March 28, 2024

Statement by Amb. Korneliou, Peacebuilding and Sustainable Peace, 25 April 2018

peacebuilding-1HIGH-LEVEL MEETING on Peacebuilding and Sustaining Peace 

United Nations, New York, 24-25 April 2018

Mr. President,

At the outset, let me congratulate you for organizing this important and timely High-level event and commend you for your copious efforts in this regard. We hope that this event will prove to be instrumental in garnering support for the new UN approach on peacebuilding and sustaining peace.

Cyprus aligns itself with the statement the European Union and would like to add the following in its national capacity.

The ‘sustaining peace’ agenda is part of a wider response to the urgent need to strengthen the coherence of the UN system aiming at addressing the root causes of conflicts and new threats and challenges to international peace and security, such as terrorism and extremism.

Cyprus supports the efforts of the Secretary-General and the renewed focus on the need for a UN system that can better serve its Member States in their efforts to prevent armed conflicts and sustain peace.

The concept of ‘sustaining peace’ represents a shift in current practice, as it espouses a system-wide approach that incorporates peace-building and peacekeeping alongside sustainable development, human rights and humanitarian activities. Sustaining peace is essentially the responsibility of Member States and the process must be owned and led by the governments and people of conflict-affected countries, with the support of the international community. The UN system should support Member States, within the framework defined by the UN Charter, and must be given the operational, financial and political resources to deliver this support effectively.

From a national perspective, the Cyprus question is certainly pertinent in this context. The Cyprus question remains an issue of international peace and security of the United Nations, due to the enduring foreign occupation and forceful de-facto division of the country, in gross violation of the UN Charter and the international law.

In this regard, as a country that has sheltered by and has relied on UN peacekeeping, we are grateful and highly value the role of United Nations Peace-Keeping Force in Cyprus. As long as the prevailing situation on the ground remains unchanged and until a comprehensive solution to the Cyprus question is reached, UNFICYP’s continued presence, in its current mandate, remains indispensable.

Let me reiterate that we remain firmly committed to a solution of the Cyprus question, as enshrined in the relevant UN resolutions, as the only way forward.  The United Nations remains the only forum through which a comprehensive settlement can be achieved and should thus be at the forefront of efforts to reunite Cyprus.  A just and lasting settlement would benefit the people of Cyprus and contribute decisively to the wider efforts to maintain a much-needed environment of peace, stability and prosperity in the region.

At the same time, it is crucial that all actors embrace the importance of sustaining peace through dialogue and the respect of international law.

 

Mr. President

We hope that this event will contribute to forging a strong consensus on a renewed and reformed Peace and Security Architecture by 2020 and that the United Nations will be better equipped to help fragile and war-torn nations build a more durable and just peace.

Cyprus stands ready to render its full support.