Syria, in its eighth year of war, must not miss an opportunity to create the constitutional committee, the top United Nations official tasked with seeking a peaceful resolution to the crisis told the Security Council today, also welcoming the new Russian Turkish agreement to establish a demilitarized zone in Idlib.
Amid the recent rise in civilian casualties inside Afghanistan, decisions made now ahead of elections in October will have far‑reaching implications for the country’s future and play a key role in advancing the peace process, the senior United Nations official in that country told the Security Council today.
The representatives of the United States and the Russian Federation traded accusations today over the report of the Panel of Experts relating to the sanctions imposed on the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, as the Security Council met to consider non-proliferation.
The past three years have seen some remarkable achievements in Somalia – including the peaceful transition of presidential power, improved finances, and the formation of a Government with a compelling reform agenda — the top United Nations official in the Horn of Africa country told the Security Council today, while cautioning that no one should be deluded about the challenges ahead.
The Security Council decided today to extend until 2019 the mandate of the United Nations Verification Mission in Colombia.
The Security Council today adopted a resolution extending the mandate of the United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) until 15 September 2019 under the leadership of the Secretary‑General’s Special Representative.
The more than $7 billion spent annually on United Nations peacekeeping operations must achieve its best possible value on the ground, speakers emphasized today, as the Security Council considered how best to improve mission performance and hold failures accountable.
Amid escalating violence and lack of participation by one party in Yemen’s recently relaunched peace talks, the international community must commit to supporting dialogue, protecting civilians and preventing the country’s further decline into chaos, the senior United Nations official tasked with shepherding the negotiations stressed today as he briefed the Security Council.
By violating the last de‑escalation zone in the Syria conflict, the Russian Federation and Iran are not demonstrating a commitment to protecting civilian lives, and it is absurd to think the world will pay for reconstruction as they pummel Idlib, the representative of the United States told the Security Council today.
In its first‑ever meeting to address the links between corruption and conflict, the Security Council today considered ways to effectively disrupt the illicit siphoning of money by leaders and other practices that weaken State institutions, thereby making a country susceptible to conflict.
