Statement by Mr. SUZUKI Yukio, Counsellor, Permanent Mission of Japan to the United Nations, at the Security Council meeting on “Briefings by Chairs of subsidiary bodies of the Security Council”

I thank the Chairs of the Committees for their comprehensive briefings and for their leadership of the Committees. While each of these committees has a distinct mandate, their common purpose is addressing the threat to international peace and security posed by terrorist groups and non-State actors. It is, therefore, of vital importance to ensure the effective and coordinated work of these committees.

First, the Security Council Committee pursuant to resolutions 1267 (1999), 1989 (2011), and 2253 (2015) concerning ISIL, Al-Qaida and associated individuals, groups, undertakings and entities continues to play an important role in countering terrorism.
 
Japan commends the work by the Chair and the Analytical Support and Sanctions Monitoring Team. We also commend the work of the Ombudsperson, which contributes to ensuring fair and clear procedures for the 1267 sanctions regime.

In order to ensure the swift and robust implementation of sanctions measures, we stress the importance of continuous improvement of the ways by which notifications of updates to the list are transmitted. We thank the Secretariat for their efforts on this issue.
 
Second, the Counter-Terrorism Committee (CTC) also continues to play a vital role in assisting the efforts of Member States to combat the threat to international peace and security.

Japan welcomes its continued focus on new and emerging technologies. We continue to engage in discussions constructively on developing non-binding guiding principles as expressed in the Delhi Declaration adopted last year.

In this regard, Japan appreciates the efforts by the Chair of the CTC as well as the Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate (CTED). We value the inclusive and consultative approach to elaborate discussions in this sphere with partners including civil society and academia.

Third, resolution 1540 is a vital component of the global non-proliferation architecture. Japan highly values the work of the 1540 Committee and its Group of Experts in assisting Member States to take concrete actions for the full implementation of Resolution 1540.
 
In this context, Japan expresses serious concern about the current situation, wherein the Committee has been unable to nominate new experts for more than six months. It is equally regrettable that the Committee failed to permit the current members of the Group to participate in recent outreach activities.
 
Japan highly appreciates the tireless efforts of Ecuador, the Chair of the Committee, in seeking a consensus-based solution to this unfortunate situation. It is our sincere hope that the Committee will promptly resolve this issue without further delay. The Committee's work cannot continue to be held hostage by the obstructionism of any specific member of the Committee.
 
Once again, Japan reiterates its strong condemnation of terrorism in all its forms and manifestations. In this regard, we stress the need for robust implementation of Security Council sanctions measures.

Japan will spare no effort to prevent and counter terrorism, a task that is integral to the realization of a peaceful and stable international community where human dignity is respected.
 
I thank you.