Let me also express my delegation's support for the principle of zero tolerance advocated by the United Nations and call for the principle to be more rigorously enforced. During the 1994 genocide perpetrated against the Tutsi in Rwanda, women and girls were forced to endure inhuman and degrading atrocities. Tens of thousands were raped and left for dead.

For those reasons, we support the full implementation of resolutions 1325 (2000) and 1960 (2010), which insist that all peacekeeping mandates incorporate provisions that specifically identify steps to address sexual violence, including the clear identification of women's protection advisers alongside gender advisers and human rights protection units.

At the outset, the Government of Rwanda once again condemns all forms of violence against women and girls worldwide, especially in conflict and post- conflict zones. As previously stated in the Council, we believe that sexual violence in conflict should be qualified as sexual terrorism.

At the institutional level, Rwanda's security organs, in collaboration with other Government agencies, local communities and civil society, have launched initiatives to prevent and respond to violence that targets women and girls.

As we gather today, 13 years after the adoption of resolution 1325 (2000), we believe that it is fair to make an assessment of how effective the implementation of the resolution has been, and possibly draw lessons for the way forward.

"Let me also emphasize that, in our efforts to promote the women and peace and security agenda, in 2010, my country adopted a national action plan on the implementation of resolution 1325 (2000). To that end, we have adopted a range of policies to prevent and respond to violence against women and girls. One of the foremost priorities is to protect and rehabilitate the dignity of victims.

"At the continental level, Rwanda is among the leading the police-contributing countries, with female police and correctional officers serving in the United Nations peacebuilding and peacekeeping missions in Liberia, Haiti, the Sudan, Côte d'Ivoire and Chad. Those officers actively contribute to combating and raising awareness on violence against women in the communities they serve.

We do not share the point of view that establishing a specialized Security Council mechanism for gender issues would be useful. We believe that ensuring the effectiveness of the existing mechanisms for implementing resolution 1325 (2000) does not hinge on creating new bureaucratic procedures but rather on improving the coordination and accountability of existing mechanisms under the leadership of UN Women.

We have carefully familiarized ourselves with the report of the Secretary-General prepared for today's meeting (S/2013/525). We should like to point out that it is factually incomplete. We believe that in the future, such reports should consider the nature of violence against women in the context of the maintenance of international peace and security in a more balanced way, as stipulated by resolution 1325 (2000).

We believe that the Council's effective implementation of resolution 1325 (2000) requires an unwavering focus on a decisive mandate that approaches women's issues in the context of international peace and security and other such issues within its agenda.