As the Secretary-General's report notes, the progress made in the last 18 mon...

As the Secretary-General's report notes, the progress made in the last 18 months has been in the further strengthening of the Council's approach to protection. That has been embodied in the Council's thematic resolutions on the protection of civilians, on women and peace and security, and on children and armed conflict. Increasingly, that progress has been embodied in situation-specific resolutions, where the Council's informal Expert Group on the Protection of Civilians has played an important role; in the further development of international legal standards; in the efforts of United Nations actors — in particular humanitarian agencies and peacekeeping missions — and other international and non-governmental organizations to enhance protection on the ground; and above all, in the courage and ingenuity of the affected populations themselves. Those are all important and welcome developments, but as the report of the Secretary- General makes clear, more needs to be done to tackle the five core challenges that inhibit more effective protection for civilians. Those challenges are: to enhance compliance by parties to conflict with international law, to enhance compliance by non-State armed groups, to enhance protection by United Nations peacekeeping and other relevant missions, to enhance humanitarian access, and to enhance accountability for violations.