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UN / SYRIA JIM VETO
STORY: UN / SYRIA JIM VETO
TRT: 03:54
SOURCE: UNIFEED
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: ARABIC / ENGLISH / RUSSIAN / NATS
DATELINE: 16 NOVEMBER 2017, NEW YORK CITY
RECENT - NEW YORK CITY
1. Wide shot, UNHQ exterior
16 NOVEMBER 2017, NEW YORK CITY
2. Wide shot, Security Council
3. Med shot, Russian and US ambassadors speaking prior to meeting
4. Pan left, Security Council voting
5. Med shot, Russian ambassador voting against draft
6. SOUNDBITE (English) Nikki Haley, Permanent Representative of the United States to the United Nations:
“Russia has acted to obstruct these investigations many times. But today, it strikes a deep blow. Russia has killed the Joint Investigative Mechanism, which has overwhelming support of this Council. And by eliminating our ability to identify the attackers, Russia has undermined our ability to deter future attacks. Assad and ISIS will no longer be on notice for the use of chemical weapons by Russia’s actions today.”
7. Med shot, Russian ambassador
8. SOUNDBITE (English) Nikki Haley, Permanent Representative of the United States to the United Nations:
“Regardless of what its Russian protectors do here in the Security Council, the Assad regime should be on clear notice. The United States does not accept Syria’s use of chemical weapons. As we did in April, we will do it again if we must. We will defend the international standard against chemical weapons use. It would be wise for the Assad regime to heed this warning.”
9. Wide shot, US ambassador addressing Security Council
10. SOUNDBITE (Russian) Vasily Nebenzya, Permanent Representative of the Russian Federation to the United Nations:
“We would like to remind our American colleagues and those who didn’t decide to delve into the details, those who supported their unrealistic draft; we would like to remind you that you bear the burden of responsibility if the mechanism cannot be salvaged. Russia is doing everything possible to prevent that from happening.”
11. Med shot, Syrian ambassador
12. SOUNDBITE (Russian) Vasily Nebenzya, Permanent Representative of the Russian Federation to the United Nations:
“In the historical context, many are observing that the endless distortion of the chemical weapons story in Damascus, as these weapons were indeed withdrawn and destroyed under OPCW oversight, is starkly reminiscent of the situation around Iraq nearly 15 years ago. United States representatives at the time deliberately misled the international community, including at the Security Council, and in so doing they set the stage for the intervention which unleashed unspeakable tragedy in both Iraq and the whole region.”
13. Wide shot, Security Council
14. SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Bashar Ja’afari, Permanent Representative of the Syrian Arab Republic to the United Nations:
“Any draft resolution that does not take into consideration these standards and safeguards is nothing but a desperate attempt to continue a dangerous show which relies on long distance investigations, or playstation as I described it in an earlier speech, on false witnesses, on information presented by Al Nusra Front, a terrorist organisation according to you own assessment, on open-sources like the White Helmets, and early warning mechanisms, as mentioned in the head of the Mechanism’s report. Early warning mechanisms which can predict the unknown and can detect chemical weapons carried by planes from several kilometres away.”
15. Med shot, US ambassador
16. SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Bashar Ja’afari, Permanent Representative of the Syrian Arab Republic to the United Nations:
“Here, I would like to remind you that the United States delegation was quick to ask this esteemed Council to renew the work of the Joint Investigative Mechanism 48 hours before the release of its seventh report. This later proved that the Mechanism’s report was prepared and pre-written in dark rooms in London, Paris, and Washington. There was nothing left for the Mechanism’s leadership to do except place its signature and seal on it.”
17. Pan Left, Security Council voting
18. Med shot, US ambassador voting against resolution
The Russian Federation vetoed a draft resolution today that would have renewed the mandate of the Joint Investigative Mechanism (JIM) on the use of chemical weapons in Syria which is set to end tomorrow.
The JIM or the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) and United Nations (UN) was created in 2015 to identify parties responsible for the use of chemical weapons in Syria. Two competing resolutions had been submitted to the Council on the renewal of the JIM, one drafted by the United States (US) and one by the Russian Federation. After a dispute on the order of voting, Russia withdrew its draft resolution. The US draft received eleven votes in favour but was not adopted by the Council owing to a veto by Russia.
US ambassador Nikki Haley said Russia invented reasons not to support a mechanism it helped create because it did not like its scientific conclusions, and today it “strikes a deep blow.” She said Russia “has killed” the JIM and by “eliminating” the Council’s ability to identify the users of chemical weapons, it has “undermined” its ability to deter future attacks. She said, “Assad and ISIS will no longer be on notice for the use of chemical weapons by Russia’s actions today.”
Haley said Russia wants a mechanism but not an independent one. She said the message of the vote clearly indicates that Russia accepts the use of chemical weapons in Syria. She stressed that while the JIM has ended other tools remain available to hold the perpetrators accountable, including International, Impartial and Independent Mechanism for Syria and the Commission of Inquiry on Syria, and, when it is necessary, there is the United States. The US ambassador said, “Regardless of what its Russian protectors do here in the Security Council, the Assad regime should be on clear notice: The United States does not accept Syria’s use of chemical weapons.” She said the US is ready to use force as it did in April if it must, adding that “it would be wise for the Assad regime to heed this warning.”
Russian ambassador Vasily Nebenzya said his delegation was unable to support the US draft, adding that the proposal could not be taken seriously as it entrenches the systematic flaws in the work of the JIM and the OPCW Fact Finding Mission. He said the US draft was not balanced and only underwent superficial changes which did not remedy the flaws in the JIM’s work.
Addressing members of the Council who voted in favour of the US draft, Nebenzya said, “We would like to remind you that you bear the burden of responsibility if the mechanism cannot be salvaged; Russia is doing everything possible to prevent that from happening.” He said the Council seems to be unified by one goal, which is to extend the mandate of the JIM and boost its effectiveness to identify the true perpetrators in chemical weapons crimes. He noted that the “endless distortion of the chemical weapons story in Damascus” is “starkly reminiscent of the situation around Iraq nearly 15 years ago.” He added that US representative at the time “deliberately misled the international community, including at the Security Council, and in so doing they set the stage for the intervention which unleashed unspeakable tragedy in both Iraq and the whole region.”
Syrian ambassador Bashar Ja’afari said his Government still believes that the UN could still play a positive role to resolve crises when member states abide by its Charter, but stressed that three permanent members of the Security Council - United States, United Kingdom, and France – see the Organization and the Council as management office or cooperation to achieve their goals. He said the Russian draft, which was opposed by the three countries from the beginning, aimed to help the JIM salvage its mandate according to international standards and far from politicization. This includes correcting the course of its work based on undisputable evidence which would not be subject to interpretation or falsification. Ja’afari said any resolution that does not take into consideration these standards and safeguards “is nothing but a desperate attempt to continue a dangerous show which relies on long distance investigations, or playstation as I described it in an earlier speech, on false witnesses, on information presented by Al Nusra Front, a terrorist organisation according to you own assessment, on open-sources like the White Helmets, and early warning mechanisms, as mentioned in the head of the Mechanism’s report; early warning mechanisms which can predict the unknown and can detect chemical weapons carried by planes from several kilometres away.”
The Syrian ambassador reminded Council members that the US “was quick to ask” the Council to renew the JIM’s mandate 48 hours before the release of its seventh report. He said, “This later proved that the Mechanism’s report was prepared and pre-written in dark rooms in London, Paris, and Washington; there was nothing left for the Mechanism’s leadership to do except place its signature and seal on it.”
The Council later voted on the Russian draft which was resubmitted by Bolivia. The draft resolution failed to receive the required number of votes with four votes in favour, seven against, and four abstentions.
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