Media Home
UN Web TV
UN Audiovisual Library
UN PhotoSecurity Council
7564th Security Council Meeting: Maintenance of International Peace and Security
Briefing Council members this morning on his report “The Future of United Nations Peace Operations: implementation of the recommendations of the High-level Panel on Peace Operations” (document S/2015/846), Secretary‑General Ban said the demands of conflict were placing enormous burdens on peace and security tools. The High-level Panel on Peace Operations had offered a number of recommendations covering three broad areas: political engagement, design and implementation of peace operations, and reinvigorated partnerships.
Describing peace operations as political tools, he emphasized that the Council’s political engagement even before authorizing a peace operation was critical and remained essential throughout the mission’s life. Prevention was the most effective means of tackling the escalating costs of conflict and the best way to support national and regional partners. Committed efforts among Council members to unite around a shared political strategy to de-escalate tensions could have a powerful effect. The use of sanctions could change the incentives of key parties and play a role in reducing the flows of arms and money. The Council’s engagement with host Governments was also critical.
He went on to say that the Council could strengthen peace operations through improved design and implementation of mandates, endorsing the High-level Panel’s recommendation on sequenced mandates (under that model, the Council would confirm a mandate only once the Secretariat assured it that the capabilities required had been made available). Where peace operations were mandated to protect civilians, they must use all available tools, including force, he said. When there was a failure to act in the face of threats to civilians, the Council should engage, politically and operationally, to help redress such situations, and engage also on issues of misconduct, including sexual exploitation and abuse. A strong dialogue with partners was crucial for devising more tailored mandates, he said, emphasizing that deeper engagement with regional partners was “a must”.
Underscoring the fundamental importance of the relationship between the Council and troop and police contributors to effective peace operations, he said there was a need for engagement — well before a peace operation was mandated — on what was required and what was available. The Council’s landmark resolution 1325 (2000) on women, peace and security had been fully mainstreamed, he pointed out, adding that consideration should also be given to strengthening collaboration between the Council and the Peacebuilding Commission. “Taken together, these efforts can enable us to renew the instruments of the United Nations to address conflict, protect people and help countries find durable paths of peace,” he said in conclusion.
Council members then took the floor, emphasizing the need for the 15-nation organ to use its “collective political leverage” in pursuit of political settlement of conflicts, complemented by mediation. Mandates should be geared towards specific situations on the ground, and peacekeepers should be equipped with the necessary assets to fulfil their mandates. The representative of the United States said in that regard that when advanced technologies were needed for a peace operation, the Council should support such requests and not play politics with them.
Several participants in the discussion stressed the need for better protection of peacekeepers. Expressing condolences to the families of the victims of yesterday’s attack in Mali, and condemning that terrorist action, they noted that it underlined the dangers under which peacekeepers had to operate. “Countries won’t make soldiers and police available if they feel their people may be exposed to unacceptable risk,” New Zealand’s representative said. The Council should receive situational awareness briefings, led by the United Nations Operations and Crisis Centre, to ensure that mandates matched real-world contexts.
The United Kingdom’s representative, Council President for November, spoke in his national capacity, saying the Council must play a significant role in empowering peace operations by improving the manner in which it mandated missions, and changing the way in which it discussed the work of the United Nations in fragile and conflict-affected countries. It must robustly respond to all allegations of sexual exploitation and abuse. Further, the Council must get its political messaging right by making use of all tools to speak out against violations of status-of-forces agreements. Meanwhile, the Council required more and better feedback, especially in relation to whether a mission’s configuration was sufficient, a task that required early planning.
The Russian Federation’s representative cautioned against an excessive focus on human rights and gender issues. Instead, the mandates of various Secretariat departments must be respected, and the practice of “stealing other people’s bed covers” curbed because that led to “no one taking responsibility for anything” and increased costs. The range of issues — including preventive measures, structural changes in the Secretariat and redistribution of staff and resources — must be a priority, first and foremost in the Special Committee on Peacekeeping Operations, he emphasized.
Speakers welcomed the High-level Panel’s recommendations on sequenced mandates. Venezuela’s representative said they should be established in three stages: determining whether ground conditions favoured deployment; deploying peacekeepers with a mandate limited to the political, protection and security spheres; and broadening the mandate. Noting concerns about deployment to situations where there was no peace to preserve, he stressed that peacekeeping had not been established to participate in anti-terrorism or related operations.
There was a broad consensus on the need to intensify cooperation between the Council and regional and subregional organizations. Noting that the Organizations on its own could not meet all challenges to peace, especially in Africa, Chad’s representative stressed the crucial importance of a strategic partnership with the African Union, explaining that regional organizations had the advantage of geographical proximity, better awareness of the causes of conflict and the ability to act swiftly. He emphasized that regional and sub-regional organizations must receive the necessary support from the Council.
Many speakers asked for more sustained interaction by the Council with troop- and police-contributing countries.
Other speakers today were representatives of Chile, France, Spain, Nigeria, China, Jordan, Malaysia, Angola and Lithuania.
The meeting began at 10:02 a.m. and ended at 11:56 a.m.
Related Content
