PRESIDENT Muhammadu Buhari on Tuesday demanded that the United Nations sends a delegation to North Korea leader, Kim Jong-un, to pressure him to end the nuclear crisis which he says has become the greatest threat to mankind.
Delivering Nigeria’s statement at the 72nd Session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York, he said diplomatic efforts must be brought to bear on North Korea to ensure a peaceful resolution of the crisis.
North Korea has recently increased the pace of its nuclear weapons development in defiance of all entreaties to halt the programmes.
Buhari said: “The most pressing threat to international peace and security today is the accelerated nuclear weapons development programme by North Korea. Since the Cuban missile crisis of 1962, we have never come so close to the threat of nuclear war as we have now.
“All necessary pressure and diplomatic efforts must be brought to bear on North Korea to accept peaceful resolution of the crisis. As Hiroshima and Nagasaki painfully remind us, if we fail, the catastrophic and devastating human loss and environmental degradation cannot be imagined.
“Nigeria proposes a strong UN delegation to urgently engage the North Korean Leader. The delegation, led by the Security Council, should include members from all the regions.
“The crisis in the Korean peninsula underscores the urgency for all member states, guided by the spirit of enthroning a safer and more peaceful world, to ratify without delay the Treaty prohibiting nuclear weapons, which will be open for signature here tomorrow.”
The president also drew the world body’s attention to the suffering of the Muslim minorities, the Rohingyas in Myanmar, accusing the government of that country of carrying out ethnic cleansing against them.
Speaking about new conflicts and the need for the world body not to loose sight of old ones including the Palestinian question, the president regretted the humanitarian situation in Myanmar which he said was reminiscent of the situation in 1995 Bosnia and 1994 Rwanda.
According to him, “Additionally, we are now confronted by the desperate human rights and humanitarian situations in Yemen and most tragically in the Rakhine State of Myanmar. The Myanmar crisis is very reminiscent of what happened in Bosnia in 1995 and in Rwanda in 1994.
“The international community cannot remain silent and not condemn the horrendous suffering caused by what, from all indications is a state-backed programme of brutal depopulation of the Rohingya inhabited areas in Myanmar on the bases of ethnicity and religion.
“We fully endorse the call by the Secretary-General on the Government of Myanmar to order a halt to the ongoing ethnic cleansing and ensure the safe return of the displaced Rohingya to their homes in safety and dignity.
“In all these crises, the primary victims are the people, the most vulnerable being women and children. That is why the theme of this session: Focusing on People: Striving for Peace and Decent Life for All on a Sustainable Planet” is most apposite.
“While the international community grapples to resolve these conflicts, we must be mindful and focus on the widening inequalities within societies, and the gap between the rich and the poor nations. These inequalities and gaps are part of the underlining root causes of competition for resources, frustration and anger leading to spiralling instability.”
Buhari reiterated his faith in democracy, recalling ECOWAS’ effort in upholding the principles in The Gambia and Cote D’Ivoire.
On the recovery of stolen assets, he said even though efforts were being put in through the strengthening of state institutions, accountability and combating corruption, the international community’s cooperation was needed to make it succeed.
He added: Through our individual national efforts, state institutions are being strengthened to promote accountability, and to combat corruption and asset recovery.
“These can only be achieved through the international community cooperating and providing critical assistance and material support.
“We shall also cooperate in addressing the growing transnational crimes such as forced labour, modern day slavery, human trafficking and cybercrime.”
Asking for the cooperative efforts to be sustained, Buhari opined that the world body must collectively devise strategies and mobilize the required responses to stop fleeing ISIS fighters from mutating and infiltrating into the Sahel and the Lake Chad Basin, where there are insufficient resources and response capacity is weak.
According to him, this would require strong UN cooperation with regional organizations, such as the African Union, in conflict prevention and treatmentfor the higher purpose.
He said the UN should continue to take primary leadership of the maintenance of international peace and security by providing, in a predictable and sustainable manner, adequate funding and other enablers to regional initiatives and peacekeeping operations authorized by the Security Council.
Buhari noted the exemplary show of solidarity of the international community in coming together to assist the countries and communities in the Sahel and the Lake Chad regions to contain the threats posed by Al Qaida and Boko Haram.
He thanked the Security Council for visiting the countries of the Lake Chad Basin to assess the security situation and humanitarian needs, and for pledging assistance to rebuild lives and livelihoods.
“Indeed, in Nigeria we are providing relief and humanitarian assistance to millions in internally displaced camps and those afflicted by terrorism, drought, floods and other natural disasters,” he stated.
No comments:
Post a Comment