your television provider. >> ahead here on c-span2, secretary of state john kerry and other representatives of the u.n. security council speaking about the conflict in the african great lakes region. then a look at how states and the federal government are meeting the october deadline for open enrollment of health insurance exchanges. after that we're live from the center for american progress with a debate on the role of debt and deficit reduction and economic strategy. and later, the senate returns at 2 p.m. eastern for general speeches followed by more debate on funding for transportation and housing programs and the nomination of james comey to be the next fbi director. >> at a recent u.n. security council meeting in phi, secretary of state john kerry and u.n. secretary-general ban ki-moon discussed the ongoing

cop flick in the african great lakes region as well as humanitarian assistance in the area. other speakers included the president of the world bank and the be u.n. special envoy to the african great lakes region. [inaudible conversations]

>> the 7,0 11th meeting of the security council is called to order. the provisional agenda for this meeting is the situation in the great lakes region, supporting the great lakes framework. without objection, the agenda is adopted. and it's my pleasure to warmly welcome the distinguished secretary general, the ministers and the other distinguished representatives in the security council chamber. i think everybody's participation here is an affirmation of the importance of the subject matter that is under discussion. under rule 37 of the council's provisional rules of procedure, i invite the representatives of belgium, burundi, the democratic republic of the congo, the republic of the congo, mozambique, south africa,

tanzania and uganda to participate in this meeting. it is so decided. be -- under rule 39 of the council's professional rules of procedure, i invite dr. jim young kim, of the world bank to participate in the meeting. it is so decided. on behalf of the council, i welcome dr. kim who is joining today's heating via teleconference from washington, and under rule 39 of the council's provisional rules of procedure i invite mrs. mary robinson, special envoy of the secretary general for the great lakes region. it is so decided. under rule 39 of the council's provisional rules of procedure, all these rules which i'm obviously enormously familiar with, i invite his excellency, commissioner for peace and security of the african union,

to participate in this meeting. it is so decided. and under rule 39 of the council's provisional rules of procedure, i invite the executive secretary general of the european external action service to participate in this meeting. it is so decided. the security council will now given its consideration of item 2 of the agenda. i want to draw the attention of the council members to document f-2013-387. the report of the secretary general and the imelementation of the peace -- implementation of the peace, security and cooperation framework for the be democratic republic of the congo and the region. i also wish to draw the attention of council members to document s-2013-3 be 94, a letter from the char jay do fair

at the interim of united nations addressed to the secretary general. and before you is a statement by the president on behalf of the council on the subject of today's meeting. and i want to thank all the council members for their very valuable contributions to this statement. and in accordance with the understanding reached among the members of the council, i take it that the members of the security council agree to the statement which will be issues as a document of the security council under the symbol f-prsd-2013-11. it is so decided. now it is my privilege, and i mean that, an e nor house privilege, to make a statement in my capacity as the secretary of state of the united states of america.

i begin by saying how genuinely honored i am to be able to join you a at the united -- you at the united nations presiding other the security council in our role for this period as the secretary of state. and it's also a privilege to chair the security council on a subject, a challenge that is central to the mission of this vital organization; that is, realizing the promise of peace. for far, far too long, far too many lives in the democratic republic of congo and the broader great lakes region have been ravaged by targeted, grotesque violence. they have been subjected to human rights abuses, and the region has been disrupted by dangerous instability. the crisis that we witness today

underscores what we already know. it is a stark reminder of what fills the vacuum in the absence of good governance, basic dignity and in the absence of firm leadership that holds accountable those who violate basic standards of decency. it reminds, or it ought to remind all of us of an obligation that we all share not only to end the killing, the raping, the forcing of children into combat, the devastation and the fear, but the obligation to establish a lasting peace and a climate of development. and in doing so, we can create the space be for productivity and partnerships, for greater opportunity for the citizens of the drc and for the birth of a

new generation of stability and of hope. we can actually prove to the world that all of us working together -- and i might add, prove it at a time where many people are doubting the capacity of institutions to function be be -- function and where today doubt the capacity of political leadership to solve problems. we have the ability to prove to the world that together we actually can make a difference. the seeds of this promise have already been planted, but our job doesn't end with the creation of the framework. it continues in the cultivation of the seeds, in making sure that we implement the framework, that we create a vigilant, accountable and cooperative effort in order to see those seeds grow into a full blown peace that is sustainable. now, i want to recognize our partners in that effort. first, i thank the secretary general for his personal engagement. i thank world bank president kim

for the same kind of engagement and for their partnership. president obama and i are very grateful to both leaders and the institutions that they lead for the very novel u.n./world bank partnership that has been created which provides incentives for political process through projects that create stability and improve infrastructure. clearly, boosting regional commerce in the short term is one path to realizing stability and security in the long term. and i think that we're all very hopeful that this approach can succeed in the great lakes region and perhaps even serve as a model for other areas like measuring ali and through -- mali and through the maghreb and beyond. regrettably, we have no dearth of locations where we are challenged and could use this kind of model today. i'd just say parenthetically that in the middle east, in the

west bank and palestine we are beginning to look at a similar kind of model and hope that we can combine our efforts over the long term to find new ways to build sustainable peace. i want to particularly also thank u.n. special envoy mary robinson. a longtime friend, somebody i've admired for a long time. and i reiterate the united states' support for her work with region alleyeders in the im-- regional leaders. we particularly welcome the priority that she places on including regional women's groups, local commitments and civil society in the framework peace process as we seek to break the cycle of violence and break down the barriers between humanitarian aid and the people who are desperate for it. the day before president obama nominated me to be secretary of

state, i met with dennis who just a few weeks earlier had fled the drc after an attempt on his life. dennis has demonstrated the courage to stand up and protect women and children from the weapons of war which too often people only talk about in a whisper. the victims of these horrific crimes and humanitarians like dennis who protect and treat those people and all of the people in that region desperately need a voice. and i know and i, obviously, because he chose her, the secretary general knows that mary robinson is committed to being that voice as the region and the international community address the full range of issues involved in translating the broad principles of the framework into concrete benchmarks for implementation.

pleasure so thank you, mary robinson, for what you're doing. we're grateful for your continued public service. it's also a great pleasure for me today to introduce all of you and to introduce u.s. special envoy russ feingold, former senator russ feingold. the suffering in the great lakes, which we are going to debate and talk about here today, is a high-level priority for president obama and for me, and it is one that we believe must be met by high-level leadership. i had the pleasure of working in the united states senate for 18 years with senator feingold, and there is no one, in my judgment, in the senate who was more trusted for his expertise in african issues. he brings enormous intellect, passion and courage to this challenge, and i am very pleased

that he has consented to take this on. i also bring you the greetings of former ambassador of the united nations susan rice who asked me to give you a warm good morning and hello. and we chatted briefly before coming here so i could get the latest tips on exactly what to do and what not to do today. [laughter] the united states joins every single one of you in welcoming the peace, security and cooperation framework. it is a very important first step. but we also recognize that the progress the region has made since february is extremely fragile. and the key question before all of us today is whether the commitments prescribed in the framework can be kept, will be

kept. will they come to life, or are they only going to be destined to live on paper? let me underscore, the united states stands ready to support the signatories, and we will work with you with focus and energy and persistence in order to implement the framework. but as president obama said, there has to be follow through. i want to headache it clear -- i want to make it clear in that context the united states is deeply concerned about recent reports of external, resumed external support to m23 as well as of collaboration with the fdlr. so i want to be emphatic here today. all parties must immediately end their support for armed rebel groups. all governments must hold human

rights violaters and abusers accountable. we must end the era of impunity. and that, unfortunately, has been rampant. to this end, the united states welcomes the deployment of the intervention brigade, and we support its mandate to neutralize all armed groups and protect civilians so that peace can take hold. we believe that it is now time for everyone in the region to exercise restraint and to return to the constructive path that you have set out for yourselves. to move forward together so that we can address the root causes of this conflict and end it once and for all. i believe this is doable. be i believe it is the absence of governance and the absence of an international presence that has created the vacuum that has permitted people to act with the

impunity they have acted. i know that moving ahead isn't easy. i know it takes courage. but we have to all accept that this is our responsibility. so as the chair of this debate and as a representative of a nation that like all of yours has a stake in the stability of the great lakes, i want to urge all of us around this table to take advantage of the unique opportunity that the framework provides. the united states challenges, respectfully, all of those who have committed themselves to the framework to respect in turn the national sovereignty and the territorial integrity of the drc. we can't emphasize enough how critical it is that everyone fosters cooperation across borders. we challenge everyone to finalize the benchmarks that are outlined in the framework and to adopt them during the u.n.

general assembly in september. we strongly urge everyone to formally include the voices that special envoy robinson hasen gauged, voices -- has engaged, voices that have too often been excluded, particularly those of women. and we challenge the drc to continue implementing reforms to its security sector and to reestablish state authority particularly in the east. and finally, we pledge to join the security council, the drc, regional governments and the international community to do everything in our power to achieve a comprehensive peace accord. every one of us here understands the complex history of suffering in the great lakes region. but we all have a responsibility, a

universeally-endowed responsibility be, to insure that a history of violation is not going -- of violence is not going to be followed by a future of vengeance. the only way to properly honor the millions of lives that have been lost is through peace, and the only way to achieve that peace is for the united nations and all of the countries in the region and all of the countries with the capacity to step up and help to show the way forward. so thank you for the prim of share -- for the privilege of sharing a few thoughts with you. i will now resume my function as president of the council, and i give the floor to secretary general, his excellency, mr. ban ki-moon. >> john kerry, secretary of state and president of the security council, distinguishes members of the security council, honorable ministers for attending this session, dr. jim young kim, president of the world bank, excellencies, ladies

and gentlemen: i thank the united states for cop screening this debate. -- convening this debate and the secretary of state, john kerry, for presiding. his presence is a testament to the importance the united states places on this important issue. allow me, also, to recognize the appointment of senator ruz findgold has special representative for the african great lakes region and the democratic republic of the congo. i wish him success in the critical months ahead and hope that he will continue to very closely coordinate with my special envoy, mary robinson. ladies and gentlemen, it's now five months since the peace, security and cooperation framework for the democratic republic of the con duo and the region was -- congo was signed and tour months since this

council adopted resolution 2098. hopes were high that we could see an end to the large-scale cyclical violence that has ravaged eastern drc over the past two decades and derailed the previous peace initiatives. peace would mean a new chance for development and lasting security for some of the world's most sorely tested people. and, therefore, deeply concerned about the current hostilities between m23 movement and the congolese armed forces. all parties need to return as soon as possible to the kampala talks. i have called for maximum restraint and urge all framework signatories to jointly and individually respect their commitment. the lack of mutual trust in the region has thwarted past attempts to find a political solution to the entrenched

problems that continue to drive the country. it is vital that the government of the drc and its eastern neighbors pursue constructive dialogue. at the national level, structural reforms within the drc will help address the root causes of the violence. the government has taken initial steps towards army reform, decentralization and national dialogue. it is essential to translate these commitments into tangible results. at the regional level, leaders must look beyond the issues that divide them and work together to define a common agenda for lasting peace and prosperity based on trade, economic cooperation and mutual respect for each other's sovereignty and territorial integrity. mr. president, excellencies, a

peace-security-cooperation framework provides a clear road map. my special envoy for the great lakes region, mrs. mary robinson, will continue to support the parties to uphold the commitments that they have adhered to under the framework. my special representative for the drc and head of -- [inaudible] mr. martin -- [inaudible] will support the political process in the drc and support it in implementing its national commitment. the prospects for peace in eastern drc remain better than they have for many years. spoilers are active, including armed groups and militias that have shown little inclination to engage in a genuine peace process. to address this threat, we are reinforcing the force intervention brigade which is an important tool but is only one part of comprehensive approach

that embraces security and development. however, while the united nations and the international community can do much, we depend on the framework signatories to provide the central foundation. all parties must avoid renewed hostilities and achieve progress on the political track. conflict and lawlessness in eastern drc have -- [inaudible] development and entrenched extreme poverty and suffering. there are appalling levels of brutal sexual violence. the region needs security. but for lasting peace we must also provide opportunity. the u.n. system a -- is committed to promoting economic development in the drc and great lakes region. last may during our joint visit of myself and the world bank president, dr. jim yong kim, the

world bank has commented on additional $1 billion for better health and educational services, cross-border trade and hydroelectricity projects giving new imwe constitution to regional -- impetus to regional integration. i thank the leadership and continuing engagement and commitment of world bank president dr. jim yong kim, kimd i'm going to work very closely with him in other areas to set the model of partnership between the united nations and world bank. this is central for building the trust and interdependence that are critical to thing of the peace -- to the success of the peace, security and cooperation framework. be excellencies, the current fighting in eastern drc casts a grave -- >> [inaudible] >> deter us from our objective. it should make us even more determined to lift the people from to presentation of insecurity, human rights abuses

and poverty. i count on the framework signatories to work constructively with each other and with my special envoy to develop benchmarks for their commitments. these are inform the strategic road map for implementation to be presented for endorsement in the margins of the general assemble general debate in september. and i call on the international community to use all the tools at its disposal from international criminal prosecution and sanctions regimes to development assistance. my special envoy, mary robinson, has described the peace, security and cooperation framework as a framework of hope. i urge all signatories and the international community to keep the hope alive. thank you. thank you very much, mr. president. >> thank you very much, mr. secretary general, and thank you again for your leadership. i now give the floor and the

video screen to dr. jim yong kim, president of the world bank. >> thank you very much. honorable ministers, the african union commissioner, members of the security council and u.n. hebb states, especially i would like to thank u.n. secretary-general ban ki-moon, mr. secretary general, you are the leader of the entire multilateral system, and your strong visionary leadership on this issue is what's giving drive and impetus to our work together. we look forward to continuing to follow your lead and playing our role. be secretary kerry, as a longtime resident of massachusetts, i want to thank you for your leadership over decades. i also want to thank you for your extremely generous mentorship and support of me personally. quite literally, i would not be in this job without your support. and also i especially want to thank the secretary yen for appointing mary robinson as u.n.

special envoy. and for the people in the room who do not know, i want to make a special point to make it clear that the u.s. special envoy, russ feingold, is a person who has been deeply committed to africa. i remember warmly my years of working with senator feingold as he championed increased funding and support for aids, tuberculosis, malaria programs. senator feingold is a true champion and friend of africa. it's an honor and/to take part in in the briefing, and i thank you for the invitation as i recognize that our work at the world bank group has to be aligned with political realities at the global, regional, national and local levels. i'll focus my remarks on the development aspects of peace and security in the great lakes region and outline what the world bank group is doing to support the framework. as the secretary general has noted, we visited the great lakes region together earlier this year.

it was the first time in history that the president of the world bank and the secretary general of the united states had -- the united nations, excuse me, had traveled together on mission. the choice of our destination and the timing of our trip was not an accident. the secretary general's ground breaking work and the commitment of all the countries in the region to this framework agreement provides all of us with an opening to end violence, secure peace and lay the foundation of a more robust economic development. these foundationing will make a difference in lifting people out of poverty, creating jobs and providing access to health and education. the secretary general and i delivered one message over and over during our trip, and i'll repeat it now: we cannot have development without peace, and we cannot have peace without development. be conflict not only stops development, but it can reverse years of development gains. the eastern provinces of the drc are a good example of a tragedy with an immense human cost that has gone on for far too long.

over three and a half million people are estimated to have died since 1998, at 4.7 million people lost their homes and over two million children cannot benefit from education due to the destruction of schools. the poverty rate is about 70%. and overall access to economic services including energy is very limited. but let me also argue that the long-term sustainable peace and stability will not be achieved without addressing the underlying key economic drivers of conflict and instability. these drivers, these drivers of conflict spill across the borders and, therefore, call for a regional approach to population displacement and illicit exploitation of mining and timber. these problems are compounded by lack of economic opportunity. on our trip together, the secretary general and i demonstrated the commitment of the u.n. and the world bank

group to collaborate in bringing tangible benefits to the people of the great lakes region and to pursue peace, stability and development in a comprehensive manner within our national and regional programs. we were heartened by the commitment of the political leaders to implementing the framework. we were also heartened in the regional interests to promote development. this is essential for sustainable peace in the region. on our trip we committed to increasing the cooperation between our institutions and with other partners such as the european union, the african development bank and the regional economic communities to maximize the impact of our efforts. we will strongly support the office of the secretary general's special envoy to the great lakes and increase our collaboration with the u.n. on the ground. and we will use our convening power to encourage greater investment including from the private sector in the region. i also announced that the world bank group will provide an additional $1 billion over the next 24 months for cross-border

development issues. of these, about $500 million will be for hydroelectric power plant projects to increase energy access in several great lakes countries. about $350 million for transport linkages and border management and about $100 million for agriculture and rural livelihoods targeted at refugees and internally displaced persons. this is extremely important given that the region has one million refugees and more than two million internally displaced persons in a situation of protracted displacement. i'd like to add that all of our assistance will be informed by a gender perspective, and we will provide additional resources for programs to address sexual and gender-based violence as well as assistance for basic health services for vulnerable women and children through networks of health centers. economic empowerment of women as well as promotion and protection of their rights and increased voice all have important be roles in reducing violence. we will also expand our assistance for networks of regional public health

laboratories for our countries to develop and share specific expertise. this has been very successful to date. i'm pleased to inform you that this a in two weeks our board of directors will consider the first be product under this initiative. i'm sure that progress in the areas i just mentioned will create significant economic opportunities and help to generate jobs, and i'm convinced that regional approaches i've outlined will help to promote greater cooperation and integration within the region and bring tangible benefits to all great lakes countries. we're under no be illusion that this support will be enough. our assistance fits into a larger mosaic of development for the region and will focus on leveraging private sector investment. we also understand that while the large energy projects will be critical for the long-term development of the region, we also need to move as rapidly and as efficiently as possible with smaller projects so that the people of the region feel the tangible benefits of peace. indeed, in coming months

delivering on our promises related to agriculture, jobs, cross-border trading, education and health care will help determine whether these efforts will succeed. we must deliver on our promises, and we must move with as much urgency as we can. all this work will stem not from the priorities made in washington or the u.n. headquarters this new york, it will be guided by the priorities set by african stakeholders and their emphasis on both quick wins and medium to longer-term results. i'm pleased that last week we were able to cohost a meeting on regional approaches to development in the great lakes countries with the african union commission and the united nations for this agenda. at the meeting participants agreed on the importance of these aroachs. they also agreed to collaborate immediately on several steps including a mapping of country priorities and partner assistance and establish an accountability and follow-up mechanism. the report of the meeting will be presented to the 11 +4 summit in september. finally, when the secretary

general and i traveled to goma to visit women who suffered from violence and the health care workers who care for them, we heard many painful stories. these women's stories must be heard and must be remembered. their words should prepare us for the difficulties that are sure to come and harden our commitment to the framework agreement, because we must not let this continue. what happened to these women, what's happened to millions of people caught in the web of conflict in the eastern regions of the drc, is a stain on all our consciouses. outside the hospital we saw scores of women and even girls holding play cards with messages such as we are tired of conflict, we've had enough, and peace, peace, peace, please. i want to assure you as i assured those women and girls we met that the world bank group is in this for the long run. with the secretary general's bold leadership, we're determined to stay the course for these women and all others who have been robbed of economic opportunity by years of conflict. it's time for all of us to move

together, to move quickly and to deliver on our promises. thank you very much. >> jim, thank you very much for an important briefing and an eloquent statement, and thank you for the creative leadership together with the secretary general and your willingness to create this new partnership. and i hope it can be be really a solid model for the future. it's now my privilege to give the floor to mrs. mary robinson, the special envoy for the secretary general for the great lakes region. >> thank you, mr. sec tar of state -- secretary of state, president jim yong kim and excellencies. i'm horned to speak to you -- honored to speak to you on this important resolution. i too thank secretary of state john kerry for providing a strong statement as chair. let me reiterate my

congratulations to senator russ feingold for his appointment as the united states special representative for the african great lakes region and the democratic republic of the congo. i look forward to working closely with him. i also welcome the appointment of martin cobbler with whom i have established a very good working relationship. as we've heard, this high-level meeting on the drc and the great lakes takes place at a difficult time for the people in the region. the latest round of fighting in eastern drc has had devastating consequences yet again on the civilian population both for those living this and around goma, but also for the be host communities and governments of the neighboring countries. many cases of death, injuries, sexual violence against women and massive displacements of population are still being reported. these cannot with allowed to go on. the fighting must stop immediately, and all parties should exert maximum reanticipate to avoid destatement to avoid further conflict. as you know, i have now served

as special envoy for four months and not a day goes by without a report of killings, rape, sexual assault and displacement of people in eastern drc. the reports are in the dry prose of the code cables or the slightly more descriptive style of journalists filing their copy. what strikes me is the lack of outrage and horror at this daily toll. it has become the accepted normal, but it is not normal and not acceptable. we committed to zero tolerance of gender-based violence. zero tolerance needs to be implemented as a fundamental value of the framework. like president kim, i remember the roles of people in goma who lined the road holding pieces of paper, mainly in french, which said no impunity, peace now, the fighting must stop. this, in essence, is the promise of the prc framework, the promise of peace, security,

cooperation and development. sadly, there are credible reports of some activities in support of armed groups by different signatory parties to the framework which are contrary to the spirit and intent of the framework. as the secretary general said, the force intervention brigade will be an important tool with a robust mandate, but it is only one part of a come prehencive approach. the stark reality is that those who suffer the most from this endless conflict and its atrocities are is and always have been the civilian population first, particularly women, children and even babies. excellencies, as the secretary general said in his remarks, hopes were high when the 11 countries and four important be regional and international institutions signed the peace, security and cooperation framework for the democratic republic of the congo for the region on the 24th of february. and when you, distinguished

members of the security council, adopted resolution 2098 in this march. the framework clearly gives the ownership and the responsibility to the leaders who signed it, and i am personally very encouraged to see their commitment to it is strong and resolute. if fully implemented, both the prc framework and resolution 2098 would help stabilize the situation on the ground and, more importantly, would pave the way to address the fundamental causes of the cycle of conflicts in eastern drc and the great lakes. that's why i strongly believe that the signatories and guarantors of the prc framework and the international community as a whole need to work intensively together to accompany the leaders and the people of the great lakes to transform what i call the framework of hope into a tangible reality. despite the security and humanitarian challenges that the drc and the great lakes region are facing at the moment, i'm encouraged by official progress

in several areas and by the strong will demonstrated by the signatory countries to contribute to the implementation of the prc framework. allow me to share with you some of the positive be political -- that the signatories of the prs framework and key institutions have taken since february. at the national level, president ca bill la established in may the national oversight mechanism which will oversee the implementation of the commitments of the prc under the, the rc framework. i made this clear that the national oversight mechanism will include a large cross-section of the civil society in carrying out its mandate. at the same time, national reforms that the drc has agreed to implement under the prc framework need to begin in earnest and be supported by the international community. i'd like to welcome the recent initiative of the democratic republic of congo and the international conference of the great lakes to launch a mineral certification program in an

effort to stop the illegal exploitation of minerals and prevent armed groups in eastern drc from benefiting from it. this is an important first step which deserves the full support of the international community. at the regional level, the first meeting of the regional oversight mechanism, the 11+4 mechanism, took place on the 26th of may and established a technical support committee mandated to develop the benchmarks and indicators of progress for the implementation of the prc framework amongst other tasks. the committee is made up of senior representatives from the signatory countries of the pfc who met twice so far on the 24th of june and earlier this week on the 22nd and 23rd of july under the co-chairmanship of my special adviser and the african union special representative for the great lakes. participants also included senior officials from icglr and the u.n. department of political

affairs. i'm glad to report that the committee has made solid progress in developing benchmarks and indicate ors of progress. these may still be improved, but they are specific, measurable, achievable, relevant and time-bound with a clear indication of responsibilities. in accordance with its immediate mandate, the committee focused on regional benchmarks but also provided critical inputs for international benchmarks and national benchmarks. i'd like to take this opportunity to thank all the members of the committee and the leaders of the region who responded positively to my request to each to appoint one of their closest advisers to represent them in this work. i would present the bench marks developed by the committee to the leaders of the region during the next icglr summit scheduled in nairobi ahead of the regional oversight mechanism which, as the secretary general has said, should formally adopt them in september here in new york. in the meantime, i will, of

course, continue consultations with all those involved in the imelementation process of the pfc framework to insure that the proposed benchmarks meet their concerns. two significant regional meetings took place recently with positive outcomes that i'd like to share with you. the first was the regional consultation on women, peace, security and development in the great lakes, which i organized in collaboration with fam africa solidarity and the international conference on the great lakes region from the 9-11th of july in burundi. more than a hundred women leaders from signatory countries of the pfc framework attended the conference including the gender ministers of the drc, rwanda, uganda and burundi. you will recall that i made it clear as special envoy i intended to implement a top-down and bottom-up comprehensive approach whereby i'll be working on the one hand with political leaders and be on the other hand with the people of the region to encourage peace, security and

development. it was important to listen to the great lakes women's perspective on the peace process as women represent the majority of the population in the region and are, together with children, the first victims of the ongoing conflict. i gave them the opportunity to suggest possible benchmarks and indicators which were later submitted to the technical support committee for consideration. perhaps i should explain that not too surprisingly the technical support committee is entirely male in its composition. i will continue to encourage women-led initiatives in the region through the establishment of a communications platform through which experts and donors could provide technical advice and funds to women's projects in this support of the framework of hope. as president kim mentioned, the second meeting took place on the 18th and 19th of july in addis ababa, the african union, the world bank and my office organized a ministerial seating to development in countries in

support of the framework. the meeting was attended by ministers of finance and economic planning, ministers of foreign atears and international cooperation of countries of the great lakes region, partner countries, international organizations and civil society organizations. be proved to be a very good forum for discussion, building on the visit of secretary general ban ki-moon and world bank president jim kim to the great lakes region in may. participants noted the deepened regional cooperation and enhappensed regional -- enhanced regional trade could create opportunities particularly for disadvantaged groups, women and youth as well as strengthen political agreements by delivering tangible results. they indicated a number of priority regional interventions in energy and transport infrastructure, cross-border trade, economic development and social sectors. i'd like to take this opportunity to thank the addis ababa participants and also

president jim kim for his commitment of the $1 billion u.s. in support of the framework which effectively turns it into a framework for peace, security, cooperation and development. excellencies, all these steps, though they may appear minor for the millions of people on the ground who are eagerly awaiting to see peace established and their lives changing are concrete affirmation of the determination of the international community to try few avenues for sustainable peace and stability and development in the great lake region. i will soon come back to you with further elements for the implementation of the pfc framework which will be built on political insecurity, humanitarian and development. elements of this strategy will include sustained confidence-building measures, joint efforts with the srst and international partners to support the national dialogue process in the drc.

cross-border development projects with a strong focus on civil society youth and women's groups and modalities to support difficult mediation -- difficult mediation building on the dialogue within the limits of my mandate including strict compliance with international human rights and humanitarian law. i'm fully aware of the challenges that the governments of the region and the security council face to advance peace in the great lakes region. my role, i hope, will be a modest but catalytic contribution, to help restore peace and build hope for the future in a complex environment. but such a strategy and the council's engagement with the great lakes region will bear fruit only if all actors involved at the local, national, regional and international levels push in the same direction. and this, let me reiterate this, there is an immediate cessation of hostilities in eastern drc. i believe that there is some political momentum at the moment. we need to create and encourage space for dialogue and support for tough decisions. we need to tell each other the

truth quietly when necessary, but firmly and stick to our commitments to the psc framework if we're to make a real difference this time. i've been having frank conversations with the leaders of the region, and i intend to continue to do so. i encourage the members of the security council to keep the great lakes region high on your agenda and maintain the current momentum, including perhaps through a visit to the great lakes region in the coming months. let me conclude by warmly thanking the security council members, the secretary general and my u.n. colleagues as well as regional and international partners who have continuously expressed and provided support to my work. i know i can count on you to try to move the psc framework forward, and i'm really grateful for that. thank you. >> thank you very much, madam special envoy, and thank you for your briefing, and thank you for your work. and i know, special envoy, senator feingold is really looking forward to working with you.

i now give the floor to his excellency -- [inaudible] [speaking french] >> translator: thank you, mr. president. secretary general, ladies and gentlemen, ministers, members of the council, allow me to begin be by with conveying to the president of the security council for the month of july 2013, the secretary of state, mr. john kerry, as well as to the members of the security council the thanks of the african union commission. for the invitation to take part in this important meeting on the situation in the drc and the great lakes region. the president of the aeu commission regrets being unable to take part in this important meeting which is part of efforts to implement the frame agreement for peace, security and cooperation in the drc and the region. this is an agreement signed in

addis ababa on 24, february. indeed, the first of the commitments undertaken by the international community with regard to the expected role of the security council regarding the importance of supporting the long-term stability of the drc and the region of the great lakes. moreover, the follow-up mechanism instructs the drc as well as neighboring countries and regional partners -- [inaudible] to work in sync so as to promote the commitments undertaken. the high quality report of secretary general before the security council aptly describes the situation in the region as well as related challenges. for the au, this high-level meeting is a demonstrationing, a strong demonstration of the

importance accorded by the united states government and other members of the security council to peace and security on the african continent as well as to a swift and lasting settlement of the crisis in eastern drc specifically. this commitment has been made clear through the unanimous support of members of the security council to the efforts of the secretary general at the united nations in implementing the framework agreement. indeed, i would note that the appointment of the special envoy on the region of the great lakes planned for by the framework agreement has taken place and along these lines i'm pleased with the high quality of working relations between madam mary robinson and the special representative of the au for the great lakes region also. i would like to express my satisfaction at the adoption of the important resolution 2098

which allowed us to adapt to a situation and created the intervention brigade upon requests of countries in the region and the african union. the a.u. is grateful to south africa, malawi and tanzania for their contribution to the establishment of the brigade which is currently being deployed and operationalized. hour, -- how much, i must note that -- however, i must note that instead of the agreement from the organizations headed by the president of uganda in kampala with know how and patience, instead full-scale military clashes are taken place between the drc armed forces and elements of the m23 dimming prospects for the current situation in the region can and laying bare the path which hues, the path which lies ahead for

the dawning of a new era in the region. mr. president, ladies and gentlemen, information provided to your council be by the secretary general of the united nations, madam mary robinson, the president of the world bank as well as expected information which should be forthcoming from ministers of torte coming of the -- forthcoming from the mysters from uganda and rwanda, all of this information serves to aplease the council of the humanitarian situation on the ground, the implementation or state of implementation of the framework agreement as well as resolution 2098 of the security council and the political process underway. against this backdrop and the realities on the ground, the challenges of the situation and prospects, the urgent needs and

demands for scaled-up and bolstered commitment from the international community and the great lakes are clearer than ever. in this context, madam robinson and the ambassador are endeavoring to create the conditions conducive to effective and full implementation of the agreement. i'm aware that the congolese authorities as well as those of the 11+4 group have expressed their strong will to make good on commitments, and i also know that the backing of the entirety of the international community to the drc and countries of the region shall not be lacking if u.n. initiatives as well as those of international financial

institutions and development partners are any indication. the advisory meeting on development approaches for the country in the region of the great lakes between the a.u., the u.n. and the world bank were organized these it's days in addis ababa and is part of the consistent approach. mr. president, ladies and gentlemen, the african union believes that the dynamism stemming from the framework agreement and 2098 of the security council can pave the way for new possibilities for peace, security and development so necessary in the region in a regional and international context. the care with which the drc government has implemented the

national follow-up mechanism as well as national meetings planned for, all of these initiatives bode well regionally speaking. mobilization continues with the authorities of great lakes countries as well as the south african development community. all of these efforts bear witness to the shared desire to halt instability and dedicate resources as well as energy to development and integration. the forthcoming summit of the international conference on the great lakes region on 31, july, in nairobi will be dedicated to matters of peace and security as well as follow up on the implementation of the framework agreement and should be an opportunity to address all expectations and undertake

necessary activities for the full, for fully drawing upon the potential of the region. the current security council meeting in the weak of the -- in the wake of the inaugural meeting of the 11+4 mechanism presided by the secretary general of the united nations and the president of the a.u. mission on 26, may, aptly symbolizes a qualitatively new stage and collective action of the international community for the people and the countries of the region. the african union is pleased with this initiative and reiteratess commitment to take full part in these welcome efforts for peace, security, democracy and development across the great lakes region. i thank you.

[inaudible conversations] >> i now give the floor to his excellency, the minister for foreign affairs of uganda. >> thank you, mr. president. secretary general, ministers of the council, let me at the outset congratulate you and the united states delegation on the leadership of the security could be ill this month. thank you for organizing and presiding over this important and timely debate. be on the situation in the democratic republic of congo and the great lakes region. i'd also like to thank secretary

general ban ki-moon, special envoy mary robinson, world bank president jim yong kim and the commissioner for the statements. mr. president, this event is taking place at a time when the eastern drc is in deep crisis again. the foreign and armed groups including fdrr, m23 and militias -- [inaudible] and the region. within the framework of international conference and great lake ares region, the region has been involved in efforts toward the peaceful resolution of the instability in eastern drc through both political and military approaches. we are convinced that the political process should be at the fore front of our efforts with peace and enforcement measures complementing it. it was in this context that the

region conceived in that regional international force which this security council took on and the intervention brigade. in this regard uganda welcomes the u.n. secretary-general's statement made on the 18th of july, 2013, in which he underlined, and i quote: the importance of pursuing a political solution to address the root causes of conflict in the democratic republic of congo, end quote. ..

instrumental and the escalating the situation in the eastern region last year and the investment at the talks in the drc government facilitated by uganda's missile defense. mr. president we believe the talks between the government of the drc provide the best opportunity for resolving the crisis. the engagement between a government must be given priority for durable and peaceful solution. the successful conclusion of these talks will no doubt have a positive contribution in the national -- in the drc. we are glad to inform the

council that since december 2012 there has been some progress in the talks with two key milestones. first the review of the peace agreement of 2009 between the government of the drc and the cm bp and agree on the status of implementation which was a significant step in confidence building. secondly, both parties have presented -- in 2013 in one draft and subject to negotiations. while these are commendable they raise serious concern about the commitment to the talks. before security council -- conclude the talks. the kona community to provide financial support to the

mechanisms such as the fusion center and expanded unification unification -- mr. president the renewed fighting between the congolese armed forces is a major concern for the region and the international community. simultaneously the allied democrats -- democracies have increased since the end of july both in intensity and frequency. during the last three weeks ambushed convoys. these attacks caused an influx of over 66,000 congolese refugees in uganda. the situation in the region remains of concern as the security by other groups has displacement of people.

while we condemn these attacks by adf and other groups the agreement as a reminder of the -- [inaudible] uganda is concerned about the stability of the attacks from the drc and it is our -- the new mechanism combined with security reform will give us the capacity to be tougher on groups for which fighting destabilizes neighbors. mr. president peace and security framework in the drc in the region has a unique and important milestone towards addressing the challenges in the drc and the region. in our view, the following three elements are crucial. first, the drc framework will organize a holistic approach as the best way to and instability.

secondly with commitments and actions of the national regional and international -- and we should focus on the implementation. thirdly and most importantly the political efforts among the u.n. , the au, icglr and -- we therefore underscored the need for expeditious implementation of of the commitments in the pse framework by the drc the region and the international committee. uganda is committed to playing its part. from my experience regional initiatives would be supportive of the international community yielding good and better results on our continent. when underscored the need to bring a central focus to the peace and development to the drc. it is important the initiatives

in key areas such as infrastructure and energy trade and agriculture are supported and -- [inaudible] in this regard in uganda the world bank the president that took place in may and the pledges they have made. mr. president and conclusion uganda and indeed the region has called for concerted efforts to address the root causes of conflict in the drc. we have also called for support for the drc government to emphasize effective authority over all of its territory in order to -- and the region. now is the time to reserve our efforts to address the root causes of the complex of the drc in a conference of manner.

our assignmenassignmen t to be held in nairobi will review the situation of the drc and the region and actions being undertaken and make specific recommendations. i thank you. >> thank you very much your excellency. we appreciate that and i hope you will convey our gratitude to the president and i know you're defense minister here are grateful for your initiatives and for your leadership. thank you. it's my pleasure now to give the floor to his excellency mr. -- the minister for foreign affairs and national democratic republic of the condo -- congo. >> mr. president. >> translator: mr. president mr. secretary-general ladies and mom and members of the security

council first and foremost i would like mr. president to reiterate to you by warm congratulations to you on your appointment as secretary of state of the united states. i would also like to express the satisfaction of the democratic republic of congo in seeing you preside over the security council at this critical moment in its history and to thank you for undertaking the initiative of organizing the special meeting of the council. of the great lakes region the great lakes region which for several years has seen a cyclical calling into question of the security and peace due to rebellions which has been clearly established as having the same genetic signature, the same designers, the same external support, fallacious justifications, the same actors on the ground in the same modus operandi art by massive violations of human rights to which summary executions and executionexecution s the

drafting of child soldiers sexual violence and rape pillage of private and public assets and illegal exploitation of natural resources. eyes choosing to speak about the drc you bear witness to the importance that the government of the united states of america and the security council of the united nations attached to returning peace in the region of the drc and thereby ending the region as a whole. i would like to also take this opportunity to thank mr. ban ki-moon for his personal involvement in the negotiations conclusion and implementation of the framework agreement for peace security and cooperation in the drc in the region which was concluded and azerbaijan in the 24th of their prey. this agreement which bolsters that constitute true major renovation both in the grassroots crisis which has been hitting the region of the great lakes since the second half of the 1980s and innovation in

the traditional doctrine of the united nations in terms of peacekeeping. for the long-suffering people of the countries in the region the framework agreement and the aforementioned resolution are seen as speaking eloquently to the instability which has lasted too long and for which my country has paid a very heavy price. and it is also true for the most recent joint trip of the secretary-general united nations president of world bank and madam mary robinson for which we are also grateful. i should also recall the sad reality which is often unknown to switch due to repeated conflicts my country has lost more than 6 million souls and thus it is also with gratitude that we see many other important dignitaries.

with the loss of more than 6 million souls we see a tragedy which is unequal in the history of mankind and which can leave no one in different unless mankind loses its soul. our meeting of today reflects our will to reaffirm our humanity together to assess without complacency the level of execution and implementation of commitments undertaken in order to put an end to this drama. in the terms of the very significant framework agreement of the 24th of february, 2013 in order to specify which challenges can be met in order to restore lasting peace for the region so that they can devote its energies and intelligence to key questions in order to fight poverty and improving the living conditions of its peoples. mr. president the democratic

republic of congo is determined to a samba share of responsibility so that peace and harmony can return to the region rapidly. as ruth, as soon as the framework agreement is signed, the congolese government bans its efforts to fulfilling its obligation and it should be set in passing that many of these tasks have been underway for the last 11 years. and seeing as important priorities. with this in mind, we have not only accelerated but also systematized reform of the security sector. this involves cleanup of army structures and personnel, of the security and police services, the recruiting of young defense congolese forces from around all parts of the country opening military academies training with the help of our bilateral partners and special forces in support units with the priority

goal of operationalizing a rapid reaction force. all of these are specific actions undertaken in order to make our, the defense of our territory more effective and to better ensure the state's authority. with a view to consolidate authority especially in the east of the republic starting with goma, the national police public administration and the courts all benefit and a priority manner from capacity building. this will make it possible for them to progressively take control of the situation. decentralization as set forth in the constitution is closer to becoming a reality with the adoption of necessary legislation to implement decentralization. reforming management of public finances which has been underway for several years now has led to a number of positive results and

the stability of the macroeconomic framework and we see this being pursued and usefully completed with the entry into force of cleanup measures in order to improve the business climate and to provide for a national mechanism for certification of mining resources. this will strengthen economic growth which notwithstanding is one of the strongest on the continent and has been on a constant basis for the last 10 years. and better, the government has just begun an in-depth examination of the document for strategy growth and to reduce poverty. in order to make growth more inclusive and to partially make up for the lag in leading millennium development goals and to give the fight against poverty more credibility and greater efficiency. turning to the political arena now, reconciliation and strengthening national deletion are more than ever a priority and thus the national follow-up

coordination mechanism for implementing the framework agreement was entrusted to a competent and experienced high-level member of the opposition. the independent national electoral commission has been completely overhauled and a new team which is tougher and more inclusive has just taken the helm of this very significant support for democracy. the new electoral commission is working hard to prepare the electoral process under the best possible circumstances local municipal provincial senatorial and governor province elections. moreover the initiative of the president of the republic national consultations will be held as of the month of august. the goal of these consultations is to seek together the means to

strengthen national cohesion in order to better meet the challenges before the congolese people. to be inclusive this form will bring together in addition to national and provincial political institutions political parties all trends included trade civil society and all of its diversity as well as significant representation of both women and youth. in preparing this forum and reading it, this was entrusted to a presidiupresidiu m composed of the president of the senate a leader well-known from the opposition who was elected to his position as such and it is also an interest to the president of the national assembly who represents the presidential authority. proof of the participatory nature of this exercise is that the political opposition recently prepared and filed a document of demands and proposals and deposited it with

the presidium and the president of the republic. for each and every of these reforms as for all other commitments undertaken by the democratic republic of congo, due to the framework agreement benchmarks have been developed and are being -- exchanges are being held with regard to the benchmarks with madam mary robinson and her team to whom we would like to refer our support. we will be prepared for the upcoming 11 plus for meeting which will take place in the sidelines of the general assembly of the united nations this september. mr. president at this moment while we are meeting here the people of goma lived in fear and uncertainty due to sporadic attacks which sends a adoption of resolution 2098 and in defiance of this resolution and 23 is launching attacks against the defense position of the fra d.c.. in order to hide the fact that

this is a negative force he is resistant to peace. they are attempting to justify their actions by letting unfounded accusations at the fa rdc to discredit it as well as the brigade is intervention in minusko and have affirmed without proof they are collaborator. those responsible in the united nations have responded to these accusations. and the president has circulated a document to the security council to refute these allegations categorically. and has sent to the president of the security council the same document asking him to circulate it to all members. careful examination of the documentation which we have provided you will show clearly the magnitude quality and efficiency of the efforts undertaken by the drc in the last five years in order to

combat the fdlr which would have been completely neutralized had it not been for the unleashing of the 23 rebellion. it is noteworthy that a positive value for -- the valuation was certified by noncongolese experts who cannot easily be accused of complacency in this area i.e. in minusko but especially those very same people who today through their accusations seem to be reneging on their signature. it's also worth knowing that no country in the region of the great lakes has great lakes has as much as the drc militated in favor of the creation of an intervention brigade. with the mission of neutralizing all forces including the fdlr and to grant an offensive mandate to this brigade. it should also be clearly understood moreover that the democratic republic of congo more than any other has people who live in suffering violence

due to the presence of foreign armed groups on its territory and could not entertain the notion of any cooperation with those forces who stand out due to their killings, their rapes, violent civil nature pillaging of public and private access and of natural resources. it is thus my place to solemnly affirm that the democratic republic of congo has never and will continue to scrupulously respect its sovereignty and territorial integrity of other states in the region as well as the sinker sink principle of noninterference in the internal affairs of other countries. turning now to the involvement of some elements of the fa rdc rdc -- fardc in light of what i have said to our scrupulous respect of the sovereignty and integrity of other countries in the region. i would like to say that their

implication in violations of human rights in minot for, you should note that this case has been brought to court in the members of the fardc who are convicted will be severely punished regardless of their rank. turning now to recent allegations with regard to the abuse of prisoners inhumane and degrading treatment profaning the dead, investigations have been launched in order to establish the truth. justice will be -- vis-a-vis these offenders if they are convicted. i should however underscore here that these allegations are surprising to say the very least. surprising because if this type of human rights violation in the past have been established as something undertaken by the rebellion and those responsible at the the m. 23 rebellion say

would be the first time in 15 years however that inciting these rebellions the regular army of the drc would be subject to such accusations. and that is what we can say about the credibility. mr. president as you can note for yourself the democratic republic of congo has made significant progress in implementing its commitments. this puts us in a legitimate situation of having expectations of like commitments both from our international and regional partners. deployment on the ground of the intervention brigade instituted by a resolution 2098 is clear progress and we appreciate it. our desire henceforth is to see the brigade swiftly and efficiently begin its mission confided to it at the security council which is surveillance and securitization of the border

of the drc with its neighbors in the east and neutralization of our negative forces without exclusion. having said that we are aware that the military force could not alone resolve the complex piece equation of the great lakes region in africa nor could it separate out the conflicts and disputes which are interlocked with each other. the sources of them are also overlapping and are both external and internal trade given the extremism of almost all the forces in the region force is necessary but not sufficient to be a lasting solution must include sincere dialogue amongst all internal and external parties, application of good faith and the conclusion of these parties should be implemented with good faith and that is why as far as we are concerned we are the drc we remain actively involved in talks. we would like however to underscore that given our experience with agreements concluded with the rebels in

2003, 26,102,000 rebels who for the most part have been recycled into subseventsubsevent een and in keeping with the relevant resolutions of the security council we could not sign an agreement that would enshrine in trinity and reintegrate into the armed forces people who have been subject to judiciary action international sanctions due to massive violations of human rights, war crimes, genocide crimes against humanity. to do that would set the stage for another breakdown of peace and more instability. mr. president the suffering of the past which no one is ignoring and no one is minimizing regardless of the wounds, regardless of the horrors could not be indefinitely something that would lock us into a position without any escape. without forgetting the past we must emphasize reconciliation and cohesion within our states, peaceful cohabitation and

cooperation history and geography compel us to it. so do survival and lasting and sustainable development. the democratic republic of congo will never abandon to anyone the least square inch of its territory nor will he give up any part of its sovereignty over its wealth. it is however prepared today as yesterday to conclude that covenant for peace, stability and development in the region of the great lakes as a whole and with this in mind to develop regional cooperation. others before us have been able to, even knowing the proof and a situation similar to that of ours, they have been able to end than capable of renouncing the imposition of indefinite vengeance. their prosperity and their current cordial understanding should be a source of inspiration to us all. the peoples of the great lakes region in africa have, like

those around the world a right to peace and prosperity. by reiterating our congratulations and gratitude to you that they give us to have faith mr. president the unwavering determination of his excellency the president of the republic to work for sustainable peace in the region. thank you. >> thank you very much mr. prime minister. i appreciate those last comments and also the importance of your statement and we thank you today. i now give the floor to her excellency ms. louise mushi kiwabo minister for the republic of rwanda. >> thank you, thank you very much mr. chairman secretary kerry honorable ministers, distinguished delegates. let me begin by thanking the united states and you secretary

kerry for convening this most important debate in support of the peace, security and cooperation framework and for the presidential statement just adopted. allow me also to thank the secretary general mr. ban ki-moon for his statement as well as the world bank's president dr. jim yong kim and the envoy for the region of africa mary robinson for their valued contributions and statements this morning. taken together, their extraordinary efforts exhausting schedules and financial commitments to regional development priorities and please demonstrate their sincere commitment to the peace security and cooperation framework that we are discussing this morning. it is a visionary comprehensive

and inclusive strategy to and decades of conflict and instability in the eastern democratic republic of congo. i also think the au commissioner for his regional efforts undertaken by the african union towards finding peace in the great lakes region. i also acknowledge the presence of honorable ministers from countries of our region and from fellow councilmembers. rwanda welcomes the special envoy of the united states to the great lakes region, russ feingold and the new srsg as well as the force commander, the new force commander of minusko. i wish to assure all of you as a team of rwanda's total corporation for our common or

suit of peace for our region. mr. president, while rwanda is pleased to support the presidential statement we nonetheless would have loved to have seen efforts of the region included in the statement particularly in support of the kampala peace talks established under the auspices of the international conference of the great lakes region. indeed ,-com,-com ma we would like the united nations special envoy mary robinson to play an active role in seeing through the kampala talks without any further delay so that we can move quickly to pass a fine the region. her engagement with the a welcome and helpful contribution to moving forward. we have gathered today mr. president with a sheer determination to make peace in

the great lakes region a lasting reality. having endured devastating conflict within our own borders nearly two decades ago, the people of rwanda have worked tirelessly to rebuild a peaceful and thriving nation that we are also very aware that our destiny is inextricably tied to our neighbors. let me put it in the clearest possible terms. in order to secure long-term peace and prosperity for rwanda into the future, we need a peaceful and prosperous democratic republic of the congo and as long as conditions persist that allow more than 30 rebel groups to rome in the eastern drc with impunity, for as long as men and boys to see nothing in their future beyond crime, violence and conflict

such a transformation will remain beyond reach. this framework of hope along with regional peace efforts opens a special door to that kind of profound and necessary change that is needed for the drc and for our entire region. rwanda is eager to do its part and live up to its commitment as a neighbor and a regional partner as well as through this framework of hope. allow me to lay out some actions my government has taken so far in implementing this framework. we have disarmed and relocated away from the drc border more than 600 m23 competence who crossed into rwanda as a result of infighting in march 2013. in his report dated june 28, the

secretary general commended rwanda for the positive role it played in that regard. we have asked the united nations to take responsibility for his confidence and it is important to note that rwanda cannot bear this burden alone. we invite the international community to devise and implement a long-term solution for this group of former, tents to accommodate roughly 70,000 congolese nationals who have sought refuge in rwanda for more than 13 years now and to take the necessary steps to ensure their safe return home as soon as possible. in addition as the secretary-general mentioned in his report on the implementation of the psc framework fake

government of rwanda reported the presence of several high-ranking m23 members who crossed the border from the democratic republic of congo seeking refuge in rwanda including u.n. sanctioned individuals. when m23 leader surrendered to the u.s. embassy in march, on march 18 earlier this year, rwanda and authorities offered facilitation for his transfer to the hague through the u.s. and dutch embassies. we can all agree that the economic component of the framework must be implemented alongside its political and security aspects and to that end of rwanda is working to boost regional cooperation through enhanced economic integration and close collaboration in

cross-border trade with the drc and our other neighbors in the great lakes region. just last month, rwanda mining authorities seized a .4 metric tons of smuggled minerals and are in the process of returning them to the drc authorities and that has been the practice in the past. while also exploring several other opportunities for economic cooperation including a strategic bilateral project with the democratic republic of congo on our shared lake -- finally rwanda supported and has been facilitating the deployment of the brigade and we did so because we believe that it could help pacify the region and serve as a strong deterrent against the multiple armed groups in the eastern drc. therefore, allowing minusko to

carry out the protection of civilians responsibility and critically create the space necessary to implement the peace and security framework as well as facilitate other regional peace efforts. mr. president, as a special envoy mary robinson has stressed in the past this framework is a shared endeavor and its success depends very much on each party living up to their respective commitments and i i'd take the opportunity of this meeting in this chamber this morning to reiterate rwanda's commitment to this framework. we are one of the 11 countries who make up the expanded joint verification mechanism by which developments in conflict affected areas are examined thoroughly and with transparency and accountability. we therefore urge the security

council to attach value to the work of the expanded joint mechanism and for their findings to inform the decisions we reach and resolutions we agree to. on the recent fdlr fardc collusion one that remains seriously concerned, the security council has received a letter reference document s/ s/2013/402 from my government with details so i would not repeat the specifics here today simply to say that it is a concern that needs to be addressed. while were rwanda views and the alliance between the fdlr and the sub 22 a threat to our security however we will not

allow the developments to derail our commitment to this piece as we have done in the past. mr. president i cannot stress enough rwanda's goodwill and ongoing support for the peace security and cooperation framework. we believe that offers a realistic path to lasting peace and security for the people of the democratic republic of congo and the great lakes region at large but we must not fear off course and we must understand that this vision is only achievable alongside regional peace initiatives as well as genuine political will on the part of all affected states. further, the international peacekeeping force in the drc is forging uncharted territory with the deployment of an intervention brigade as well as unmanned aerial vehicles. u.n. peacekeepers must take great care to respect all

relevant international goals and adhere strictly to their mandate since the consequences of instability and the eastern democratic republic of congo fall so heavily on rwanda and as has been the case in almost the last 20 years we are eager to take full advantage of this historic opportunity for peace and security and despite the serious risks i have outlined this morning, we can see early signs of progress that are not mistake the bible. our plan mr. president is that action is just words and when it comes to the eastern drc there have been enough words. there has been enough speeches and writing and there has been more than enough grandstanding especially by unaccountable actors who receive profit and publicity from their regions

misery. it is time for such forces to move aside and allow the framework to move forward. this is the time for accountable parties to stand up and step forward and now is the time for action. i thank you for listening to me. >> thank you very much madam minister. we appreciate your comments and i look forward to my meetings on the side of this gathering with both you as well as with your counterpart from the drc so thank you for your statement. i give the floor now to his excellency mr. jean asselborn deputy prime minister for foreign affairs of luxembourg. >> thank you mr. president. luxembourg welcomes the initiative taken away the united states the united states to convene a high-level debate of

the security council on the situation in the democratic republic of congo and the great lakes region. this debate is particularly timely under the presence of the secretary of state to give that special significance. i would like to thank the secretary-general of the united nations, special envoy mary robinson the president of the world bank mr. camp the commissioner for peace and security of the african union mr. ramtone lamamra as well as the foreign affairs for drc and uganda for their statements and for their frank's commitment to peace security and cooperation in the region. luxembourg fully subscribes to the statement delivered by the european union. mr. president drc and the great lakes region have for too long been a ravaged by conflict. millions of persons have died as the minister of foreign affairs of congress stated in 6 million deaths over the past 15 years

and millions of displaced persons and individuals unable to live in dignity and armed groups notably the m23 which plague the eastern drc. this is no longer acceptable. things must change. we must break the cycle of violence. it is our hope that the peace security and cooperation framework signed in the 11 plus four format on 24 february proved to be a turning point in the showing of peace and stability in the region. this agreement would not have been possible nor its follow-up be ensured without the support of the united nations. i very much welcome the crucial role played by the secretary-general and his team. i would also like to thank the african union for their support as well as the international conference on the great lakes region and the south african development community. the pfc format takes into

account the root causes and emphasizes the ownership of the country's region in a process which must break the cycle of reoccurring violence and pave the way for truly dynamic regional and economic development. we would like this agreement to live up to the name that has been given to it by mary robinson and inspired by the irish poet. a framework of hope, a framework which can bring back hope to the people of the drc in the region. as well as leave behind the current horrors of the situation today. mr. president it is now time for implementation of the pse framework. in this context we welcomed the initiativinitiativ e taken by the drc the national oversight mechanism will monitor the implementation of the commitments made of the tremor.

they first have to plans for security sector reform particularly the army of the present. we also welcome the establishment of a new and independent electoral commission. this paves the way for organizing provincial elections setting up a professional and loyal national army that can protect the territory of the drc and promote human rights and it is also paramount. in this connection involves authorities to continue their investigations into violations in humanitarian law and human rights. in particular sexual violence perpetrated by elements of the drc armed forces. the implementation of the action plan signed in 2012 at the u.n. in order to hault the recruitment and use of children as well as sexual violence committed against children by

national armed forces and security forces. all of these must be in the same context. we would also recall the signing of the framework went hand-in-hand with the overhaul of minusko including the establishment of an invention or. the impact of the brigade has been felt on the ground and we are pleased with this. pursuant to resolution 2098 the brigade will have a key role to play in contributing to the objective of reducing the threat posed by armed groups to the authority of of the state and the safety of civilians in eastern drc. support to ssr the protection of civilians and in particular women and children must remain at the heart of minusko's mandate. president at the regional level we support the approach of the special envoy mary robinson and her intention to design in the

forthcoming months a comprehensive clinical strategy but the implementation of the framework based on indicators agreed upon by all signatories. visions indeed required to sustain -- the follow-up orchestrated by mrs. robinson who have to benefit from the continual attention of our council and particular concern is the continued exploitation and trade of resources in the drc in particular by armed groups. this trafficking is a major source of instability and we welcome positive steps taken by the congolese authorities in this field. in general we encourage them to scale up their efforts in the area of economic governance as stated within the psc framework. it is important to strengthen regional cooperation including by deepening economic integration with special consideration for the

exploitation of natural resources. finally, allow me to stress the importance of our partners in the region to focus on development cooperation in the fight against poverty. indeed security and development to go hand-in-hand. and courage the world bank and the countries of the region to quickly implement the projects to support regional development priorities following president kim's announcement on 23 may pledging $1 billion to zero interest loans. i have in mind specifically projects in the area of agriculture, hydroelectric power and infrastructure for the expansion of cross-border economic activity. as madam mary robinson of the ongoing political process will only succeed if people quickly benefit from tangible piece of evidence. mr. president and conclusion allow me to reiterate the call on the signatories of the pfc

framework to implement and good faith in due diligence all commitments to which they have committed including that of neither tolerating or providing assistance or support of any kind to our groups. it is a matter of responsibility and credibility. in doing so they can count on the support of the international community in order to initiate an upward spiral which will allow the people of the region to emerge finally from an unacceptable situation which has lasted for too long. this opportunity is exceptional and must be seized upon now. i thank you. >> i think his excellency minister jean asselborn for his statements and i give the floor to his excellency mr. fernando carrera minister for foreign affairs in guatemala. [speaking in native tongue] >> translator: mr. president 13 years have elapsed since the united nations has established the peacekeeping operation in

the democratic republic of congo. my own country is participated as a trip and as a true country races 2005. indeed we lost eight soldiers and a well-known incident that took place in the national park in january of 2006. allow me mr. president if i may to recall their names at this time. [inaudible] orlando augusto r. alonzo. five of those soldiers were of mayan descent and guatemalan and were on the path for peace and security in the region. in spite of this long history for signing on the 24th of february of the peace security and cooperation framework agreement has opened the way for renewed vigor for efforts

obtained in achieving peace stability and prosperity in the great lakes region and in general and in the drc. it is for this reason that we find today's debate timely and relevant and for this we thank your delegation the united states and secretary kerry for having proposed it and for having circulated a concept on the matter. we also appreciate your gesture secretary kerry is personally presiding over a meeting. we also greatly value the presence of secretary-general ban ki-moon in the present of the world tank jim yong kim and we would like to thank them for their presentations. we also appreciate the presentations of madam mary robinson special envoy and they had of the security mission of the african union. mr. president they report presented by the secretary-general serves as a

background document to this meeting refers to the relatively encouraging expectations of today and the protracted crisis in the drc and especially in the eastern part of the country can be resolved in the broader context that shapes the future of the great lakes region. despite numerous obstacles which the report also describes in a rather frank manner, we agree with the assessment of the secretary-general and with the words of a special envoy mary robinson. i would like to highlight some of the elements that support our cautious optimism. first, although the framework involves commitments both for the government of the drc and for other countries in the region as well as for the international community, it is clear that primary responsibility falls squarely on the democratic republic of

congo's government as well it should. this model of the host country serving as the main protagonists and the international community in a complementary role has emerged as a pair parent i must development in recent times. and even serves as an inspiration for development goals. second a commitment to address the root causes of the conflict in an integrateintegrated and holistic manner including the economic social political governance and security issues also appears to be indispensable if our goal is to restore stability and overcome the violence that afflicts this country. third it is comforting to note the presence of 11 countries and for multilateral institutions involved in the framework agreement on peace and security cooperation. it is our view that the establishment of the oversight mechanism called the 11+4 mechanism commitments undertaken

by all parties will be met. fourth, we applaud the partnerships which the united nations has built with regional and sub regional entities of the african continent. in this specific case with the african union and the international conference of the great lakes the south african development community. we view the synchronized" would have worked with these multilateral entities each in its own specific purview as something of special importance. fifth and along the same lines we applaud the joint initiative of the secretary-general of the united nations and the president of the world bank to undertake a joint mission to the region of the great lakes and to appear jointly before us. it is difficult to conceive of progress economically and socially without involving of the lateral financial institutions. we are pleased that in addressing these problems in a

holistic and integrated manner each entity can respond according to its specialty not only within the united nations but also within the united nations system and between other multilateral bodies. we also continue to hope that the new expression of cooperation between the united nations and the world bank will extend to the peacebuilding commission and the general assembly. sixth, ed is -- as it is known by delegation has seen this not just as the arm of peace and development but also the arm of finance to go hand-in-hand. six as the delegation has expressed allegations regarding the new trend of this council to assign peace enforcement duties to missions conceived under the cardinal principles that have shaped their peacekeeping mandates including especially

the principle of impartiality however in spite of those reservations ultimately we accepted the cooperation of the intervention brigade into minusko as the lesser of two evils. given the imminent threat to the civilian population by the m23 and other groups in the drc and with the understanding that this would be a stopgap measure. in any case it's important to not forget that to build states, to build democracies or to build nations is not a job for the international community. it's the job for sovereign states. to conclude i would like to refer to the fact that just a month ago we were in this very room reading the resolution and are calling a resolution on sexual violence against women and children in armed conflict situations which means

resolution 2098 of the council is one that was passed as fundamental and we should not forget the words of that resolution which would serve as words for peace for the drc. i hope mr. president and mr. secretary-general that we are on the path at this moment and we will continue progressing towards prosperity and development for a region that needs it in an ongoing manner. thank you. >> i think minister fernando carrera for his statements and i give the floor to delegate to france. >> translator: madam president mr. secretary-general of the united nations, madam special envoy allow me a number they have for france mr. secretary

john kerry undertaking it this in particular in the drc. as others said this meeting is timely. the humanitarian situation continues to be tragic with more than 2.2 million displaced persons in the drc and 490,000 neighboring countries these last months have been characterized by the new spike in hostility undertaken by the m23 and armed groups against the drc armed forces. this resumption of hostilities is a test for the international community. it is a test because the m23 and armed groups are seeking simply to derail the political process underway.

it is a political process which indeed seeks to hault the tragedy which has lasted for far too long. it is a test because some players would be tempted to renege on their commitments but our message is clear neighboring countries in that region must stop support to armed groups as they have committed to do. this firm is being sent by the international community today and is healthy because it will support the commitments of players to a sustainable peace in the great lakes region. ladies and gentlemen we have made much progress over these past months. we now have a consistent framework. one which allows us to hope that the tragedy and the great lakes

will be halted after more than 20 years. now this framework is based on two pillars, the first is the framework agreement signed on the 24 february by countries of the region upon the secretary-general's initiative and i would like to thank sg here for his action and determination. now it is the responsibility of the signatories to implement their commitments. over these past weeks we have seen many encouraging signs. the drc government's adoption of a national follow-up mechanism. this is a step forward towards crucial reforms of the congolese police and the army. now, full scale measures must be undertaken as swiftly as possible. it is also important for the congolese army to act in an

exemplary manner on the ground and the atrocities committed by the army which are not excusable be effectively and severely punished by the justice system of the country. now on a regional level the first meeting of the regional mechanism follow-up mechanism on 26 may in the margins of the african union summit rocked together the majority of heads of state and the states of the region. this mechanism first and foremost would guarantee the sovereignty and -- of all states of the region be upheld. beginning with that of the drc. but also it must guarantee that their security not be threatened. the actions of madam mary robinson special envoy of the sg for the great lakes region will be most crucial for the assessment and follow-up to national and regional efforts and the implementation and

commitment or obligations. madam president rest assured that the firm support of france which remains at your site. the second pillar of this new requirement is resolution 28 of the security council adopted unanimously on 28 march. the heart of minusko's mandate has not changed. it remains the protection of civilians however to -- further objective of the resolution authorizes the deployment of an intervention brigade which has the mandate of engaging in violence and threatening civilians. now france would like this brigade to become operational as quickly as possible. another essential point of 2098 is the matter of sexual violence.

sexual violence continues to be a weapon of war and usually with all impunity. here we welcome the initiative of madam mary robinson to organize with the icglr in a specific conference on the role of women in the process of the framework agreement and implementation. ..

>> transparency in the resources. lacking transparency and mining resources to see this place to transparency and as you know, upon the uk initiative and with france is full support, the countries in the g8 adopted at the beginning of the month action plan, for transparency or extracted industries. moreover, we do intend to fully politically and technically and force the drc's efforts to establish a certification mechanism for mining minerals in the region. all of these tools will allow us

to backtrack as was to increase the benefits leading to mining resources for people in the region. ladies and gentlemen, at a time where the m23 conducts attacks it is important to day to spare no effort, so as to defeat those who challenge peace and will not the political timeliness of spending -- to allow for lasting peace, the time has come for all players in the region cooperate in the face of violence and looting. it is only if this happens that the framework agreement can pave the way for an improvement in the security situation and the lives of people in the great lakes region, and have the millions of people who have engulfed the region in sadness over many years.

today, we have an obligation to succeed. thank you, madam president. >> mr. delegate for his conversations. i now give the floor to mr. trent 11, the republic for typical addict matters for the diplomatic relations in togo. [speaking in native tongue] >> translator: madam president, i would like to thank your country for organizing this high level debate on behalf of the great lakes region. and i would also like to applaud the presence of the secretary of state to lead this debate. i would also like to commend the secretary-general on his presence, and thank them for sustained efforts in the quest for sustainable peace, sustainable solution to this

conflict in the region. i'd like to congratulate him on his statement. finally, i would like to say that i welcome the participation of the president of the world bank and the high level representatives of the african union and ministers of the region of the great lakes, as well as the other ministers at this debate. holding this debate is tangible proof of the significance attached to the resolution of return conflicts in the drc by this council and collectively all member states. in this regard i would like to applaud the appointment on the 18th of june of mr. russ feingold of special envoy of the united states for the great lakes region. mr. president, it is on this note of optimism that i begin my remarks by echoing the statement made by the secretary-general of the united nations and the president of the world bank at a

common statement entitled peace, just within reach, on the eve of a joint mission to the drc and some of the countries in the region. togo shares its optimism, and after more than a decade of suffering, the people of the great lakes region deserve to finally see peace restored. this is why my country would like to express its recognition to the heads of state of the international conference on the region of the great lakes to the community of south african states, and the african union. but also to the secretary-general of the united nations and our own counsel for their joint and determined action in order to put an end to massive violations of human rights in the eastern part of the drc, especially sexual violence and rape, which have

become weapons of war. and i'd like to most particularly welcome the framework agreement signed on the 24th of february with the support of the united nations, through which 11 heads of state in the region have undertaken commitment to act by working together to meet common challenges in security, governance, and socioeconomic development. it is also important that all the signatories of the agreement put their good faith in the provisions of this agreement. and it goes without saying that the key role must be played by the drc in order to successfully build a new piece architecture, which must be done slowly but surely, and we congratulate the authorities of this country for

actions already undertaken in that direction. however, efforts must be continued, especially in the area of security sector reform, protection of civilians, especially women and children, and by arresting offenders and those who order crimes to be committed, regardless of who they are and thereby putting into the reign of impunity. moreover, togo welcomes once again the adoption by the council of resolution 2098, which authorizes the deployment of the interventions which is charged with fighting armed groups in the east of the drc. increased support should enable this special unit to achieve the goal set forth for it.

mr. president, we are plot remarkable progress achieved in the drc. and yet we must condemn the acts of the m23 which has led to current hostilities between the rebels and the congolese army. if the peace process is to be continued waf out impediment come it is also important the armed forces of the drc and the rwandan defense forces worked together. in order to neutralize the fdlr so they can no longer do harm and bring about security on do we want to ease congolese border and good relation between the two country, always which were harmed by the fdlr. mr. president, hunger and poverty accelerate the whole dynamic behind violence. it is hunger and poverty that lead to the recruitment of young people out of work who are

desperate and get involved in armed groups. and that is why togo is pleased that the international committee has integrated development factor and the economic integration factor at a regional level in its overall strategy to resolve the conflict in this region. and then disregard the world bank deserves all of our recognition and appreciation. it having pointing the way for us to follow. the drc and great lakes region and, like other african countries, recover from complex and work towards the millennium development goals, and their populations deserve a chance to work with the international committee. thank you. >> i give the floor to the representative of azerbaijan. >> thank you. madam president, at the outset i would like to thank the united states presidency on convening this debate on this situation of the great lakes region.

we welcome the presence of you at this very important meeting of united states excellency, mr. john terry, and other high ranking officials. we're also grateful for the secretary-general ban ki-moon, world bank president jim yong kim, a special envoy mary robinson, the uk commissioner, and ministers for foreign affairs of the democratic republic of the congo and uganda for their statements. today's meeting is being held against the background of renewed hostilities being shaded by the m23 movement in the drc. we condemn attacks by the rebel groups which caused civilian casualties and displacements and undermined regional and initial efforts towards negotiation resolution of the conflict. indeed, the situation in eastern drc, particularly the destabilizing activities of armed groups grave human rights

violations and abuses and conflict affected area and the effect of the crisis represent the most significant challenges. concerns about the increasingly difficult political environment in security strain in the environment requires no efforts of the international level. the signing of the peace security and cooperation framework for the drc and the region of 24 february 2013 was undoubtedly an important -- added new interest to the diplomatic and political effort, and there is expectations that the crisis in eastern drc could be resolved. it is important that already access involve consistent demonstrate necessary political will, and spare no efforts to translate the goals of the framework and timely outcomes. what has been put at the outset is that the diplomatic and

political efforts true no way league -- illegal actions and seen as an opportunity for end of discussion of unacceptable strains. is the case in some other situations of armed conflict. -- [inaudible] accountability as these motions are understood in international law, have been from very beginning alone key elements cutting the common approach of the international community. in this statement i released today the security council demand that all armed groups cease immediately, all former violence them and that their members fully disband and disarm as we are looking -- renewed commitment of all -- [inaudible] of any kind to armed groups. we're also welcome the council to expand on the need to end impunity for violation of international human rights, committed during the conflict.

the intervention brigade is an essential element of efforts proposed by the president of armed groups in eastern drc. at the same time it's clear that the conflict in drc cannot be resolved by military means alone. being complementary to the political process the impact of the intervention brigade will be effected only international and regional commitments under the psc framework are properly and timely implemented. important prerequisite of the conflict resolution india sees regional support. we will commend the african union, the international conference on the great lakes region, and other regional actors as well so the region for their contributions to finally -- find a lasting solution to the conflict that it is crucial that they continue to work together towards the implication of drc framework. it's also imperative that all counsel of the region respect

this of each other. as well as -- [inaudible] good neighbors come and regional cooperation. we welcome the initial steps taken by the government of drc to fulfill its commitments under the drc framework, including those aimed at ending impunity for serious human rights violation and more on the security sector reform. these efforts will undoubtedly contribute to strengthening the populations confidence in the states institutions, and help lay solid foundation for the development of the continent. the sustained engagement in support of international community are crucial in promoting stability in the drc, and the entire region. we commend the personal efforts of the secretary-general ban ki-moon, and special envoy mary robinson. the joint visit of the secretary-general and the president of the world bank group, and the announcement of the package of 1 billion euro dollars by the world bank adds

the potential for significant -- in moving the peace agenda and thus enhanced peace integration for. during the assassination -- [inaudible] assistance support national and regional efforts to the root causes of the conflict. [inaudible] and strongly condemned all attacks. in conclusion, madam president, i would like once again to thank you work in getting this important debate which provided the opportunity to raise the international community's sustained engagement on the great lakes issue and the strong support to the framework an issue. i think you. >> i think the representative of azerbaijan from a state and give the floor to the representative of china. [speaking chinese]

>> translator: thank you, madam president. madam president, china appreciates the u.s. initiative to convene this open debate on the situation in the great lakes region. we welcome secretary of state kerry to reside over today's meeting. i thank secretary-general ban ki-moon, president jim yong kim, and special envoy robinson for their briefings. i have listened attentively to the statements by au and the regional countries. the great lakes region is situated at the center of the african continent and is endowed with natural resources, long history, and richness. it holds unique development potential and advantages. however, due to factors such as instability in the regional security situation, the protracted disputes and confli conflict, security and development in the great lakes region have encountered constraints and difficulties.

it is encouraging that in last february thanks to the joint efforts of regional countries, in particular secretary-general ban ki-moon's initiative the countries in the great lakes region signed the peace, security and cooperation framework for the grc and the region. -- drc. mark an important step by regional come cherries in resolving disputes by themselves and achieving regional peace and development through cooperation. peace and development in the great lakes region is presented with an important opportunity. china highly appreciates the efforts of countries in the great lakes region in implementing the framework agreement. we hope all parties will proceed from long-term interest of safeguarding regional peace and development, show determination, consensus, and their commitment

in good faith, resolve one for all their original dispute and complex, and embark at an early date on the lasting peace in develop and. to this end, i would like to highlight the following four points. first, it is crucial to keep up with the momentum of foley implementing the framework agreement. the urgent task now is full cessation of hostility and restoring stability in eastern drc. armed groups should voice their grievances through dialogues and negotiations, and conclude agreements with the drc government of indian violence so as to create conditions for easy humanitarian situation in eastern drc. second, the support of drc government is strengthening capacity in providing security should be the focus of the

framework agreement implementation. china welcomes the setting up of national oversight mechanisms by drc government to able at the framework agreement. drc armed forces should assume primary responsibility for safeguarding national security and protecting civilians. the intervention brigade should assist and support the drc armed forces in responding to threats from armed groups in the mandate of the security council. third, cooperation through dialogue and mutual trust among countries and the great lakes region is vital for restoring a sensibility in the region and achieving common development. we hope the regional countries will, based on mutual respect for sovereignty and in territory through 11+4 oversight mechanism of the framework agreement, the international conference on the great lakes region joint verification mechanism strength intimidation and cooperation,

purchase the activity in regional benchmarks of the framework agreements and commitments themselves to these andy dement in the region. fourth, the international community should scale up its assistance and contribute positively to the long-term peace and stability in the great lakes region. we hope that u.n. will work with a new icglr and other regional mechanisms to strengthen coordination, and push parties towards honoring their commitments to the framework agreement. by taking action. we also hope that the $1 billion pledge of the world bank to the great lakes region would be quickly dispersed to support the regional countries in developing national economies, improving people's livelihood, and achieving lasting peace. madam president, as stated by

china's president, during his recent visit to africa last march, china is confident that the difficulties and ups and downs some regions of africa are expensing will by no means stop the steady advantage of the covenant towards peace development and progress. china remains all weather friend and we will be steadfast in supporting the african states in their efforts to safeguard sovereignty and resolve the african issues by themselves. i would like to reiterate here that we have all a long been actively supporting the countries in the great lakes region and advancing peace. for many years, china has been participating in the u.n. peacekeeping mission in drc and has made unremitting efforts towards maintaining security and stability in the country. we are ready to work with the

regional countries and the international community into taping positively to bring the people of the great lakes region from suffering, inflicted by war and conflict, to achieving peace, stability government. thank you, madam president. >> i think to represent a china for a statement from and to give the floor to the representative of pakistan. >> madam president, we thank secretary of state john kerry for presiding over the special session of the council. the united states initiative gives a fresh impetus to the quest for peace and security in the drc, and its neighborhood. today's debate brought together the secretary-general, president of the world bank, special envoy mary robinson, and leaders from the region. this is synergy in action. we pay special tribute to the secretary-general who, despite heavy odds and some setbacks, assembled leaders of 11

countries, and for guarantors, the united nations, african union, icglr, for the common cause of peace and stability in the great lakes region. this is a big picture approach. a big picture requires that countries in the region must build a strong nexus between peace and development. there can be no development without peace in the region. regional economic integration should replace the toxic legacy of programs and reign of terror imposed by militia and armed groups. the ps cheap framework holds the promise to deliver peace, special envoy mary robinson has testified that some progress is being made. we should maintain the momentum generated by positive developments. madam president, the big picture take dates that killings must

in. violations of international human and humanitarian law such as execution, sexual violence and force recruitments must cease. impunity should not be condoned. perpetrators should be made accountable. the intervention brigade under minusco is being deployed. it must succeed. the brigade is one of the two of the overall strategy to act as a deterrent. it is not meant to be a substitute for the congolese army nor a plan to see it for the problems in eastern drc. as this council's resolution 2098 underlines, ultimately, a well-trained and adequately equipped rapid reaction force within the congolese army would take over the responsibilities of this brigade. minusco remains a keystone of the new strategy.

we all know that the process of implementation of the framework is not going to be easy. it is important that drc's neighbors and recent partners are fully on board and the implement the framework in good faith. it is also critical that all countries respect the sovereignty and territorial sovereignty on the neighboring states. credible and verifiable measures should be taken to disarm and demobilize groups that defy the writ of the state. allegations can be investigated, and truth established. the realistic and time bound benchmarks should be developed to monitor the progress and implementation of the framework. madam president, we welcome the initial steps taken by the government of drc to implement the psc framework and establish the national oversight

mechanism. the responsibility of the maintenance of peace and stability in the eastern drc should be gradually transferred to its armed forces and police. the drc should expand security sector reform, consolidate states authority, and work towards national reconciliation. madam president, pakistan is strongly committed to the goals of peace and stability in the drc, and great lakes region. pakistani peacekeepers and minusco have played an important role to restore and bolster stability in the drc. they have carried out operations against armed groups, contributed to the training and capacity building of the congolese national security forces, and worked in community welfare projects. many of our soldiers have laid down their lives on the drc

soil. our peacekeepers will continue to protect civilians and implement minusco's mandate. madam president, we hope that there will be a new dawn for the people of the great lakes region. this century is africa's century, as africa moves towards robust economic growth and attains political clout, the great lakes region should not be held back by strife and conflict. illicit exploitation of minerals should stop. the rich resources of the region should now be harnessed for the benefit of its people. the countries of the region should assume their rightful place in africa and the comity of nations. great lakes region should become an arc of stability and prosperity in the continent, and the united nations should

succeed in its mission. i thank you, madam president. >> i thank the representative of pakistan for his statement. i now give the floor to the representative of the republic of korea. >> madam president, at the outset i would like to express my sincere appreciation for the initiative of the u.s. presidency in convening today's ministers meeting. we welcome secretary of state john kerry and his chairing today's media i also wish to thank the secretary-general, president of world bank as well as special envoy mary robinson, and commissioner, for their participation and presentations. would also appreciate the high level presence of ministers from the members of the security council and the great lakes region. we are confident that today's schedule will provide an excellent opportunity to review the process thus far and further bolster sustainable peace and

development in the drc and the region as a whole. madam president, the psc framework constitutes a strong political foundation for the region's lasting peace and stability. to participate in country should share a common responsibility to implement the commitments of the psc framework, full and undirected implementation by all concerned parties at the national, regional, and international level. the government of the drc holds the primary responsibility for its own reforms. it should continue to undertake reforms in the areas of security, governance, decentralization and democratization, with a firm commitment. enhancing effect of capacity building in the security sector, among other areas, should lead the process. while respecting the sovereignty of neighboring countries, enhancing regional cooperation by deepening economic

interpretation is vital, maximizing this will be a key part of achieving broader and longer term develop goals and ultimately political stability. we are of the view that the framework success depends on an oversight mechanism with well-defined benchmarks that are verifiable and action oriented. these benchmarks should also include a process to address those that show their stated goals. mr. president, we fully support the holistic approach for peace and come to address the challenges of the great lakes region in this regard, it was highly commendable that secretary-general ban ki-moon and special envoy of the secretary-general to the great lakes region, mary robinson, visited the region, together with world bank president jim yong kim. this unprecedented joint visit by the leaders of the u.n. and the world bank clearly shows the

value of an effort that addresses both security and development issues of the region. and order for this partnership to bear fruit, close cooperation and coordination between the two bodies should be refined and strengthen. we hope that this partnership can continue and extend it to her other areas as well. mr. president, one of the important policy goals of my government is a concurrent realization of peace, security, and economic and social development, not only at the national, but also of the regional and global levels. as a part of this policy, my government will continue to actively engage in international development cooperation. as the countries of the great lakes region pursue security and development, the past development experience of the republic of korea could be helpful. the republic of korea is the only country that has transformed itself from an lpc

country to donor country with in just six decades. the new village movement can provide a useful model for world government and post eradication in the region. in closing, we believe it is essential to maintain high level engagement and commitment from the international community. we are confident that the framework with firm support from the international community will surely contribute to the political stability and economic development of the drc and the great lakes region. thank you. >> i think the representative of the republic of korea for his statements. i now give the floor to the represent of the united kingdom of great britain and northern ireland. >> thank you, mr. president. i think you know states for convening this debate and for personal commitment that secretary kerry has shown by chairing it. it is vitally important that the security council maintains its focus on the region for this

critical time. site also like to thank the secretary-general, special envoy, mary robinson, world bank president kim, commissioner and the foreign ministers for their briefings this morning. mr. president, the democratic republic of congo has been a crucible of conflict for more than two decades. brutal cycles of violence threaten both national and regional peace and stability. we have seen yet more horrors in the latest cycle of violence as the m23 militia carried out summary executions and recruit child soldiers. the fdlr while its threat is coming up reduce has also been to take your out abuse, exploiting the instability created by the m23 build on -- rebellion. despite this latest outbreak of violence, we have an opportunity now to begin a new chapter in the troubled region that ends the people suffering and brings

peace to the eastern drc. in february, countries of the region came together and committed to building peace under the peace and security and cooperation framework. special envoy mary robinson is supporting their effort. and resolution 2098 also authorizes minusco to disarm all those armed groups that pose the greatest threat to stability -- >> we will leave this now and take yo his life for a statemeny secretary john kerry. >> -- take you now live for a statement by senator john kerry. >> as you all know what has taken many hours and many trips to make possible the resumption of the is really palestinian negotiations, and the negotiators are now en route to washington even as we speak here, and i'll have more to say about the journey of this moment and what our hopes are after our initial meetings conclude tomorrow.

this effort began with president obama's historic trip to israel and ramallah in march of this year. and without his commitment, without his conversations there and without his engagement in this initiative, we would not be here today. the president charged me directly with the responsibility to explore fully the possibility of resuming talks. and in our meetings, he conveyed his expectations for this process. getting to this presumption is also taken the courageous leadership of prime minister netanyahu and resin busts, and i salute both of them for their willingness to make difficult decisions and to advocate within their own countries and with her own leadership teams. , countries with the palestinian territories. i would also like to recognize

the important contributions of senior negotiators on both sides. particularly minister litany, both of whom really stood up and stood strong in the face of very tough criticism at home and whose unwavering commitment made the launch of these talks possible. i look forward to beginning work with them tonight. going forward, it's no secret that this is a difficult process. if it were easy it would've happened a long time ago. it's no secret, therefore, that many difficult choices lie ahead for the negotiators and for the leaders as we seek reasonable compromises on tough, couple get a, emotional, and symbolic issues. i think reasonable compromises has to be a keystone of all of this effort.

i know that negotiations are going to be tough, but i also know that the consequences of not trying would be worse. to help the parties navigate a path to peace and to avoid as many pitfalls, we will be very fortunate to have on our team on a day-to-day basis, working with the parties, wherever they are negotiating, a season american diplomat, ambassador martin indyk u.s. agree to take a mystical task at crucial time as the u.n., u.s. -- excuse me, u.s. special envoy for israeli, palestinian negotiations. assisting martin will be, as his deputy and as a senior advisor to me, will be frank lowenstein who's been working with me on this process from the beginning. in his memoir about the peace

process, ambassador indyk quotes a poem by samuel, that begins if men could learn from history what lessons it would teach us, and i should and i to brings to this challenge his deep appreciation of the history of the israeli-palestinian conflict. and from the service under president clinton, secretary christopher and secretary albright, he brings a deep appreciation of the art of u.s. diplomacy in the middle east. that experience has earned ambassador indyk the respect of both sides, and they know that he has made the cause of peace his life mission. he knows what has worked and he knows what hasn't worked. and he knows how important it is to get this right. ambassador indyk is realistic. he understands that israel-palestinian peace will not come easily and it will not happen overnight. but he also understands that there is now a path forward, and

we must follow that path with urgency. he understands that to ensure that lives are not mostly lost, we have to ensure that opportunities are not needlessly lost. and he shares my belief that if the leaders on both sides continue to show strong leadership and a willingness to make those tough choices, and their willingness to reasonably compromise, then peace is possible. so martin, i'm grateful that you've agreed to take a leave from your post at the brookings institution to serve once again in this most important role, and i know that you are eager to get to work, as anti. martin. >> -- and i. >> mr. secretary, thank you very much for that generous introduction, and for investing in the such important responsibilities. i am deeply honored to serve you

and to serve president obama to your noble endeavor to achieve israeli-palestinian peace. the fact that later today israeli and palestinian negotiators will sit down in this building to resume final status negotiations after a three-year hiatus is testament to your extraordinary, tireless efforts, backed by president obama, to try to resolve this intractable conflict. president obama made the case so eloquently in his historic speech in jerusalem in march of this year, when he argued to an audience of young israelis that quote peace is necessary, peace is just, and peace is possible. and you, mr. secretary, have proven him right. you have shown that it can be

done. i couldn't agree more with president obama. it's been my conviction for 40 years that peace is possible, since i experienced the agony -- agony of the yom kippur war as a student in jerusalem. in both dark days i witnessed her stand how one of your predecessors, henry kissinger, broke a cease-fire that ended the war and paid the way for peace between israel and egypt. because of your -- that it could be done, you took up the challenge when most people thought you were on a mission impossible. and backed by the president, you drove the effort of persistence, patience, and creativity. as a result, today prime minister yet and -- netanyahu and president abbas have made the tough decisions required to come back to the negotiating

table. and, therefore, i am deeply grateful to you and the president obama for entrusting me with a mission of helping you take this breakthrough and turn it into a full-fledged israeli-palestinian peace agreement. it is a daunting and humbling challenge, but one that i cannot desist from. i look forward with great excitement to working with you, president obama's and primers netanyahu and their teams to achieve president obama's vision of two states living side-by-side in peace and security. i also look forward to working with the team that you are assembling, starting with frank lowenstein, who as you said has made such an important contribution to getting us to this point and who will be my partner in this endeavor. 15 years ago, my son, jacob, who was 13 at the time, design a

screensaver for my computer. it consisted of a simple question that flashed across the screen constantly. dad, is there peace in the middle east yet? i guess you could say, mr. secretary, that he was one of the original skeptics. [laughter] but behind that skepticism was also a yearning. and for 15 years i've only been able to answer him, not yet. perhaps, mr. secretary, through your efforts and our support, we may yet be able to tell jake, and more importantly, all those young israelis and palestinians who yearn for a different, better tomorrow, that this time we actually made it. thank you. >> thank you all.

we will b be talking to you as a go board. >> secretary kerry announcing martin and i, former u.s. ambassador to israel will be managing talks that begin tonight over dinner, and will also take place tomorrow. going to head back now, u.n. security council meeting on the african great lakes region. this happened last week. we're in the process of watching this before secretary carries announcing. this is about the last half-hour of this meeting. >> lives destroyed by greece time to find them especially sexual violence against women and children as well as violations of human rights. the impact of the congolese crisis carries with it a regional dimension as well. the entire great lakes region has been affected as well as central africa. in the humanitarian, security and economics, it is time to put

an end to it and make it a reversible. the signing on the 24th of february of the framework agreement on peace security cooperation of the drc and the great lakes region was the fruit of regional concerted efforts supported by the united nations and sub regional organizations in order to bring forth we'll hope of peace are in disagreement which is integrated approach is important in fat it provides a process for to hope to remedy and put a lasting into the instability of the region. which has lasted all too long. this opening also goes hand-in-hand with measures taken by the city council to progressively adapt minusco's mandates were mailed on the ground. regionally, the international conference on the great lakes region also put in place important mechanisms to contribute to destabilization. and, finally, visits of the secretary-general eco divide

president of the world bank of the special envoy for the great lakes region has made it possible to grasp different new dynamic on the ground with an economic in order to relaunch economic exchanges, reduce will develop and promote economic regional integration, especially through reactivation of economic committee of the great lakes region in favor of peace. mr. president, all of these efforts to resolve the congolese crisis are but laudable and we should be pleased with them come and get this important momentum for peace and hope should be sustained through respecting the commitments undertaken by the signatories of the agreement, and by confidence building amongst the region countries in order to achieve lasting peace and assure prosperity. mr. president, never have so many efforts been undertaken to resolve the congolese crisis,

and we should applaud that. and yet, it's important to realize that the fruits of peace cannot be achieved without confidence-building measures and working together to build lasting peace and shared a commocommon prosperity. and in that context, we applaud the effort undertaken by the drc to fulfill its obligations, and to fully play its role in the process. the minister of the democratic republic of congo this morning just renewed that commitment solemnly. having said that, the path ahead is still very long and bilateral partners as was the united nations systems are all called upon to fully support these democratic republic of congo in order to restore its authority throughout its national territory, and to be successful

with its institutional reforms, national reconciliation and human settlement. the countries of the region for their part have the obligation of quickly and fully and with good faith implement their respective commitments undertaken in a framework agreement, especially those that relate to the respect of sovereignty and territory integrity of the drc. we would encourage special envoy madame robinson, working in coordination and with the support of the special secretary-general of the drc to continue to accompany, to too cy and evaluate the imitation of these commitments. the drc has a privileged place at the very heart of our african continent. it has enormous economic and human potential, and stability and prosperity have direct consequences for all of their neighbors. the current process is capable

of providing long sought after stability for drc and the great lakes regions, and thus free up energies for the vast region and country. the kingdom of morocco has always been at the side of the conflict people in difficult moments of its history, and has been involved in also is keeping operations by the united nations, and will continue to maintain its commitment in favor of national unity, territorial integrity of this country and stability throughout the region of the great lakes. thank you very much. >> i thank the represent of morocco for his statement. i now give the floor to representatives of argentina. [speaking in native tongue] >> translator: thank you, mr. president. i'd like to especially ask you to convey to mr. secretary of state john kerry our appreciation for adding

relevance to this debate, which his very presence, and i would like to thank the representation of the united states for putting this issue at the center of the actions, and reflections of this security council, and for which it is responsible. it is also encouraging to have amongst us the presence of high level authorities and ministers from the region and from the entire international committee. appreciate the participation of the secretary-general, the president of the world bank, and the participation of the special envoy for the great lakes region, mary robinson. mr. president, argentina trust that the first steps taken to implement the framework agreement for peace, security and cooperation and the democratic republic of congo and the great lakes region which was

signed in february will provide an opportunity for attacking an integrated and matter the deep-seated conflict of the region and lay a foundation for economic, political and social development which will be sustainable and lead to lasting and sustainable peace. shared responsibility on which the framework agreement is based will decisively contribute to the efforts of the countries of the region but it is also a political and ethnic call to the international community to be present, to provide cooperation and follow-up to the agreement. we renew our support to minusco in its task of protecting civilians. while fully respecting human rights, international humanitarian law. argentina understands that the

intervention brigade as stated by the secretary-general is an additional component of a broad solution to the conflict in the region. but it also understands that it is the primary sponsor of the government and armed forces to provide protection for civilians and territorial integrity of states. mr. president, argentina believes that it's an imperative priority for governments and people of the drc and countries in the region to assume and never allow more ongoing violations of human rights, international humanitarian law actions that take place as they have in the region, in these actions should especially not be tolerated armed groups or rebellions. special attention should be paid

to complaints of these actions, which are sometimes committed a government armed forces. we would encourage the government of the drc to go more deeply into the democratic transformation and institution transformations, which are absolutely vital for security, defense and justice in that country. we call upon all signatory states to fully comply with the commitments undertaken and to not tolerate or support any armed group or provide protection for any groups or individuals responsible for crimes against humanity, violations of human rights, or other international law. respecting international law. and human rights is a necessary condition for lasting peace. we believe that the situation of

refugees and internally displaced persons require immediate attention, but the right to a dignified life for all men and women will come from initiatives such as that led by the government themselves in the region, and by united nations and the world bank, and other donors and partners. all of whom will contribute to putting into place infrastructure, cumin, social development, institutions, economic and social development institutions, and as ms. robinson said, it will include a human rights perspective, gender perspective, integration of the young people, and protection of children. also, management and legal exploitation, legitimate and fair and responsible and transparent exploitation of natural resources is key for peace, and for sustained development.

mr. president, just a few days ago, we received a report from the organization human rights watch. this report includes testimony of a 12 year old girl who had gone to buy some sugar with her friends. i saw a soldier from m23. i started running. this soldier caught me and told me he was going to kill me because i was trying to run away from him. i stayed quiet. i was very scared. and then he raped me. i screamed, but he closed my mouth, put his hand over my mouth. mr. president, argentina, the international community is convinced that we can only overcome poverty, fear, insecurity and violence when people understand that the history of the human beings in the drc of the region gets to a

place where we no longer hear testimony at such that a rabbi that 12 year old girl. and i hope that the meetings you have convened will lead us in that direction. thank you. >> i thank the representative of argentina -- of argentina for us to do. i now give the floor to the representative of australia. >> thank you, mr. president for the united states initiative and can be this debate, and to secretary kerry for his presence that i also thank the secretary-general and special envoy mrs. mary robinson for their sustained engagement in leadership and, of course, all the briefers for their insightful remarks. as the attendance of all these people indicates today, we are at a pebble moment in the search for durable peace and security in eastern drc and the great lakes. we should be shamed by the staggering conflict, lives of more than five, maybe 6 million people displaced in of millions

more and the subjection of countless men and women and children to arendt is human rights abuses. today, the drc is languishing at the bottom of u.n. human development index. the peace security and cooperation framework provides the best opportunity to definitively break the cycle of violence and instability. we are at a moment of hope because of leadership and efforts of regional governments and organizations working in close cooperation with the united nations and the secretary-general himself, and now with the world bank. the potential genius of the framework is that for the first time all relevant parties that made clear commitments to integrate political, security, and development efforts. annexes that is essential to tackling the root causes of instability. the recent joint visit by the world bank president and secretary-general reflects what should be a crucial impetus to the region. there have been encouraging

early signs to follow up on the psp commitments, but also of course stark reminders of the sobering challenges ahead. attacks by the m23 and infighting with the ferc our ongoing, and just last week attacks by the allied democratic forces forced more than 65,000 refugees to flee into uganda. we note ugandan foreign minister had warnings this morning about the idea. mr. president, the immediate priority must be to ensure that all signatorisignatori es take practical steps to implement their commitments under the framework, and where they fail to live up to these commitments, they must be held to account by their own citizens and civil society, by the regional neighbors, and by the broader international community, including this council. ..

affairs of neighboring countries and to neither tolerate nor provide assistance or support of any kind to armed groups. any collaboration between the fardc and the fdlr must cease as must any support to the m 23. there can be no peace as long as such support continues. turning briefly to some key practical challenges and priorities ahead, consistent reports of grave human rights

abuses and widespread sexual violence by armed groups and the fardc obviously undermined the foundation for any lasting speech. in an event australia co-hosted this week we heard first-hand of use of rape as a tool of war to destroy communities in the drc. impunity can not be tolerated. it is critical serious action be taken to prevent such serious atrocities and investigate and prosecute such crimes, the efforts of the icc deserve our full support. it is critical that security sector reforms are intensified, ultimately responsibility of security of course rests with the drc government, a professional and effective army is essential to this. the firdc's capabilities, discipline and cooperation with the u.n. mission including the intervention brigade will be critical to the success of their efforts. disarmament, demobilization and reintegration must finally also be given genuine priority.

the unregulated flow of small arms and failure to implement effective reintegration strategies are themselves root causes, root drivers of conflict. women's participation in leadership in both the ss r&d dr processes is essential to long-term peace. so too is their direct engagement in the implementation of the framework. special envoy robinson's work to insure the full and effective participation including through the recent conference is long overdue. perspective and reassuring. in concluding, mr. president, australia reaffirms our strong support for minusco and the employment of the intervention brigade and expresses our deep appreciation to the troop-contributing countries. the intervention brigade can not of course be seen as a panacea or a substitute for the drc's own responsibilities. what the brigade can do and what this council intended it to do

is act as a circuit breaker to create the space for the drc government to implement the necessary reforms and tackle the underlying issues of the conflict. the brigade's creation was an historic and risky decision bit council, borne out of frustration certainly but more so from necessity. the drc and its neighbors provided the essential enabling environment for a new start but implementation will obviously be decisive. the council itself must continue to give incisive and consistent attention to the drc to reinforce the incentives for change, to break the cyclical patterns of the past. we all know that this is a genuinely critical moment. we must insure it becomes transformative. i understand that there is a congoese saying no matter how hard you throw a dead fish in the water it still won't swim. this framework of hope is very

much alive and we need to insure that it is able to swim. >> i thank the representative of australia for his statements. there are still a number about speakers remaining on my list for this meeting. i intend with the concurrence of the members of the council to suspend the meeting until 3:00 p.m. the meet something suspended. >> ahead on c-span2, look how states and federal government are handling the approaching october deadline for open enrollment of health insurance exchanges. after that, live coverage from the center for american progress for a discussion on the fiscal debate in washington and how

debt and deficit reduction should factor into economic strategy. later the senate returns at 2:00 p.m. eastern for general speeches followed by more work on a bill to fund 2014 transportation and housing programs and the debate on the nomination of james comey to be the next fbi director. as the october 1st dead line approaches for open enrollment in health insurance, changes as mandated in the affordable care act a look now how the states and federal government are handling their implementation and what the changes will mean for patients. former administrator of medicare around medicaid services mark mcclellan was among a group of analysts that spoke at a "politico" briefing in washington. this is about an hour. >> good morning. i'm joanne kenen, i'm the health care editor at political pro. thank you for joining us at our

political pro briefing. michael burgess. >> there is a mike going. we're coming and live streaming as well. we have a good panel. we'll talk about state enrollment and other aspects of the aca happening on the ground. that helps. i like to take cvs caremark for their partnership on this and the entire series and the pro health care breakfast briefings. here to say a few words from cvs caremark, helena foulkes. chief vice president and health care strategy marketing officer. >> hi, joanne. i'm good. welcome, everyone, we're thrilled at cvs caremark to be sponsoring this event and have such an esteemed group of participants on the panel. the affordable care act has been described as one of the most complex implementations in the history of the u.s. health care

system and i think that's in many ways why october first is starting to feel like tomorrow to so many of us in this room. i recently heard someone say this program is somewhat like building a bridge from two different sides and hoping that it meets in the middle and i think that is really an excellent description but i think one of the things that this bridge-building has done is really brought a lot of people together from the government sector, non-profits, and corporations to try to figure out how to make it work. so one of the best ways for us at cvs caremark to make that connection is to fill the knowledge gap that exists. so just today in fact cvs caremark released research that shows that 36% of people that we surveyed who are likely to enroll in the health care exchanges need more help and information as they think about all of this. even more striking about half of those people who are in fact

eligible for subsidies don't know that they're eligible for subsidies. we also found that overall aware ness is up at 74%. in other wordses more people know at least that this is coming and there prepared to do something. at cvs caremark we serve over five million people every day and we feel very strongly that our 25,000 pharmacists and 2500 nurse practitioners can play a very important role in helping consumers navigate all of this complexity. so what we'll be doing over the next several months is working hard to create a national information outreach program which will include events and displays in our stores to help customers enroll in these new plans. 68% of the people that we surveyed actually just expect pharmacies to be able to provide them with exchange-related information. i'm sure some of our panelists would agree the aca implementation is going to be

complicated but we certainly believe that with great experts like we have today they will help us how to figure out how to really build this bridge and make the program work for all the americans we can serve. without further adieu, i will pass it back to joanne, thanks very much. [applause] >> thank you so much. partnership we've had with you and for making these events possible and to everybody watching us, you can tweet your questions. the hashtag today is, hash mark, prohcbb, health care breakfast briefing. prohccb. i will track twitter from your questions from the tablet. if you come to our regular ones i'm not so good at that i got it right last time. without further delay i would like to welcome your panelist, representative michael burgess, who is the vice chairman of the house energy and commerce subcommittee on health. good morning. >> good morning.

>> anne gauthier, national academy for state health policy. mark mccontrol land, director of the brookings engel berg center for health reform. marian mulkey. california health care foundation and former governor mark parkinson governor of kansas and ceo of hco. we'll have a panel discussion and they will talk to each other, not just from me and taking questions from the audience and twitter. okay, let's get started. when we sat at the panel we wanted experts who have national overview and some people with real state-specific knowledge. we want to talk about what is happening on the ground in terms of sort of mechanics, what is going well, what you're worried about and also it has become a red hot political issue. it was never not a political issue but i think we've all seen in the last few weeks it has

sort of risen back to some of the intensity we saw before so i wanted to get from the three of you, first of all, from states, i want to question a little bit about, we all know here what the rhetoric's like and what the arguments are like in washington. how intensities it? have you seen the same spike in intensity back home? probably sort of an easy question for you from texas but let's start. >> short answer to your question is yes. i always want to give people a moment to check their programs when you introduce me as a republican from texas. i thought this was a health care briefing. who -- >> you're also a physician and ob/gyn and member of the house doctors caucus that i was reading. >> who canceled on you at the last minute and you got this guy. [laughing] i also wonder why i've been invited to these things. i've been absolutely wrong everything i told you so far. i told now bill would ever come to the house floor. would never get through the senate. would never get something the president would sign. supreme court would take care of

us. big election would take care of us. wrong on all accounts. >> one of our editors was just as wrong. >> i think, as i watch both up here and back home, to tell you the truth back home you're not seeing a lot of activity because texas said we're not doing the exchange. we'll let the federal government set that up and take the financial responsibility. of course the medicaid expansion is not something the governor said we're going to do. even though the state legislature is in special session right now, they're working on other things and not this. from the washington perspective and where a lot of the focus has been since the first of the year is, can this thing actually get up and running? and while the witnesses who come in from the agencies will tell you over and over again, we'll be ready, everything is right on track, everything is right on schedule and you look around and things are falling off as you go down the road, sort of this little trail of debris left behind of the affordable care

act as it bumps and bounces down the road. obviously the july 2nd revelations we'll delay the employer mandate for a year was pretty startling but it was very startling in the context just a few weeks before, gary cohen had been to our subcommittee. can you do this? are you going to have to delay it? are you going to have to narrow the scope? absolutely not we'll be ready 100%. a few short weeks later we're faced with these headlines. i guess one of the most troubling things to me in the recent weeks is the concept that since we're not collecting the data from the employers any longer, we're going to trust people to tell us the truth. sure what could go wrong with that but it is of concern to me and i hope at some point later this summer we'll do a hearing on the subsidy and subsidy recapture because i don't know that people are actually aware of the fact that january 1st of 2014, yes, there will be a subsidy available to them. they're going to be asked how much money you will earn this year? i will tell you when i was a

physician in private practice it would be difficult to know what i'm going to earn in a year ahead because there are a lot of unknowns. at the end of the year there will be subsidy recapture. the subsidy of course will be paid primarily through the insurance company but the individual will be responsible for any recapture that happens. there is still a lot of anxiety out there. a lot of question marks about october 1st. can this thing actually work as advertised and stay tuned. >> go to california. is there a trail of debris on the ground in california? >> no. i wouldn't say that. you know, i'm from the left coast, maybe in two-ways. california has really embraced the affordable care act and has moved quickly to implement many of its aspects. we have establish ad state-based exchange. we have given it strong governance and a lot of leeway to ininfluence the market and we recently embraced the medicaid expansion that is available under the affordable care act. so many important milestones

have been hit. the political environment is not particularly divisive in part of course because we have a democrat-controlled legislature as well as a democratic governor. but, again, i think the stay tuned comment is not out of place in california either. it's a very complicated law with many, many moving parts. a lot will play out in the coming months in terms of how it is implemented in california. >> governor, kansas, you succeeded secretary sick bellies, insurance commissioner. and governor and conserve governor brown back and controversy between the insurance commissioner in the state and a governor who don't want to go near it. >> right. >> and the governor prevailed. and, you live here in washington but you keep track. what is the intensity there? >> well the politics in kansas is incredibly interesting. i lived in kansas for 55 years

and i still doesn't understand it. thomas frank famously wrote 15 years ago, what is the matter with kansas? opined that kansas had now transformed itself into a permanent conservative state. he was quickly disapproved when kathleen sebelius was elected governor, served for six years and i finished off last two years of her term. looks like now thomas frank's thesis is correct. with me leaving governor brownback was elected who is extremely conserve. the legislature is extremely conservative yet there are elements of modrat politics within the state. we've had a very interesting dynamic last couple years, the rub republican governor strongly against the medicaid expansion and aca in general and republican insurance commissioner, sandy prager a moderate republican who supported the legislation wanted very badly for an exchange to be set up and implemented. when you put a governor against

a insurance commissioner, guess what? the governor usually wins. that is what happened in kansas but it is very interesting to watch. >> mark and, anne, i start with mark, you lived through and survived to use our own word implementation of mma which was hard and complicated and had bumps. it is not technically as complicated nor as politically divisive. some democrats voted for it. as you talked about before even those democrats that fought about it in washington they went home and were not quite as emphatic in terms of enrollment, people in the low income population in. we're two months out now. how, i mean in this, spectrum of, it will be bumpy but it will work to it is all going to fall apart, what is your, what do you worry about when you're alone? >> well -- >> share it. >> hard to go to sleep at night when you're not actually on the front lines implementing the law so i guess i would say it will

be somewhere between those two extremes. that is a pretty wide margin. i think it will vary from state to state based on some states like california that have done a lot to implement their exchanges. have a lot of outreach and education activities already ongoing versus some of the states with the federal fallback implementation. they're not expanding medicaid, that have not had as much as the public there, not had as much exposure to the law. and i think two things that are worth mentioning, both similarities and differences from medicare part-d implementation. one is to make distinction between the philosophical and political differences about where our country's health care system should head and, what that means broadly for the public. and that is just an issue where we do have very different views and congress and throughout the country. and that is going to continue, i think for a while. want to distinguish that from what the program that's in law

actually means as it is being implemented and what, i think the public really hasn't focused on yet, understandably because they don't have to make any decisions yet what does this mean for me? and i think there will be some questions. i think republicans democrats, will get these questions in their offices locally. they will refer people to the resources that were available. one big difference in what we did, we did a whole round of outreach and education, infrastructure-building, way before this point in implementation. so it was like a good year out. meeting with a range of local groups, many which supported and proposed medicare modernization act. made it not a philosophical issue but practical issue we want to make sure when people come to you with questions or talking about this law you know where to go to get answers for them and we worked with them to come up with those types of tools. a little bit different approach. more campaign-style but i think that is one important difference of the other important

difference is that the medicare modernization act implementation really lasted one season, from the fall of 2005 to early 2006. seven million medicare dual eligibility beneficiaries medicaid, switched over in one day. that contribute ad lot of startup bump issues we had. we worked through them in a month or two. the vast majority of medicare beneficiaries made the decision to enroll in coverage by the time the first open enrollment period ended. that is not likely to happen in this case. administration's everybody's projections there will be a lot of people remain uninsured over the first open enrollment period both by their own choice because they have may have not options available because there is not a medicaid expansion at least yet in their

>> has that gap widened in states, states are doing federal exchanges, sill working on plan certification. technically partnership. good defacto partnership. what do you see when you land somewhere as opposed to or on the phone with someone as opposed to what we're hearing at that big building over there? >> let me start with the age-old state health policy addage which is, if you've seen one state you've seen one state. there is a lot of variation. but that having been said, i think i can talk about, groups of states in groupings. there are, the state that have embraced reform.

the state-based exchanges. and they are working hard and they are going to be ready for opening in october. the directors, and we work closely with them at. i spent a day with five ceos of the exchanges. these are people who are not in it for a job. they are mission-driven and their mission critical is to get the doors open if you will. but it is not going to be the 2.0 version that you're going to see over time as, improvements are made. it's going to be offering options for coverage, for the folks that are eligible, with a lot of creativity. in terms of the outreach and in terms of the way that they're connecting with the consumers. then you have the states that are the partnership states, or that have defaulted to the federal government. and, even there while you don't have a lot of activity

necessarily at the political level, you've got state employees who again, are civil servants and have a job to do. let me take insurance commissioners in all of the states. their job is to protect the consumers in their states and to make sure that the coverage that they have is quality coverage and that there are no ill-toward things that are going on. and they take that job very seriously in all of the states. some of them a step further. so for example, they understand that there are going to be questions when the federally facilitated exchange opens. and they're prepared to answer those questions. and field them. some are looking in the state of kansas to, what they could possibly due to make it easier for consumers to understand their choices in kansas. the medicaid departments almost, all of them, whether they are expanding or not, have put in

new eligibility systems in order to make it smoother for implementation and they too are looking for a better customer experience. so, at the implementation stage, and remember, this is the law of the land, they're working hard to implement it. >> before i get a little more state specific because i want to go back and ask mark a question. as some unyou were fda, you were cms, you worked in the bush administration, you're an economist, you're an administrator, a physician, all of these things when you watch, you don't agree with everything in this administration but from a technical i've been through this perspective when, you watch what they're doing and say you're watching evening news and what is going on what makes like say, don't do that!? i don't know how much advice you give to them or what do you talk about them, or you say, no, no, no, not that again? >> i don't have that reaction during the evening news very

often. >> because you don't watch it. >> i think -- >> metaphorically. >> metaphorically, i think three times coming up when i might have some of that reaction. one is in sent and really some of it already, when you see the results ever the policy decisions that have been made and that's what plans are available. what coverage are people going to get. how much is it going to cost? how good is that going to look? that too will also vary across states with states that had a lost insurance regulation before, already doing something like guaranteed issue and community rating. maybe having less adjustments and states out? front with some of the state exchanges, maybe having a more comprehensive set of plans but we'll see. when the federal fall back plans are released in sent. we point out in contrast to part-d there are a number of people who already have individual or small group insurance coverage and are not operating under all the rules of the federal exchanges, or the

federal fall back exchanges or the rest of the law now who probably will face changes, some of which will be significant premium increases. so it will be something to watch in sent. next thing will be, how well the systems work and we'll see the version 1.0 of that on october 1st. states have all made a lot of investments in upgrading their medicaid i.t. systems. they had a lot of funding for that. the administration seems to be trying very hard to put all, at least many of the pipes together, the ones they have deferred some but, as dr. burgess already mentioned but putting number of pipes together. there's a big difference between how information technology works in theory and how real world, messy incomplete or otherwise incompatable data that haven't really had to flow together and work together before are in practice and there will be a lot of issues around that. we'll see how big those are in early october.

there is the education and outreach. i think there are a lot of questions how well people will do in terms of finding out about this. especially younger healthier people, to make decisions. those are kind of things i certainly have some opinions on, those are the kind of things i would be watching, metrics that i can closely followed. war room in the administration. that war room functioned best when it got timely, up-to-date, strategic, actionable information and that's what would i be focusing on right now. do i really have the intel on the ground to know how big some of these problems, whether it's policy or systems or education outreach, how big are these problems and am i in a position to quickly respond when they do arise. >> let's go to october 1st. everybody in this room understands this is a process even when it was less politically heated it was designed as a process. nobody expected to have 30 million people sign up on day one. the, there's going to be a

snapshot quality to it on october 1st and again the first week of january when you have your insurance card, can you get care? it may not be or dribble out a bit more because not everybody will be getting care the first day and whereas more, i'm guessing more seniors didn't need prescriptions first few weeks and try -- >> if you have a serious chronic disease and you miss your medication that day it's a serious problem. >> more a subset of people that will go on the day after new year's day. texas is one of the states that is most opposed. governor perry said he is doing no outreach. not doing medicaid. he is symbolic of the resistance or opposition, choose your word. what happens in texas on day one, on october 1st? do people sign up. do people say this is the worst thing i never heard of? do they say, what, i never heard of this thing? what do you see in texas? >> you do get loot of that reaction but just to pick up on mark's point that he made

earlier, medicare part-d was much more pragmatic and focused, get the pills to the people on january 1st. this is much more political. i mean, i don't know anyone in rural america, you hear about them, you read about them. obviously their focus is going to be on a number. they have already released the number. it is seven million people. a third of that have to be in the young invincible category in order for the economics of this thing to work. so i would imagine they are focused very much on getting to that seven million number as quickly as they can. i'm not here to advise rural america, okay, it is at a station, no one will mislead about their particular situation but if i've got a large state with a large number of uninsured not doing medicaid expansion i make sure they have income levels that qualify for a subsidy. sign them up. it will all have to be sorted out at the end. year. . .

>> so a lot of things happening at once there, but you don't see a lot of it happening on the, you know, just not reading the articles in the paper, you're not seeing people talk about it on the evening news, the local radio stations. they're talking about the nsa and the irs and all the other things -- >> politics of the moment. so are you basically saying, i mean, is this something you're worried about? is there evidence that they are just looking for poorer people and saying forget about your income, we're signing you up,