S/2020/1079 Security Council

I have the honour to enclose herewith a copy of the briefing provided by Ambassador Philippe Kridelka, Permanent Representative of Belgium, in his capacity as Chair of the Security Council Committee pursuant to resolution 751 (1992), concerning Somalia, as well as the statements delivered by the representatives of China, Germany, the Russian Federation, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the United States of America, in connection with the video- teleconference on the situation in Somalia, convened on Wednesday, 28 October 2020. In accordance with the procedure set out in the letter dated 7 May 2020 from the President of the Security Council addressed to the Permanent Representatives of the members of the Security Council (S/2020/372), which was agreed in the light of the extraordinary circumstances caused by the coronavirus disease pandemic, the enclosed briefing and statements will be issued as an official document of the Security Council.

As mandated by paragraph 11 (g) of resolution 1844 (2008), I have the honour to brief the Security Council in my capacity as Chair of the Security Council Committee pursuant to resolution 751 (1992), concerning Somalia, covering the period from 10 June 2020 to 28 October 2020. During the reporting period, Committee members met twice in the “informal informals” format via closed video-teleconference. On 14 September, members met to hear a presentation by the Coordinator of the Panel of Experts on Somalia on the Panel’s final report (see S/2020/949) and to share initial views on the recommendations contained therein. In addition to the submission of the final report to the Committee on 4 September, the Panel also submitted four monthly updates to the Committee since the most recent briefing (see S/2020/529). On 9 October, Committee members met to hear briefings by the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC). The Panel of Experts also participated in those briefings as an observer. In her remarks on 14 September, the Coordinator of the Panel of Experts highlighted a number of issues, including the Panel’s relations with the Federal Government of Somalia, Al-Shabaab financing, sanctions listings, the arms embargo and the improvised explosive devices components ban, the charcoal ban and the humanitarian situation in Somalia. I would like to emphasize that, during the informal discussion, Committee members welcomed the continued development in the Panel’s relations with the Federal Government of Somalia and praised the high quality of the Panel’s report, in particular the section on Al-Shabaab finance analysing the group’s revenue sources, storage and transfer methods and illegal taxation systems. The Council received the report on 28 September. I will therefore not go into further detail regarding the findings contained therein. The report is expected to be issued shortly. The Panel made 23 recommendations. Committee members agreed to take note of the nine recommendations addressed to the Council and further agreed to take actions pursuant to the 14 recommendations addressed to it by the Panel. The Committee is in the process of taking actions on those recommendations. The OCHA briefing of 9 October focused on the delivery of humanitarian assistance in Somalia and on any impediments thereto. The Deputy Director, Operations and Advocacy Division, pointed out that humanitarian needs in Somalia remained high due to protracted conflict, political and economic instability and recurrent climatic shocks. The triple threat of floods, the coronavirus disease and the worst desert locust upsurge that Somalia had experienced in decades had aggravated the humanitarian situation by worsening pre-existing vulnerabilities, disrupting positive gains in socioeconomic activities, impacting livelihoods and straining the health-care system. She also underlined that the humanitarian exemption provided for in paragraph 22 of resolution 2498 (2019) was essential to facilitating the delivery of humanitarian assistance and asked for it to be renewed. The UNODC briefing covered its work in response to resolution 2498 (2019). UNODC provided insight into the trafficking of improvised explosive device components, the maritime trade and Al-Shabaab’s revenue system, and the charcoal trade. The Head of the Global Maritime Crime Programme highlighted key efforts to disrupt Al-Shabaab activities, which included liaising with key Member States over their awareness of, and engagement in, the disruption efforts, strengthening the regional maritime law enforcement capacity and improving maritime domain awareness through the use of technology, such as satellite imagery. I will now summarize the statistics with regard to arms embargo exemption requests and notifications. The Committee received three advance delivery notifications pursuant to paragraphs 11 and 13 of resolution 2498 (2019) from the Federal Government of Somalia and four advance delivery notifications pursuant to paragraphs 11 and 14 of the same resolution from the supplying Member States. The Committee further received four post-delivery notifications pursuant to paragraph 16 of the resolution, submitted by the Federal Government of Somalia. Lastly, the Committee received two advance delivery notifications from a supplying Member State in accordance with paragraph 17 of the resolution. On 3 August, the Committee adopted an implementation assistance notice (IAN) aimed at providing guidance to all Member States on the implementation of the improvised explosive device components ban and informed all Member States accordingly. The IAN is available on the Committee’s website. Finally, I would like to report that, upon review of information previously submitted to the Committee by its predecessor, the Somalia and Eritrea Monitoring Group, regarding General Sadak Omar Mohamed, the Panel of Experts has clarified that no evidence of affiliation to Al-Shabaab was found and that General Sadak is not the subject of current investigations by the Panel.

I thank Ambassador Kridelka, Chair of the Committee pursuant to resolution 751 (1992), concerning Somalia, for his briefing. In recent months, the political process in Somalia has continued to make progress. Consensus has been reached on the 2020/2021 elections. The preparations for the elections are advancing steadily. The Somali transition plan is gradually updated. Meanwhile, the security situation in Somalia remains grave. Incidents of violence and terrorist activities occur from time to time. Terrorist groups still have strong destructive capabilities. The international community, including the sanctions committee, should continue to support Somalia’s efforts to pursue peace, stability and development. It is our consistent position that sanctions are a means, not an end. Any action taken by the Committee should be aimed at maintaining peace and stability in Somalia, and avoid any negative impact on the country’s development and the lives and property of the Somali people. The legitimate requests made by the Somali side should be given due attention and consideration. We welcome the clarification of the allegations against General Sadak Omar Mohamed, the commander of the Somali Police Force. China takes note of the improvement of relations between the Panel of Experts on Somalia and the Somali Government. We call on the Panel to continue to maintain good relations with the Somali Government, and we encourage both sides to enhance mutual trust and continue coordination and cooperation. The Panel should strive to improve the quality of its reports, verify the facts, assess the consequences and risks that may arise from the publication of reports and make prudent arrangements in advance. We are concerned over the recurrent leakage of the Panel’s reports, which has a negative impact on the parties concerned. China requests the Panel and the Secretariat to take concrete steps to prevent it from happening again. Next month the Security Council will renew the sanctions on Somalia. We think that relevant sanctions measures should be updated in the light of the new developments so as to meet the need to strengthen the capacity-building of the Somali security institutions, effectively combat terrorist groups and help address the root causes of violent conflict. Language with no direct relevance should not be included in the resolution. We hope that the Council members will conduct full consultations on the draft resolution and make every effort to reach consensus.

We would like to thank the Chair of the Committee pursuant to resolution 751 (1992), concerning Somalia, for his report and for his work on the Committee over the past two years. I would like to join colleagues and profoundly thank Belgium for its dedicated leadership as Chair of this important committee. Our gratitude goes to Philippe Kridelka, as well as to his predecessor, Marc Pecsteen de Buytswerve. What they have achieved in the past two years on substance is very important. I also want to highlight the fact that they achieved the strengthening of the working relationship between the Panel of Experts and the Federal Government of Somalia. We recall that that was not always the case. I therefore thank them for achieving that. The independent work and quality reporting of the Panel of Experts continues to be of great importance to the work of the Committee. That is why the work of the Panel enjoys our full support. I can only add my voice to those who have highlighted the continuous challenge that Al-Shabaab poses to the stability and security of the country. Therefore, for us, it is very important that the sanctions regime be continued in order to really prevent Al-Shabaab from what it is trying to do.

We join other speakers in expressing appreciation to the Belgian Chair for the briefing on the work of the Committee pursuant to resolution 751 (1992), concerning Somalia, over the past four months. Given that this is the last briefing of Belgium in that capacity, we would also like to thank our colleagues for chairing the subsidiary body and for the valuable input made. The Russian Federation considers the sanctions regime as an important instrument for assisting the Federal Government of Somalia to establish peace and stability in the country. Both arms and charcoal embargoes have made a substantial contribution on that track. We also believe in the untapped potential of the restrictions on the supply of the improvised explosive device components introduced last year. On the other hand, the sanctions regime should, under no circumstances, be an impediment to the Somali National Army in the fight against Al-Shabaab. The Security Council needs to keep the measures under constant review, taking into account the needs expressed by the Somalis in the field of capacity-building and results achieved in the weapons and ammunition management. On the relationship between the Panel of Experts on Somalia and the Federal Government of Somalia, we acknowledge the progress made on that track. In the current circumstances, it is particularly important that the Panel continue to accomplish its mandated tasks smoothly, while maintaining close coordination with the Somali authorities on all aspects of its investigations and enhancing trust and confidence with Mogadishu. Timely reporting of developments on the ground is essential. That said, we are seriously concerned over the leakage of the Panel’s final report (see S/2020/949), and we hope that such incidents will never happen again. The Somalia sanctions renewal, scheduled for next month, provides a good opportunity to revisit all these issues. We see the resolution as a concise document focusing on the Somalia sanctions and devoid of provisions that fall outside the competence of the Security Council and the Committee.

I would first like to thank Ambassador Kridelka, his predecessor and our colleagues from Belgium for their work chairing the Committee pursuant to resolution 751 (1992), concerning Somalia, especially as we operate in these challenging times. I would also like to thank the Panel of Experts on Somalia for their work this year and their high-quality reporting. That reporting notes the progress made by the Federal Government of Somalia in areas such as weapons and ammunition management and controlling the export of charcoal. I congratulate Somalia on that, and I urge the country to continue moving forward. The reporting also clearly highlights the scale of the challenge that Somalia faces in combating Al-Shabaab and the need for the international community to support Somalia in that endeavour. I wish to make three points. That will require a multifaceted approach, and our work in the Committee and through the sanctions mandate is a vital part of that. We need to support Somalia and work together — the Federal Government of Somalia, the international community and the private sector — to combat Al-Shabaab and, as highlighted in the report (see S/2020/949), reduce its ability to raise financing. Finally, Somalia sadly continues to face serious humanitarian challenges. I would therefore like to reiterate the point made by Ambassador Kridelka regarding the importance of the humanitarian exemption in the sanctions resolution.

I thank Ambassador Kridelka for his briefing. I really appreciate the stewardship that he has shown on the Committee pursuant to resolution 751 (1992), concerning Somalia. The United States appreciates the wealth of information that has been briefed to the Committee by the Panel of Experts on Somalia and the representatives from the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime and the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs over the past 120 days. The United States remains focused on limiting the ability of Al-Shabaab to conduct attacks against civilians, and we are committed to partnering with Member States to utilize the Somalia sanctions regime of the Committee to its full extent. That effort includes technical assistance and capacity-building to counter the financing of terrorism and the threat of improvised explosive devices (IEDs). The United States is encouraged to hear that the Panel and the Federal Government of Somalia have enhanced cooperation and information-sharing in order to support a constructive working relationship and enable the Panel to successfully fulfil its mandate. Addressing the ongoing Al-Shabaab threat requires close cooperation between the Federal Government of Somalia, the Somali private sector and international partners in order to disrupt its sources of financing. We are encouraged to learn that such cooperation has been gaining momentum. We urge Member States to support ongoing Committee measures and sanctions designations and to renew and fully implement resolution 2498 (2019), which outlines the arms embargo provisions and imposes an IED components ban. The United States recognizes the challenges posed to peace and stability in Somalia, which are further compounded by the spread of the coronavirus disease. We must continue to work together to employ all available tools to promote peace and security in Somalia and the region and to ensure a better future for all Somalis.