Europe's leaders at UN Assembly focus on Ukraine crisis, ISIL militants

“We are gathered here not to deplore the unpardonable, but to nurture hope, to realize the indispensable – to act together,” European Council President Herman Van Rompuy told the UN General Assembly on the second day of its 69th annual General Debate.

“We must overcome fear by fighting danger, by restoring justice, by striving for peace, so that next year, when our society of nations meets again in New York, we can say: ‘The spell of that dreadful summer of 2014 has been broken; step by step we are making progress, patiently but relentlessly we reconquer a place for hope’,” he said.

Turning to the issue that is geographically of closest concern to Europe – Ukraine –  Rompuy said the “abrupt and illegal annexation of Crimea” triggered the gravest threat to the European security order in decades, undermining Europe’s trust in Russia. .

“It matters beyond the European continent,” he declared. “It is about rejecting the use of force, about defending the rule of law that upholds our society of nations,” he declared. “When you tamper with borders, you tamper with peace. The European Union stands firm in its solidarity with Ukraine; it is the Ukrainian people's right to decide their own political destiny.”

He stressed the need for all parties to respect the current ceasefire between Ukrainian forces and pro-Russian separatists and for Ukraine to move ahead with economic, political and constitutional refor

“With Russia, our biggest neighbour, we are ready to engage and re-establish a basis of trust, of promises kept,” he added.

On the Middle East,  Rompuy called for “urgent collective action” to stop foreign fighters from joining ISIL, as stipulated in a UN Security Council resolution adopted on Wednesday.

“What we have seen this summer has nothing to do with Islam: it is the return of barbaric ghosts from a long forgotten past,” he declared. “Horrendous deeds rejecting that we are one humankind, denying the very basic values of civilization,” he declared.

Also speaking on Thursday, Matteo Renzi Prime Minister of Italy, said the situation in Libya is now a matter of concern, and the risk of it spiralling into violence should not be underestimated, as that could threaten the entire North African region. Italy was committed to working with the United Nations Secretary-General to address the situation.

In the battle against the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) terrorist group, the international community could not remain idle. The fanatics had killed many, with children shot against the wall and young women raped in warehouses. "Genocide is under way," he warned, and only a united international effort could defeat it. That was why Italy supported the call by United States President Barack Obama for a broader coalition.

Renzi said Italy contributed troops to UN activities in Lebanon and Afghanistan and supported a two-State solution in the Israel-Palestinian conflict, he said, adding that the rights of Palestinians must be respected and Israel's right to exist must not be questioned. The situation in Ukraine jeopardized the process of European integration, and Italy supported the right of people there and the nation's territorial integrity, which had been violated. He urged the parties to seize the opportunity provided by the Minsk ceasefire.

On the Ebola outbreak, which has humanitarian and social impacts, he said his country was doing its part to support the response. The Security Council should become more effective, but creation of more Council seats could compromise its effectiveness. Finally, he warned, there would be no peace, no freedom and no respect without a huge investment in education.

Latvian President Andris Bÿrzinÿ said Russia’s aggression in Ukraine “has defied the basic principles of the United Nations, uprooting the very foundation of the international system,” and he called on Moscow to immediately withdraw its armed forces from Ukrainian territory and stop sending weapons and mercenaries to the terrorist groups.

“We call upon Russia to return to respect its international commitments and uphold international law,” he added. “It has grabbed a part of a sovereign European country using previously unseen tactics of warfare and immense propaganda against its neighbor. It enabled the tragic shooting down of a civilian airplane.

“It has shown that agreements and commitments do not matter, and it wantonly ignores and manipulates international opinion. These actions can only be qualified as a threat to global peace and security.”

The limited ability of the UN Security Council to address the urgent situations in Ukraine and Syria in a timely manner underlines the need to move forward with reform of the 15-member body, he added, calling for its enlargement and voicing support for France’s bid to limit the use of veto by the five permanent members, seen as preventing UN action in both cases.

Also taking the floor, Mark Rutte, Prime Minister of the Netherlands, said that on 17 July, in a summer already marked by alarming reports from Syria, Iraq and Gaza, his country was confronted with stark international reality: “The 298 passengers of flight Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 would be alive on Thursday if not for the Crimea conflict and the destabilisation of eastern Ukraine. 196 of the victims were Dutch nationals. This tragedy has had an enormous impact on our country.”

“Everyone in the Netherlands knew someone in that plane, directly or indirectly, and we will feel the pain for years to come,” he said, stressing that the events of the past few months reminded all of how closely interwoven events at home and abroad can be. “And how important a stable world order is to our national interests. We saw again that when it comes to addressing the major problems facing the global community, there is simply no alternative to working together and taking a multilateral approach.”

Continuing,  Rutte said the events of this summer have made the Netherlands even more resolute about promoting the international legal order and about working to this end with everyone in the General Assembly, in the knowledge that peace, justice and development are closely interconnected.

He said that 2015 is an important year for the global development agenda. The international community will be reviewing the Millennium Development Goals and raising the bar once again. In July the Open Working Group on Sustainable Development Goals laid a solid foundation for the future that reflects the Netherlands' priorities. The most important goal is to eradicate extreme poverty within a generation in a way that doesn't harm economic growth, social equality or the environment. We must link short-term goals with long-term goals.

Norwegian Prime Minister Erna Solberg condemned Russia’s “violations of international law and its continuing destabilization” of eastern Ukraine.

“Any settlement of the conflict must uphold international law and respect the territorial integrity of Ukraine,” she said, deploring the failure of the Security Council, which is mandated to maintain peace, to effectively address the situation in both Ukraine and Syria.

“We all know why. Some of the big powers still believe in outdated ideas of zero-sum games and spheres of influence.”

Herman Van Rompuy, President of the Council of the European Union addresses the General Assembly. UN Photo/Cia Pak