Thank you, President, and I thank ASG Pobee, Executive Secretary Tiare and Ms Diouf for their briefings.
President, the Sahel is in crisis: escalating violence at the hands of extremist groups; democratic governance and human rights under threat; and vast humanitarian needs and food insecurity, all exacerbated by climate change and Russia's war in Ukraine.
These challenges need to be tackled by the countries of the Sahel, supported by international partners, through a determined show of political will, commitment to human rights and regional cooperation. The United Kingdom remains committed to supporting the Sahel and its people. We contributed around $284 million to the region last year.
President, I want to set out three priorities for the coming period.
First, with three regional states in the midst of political transitions, the continued leadership of ECOWAS and the African Union is vital. We urge the Burkinabe, Chadian and Malian authorities to adhere to agreed election timetables.
Second, counter-terrorism operations must respect human rights and international humanitarian law. To do otherwise risks aggravating grievances, undermining trust with local communities, and driving recruitment to terrorist groups.
We welcome the G5 Sahel's reaffirmed commitment to the Compliance Framework under its new structures, and ongoing work with OHCHR. We continue to urge further progress towards implementation of human rights due diligence mitigation measures, as recommended by MINUSMA.
At the same time, we are deeply concerned by the disturbing findings in last week's OHCHR report on the massacre of hundreds of people in Moura, Mali by Malian security forces and the Russian-backed Wagner Group. As High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk has said, such cases of summary executions, rape and torture amount to war crimes. We fully support MINUSMA's role in investigating and reporting on human rights violations and abuses, and we urge the Malian authorities to strengthen their cooperation with the UN and to respect MINUSMA's freedom of movement.
New reports of around 150 civilian fatalities, including 45 children, following an attack by armed forces in the village of Karma, Burkina Faso on 20 April are also deeply disturbing. We urge all states in the region to fully respect their obligations under international law.
Third, we agree with the Secretary-General's message in his report that regionally-led solutions are the most effective way to create lasting peace and stability. The Accra Initiative is a promising example, and we look forward to supporting its members' efforts. We hope the forthcoming report of the High-Level Panel on Security and Development will bring greater coherence between different initiatives in the Sahel.
Thank you.
