S/PV.9435 Security Council

In accordance with rule 39 of the Council’s provisional rules of procedure, I invite the following briefers to participate in this meeting: Mr. Parfait Onanga-Anyanga, Special Representative of the Secretary-General and Head of the United Nations Office to the African Union; Her Excellency Ms. Fatima Kyari Mohammed, Permanent Observer of the African Union to the United Nations; and Mr. Solomon Ayele Dersso, Managing Director of Amani Africa. The Security Council will now begin its consideration of the item on its agenda. I wish to draw the attention of Council members to document S/2023/629, which contains the report of the Secretary-General on strengthening the partnership between the United Nations and the African Union on issues of peace and security in Africa, including the work of the United Nations Office to the African Union. I now give the floor to Mr. Onanga-Anyanga. Mr. Onanga-Anyanga: At the outset, I would like to thank the President of the Security Council for convening this important meeting on the cooperation between the United nations and regional and subregional organizations, specifically the African Union (AU). I would like to welcome the presence among us of Ambassador Fatima Kyari Mohammed, Permanent Observer of the African Union to the United Nations, and to acknowledge the crucial role of the Chairperson of the African Union Commission, His Excellency Mr. Moussa Faki Mahamat, and of Secretary-General António Guterres in strengthening the partnership between the United Nations and the African Union in the area of peace and security. I also pay tribute to the Managing Director of Amani Africa, Mr. Solomon Ayele Dersso, whose organization carries out excellent research in support of the African Union and its partners in Addis Ababa. The Security Council has before it the report of the Secretary-General entitled “Strengthening the partnership between the United Nations and the African Union on issues of peace and security in Africa, including the work of the United Nations Office to the African Union” (S/2023/629). I welcome the opportunity afforded to me to present it. I would like to commend the members of the Security Council for the valuable exchanges that took place last week here in Addis Ababa with their counterparts in the African Union Peace and Security Council. Their visit to Addis Ababa, the constructive and substantive nature of the discussion and the joint communiqué that endorsed their work reflects the firm commitment of both Councils to overcome peace and security challenges in Africa through close cooperation and in a spirit of mutual respect and solidarity. Their discussions also confirmed the assessment in the report of the Secretary-General according to which robust partnerships between the United Nations and regional organizations, in particular the African Union; regional economic communities and regional mechanisms are essential for effective multilateralism. The strategic United Nations-AU partnership is based on the twin principles of complementarity and relative advantages, drawing on the strengths of each organization to more effectively achieve their shared goals of peace and stability in Africa. It emphasizes preventive diplomacy and mediation initiatives. We are grateful to the President and the members of the Security Council for having visited the continent at a time when it is facing major changes, the full implications of which are not fully appreciated. There has been a resurgence of extremely violent internal conflicts in which the logic of war has taken over; a resurgence in the threat of terrorism and extremist violence, creating a breeding ground for terrorism; and a succession of unconstitutional changes of power which often reflect serious failings in inclusive and responsible governance. However, that is not all. Never before have we seen nature unleashed with such ferocity owing to the serious disturbances caused by climate change, leaving destruction and desolation in its wake, which reflects States’ improbable ability to adapt to an increasingly incandescent planet, in which soil aridity and precariousness are accelerating, accentuating at the same time the sometimes-conflicting competition for scarce resources in spaces that have become inhospitable. I will come back to those issues in more detail in a moment. In short, their visit took place against a worrisome backdrop that threatens to reverse the meagre gains achieved in the years preceding the outbreak of the coronavirus disease, at a time when recovery efforts in the face of an economic recession are struggling to produce the expected effects, leaving the majority of African States under severe fiscal stress, over-indebted and stretched to the limit in their quest to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. Therein lies the close link, in all its complexity, between development, peace and security, hence the Secretary-General’s call for a holistic approach to conflict prevention efforts, in particular in Africa. Faced with that situation, and at the express request of the Secretary-General and the Chairperson of the African Union Commission, the Deputy Secretary- General of the United Nations and the Deputy Chairperson of the African Union Commission have undertaken to better coordinate the efforts of our institutions with a view to strengthening the impact of development programmes, with a shared vision supported by two agendas: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and Agenda 2063. (spoke in English) Today the United Nations-African Union partnership stands out as a pillar of multilateralism with collaboration continuing to grow in scope and depth. Furthermore, I am also encouraged by the convergence of perspectives and analysis by the two Councils on some of the key issues on their respective agendas. That presents both Councils an opportunity for even greater collaboration, in particular on some of the most complex issues. Allow me to touch on three key issues highlighted in the report of the Secretary-General. First, the conflict landscape on the continent is becoming increasingly complex and multifaceted and, in most cases, also intractable. As outlined in the report, the primary structural challenges to achieving lasting peace and security in Africa continue to be political and social economic exclusion, including gender inequality, weak governance institutions, particularly regarding human rights, the rule of law and electoral democracy; the inadequate delivery of basic services and the inequitable management of natural resources; as well as terrorism, violent extremism and organized crime. Those are compounded by a range of factors, including climate change; food and energy insecurity; rising and entrenched inequalities in finance, trade, technology and security, both within and among nations; and external threats and shocks to which most African countries are least prepared to tackle. As the report illustrates, there is an alarming rise in political contestation, turning violent or fuelling intra-State conflict, as well as in acts of terrorism and violent extremism, which expose systemic governance deficits associated with weak or absent State institutions. We have witnessed a spate of unconstitutional changes of Government on the continent. In the Sahel, the coups d’état are further destabilizing the region, while terrorism and violent extremism continue to result in grave human rights violations and abuses and exacerbate already dire humanitarian situations. In the Sudan, the conflict is creating a catastrophic humanitarian situation. In eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, the security and humanitarian situation remains a major concern as the country heads towards elections. Today’s challenges call for renewed effort to make collective security more effective, in line with the recommendations in the Secretary-General’s policy brief, a New Agenda for Peace, of July. The emphasis should be on global and regional early-warning and prevention efforts, boosting preventive diplomacy and supporting regional peace, support and peace enforcement operations, an area in which admittedly the African Union is showing commendable leadership. The new collective security machinery should be bold and fit for purpose. It should be able to respond effectively to contemporary threats to peace and security. That leads me to my second point on the financing of AU-led peace support operations. In Council members’ reflections and planning for a more effective collective security machinery, responses must be commensurate with the formidable challenges we face. As noted in the report of the Secretary-General, the role of regional organizations in addressing contemporary threats across the conflict cycle, including through peace enforcement missions, will be critical going forward. However, such missions will be effective only if underpinned by the availability of requisite human and financial resources through predictable, sustainable and flexible financing of African Union-led peace support operations. The Security Council would be encouraged to consider an empowered and resourced AU-peace support operation capability as an integral part of the collective security machinery — part of a toolkit with an ability to deploy peace missions relatively quickly when needed, with the aim of effectively supporting sustainable peace on the ground. In other words, by empowering AU-led peace support operations, the Security Council will in fact also be empowering itself, strengthening its own hand in fulfilling the functions and powers outlined in Article 24 of the Charter of the United Nations. As the Security Council works towards the consideration and adoption of a framework draft resolution on financing for African Union-led peace support operations, it is essential for international partners to join hands with the African Union to further enhance its capacities and agency to effectively address the complex and dynamic threats to peace and security on the continent. Working through the established mechanisms of the African Governance Architecture and the African Peace and Security Architecture, the full range of responses to conflict can be effectively supported and strengthened to deliver peace. The United Nations-African Union will contribute to facilitate support to the African Union in the areas of joint planning and analysis, assessment and management of African Union-led peace support operations, as well as the development and implementation of the African Union Compliance and Accountability Framework for Peace Support Operations and other initiatives to ensure that the foundation is laid for the effective and efficient management of such operations. I would also like to reiterate the importance that the Secretary-General has placed on the primacy of politics. Responses to peace and security challenges, including through peacekeeping or peace enforcement operations, need to be comprehensive and holistic, with political solutions at their core, so that they can eliminate deficits in governance and foster nationally owned and inclusive political systems in which all key stakeholders, particularly women and young people, play a meaningful role. Political solutions should involve continual early warning and engagement, mediation and peacebuilding as the cornerstones of effective responses to conflicts. We look forward to the Security Council’s consideration of the draft framework resolution on the financing of African Union-led peace support operations in the period ahead. Following the two previously discussed points, my third and last concerns collaboration between the United Nations Security Council and the African Union Peace and Security Council. I welcome the strong commitment expressed last week on strengthening collaboration between the two bodies, and I acknowledge and congratulate the Security Council on the progress that has been made in the last few years in that regard. I am particularly encouraged by the strong support expressed for joint field visits by the Councils to countries and regions of mutual concern and interest. I have no doubt that with the same level of political will, the Security Council will indeed be able to work out the required modalities. Such visits could help advance a common understanding of the complex dynamics at work in conflict situations, explore measures for prevention and, where appropriate, mitigation, and provide opportunities to deliver common messages. I commend the two Councils for endeavouring to hold monthly informal coordination meetings between the incoming President of the Security Council and the incoming Chairperson of the Peace and Security Council, which provide an opportunity to discuss priorities and programmes of work, promote synergies and share perspectives on issues of common interest, with a view to enhancing strategic coordination and complementarity. At last week’s informal joint seminar, members of both Councils expressed support for making the meetings more regular and structured in order to maximize their usefulness. Support was also expressed for informal consultative meetings at the expert level, especially in advance of key decisions or events. Such informal meetings could provide an opportunity to harmonize positions and contribute to strengthening coordination and consultations between the two Councils. The meetings of the Ad Hoc Working Group of the Security Council and the Committee of Experts of the AU Peace and Security Council in advance of the annual meetings last week paved the way for successful deliberations between the principals, as well as the swift adoption of the joint communiqué at the end of the meeting. I would like to reiterate that the United Nations, including the United Nations Office to the African Union, stands ready to provide support to those initiatives, which seem ripe for exploitation as we continue to strengthen our cooperation with the African Union and subregional organizations to help prevent conflict and sustain peace in Africa. Let me conclude by expressing my thanks to the Council once more for its continued support for the United Nations-AU partnership on peace and security in Africa and the work of the United Nations Office to the African Union, which I have the immense privilege of leading.

I thank Mr. Onanga-Anyanga for his briefing. I now give the floor to Ms. Mohammed. Ms. Mohammed: Permit me to start by thanking you, Mr. President, for the invitation to brief the Council, and by recognizing the other briefers, my counterpart at the United Nations Office to the African Union (AU), Mr. Parfait Onanga-Anyanga, Special Representative of the Secretary-General to the African Union, and Mr. Solomon Ayele Dersso of Amani Africa. I have the honour to deliver the following remarks on behalf of His Excellency Mr. Moussa Faki Mahamat, Chairperson of the African Union Commission, who unfortunately could not join due to competing commitments. I would like to congratulate you, Mr. President, on assuming the presidency of the Security Council for the month of October and for your effective leadership as co-Chair of the Annual Joint Consultative Meeting between the Security Council and the AU Peace and Security Council, which was successfully held in Addis Ababa a few days ago. It remains an effective platform for continued and strengthening cooperation between the two Councils. Today’s meeting focuses on the critical topic of cooperation between the United Nations and regional and subregional organizations in maintaining international peace and security. That recurring theme is even more compelling at a time when the world is confronted with unprecedented challenges that demand that we pool our efforts in order to generate appropriate synergies and momentum to manage ongoing crises and prevent future conflicts. Guided by the Charter of the United Nations, the Constitutive Act of the AU and international law, we need to deepen the spirit of multilateralism, mutual solidarity and cooperation with the United Nations and our continental and subregional organizations if we are to gain traction in effectively promoting the international peace and security agenda. In our shared responsibility for ensuring smooth multilevel governance in the world, we reiterate our call for a review of the global governance system, especially of the United Nations Security Council itself, with a view to ensuring fairness, inclusivity and enhanced institutional effectiveness in the face of daunting crises that are either protracted or emerging. The African Union remains extremely concerned with the outbreaks of conflict in many parts of the world, which have added to a cocktail of protracted crises, unconstitutional changes of Government, terrorism, the challenge posed by climate change, and difficult socioeconomic problems globally, marked by hyperinflation and dual crises of declining growth and limited financing. Since the signing of the 2017 Joint United Nations- African Union Framework for an Enhanced Partnership in Peace and Security, our two organizations have worked collaboratively in preventive diplomacy, peacemaking, peacekeeping, peacebuilding and peace enforcement. More recently, albeit as a work in progress, we have enhanced our cooperation and collaboration with the regional economic communities and regional mechanisms based on the principles of subsidiarity and shared values. Going forward, at least five key points should be emphasized. First, we need to strengthen and enhance our collaboration in preventing conflicts, managing crises and State-building. From Libya to the Sahel, the Horn of Africa, Central Africa and the Great Lakes, we need unity of purpose and joint action while ensuring that the parties to conflicts do not drive a wedge between our organizations in order to advance their own agendas. As Secretary-General Guterres outlined in the New Agenda for Peace, we now need regional frameworks and organizations, in accordance with Chapter VIII of the Charter, more than ever if we are to promote trust-building and transparency. That is essential to addressing conflicts amid growing global competition and threats that are increasingly transnational in nature, as well as to achieving Agenda 2063, the Silencing the Guns in Africa initiative and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Secondly, we need to pool our resources in a time of economic crisis and do away with heavy bureaucracy so as to be able to respond swiftly and decisively in addressing crises. In that connection, I would like to highlight the recent request from the Federal Government of Somalia for a technical pause in the drawdown of the African Union Mission in Somalia for three months. While there is consensus among the troop-contributing countries and the AU Peace and Security Council on that technical pause, I call on the international community to provide the necessary resources to make it a reality and ensure that we safeguard the hard-earned gains that have been made in Somalia. In line with that, it is my hope that in the very near future we will get a Security Council resolution on financing AU-led peace-support operations through United Nations assessed contributions so as to ensure that the AU is capable of fulfilling its commitments and responsibilities with regard to peace and security. Thirdly, we need to be innovative in our peacemaking efforts. As several United Nations peacekeeping missions draw down, their logistical resources can be made available to regional mechanisms, which are increasingly stepping up to manage conflicts throughout the continent. By redirecting those resources, we can enhance regional efforts to take a more prominent lead in conflict management and resolution. Fourthly, we must address the crisis of the State, not only on our continent but worldwide. As multilateral institutions, we need to rethink how to support States to become more viable and capable of meeting the basic human security needs of their citizens. The root causes of conflict often stem from the failure or inability to ensure inclusive governance and the delivery of essential goods and services. We should therefore invest more time, efforts and resources into building the resilience and capacity of States and enhancing their governance and development potential. To that end, I call on partners to buy into the facility recently launched jointly by the African Union and the United Nations Development Programme: the Africa Facility to Support Inclusive Transitions. This is an innovative initiative designed to enhance our support for States going through critical political transitions. Fifthly, the recent inclusion of the African Union in the Group of 20 marks a noteworthy milestone that amplifies African perspectives and voices on the global stage. However, as I stated earlier, our commitment to reforming the global governance architecture is enduring. The full potential of collaboration between the United Nations and regional mechanisms can only be harnessed when we have addressed the imperative of reform. The African Union remains dedicated to reforming the Security Council to ensure greater representation, inclusivity and fairness. In conclusion, the world is in a state of flux, and we are confronted by unprecedented challenges that require us to rise to the occasion, including going beyond our comfort zones. I look forward to a continued, constructive and fruitful outcome-oriented working relationship with the United Nations, the African Union and subregional organizations. It is my hope that, together, we can deliver as one, harmonizing our efforts, transcending limitations and surmounting obstacles to create a more just, secure, prosperous and peaceful world for all.

I thank Ms. Mohammed for her briefing. I now give the floor to Mr. Dersso. Mr. Dersso: I would like to start by thanking Brazil’s presidency for the invitation extended to me to deliver this briefing on behalf of my organization, Amani Africa Media and Research Services. I would also like to recognize the members of the Security Council and the preceding briefers: my brother, Mr. Parfait Onanga-Anyanga, and Her Excellency Ambassador Fatima Kyari Mohammed. Amani Africa, a pan-African policy research, training and consulting think tank that works on multilateral processes of concern and interest for Africa, is the leading source of information and analysis on matters of the African Union (AU) in general and its Peace and Security Council in particular, including the AU’s strategic partnership with the United Nations. It is accordingly a particular honour for me to draw on our work for my briefing today. At this historic moment, deepening the partnership between the United Nations and the AU is not a matter of choice, nor is it merely something nice to do. We believe that, rather, it is a prerequisite for delivering on the peace and security and development objectives of the Charter of the United Nations. There is a pressing and growing need for both more crisis management and enhanced effectiveness of crisis management more today than in the past. No single actor can meet those pressing demands alone. The continued relevance of the United Nations and the AU in the maintenance of international peace and security in Africa therefore depends on them pulling their comparative advantages together and systematically coordinating their actions across files and portfolios. The Secretary-General’s Our Common Agenda (A/75/982) affirms that regional organizations “fill a critical gap in our global peace and security architecture”. His report on United Nations- AU partnership (S/2023/629) highlights that there is no other organization that better reflects those attributes than the African Union. Yet the state of the United Nations-AU partnership is far from adequate for the AU to effectively fill that critical gap. As we pointed out in one of our recent works, one manifestation of that inadequacy is the lack of a systematic and institutionalized global arrangement for harnessing the full potential and role of the AU as part of the global collective security system anchored in the Charter. Therefore, despite the progress registered in the United Nations-AU partnership, the mobilization of resources by the two organizations largely reflects an ad hoc and case-by- case basis approach. For example, they are unable to collaboratively institute peace support operations that not only have stabilization and peace enforcement mandates and capabilities but also are willing and able to act on their peace-enforcement mandates that the security conditions on the ground warrant. Critical to elevating the United Nations-AU partnership in that context is to establish a systematic and institutionalized arrangement that affirms the peace and security tools of the African Union as part of the toolkit of the global collective security system under the Charter. That echoes the Secretary-General’s proposal for the Security Council to break new ground through: “a new generation of African Union-led, United Nations-supported peace operations on the African continent that blend the respective strength of both organizations in a manner that prioritizes political solutions and maximizes the impact of both uniformed and civilian capabilities.” (S/2023/303, para. 43) A necessary corollary to and an essential part of that institutionalized arrangement is the shift that the Council also has to make, as the Secretary-General put it, from considering the use of United Nations-assessed contributions for AU-led peace support operations as exceptional circumstances to considering them “in a more systematic manner.” (ibid., para. 38) Today elevating the United Nations-AU partnership to a higher level is also a strategic imperative for the effective functioning of multilateralism. The deepening polarization in the world, particularly among major Powers, is among the key factors of the increasing fracturing of the multilateral system. The AU, the member States of which make up 28 per cent of the United Nations, has a unique reservoir of potential for playing a moderation role in the face of such polarization. Tapping into the AU’s moderating role and, indeed, Africa’s potentiality as the future of multilateralism through the United Nations-AU partnership is key, not just for arresting the fracturing of the multilateral system — which we see today — but also for making it fit for purpose. Our recent work therefore emphasizes the need to bring regional multilateral organizations such as the AU to the centre of global peace and security diplomacy in a systematic way rather than on an ad hoc basis. Finally, the AU-United Nations partnership needs to enhance its focus on the socioeconomic and development dimensions of the maintenance of international peace and security. It is now widely accepted that the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and peace and security are deeply intertwined. Achieving the SDGs for member States of the AU is also directly tied to the reform of the multilateral financial system. For example, Africa pays a 500 per cent premium on borrowing from the market, and reform could save Africa as much as $56 billion, expanding access to much-needed resources to meet the Sustainable Development Goals. On more immediate issues of concern, it is of paramount importance for the African Union and the United Nations to urgently address the extraordinary, painful humanitarian situation in the Sudan, and that they can do through humanitarian diplomacy and by establishing a dedicated mechanism to address the humanitarian challenge and the plight of civilians in those conditions. While we affirm and welcome the call that has been made in the joint consultative meeting between/by the Security Council of the United Nations and the African Union Peace and Security Council, this situation will not wait for those actors to heed the call that has been made; hence the need for urgent action and a dedicated mechanism for the humanitarian situation in the Sudan. With that, I would like to thank the Security Council for the kind invitation extended to us, affirming its openness to also bring in the views and voices of non-State actors, which is critical in this time that we are in.

I thank Mr. Dersso for his briefing. I shall now make a statement in my capacity as the representative of Brazil. I would like to thank Special Representative Parfait Onanga-Anyanga, Ambassador Fatima Kyari Mohammed, Permanent Observer of the African Union to the United Nations, and Mr. Dersso for their important briefings. Their interventions have shed light on different angles of the cooperation between the United Nations and the African Union, enriching our discussions and perceptions on this important topic on the Security Council’s agenda. Brazil welcomes with appreciation the Secretary- General’s report on strengthening the partnership between the United Nations and the African Union on peace and security in Africa (S/2023/629). As this meeting takes place in the aftermath of the joint consultative meeting between the African Union Peace and Security Council and the Security Council of the United Nations, this is an opportunity to take stock on the discussions held in Addis Ababa last week. I would like to express my gratitude to the Republic of the Congo and its Permanent Representative to the African Union, Ambassador Daniel Owassa, for co-chairing that meeting. The exchanges between the two Councils helped to promote mutual understanding on issues crucial to the maintenance of peace and security in Africa. I thank our African colleagues in Addis Ababa for their warm welcome and their willingness to engage in a fruitful dialogue, as reflected in the joint communiqué we were able to approve at the end of the meeting. We are indeed particularly satisfied with the adoption of that document. I commend all Security Council and Peace and Security Council members for the display of flexibility that enabled us to achieve that noteworthy outcome. I invite all delegations to review that document. The complexity of the current African security challenges demands innovative solutions. That fact is even more evident in a context in which the prevalent model of peacekeeping operations has come under severe criticism. The growing role of the African Union and subregional organizations must be adequately supported. Brazil is ready to engage positively in the discussions on how to guarantee the necessary resources for African Union-led peace operations. We support arrangements that maximize the expertise that both the United Nations and the African Union have displayed in several areas. The strengthened role of the African Union should not amount to a weakening United Nations presence. The assistance provided by United Nations regional offices and agencies is essential on many fronts. The Secretary-General’s report highlights the extensive activities and programmes carried out by the United Nations, the African Union and subregional organizations to promote conflict prevention, mediation, capacity-building, electoral support and humanitarian assistance. We should also aim to strengthen the role of the Peacebuilding Commission in supporting those activities and programmes. That cooperation must continue and be strengthened, especially in the cases of Mali and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, where the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali and the United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo are, respectively, withdrawing and transitioning. Those processes must be carried forward in an orderly and secure manner, with the full engagement of both Governments. We have many times called attention to the nexus between security and sustainable development. In the African case, that link is evident, as illustrated by the security situations in the Sahel, the Sudan, Somalia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The lack of economic and social prospects, especially for youth, creates breeding grounds for violent extremism conducive to terrorism and intercommunal violence. Also, the disproportionate impact of conflicts on women and girls through conflict-related sexual violence leads to their social and economic alienation. The persistent disregard for development and inclusivity inevitably results in divided societies prone to conflict. The United Nations and the African Union should continue to work together to reduce poverty and inequality in Africa. The implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development is an important step in that direction. United Nations support for Agenda 2063 is also key, always respecting African countries’ ownership of their development and institutional processes. Brazil hopes that the United Nations-African Union partnership will evolve in a way that promotes stability on the continent, by increasingly valuing African solutions to problems that, although they are taking place in Africa, affect all of us. I now resume my functions as President of the Council.

I have the honour to deliver this statement on behalf of the three African members of the Security Council (A3). The A3 welcomes the convening of this important briefing under the theme of cooperation between the United Nations and regional and subregional organizations, with a focus on the cooperation with the African Union. We thank Mr. Parfait Onanga-Anyanga, Special Representative of the Secretary-General to the African Union and Head of the United Nations Office to the African Union; Her Excellency Ambassador Fatima Kyari Mohammed, Permanent Observer of the African Union to the United Nations; and Mr. Solomon Ayele Dersso, Managing Director of Amani Africa, for their important insights and contributions to this debate. In accordance with the Charter of the United Nations, chief among the four purposes of the United Nations is the maintenance of international peace and security. In proclaiming that paramount principle, the Charter established a universal system of collective security that stands as a shared common good of humankind. Each State Member of the United Nations and each region and organization are committed and duty-bound to fulfil that purpose. This is the spirit in which the letter of Article 53 was written: “[t]he Security Council shall, where appropriate, utilize such regional arrangements or agencies for enforcement action under its authority”. Since the adoption, in 2017, of the United Nations- African Union Joint Framework for an Enhanced Partnership in Peace and Security, the two organs — the United Nations Security Council and the African Union Peace and Security Council — have developed a unique partnership based on shared goals, mutual respect and African ownership. It is a partnership that has become a pillar of modern-day multilateralism. It is in that context that the African Union Peace and Security Council and the United Nations Security Council just successfully concluded their seventeenth Annual Joint Consultative Meeting, in Addis Ababa. Its successful holding bears testimony to the fruitful and constructive dialogue that exists between the two organs. In that connection, we welcome the Addis Ababa joint communiqué, of 6 October, which reiterates the pivotal role played by both organs in the maintenance of peace and security in Africa, based on the principles of complementarity, subsidiarity and burden- and responsibility-sharing in facing the complexity of today’s threats and challenges to global peace and security. We particularly echo the call made by the joint communiqué in support of the Secretary-General’s appeal for access to United Nations assessed contributions by African Union-led peace support operations in the quest for the maintenance of regional and continental peace and security, as a matter of urgency. It is in that spirit that the A3 has been mandated by the African Union Peace and Security Council to engage other members of the United Nations Security Council and the United Nations membership at large on the issue of financing African Union-led peace supports operations. Peace and security are a global good. They cannot be bilateralized, fragmented or limited to a corner of the world. A breach of peace in any part of the world is a danger to global peace. We therefore view the Secretary-General’s proposal as highly constructive and well founded. It allows the African continent to speak and act in a united manner on matters related to peace and security on the African continent and beyond. The A3 arrangement here, in the Security Council, is a vivid illustration of the evolving nature of that partnership. The United Nations engagement with the African Union covers a multitude of areas and issues that constitute the global peace and security architecture. We welcome the significant milestones registered in our collaboration since the consolidation of that partnership. That includes the holding of annual consultative meetings between the two organs; the frequent exchanges and dialogue between the Secretary- General of United Nations and the Chairperson of the African Union; The appointment of a regional Special Representative of the Secretary-General in Africa; the establishment of representations of the United Nations to the African Union and the Permanent Observer Mission of the African Union to the United Nations; the monthly meetings between the President of the Security Council and the Chair of the African Union Peace and Security Council and; finally, the establishment of the Ad Hoc Working Group on Conflict Prevention and Resolution in Africa, which Mozambique currently has the honour to chair. The A3 believes that there is a room for a quantitative and qualitative improvement in the relationship between the United Nations and the African Union. Recent discussions on the New Agenda for Peace, particularly as it relates to peacekeeping; the fight against terrorism and violent extremism; and the nexus between peace, security and climate change could benefit from a stronger imprint and voice of the African continent. We strongly believe in the added value of that partnership. It enables both organizations to deepen their shared understanding and action on the root causes of conflicts. We can make informed strategic decisions that reflect a thorough knowledge of the conflict context, aimed at finding lasting and sustainable solutions. Let me conclude by reiterating the A3’s firm conviction that the Council’s strong commitment to financing African Union-led peace support operations through United Nations assessed contributions represents an opportunity to furthering the partnership between the two organizations. It would lend enormous substance and strength to the principle that we cherish — “African solutions to African problems”. It is our firm belief that the value of the United Nations-African Union partnership will ultimately be vindicated when the continent is fully represented, with equal rights and responsibilities in this very organ, through the long-desired and -anticipated reforms of the Council.

At the outset, I would like to thank Brazil for convening today’s meeting, as well as Special Representative of the Secretary-General Parfait Onanga-Anyanga, Ambassador Mohammed and Mr. Dersso for their briefings. The foundations of the United Nations-African Union (AU) partnership, based on the United Nations- African Union Joint Framework for an Enhanced Partnership in Peace and Security, has grown in scope and depth throughout the years. It needs to be further strengthened. The persistent and complex challenges that the African continent is facing — from the west coast to the Great Lakes region and the Horn of Africa to the north in Libya — call for the need to reconsider and adapt traditional, local, regional and international responses so as to better tackle the root causes of instability and conflict. The deliberations of the seventeenth Annual Joint Consultative Meeting between the Security Council and the AU Peace and Security Council, held last week in Addis Ababa, and the adopted joint communiqué, reflect a shared understanding of the progress made thus far, as well as an awareness of emerging internal challenges, exacerbated by external threats. The spiral of recent unconstitutional changes in several African States and the onslaught of political transitions in others are alarming indicators of weak governance and failing institutions that are unable to respond to the needs of the populations, deliver services and ensure justice. Efforts to manipulate democratic processes, attempts to modify and eliminate constitutional term limits, continued social and political exclusion, human rights violations and a lack of proper responses to the mismanagement of Africa’s wealth of natural resources should be resisted by actions rooted in the law and through legitimate political processes. Experience has shown convincingly that military coups do not bring solutions. They only exacerbate problems and offer short-lived false promises of much-needed change. Compounding the situation are the severe effects of climate change and international economic pressures, including the global food insecurity caused by the Russian aggression in Ukraine. That has fuelled intercommunal violence, overstretched local economies and exposed vulnerabilities, to the benefit of armed and terrorist groups and foreign exploiters. Albania believes that treating the root causes of conflict goes hand in hand with the need for sustainable development guided by the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the African Union’s Agenda 2063. United Nations cooperation with the African Union and other regional organizations can play a pivotal role in preventing conflicts by supporting States’ capacities to detect and pre-empt them at the earliest signs. The ongoing United Nations support for the Silencing the Guns in Africa initiative remains crucial to mediation and disarmament efforts, while boosting women’s and young people’s empowerment and peace education. Despite an overall mixed picture, it is worth highlighting areas of progress. The agreement of November 2022 for the permanent cessation of hostilities in Ethiopia; the continued engagement with Somalia towards the implementation of peacebuilding and State-building priorities; and the implementation of the Peace, Security and Cooperation Framework for the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Region, as well as the Nairobi and Luanda processes, are good, positive examples. We recognize that some African countries have fallen out with United Nations peacekeeping missions. Widening gaps between actual mandates and the expectations of local stakeholders have not helped in that respect. While there is room for discussion on the need to evolve from traditional peacekeeping operations, we want to warn against falling for the illusion of quick fixes by calling in the Wagner Group or other mercenaries. Human rights violations, a total lack of accountability and vested interests in exploiting natural resources will be the price to pay. As we have seen in the Sahel, terrorist acts have dramatically increased. The situation is not getting better, and more civilians are being harmed. Albania recognizes the progress made in ensuring predictable, sustainable and flexible resources for peace support operations led by the African Union, including through the Peace Fund, and welcomes the allocation of $2 million each to the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia and the East African Community regional force in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. We are encouraged by the AU’s efforts to guarantee the continuity of planned and conducted peace support operations in compliance with international human rights and humanitarian law and applicable standards of conduct. Let me conclude by highlighting that we firmly believe that the African Union, one of the world’s largest regional organizations, can be a formidable tool in the efforts to put an end to the immense suffering of civilians across Africa — whether it results from the fighting in the Sudan or the activities of terrorist groups in the Sahel and elsewhere on the continent — and lead its members towards peace, development and prosperity.

I thank Mr. Parfait Onanga-Anyanga, Special Representative of the Secretary-General to the African Union and Head of the United Nations Office to the African Union, Ambassador Fatima Kyari Mohammed, Permanent Observer of the African Union to the United Nations, and Mr. Solomon Ayele Dersso, Managing Director of Amani Africa, for their briefings. Regional organizations, in collaboration with regional economic communities, play a crucial role in peace and security. Strategic partnerships, close cooperation and regular exchanges between the United Nations and the African Union (AU) are essential to efficient and effective multilateralism. The Council’s trip to Addis Ababa demonstrated the vital nature of collective action in conflict prevention, mediation, peacekeeping and peacebuilding. I would like to highlight three points. First, a shared understanding of conflicts and their prevention and early identification is essential. We are encouraged by the increasingly joint approaches that the United Nations and the AU are taking with regard to the analysis and prevention of conflicts in Africa. There have never been so many assessments, working groups and discussions aimed at understanding the current dynamics of conflicts on the continent. Scientific knowledge is very important in the context. The New Agenda for Peace emphasizes global and regional prevention efforts and strengthening preventive diplomacy, trust and support for regional peace operations. With that in mind, Switzerland supports the Joint United Nations-African Union Framework for an Enhanced Partnership in Peace and Security, which mobilizes collaboration at the first signs of a potential conflict. Secondly, we welcome the fact that for the first time, the Security Council and the Peace and Security Council held a debate last week on the role of young people in advancing peace and security. We are seeing positive signs that young people around the world are demanding an opening of the political space, as well as a greater say in the peace and security issues that concern them. The two Councils should therefore continue to facilitate the implementation of the youth and peace and security agenda. Switzerland had several exchanges in Addis Ababa with two young Ethiopian activists, Bemnet Negussie and Melaku Hailu, who organize model conferences in order to bring the AU closer to young people. Their energy and willingness to get involved made us realize that African youth represent the real drivers of the continent’s development. We must all ensure that their voices are heard and enable them to play their part as well as possible. Thirdly, in a changing world the tasks of peacekeeping operations are also evolving, but they remain an essential instrument of the Security Council for peace and security. If they are to fulfil their mandates, peace missions must be able to rely on predictable, sustainable and flexible financing. That also applies to regional missions authorized by the Council. The role of the AU in managing the continent’s current and emerging security challenges is vital. Switzerland has always supported the AU in that role. That is why we co-sponsored the draft resolution proposed in 2018 by the three African members of the Security Council (A3). We recognize the progress made by the AU on the normative framework for peace support operations, the Peace Fund and the provision of logistical support to missions. We emphasize the importance of United Nations due-diligence requirements with respect to human rights and international humanitarian law. Today we welcome the initiative of the A3 in favour of a Security Council decision aimed at financing peace operations led by Africa. Switzerland stands ready to contribute constructively to that initiative, as it would constitute a decisive step at a time when we are being called on to rethink the future of peace operations. Switzerland will continue its long-standing support for the African Peace and Security Architecture. We look forward to welcoming the Peace and Security Council to New York in October 2024 under Switzerland’s presidency and to continuing to deepen our exchanges.

Following on from the consultations between the United Nations Security Council and the African Union Peace and Security Council that have just concluded in Addis Ababa, I would like to emphasize three points. First of all, we must further strengthen cooperation between the United Nations and the African Union in accordance with Chapter VIII of the Charter of the United Nations. In the Sudan, we welcome the efforts made by the African Union to contribute to a resolution of the conflict, and we encourage it to coordinate its action with the various ongoing peace initiatives. With regard to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, we welcomed the holding in Addis Ababa on Friday of a quadripartite meeting on the coordination of various regional initiatives, in which the Force Commander of the United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo participated. In Somalia, the African Union and the United Nations have been cooperating for many years to fight Al-Shabaab by leveraging their respective strengths. Those actions are all going in the right direction, but to achieve our objectives we must go further. My second point is that we must deepen cooperation between the United Nations and the African Union in the area of conflict prevention. Allow me to outline a few ideas. France has followed the measures that the African Union has adopted in response to recent unconstitutional changes of Government. Its extraordinary summit in Malabo, held in May 2022, marked the firm rejection of African Heads of State of such steps, which threaten peace and security on the continent. Another issue involves underfunding African economies, including in order to address the effects of climate change. France has been meaningfully engaged in addressing the issue in recent years, as was illustrated by the Paris Summit for a New Global Financing Pact, which was held in June, while ensuring close coordination among the United Nations, the African Union and France’s efforts. France welcomes the progress made in pairing climate and security experts with regional organizations to strengthen early- warning capacities in high-risk areas. We encourage the United Nations to strengthen its ties with the African Union in that important area in order to address the root causes of conflict. My third and last message is that France fully supports the adoption of a draft resolution on the sustainable financing of African peacekeeping operations. France has always supported the principle of funding African peacekeeping operations through mandatory contributions, and it stands ready today to commit to negotiating a text with African countries. Such a resolution must enable reaffirming the added value of African peacekeeping operations led by African soldiers and strengthening the continent’s ownership of such operations through financial support, which was reiterated by the African Union Peace and Security Council on 23 September. It must also enable us to move towards a planning and decision-making mechanism and take stock of the efforts that remain to be made in terms of international human rights law, international humanitarian law and troops’ conduct and discipline. I would like to take this opportunity to commend the work done by the African Union in recent months, which enabled the adoption of the African Union compliance and accountability framework, with the support of the United Nations and thanks to funding from the European Union. I welcome that joint commitment to boosting African peacekeeping operations. Dame Barbara Woodward (United Kingdom): I join others in thanking the Special Representative of the Secretary-General, the Permanent Observer of the African Union (AU) to the United Nations and Mr. Dersso for their briefings. United Nations-African Union cooperation is fundamental to achieving our shared goal of a freer, more secure, more prosperous, greener and healthier continent. And I am delighted that we demonstrated our shared commitment by agreeing a communiqué at last week’s African Union Peace and Security Council- Security Council meeting in Addis Ababa. I want to highlight three points about the partnership. First, following nine coups on the continent since 2020, efforts to tackle that scourge and its underlying causes have become critical. The decisive action of the AU Peace and Security Council in that regard has been important. I reiterate the United Kingdom’s support for efforts by the AU and subregional organizations, including the Economic Community of West African States, to bring about inclusive political dialogue and a peaceful return to constitutional rule. We look forward to deepening that dialogue, including exploring the potential of the New Agenda for Peace, as the representative of Mozambique outlined earlier on behalf of the African members of the Security Council. Secondly, coordination among the AU, the United Nations, subregional organizations and international partners is critical to ending conflict and promoting stability. That is why the United Kingdom has long supported permanent African representation on the Security Council. And it is why we look forward to working with Council colleagues on a framework draft resolution about United Nations financing for AU-led missions. We reiterate our concern about the potential for terrorism in the Sahel to spread to coastal States in West Africa. We also express our resolute support for efforts to tackle that, particularly regionally led solutions, such as the Accra Initiative. We remain committed to the current sustainable drawdown of the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia, and thank the AU Commission and troop-contributing countries for their tireless work in supporting Somalia’s security. Since 2022, we have given more $60 million in funding, and we will once again contribute this year. We also support a coordinated African-led response to the crisis in the Sudan that harnesses a supporting role for the United Nations. Thirdly, I welcome the continued implementation of the AU-United Nations framework for the implementation of Agenda 2063, the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Silencing the Guns in Africa initiative. In order to realize their shared vision of inclusive and sustainable economic development, we must increase international cooperation. Collaboration is instrumental in addressing the humanitarian challenges on the continent, such as food insecurity, where more than 160 million people in Africa are acutely vulnerable. Next month, we will be partnering with Somalia and the United Arab Emirates to host a global food security summit, bringing together international expertise to galvanize action to prevent food insecurity and malnutrition and save lives. We look forward to developing and deepening cooperation between the AU and the United Nations in pursuit of our shared goals.

I thank Special Representative Onanga-Anyanga and Ambassador Mohammed for their briefings. I listened closely to the briefing by Mr. Dersso. In recent years, as a champion of multilateralism and solidarity among developing countries, the African Union (AU) has been leading African countries forward along the path of development, revitalization and integration. We welcome the strengthened efforts to enlarge the African Continental Free Trade Area. The African Union has formally acceded to the Group of 20, its first Climate Summit was held in Africa and Ethiopia and Egypt have joined the cooperation mechanism of the group of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, all of which that attest to Africa’s growing global influence, as an important pole in the world. Last week, members of Security Council visited Addis Ababa, where it held its annual consultations with the AU Peace and Security Council. The consultations produced a series of new ideas and recommendations giving new impetus to cooperation between the United Nations and the African Union. In addressing complex and intertwined global challenges, the United Nations, the African Union and other subregional organizations in Africa must strengthen their solidarity and cooperation and build a strong partnership. First, we must build a partnership on an equal footing, with mutual respect and understanding. In recent years, the African Union and all subregional organizations have been actively engaged in addressing peace and security challenges and promoting the approach of African solutions to African problems. In the northern part of Mozambique, through joint operations, the Government’s forces and the Southern African Development Community have eradicated local terrorist forces and restored peace and stability. The African Union and subregional peacekeeping operations have focused on pragmatic and efficient operations and have achieved widely acknowledged remarkable results. In the face of global and regional challenges, the Council should continue to support the African Union in leveraging its advantages and enlarging its role. United Nations peacekeeping operations should be informed by AU’s useful practices, adapt to the changing situation on the ground and play its role, as required. The United Nations and the AU enjoy an equal relationship of cooperation and there is therefore no hierarchy in terms of leadership or command. So- called standards should not be imposed on Africa in the name of the United Nations. Such a practice interferes in Africa’s internal affairs and is not conducive to cooperation between the AU and the United Nations. Secondly, we must build a partnership of mutual support and shared responsibility. The negative impact of the long-lasting legacy of colonialism and hegemony on peace and stability in Africa is far from over, as global crises and geopolitical conflicts bring further harm to Africa. The international community should prioritize the maintenance of peace and stability in Africa. The United Nations should focus on responding to the concerns of the AU, while some developed countries should assume greater responsibility in terms of settling their historical debt as soon as possible rather than shifting blame or simply doing nothing. African countries have devoted themselves to AU peacekeeping operations and, to that end, have called on international communities to provide predictable and sustainable funding. Traditionally developed country donors should maintain their high level of support, and the United Nations should push for substantial progress in resolving relevant issues without delay. The Democratic Republic of the Congo, Somalia, South Sudan and the Sahel are significantly underfunded in terms of humanitarian operations. Therefore, the concerned parties should fulfil their humanitarian commitments in a timely and complete manner. At the first Africa Climate Summit, African leaders collectively demanded that developed countries honour their commitments to climate financing, which have been delayed for 14 years. The Council has a role to play in urging that political commitments to Africa are effectively translated into concrete actions. Thirdly, it is necessary to build a partnership anchored in the fundamentals that focuses on the long term. At present, the complexity and intractability of the hotspot issues in the Horn of Africa, the recurring political turmoil in West Africa and the Sahel countries, and the rampant violent and terrorist activities in the Great Lakes and Lake Chad regions have all contributed to a situation of recurring conflicts that deserve our in-depth consideration. The international community should help the countries concerned to strengthen capacity-building in such areas as government governance, security sector reforms, sustainable development and human resources development. The United Nations should provide vigorous support to Africa’s implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and make more tangible efforts to eradicate poverty, guarantee food security, strengthen infrastructure development and increase employment. Since the very beginning, China has supported Africa’s capacity-building, which is an important element of its cooperation with Africa, and it is committed to helping Africa achieve industrialization, modernization and sustainable development. In Nigeria, the Lekki sea port, built by a Chinese company, has officially begun operations, facilitating local shipping channels and creating hundreds of thousands of jobs. In the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the construction of the Kinsuka substation’s underground transmission lines is being stepped up, with the substation expected to address the power shortage in the local transmission area. In more than 10 countries, including Ghana and Djibouti, the Luban Workshop has been training and cultivating a large number of talented young people in the local community, which benefits local development. In the capital of Ethiopia, the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, built with China’s assistance, has been formally completed and is now making new contributions to the prevention and control of diseases in Africa and the protection of public health in Africa. While attending the China-Africa leadership dialogue in South Africa in August, President Xi Jinping announced three initiatives, namely the African industrialization initiative, the agricultural modernization programme and the talent cultivation cooperation programme, which will give added impetus to Africa’s integration and modernization processes. Next year, China will host a new session of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation and will take the opportunity to continue to play an active role in achieving peaceful development in Africa and increasing international cooperation with Africa.

We wish to thank Mr. Parfait Onanga- Anyanga, Special Representative of the Secretary- General and Head of the United Nations Office to the African Union (AU), Ms. Fatima Kyari Mohammed, Permanent Observer of the AU to the United Nations, and the civil society representative for their briefings. We wish to emphasize the words of our briefers with regard to the priority need to seek political solutions. The Russian Federation welcomes the strengthening of the partnership between the United Nations and the AU on issues related to peace and security in Africa. Today that cooperation is genuinely developing at all levels. Both organizations conduct regular conferences, and special representatives and special envoys brief the main bodies. The United Nations Security Council and the African Union Peace and Security Council convene for joint meetings annually. The most recent round of such meetings was held last week in Addis Ababa. We welcome the historic first visit of the Ad Hoc Working Group of the Security Council on Conflict Prevention in Africa to the Ethiopian capital. The discussions held gave us an opportunity to deepen our understanding of persistent problems in Africa and of results achieved in establishing the African peace and security architecture. We firmly believe that the potential for cooperation between United Nations and the AU has not yet been fully unlocked. We share the aspiration of the AU to make the dialogue between the Councils of both organizations more substantive and animated, as well as to harmonize their agenda with issues plaguing Africa. At the same time, we agree with the Secretary- General’s report (S/2023/629) that the situation in many regions of Africa remains highly volatile. In a number of countries, there are acute and persistent political and socioeconomic crises. The traditional sets of systemic problems have limited the achievement of sustainable peace and security and exacerbated new challenges. Conflicts among nations and among ethnic groups remain unresolved, and many terrorist organizations continue to be highly active, including the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant, Al-Qaeda, Boko Haram and Al-Shabaab. Local authorities face the weakness and instability of institutions of State governance and the limited military capability of national armed forces and law enforcement. Therefore, local authorities are unable to provide internal security and stability. The situation is compounded by the illegitimate unilateral sanctions restrictions, which persist in certain African States, undermining socioeconomic well-being of the population. We note the progress achieved in surmounting some crises. A major role was played by the AU’s efforts, most notably in November 2022 when, with the AU’s support, a cessation of hostilities agreement was reached for northern Ethiopia and there was joint work by the United Nations and AU in Somalia. We also note the important role of subregional organizations in strengthening regional peace and security. At the same time, unfortunately, we recall that there are many examples of African mediation efforts being relegated to the background or deliberately derailed by external players. It seemed that the experience of Libya in 2011 should have taught us a great deal, but we continue to see similar examples today. Significant progress has been achieved in ensuring predictable, sustained and flexible financing for African peace-support operations on the continent. In that regard, the consensus paper adopted by the African Union in February was a watershed, as was the report of the Secretary-General issued at the end of April. The Russian Federation supports the position of African countries on the need to adopt effective measures to that end. We consider abnormal the situation in which peace and security in Africa depend on irregular assistance from certain States and organizations. The United Nations has already repeatedly provided material and financial support for African efforts in the area of international peace and security, including through the use of assessed contributions from Member States. In that connection, we commend the decisions taken by the African Union to leverage the resources of the Peace Fund and the Reserve Fund to resolve a number of crises. That step confirms — not in words, but in deeds  — the principle of African solutions to African problems. We stand ready to continue to discuss the existing proposals for a possible future process for planning and joint decision-making on African peacekeeping missions in Africa, including more viable funding models, within the context of the forthcoming negotiations process on a future specialized Security Council draft resolution. I would also like to emphasize that the key to the success of regional efforts is the solidarity of African countries in assessing political solutions to problems and threats, as well as their willingness to assume the risks in addressing those problems and to establish effective command and control systems. With regard to financing, regardless of which modalities are appropriate to the situation and are being discussed today, only independence in terms of the resources of African States will afford the countries of the continent genuine space to make their own political decisions on how to address threats. That is a long and difficult path, but it is certainly the strategic goal of our African friends in order to overcome the consequences of the colonial past and contemporary neocolonial practices. The Russian Federation is providing multifaceted support to African peacekeeping efforts on the continent, both bilaterally and through the training of African military and law enforcement personnel in Russian institutions of higher education. We note the training of peacekeepers, including African peacekeepers, at the All-Russian Institute for Advanced Training of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation, which has been certified by the United Nations, as well as at the military training centre for ground troops, which is part of the Russian Ministry of Defence. In conclusion, I would like to reiterate the Russian Federation’s readiness to continue cooperating with its African partners on an equal footing and focus on strengthening their capacities in accordance with the outcomes of the Russia-Africa summits in Sochi and Saint Petersburg.

I am grateful for the briefings this morning on cooperation between the United Nations and the African Union on issues of peace and security in Africa. As we have said before, Ecuador considers that cooperation between the United Nations and regional organizations goes beyond what is stated in Chapter VIII of the Charter of the United Nations on regional arrangements and is indispensable to uphold the three fundamental pillars of this Organization: the maintenance of international peace and security, the promotion and protection of human rights and the implementation of the sustainable development agenda. Just last week, I had the honour of participating in the Council’s visit to the headquarters of the African Union in Addis Ababa. I was able to see first-hand how the African Union Peace and Security Council and the Security Council have strengthened their strategic partnership to address the challenges related to peace and security in Africa and are making continuous efforts to enhance coordination and information-sharing to achieve common objectives. I was also able to observe first-hand the important work of the United Nations Office to the African Union and receive valuable information from its head, Mr. Parfait Onanga-Anyanga, and the Special Envoy of the Secretary-General for the Horn of Africa, Ms. Hanna Tetteh. As I said in my visit to Addis Ababa, Ecuador and the African Union share priorities such as the youth, peace and security agenda. In that regard, we commend the progress made by the African Union, in particular the implementation of the Continental Framework for Youth, Peace and Security, the appointment of a Youth Envoy and five African Youth Ambassadors for Peace — one for each region of the African continent, the creation of the Youth for Peace Africa Programme and the institutionalization of the participation of young people in the African Union’s decision-making processes through an advisory council with a defined budget and mandate. We believe that those good practices should be disseminated and shared with other regional organizations, the United Nations and other strategic partners, with a view to mainstreaming the principles of the youth, peace and security agenda throughout the world. We are also convinced that our efforts to enhance cooperation between the African Union Peace and Security Council and the Security Council can be inspired by the unity regularly demonstrated by three African members of the Security Council and their cohesive political commitments, as underlined by Mozambique this morning. The invitations to senior officials of the African Union to brief the Security Council are key opportunities to gain first-hand regional and subregional perspectives on issues affecting the continent and should be more frequent. There is also a need to revitalize and continually improve the Ad Hoc Working Group on Conflict Prevention and Resolution in Africa as a mechanism for regular exchanges between the Security Council and the African Union Peace and Security Council. The African Union and the United Nations are natural partners, united by shared values, principles and objectives. Therefore, the United Nations and its Member States have much to gain from greater cooperation, coordination and consultations with the African Union. The stronger our relationship, the more effective we can be in our efforts on the ground, now and in the future.

I would like to thank our briefers Special Representative of the Secretary-General Parfait Onanga-Anyanga, Ambassador Fatima Kyari Mohammed and Mr. Solomon Ayele Dersso for their insightful views on how to enhance and improve coordination and collaboration between the United Nations and the African Union (AU). The United States shares the Secretary-General’s assessment that strong partnerships between our bodies are important to address global and regional challenges arising from climate change, food and energy insecurity, conflict, violence and terrorism. That includes the Secretary-General’s recommendation that international financial institutions must evolve to advance their core mission of ending extreme poverty and boosting shared prosperity, while also refocusing efforts on transnational challenges. The Biden-Harris Administration has taken great steps to scale up World Bank financing and expand resources for low- and middle-income countries. That will help to boost progress towards meeting the Sustainable Development Goals and better address interconnected challenges such as climate change and fragility. We applaud collaboration among the United Nations, the AU, regional economic communities and regional mechanisms, as well as other partners, in support of conflict prevention and meditation. We also welcome efforts to include women, young people, civil society and other stakeholders in conflict resolution and peacebuilding processes, as outlined in the Secretary- General’s report (S/2023/629). The United States is deeply concerned about the recent trend to democratic backsliding in West Africa and in other parts of the continent. We reaffirm our commitment to working with African partners, including local leaders and civil society, regional bodies and Governments to support democratic institutions. We recognize and support the Economic Community of West African States in leading efforts to bring about a solution that preserves constitutional order in the Niger. In Mali, we are deeply concerned about the rise in violence that has accompanied the drawdown of the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali. Mali has a responsibility to support the Mission’s safe and orderly withdrawal by fully cooperating with the United Nations and prioritizing the safety and security of peacekeepers. We also strongly urge the United Nations to prioritize the removal and disposal of lethal equipment and ammunition, which if seized by bad actors would only further destabilize the country and the region. Turning to the Sudan, the United States joins the AU, the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) and partners in calling for the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces to immediately end the fighting, adhere to their obligations under international humanitarian law, respect human rights and allow unhindered humanitarian access. This is the time for the international community to stand with the AU, IGAD and the United Nations to consolidate pressure on the warring parties. The Security Council and all Member States must be more active in supporting the AU and IGAD’s demands for a ceasefire, humanitarian access and a return to a democratic transition. We hope to see further cooperation on the issue of the Sudan between the AU and the United Nations in the Security Council. Regional peace operations remain one of the most important tools that the international community has to address new and emerging crises, and the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia has continued to make a significant contribution to a more stable and secure Somalia. At the same time, the lack of predictable and sustainable financing has hindered their fulfilment of their mandates, constraining these missions’ potential for delivering on their promise. That is why the United States is committed to finding a way within appropriate parameters for United Nations assessed contributions to partially fund AU-led peace-support operations authorized by the Security Council. The arrangement should define the respective roles of the AU, the Security Council, the General Assembly and the Secretariat in supporting an AU financing arrangement. It would enshrine commitments and responsibilities on human rights and define specific financial burden-sharing components. We welcome opportunities such as this to further discuss our cooperation and paths forward. The United States will continue to support close cooperation to advance peace and security in Africa between the United Nations, regional organizations such as the AU and subregional organizations.

I thank the briefers for their insightful remarks. Malta firmly believes that robust partnerships between the United Nations and regional organizations are indispensable to effective multilateralism. We commend the ongoing United Nations-African Union (AU) partnership in working synergistically on mediation, conflict prevention, peacekeeping and peacebuilding. Those endeavours give substance to the concept of networked multilateralism that we all aspire to achieve. We must acknowledge that conventional responses, even when coordinated, have often proved inadequate. We remain steadfast in our belief that adherence to constitutional principles is central, even in challenging situations where fledgling democracies grapple with issues such as poverty, terrorism and weak institutions. In the Sahel in particular, we have deepened our collaboration to call for a swift and punctual return to constitutional governance in line with the timelines established by the Economic Community of West African States. Together with the AU, we are committed to empowering women, and we continue to call for their full, equal, meaningful and safe participation. Including and empowering young people are equally important. We welcome the AU’s activities on implementing the women and peace and security agenda in Africa. The solidarity missions of African women leaders from the Great Lakes Region in the context of the Sudan, as well as the establishment of a women’s situation room to monitor women’s political participation in Kenya’s elections, are important examples of cross- regional solidarity. Malta supports the Africa Platform on Children Affected by Armed Conflicts. We welcome the development of a child protection programme within the AU Peace and Security Department, as supported by the United Nations. Building on the three-year strategic plan for integrating child protection, we look forward to the implementation of two pivotal policies, on child protection in AU-led peace support operations and on mainstreaming child protection into the African peace and security architecture. As Africa remains one of the continent’s most heavily affected by the effects of climate change, we are also encouraged by the growing recognition of the clear need to develop a robust and coordinated policy response. We welcome the AU’s 10-year Climate Change and Resilient Development Strategy and Action Plan, which lays a foundation for continent-wide climate action. The annual consultative meetings between the United Nations Security Council and the AU Peace and Security Council have substantially fortified our cooperation over the years. Our joint endeavours in Addis Ababa last week further enhanced coordination between the two bodies, including on aspects relating to working methods. As it stands, Chapter VIII of the Charter of the United Nations provides us with an adequate framework for moving forward in the realm of peace and security. We advocate for a continued United Nations-AU partnership that will empower the AU to assume ownership in peacekeeping efforts on the African continent. With that in mind, the Security Council will soon be tasked with taking on a decision towards predictable, sustainable and flexible financing of AU-led peace support operations. As was discussed in Addis Ababa, we have a unique opportunity to make progress and forge consensus on the issue. In conclusion, the United Nations and the AU share multiple common interests and concerns. We should leverage the most pressing ones to invigorate our shared efforts. Collectively, we can infuse new content and momentum into the interactions between the two bodies, in the interests of our credibility and the prosperity of future generations.

I would like to begin by thanking Brazil for convening today’s meeting and also for leading, together with Mozambique, the Council’s recent mission to Addis Ababa for the Annual Joint Consultative Meeting between the Security Council and the African Union (AU) Peace and Security Council. I welcomed the adoption of the joint Security Council-AU Peace and Security Council communiqué on that occasion. I also want to thank Special Representative Parfait Onanga- Anyanga and Ambassador Fatima Kyari Mohammed for their insightful remarks, as well as Mr. Solomon Ayele Dersso for his contributions. In recent years we have seen significant developments in the relationship between the United Nations and the African Union, as well as in the respective strength of both organizations. They include the 2017 Joint Framework for an Enhanced Partnership in Peace and Security, and the African Union-United Nations Framework for the Implementation of Agenda 2063 and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Growing convergence, unity of purpose and a relationship based on common understanding promise to bring even greater rewards. Today I would like to make three points on how the enduring partnership between the AU and the United Nations could be further strengthened. First, we should continue to draw lessons from the successes that have emerged from regional organizations. Over the past two decades, the African Union has increasingly demonstrated the political will and commitment needed to tackle security challenges, including through preventive diplomacy and the deployment of peace support operations in Africa. The AU’s efforts to take on a more prominent role at the regional level are commendable and should be encouraged. Incorporating regional voices and perspectives is crucial to maintaining international peace and security. And without regional buy-in, it is difficult, if not impossible, for United Nations efforts alone to succeed. Somalia is a prominent example of the intrinsic value of partnerships in which the United Nations, the AU and bilateral partners continue to engage constructively with the Federal Government of Somalia towards the implementation of its State-building priorities. As the African Union continues to deepen its scope of engagement and broaden its partnerships, it is in the interest of the Security Council to support the AU’s commitments to international peace and security and as a cause that aligns with the purposes and principles of the United Nations. Secondly, the cooperation between the Security Council and the AU Peace and Security Council should be strengthened. It should not be a box to tick every year. Rather, it must be an ongoing dialogue that addresses not only issues pertaining to Africa, but also global agenda items, both thematic and country-specific, in which African perspectives can enrich our discussions. It should also encompass more regular engagements with high-level officials from the AU Commission. As subregional organizations take on more prominent peacekeeping roles on the African continent, such organizations must become true partners. Sharing relevant information and operational assessments can also contribute to devising effective responses by both Councils. In the context of AU-led peace support operations authorized by the Security Council, we recognize that the absence of predictable, sustainable and flexible resources prevents the AU from fulfilling its peace and security mandate. This year’s joint communiqué of the annual joint consultative meeting also acknowledges the persistent financial challenges facing AU-led peace support operations. In line with the communiqué, we believe that it is important for the Security Council to consider how to enhance the predictability, sustainability and flexibility of financing for AU-led peace operations authorized by and under the authority of the Security Council, consistent with Chapter VIII of the Charter of the United Nations. We look forward to engaging constructively in the upcoming negotiations on that issue and hope to reach an agreement that meets the needs of this moment. Thirdly, both Councils must work together to promote the values of tolerance and peaceful coexistence. Hate speech and extremism can lead to the escalation and spread of conflict. In June, the Security Council acknowledged that when it unanimously adopted a resolution on tolerance and international peace and security (resolution 2686 (2023)). That is also echoed in the AU’s Agenda 2063, as that organization continues its historic struggle against all forms of racism, discrimination and intolerance. To make meaningful advances on that common agenda, both organizations will need to work in unison and ensure that those frameworks enable our organizations to safeguard peace and security. Supporting the efforts of the African Union is at the heart of Chapter VIII of the Charter. It is an acknowledgement of the valuable contribution that the AU makes to international peace and security and to the growing role that it is called to play in an increasingly polarized world. For its part, the United Arab Emirates will strive to enhance cooperation between both organizations in support of our common values, purposes and principles towards the maintenance of international peace and security for all.

I would like to thank Special Representative of the Secretary-General Onanga- Anyanga; Ms. Mohammed, Permanent Observer of the African Union (AU) to the United Nations; and Mr. Dersso, Managing Director of Amani Africa, for their briefings. Let me start by joining others in expressing our deep gratitude to the AU Peace and Security Council for its warm hospitality during our trip to Addis Ababa last week. African files carry substantial weight in the work of the Security Council. The annual joint consultative meeting gave us an opportunity to explore how we should jointly address pressing issues of common concern. The swift adoption of the joint communiqué is an illustration of our solidarity and common understanding under a shared set of goals. As all of us highlighted in that meeting, and today the demand for a strong United Nations-AU partnership continues to grow in order to tackle Africa’s challenges more effectively. Close consultation is required between the two organs across the full spectrum of conflicts. For that, an increased emphasis on prevention efforts is important to ensure that, as proposed in the New Agenda for Peace. We welcome regular technical-level contact between the two Secretariats on country and thematic files, including a horizon-scanning exercise for conflict prevention. The Ad Hoc Working Group of the Security Council on Conflict Prevention and Resolution in Africa is a window into our close coordination efforts with the AU Peace and Security Council. It should be a platform to follow up on our common understanding articulated in the joint communiqué, including on working methods. More structured monthly coordination between the President of the Security Council and the Chair of the AU Peace and Security Council should greatly contribute to facilitating further dialogue and cooperation between the two Councils. Japan is willing to contribute to crystallizing that point by updating the related documents. We appreciate regional peace initiatives with a strong sense of ownership to prevent, mediate and settle conflicts on the African continent. A strong understanding of the unique circumstances of each situation in Africa and an approach that is crafted accordingly should be a comparative advantage for the AU and its peace support operations. Last week, we again underscored the importance of predictable, sustainable and flexible financing for AU peace support operations through AU and United Nations contributions. As we stated at the Security Council meeting on this topic in May, Japan, in principle, supports the establishment of a mechanism through which AU peace support operations authorized by the Security Council under Chapter Ⅷ of the Charter could be partly financed through United Nations assessed contributions, on a case-by-case basis (see S/PV.9329). Japan remains committed to further consultations with all stakeholders in that regard. Africa continues to suffer from human security crises caused by multiple factors. Close partnerships between the United Nations and regional entities are essential. Japan continues to play its part in supporting international and regional efforts for peace and security in Africa.