September 2019 Monthly Forecast

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• Overview

  Russia has the Security Council presidency in September. Read more

• In Hindsight: Security Council Reform

  When the UN Charter was drafted in 1945, it stipulated that the Security Council would be composed of five permanent members and six elected members. By the 1960s there was a desire to expand Council membership, reflecting the increase in UN membership from the 51 founding member states to 113 by 1963. That year, the General Assembly adopted resolution 1991 A (XVIII), which added four non-permanent members to the Council. The ratification process was completed in 1965. Almost 55 years later, there has been no further change in Council membership. Those in favour of reform maintain that the Council’s membership no longer reflects geopolitical realities and point to the continuing increase in UN membership, which now stands at 193. Read more

• Status Update since our August Forecast

  Democratic Republic of the Congo On 1 August, Council members issued a press statement on the DRC. In the statement Council members welcomed President Félix Tshisekedi’s efforts towards reconciliation and steps he has taken to open political space. They also... Read more

• Yemen

  In September, the Council will hold its monthly briefing on Yemen with Special Envoy Martin Griffiths. Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs Mark Lowcock is likely to update the Council on the humanitarian situation. Read more

• Libya

  In September, the Council is expected to renew the mandate of UNSMIL, set to expire on 15 September. Briefings by the Special Representative and head of UNSMIL, Ghassan Salamé, and the chair of the 1970 Libya Sanctions Committee, Deputy Permanent Representative of Germany Ambassador Jürgen Schulz, are also anticipated. The mandate of the Panel of Experts assisting the 1970 Libya Sanctions Committee expires on 15 February 2020. Read more

• Syria

  In September, the Council will receive the monthly briefings on the humanitarian situation, the political process, and the use of chemical weapons in Syria. Read more

• Peacekeeping Operations

  In September, the Security Council will receive a comprehensive briefing on the reform of UN peacekeeping from the Under-Secretary-General for Peace Operations, Jean-Pierre Lacroix, which will be followed by a debate. Read more

• Afghanistan

  In September, the Security Council is scheduled to renew the mandate of UNAMA, set to expire on 17 September. The Council will also hold its quarterly meeting on Afghanistan and will consider the latest Secretary-General’s report on UNAMA, due in early September. Tadamichi Yamamoto, the Special Representative for Afghanistan and head of UNAMA, is expected to brief. Ambassador Dian Triansyah Djani (Indonesia), as chair of the 1988 Afghanistan Sanctions Committee, and representatives of the UN Office on Drugs and Crime and the UN Counter-Terrorism Office may also brief. Read more

• Guinea-Bissau

  The Council is expected in September to hold a briefing and consultations on Guinea-Bissau. Assistant Secretary-General for Africa Bintou Keita will brief. The mandate of the UN Integrated Peacebuilding Office in Guinea-Bissau (UNIOGBIS) expires on 28 February 2020. Read more

• South Sudan

  Expected Council Action In September, the Council will receive a briefing on the Secretary-General’s 90-day report on South Sudan. Consultations are expected to follow the briefing. Council members also expect to receive a written report from the Secretary-General during September... Read more

• Colombia

  In September, the Council is expected to renew the mandate of the UN Verification Mission in Colombia, which expires on 25 September. Read more

• Iraq

  In September, the Security Council is expected to review the mandate of UNITAD, which expires on 21 September. Read more

• Cooperation between the UN and Regional Organisations

  In September, the Council is expected to hold a ministerial-level meeting on the cooperation between the UN and Regional Organisations, with a focus on the role of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). Russian Minister of Foreign Affairs Sergey Lavrov will preside. Secretary-General António Guterres may brief the Council. Other briefers may include the Secretaries-General of the CSTO, SCO and CIS. Read more

• Peace and Security in Africa

  Expected Council Action In September, the Council will hold a debate at the initiative of Russia, as Council president for the month, under the agenda item “Peace and Security in Africa”. Background Over the past nine months, the Council has... Read more