Security Council: No name

The following Security Council press statement was issued today by Council President Barbara Woodward (United Kingdom):

The senior United Nations disarmament official urged the Security Council to unite and ensure that the use of chemical weapons shall never be tolerated, as she briefed the 15-member organ during a videoconference today on efforts by the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) to verify the destruction of Syria’s chemical weapons stockpiles and production facilities.

The Security Council underscored today the importance of addressing the conditions conducive to the spread of terrorism and violent extremism in West Africa and the Sahel, as well as the need for a holistic approach to address the causes of intercommunal violence in the region.

The Security Council’s agenda for February will feature two major meetings — one on climate security risks and the other on equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines in conflict-affected areas, its President for the month said during a video press conference today.

Recognizing the efforts of the League of Arab States towards regional stability, the Security Council today further encouraged the bloc to contribute to collective endeavours aimed at peacefully resolving conflicts in the Arab region.

The United Nations and the Canadian Institutes of Health Research hosted an online discussion on how to prioritize actions to recover more equitably from the COVID-19 pandemic.  More than 100 participants from 60 countries attended, including those responsible for $100 billion annually in global research investments.

The Security Council, acting through its temporary silence procedure amid the ongoing COVID‑19 pandemic, decided today to extend the mandate of the United Nations Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus (UNFICYP) for a further period ending on 31 July 2021.

Amid calls for the Security Council to help sustain the significant momentum under way to build a democratic, unified Libya, the top United Nations official in that country urged the 15-member organ during a 28 January videoconference meeting to adopt a resolution calling for the dissolution of all remaining parallel executive entities set up by the opposing political forces.

The following Security Council press statement was issued today by Council President Tarek Ladeb (Tunisia):

Despite reprisals between Palestinians and Israelis, and the ongoing ravages of COVID-19 on a region struggling to staunch its spread, achievement of an  elusive two-State vision remains possible, the senior United Nations official for Middle East peace told the Security Council today, hailing a 15 January decree announcing the conduct of Palestinian elections in 2021 as “a crucial step” towards Palestinian unity and the building of a democratic State.