Press Conference by Security Council President

 

Reviews of major peacekeeping and peace-building efforts, as well as a members’ mission to Africa, will be among the most significant activities of the Security Council in April, the permanent representative of Japan said today.

Kicking off his country’s presidency of the 15-member body for the month, Yukio Takasu noted that critical phases were being faced by both the United Nations Mission in the Sudan (UNMIS), the United Nations Mission in the Central African Republic (MINURCAT) and the United Nations Organization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUC).

Discussions on the renewal of UNMIS’s mandate, which would expire at the end of the month, would probably focus on the general election planned for 11 April, the conduct and outcome of which would heavily influence the future of the Mission and the peace processes in the country, he said.

The mandate extension, along with that of United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO), would take place on the 29^th, and a briefing and consultations on the many sensitive issues facing MONUC would take place on 13 April, he said.  A review of MONUC and the situation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo would also be a primary objective of a Council mission planned for 16 to 23 April, he added.

He noted that, in the effort at better communication with troop-contributing countries, this month, for the first time, private meetings with troop-contributing countries for MONUC, MINURSO and UNMIS would all take place prior to other Council meetings on those Missions.

Consultations, scheduled for the 15^th, would address the future of MINURCAT after the Government of Chad’s request for the military component’s withdrawal and the dialogue between that Government and Under-Secretary-General Youssef Mahmoud that is now occurring in the Chadian capital.

As part of the effort to keep countries emerging from conflict from descending back into violence, the Japanese presidency would submit a concept paper for the Council’s debate on peacebuilding, scheduled for the 16^th, which focused on the issues of social stability that had not yet been adequately addressed. 

He said that Japanese Foreign Minister Katsuya Okadawas expected to preside over that meeting, which was also expected to include the participation of other high officials of Council Members.  He hoped that a substantive Presidential Statement would result.

The 27 April briefing on women, peace and security, he said, would probably focus on indicators that had been requested to measure implementation of resolution 1325 (2000) on the issue, and would also take into account the recent appointment of Margot Wallström as the Secretary-General's Special Representative on Sexual Violence in Conflict.

Tomorrow’s meeting on the International Advisory and Monitoring Board for Iraq, which oversees the Development Fund for Iraq, would review progress in those programmes, with no major changes envisioned, he said.

An open debate on the Middle East would take place on the 14^th.  Non-proliferation, in particular the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea and Iran, was very important to his country and most other Council members and could very well be taken up this month, but as of today no date had been set, he said.

Japan, he said, had also been active in reviews of the working methods of the Council, with the objective of making the body as transparent as possible and strengthening the partnership among members.  The Council, in that vein, had agreed to revisit the 2006 resolution and the 2008 Presidential Statement on that issue in a 29 April meeting.

In that light, as well, Japan had offered the Council a Japanese tea service used for the tea ceremony that is meant to foster harmony and mutual respect, he said.

Following Mr. Takasu’s outline of the programme of work, many correspondent’s voiced concern over what they saw as restricted access to representatives, following the Council’s temporary move to a different meeting room under the Capital Master Plan.

Mr. Takasu, saying that he was unaware of those problems before assuming the presidency, noted ongoing discussions on the issue and affirmed that the key guideline should be providing arrangements equivalent to those previously in place, permitting an equal amount of press access, as well as adequate inclusion of non-permanent Council members.  An arrangement identical to the previous one was impossible, however, he cautioned.

Asked about Iran, he said that intensive discussions continued, and that some Council Members would like to see Council action as soon as possible.  He added that that the Council’s decision should be made by all 15 members, though it was appropriate that the group of most interested countries should consult most intensively.

Japan, he said, wanted to maintain good relations with Iran but, given Japanese history, did not want to make any exceptions on nuclear weapons proliferation.  It was crucial for Iran to cooperate with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), he commented, so that the international community could verify that its nuclear activity was for peaceful purposes.  Until that cooperation occurred, both dialogue and Council pressure should be pursued, he added.

Asked about other situations, he said that there was strong Council support for the role and message of the Secretary-General on Myanmar, but there was no Council action on the horizon regarding the country’s exclusion of certain parties, including those under arrest, from participating in elections.

In other areas, he said the Gaza blockade would be addressed in April’s Middle East meeting, and the committee concerning sanctions on the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea had been addressing many serious violations by that country and that nuclear issue must be settled by the resumption of the Six-Party Talks.

In regard to Security Council reform, he said it was crucial to increase the representation of all countries that had the capability to help implement Security Council decisions.  Japan was prepared to be flexible in reaching that goal.

Finally, he agreed that it was extremely important to develop cooperation between peacekeeping missions to deal with such situations as the massacres by the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA), which operated between Uganda, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and other countries.  He could not confirm specific action towards that goal this month, however.

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For information media • not an official record