Bangladesh supports UN’s appeal for global ceasefire amid COVID-19

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DHAKA, July 7, 2020 (BSS) – Bangladesh has formally supported the United Nations (UN) Secretary General Antonio Guterres’s ‘Appeal for global Ceasefire’ amid the COVID-19 pandemic through a joint statement.

‘This Joint Statement, along with the Security Council Resolution 2532, among others, would strengthen your (SG’s) good offices role for bringing immediate end to hostilities in all conflict situations,” Bangladesh Permanent Representative (PR) to the UN Ambassador Rabab Fatima told the UN Secretary-General on Monday.

Bangladesh PR along with PRs of nine other co-initiators (Ecuador, Egypt, Jamaica, Japan, Malaysia, Oman, Senegal, Slovenia, and Sweden) of the Joint Statement of Support to the UN SG’s ‘Appeal for Global Ceasefire’ virtually met to officially hand over the statement, which was released on June 22, Bangladesh mission in the UN said in a media release today.

In her conversation with the SG, ambassador Fatima praised Guterres for his leadership role in guiding the global efforts to address the pandemic especially in conflict situations.

“Your appeal has had important salutary effect on many conflict situations, yet, many are not paying heed and some are applying it selectively,” she added.

Fatima shared Bangladesh’s contribution to maintenance of international peace and security particularly through peacekeeping.

In his response, the SG termed the Joint Statement as ‘one of the best and most important endorsements to his Appeal in the UN’ and thanked all the co-initiators for this.

While referring to some significant and successful impacts of the Appeal, he also admitted that much more remains to be done and implementation remains the key.

The Appeal has been the high point of SG’s efforts in garnering political support for pandemic response while Bangladesh was also among the first rank of countries to have endorsed the Appeal once earlier through another platform when it was made on 23 March.

The joint-statement, which received the overwhelming endorsement by 172 UN Member States, Non-Member Observer States and Observers, was the strongest yet political support that the Appeal has received so far.

It sends a strong and clear message of solidarity and compassion with those impacted by the hostilities amid the COVID-19 pandemic, said the release.