Let me thank Minister of State Shaheen for your statement, and for personally chairing this important meeting today. We are also very appreciative of the briefings from Secretaries-General Guterres and Gheit. Thank you also to Ms Alaqil for your timely remarks.
President,
Yesterday marked 77 years since the foundation of the Arab League. And let me extend Norway’s congratulations to the organization, and its member states. Norway strongly supports enhanced cooperation and dialogue between the Security Council and the Arab League as an essential part of peace and security in the region.
Organizations like the Arab League are vital for facilitating dialogue, building consensus, and bridging differences between States. We would welcome a more prominent role played by the Arab League in promoting stability, peace, and reconciliation in the region – in cooperation with other regional and international partners. And we are pleased to see an emphasis placed today on the role of youth. As Ms. Alaqil’s briefing to the Council demonstrates, youth can be agents of positive change in their communities, and are key to building a more inclusive, sustainable, and effective peace.
President,
You asked for us to identify progress made and avenues for enhanced partnership.
Let me offer four suggestions:
First, it is clear that implementing the Youth, Peace and Security (YPS) agenda can be a collective effort throughout the MENA region. Indeed there are already a few national YPS coalitions, including in Iraq and Jordan. But we believe that further partnership between the UN and Arab League on enhancing implementation of Resolution 2250 throughout the MENA region, would be a valuable way to: share lessons learnt, build capacity, and support the participation of youth in regional peace and security efforts.
Second, enhanced collaboration on children and armed conflict needs to be central to the partnership between the League of Arab States and the United Nations. Strengthening CAAC-sensitive mediation efforts, as well as the prevention of grave violations against children are particularly promising joint endeavours. Including of course protecting education from attack.
Third, another area for further cooperation could be through coordination on issues related to climate and security. We are pleased to note next week’s MENA Climate Week hosted by the UAE, and in partnership with many global and regional partners- including the UN and the Arab League. Multilateral fora: which showcase innovative climate action in the Arab region, and deepen multi-stakeholder approaches- putting civil society at the forefront- are key to addressing the adverse impacts of climate change. Which indeed knows no borders.
And fourth, let me highlight the important role that women in Arab States must play in building regional peace and security. Joint efforts between the Arab League and
UN Women – like the Arab Women Mediators Network, and the Emergency Committee for Protection for Women in Conflict – are strategic opportunities for furthering regional implementation of WPS resolutions.
Moreover, we support efforts to intensify contact and coordination between all relevant UN Special Envoys and the Arab League. To advance a safe and enabling environment for women’s meaningful participation and decision-making in peace processes, and underscoring the importance of a human rights-based approach to peacebuilding.
In closing President,
We are hopeful that enhancing the partnership between the UN and the Arab League can play an important role in deepening peace and security in the region.
Thank you