The UN General Assembly held a plenary meeting on the “Responsibility to Protect (R2P) and the prevention of genocide, war crimes, ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity” on 6 July as part of the formal agenda of its 80th session.

The meeting opened with introductory remarks by Earle Courtenay Rattray, Chef de Cabinet of the Executive Office of the UN Secretary-General. During his remarks Mr. Rattray introduced this year’s report on R2P, “Sustained implementation of the responsibility to protect at the national, regional and multilateral levels.” Mr. Rattray highlighted that “The responsibility to protect goes to the heart of our mission at the United Nations. It provides a practical pathway to prevention and peace, rooted in our shared humanity and the dignity of every person.” He also reiterated the dangers of new technologies, “with sophisticated and increasingly autonomous new weaponry, including drones, able to inflict massive harm on populations. And online hate speech, misinformation and disinformation are spread and amplified in an instant. Too often, early warning signs are ignored. And responses are often too little, too late.”

During the debate 50 member states and two (sub) regional organizations (the European Union and the Intergovernmental Authority on Development) spoke on behalf of 89 countries and one observer mission. Cabo Verde, Madagascar and Suriname spoke for the first time in an R2P debate or dialogue. During the debate the Permanent Representative of Luxembourg spoke on behalf of 55 members of the Group of Friends of R2P, emphasizing that the annual debate is not a symbolic exercise but “an opportunity for Member States to reaffirm that mass atrocity crimes are never inevitable, collectively confront what is at stake when prevention fails, and assess whether our commitments are matched by action. It is a space that must keep urgency at its core, because for those at risk, these debates are measured not in words, but in whether protection arrives in time – or whether it fails to arrive at all.”

An additional 25 members of the Group of Friends also spoke in their national capacity. Joint statements were also delivered on behalf of the Nordic and Baltic States, Australia on behalf of itself and New Zealand and by Mexico on behalf of itself and France.

The text of the statements delivered during the debate is will be available via the UN Journal: 6 July AM | 6 July PM.

Full video of the debate is available below:

6 July AM:

6 July PM: