S/PV.7856 Security Council

As this is the first formal meeting of the Security Council this year, I should like to extend my warm wishes on the occasion of the New Year to all members of the Security Council, the United Nations and the Secretariat. In presiding over this first formal meeting of the Council in 2017, I am happy to welcome the Plurinational State of Bolivia, Ethiopia, Italy and Kazakhstan, which, together with Sweden, are joining as new members this year. We look forward to their participation in the work of the Council. Their experience and wisdom will be of invaluable assistance in the discharge of the Council’s responsibilities. I also take this opportunity to express the Council’s gratitude to the outgoing members — Angola, Malaysia, New Zealand, Spain and the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela  — for their important contributions to the work of the Council during their terms in 2015 and 2016. Expression of thanks to the outgoing President

I should also like to take this opportunity to pay special tribute, on behalf of the Council, to His Excellency Ambassador Román Oyarzun Marchesi, Permanent Representative of Spain, for his service as President of the Council for the month of December 2016. I am sure I speak for all the members of the Council in expressing deep appreciation to Ambassador Oyarzun Marchesi and his delegation for the great diplomatic skill with which they conducted the Council’s business last month. Adoption of the agenda

The Security Council will now begin its consideration of the item on its agenda. After consultations among Council members, I have been authorized to make the following statement on their behalf: (spoke in French) “The Security Council welcomes the signing of the comprehensive and inclusive political agreement in Kinshasa on 31 December 2016, which follows the political agreement reached on 18 October 2016 under the auspices of the African Union facilitation, and commends the tireless efforts of the Conférence épiscopale nationale du Congo mediators to facilitate the agreement. “The Security Council is encouraged by the spirit of flexibility and compromise demonstrated by Congolese political leaders in reaching this agreement for the stability, peace, development and consolidation of constitutional democracy in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and calls on all Congolese actors to preserve this spirit in the discussions to come in order to swiftly resolve all pending issues, especially the practical modalities of the inclusive management of the executive during the pre-electoral and electoral period. The Security Council encourages the political parties that did not sign the agreement to do so. “The Security Council hopes for a swift implementation of the agreement, in good faith and in all its components, in accordance with the Congolese Constitution and in line with resolution 2277 (2016), in order to organise peaceful, credible, inclusive and timely presidential, national and provincial legislative elections no later than December 2017, leading to a peaceful transfer of power. The Security Council stresses the importance for the Government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and its national partners to take all necessary steps to accelerate preparations for the elections without further delays, within the agreed time frame. The Security Council stresses the importance of the inclusion of women in the follow up and implementation of the agreement. “The Security Council reiterates its strong commitment to the sovereignty, independence, unity and territorial integrity of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. “The Security Council further calls for the assistance of the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s friends and development partners to support the efforts of the country to ensure the establishment of sustainable peace and security in the country. “The Security Council reiterates its commitment to supporting the implementation of the agreement, in close cooperation with the African Union, and its determination to continue to closely follow the situation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, in particular respect for human rights, the security conditions on the ground and the efforts to successfully conclude the electoral process, and to act accordingly.” (spoke in English) This statement will be issued as a document of the Security Council under the symbol S/PRST/2017/1.