Swiss presidency of UN Security Council ‘works well’

Swiss President Alain Berset (centre) chairs a UN Security Council debate on protecting civilians in armed conflict at the UN headquarters in New York on May 23, 2023. © Keystone / Alessandro Della Valle

Switzerland currently chairs the United Nations Security Council, the first time since becoming a full member of the UN in 2002. “It works well,” declared Swiss President Alain Berset, who is in New York for talks.

“The presence of Switzerland at the Security Council is self-evident,” Berset told the Keystone-SDA news agency on Tuesday. It allows a “different approach” in talks, he declared.

Berset is in New York this week to chair various discussions during Switzerland’s monthlong presidency.

+ Read more about the Swiss presidency of the UN

On Tuesday, he led a Security Council debate on protecting civilians in armed conflict – one of four thematic prioritiesExternal link for Switzerland’s two-year term as a non-permanent member of the council.

The international community has a duty to protect civilians during conflict, Berset insisted. “We have the instruments, the need to act is recognised and the direction in which to go is recognised,” he told reporters in New York. But what is missing is a greater political commitment, he added.

The Swiss president called for a reduction in the use of weapons in heavily populated areas, improved guarantees for civilians if UN peace operations end and greater humanitarian access.

During the debate, UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres recalled that over nine out of ten victims of military attacks in urban areas are civilians. He called on “every government, every armed group and every combatant” to honour the mandate of the Geneva-based International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC).

Mirjana Spoljaric, president of the ICRC, also addressed the council, noting that the number of non-international conflicts had more than tripled in 20 years. She called for greater protection of civilians and infrastructure, the prevention of food insecurity and the guarantee of humanitarian access. “Protection of civilians means protection for all,” she said.