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Madam President, Your Excellency Cristina Fernández de Kirchner
We are honored that you preside over this important session of the Security Council. We congratulate Argentina for assuming the Presidency of the Council; and appreciate the valuable work being done by your Ambassador, Marita Perceval, and her team in leading the Council this month.
We commend the United States for its effective presidency of the Council last month. We warmly welcome the new US Permanent Representative, Ms. Samantha Power, in the Council Chamber and look forward to working with her.
We thank the Secretary-General for his comprehensive briefing on this important subject.
We have listened attentively to the presentations made by the CELAC, the African Union, UNASUR, and the Arab League and appreciate participation of the distinguished Ministers in today's debate.
It is evident from the briefings this morning that the United Nations and regional and sub-regional organizations are cooperating more closely than ever before to maintain international peace and security; and to prevent, manage and resolve crises.
The partnerships between the United Nations and regional organizations reinforce collective security but also present new problems.
Madam President,
This past year has been good for partnerships.
Under the leadership of the Secretary General, a Peace, Security and Cooperation Framework for the Great Lakes Region was concluded. This Framework, supported by eleven countries and four guarantors - the UN, AU, ICGLR, and SADC - should usher in/ peace and stability in the DRC / and its neighborhood.
Similarly, the effective cooperation between the United Nations, ECOWAS and ECCAS, has contributed to the stabilization of the situations in Mali and CAR.
The United Nations has supported AMISOM with co-deployment, rotations, and operational and budgetary support; ISAF under the framework of a UN mandate; and UNAMID as a hybrid mission in Darfur.
The cooperation between the UN and regional organizations requires a dynamic strategy to address the deficits in troops, equipment, and military expertise, as well as predictable and sustainable funding. It also demands close oversight by the Security Council and harmonization of the approaches of the regional organizations and the United Nations.
Regional organizations have unique perspectives and deeper understanding of local conflicts and cultural norms. This knowledge often gives them a comparative advantage in preventing and resolving conflicts. In many cases, they have enormous influence over parties to a dispute, who tend to place greater trust in regional organizations.
Madam President,
A lot more can be done to consolidate partnerships between the United Nations and regional organizations.
Every regional organization has a unique historical background, distinct objectives and diverse membership. In formulating strategies for cooperation, the specific characteristics and capacity of each organization should be taken into account.
Regional organizations help the Council avert impending crises by sharing information on real time basis. The United Nations should therefore support early warning capacity-building of the relevant regional organizations.
Madam President,
Regional organizations should use their full potential to dissuade parties from relying on arms to settle their disputes and encourage them to use peaceful means.
We call on the League of Arab States, the OIC and GCC to use their extensive links to persuade all sides in Syria to attend the Geneva II Conference.
African issues constitute the bulk of the agenda of the Security Council; and the cooperation between the United Nations and the African Union is an important pivot for the maintenance of international peace and security in the African continent.
The United Nations and its partners should continue to address funding and capacity gaps to strengthen the African Union’s ability to prevent conflicts under the umbrella of the Ten-Year Capacity-Building Programme for the African Union.
We applaud the EU for supporting peacekeeping and peace-building activities in Africa by providing substantial funding for United Nations-mandated African Union peace support operations. We encourage other regional organizations, which have the capacity to do so, to follow the EU example.
Regional organizations should step up their endeavors to fight transnational crimes such as terrorism, drug trafficking, weapons proliferation, and piracy. The success of the United Nations Integrated Strategy for the Sahel depends on inter-regional cooperation to combat these threats.
The UN has launched robust peacekeeping in DRC. The Intervention Brigade must succeed, despite the challenges of the terrain, multiple rebel groups, and doctrinal issues, as its performance would have an impact on other similar missions and situations and the conceptual evolution of modern peacekeeping.
The latent issues between the Security Council and regional organizations should be addressed by promoting complementarity. The widely recognized principles of consultation, the primacy of the United Nations, effective division of labour and consistency of approach should be fully respected. These are the broad parameters for the evolving interpretations of Chapter VIII of the Charter.
Finally, for sustainable peace, the humanitarian role and competencies of regional organizations should be strengthened.
Madam President,
We endorse the comprehensive presidential statement finalized and adopted under your Presidency; and commend your Mission for preparing a well-structured concept note.
I thank you, Madame President.