele Bachelet, who was just an extraordinary first leader of UN Women, and it’s going to be very hard to fill her shoes. I can assure you that we’re working hard to identify candidates who will lead at her level because we believe that’s vitally important. But she’s grown the budget. It’s still small by UN standards—actually it’s about $227 million annually, but that’s 300 times what it was when she started. She’s roped in the private sector, the NGO community, and we’ve seen UN Women active in so many ways across the Arab world, supporting women in the Arab Spring countries. She’s been active on the sexual violence agenda. We had the most successful session of the Commission on the Status of Women, which was focused on violence against women, in many years, largely due to her leadership and the role that UN Women has played.

Political empowerment, economic empowerment—all of these things are getting more juice, to put it plainly, than ever before, and that’s good. But this is new. And it’s fragile, and it can’t be an institution that depends on the extraordinary leadership of somebody of Bachelet’s quality. It’s got to be firing on all cylinders, all day long, every day and for years to come.

Coleman: I have 50 more questions, but we’re out of time. I just want to thank you so much for joining us here today. (applause)

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AS DELIVERED

Thank you, Mr. President, and thank you especially for convening today’s important session. I’d also like to thank the Secretary-General and Dr. Shehu for your briefings. Although we focus today on terrorism in Africa, we recall the victims of terrorist attacks everywhere, as well as their families. From Karachi to Kano, Mogadishu to Benghazi and Amenas, and from Baghdad to Boston, the thousands of lives lost and shattered remind us, tragically, that the scourge of terrorism affects us all and that combating it requires our shared determination and common efforts.

Mr. President, terrorist groups continue to threaten peace, security, and, stability across Africa. In the Sahel, al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) joined with mercenary fighters fleeing Libya to exploit the Tuareg rebellion and overrun the northern two-thirds of Mali. In Nigeria, Boko Haram and Ansaru are taking advantage of poor socio-economic conditions and popular discontent to challenge state authorities and sow communal conflict. In Somalia, al-Shabaab is still launching ferocious attacks on the Somali government and people as it seeks to derail the country’s transition. As we saw just eight days ago in Arusha, Tanzania, terrorism is not confined to conflict zones, but can happen anywhere, anytime.

Nevertheless, the fight against terrorism in Africa has made progress over the last year. Somalia and Mali show how international and regional cooperation and action can help to weaken terrorist groups that pose grave threats to entire nations. In these cases, African nations, with critical support from the international community, have actively confronted terrorist threats. Working together, French, Chadian, and Malian forces have taken on a growing terrorist haven in Mali. This Council imposed UN sanctions against the Movement for Unity and Jihad, Ansar Eddine and associated individuals in Mali and authorized two successive missions to help stabilize the country. At the same time, the persistence and sacrifice of African Union peacekeepers with international assistance has helped Somalia start to reclaim its country from the brutal grip of al-Shabaab.

And yet, al-Qaida and affiliated groups remain dangerous, and they’re becoming more diffuse and entrepreneurial. With fragile, new governments in North Africa and unrest elsewhere on the continent, violent extremists have increasingly exploited porous borders, political vacuums, local grievances, socio-economic stresses, and diminished focus on counterterrorism to pursue their deadly objectives.

Meanwhile, terrorists in Africa continue to fund their operations through illicit activities while their tactics are becoming more sophisticated. Transnational terrorists are trafficking weapons, drugs, and even human beings to raise money for heinous attacks. We remain deeply concerned, that AQIM and related groups are using kidnapping for ransom to finance terrorism. The international community cannot turn a blind eye to this crime and must stop paying ransoms. Furthermore, terrorists’ use of improvised explosive devices, or IEDs, is on the rise in Africa, as al-Shaabab’s recent car bombing of Somali government and Qatari aid delegation members demonstrates. This troubling trend warrants increased Security Council attention, and we welcome opportunities to develop counter-IED initiatives with African and other partners.

The multifaceted threat of terrorism in Africa requires a multidimensional response. The United Nations Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy recognizes as much. A comprehensive approach not only involves tactical efforts and capacity-building to thwart attacks and degrade terrorist infrastructure. It also features strategic initiatives to reduce violent extremism and shrink the pipeline of terrorists.

Thus, the United States has intensified capacity-building assistance to African partners. Our Trans-Sahara Counterterrorism Partnership and our Partnership for Regional East African Counterterrorism programs help African states to tighten border security, promote economic development, disrupt terrorist networks, prevent attacks, and prosecute perpetrators. Over the past year, the U.S. has trained over 2,320 officials in 18 African countries conducting law enforcement and rule of law activities. U.S. Legal Attaches and advisors are working with host country governments in Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Tunisia, Senegal, and Algeria to strengthen justice sector capacity to address terrorism.

In addition, to counter violent extremist propaganda online, the United States established the Center for Strategic Counterterrorism Communications, which has supported citizen journalists to disseminate accurate, non-extremist information across northern Mali and has funded projects in Nigeria and Niger to highlight local stories of resilience in the face of terrorism.

We further welcome the contributions that the Global Counterterrorism Forum (GCTF), in partnership with the UN and African Union, has made in addressing terrorism across the continent. GCTF’s good practices memorandums on criminal justice, the rehabilitation and reintegration of violent extremists, and the prevention against kidnapping for ransom by terrorists, are practical tools for governments to combat terrorism within a rule of law framework. However, these guides are only as useful as the political will and capacity to implement them.

Mr. President, building state capacity to fight terrorists and enlisting communities in this fight remains indispensable. But we must be wary of repressive approaches, which often fuel the very radicalization they seek to eliminate. Indeed, reducing the threat of terrorism in Africa demands a broader effort to create freer, more prosperous and tolerant societies in which radicalization is rare, opportunity is palpable, and hope thrives. This requires fighting poverty and corruption. It requires expanding trade and investment, and building critical infrastructure so that African economies can grow sustainably. It requires effective conflict prevention and resolution; it requires improving governments’ delivery of services to their peoples, from quality education to health care to justice. And it requires ensuring that people are able to hold their governments accountable. Through this framework and in partnership with the people and governments of the continent, the United States is working to empower citizens, promote good governance, strengthen human rights and the rule of law, and boost economic growth and development.

In doing so, we remain mindful that no one nation can fight terrorism alone. We must work together, as partners, with shared commitment and mutual assistance to end this scourge. We owe nothing less to the legion of victims and to future generations.

Thank you, Mr. President.

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AS DELIVERED

Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and thank you, Ms. Casar, for your update on the Secretary-General’s proposed budget for the 2014-2015 biennium. We applaud the hard work and commitment by the Secretary-General and indeed by entire management team to meet the GA’s mandated planning level for 2014-2015. We are very pleased to hear that the UN will be able to fully achieve all mandates within this level and the lower budget planning level will not materially impact the Organization’s ability to deliver on its core functions. We also note with appreciation the Organization’s ongoing efforts to modernize its working methods and find better ways to implement the mandates entrusted to the Organization.

The GA’s decision on the budget level was both clear and responsible. It was intended to encourage, as in fact it has done, the Secretariat to think creatively about how to best to deliver mandates, while taking into account the financial constraints that most Member States are now experiencing. That decision adopted by all of us was one element of a broad set of resolutions we adopted last December. And while any of us could find some element we wish we hadn’t agreed to in almost any resolution – especially six months after the fact – we should all remember and proceed with great and appropriate caution the comprehensive nature of the compromise that brought us to consensus.

There’s an important point to be made, Mr. Chairman, about what we call the “mandates” on the UN. A “mandate” is the result we expect, not the way that result is achieved. Our mandate in the second resumed session, for example, is not to attend four weeks of meetings, or make hundreds of interventions, or to exchange dozens of proposals; it is in fact to approve the peacekeeping budgets for the Organization. The former are means; while the latter is the end.

So the idea that there is somehow a one-to-one ratio between money and mandates – that any increase in mandates requires an increase in the budget – is utterly misleading. Public and private organizations everywhere know this truth, and by using different means find ways to achieve greater ends using fewer resources: “doing more with less,” as we say and sometimes dramatically more with dramatically less. By approving this modest reduction – and to be clear, the planning figure established by the GA amounts to just a 1.8% reduction for 2014-2015 from the Secretary-General’s request – the General Assembly directed the UN to manage our resources just as businesses, governments and families around the world do, especially in these times: by streamlining operations to achieve the desired outcomes within the budget envelope.

We hope that the final 2014-2015 budget proposal will show these new ways of working as well as the tangible benefits from our heavy investment in business transformation initiatives, such as UMOJA. And we encourage a continued focus, in the budget presentation, on how the UN will accomplish the mandates contained in the 2014-2015 Strategic Framework within the designated $5.393 billion envelope.

For our part, we in the Fifth Committee would do well to remember that word, “strategic.” We should set levels and direction, give broad guidance, and look at the key drivers of costs and results. We should not, however, micromanage the professionals we have hired to administer the UN, nor should we ourselves confuse outputs (whether 90 or 95 reports will be produced, for example) with outcomes (whether a given expense will produce a real-world result in improved security, better-protected rights or increased prosperity).

In this regard, the United States continues to be concerned that we have not yet seen a comprehensive analysis of the overall staffing structure of the Organization. As we know, staff costs comprise about 70% of the budget. If we do not look seriously, and soon, at the UN’s staffing table, we are setting the stage for unfortunate programmatic impacts in the very near future. This is one of the reasons the GA mandated a comprehensive staffing review last December. And while we are encouraged by the limited efforts underway to right-size the Organization, we do not believe they go nearly far enough. So we hope that the results of this review will be presented as part of the 2014-2015 budget proposal as requested by the General Assembly.

We are also concerned that the 2014-2015 budget proposal may not be the final proposal. Additional PBIs will likely come to the Fifth Committee later this year, and additional needs may arise during the 2014-15 biennium due to urgent requirements. In order to accommodate these exigencies, we need to manage the budget request for 2014-2015 to create room for such unforeseen requirements.

We also understand that the number does not include anticipated re-costing for the 2014-2015 period, which could take the overall budget much higher. This is deeply troubling and we urge the Secretary-General to re-examine his proposal to ensure that the true 2014-2015 budget request is fully inclusive and in line with the GA-mandated $5.393 billion budget outline level. Quite simply, a budget level is a ceiling, not a floor.

Lastly, in looking ahead not just to the 2014-2015 budget but to the Organization’s budgeting and planning more generally, we need to reengage in pursuing real and significant budget reforms. This task has been delayed for far too long, and it’s time to end the cycle of ongoing changes to every budget.

Mr. Chairman, in closing let me reiterate our appreciation for the efforts Ms. Casar and her team have made to build a budget proposal for 2014-2015 that responds to the GA’s direction from five months ago. We stand ready to work with all colleagues to ensure the UN’s sustainability through a thoughtful and responsible budget. Thank you.

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AS PREPARED

Thank you all. And thanks for meeting me on my home turf.

David, you’ve been a source of wise counsel and a tremendous friend. I am very grateful for all you do. It’s also an honor to share the stage with my friend, Ambassador Ron Prosor. We spend a good bit of time together, as you might imagine. Israel is lucky to have him at the UN.

I’m deeply moved to receive AJC’s Distinguished Public Service Award. My mother isn’t a member of the Women’s Leadership Board—not yet, at least—but I’m sorry she isn’t here to see this. She would have got a lot of naches. I’m proud to accept this honor as a tribute to the dedicated work by President Obama, his administration, and my colleagues at the U.S. Mission to the UN.

AJC has a distinguished history fighting for human rights, democracy, the Jewish people, and the state of Israel. I commend AJC and its leadership for your thoughtful approach. We all understand the UN’s flaws. But AJC has also understood the importance of the UN, and of working for change with persistence, patience, and principle. That’s not the easiest path, but it is the most constructive one, and I’m grateful.

I know the UN isn’t everyone’s favorite place. At its best, the UN does extraordinary things such as: keep the peace, help save untold civilians from Qaddafi in Libya, midwife the new nation of South Sudan, and empower women and girls worldwide. But the UN isn’t at its best when it comes to Israel. In fact, it’s sometimes at its worst. Anyone who cares about the international system has to be concerned when one member state is unfairly singled out. At the UN, Israel endures a barrage of obsessive, unbalanced, and relentless criticism. That undermines the trust between the parties that Secretary of State John Kerry is working so hard to build. It also undermines the UN’s own highest values. The UN should be a place where conflicts are cooled, not inflamed—where confidence is built, not eroded.

From President Obama on down, our view is that Israel-bashing at the UN isn’t just a problem for Israel. It’s a problem for all of us.

Israel faces challenges at the UN both to its security and to its legitimacy.

Let me start with security. Under President Obama, the security relationship between America and Israel has never been stronger. As he told Israelis in Jerusalem, you are not alone. You can see that in the incredible cooperation between our security establishments; in our investment in the Iron Dome system that’s saved Israeli civilians from Hamas rockets; and in the largest program yet to help Israel keep its qualitative military edge so that it can defend itself—by itself.

We are very clear about the threats to Israel’s security. There’s Hamas, which denies Israel’s right to exist and deliberately targets civilians. I’ve visited Sderot, and I’ve seen the rocket shrapnel, and it’s horrific. During the fighting last November, we steered the Security Council towards quickly endorsing the cease-fire agreement negotiated by Secretary Clinton, while avoiding unhelpful initiatives. Then, there’s Hezbollah, a terrorist organization that stockpiles missiles to aim at Haifa and Tel Aviv. As President Obama has said, Israel is justifiably concerned about the risk of Hezbollah obtaining advanced weapon systems.

And, of course, there’s Iran. Iran isn’t just Israel’s problem. It’s a threat to us all. A nuclear-armed Iran would undermine the world’s nuclear nonproliferation regime, raise the danger of nuclear terrorism, risk an arms race in the Middle East, and embolden a reckless government. So we’ve worked hard at the UN and elsewhere to build an unprecedented coalition that has put the Iranian government under more pressure than ever before. Under President Obama’s leadership, the Security Council adopted Resolution 1929, imposing the toughest sanctions ever against Iran. Iran’s currency has lost more than 50 percent of its value. Its inflation has skyrocketed to close to 40 percent. And Iran’s oil exports are down 1 million barrels per day from an average of 2.5 million barrels per day this time last year—a 40 percent decrease.

Now, pressure combined with strong and principled diplomacy is our preferred path to compel Iran’s government to forsake its pursuit of nuclear weapons. But the time for diplomacy is not unlimited, and President Obama has been clear. This is not a danger that can be contained. America will do what it takes to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon.

My colleagues and I not only fight for Israel’s security. We also fight nearly every day for Israel’s legitimacy.

When the deeply flawed Goldstone Report was released, we insisted on Israel’s right to defend itself. When major events were held to follow up on the notorious Durban conference, we twice refused to participate. And when the UN Human Rights Council turns to Agenda Item Seven on Israel, its only standing agenda item on any country in the world, we work to end this glaring, structural bias.

But it’s not all defense. We collaborate closely with our Israeli partners to support Israel in assuming its full and rightful place across the UN system. That includes dramatically expanding Israel’s participation in Western and like-minded groups, helping Israel win more leadership roles in UN bodies, and adopting a groundbreaking General Assembly resolution last year on entrepreneurship and development—which Israel sponsored and Ambassador Prosor shepherded, which garnered 141 votes.

At the same time, we aim to ensure that actions at the UN don’t make genuine peace harder to reach. So when the Palestinians prematurely sought UN membership, we stood firm on principle. When the Palestinians forced a Security Council vote on settlements, we cast our sole veto of this Administration. We did so because the conflict’s core issues can only be resolved by direct negotiations between the parties—not through diversions at the UN.

In recent days, the Arab Peace Initiative has been given new life and energy. That’s a significant step forward. The United States will continue to work tirelessly to end this tragic conflict by helping the parties establish, through direct negotiations, two states for two peoples—a secure, Jewish, and democratic state of Israel next to a sovereign, viable Palestinian state.

Still, we all know this remains a turbulent time in the Middle East—even an unnerving one. The transitions in Egypt, Tunisia, Yemen, and Libya all face uncertainty, turmoil, and sometimes setbacks. Indeed, we should brace ourselves for more turbulence ahead. But we also must not lose sight of our values or interests. When ordinary people stand up for their basic rights, we should stand with them. When nations long stifled by tyranny find their voice, we should stand by them. Free and democratic societies are ultimately more prosperous, more peaceful, and more stable. We do not know how exactly this wave of revolutions will end. What we do know is our commitment to Israel’s security will never waver. And democracy is a wise long-term bet—not just for our values but for our security.

The universal ideals we cherish have been raised like a banner in some parts of the Arab world—and trampled in others. It is only a matter of time before Bashar al-Assad and his murderous regime is relegated to the pages of history and Syria belongs to the Syrian people. We urge those countries that continue to prop him up to stop and to help end this massive tragedy. We remain deeply involved in efforts to further isolate and pressure Assad’s regime, strengthen the moderate opposition, reduce the suffering, assist Syria’s overwhelmed neighbors, and speed a solution that ends the slaughter and realizes the aspirations of the Syrian people.

We’re meeting today in a place that should embody our best values. Israel’s founders thought so too. On the Fourth of July 1947, in Jerusalem, David Ben-Gurion testified before the UN Special Committee on Palestine. The UN, he said, carried the world’s highest hopes for “stable and lasting peace, which is possible only if based on justice, equality, and cooperation between nations great and small.” The UN, Ben-Gurion said, embodied “a hope and a need for a comprehensive international system establishing relations between peoples on the rule of right instead of might; on mutual help instead of competition; on freedom, equality, and goodwill instead of oppression, discrimination, and exploitation.”

Ben-Gurion’s words still offer a stirring vision for what the UN can be. They still evoke a noble dream of a better planet. Let us remember those hopes—and come together in the holy work of mending our broken world.

Thank you so much.

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External links to other Internet sites should not be construed as an endorsement of the views or privacy policies contained therein.

AS DELIVERED

Good evening, everyone. Wow, what an honor!

And thank you so much for that incredibly kind introduction. That’s the type of thing that my husband appreciates and my mother actually believes. Some of you may know that my mom, Lois Rice, who is here tonight, served many years ago on the Joint Center board. That historic symmetry makes tonight especially meaningful for me and my family.

I want to begin by saying thank you – thank you to Ralph Everett for his exceptional leadership, thank you to your top-quality scholars, and thank you to your distinguished Board so ably led by Cynthia Marshall. For as long as I can remember, the Joint Center has produced the pre-eminent analysis of the political, social and economic progress and challenges facing the African-American community. Your research is universally respected. My colleagues and I in the Obama Administration value your analysis and know how helpful it is to setting priorities and making tough decisions.

I’m also delighted to see many friends and colleagues here. I am particularly pleased to join in honoring Representative Marcia Fudge and all the members of the Congressional Black Caucus for their many contributions to our community and our nation. Without the CBC’s relentless advocacy and effective leadership on so many issues, I shudder to think where we would be today.

I must also say that it is always a privilege to hear Vice President Joe Biden. I’ve worked closely with him for these last four years, and I can personally attest that he is truly a great Vice President, a rare leader, and a very special friend. He’s fought for social justice and civil rights for his entire career, and as you heard he’s not stopping now.

Ladies and gentlemen, I’m deeply honored to receive the Great American Award named for the titan, Louis E. Martin. Throughout his remarkable career in journalism and government, Martin embodied an abiding dedication to progress and public service. Both are profoundly powerful callings for me and for so many of us in this room. I’m especially moved to be just the second woman to receive this award, after the legendary Dr. Dorothy Height. I’m so grateful to be here in the company of Congressman James Clyborn. It is humbling to be in this group.

I accept this award with deep gratitude for those who came before me, for the opportunities I’ve been given, and for this Center and its vital mission. To put it in President Obama’s terms, the Joint Center has helped us navigate the transition from the Moses generation to the Joshua generation— and to help build the bridge that America has traveled from the time of Dr. King to the age of President Obama.

Yet, we all know: progress doesn’t just happen. It’s the product of collective effort and individual courage—of leaders who call us to greatness and inspire us to sacrifice—of ordinary people who won’t take “no” for an answer or “later” for a timeline. Together, we’ve made major strides. Under President Obama’s leadership, America is creating millions of new jobs after the devastating Great Recession. Health care will be more affordable and accessible. We’ve expanded the Earned Income Tax Credit and the Child Tax Credit, protected citizens from financial abuses, and helped countless families keep their homes in a depressed market. We’ve increased access to college, the key to economic mobility, by increasing the number of Pell Grant recipients by 3 million or 50 percent since 2008. We’re pressing every day to ensure that equal rights and equal treatment are available for all Americans. We’ve ended the war in Iraq, brought justice to Osama bin Laden, prevented mass atrocities in Libya and helped shepherd the peaceful birth of South Sudan. And we will continue working relentlessly every day to keep America safe, while advancing U.S. interests and championing universal values abroad.

But, we also know that there is so much more to do—from common sense gun control to comprehensive immigration reform, from tackling poverty and stubborn unemployment to building an education system for the 21st century. The next generation deserves the support and opportunities that so many of us have had. They need the tools and the spirit to compete in a global economy. We owe to them a future where equality is real no matter who you are or who you love; a future where prosperity is possible for all, including those held back by poverty or kept down by bigotry.

These challenges are urgent and serious for all Americans, but they are particularly critical for the African American community, which has suffered disproportionately from the Great Recession. We all know unemployment is much higher among African Americans, and poverty is more pervasive. Too many of our kids still grow up without fathers and risk their lives just to attend failing schools. We’re still struggling to access educational opportunities and even to be able to exercise the right to vote.

You and I know this and, most importantly, President Obama knows this. And that is why he and his Administration are working hard every day to lift up our communities of color and expand opportunity. That’s why we’re widening access to quality early childhood and higher education, including through the launch of the White House Initiative for Educational Excellence and the White House Initiative on Historically Black Colleges and Universities. That is why we are supporting working families and minority businesses, investing in job training, and trying to increase the minimum wage. That is why the President is promoting affordable home ownership and revitalizing struggling communities. And that is why we will not rest until we end the scourge of senseless gun violence.

As we continue this struggle, let us remember that the rights we cherish at home belong not just to Americans but to all people. The security and prosperity we seek are sought the world over. And let us never underestimate the power of our example when we live up to our ideals. America today proudly shoulders the mantle of leadership in a profoundly complicated and interconnected world, where indifference to the suffering of others can undermine our security and well-being here at home. In this world, we have no better option than to work together – at the local, national and global levels.

So, may tonight remind us that our common struggle to perfect our union, to uplift the vulnerable, and to forge a more peaceful, prosperous world is not nearly over. By empowering and investing in all Americans, by strengthening our communities, by expanding equality at home, and by promoting justice, democracy and growth abroad, this country will fulfill its promise and continue to lead and inspire the world throughout the 21st century.

Thank you again for this extraordinary honor. And thank you all so much for everything you do.

Goodnight.

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External links to other Internet sites should not be construed as an endorsement of the views or privacy policies contained therein.