BRIEFING BY UNDER-SECRETARY-GENERAL FOR PEACEKEEPING OPERATIONS

Press Briefing

BRIEFING BY UNDER-SECRETARY-GENERAL FOR PEACEKEEPING OPERATIONS

The Security Council today adopted a resolution establishing the United Nations Transitional Administration in East Timor (UNTAET), correspondents were told at today’s noon briefing. The Under- Secretary-General for Peace-Keeping Operations, Bernard Miyet, said that though this mission would not be as politically complex as the United Nations Mission in Kosovo, it would certainly be one of the largest and most ambitious operations the Organization had ever taken on.

The mission would comprise three main components: governance and public administration; humanitarian assistance and emergency rehabilitation; and a military component. The military component would have strength of up to 8,950 troops and up to 200 military observers. Civilian police would be part of the public administration component with strength of up to 1,640 officers.

Mr. Miyet, a guest at today’s noon briefing, explained that since the mission had both civilian and military components, it would clearly be a very complex operation. Organizing and running the military component alone would perhaps make this one of the United Nations most costly operations, he said. When a correspondent asked him about the exact cost, he said that, although he did not want to get into figures at this point, it could be up to $1 billion for a full year.

He said that this week, as soon as possible, he would appeal to the Fifth Committee to get an advance authority of between $50 million and $200 million to start the mission. He would present a full, detailed budget later after the situation had been fully assessed.

When asked by a correspondent whether he was worried about all these plans being made without the reality of the money being available, Mr. Miyet said that though the money would not be available immediately, all the Member States were legally committed by the decision of the Security Council to finance each of the components of the operation. He said that, at times, in operations such as this, money did not flow freely after the initial start-up costs were met and, therefore, reimbursements to troop-contributing nations would have to be postponed. He hoped that UNTAET would not face that type of situation.

A correspondent asked whether there would be a larger portion of Asian peacekeepers participating in the mission. “At this point”, Mr. Miyet said, “we are trying to get as many Asian countries to participate in the peacekeeping force as we can.” A number of countries had already accepted the United Nations offer. However,

Miyet Briefing - 2 - 25 October 1999

building an effective force would require scrutiny to ensure that the type and quantity of troops would be qualified to handle the myriad objectives of this complex operation. Since the mission would require not only infantry, but also engineers, as well as experts in such fields as communications and logistics, he would look closely to see if Asian countries could provide troops to fulfil any of those functions.

The same correspondent asked whether the commander of the UNTAET force would be from an Asian country. Mr. Miyet said that was an option they were studying closely. He said, however, that he could not give an exact date for the transfer of responsibility or the appointment of a new commander. It was something that would have to be discussed.

The FALENTIL and East Timorese liberation leadership had said that they did not want an Asian to command the United Nations force, a correspondent said. He asked if those factions would cause problems in the eventual handover of power. Mr. Miyet said that the United Nations was liaising very closely in New York and Dili with the East Timorese. It was clear that the United Nations would try to cooperate and consult closely with them, as was envisaged in the Secretary-General’s report and in the resolution. The objective, he said, was to be as inclusive as possible and to try and build an East Timor that was “consolidated, stable and secure in the region it belongs to”. The fact that independence leader Xanana Gusmao was now back in Dili would also help facilitate discussions.

A correspondent asked if the United Nations mission could maintain a unified command with all the varied political agendas working behind the scenes, in and outside East Timor. Malaysia, for example, had been critical of the United Nations handling of the situation up until now. Mr. Miyet said that most of those political problems were linked to situations that occurred before the decisions of the People’s Parliamentary Assembly in Jakarta. Now that things were clear on the Indonesian side, perhaps the political tensions inside East Timor would “cool down”. The UNTAET, meanwhile, would try to develop a chain of command that was “totally consistent, coherent and cohesive in order to avoid problems and difficulties”. Any commander appointed to the force would also have to work under the authority of the Special Representative. That would ensure cohesiveness, which was necessary.

A correspondent said that the mission, along with the mission in Sierra Leone, would effectively more than double the number of United Nations peacekeepers currently on the ground. Did that show willingness on the part of Member States to commit despite a lack of resources. Mr. Miyet said that it was a clear demonstration of new willingness by the Security Council to support United Nations peacekeeping operations and to intervene on all fronts -- Europe, Asia and Africa. The pendulum was swinging back, he said, and more peacekeepers were in the field now than ever before.

Miyet Briefing - 3 - 25 October 1999

In terms of police alone -- with more than 4,500 in Kosovo and over 2,000 in Bosnia and Herzegovina -- the 1,700 prescribed for UNTAET would more that double the number of peacekeepers in the field, he said. The final number of peacekeepers in East Timor would be determined by what was assessed on the ground, he said, taking into consideration how many East Timorese would be back and able to take over responsibility. While he did not have at hand the total number of peacekeepers in the field, he said that he would give that information to the Spokesman for tomorrow’s noon briefing in order to give correspondents an idea of the magnitude of the United Nations peacekeeping operations worldwide.

Mr. Miyet said that, at this point, he would not discuss the issue of when legislative elections might take place in East Timor. Before setting a date, the situation concerning refugees and returning displaced persons had to be fully assessed. One needed to have a clear picture of the constitutional, political and legal order that would be established before setting the date of general elections. That was also an issue that would have to be discussed between the mission representatives and the East Timorese leadership.

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