S/PV.7991 Security Council

In accordance with rule 37 of the Council’s provisional rules of procedure, I invite the representative of Mali to participate in this meeting. The Security Council will now begin its consideration of the item on its agenda. Members of the Council have before them document S/2017/558, which contains the text of a draft resolution submitted by France. I wish to draw the attention of Council members to document S/2017/478, which contains the report of the Secretary-General on the situation in Mali. The Council is ready to proceed to the vote on the draft resolution before it. I shall put the draft resolution to the vote now.

The draft resolution received 15 votes in favour. The draft resolution has been adopted unanimously as resolution 2364 (2017). I shall now give the floor to those members of the Council who wish to make statements following the voting.

France welcomes the unanimous adoption today of resolution 2364 (2017), which renews the mandate of the peacekeepers in Mali for one year. France also welcomes the constructive negotiations among the members of the Security Council that led to this important result. With the unanimous adoption of this essential text, the Security Council confirms its resolute commitment and unity with Mali in support of the country and the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA). That is an essential point. Resolution 2364 (2017) strengthens the robust mandate given to MINUSMA by resolution 2295 (2016) in support of the implementation of the Agreement on Peace and Reconciliation in Mali. It is also in line with the new strategic partnership that the United Nations intends to establish with African States and African organizations. Indeed, resolution 2364 (2017) includes two major advances in this respect. First, the Security Council reaffirms and outlines peacekeeper support for the redeployment of the Malian Defence and Security Forces. Through the resolution, the Security Council is strengthening the logistical and operational support that MINUSMA must provide to the redeployment of the Malian Defence and Security Forces throughout the territory of the country while respecting the Malian Peace Agreement. This is crucial. It therefore sets clear lines of action for MINUSMA to help restore security in Malian territory, particularly in the north and the centre of the country, and to fill the security gap that terrorist groups are known to benefit from. The redeployment of Malian Defence and Security Forces must also facilitate the implementation by MINUSMA of its own mandate. It must therefore contribute to the safety of peacekeepers in Mali, to whom France wishes once again to pay a solemn homage. Secondly, the Security Council strengthens cooperation between the peacekeepers, the new joint force of the Group of Five for the Sahel (G-5 Sahel) and the French forces. In the spirit of the new strategic partnership between the United Nations and Africa, which I mentioned previously, the Security Council is establishing closer cooperation among MINUSMA, the new G-5 Sahel joint force, for whose deployment the Council expressed support in resolution 2359 (2017), adopted here a few days ago, and the French forces of Operation Barkhane. The Security Council is strengthening the complementarity among those forces on the ground in accordance with their respective mandates. The work of the G-5 Sahel joint force in particular, deployed in the five Sahel States, will help to secure the Sahel region from terrorist groups. It will therefore facilitate MINUSMA’s implementation of its mandate as well as the safety of peacekeepers. The Security Council has assumed its responsibilities. It now falls to the Secretariat, with the support of Member States and troop- and equipment- contributing countries, to give MINUSMA the logistical and human resources that will enable it to fulfil its mandate even better. Lastly, I wish to stress how the important it is for the signatory parties to accelerate the implementation of the Peace Agreement as well as the role assigned to the Special Representative of the Secretary-General in that regard. Moreover, resolution 2364 (2017) recalls the Council’s readiness to consider sanctions against persons who would impede the implementation of the Agreement. In resolution 2364 (2017), the Security Council is showing its determination to support the restoration of lasting peace in Mali. It also shows the Council’s determination to support the efforts of Mali and the States of the Sahel region to reduce the terrorist threat. Finally, it shows the Council’s determination to establish a strategic partnership among the United Nations, African States and African peace and security organizations in which the peacekeepers and forces of African States mutually support one another.

Uruguay voted in favour of resolution 2364 (2017), which renews the mandate of the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA). However, Uruguay wishes to express its concern about two aspects that I wish to discuss in detail. One aspect is procedural, the other is substantive. With respect to the procedural issue, I wish to point out that the draft resolution did not undergo a silence procedure. The silence procedure is of particular importance in the negotiation process for Security Council draft resolutions. It is a standard practice of the Security Council, and therefore codifying it and giving it a framework is one of the topics discussed in the negotiation process of the new 507 Note by the President of the Security Council. With regard to substantive issues, Uruguay was one of the first countries to sign onto the Kigali Principles on the Protection of Civilians, which aim to address the internal challenges that missions face and which compel the entire peacekeeping system to reflect on ways to improve, to become more efficient and effective in their tasks and, above all, to avoid a breakdown in adequate mission functioning. Without wishing to refer to a particular peacekeeping operation, since it is a systemic problem, I would like to recall that we have been receiving reports from the Secretariat on shortcomings in various missions in terms of their functioning. On that point, Uruguay believes  — and has expressed as much on many occasions  — that the peacekeeping personnel deployed are one of the fundamental actors, if not the sole ones, in the implementation of operations. As a result, the existence of undeclared national restrictions, the absence of effective command and control, the refusal to obey orders, the failure to respond to attacks against civilians and a lack of equipment can negatively affect the shared responsibility of effectively implementing mandates. In the very positive and beneficial meeting that the Council held with peacekeeping mission Force Commanders nearly a month ago (see S/PV.7947), many of those shortcomings were highlighted. In the original text circulated by the penholder, in paragraph 32 the Secretary-General was requested to report on those aspects so as to be able to find out the level of implementation of commitments by contingents and police forces. Although not all peacekeeping operations are the same, and each has its own specificities, it is also good for the Security Council to be consistent and coherent when approving mandates, including with regard to patterns and guidelines of a systemic nature. That was the nature of paragraph 32 as originally proposed. A paragraph of identical tone was approved for the latest renewal of the United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Unfortunately, however, with regard to MINUSMA, which operates in a tremendously hostile environment, which has significant vulnerabilities and which often we refer to as the most dangerous peacekeeping mission in the world, there are still loose ends that, if resolved, would have made have given greater consistency to the mandate of peacekeeping missions, and to MINUSMA in particular, making it more effective in its functioning and also in terms of protecting civilians. Therefore, Uruguay would have preferred the drafting to be maintained in today’s resolution and would like it to be included in future mandate approvals in order to improve the efficiency and accountability of peacekeeping operations. In conclusion, we think it is relevant to recognize the work of the peacekeepers deployed on the ground and, in this case especially, of MINUSMA, for their generous contribution to international peace and security.

Senegal welcomes the unanimous adoption of resolution 2364 (2017), which extends the mandate of the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA) until 30 June 2018. My country also welcomes the adoption by the Government of Mali of a comprehensive plan to re-establish the presence of the State in central Mali, and throughout the entire territory of the country. It is in that spirit that Senegal welcomes the mandate renewal of MINUSMA, which reaffirms in particular support for the Government of Mali and for the redeployment of Malian armed forces across the territory, making it possible to bolster security throughout Mali in general, and in central Mali in particular, where Senegal, as all are aware, will continue to be involved through the deployment of its Rapid Reaction Force. That is one of the newer expressions of the solidarity of the people and the Government of Senegal to the brotherly people of Mali, a commitment proven early on, since the very beginning of the crisis, by the presence of the Senegalese forces among African troops. In conclusion, my country would like to pay renewed and deserved tribute to MINUSMA and to all the troop-contributing countries for the great sacrifices they have made on behalf of the force as a way of assisting the people of Mali with a view to re-establishing its sovereignty over the entire territory.

I now give the floor to the representative of Mali.

I would like to begin by thanking you, Mr. President, for this opportunity to speak on the occasion of the adoption by the Security Council of resolution 2364 (2017), which renews the mandate of the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA) for an additional year. At the outset, I welcome the constructive negotiations that have led to this result. And, in that regard, I would like to convey to the members of the Council the sincere gratitude of His Excellency Mr. Ibrahim Boubacar Keita, President of the Republic of Mali, the Government and the people of Mali for this important decision, which the Council just made unanimously. I also wish to thank Secretary-General António Guterres and all the women and men of MINUSMA for their daily commitment and sacrifice alongside the people of Mali in their quest for peace, stability and development. The resolution the Council just adopted is important in more ways than one. Indeed, in deciding to extend the mandate of MINUSMA for another year, that is, until 30 June 2018, the Security Council reaffirms the support of the international community for the peace process in Mali, with full respect for the sovereignty, national unity, territorial integrity and the unity and secular nature of the State of Mali. In taking a decision to renew the proactive and robust stance of MINUSMA’s mandate, the Security Council is responding to a pressing request from the Government of Mali, supported by the African Union and the Economic Community of West African States, to consider the particularly hostile and dangerous environment in which peacekeepers are deployed. This robust mandate gives MINUSMA the means to, first, protect and defend itself against hostile forces and to carry out its primary task of protecting civilian populations in Mali. Giving a mandate that is appropriate to the situation is one thing; equipping MINUSMA with the necessary material, financial and human resources is another. The Government of Mali strongly welcomes the strengthening of the operational capacities of MINUSMA, allowing it to carry out its mandate fully and effectively. In that regard, the conclusions of the MINUSMA force generation conference held on 22 and 23 May 2017 under the chairmanship of the Secretary-General provide hope that this challenge will soon be overcome. I would like to commend the troop-contributing countries that made pledges on that occasion. I hope that those pledges will soon be realized. Equally important is the strengthening of cooperation between MINUSMA and the Malian Defence and Security Forces. In particular, I would like to highlight the need and urgency of supporting the Malian Defence and Security Forces in the daily fight against terrorism on the ground, without waiting for the completion of their rebuilding process. Terrorist forces will not wait until the end of that process. I welcome the fact that this central issue is taken into account in resolution 2364 (2017). Similarly, the Government of Mali welcomes the fact that the new MINUSMA mandate reflects the truly important issue of restoring the authority of the State of Mali throughout the territory, in particular the return of the administration and the defence and security forces in all regions of the north, including in Kidal. The Government welcomes the decisive support for the effective implementation of the cantonment process, of disarmament, demobilization and reintegration and of security sector reform in Mali. For our part, I can assure the members of the Security Council that, under the authority of President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita, the Government will continue with its diligent implementation of the Agreement on Peace and Reconciliation in Mali, emanating from the Algiers process. To that end, Bamako recently hosted a day for assessing theimplementation of the Agreement, under the presence of the Prime Minister and Head of Government, on Friday, 23 June. All Malian actors in the peace process took part, including the signatory movements, the High-Representative of the President of the Republic and civil society for the implementation of the Agreement. One of the major conclusions of that meeting was that the three parties  — the Government, the Platform and the Coordination des mouvements de l’Azawad  — led by the High-Representative of the President, accepted the adoption of a realistic consensual calendar for the restoration of the administration and the Malian defence and security forces to Kidal as soon as possible. At the same time, the Government will continue its implementation of the Agreement in terms of providing basic social services and peace dividends to the affected populations, and in particular will seek to uphold human rights. Sustained attention will be given to the situation in the centre of the country. Members will have noted that the Mali crisis has regional and international dimensions also. That is the very purpose of the establishment of the joint force of the Group of Five for the Sahel (G-5), the deployment of which was approved by the Security Council through resolution 2359 (2017), with a mandate to fight terrorism, organized crime and human trafficking. I would like to call for greater, more steadfast support from our bilateral and multilateral partners with a view to mobilizing the necessary resources for the effective functioning of thae joint force. On that issue an emergency summit of the Heads of State of the G-5 Sahel, with the participation of the President of the French Republic, is scheduled for 2 July in Bamako. In conclusion, I want to thank the French delegation, under the leadership of my dear friend Ambassador Delattre, for initiating and leading the negotiations on resolution 2364 (2017). I would also like to thank all members of the Security Council for their sincere support in its adoption. Likewise, I thank each one for providing such valuable support. I reiterate the infinite gratitude of the people and the Government of Mali to the Secretary-General, to his Special Representative for Mali and to all MINUSMA personnel, as well as to the troop-contributing countries, the French forces of Operation Barkhane, the European Union Military Training Mission and to the members of the Agreement Monitoring Committee, lead by Algeria, for the steadfast and multidimensional support to the peace and stabilization process in our country. Finally, I want to reiterate the tribute paid by the people of Mali to the memory of all victims, both civilian and military, Malian and foreign, who have fallen in the fields of glory in Mali.