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EU Presidency Statement - Prevention of armed conflicts

Mr. President,

I have the honor of speaking on behalf of the European Union.

The countries of Central and Eastern Europe associated with the European Union (Bulgaria, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, the Czech Republic, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia), Cyprus and Malta (also associated countries) endorse this statement.

The European Union congratulates the Jamaican Presidency on organizing this debate on conflict prevention. This is an aspect often overlooked in peacekeeping and the maintenance of international security when, in accordance with Article 1(1) of the Charter, the purposes of the United Nations are, inter alia, to "take effective collective measures for the prevention and removal of threats to peace". The Secretary-General has rightly called for the development of a "culture of prevention".

I. I would firstly like to underline the importance of prevention but also the difficulties it raises.

- There are several reasons why the prevention of armed conflicts arouses less interest than dealing with the effects of armed conflicts themselves. This is particularly regrettable since prevention is always less costly than dealing with conflicts, be it from the human, political, economic or financial point of view.

Prevention very often involves discretion more than publicity; perseverance more than action. It therefore seems less status-enhancing in political and media terms.

Prevention is not risk-free: there is a risk of over-reacting or of not acting enough; of acting too soon or too late. Nevertheless, we must accept this risk since by not taking the risk, we leave ourselves open to even greater difficulties.

The result of prevention is also difficult to assess: how do we know whether a particular action has achieved its aim ? How do we learn from a policy of prevention ?

- The difficulty with prevention is also due to the problem of its compatibility with the principle of sovereignty of States.

Most of the current conflicts are not direct conflicts between States but internal conflicts resulting from economic and/or political problems: seizure of power and wealth by a political or ethnic group; failure to comply with the rights of minority groups; secessionism, etc.

It should of course be pointed out that local forces have the main responsibility for prevention. Does this mean, however, that these internal crises and tensions which may degenerate into conflict do not involve the international community? In fact, for several years the Security Council has shown that it was dealing with internal conflicts which, in almost every case, have international repercussions.

Preventive action presupposes that at a stage prior to the eruption of the conflict the Security Council may become involved in a potentially dangerous situation and, where necessary, propose what action should be taken. This case has already arisen in the past. The Council has acknowledged its responsibility. This shows that it can and knows how to adapt to developments in the very nature of conflicts, including from the point of view of prevention. Such adaptation should be welcomed and encouraged.

This development should, however, not be confined to the Security Council but be fully taken on board by States themselves and by regional organizations which have an essential role to play in the matter.

II. Secondly, the European Union considers that the best way of preventing conflicts is to deal with their fundamental causes

This goes beyond the sphere of competence of the Security Council but constitutes a fundamental aspect of conflict prevention. Responsibility in these areas lies primarily with the States themselves but the international institutions and donors of funds have a not inconsiderable impetus to add.

- The first, and not the least, aspect is of course economic and social development.

Poverty leads to frustration and revolts which may degenerate into conflicts. Economic development is therefore an essential factor in the prevention of conflicts. We cannot emphasize this point enough. However, such development must be lasting and harmonious:

• it must be lasting so that natural resources are not wasted and economic growth is not achieved to the detriment of future generations;
• it must be harmonious so that everyone benefits from it. It must therefore include a social dimension: public education, hygiene and health, equal access by all, men and women, to a decent standard of living.

The most industrialized countries can and must help the developing countries by placing at their disposal technological, financial and human resources and by maintaining a proper level of aid, including government aid, for development. This is what the European Union is doing by conducting a major policy based on cooperation and the openness of its markets.

- Next, the rule of law, respect for human rights and the democratic foundation and functioning of political systems should be ensured.

A State which respects the fundamental rights of its citizens and which has a political system based on elections allows not only freedom of expression but also everyone's interests to be taken into account, thus reducing the risks that all or part of society will rebel against the State or want to break away from it.

Political life should not be based on an "all or nothing" approach. This means that room should be allowed for political, ethnic and religious minorities and for different religions so that the alternative for them is not between their absence from political life or recourse to armed violence.

- Finally, the importance of good governance cannot be over-emphasized.

Good governance covers several aspects: the exploitation of resources for the benefit of all and not the enrichment of a small group; the sound management of public finances so as to provide basic services for the entire population; anti-corruption measures; administration in the general interest and not solely in the interest of those in government; the fact that those in government must be accountable. As many examples to the contrary have shown, good governance makes it possible to reduce the risks of conflict resulting from shortage, seizure of power and the effects of a "culture of predation".

III. In addition to dealing with the causes, it is also necessary to remove the sources behind the funding and fuelling of conflicts and the fostering of such conflicts

- The international community has become increasingly aware of the need to combat the illegal exploitation of and trafficking in natural resources and the production of and trafficking in drugs.

Armed conflicts are triggered and are kept going all the more easily if they can be funded by means derived from the illegal exploitation of and trade in natural resources, in particular diamonds which are easy to dispose of and the origin of which is difficult to identify, and drugs.

The market needs to be regulated so as to abolish trafficking and to increase the transparency of the transactions. This involves:

• boosting cooperation between States, marketing centers, industrialists and regional organizations;
• supporting the efforts of producer States to tighten up their regulations and their ways of stopping trafficking;
• looking into the possibility of certifying rough diamonds, defining codes of conduct for industrialists and setting up an international agency responsible for promoting transparency and responsibility.

I will not dwell upon the problem of drug trafficking, the extent and complexity of which is well known. I will merely point out that certain conflicts, in particular in Afghanistan, persist as a result of this sole but very lucrative resource. This explains the great importance of preventive action in this area.

- Secondly, we must take action against the destabilizing stockpiling of and trafficking in light and small caliber weapons.

Crises degenerate all the more easily into armed conflicts when there is easy access to weapons, in particular light and small caliber weapons. Coordinated action in this sphere is an essential aspect of preventing armed conflict. I am pleased to note that there is increasing mobilization on the part of the international community in this respect.

The sale of light and small caliber weapons needs to be regulated so that at national, regional and international level the transfer of light and small caliber weapons is conducted in a lawful and responsible fashion. In practice, this requires a whole range of measures: strengthening of national laws; the development of regional initiatives - such as, for example, the ECOWAS moratorium, the Nairobi declaration, the EU-SADC action programme, the Inter-American Convention of the OAS; exchange of information on trafficking, the marking of weapons, anti-trafficking measures, international cooperation to increase the capacity of control by the States directly affected by trafficking in small arms; drafting of a protocol on the manufacture of and trafficking in firearms; reduction in the destabilizing stockpiling of small arms (in particular through the adoption of confidence-building measures and through the collection and destruction of all weapons which are not legally owned or which are not necessary for the purposes of national or community defense and of internal security).

For its part, the European Union is very aware of this problem and has adopted a code of conduct on arms exports and a joint action on small arms.

In this context, the European Union is obviously lending its full support to the holding in 2001 of a United Nations Conference on illicit trade in light and small caliber arms in all its aspects.

IV. In addition to the responsibilities of States, regional organizations have an important role in the prevention of conflicts

- Regional organizations may and should firstly have available political and diplomatic machinery for preventing conflicts. Such is the role played by the continental organizations such as the OSCE, the OAS and the OAU, but also by sub-regional organizations such as, for example, ECOWAS in West Africa. They represent the first level for dealing with tensions which are mostly of a regional nature and for finding solutions between all the forces directly involved while ensuring, in the case of internal crises and tensions, that this does not lead to the countries of the region being drawn into the problem alongside the local protagonists.

We should draw conclusions from what has already been done by regional organizations in terms of conflict prevention by regional organizations so that their role can be improved and strengthened. In addition, the emergence of such organizations where they do not already exist should be encouraged.

- These regional cooperation agencies also constitute melting pots in which links of solidarity are formed and in which economic integration takes place enabling them to play a preventive role.

The European Union is a successful model of conflict prevention. It came about after two world wars triggered in Europe in the belief that it was necessary to create common economic interests to prevent the resurgence of conflicts, that each country should have sufficient interests in and with the neighboring countries to make war impossible. After centuries of tearing one another apart, the member countries of the European Union have thus lived in peace for over half a century. The lesson to be drawn from this European success story is that it is better to share and jointly exploit resources than to go and purloin one's neighbor's. The lesson holds good in particular for problems of access to and the distribution of water resources, which are an ever more crucial element.

We can only rejoice that this path has been chosen by regional organizations, for example in West Africa with the ECOWAS and in Asia with ASEAN.

V. Finally, what is the role of the United Nations and what are the means at its disposal in this field of prevention of armed conflict?

Bearing in mind the diversity of questions dealt with in the context of conflict prevention, many United Nations bodies, specialized agencies, funds and programs have a role to play. In a Security Council debate such as this, I will concentrate on that role.

- The Security Council's main responsibility as regards peacekeeping and security also extends to the prevention of armed conflict. It falls to it to investigate any dispute or situation to determine whether that dispute or situation could degenerate into armed conflict, and to take appropriate measures. The Council must assume that responsibility in full, taking into account the change in the nature of conflicts (90% are now civil conflicts). Its effectiveness will also improve through greater account being taken of that dimension.

In this context a reminder should be given of the role of the Secretary-General in apprising the Security Council in accordance with Article 99 of the United Nations Charter. The Secretary-General must not hesitate to draw the Security Council's attention to certain situations. The Secretariat's early-warning, reaction and analysis capabilities should therefore be bolstered so that the Secretary-General is better able to perform that task.

- The Security Council has at its disposal a range of resources of which it must avail itself as much as necessary. I would like to mention a few of them:

• the Security Council's missions, which have seen a very welcome recent revival and which it must be possible to dispatch not only once conflict has occurred, but further upstream;
• preventive disarmament and arms embargoes for preventive purposes;
• the fight against illegal trafficking in mineral raw materials and embargoes on diamonds;
• the establishment of demilitarized zones;
• preventive deployment, including in the field of civilian police.

In conclusion, it is pleasing to see the Security Council becoming increasingly aware of the importance of preventive action. This new interest must now be converted into acts and decisions.

Beyond the Council, it is the whole international community - the other United Nations specialized bodies and agencies, regional organizations and Member States - which will have to develop that dimension more effectively and acquire a "culture of prevention".

It is also essential to have an integrated approach extending from the prevention of conflicts to the consolidation of peace after them, so as to break the vicious circle of conflicts we have been unable to avoid followed by peace which we have been unable to achieve.

It is for the Security Council to implement the recommendations made here today in specific cases.

This topic warrants greater attention and sustained attention. It would therefore be worthwhile for the Secretary-General to give us his views and recommendations on the matter - which is requested of him in the draft Presidency declaration to be adopted - and for the Security Council to examine them in due course, if possible at ministerial level.

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• EU Presidency Statement - Prevention of armed conflicts (12/7/2001)