US vetoes UN resolution over repatriation of Islamic State terrorists

The United States vetoed a UN Security Council resolution on August 31 which was aimed at prosecution, rehabilitation and reintegration of all those involved in terrorism-related activities. The US Ambassador to the United Nations said that Washington decided to veto the draft resolution because it failed to acknowledge the repatriation of foreign terrorist fighters and their families as a crucial first step.

Ambassador Kelly Craft said in a statement the resolution, drafted by Indonesia, was supposedly designed to reinforce international action on counterterrorism but it was “worse than no resolution at all.” She stated the firm belief of the United States, saying the 15-member council has a critical role to play in countering terrorism but it fell “far short of its responsibilities today.”

“The Trump Administration will not waver in the fight against terrorism or give in to half measures that leave in place the seeds for future terror,” the statement read.

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'Need to take responsibility'

The ambassador claimed that no other nation across the globe is more committed to confronting and defeating terrorism than the United States, mentioning the operations carried out by the US troops that killed Islamic State chief Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi and top Iranian commander Qassem Soleimani. She added that nations need to take responsibility for their citizens who engage in terror. 

Our veto today should come as no surprise. Just last week, I told this Council how disappointed we were by the obstruction of any efforts to discuss repatriation in this text. I will remind you now of what I said then – the world is watching,” said Craft.

The US Representative to the UN stressed that failing to address the importance of repatriation head-on will “inevitably perpetuate” the problem of terrorism. Reiterating US State Secretary Mike Pompeo’s stance on repatriation, she said, “We want every country to take their citizens back. That’s step one. It’s imperative that they do so.”

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