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Excellences, ladies and gentlemen, The political and security situation in the Middle East has rarely been more dramatic. No other modern conflict has produced such massive destruction. Over 12 million displaced and refugees, hundreds of thousands of killed and wounded, two million children deprived of education, and a country in ruin: such is the cost of this conflict, now well into its fifth year. Syria’s neighbours Turkey, Jordan and Lebanon are bearing the brunt of refugee flows. The capacity of Jordan and Lebanon in particular to cope with the flows of refugees is stretched to a limit, threatening a breakdown of vital services and infrastructure.

Syrian government’s war against its own population enabled the spread of violent extremism and terrorism in the country, which is further fueled by the influx of foreign terrorist fighters.

The fighting in Yemen, the fragility of the situation in Iraq, Libya and elsewhere in the region risk expanding the zone of terror even further, contributing to even greater displacement.

Syrians make up some 70 per cent of those trying to cross the Mediterranean. While it is first and foremost a glaring failure of Syrian government to protect its population, it is also Security Council’s failure.

It should have acted early and forcefully on the crisis in Syria. Instead, it remained paralysed by a succession of vetoes aimed at protecting the perpetrators, not the civilian victims.  

Those who cast those vetoes share with the Syrian regime the heavy responsibility for the deaths, destruction, and displacement of the Syrian people.

My delegation is firmly convinced that veto use has no place in cases of massive abuses of human rights, crimes against humanity, war crimes and genocide.

We therefore welcome France’s initiative on veto restraint. Lithuania also joined Liechtenstein’s initiative on the code of conduct regarding Security Council action against genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes.

One cannot pretend to defend the law by practicing lawlessness. One cannot fight terrorism by attacking and abusing civilian population. Extending Assad’s stay in power, including by foreign military buildup in Syria, is not a viable solution and can only deepen the conflict. 

The Syrian government must stop bombing its own people and engage fully on the implementation of the Geneva Communique of June 2012. Special Envoy Staffan de Mistura has our full support as he seeks to put the political process back on track.

Excellences, ladies and gentlemen,

While some criticism for Europe’s response to the refugee crisis is in order, the EU is doing a lot to respond to the crisis in a comprehensive manner, working with countries of origin, transit countries as well as countries of destination.

As a follow-up to the European Agenda on Migration adopted earlier this year, the European Commission produced a comprehensive package of proposals to help address the refugee crisis, including by tackling the root causes making people seek refuge.

We hope the Security Council will support European actions aimed at tackling the smugglers in the Mediterranean who profit unscrupulously and cynically from human suffering while putting more and more human lives at risk.  

Inaction is not an option. The migrant smuggling industry expands and develops, pouring money into the hands of criminal gangs and, eventually, terrorists. 

Lithuania has pledged its share in receiving the refugees. Necessary preparations are being made as the first families from Syria and Iraq are being resettled. At the same time we are providing assistance to and welcoming refugees from Ukraine’s regions occupied by Russia’s proxies.

Let us not forget that Russia’s aggression against Ukraine and the illegal annexation of Crimea caused massive displacement and left five million people dependent on humanitarian assistance. 

The recent criminal decision by Russia-backed illegal militants in eastern Ukraine to expel UN and other humanitarian agencies will aggravate the suffering of the local population even further as the cold season approaches.

Excellences, ladies and gentlemen,

This Council has created an impressive normative base for combatting terrorism, including resolutions 1373 and 1624, whose tenth anniversary we marked earlier this September.  

The Council has also responded to the emergence of ISIL and the phenomenon of foreign terrorist fighters, by reinforcing existing counter-terrorism framework with resolutions 2170, 2178, 2199, and a comprehensive PRST adopted under the Lithuanian presidency in May. We must now make sure that no gaps remain between the normative base and its implementation.

Modern day terrorists like ISIL can be brutal and barbaric. But they are also sophisticated in their use of modern communications technologies for propaganda and recruitment.

To fight them effectively, we must constantly adjust and adapt our responses and engage the whole range of actors: governments, private sector, academia, community and religious leaders, youth, women, as well as survivors of terrorist attacks.

I want to stress in particular the role women can play as the first line of defence against radicalization and violent extremism, starting from their families and local communities all the way to national and international leadership.

Mr. President,

Just as they make people flee and seek salvation elsewhere, protracted conflicts;  the breakdown of governance and the rule of law; oppressive regimes and rampant corruption; exclusion and abuse of minorities; extreme inequalities and systematic gross violations of human rights - all play into the hands of extremism and terrorism.

To tackle the threat of terrorism, we must cut off its life support by addressing those very underlying causes as well as the injustices and lingering grievances that make people vulnerable to incitement and recruitment. 

We must also focus on accountability for terrorist crimes.  We can no longer tolerate continued impunity for terrorist acts, terrorism financing, recruitment and incitement.

Enhancing national and international capacities needed to go after terrorist and their sponsors,  and better use of existing justice mechanisms including the ICC, must be part and parcel of anti-terrorism strategies and our common commitment.

Accountability is a key to deterrence. It is also key to doing justice to the victims of terrorism. Those victims should never be forgotten. They must inspire us to redouble our efforts in stemming this most dangerous phenomenon which threatens humanity and all the very best that we as humans beings stand for.

I thank you.