Remarks by Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield at a UN Security Council open debate on women, peace and security
Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield
US Representative to the United Nations
New-York, New-York
March 7, 2023
AS DELIVERED
Thank you, Madam President. Thank you for bringing us together for this important discussion today. And I greet all our esteemed guests, the President of the Swiss Confederation and all the ministers who are in the room with us today. Your presence reflects the high priority you give to this important issue.
Today’s meeting is an opportunity; It is an opportunity to discuss our collective efforts to fully implement the Women, Peace and Security Agenda as we approach 25 years since the passage of Resolution 1325 and launch the 67th Commission on the Status of Women.
I would also like to thank Nobel Laureate Leyma Gbowee for her briefing, as well as United Nations Executive Director for Women Sima Bahous, ICRC President Egger and AU Special Envoy Diop for taking part in this important debate and for their thoughtful and insightful contributions have. All of your messages were so powerful.
We applaud Mozambique’s efforts to focus on the unique impact of conflict on women and girls, the need for gender mainstreaming, and the importance of meaningful women’s participation at all levels in decision-making processes.
Traveling to Mozambique earlier this year, I met women who are driving positive change through entrepreneurship. Women like Marta Uetela, who founded a company that makes high-performance prosthetics from recycled ocean plastic.
It is our collective responsibility to continue to empower and empower women leaders for change across Africa and around the world. Because the simple fact is, when we do that, we create a more peaceful, prosperous world for all. It has been proven time and again that the full, equitable and meaningful participation of women in peace processes as leaders, negotiators, peacekeepers and peacemakers increases the chances of a just and lasting peace.
Since the passage of Resolution 1325 at the beginning of the 21st century, the UN Security Council has passed 10 standalone resolutions on women, peace and security. But while these efforts are commendable, we must focus on how to most effectively implement the Women, Peace and Security agenda.
As the Secretary-General made clear last year, implementation of these goals by the Security Council remains an ongoing challenge, particularly in the Council’s regional mandates. We see this most clearly in Afghanistan, where the Taliban have not kept their promises to the international community and Afghan women and have taken draconian repressive measures against women and girls. Afghan women are now barred from working in NGOs and cannot attend universities or secondary schools.
This is a deep crisis. It will prevent Afghanistan from achieving stability, economic prosperity and future growth. It puts women and girls at increased risk of gender-based violence and sexual exploitation. And it’s preventing life-saving humanitarian aid from reaching the people of Afghanistan in desperate need.
This council must continue to insist that the Taliban reverse these terrible decrees and live up to their commitment to the people of Afghanistan.
We welcomed Deputy Secretary General Mohamed’s recent visit to Afghanistan, but remain concerned that the Taliban have not changed course. If anything, it has continued to solidify.
Of course, the challenges ahead are not limited to one country or region. Over the past year, women and girls have faced violence, oppression and exclusion in Iran, Ukraine and elsewhere around the world.
Last November I met with victims of Russia’s war of aggression in Kiev. Women raped and tortured by Russian forces. And I can tell you I’ll never forget the pain on their faces. These atrocities must be accounted for.
And this January I traveled to Somalia and saw the devastation caused by the prolonged drought. These dire conditions have particularly exacerbated gender-based violence. Added to this is the decline in women’s political participation, peace-building and access to humanitarian aid.
Let us be clear: lasting peace and an inclusive, prosperous society depend on women’s leadership and political participation in Somalia. But even as we face these immense challenges, we need to highlight bright spots and celebrate our progress.
In this spirit, I would like to thank my colleagues from Ghana for adopting the recent WPS National Action Plan and for hosting the next UN Peace Ministers’ Meeting. We will continue to work with Ghana to encourage troop- and police-contributing countries to increase the number of women serving in military and police contingents in UN peacekeeping operations and to ensure that women peacekeepers serve in leadership positions.
On the subject of peace and security, I would like to note that the United States Institute of Peace is supporting – with US funding – women leaders in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda working against violent extremism and advocating for women’s leadership on the ground, regional and national strategies to counter violent extremism. We have also participated in similar programs in Mali and Niger and will continue to engage with women leaders across the Sahel.
Such engagement is essential as groups such as ISIS, al-Qaeda, Boko Haram, al-Shabaab and the Taliban target women and girls directly for ideological and tactical ends. By supporting women and youth as actors of prevention, we can address the conditions conducive to terrorism more effectively and sustainably.
I would also like to point out that the United States is serving as co-chair of the WPS-Focal Points Network for 2023 along with Romania. We look forward to working with our Namibian colleagues to standardize the approach to establishing and maintaining WPS centers of excellence.
Colleagues, the United States is proud to be the first country with a comprehensive women, peace and security law and the first country with a strategy that encompasses our entire government. We urge all countries to take the necessary step to codify UN Security Council Resolution 1325 into their national laws.
Women and girls around the world are counting on us – they are counting on us to build a fairer, safer and more just future. Let’s do this work together.
Thank you, Madam President.
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