COMMITTEE ON PEACE-KEEPING OPERATIONS CONCLUDES GENERAL DEBATE, STRUCTURE OF DPKO, USE OF CHAPTER VII AMONG ISSUES DISCUSSED
Press Release
GA/PK/141
COMMITTEE ON PEACE-KEEPING OPERATIONS CONCLUDES GENERAL DEBATE, STRUCTURE OF DPKO, USE OF CHAPTER VII AMONG ISSUES DISCUSSED
19960403 The Russian Federation now favoured the wide participation of the United Nations and Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) in the settlement of disputes in Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) territory, and such participation could include the conducting of full-scale peace- keeping operations, that country's representative told the Special Committee on Peace-keeping Operations this afternoon as it concluded its general debate. "So far, unfortunately, we have to note that Russia is still obliged to carry the main burden of moral, political and financial responsibility for peace- keeping in the CIS," he said.The representative of the United States welcomed the Secretary-General's proposal to fund peace-keeping variable costs in a single annual appropriation reflecting actual estimated expenditure. The structural integrity of the Department of Peace-keeping Operations should be maintained with a staff complement composed of a permanent core capacity to plan and provide for the rapid and orderly launch of peace-keeping operations, accomplish variable back-stopping functions and carry out the orderly liquidation of peace-keeping operations once they were completed.
The representative of Cuba said the growing tendency to relate peace- keeping operations to Chapter VII of the Charter could lead to the legitimization of the imposition of peace-keeping operations and to their being linked to the use of force by the Organization. Further, humanitarian action was not in the Security Council's field of competence and should not be linked to Chapter VII.
The representative of Norway said his country and the United Nations had finalized an agreement on the establishment of a medical depot in Oslo to streamline the purchase, storage, maintenance and delivery of medical items and equipment to peace-keeping operations. The Norwegian Government would pay all basic operation costs of the depot for five years, through a contribution of approximately $3.6 million.
Also speaking during the general debate were the representatives of Australia, Chile, Egypt, Iran, Mexico, Tunisia and Uruguay.
The Committee will next meet tomorrow, 4 April, at 3 p.m., at which time the bureau will submit a list of issues distilled from the general debate which will form the basis for the Committee's working group deliberations.
Special Committee Work Programme
The Special Committee on Peace-keeping Operations met this afternoon to conclude general debate as part of its efforts to make a comprehensive review of the whole question of peace-keeping operations in all its aspects. Under the mandate entrusted to it by General Assembly resolution 50/30 of 22 December 1995, the Committee was also to review the implementation of its previous proposals and consider new proposals so as to enhance the capacity of the United Nations to fulfil its peace-keeping responsibilities. (For more information, see Press Release GA/PK/137).
Statements
PABLO MACEDO (Mexico) said he continued to be concerned about the proliferation of peace-keeping operation mandates that invoked Chapter VII of the Charter, which referred exclusively to the United Nations using enforcement measures to punish violators of international legal orders. Recurrent use of Chapter VII did not strengthen the Organization but rather showed a lack of imagination in confronting and solving global problems. Chapter VII should only be invoked in exceptional circumstances.
He was also concerned by the substitution of multinational forces for peace-keeping operations. While such action would seem to meet the demands of efficiency and cost-containment, it lacked legal basis and went against the spirit and the letter of the Charter.
As for the Secretary-General's idea of creating a rapid-reaction brigade, while increasing the speed of intervention could have beneficial effects, it did not guarantee the success of a peace-keeping operation, he said. There must be legal precision and clarity in defining operations' mandates and similar precision in establishing their scope of action. In no case should a rapid-reaction brigade intervene in internal conflicts. And given the United Nations current financial crisis, it would be ironic if such a costly mechanism were to be considered. Mexico believed that the proposal of Denmark and other Member States regarding the creation of a multinational rapid-reaction brigade was more realistic and potentially more effective.
DMITRI G. YOUDIN (Russian Federation) said peace-keeping operations were "an indispensable and highly useful instrument which obviously will have to be employed by the international community time and again. Peace-keeping has always been and continues to be one of the most important aspects of all United Nations activities". He did not accord less priority to development assistance. Peace-keeping and development assistance were elements of a single process that, in the long run, should ensure greater stability in the world.
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He said there was a pressing need to codify universally recognized provisions related to conducting peace-keeping operations. He supported the pragmatic promotion of a rapidly deployable headquarters. Other proposals regarding the development of a United Nations rapid-reaction capability needed to be further defined and tested from political, financial, personnel and other points of view. The concept of stand-by forces seemed the most adequate, given current realities.
The Russian Federation attached particular importance to the establishment of working relations between the United Nations and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). It favoured wide participation of the United Nations and the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) in the settlement of disputes in Commonwealth territory. Such participation could include the conducting of full-scale peace-keeping operations. "So far, unfortunately, we have to note that Russia is still obliged to carry the main burden of moral, political and financial responsibility for peace-keeping in the CIS States." He said that the voluntary contributions funds for Georgia and Tajikistan remained virtually empty.
He noted that his country had declared its intention to fully pay its arrears that had accumulated as a result of extraordinary circumstances in the country. The scale of assessments, however, should be reformed. It was not fair that some wealthy countries did not wish to contribute to peace-keeping in accord with their capacity to pay. Given the current difficult financial situation, it would be useful to diversify the cost-recovery venues for peace- keeping operations, including drawing contributions from interested States and regional organizations, as well as from non-governmental organizations and foundations.
CAMERON HUME (United States) said Member States should use the current plateau in peace-keeping as an opportunity to consider the desirable scope and nature of peace-keeping in a time of fiscal restraint and practical limits on the ground. Experience had shown that United Nations peace-keeping had real limits in the face of active combat. The challenge of creating a secure environment in the midst of ongoing conflict was a heavy one for the United Nations, given its deeply rooted limitations of capacity and in command and control. In such cases, he said the Organization might continue to enlist the assistance of regional arrangements, ad hoc coalitions or individual Member States. It would, however, remain essential for the Security Council to monitor such operations. The international community should make full use of the range of tools available for conflict resolution.
It was extremely important that Member States ensure that the hard-won gains in operational capacity of peace-keeping in recent years were preserved. The structural integrity of the Department of Peace-keeping Operations should be maintained with a staff complement composed of a permanent core capacity to
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plan and provide for the rapid and orderly launch of peace-keeping operations, a foundation for variable backstopping functions, and a capability to carry out the orderly liquidation of peace-keeping operations once they were completed. The United States welcomed the Secretary-General's proposal to fund peace-keeping variable costs in a single annual appropriation reflecting actual estimated expenditure. He said the United States was concerned about the 50 per cent cuts proposed in the Mission Planning Service -- if adopted, that measure would force that unit to depend entirely on loaned and seconded officers.
The United States acknowledged the professional and courageous steps taken by the Office of Internal Oversight Services to extend its activities to peace-keeping. It was also pleased that annualized budgeting for peace- keeping would start from next July. It supported Secretariat efforts to secure agreement to host country Status of Forces Agreements and called upon the States concerned to show flexibility in the negotiations on the agreements.
On the question of enlargement of the Special Committee, he said countries contributing peace-keeping personnel in recent years, which were not members, should have the opportunity to join. The United States would support opening the Committee for some limited period such as 60 days from the General Assembly's adoption of the peace-keeping resolution at its next session. The provision could be used to accommodate first-time contributors each year. On the subject of peace-keeping dues payments and arrears, he said the United States remained committed to fulfilling its financial obligations at the earliest possible time.
ANASTASIA CARAYANIDES (Australia) said the United Nations could and should do more in preventing disputes from escalating into armed conflict by building stronger preventive diplomacy machinery, increasing information sharing and early-warning capacity, operating as an active agent for the peaceful settlement of disputes, and forging links with regional organizations and arrangements. She said the recent Canadian and Danish proposals and studies regarding rapid deployment should receive consideration and follow-up at this session of the Committee.
As for financial matters, she said she rejected the unilateral decision by any Member State to alter its agreed level of assessment. While she continued to support greater budgetary discipline in the Organization, a reduction in deployed troop numbers did not mean that the Department of Peace- keeping Operations could begin to be rapidly and unrealistically reduced or could shed military and operational expertise. For a number of years, the Committee had focused much of its efforts on improving the Department's ability to respond to conflicts. It was important to maintain the gains that had been made.
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She urged the Committee to concentrate on measures with the potential to generate real and lasting gains, and she listed 14 possibilities. Those included enhancement of stand-by arrangements; establishment of the nucleus of a rapidly deployable headquarters within the peace-keeping department; greater clarity of rules of engagement and agreement on those rules before troops were committed to an operation; early identification of special representatives and force commanders; and support of continued training efforts by the Secretariat and Member States through United Nations regional training seminars and workshops such as those held by the Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN) Regional Forum.
MAJID TAKHT-RAVANCHI (Iran) said obtaining prior consent of the parties, impartiality and non-use of force were among the key elements for the success of United Nations peace-keeping operations. Full transparency was needed in the establishment of peace-keeping operations,as well as in their composition. Equal opportunities should be ensured for the widest participation of Member States not only in the operations, but also in all mechanisms for command, control and other aspects.
There should be no further delay in expanding the membership of the Committee, he said, adding that he supported making the Committee open-ended. Regarding the rapid deployment of peace-keeping operations personnel, he said the current proposals contained a number of complicated political, legal and financial implications which should be carefully examined by different committees of the Organization.
JORGE PEREZ-OTERMIN (Uruguay) said the composition of the Department of Peace-keeping Operations should be consistent with the Charter provisions on geographical representation. It could not accept the distortion of the criteria because of budgetary problems. He said the principle of equitable geographical representation should be applied. He said the Latin American region was not properly represented in proportion to their contribution to peace-keeping activities. Officers from developing countries should be appointed. That criteria should also be applied for the appointment of senior personnel, particularly military commanders of peace-keeping operations.
Uruguay supported stand-by arrangements and requested periodical information on their status. He requested circulation of relevant information well in advance of consultations between troop-contributing countries and the Security Council. Weekly bulletins of the situation room should also be circulated among troop-contributing countries, he said.
He stressed the importance of the preventive diplomacy of the Organization of American States (OAS) and its peaceful solution of regional controversies. A sophisticated system of preventive diplomacy was needed. Uruguay supported United Nations human rights missions in Haiti and Guatemala which were two of the most successful such operations, and which were now
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experiencing budgetary difficulties. On the question of expansion of the Special Committee, his delegation supported its being open-ended. He said the Committee was a deliberative body only. He expressed concern about the delays in the payments of reimbursement for contingent, which he said amounted to a subsidy by troop-contributing countries. He hoped the situation would change, otherwise, it would be difficult for developing countries to maintain the levels of their contribution.
PEDRO NUNEZ MOSQUERA (Cuba) said he was concerned about the growing tendency to relate peace-keeping operations to Chapter VII of the Charter. Such a tendency could lead to the legitimization of the imposition of peace- keeping operations and to their being linked to the use of force by the Organization. The United Nations was not a supra-state organization, and therefore the consent of affected States should be the cornerstone of its peace-keeping work. A set of principles and guidelines for peace-keeping operations should be established by the Committee and presented to the General Assembly for its approval.
He was also concerned about the imbalance in the representation of developing countries in the Department of Peace-keeping Operations. That imbalance had become more acute as a result of countries' financing the employment of their nationals. At the end of last February, 40 per cent of the core staff of the Department was "on assignment"; according to recent proposals, that percentage could exceed 50 per cent. That situation was in violation of Article 100 of the Charter regarding the strictly international character of Secretariat staff, and it must be rectified. Cuba joined with the request of Thailand, made on behalf of the Non-Aligned Movement, for the Secretary-General to provide extensive information regarding the nature of the Department of Peace-keeping Operations' staff, so that the situation could be evaluated.
Humanitarian action was not in the Security Council's field of competence, he said, and it should not be linked to Chapter VII of the Charter. Humanitarian action should not become a pretext to intervene in the internal affairs of a State or to put it under external pressure. It was important to distinguish between humanitarian needs that arose as a result of conflicts and those that had structural causes. The latter needs should be addressed through development assistance provided by the relevant United Nations organs and agencies and should not be linked with peace-keeping operations.
DAG WERNO HOLTER (Norway) said the Special Committee should consider how the United Nations could develop a common and comprehensive set of definitions for peace-keeping and related activities. That could prove to be an important step in facilitating cooperation between the United Nations and regional bodies. Norway fully supported and encouraged the Secretary-General's efforts to strengthen coordination and cooperation between regional organizations and
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the United Nations. Crisis management, including peace-keeping activities, should remain one of the priority tasks of the United Nations. It was therefore important that the Organization was equipped with adequate resources to fulfil its peace-keeping mandate. Norway urged all Member States to honour their financial obligations promptly and in full. It was also important that the Secretariat develop the necessary capacity to plan, deploy and manage peace-keeping operations in an effective manner. The Department should retain an adequate number of qualified and well-trained personnel both at Headquarters and in the field.
Norway supported the Secretariat's ongoing efforts to develop a system of stand-by arrangements. It had finalized an agreement with the Organization on the establishment of a United Nations medical depot in Oslo to streamline the purchase, storage, maintenance and delivery of medical items and equipment in peace-keeping operations. The Norwegian Government would pay all basic operation costs of the depot for five years, through a contribution of approximately $3.6 million.
He said the United Nations rapid reaction capability should also include humanitarian expertise and assistance. Norway supported proposals on the establishment of a rapidly deployable headquarters element within the Department of Peace-keeping Operations and stood ready to contribute concretely to their rapid implementation. He called for improved information- sharing and consultation between the Department of Peace-keeping Operations, Department of Humanitarian Affairs and Department of Political Affairs. Norway had over the years participated in peace-keeping operations with a total of more than 50,000 men and women and, with close to 1,000 personnel presently serving under the United Nations flag. It was as of today the sixth largest single troop-contributing country. It was also a major contributor to humanitarian efforts linked to peace-keeping activities. Countries which made important contributions, including personnel in the humanitarian field, should be included in the consultations between the Security Council and troop- contributing countries.
S.E.M.SLAHEDDINE ABDELLAH (Tunisia) said his delegation fully agreed with the statement of Thailand on behalf of the Non-Aligned countries. It believed that the success of any peace-keeping operation depended on respect for the sovereignty of States, non-interference in internal affairs, consent of the parties concerned, impartiality and the non-use of force except for self-defence. He said all peaceful means should be exhausted before Chapter VII provisions of the Charter on peace enforcement were applied.
Tunisia, which had participated in peace-keeping operations since the 1960s, welcomed the announcement by the Security Council on consultations between it and troop-contributing countries. He said more account should be taken of the concerns expressed by the contributors at a meeting last December with the Council members. He reiterated the call made by the contributors at
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that meeting for the institutionalization of the consultations. He hoped debates would continue to be held in the Council before decisions were taken on peace-keeping operations.
Noting the usefulness of cooperation between regional organizations and the United Nations, he welcomed proposals by the Secretary-General to strengthen cooperation between the United Nations and the Organization of African Unity (OAU). Tunisia believed the cooperation would be fruitful if the OAU had adequate resources. Towards that end, he said the sustained and effective support of the international community was fundamental. It was in that circumstance that a rapid deployment force for action in African conflicts should be considered. He also welcomed the holding of meetings organized by the Secretary-General for regional bodies and hoped it would be on a regular basis.
He said peace-keeping operations should not be financed at the expense of development. The United Nations financial crisis was discouraging potential troop contributors and those countries already participating. He said that membership of the Special Committee should be open to all Member States.
JUAN LARRAIN (Chile) said the new mechanisms for consultation between the Security Council and troop-contributing countries was an important advance. However, Chile believed that those countries had the right to be heard by the Council, and that right should be recognized by law and not just in practice. The Committee must be enlarged without delay. It should be open to all Member States.
It was also essential to improve the United Nations capacity to react rapidly and appropriately to conflicts prior to the putting into place of peace-keeping operations and obtaining the explicit consent of the parties to the conflict, he continued. Chile supported the Canadian and Dutch proposals to establish a rapid-deployment headquarters. Such a step met not only the criteria of efficiency but also the moral imperative of saving precious human lives.
He said it was important to strengthen consultation with regional organizations and to improve coordination with United Nations agencies and non-governmental organizations involved in humanitarian assistance. He also urged the Committee to address the financing of peace-keeping operations and the problem of reimbursement and compensation to troop-contributing countries.
NABIL ELARABY (Egypt) said the international community should continue to play a prominent role in restoring and keeping peace in all contentious areas and to assist the relief efforts of United Nations operations. In applying enforcement measures, he said the Security Council should strictly follow the Charter's Chapter VII provisions. Expanding the definition of what
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might constitute a threat to international peace and security and consequently justifying enforcement measures could have a negative impact on the Organization's stature and credibility. The same was true when the political will to enforce peace was missing while an abusive aggression was being witnessed by the whole world. He cited the situation in Bosnia and Herzegovina as an outrageous example.
Noting the crucial role of regional organizations and arrangements for the success of preventive diplomacy, he called upon the United Nations to help develop mechanisms for resolving regional conflicts. He said his Government had decided to establish, in Cairo, a training centre for conflict resolution and peace-keeping in Africa. He was confident that the centre would receive substantial assistance from the Department of Peace-keeping Operations and countries with long experience in peace-keeping training.
He said the Security Council should institutionalize consultations with troop-contributing countries as an integral part of the decision-making process on any peace-keeping operation. The General Assembly should share in the responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security. It should play a more active role in such areas as assessing some operations' effectiveness in implementing their mandates, coordination between competent United Nations bodies, formulating guidelines and principles and providing support for the Secretary-General in managing the operations. Egypt supported the Special Committee's expansion representing the whole United Nations membership and reflecting the special interests of troop-contributing countries.
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