What's In Blue

Posted Wed 2 Jul 2014

The July Programme of Work of the Security Council

At press time, the Security Council expected to hold eight formal meetings and 10 consultations in July. It plans to adopt three resolutions: one each renewing the mandates of the UN Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus (UNFICYP) and the UN Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI) and one on regional partnerhips in peacekeeping to be adopted during a high-level open debate. As Rwanda is presiding over the Council during the month of July, Foreign Minister Louise Mushikiwabo of Rwanda is expected to chair the high-level open debate on regional partnerships in peacekeeping, while UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, Chairperson of the AU Commission Dlamini Zuma and EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Catherine Ashton are expected to brief.

There will also be a briefing in the middle of the month on post-conflict peacebuilding that focuses on the seventh annual report of the Peacebuilding Commission (PBC). Ambassadors Vladimir Drobnjak (Croatia) and Antonio de Aguiar Patriota (Brazil), the former and current chairs of the PBC, respectively, are expected to brief. An informal interactive dialogue with the chairs of the PBC country-specific configurations and Council members is also anticipated.

Several agenda items pertaining to the Middle East are on the programme this month. Two informal meetings (i.e. consultations) are planned on Syria. Early in the month, Sigrid Kaag, Special Coordinator of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons-UN Joint Mission, is expected to brief Council members in consultations on the implementation of resolution 2118 regarding the destruction of chemical weapons. Late in the month, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs Valerie Amos will brief Council members in consultations on humanitarian access in Syria. Council members also plan to hold an Arria-formula meeting with the Human Rights Council’s Commission of Inquiry on Syria on testimonies it has collected on war crimes and crimes against humanity that have taken place in Syria. At press time, it seemed that following a month of intense negotiations between the P5 and the humanitarian leads on Syria— Australia, Jordan and Luxembourg—a draft resolution on cross-border humanitarian access may be tabled for a vote this month.

Prior to the renewal of UNAMI’s mandate in late July, the Council will hold a briefing, followed by consultations, with the Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Iraq and head of UNAMI Nickolay Mladenov expected to brief. Deliberations on Iraq are likely to focus on the prospects of forming a unity government, the security implications of the seizure of northwestern Iraq by the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham and the territorial consolidation of Kurdistan. Given the volatile situation in Iraq – and depending on how events unfold on the ground during the month – further meetings might be held on this issue, as UNAMI is also in the footnotes of the programme of work.

UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process Robert Serry is expected to brief during the quarterly open debate on the Middle East. The lack of a credible path toward a political solution after the recently failed US-mediated peace talks between Israel and Palestine, Fatah-Hamas reconciliation and Israeli settlement expansion are among the issues likely to be raised.

Consultations on Lebanon focusing on the implementation of resolution 1701, which calls on Israel and Lebanon to commit to a permanent ceasefire, are also scheduled this month. Special Coordinator for Lebanon Derek Plumbly and Assistant Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Edmond Mulet are expected to brief during this meeting.
A number of African issues will be discussed during the month. The situation in the Central African Republic (CAR) is expected to be a focus of Council attention. Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations Hervé Ladsous will brief Council members in consultations on preparations for the deployment of the UN Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in the CAR (MINUSCA). There is also likely to be a briefing, followed by consultations, on the work of the 2127 CAR Sanctions Committee, with its chair, Ambassador Raimonda Murmokaite (Lithuania), briefing. Although not on the programme, it seems Council members may also be briefed on the recently recirculated report, after a first version was withdrawn, of the Commission of Inquiry, which investigated alleged violations of international humanitarian law, international human rights law and abuses of human rights in the CAR.

The 751/1907 Somalia/Eritrea sanctions regime is also expected to be discussed alongside the 2127 CAR sanctions regime. Ambassador Oh Joon (Republic of Korea), chair of the 751/1907 Somalia/Eritrea Sanctions Committee, is expected to brief members on the work of the Committee in this session.

A briefing, followed by consultations, is anticipated on the work of the UN Office in West Africa (UNOWA). Said Djinnit, the Special Representative of the Secretary-General to West Africa and head of UNOWA, is expected to brief. Transnational challenges in West Africa such as drug trafficking, arms trafficking and violation extremism may be discussed during these sessions. The threat posed by Boko Haram to Nigeria and the broader region is also a topic on Council members’ minds that may be raised. Council members may consider adopting a presidential statement following this meeting.
Consultations on the UN Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) are scheduled for the middle of the month, with Special Representative of the Secretary-General and head of UNSMIL Tarek Mitri likely to brief on recent developments in Libya. The overall deterioration of the security and political situation in Libya are sources of concern for Council members, and will probably be addressed during the consultations.

The monthly consultations on Sudan-South Sudan are scheduled for mid-July, with UN Special Envoy for Sudan and South Sudan and head of the UN Office to the AU Haile Menkerios planning to brief. Menkerios will discuss implementation of resolution 2046, which provided a roadmap for Sudan, South Sudan and the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North to resolve outstanding challenges among them. He may also discuss the national dialogue process in Sudan. In addition, Amos may brief on the humanitarian situation. The AU-UN Hybrid Operation in Darfur briefing, which had originally been scheduled for July, appears to have been postponed to August as the report has been delayed amid allegations that the mission purposely distorted its reporting to conceal information about attacks against civilian and peacekeepers and the 17 June call by the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, Fatou Bensouda, for the Secretary-General to conduct a “thorough, independent and public inquiry” into the allegations. Similarly, although a UN Mission in South Sudan report is expected towards the end of July, no meeting has been scheduled on South Sudan in July. In spite of the volatility of the situation, South Sudan also does not appear in the footnotes.

At press time, the one European issue on the agenda this month is Cyprus, although the situation in Ukraine remains a focus of attention and is in the footnotes of the programme of work. With regard to Cyprus, the Council will hold consultations on the UN Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus (UNFICYP), before it renews the mission’s mandate and meets with troop- and police-contributing countries. Special Representative of the Secretary-General and head of UNFICYP Lisa Buttenheim is expected to brief during these consultations.

Rwanda has scheduled a wrap-up session for the end of the month. The practice was revived by Pakistan in January 2013 and has appeared regularly on the programme of work since then, but this is the first time since 30 March 2005 that it will be held as a public briefing.

In addition to Ukraine and UNAMI, Council members will be following other issues— the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Mali, non-proliferation and “peace and security in Africa” (a possible Sahel presidential statement) —that are also in the footnotes of the programme of work.

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