Ukraine calls on the UN to develop a counter-terrorism strategy
The above-mentioned statement was stated by the Permanent Representative of Ukraine to the UN Volodymyr Yelchenko on May 11th, during the open debate of the UN Security Council, titled “Threats to international peace and security caused by terrorist acts: Countering the narratives and ideologies of terrorism.”
During the discussion, Ambassador Yelchenko pointed out that the armed aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine is accompanied by an active propaganda campaign, the targets of which are usually children and youth. Mr. Yelchenko urged on the UN to condemn any government’s use of propaganda that promotes intolerance, hatred, and an ideology that justifies and encourages terrorism as an element of hybrid war; he also called on the UN to develop a counter strategy for the promotion of terrorism. The respective strategy should also include measures to prevent the use of the Internet and social media for the recruiting and training of foreign terrorist-fighters, as well as for the planning and financing of terrorist activities. Ambassador Yelchenko especially noted the special role of the victims of terrorism in combatting radicalization and terrorist propaganda, and called upon the UNSC to realize this initiative by establishing the International Day of Commemoration of the Victims of Terrorism.
The open debate of the Security Council created a great deal of interest among a wide range of UN member-states. The speakers stressed the need to strengthen international cooperation in order to combat terrorism in the context of preventing the proliferation of terrorist organizations, particularly Daesh, as well the spread of terrorist propaganda in the Internet, particularly social networks. The participants of the debates called for the development of a comprehensive international framework on preventing the combatting the spread of terrorism; this document would contain guidelines as well as recommended practices for countering the spread of the ideologies of terrorist groups.