SECRETARY-GENERAL CONGRATULATES SECURITY COUNCIL ON GIVING MONUC STRONG MANDATE TO FULFIL DIFFICULT MISSION IN DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO

SECRETARY-GENERAL CONGRATULATES SECURITY COUNCIL ON GIVING MONUC STRONG MANDATE

TO FULFIL DIFFICULT MISSION IN DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO

Following are the remarks by Secretary-General Kofi Annan to the Security Council this morning, after the adoption of the resolution on the United Nations Organization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUC):

I congratulate the Security Council on unanimously adopting the resolution and giving MONUC the strong mandate it needs to fulfil its difficult mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).

The political and military leaders in the DRC have taken important steps in the last month to inaugurate the transitional government.  This is now in place. 

But the road ahead over the next two to three years toward free and fair elections will be difficult.

I am grateful to the Council for its strong support, especially in relation to the situation in the north-eastern part of the country. 

Through your resolution 1484 (2003), in which the Council authorized the Interim Emergency Multinational Force, you have shown that a timely and effective response by the international community can put an end to violence. 

This Interim Force has also served as an effective stop-gap mechanism, giving MONUC and the Department of Peacekeeping Operations sufficient time to deploy an expanded military force in Bunia.

Through the resolution adopted today, the Security Council has placed MONUC, in coordination with United Nations agencies and donors, in a key role to help the Congolese achieve a sustainable peace leading up to a democratically elected government.  It will be necessary for the international community to provide the resources needed to implement this far-reaching resolution. 

In the final analysis, however, there will be no substitute for the resolve of the Congolese leaders to implement their commitment towards peace.  It is my sincere hope that they will continue to do so, and thereby bring an end to the terrible suffering that has been endured by the Congolese people for too long.

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