What's In Blue

Posted Fri 4 Mar 2011

Insights on the Somalia Piracy Resolution

Yesterday Russia briefed Council members at the expert level on the draft Somalia piracy resolution it has prepared following Jack Lang’s (the Secretary-General’s Special Advisor on Piracy off the Coast of Somalia) recommendations in his January report.

P5 members have been consulting on the draft and the US which is undertaking a policy review on Somalia has asked for more time to consider the draft resolution. It also seems that the UK has shown some concern about the financial implications of establishing a new court system.

The key focus of the resolution appears to be on legal issues connected to piracy, particularly related to Lang’s proposal for the establishment of a new court system for prosecution of suspected piracy. (Lang had suggested specialised courts in Somaliland and Puntland and a specialised extraterritorial Somali court in a third country.)

Some elected Council members are becoming annoyed at the P5 dominance of the issue and believe that a draft should be circulated to all members next week.

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