(Check Against Delivery)
Statement by Mr. Hiroshi Ishikawa
Minister of the Permanent Mission of Japan to the United Nations
at the Plenary Meeting of the United Nations General Assembly
on the United Nations Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy Review
New York, 13 June 2014
Mr. President,
On behalf of the Government of Japan, I would like to express appreciation for your leadership in preparation for the fourth review of the United Nations Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy. I also extend sincere gratitude to H.E. Mr. Yaşar Halit Çevik, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Turkey for his great contribution and efforts in facilitating the consultations on the resolution for this review. Japan welcomes the Secretary-General’s comprehensive report on the activities undertaken by the United Nations in implementing the Strategy.
Mr. President,
I firmly condemn the recent terrorist attacks and the abduction of the Turkish diplomats in Iraq, and also condemn the abduction of more than 200 schoolgirls by “Boko Haram” in Nigeria. Japan has renewed our determination to fight against terrorism. Any violence committed by terrorists cannot be justified on any grounds or for any purpose.
In January 2013, the precious lives of 40 people, including 10 Japanese citizens, were lost in a terrorist attack in Algeria. Although concerted efforts by Member States and the international community to fight against terrorism have yielded certain results, these attacks show that the threat of terrorism is still profound.
Mr. President,
With a strong political will to eradicate terrorism, the Government of Japan has carried out several activities, such as regional assistances to enact the national security strategy in order to tackle international terrorism.
As for the regional assistance, Japan hosted the 5th Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD V) in June 2013, with 51 countries from Africa including 39 Heads of State and Government in attendance. At TICAD V, discussions focused on peace and stability in the Sahel region, so as to improve anti-terrorism and security capacity of judicial and law enforcement units. In this regard, Prime Minister Abe announced that Japan would provide approximately $1 billion in development and humanitarian assistance over the next five years. In addition, he also announced that Japan will provide human resources development funds for the 2,000 people responsible for anti-terrorism measures and security in North Africa and the Sahel region. $16 million has been already provided for counter-terrorism capacity building assistance in the region in collaboration with competent international organizations such as UNODC and UNDP.
Having close ties with Southeast Asian countries, Japan puts great importance on cooperation in the region. Japan has held the Japan-ASEAN Counter-Terrorism Dialogue every year since 2006 and has been extending assistance to ASEAN countries in counter-terrorism capacity building programs through the Japan-ASEAN Integration Fund (JAIF) also since 2006. Last December, Prime Minister Shinzo ABE announced that Japan provide $100 million for JAIF 2.0 to further strengthen our cooperation to support the ASEAN community building, including in the field of counter-terrorism cooperation. We expect and support the establishment of the resilient community against terrorism in the region.
Mr. President,
At the end of last year, the Japanese government adopted the National Security Strategy which sets up the basic orientation of diplomatic and defense policies related to national security. This strategy identifies international terrorism as one of the main security threats, and also refers to the growing nexus between terrorism and transnational organized crime such as drug and arms trafficking and money laundering. It is becoming increasingly important to address various forms of organized crimes, which serve the financial sources of terrorism.
Japan has also been extending cooperation to many countries, focusing on poverty reduction, sustainable growth, addressing global issues and peace-building. We believe these efforts could contribute to addressing the conditions conducive to the spread of terrorism, while recognizing that none of the conditions justify acts of terrorism.
Mr. President,
In order to tackle the above aforementioned issues, we must emphasize the importance of the U.N. Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy. Since the adoption of the Strategy in 2006, efforts made by Member States for its implementation have steadily progressed. The Strategy continues to be an important, holistic and comprehensive instrument for representing full engagement in counter-terrorism by the international community. We therefore should take this opportunity to examine the progress made by all Member States to implementing the Strategy in preventing and fighting against terrorism and to reaffirm our commitment to enhancing our counter-terrorism cooperation under the Strategy.
In implementing the Strategy, effective coordination among U.N. entities and Member States is indispensable and appreciated because international counter-terrorism efforts have to be concerted and integrated to maximize the outcome. We also appreciate the various measures taken by regional organizations such as ASEAN and multilateral counterterrorism frameworks such as the Global Counterterrorism Forum (GCTF). Japan has been actively involved in the work of the GCTF and we are confident that good practice documents adopted by the GCTF are highly valuable and useful for all U.N. Member States.
Mr. President,
I take this opportunity to reaffirm Japan’s resolve to implement the Strategy and its strong commitment to continuing its efforts and cooperation on national, regional and international levels to eradicating terrorism. Hoping to see more effective coordination within the United Nations and its relevant entities for implementation of the Strategy, Japan is ready to continue its active contributions towards our collective endeavor.
Thank you very much.
