PRESS STATEMENT ON SOLOMON ISLANDS BY SECURITY COUNCIL PRESIDENT

PRESS STATEMENT ON SOLOMON ISLANDS BY SECURITY COUNCIL PRESIDENT

Following is the statement to the press delivered today by Security Council President Fayssal Mekdad (Syria):

The members of the Security Council welcome warmly the collective action of the countries of the Pacific Islands Forum to support the people of the Solomon Islands in their quest for the restoration of law and order and stability.  The members of the Security Council welcome the leadership exerted by Australia and New Zealand, in close partnership with other countries in the region in this regard.

They hope that this important regional initiative will quickly lead to the restoration of normalcy and national harmony in the Solomon Islands and that it will facilitate a peace-building process and economic recovery.  They encourage all parties to cooperate in promoting these objectives and to renounce the use of armed force and violence to settle their differences.

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