PRESS STATEMENT BY SECURITY COUNCIL PRESIDENT ON KUWAITI, THIRD COUNTRY NATIONALS

PRESS STATEMENT BY SECURITY COUNCIL PRESIDENT ON KUWAITI, THIRD COUNTRY NATIONALS

Following is today’s press statement by Security Council President Andrey Denisov (Russian Federation) on Kuwaiti and third country nationals:

On 19 August members of the Security Council received a briefing from Ambassador Yuli Vorontsov, the Secretary-General’s High-Level Coordinator, on the sixteenth report of the Secretary-General, in accordance with paragraph 14 of Security Council resolution 1284 (1999).  Council members once again expressed their full support for Ambassador Vorontsov’s work and for his continued efforts.

Council members shared the views expressed by the Secretary-General in his report and strongly condemned the execution of Kuwaiti and third country nationals by the previous Iraqi regime, in violation of human rights and international humanitarian law.  Security Council members continued to express the hope that those responsible for these horrendous crimes should be brought to justice.

Council members again expressed their deepest condolences to all of the families of those missing persons that had now been identified.  Members of the Council also expressed their continuing concern for the plight of the families of those missing persons whose whereabouts were still unknown.

Members of the Council once again stressed the importance of the work of the International Committee of the Red Cross, the Tripartite Commission and its Technical Subcommittee, and the involvement of the Government of Iraq.  Council members call on all parties concerned to continue to work towards a satisfactory solution to all of the outstanding humanitarian aspects covered by Ambassador Vorontsov’s mandate.

Council members expressed the hope that Ambassador Vorontsov would be able to visit Iraq to take his work forward, agreed to keep his mandate under review and recalled that Iraq continues to have international obligations, as set out in paragraph 14 of Security Council resolution 1284 (1999).  In this regard, Council members also welcomed the commitment from the Iraqi Vice-President, Dr. Ibrahim al-Jaafari, that Iraq would seek to assist in the search for those Kuwaiti and third country nationals whose whereabouts remained unknown.

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