EU Presidency Statement - Security Council Joint Briefing 1267/CTC/1540 Committees

United Nations Security Council, Public Meeting, Joint Briefing of the Chairpersons of the Al-Qaida/Taliban Sanctions Committee, the Counter-Terrorism Committee and the Committee established pursuant to Security Council resolution 1540 (2004); Statement by Ambassador Gerhard Pfanzelter, Permanent Representative of Austria to the United Nations, on behalf of the European Union.

Mr. President,

I have to honor to speak on behalf of the European Union. The Acceding Countries Bulgaria and Romania, the Candidate Countries Turkey, Croatia* and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia*, the Countries of the Stabilisation and Association Process and potential candidates Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia and Montenegro, and the EFTA countries Iceland and Norway, members of the European Economic Area, as well as Ukraine and the Republic of Moldova align themselves with this declaration.

I would like to thank the Chairpersons of the Al-Qaida/Taliban Sanctions Committee, the Counter-Terrorism Committee and the Committee established pursuant to Security Council resolution 1540 (2004) for their comprehensive and informative briefings. The European Union welcomes today's joint briefing as an important contribution to strengthen the acceptance, legitimacy and transparency of the Security Council's efforts in the field of counter-terrorism and non-proliferation of WMD, including their means of delivery.

Mr. President,

Terrorism is a threat to all States and to all peoples. Terrorism knows no borders. It is a global threat that requires a global and comprehensive response. In a global fight against terrorism, the United Nations has a unique role to play. The 13 universal UN conventions and protocols against terrorism together with Security Council resolutions 1267 (1999), 1373 (2001), 1540 (2004) and 1624 (2005) and other relevant resolutions provide the legal framework for multilateral action against terrorism. The European Union continues to be committed to reach agreement on a comprehensive convention on international terrorism during the 60th session of the General Assembly in order to achieve the objective agreed at the 2005 World Summit.

It is also imperative that the United Nations and its Member States continue to show their unity and resolve in their fight against terrorism by adopting and implementing a global counter-terrorism strategy without delay, based on the elements and recommendations in the Secretary-General's report presented on 2 May 2006 (A/60/825). The strategy should be operational and action-oriented, focus on capacity-building, coordination and cooperation, and should involve all relevant actors: Member States, the United Nations, all 23 bodies and organizations in the UN Counter-Terrorism Implementation Task Force, civil society, and the public at large. As highlighted in the Secretary-General's report, we believe that in the global fight against terrorism the Security Council and its Committees have a key role to play.

Mr. President,

Turning to the work of the three Committees, the European Union reaffirms the importance of the respect for international law, in particular human rights law, refugee law and international humanitarian law, including due process and the rule of law, in the fight against terrorism, which is a prerequisite for making that fight both legitimate and effective. We reiterate the call of the 2005 World Summit on the Security Council to ensure that fair and clear procedures exist for placing individuals and entities on sanctions lists and for removing them, as well as for granting humanitarian exemptions.

The European Union calls upon the 1267-Committee to continue its efforts to further improve the Al-Qaida/Taliban sanctions regime, especially the consolidated list and the Committee's guidelines. We expect that the Committee will expeditiously take up its work on the guidelines dealing with listing and delisting procedures, as mandated by Security Council resolution 1617 (2005), taking into account the important recommendations in the fourth report of the Analytical Support and Sanctions Monitoring Team (S/2006/154). In this regard, we note the contributions of some Member States to this important issue, including an academic study on "Strengthening Targeted Sanctions through Clear and Fair Procedures", sponsored by Germany, Sweden and Switzerland, as well as initiatives by Council Members such as Denmark and France. We also note the recent publication of a legal opinion commissioned by the Office of Legal Affairs on the UN website.

In our view effective listing and delisting procedures are essential to preserve the legitimacy and reinforce the efficacy of the UN sanctions regime. A number of cases are currently pending before various courts, including the European Court of Justice, which challenge the Al-Qaida/Taliban sanctions regime as violating the rights of listed individuals to a fair trial and to an effective remedy. We believe that the Security Council should devote special attention to this matter, since a negative court ruling would not only put the Member States concerned in a difficult position, but might call the whole system of targeted UN sanctions into question.

We would also like to draw attention to the efforts of the democratically elected government of Afghanistan to foster the process of national reconciliation, which have led it to put forward requests to the 1267-Committee for delisting of certain individuals who hold governmental functions, among others at key positions at the provincial level, in Afghanistan. We call upon the Committee to quickly decide upon those requests in order to support the process of national reconciliation, as well as the rebuilding and stabilization efforts of the international community.

Mr. President,

The European Union fully supports the latest work programme of the Counter-Terrorism-Committee (CTC) for the period from April to June 2006. We welcome the goal of the CTC to achieve concrete results with regard to the revision of the reporting regime, the enhancement of dialogue with Member States and the deepening of relations with international, regional and subregional organizations. We note with appreciation that the Committee intends to shift its focus from reporting to implementation and to start reflecting on additional means to address the case of States which do not meet the requirements of resolution 1373 (2001), based on the analysis of country reports provided by the Counter-Terrorism Executive Directorate (CTED). The European Union supports the steps of the CTC to encourage States to report on their implementation of resolution 1624 (2005) and reiterates its call upon the CTC, with the help of the human rights expert in CTED, to further intensify its efforts to streamline human rights through its entire work.

The European Union welcomes the efforts of the CTC/CTED to improve the coordination, coherence and efficiency of delivery of technical assistance in the field of counter-terrorism. We commend the efforts of CTED to enter into dialogue with States and encourage the continuation of joint visits, including an efficient follow-up, together with other entities of the UN system and regional organizations. In this context, the European Union reiterates its readiness to continue its cooperation and participation in CTED visits. We are also pleased to note the exemplary cooperation between CTED, as key facilitator of technical assistance, and the Terrorism Prevention Branch of UNODC, as a key provider of technical assistance to requesting countries for the ratification and implementation of the 13 universal UN conventions and protocols against terrorism. Finally, we call upon CTED to work closely with all technical assistance providers and share information that might be helpful for them in their assistance programs.

Mr. President,

The European Union remains deeply concerned about the danger of proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, including their means of delivery, and of their acquisition by non-state actors, in particular terrorists. The European Union highly welcomes the recent adoption of Security Council resolution 1673 (2006), which extended the mandate of the 1540-Committee for a further period of two years until 27 April 2008. We commend the Committee and its group of experts for their comprehensive final report and recommendations on the implementation of resolution 1540 (2004) (S/2006/257), which shall constitute a basis for the adoption of a comprehensive programme of work addressing the resolution in all its aspects. We recognize that the full implementation of resolution 1540 is a long-term task that will require continuous efforts at national, regional and international levels. In this regard, we note with concern that as of today 57 States have not yet submitted their first reports. We urge all States which have not yet done so to submit their reports to the Committee and reiterate our readiness to consider any request for assistance or advice to such States as might be required.

The European Union welcomes the Committee's intention to keep the facilitation of further reporting and the promotion of the implementation of resolution 1540 through outreach activities among the top priorities of its future work. In this regard, we would like to inform that the European Union will adopt a Joint Action to provide support to the three regional seminars in China, Ghana and Peru, which will be organized by the 1540-Committee in the second half of this year. We also commend the Committee for the recent publication on its official website of a legislative database containing relevant information about national laws, regulations and other measures related to the implementation of resolution 1540, which will be an important tool for Member States when enacting national implementation laws and measures.

Mr. President,

Let me conclude by stressing the need for the United Nations and its Member States to stand united in a concerted effort to combat the global terrorist menace we face today. The European Union stands ready to play its part.

Thank you.


*Croatia and the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia continue to be part of the Stabilisation and Association Process.

| Arriba |

• EU Presidency Statement - Security Council: Al-Qaida/Taliban Sanctions Committee, Counter-Terrorism Committee and the Committee established pursuant to SC Resolution 1540 (2004) (28/9/2006)
• Calendar of Austrian Presidency January - June 2006 (1/1/2006)
• Directory of the Austrian Mission to the United Nations (1/1/2006)