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UN / PEACEKEEPING LACROIX PRESSER
STORY: UN / PEACEKEEPING LACROIX PRESSER
TRT: 4:21
SOURCE: UNIFEED
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH / NATS
DATELINE: 08 MARCH 2024, NEW YORK CITY / FILE
FILE – NEW YORK CITY
1. Wide shot, exterior, United Nations Headquarters
08 MARCH 2024, NEW YORK CITY
2. Wide shot, press briefing room
3. SOUNDBITE (English) Jean-Pierre Lacroix, Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations, United Nations:
“Almost all our peacekeeping operations have deteriorated political and security environments. I think it's probably never have been that tough for our peacekeepers and that shows in in most of the places I visited.”
4. Wide shot, press briefing room
5. SOUNDBITE (English) Jean-Pierre Lacroix, Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations, United Nations:
“It's clear that because of the extremes of fires across the blue line, the risk to our peacekeepers never been so high in UNIFIL. I visited some of the positions that are really exposed, and we already had three peacekeepers injured. But we carry on, we continue to meet our colleagues and UNIFIL continue to deliver on that mandate, working with the Lebanese Armed Forces. We hope that there will be more of them in this area of operation, liaising between Israel and Lebanon and those are parties who do not talk to each other. So the liaison function is critical to avoid misunderstanding and trying to keep at least at bay those risks of escalation, but they are there. There is clearly a need for de-escalation, cessation of hostilities across the blue line.”
”
6. Wide shot, press briefing room
7. SOUNDBITE (English) Jean-Pierre Lacroix, Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations, United Nations:
“There is an escalation that is taking place and particularly in the area of the province of North Kivu, particularly the area of Goma, an escalation that is gradually looking more like a regional conflict or regional conflict that doesn't speak its name. And that has, of course, massive consequences on the civilian population. Our peacekeepers are currently engaged in protecting Goma and its area. We're working with other partners in the field, we have strengthened our presence, we support humanitarian delivery of humanitarian systems, we have organized or supported the organization of humanitarian corridors and that is happening in Goma, but we should not forget the other provinces where MONUSCO is operating including the province of Ituri where we are almost alone in delivering on the protection of civilian mandates.”
8. Wide shot, press briefing room
9. SOUNDBITE (English) Jean-Pierre Lacroix, Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations, United Nations:
“UNMISS, our mission there has shown incredible flexibility in our activity in terms of protection of civilian, particularly in the areas where we see in the massive influx of refugees and returnees include the state of Upper Nile the region of Malakal. The Mission has been really active in making sure that as many returnees and refugees as possible will be provided with the kind of assistance that they need. And in addition to that, we keep supporting the political process which essentially has to do with the implementation of the so-called revitalized peace agreement. One of the key elements to that agreement is so-called security arrangement, where it's about moving forward on the reconstitution of the unified armed forces. Another particularly important element of that process currently is the run up to the election. Those elections must be a step forward for South Sudan. They must be free and fair, they must lead to more stability, not less stability in South Sudan.”
10. Wide shot, press briefing room
11. SOUNDBITE (English) Jean-Pierre Lacroix, Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations, United Nations:
“And we've been providing support and assistance in different ways. We have been providing support in terms of training, material, guidance or experience in Haiti. The coming up we've been working on this as well that as you know, it's not only a DPO kind of engagement because other activities are important, including putting in place that trust fund for you know, voluntary contribution to be forthcoming. So that is really the goal at the moment.”
12. Wide shot, press briefing room
Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations Jean-Pierre Lacroix told reporters, “Almost all our peacekeeping operations have deteriorated political and security environments. I think it's probably never have been that tough for our peacekeepers.”
Lacroix briefed reporters today (08 Mar) on his recent trip to various peacekeeping missions in Lebanon, South Sudan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
On the blue line, the UN peacekeeping chief said, “It's clear that because of the extremes of fires across the blue line, the risk to our peacekeepers never been so high in UNIFIL. I visited some of the positions that are really exposed, and we already had three peacekeepers injured.”
“But we carry on, we continue to meet our colleagues and UNIFIL continue to deliver on that mandate, working with the Lebanese Armed Forces,” Lacroix added.
He said, “We hope that there will be more of them in this area of operation, liaising between Israel and Lebanon and those are parties who do not talk to each other. So the liaison function is critical to avoid misunderstanding and trying to keep at least at bay those risks of escalation, but they are there. There is clearly a need for de-escalation, cessation of hostilities across the blue line.”
On the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the peacekeeping chief said, “There is an escalation that is taking place and particularly in the area of the province of North Kivu, particularly the area of Goma, an escalation that is gradually looking more like a regional conflict or regional conflict that doesn't speak its name.”
“And that has, of course, massive consequences on the civilian population. Our peacekeepers are currently engaged in protecting Goma and its area,” he said.
Lacroix continued, “We're working with other partners in the field, we have strengthened our presence, we support humanitarian delivery of humanitarian systems, we have organized or supported the organization of humanitarian corridors and that is happening in Goma, but we should not forget the other provinces where MONUSCO is operating including the province of Ituri where we are almost alone in delivering on the protection of civilian mandates.”
On South Sudan, the Under-Secretary-General said, “our mission there has shown incredible flexibility in our activity in terms of protection of civilian, particularly in the areas where we see in the massive influx of refugees and returnees include the state of Upper Nile the region of Malakal. The Mission has been really active in making sure that as many returnees and refugees as possible will be provided with the kind of assistance that they need.”
In addition to that, Lacroix said, “we keep supporting the political process which essentially has to do with the implementation of the so-called revitalized peace agreement. One of the key elements to that agreement is so-called security arrangement, where it's about moving forward on the reconstitution of the unified armed forces.”
“Another particularly important element of that process currently is the run up to the election. Those elections must be a step forward for South Sudan. They must be free and fair, they must lead to more stability, not less stability in South Sudan,” he added.
Asked about Haiti, the Under-Secretary-General said, “we've been providing support and assistance in different ways. We have been providing support in terms of training, material, guidance or experience in Haiti. The coming up we've been working on this as well that as you know, it's not only a DPO kind of engagement because other activities are important, including putting in place that trust fund for you know, voluntary contribution to be forthcoming. So that is really the goal at the moment.”
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