The following statement was delivered by Australia on behalf of members of the Group of Friends of the Responsibility to Protect during the Interactive Dialogue on the Annual Report of the High Commissioner for Human Rights under Agenda Item 2 during the 62nd session of the UN Human Rights Council.

Mr. President,

I have the honor to deliver this statement on behalf of the Group of Friends of the Responsibility to Protect.

Twenty years after its establishment, the Human Rights Council (HRC) has become an indispensable pillar of the multilateral protection architecture. As highlighted in the Secretary-General’s 2026 report on the Responsibility to Protect, Special Procedures, Commissions of Inquiry and Fact-Finding Missions play a critical role in identifying patterns of serious violations and abuses.

OHCHR also plays a vital role. The High Commissioner himself regularly highlights situations of existing or likely atrocity crimes and his annual report under Item 2 remains an important opportunity to draw attention to situations of concern.

For many populations facing atrocity crimes, the HRC often remains one of the key avenues available to ensure their situation is seen, discussed and addressed by the international community. The Group of Friends underscores the indispensable role of the UN human rights system in upholding the Responsibility to Protect, including through the responsibility of states to protect their populations from such crimes, and the role of the international community in encouraging and helping states to exercise this responsibility and, where necessary, taking collective action, and emphasizes the need for ongoing reforms to further strengthen the ability of the HRC and the human rights pillar in this regard.