I would like to begin by thanking the French delegation for its leadership in March and congratulate it on its successful presidency. I wish every success to Germany during the month of April. Let me also thank our briefers for their insightful introductory remarks.

Today’s meeting is of particular importance for Poland. Poland has pursued its membership in the Security Council with three main priorities — first, strengthening international law; secondly, promoting the protection of civilians in armed conflict; and, thirdly, advocating for the peaceful settlement of disputes.

Poland had the privilege of presiding over the Security Council’s work in May of last year. We organized two high-level open debates — on upholding international law within the context of the maintenance of international peace and security (see S/PV.8262) and on the protection of civilians in armed conflicts (S/PV.8264). Both debates focused on international humanitarian law.

Today’s briefing constitutes the continuation of the Council’s efforts to talk about the situation of those affected by conflicts and work out ways to relieve their suffering. Allow me to share a few comments regarding my country’s perspective on three challenges for international humanitarian law — implementation, development and partnership.

First, Poland strongly supports the implementation of international humanitarian law, in particular regarding the strengthening of the protection of civilians. The goal of minimizing the suffering of the victims of wars and conflicts cannot be reached without safeguarding humanitarian aid. International humanitarian law serves those who are affected by atrocities. It must also be an effective tool for those who provide humanitarian assistance. For that reason, we decided to join the political declaration on the protection of humanitarian and health workers in conflict. We will continue our efforts to enhance the protection of humanitarian and medical personnel.

As we all know, international humanitarian law is one of the areas of international public law with the greatest number of multilateral treaties. The great codifications that emerged in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries in the form of The Hague and Geneva Conventions were among the most significant law-making initiatives in modern international law. It is said that each new Geneva convention appears one war too late. Newer and newer conflicts proved that there were a number of gaps and inconsistencies relating to the Conventions, which forced a natural regulatory reflex — the need to engage in codification efforts after the end of each conflict to amend and supplement existing treaty regulations.

While respecting the heritage of treaties, we need to think progressively. For example, the Kigali Principles on the Protection of Civilians have set out a framework for all Member States to improve the capacity of peace operations to protect civilians and could be considered a code of conduct to be followed by all involved in peacekeeping operations.

We believe that a comprehensive awareness of basic rules flowing from international humanitarian law, such as the protection of civilians in armed conflicts, should be spread among all State and non-State actors. Awareness-raising activities in that regard are therefore essential at both the national and international levels. Activities in the areas of education, training and media, including social media, are particularly important in today’s world.

Secondly, when it comes to the development of international humanitarian law, Poland is strongly committed to the strengthening of international humanitarian law, as reflected in our activities. Since the beginning of the intergovernmental process to strengthen respect for international humanitarian law eight years ago, Poland has supported the establishment of a stand-alone forum of States to enable a discussion on international humanitarian law on a regular basis and the sharing of best practices among States in its implementation and dissemination. Despite the commitment of numerous States, consensus on that new international humanitarian law compliance mechanism has not been reached. We call on all States to support that initiative.

Thirdly, close cooperation with the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) provides a good example of partnership in the service of international humanitarian law. Poland signed a memorandum of understanding with the ICRC in the area of humanitarian assistance and international humanitarian law. At the national level, we have been engaged in a partnership with the Polish Red Cross, including in the field of education. Every year, Polish authorities organize a five-day annual course with the Polish school of international humanitarian law. The course is intended for different groups of recipients — students, professional commissioned officers and members and volunteers of the Polish Red Cross and other non-governmental organizations. The Professor Remigiusz Bierzanek competition, another Polish initiative, grants awards to the best papers on international humanitarian law and provides students and graduates in law, international relations and similar disciplines an opportunity to present their work to a wider community of specialists. And, next June, we will organize the Warsaw Humanitarian Expo 2019. We hope to have all stakeholders on board while coordinating efforts with a view to achieving the worldwide observation of humanitarian law. The Expo’s Humanitarian City will be a platform for representatives of non-governmental organizations, international institutions and academia to explore issues related to the legal obligations of humanitarian actors.

In conclusion, I want to reiterate that upholding and strengthening the principles of international humanitarian law remain core obligations of the United Nations and its Member States. Poland will continue its engagement in that regard for the remainder of its membership in the Security Council and beyond.