A/HRC/31/81 Russian Federation 11. The Russian Federation underscored that States have the primary responsibility to ensure the protection and promotion of human rights. International institutions and mechanisms are to support States in fulfilling their obligations through dialogue based on equality and mutual respect, with due attention given to the national, religious, cultural and historical specificities of each State, as well as the level of socioeconomic development. Human rights dialogue should be constructive and facilitate rapprochement between States. The Russian Federation noted that the Human Rights Council was established with the rationale of strengthening the international regime of human rights protection and enhancing constructive dialogue between States, international organizations and civil society. It further stressed that the polarized interests of various groups of States posed difficulties to discussing human rights issues in a substantive and impartial manner. Reference was also made to the need to avoid duplication when establishing special procedure mandates and to the compliance of the special procedure mandate holders with their mandates and the Code of Conduct for Special Procedures Mandate-holders of the Human Rights Council. It was noted that the universal periodic review was one important element of the international human rights protection architecture. In that context, the Russian Federation emphasized that States should cooperate on the basis of the principles of objectivity, non-selectivity and non-politicization, while confrontation and double standards should be avoided. Syrian Arab Republic 12. The Syrian Arab Republic described a number of challenges to international cooperation in the field of human rights. Among them were selectivity in dealing with human rights issues, as manifested by the prioritization of one set of rights over another or assessing human rights situations only in certain countries and not others. The Syrian Arab Republic also emphasized the importance of reinforcing cultural diversity and understanding the domestic context of countries. It also noted the need for more precise and tailored recommendations from United Nations mechanisms to facilitate better implementation. The Syrian Arab Republic recommended that technical assistance and advisory programmes in the field of human rights should be exempted from political conditionality and agreed upon jointly with the countries concerned, in accordance with their national priorities. The Syrian Arab Republic stressed the importance of achieving international cooperation in accordance with the principles contained in the Charter of the United Nations and reaffirmed in subsequent declarations and resolutions. IV. Summary of the high-level panel discussion on human rights mainstreaming with the theme of “Enhancement of international cooperation in the field of human rights” A. Opening remarks 13. In her opening remarks, the Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights underlined the progress achieved since the adoption of the Charter of the United Nations, for example, the higher rates of child survival, better access to education and health care and the alleviation of poverty. Since then, peacekeeping and peacemaking efforts had also contributed to resolving numerous conflicts. Human rights, in particular women’s rights, had advanced. Nonetheless, violence and discrimination continued to affect women and girls and gender stereotypes persistently compromised women’s rights. Although States came together to pledge cooperation, they did not act together with the same strength. 4