Explanation of Vote - UNMHA
Statement
13 July 2022Thank you Mr. President,
Ireland voted in favour of this resolution today renewing the Mission to support the Hodeidah Agreement – UNMHA – for a further twelve months. We fully support the work of the Mission, under the leadership of Major General Michael Beary, and we thank the penholder, the UK, for its efforts.
The role of UNMHA is critical at this delicate moment for Yemen, including as a key interlocutor and mediator between the parties during the truce, its leading role on life-saving mine action, and its engagement with local communities in Hodeidah, not least with women’s organisations. We welcome that this is reflected in the text adopted today.
Mr. President,
Ireland wishes to put on record its view that UN Security Council resolutions should remain grounded in evidence-based reporting which is available to all Security Council members. Language in this resolution which I quote “expresses concern at accounts of the military use of the ports of Hodeidah, Salif, and Ras Issa”, end quote, is based on assessments that we do not all have access to, and therefore strays from usual precedent and practice at the Security Council.
It would also have been Ireland’s preference for this text to remain fully aligned to that of the original Hodeidah Agreement, on which the Mission’s capacity and focus remains.
Nonetheless, our support for UNMHA, for its leadership, and for the role it plays on the ground, remain steadfast. We are pleased to see unanimous agreement on its renewal today.
Thank you Mr. President.