Security Council

The Security Council today extended for another year the United Nations Mission in Afghanistan and called on the Organization and the international community to bolster the Afghan Government’s efforts to take ownership of and leadership in National Priority Programmes covering security, governance, justice and socio-economic development.

On 15 March 2013, the Security Council Committee pursuant to resolutions 1267 (1999) and 1989 (2011) approved the amendments specified with underline and strikethrough in the entries below on its 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 2083 (2012) adopted under Chapter VII of the Charter of the United Nations.

The Security Council today extended for 12 months the mandate of the United Nations Support Mission in Libya to assist the authorities in defining national needs and priorities and match those with offers of strategic and technical advice, and modified the two-year-old ban on arms imports to boost the country’s security and disarmament efforts.

The following Security Council press statement was issued today by Council President Vitaly Churkin ( Russian Federation):

On 13 March 2013, the Security Council Committee pursuant to resolutions 1267 (1999) and 1989 (2011) approved the amendments specified with underline in the entry below on its 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 2083 (2012) adopted under Chapter VII of the Charter of the United Nations.

With Sierra Leone’s progress “proof” of what could be accomplished through concerted multilateral and national efforts in the post-conflict period, it was time to begin a reconfiguration of the United Nations mission and, starting 1 April, to gradually transfer responsibilities to the country team and Government, the Secretary-General’s top envoy in that country told the Security Council today.

On 11 March 2013, the Security Council Committee established pursuant to resolution 1591 (2005) concerning Sudan approved the updates, as underlined below, to the four existing entries on its List of Individuals Subject to the Travel Ban and Assets Freeze.

On 11 March 2013, the Security Council Al-Qaida Sanctions Committee decided to remove the name of the individual below from the Al-Qaida Sanctions List after concluding its consideration of a delisting request submitted through the Ombudsperson established pursuant to Security Council resolution 1904 (2009), and after considering the Comprehensive Report of the Ombudsperson on this delisting request.

The Security Council today passed unanimously a resolution strengthening and expanding the scope of United Nations sanctions against the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea by targeting the illicit activities of diplomatic personnel, transfers of bulk cash, and the country’s banking relationships, in response to that country’s third nuclear test on 12 February.

The following Security Council press statement was issued today by Council President Vitaly Churkin (Russian Federation):