Activities of Secretary-General in United Kingdom, 2-5 February
United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, accompanied by Madam Ban Soon-taek, departed Oman for the United Kingdom on Tuesday afternoon, 2 February. Upon arrival in London, the Secretary-General was hosted to dinner by Kitack Lim, the new Secretary-General of the International Maritime Organization (IMO).
On Wednesday, following an interview with the BBC’s James Robbins, the Secretary-General travelled to Cambridge University, where he received an honorary doctorate. In remarks after receiving the degree, the Secretary-General said that, across the world, there is a strong sense that we are off track and in a deep mess. He added that the challenge facing the international community is to move from a pattern of reaction to a culture of prevention. That, in turn, must mean a heightened focus on preventing violations of human rights. But, today, he warned, in many places and in many respects, the human rights compact is under assault or has broken down completely. (See Press Release SG/SM/17509.)
The Secretary-General pointed to such recent examples as the deliberate starvation of besieged populations in Syria; the enslavement of women and girls by Da’esh, Boko Haram and other violent extremists; and the many places where Governments are retaliating against human rights defenders and restricting media freedoms. He appealed for shared responsibility and compassion when dealing with mass movements of refugees and migrants.
The Secretary-General called for a strong show of solidarity at the following day’s humanitarian conference for Syria taking place in London, where he would speak. He pointed to the need to get Syrian children back in school — with 2 million Syrian children out of school at this time — and to get aid convoys through to people in dire need. The Secretary-General said that there are at least 400,000 people stranded in at least 15 besieged villages in Syria.
Back in London, the Secretary-General visited the Headquarters of the IMO, where he spoke to the agency’s governing body. He underscored the importance of IMO’s role in combating climate change and implementing the Sustainable Development Goals. (See Press Release SG/SM/17510.)
That evening, he attended a reception at Lancaster House for Heads of Delegation of the Supporting Syria and the Region Conference 2016, which would be held the following day. The reception was hosted by Justine Greening, Secretary of State for International Development of the United Kingdom. During the reception, he had a brief meeting with the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, David Cameron. The Secretary-General also had an opportunity to speak with Prince Charles.
On Thursday morning, the Secretary-General opened the Supporting Syria and the Region Conference 2016 at the Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre. As the crisis enters its sixth year, he said, the international community bears a heavy responsibility.
On the political front, the Secretary-General noted that the temporary pause in the talks, announced the previous day by Special Envoy Staffan de Mistura, shows just how deep the divisions are. He said it is deeply disturbing that the initial steps of the talks have been undermined by the continuous lack of sufficient humanitarian access and by a sudden increase of aerial bombing and military activities within Syria. He said the focus on the people of Syria is being lost amid petty procedural matters.
The Secretary-General said that, while focusing on humanitarian needs, the conference also needs to lay the foundations for long-term international support for Syria. The Secretary-General also stressed that ways to protect civilians needed to be found. He said that all sides in this conflict are committing human rights abuses of a shocking scale and depravity. (See Press Release SG/SM/17512.)
The Secretary-General held a number of bilateral meetings in the margins of the conference, including with Salaheddine Mezouar, Minister for Foreign Affairs and Cooperation and Envoy of His Majesty King Mohammed VI of Morocco; Mohammad Javad Zarif, Foreign Minister of Iran; German Chancellor Angela Merkel; Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Jaber al-Sabah, the Amir of the State of Kuwait; King Abdullah II ibn al Hussein of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan; President Donald Tusk of the European Council; Lars Løkke Rasmussen, Prime Minister of Denmark; and Lee Suk-joon, Minister, Office for Government Policy Coordination of the Republic of Korea.
Following a lunch held for Heads of Delegation, the Secretary-General attended the third Thematic Pledging Session, titled “Inside Syria”, which was co-chaired by Chancellor Merkel and Prime Minister Cameron. In a press conference later in the afternoon, he called the donors’ conference a great success in which more than $10 billion had been pledged.
On Thursday evening, the Secretary-General attended a dinner held in his honour by the Thirty Club.
On Friday morning, the Secretary-General met with Terje Roed-Larsen, Special Envoy of the Secretary-General for the Implementation of Security Council resolution 1559 (2004).
Following an interview with Sam Jones of The Financial Times, the Secretary-General went to Westminster’s Central Hall and an event co-hosted by the United Nations Association-United Kingdom and Chatham House titled “The UN at 70: time to invest in our global system”. He was welcomed by Sir Jeremy Greenstock, former United Kingdom Ambassador to the United Nations in New York and Chairman of the United Nations Association-United Kingdom, and by Baroness Anelay of St. John’s DBE, Minister for State at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.
In the same place where, 70 years ago that day, Trygve Lie had been elected the first United Nations Secretary-General, the Secretary-General honoured the United Kingdom’s leadership in humanitarian and development aid. He raised attention to the plight of migrants and refugees worldwide, saying that people who cross the waters in search of better lives are symptoms of wider problems and are not themselves a cause for suspicion. He affirmed that the world faces great challenges, but the capacity to solve them is even greater if everyone works and builds together. The Secretary-General also took questions from the audience. (See Press Release SG/SM/17509.)
Following a lunch in honour of the Secretary-General hosted by United Nations Association-United Kingdom, the Secretary-General and his delegation departed London for New York, where he arrived early Friday evening.