It is of utmost importance that peacekeepers continue to be trained to enhance their capacity to prevent and respond to conflict-related sexual violence, that women protection advisers be deployed within peacekeeping and special political missions, and that ceasefire or peace agreements explicitly reflect sexual violence considerations Latvia and Estonia commend United Nations Action against Sexual Violence in Conflict and the efforts of the U

Indeed, the Security Council, through its five resolutions, has developed a robust framework to prevent and address sexual violence in armed conflict.

In order to enhance accountability, the Council could adopt targeted measures against those responsible for conflict-related sexual violence and include individuals sought by the ICC on the sanctions lists.

However, gender crimes remain an enduring part of most armed conflicts and rape continues to be used as a weapon of war.

Estonia and Latvia believe that accountability for sexual violence crimes is crucial for deterring and ultimately preventing their commission, and for doing justice by victims

Among other things, we have been informed about an increase in reported incidents of sexual violence in Afghanistan, and there are clear indications that conflict-related sexual violence has been a main feature of attacks in the Central African Republic and a consistent characteristic of the crisis in South Sudan.

We must also say that in some regions of the world we continue to undertake peaceful means of conflict resolution, building a culture of peace and new forms of coexistence, as well as a clear position for achieving global disarmament. As members of the Union of South American Nations and the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States, we are contributing to the creation of a true region of peace.

Moreover, it is a paradox of our time that, although the growing technological sophistication has not resolved the basic problems of a large part of the world population in achieving sustainable development, it has provided weapons of mass destruction. And there is still no end to poverty and inequality.

Lastly, Ecuador again insists upon the need to come up with multilateral and global strategies that fight the underlying causes of war and conflict and bring to light warmongering policies, adopting measures that bring an end to them and subjecting them to international law.

It must be acknowledged that armed conflict and violence are often generated by inequality among States that themselves have been generally affected by an unjust international economic system, various forms of social exclusion, religious intolerance and ethnic and gender discrimination.