Albania’s Prime Minister outlined the priorities of his country’s 2020 Chairmanship of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) today, assuring the Security Council that making a difference on the ground, respecting commitments and pursuing dialogue are hallmarks of its approach to addressing tensions in Ukraine, Nagorno-Karabakh and Transdniestria.
The widespread proliferation of approximately 1 billion small arms in circulation around the world — to terrorists, parties to intra-State conflict, organized criminals and warring gangs — continues to pose a major threat around the globe, the senior United Nations disarmament official told the Security Council today.
On 4 February 2020, the Security Council Committee pursuant to resolutions 1267 (1999), 1989 (2011) and 2253 (2015) concerning ISIL (Da’esh), Al‑Qaida, and associated individuals, groups, undertakings and entities approved the addition of the entry specified below to its ISIL (Da’esh) and Al-Qaida Sanctions List of individuals and entities subject to the assets freeze, travel ban and arms embargo set out in paragraph 1 of Security Council resolution 2368 (2017), and adopted under Chapter VII of the Charter of the United Nations.
Meetings to consider children in armed conflict, as well as transitional justice will be among the significant Security Council events to be held in February, Marc Pecsteen de Buytswerve (Belgium), its President for the month, said at a Headquarters press conference today.
The Security Council today decided to renew its Central African Republic sanctions regime for six months — including an arms and ammunition embargo, with a number of exemptions — while renewing the mandate its related Panel of Experts for seven months.
Cooperation between the United Nations and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is vital to maintaining international peace and security and combating global menaces such as climate change and the spread of terrorism, the heads of the two organizations told the Security Council today, as some delegates described the regional bloc’s consensus-building approach, known as the ASEAN Way, as an example to follow.
The senior United Nations official in Libya expressed outrage in the Security Council today over the conduct of actors inside and outside the country who nod towards peace yet double down on military actions, as delegates called for an end to foreign meddling and for upholding the arms embargo as part of a broader plan to stop the spiralling conflict.
The following Security Council press statement was issued today by Council President Dang Dinh Quy (Viet Nam):
On 20 December 2019, the Group of Experts of the Democratic Republic of the Congo transmitted its midterm report to the President of the Security Council (document S/2019/974).
Acting unanimously today, the Security Council decided to extend the mandate of its peacekeeping force in Cyprus, while calling for the establishment of a mechanism for direct military contacts between the sides and relevant parties.
