Nigeria remains undeterred, unflinching in protecting its citizens -- President Jonathan

He said this while addressing the 67th UN General Assembly’s General Debate on Tuesday in New York.

`` We know that no country has unilaterally defeated the dark forces of violence and terrorism. This is evidently an endeavour that requires international collaboration.

``We therefore call upon the international community and all like-minded stakeholders to address this matter with all the seriousness that it deserves,’’ Jonathan said.

He pointed at Nigeria’s long-standing commitment to the promotion of issues of particular concern to Africa, saying this has been widely acknowledged.

President Jonathan said Nigeria had stood firm and played critical roles in all the recent developments in Africa.
He said this included the struggle for independence and self-determination, the fight against apartheid, colonialism and discrimination.

``Today, we are in the vanguard of the fight against extremism, terrorism and all forms of mindless violence,’’ Jonathan said.

He explained that sustainable development and progress were two ultimate aspirations of any nation which could not be achieved without peace and security.

Jonathan however said that Nigeria, being guided by this realisation, had committed and should continue to commit herself to the attainment of regional and international peace and security.

He said the West African sub-region had suffered some setbacks in terms of unconstitutional change of government and the emergence of insurgency, among others.

On the political crisis threatening the unity of Mali and Guinea-Bissau, Jonathan said Nigeria and ECOWAS were working in concert to address the threat.

He said the crisis had the potential to spill over into neighbouring countries and destabilise the entire region.

President Jonathan disclosed that it was in furtherance of this objective that Nigeria provided 10 million US dollars to the Interim Government in Guinea-Bissau to assist in the stabilisation of the country.

He pointed out that the security situation in the West African sub-region should continue to be a matter of interest and concern to the rest of the international community.

Jonathan expressed Nigeria’s continued support to the UN in advancing and upholding international peace and security.

He also noted that events of recent weeks had demonstrated how increasingly interconnected the entire world had become, saying that one incident in one part could cause reverberations in others.

``The lesson is that freedom of expression should not constitute the licence to incitement. The freedom that we all hold dear and true should be exercised wisely and cautiously.

``Freedom of expression and religious tolerance must not be mutually exclusive but should be complimentary to each other,’’ Jonathan said.

He, however, said Nigeria as a nation eschewed violence and deplored the needless losses of lives and destruction of property.

``We condemn the deliberate denigration of religious and cultural beliefs and sensitivities which in turn lead to counter reactions.

``As the world grows in knowledge and prosperity, so must human kind grow in maturity and wisdom.

``Care and compassion for our fellow beings must inform all our actions. We must ensure that no nation and no part of the world is left behind in terms of human progress,’’ the President added.

On the crisis in Syria, Jonathan called on the Syrian people, in the face of seeming lack of concerted positive international action, to pause and find a solution to the crisis.

He also said that Nigeria was committed to accelerating the long overdue reforms of the Security Council.

``Nigeria believes that a reformed Security Council with expanded permanent membership will benefit from the unique experience and capacity that regional representatives could bring to bear on its work’’.

President Jonathan also called for the adoption of a legally-binding Arms Trade Treaty.

This, he said, became necessary to galvanise the international community to regulate the transfer of conventional weapons and curb the illicit trade in small arms and light weapons