additional risks since they may be targeted because they are either associated with a non-State armed group or the State. a. The Responsibility to protect principle 15. All states have a responsibility to protect (R2P) all populations within their borders from mass atrocities irrespective of their identity, nationality and citizenship. At the 2005 World Summit, Heads of State and Government committed to the responsibility to protect their populations from genocide, war crimes, ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity. This entails the primary responsibility of States to protect their populations from genocide, war crimes, crimes against humanity and ethnic cleansing and of the international community to assist States in upholding their responsibility to protect. In addition, the international community has a responsibility to use appropriate diplomatic, humanitarian and other means to protect populations from these crimes. If a State is manifestly failing to protect its populations, the international community must be prepared to take collective action to protect populations, in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations. 16. Lessons learned through the years in many countries demonstrate that we must do more to prevent atrocity crimes. Although States have accepted the importance of prevention and the centrality of individual State responsibility in preventing mass atrocities, preventing atrocity crimes is a multi-dimensional undertaking demanding great effort on the part of many actors, including the Security Council. 17. In line with her mandate, the UN Special Adviser on the Responsibility to Protect is actively engaged in furthering the development and refinement of the RToP concept, while continuing a political dialogue with Member States and other stakeholders on further steps toward the implementation of this principle. In particular, a strong political will on the part of the States is needed to further operationalise RtoP which becomes more and more relevant in a world context where multiple complex crises involving populations under threat are taking place simultaneously. In this relation, it is fundamental that States are provided with guidance as to their preventive obligations and that UN peacekeeping operations and special political missions are equipped with the type of protection tools that threatened communities need. a. Root causes of violence against minorities and selected areas of focus 18. Violations of minority rights constitute today a wide-scale problem, affecting all regions of the world, with multiple manifestations ranging from attacks on religious or ethnic minorities to systematic exclusion of minorities from decision making in economic and public life, contributing to statelessness and other serious human rights challenges around the world. 19. These violations not only undermine human rights and sustainable development, but also fuel insecurity and conflict. Several factors and challenges can exacerbate exclusion of minorities,