S/PV.5985 Security Council

Thank you very much, Mr. President, for your heartwarming remarks. I am greatly honoured to be appointed as Permanent Representative of China to the United Nations. This provides me with an opportunity to work together with all my colleagues here. I understand that, in working in this Chamber, we are undertaking the task of maintaining international peace and security with the trust of all the Member States of the United Nations. Only by making concerted efforts and sincerely cooperating can we achieve the tasks before us. I know that all my colleagues here had very good cooperative relations with my predecessor, Ambassador Wang Guangya. I am confident that members will continue to be very generous in providing full support to me and to the Chinese Mission to the United Nations. That will be especially important next month, when China will assume the presidency of the Security Council. I hope to have very good cooperation with my colleagues here and expect to enjoy full support and cooperation from the Council and the Secretariat. Adoption of the agenda The agenda was adopted. The situation in Liberia Seventeenth progress report of the Secretary- General on the United Nations Mission in Liberia (S/2008/553) The President (spoke in French): I should like to inform the Council that I have received a letter from the representative of Liberia, in which he requests to be invited to participate in the consideration of the item on the Council’s agenda. In conformity with the usual practice, I propose, with the consent of the Council, to invite that representative to participate in the consideration of the item, without the right to vote, in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Charter and rule 37 of the Council’s provisional rules of procedure. There being no objection, it is so decided.

The Security Council will now begin its consideration of the item on its agenda. The Council is meeting in accordance with the understanding reached in its prior consultations. Members of the Council have before them document S/2008/613, which contains the text of a draft resolution prepared in the course of the Council’s prior consultations. Members of the Council also have before them document S/2008/553, which contains the seventeenth progress report of the Secretary-General on the United Nations Mission in Liberia. It is my understanding that the Council is ready to proceed to the vote on the draft resolution before it. Unless I hear any objection, I shall put the draft resolution to the vote now.

There were 15 votes in favour. The draft resolution has been adopted unanimously as resolution 1836 (2008). There are no further speakers on my list. The Security Council has thus concluded the present stage of its consideration of the item on its agenda. The Security Council will remain seized of the matter.