Afghanistan
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In June the Council is expected to consider the Secretary-General’s first report on the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) since the 23 March adoption of resolution 1868, which requested that these reports include benchmarks for measuring and tracking the mission’s mandate.
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The mandate of the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) expires on 23 March and is expected to be renewed
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The Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Afghanistan, Kai Eide, is expected to brief the Council in mid-October on Afghanistan. The mandate of the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan expires on 23 March 2009. The mandate of the International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan was renewed on 22 September 2008 and now expires in October 2009.
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The mandate of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan expires on 13 October, but the Council may renew it during September.
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In July the Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Afghanistan, Kai Eide, will brief the Council on the outcome of the international conference in Paris on 12 June on support of Afghanistan. The Council will also discuss the Secretary-General’s recommendations for changes in the operations of the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan.
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Council members are negotiating a draft resolution on Afghanistan which focuses on the trafficking of chemical precursors of heroin.
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The Council is expected to extend the mandate of the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA), which expires on 23 March. An open debate on 12 March is likely. Unlike previous years when the mandate renewal was relatively straightforward, this time the vacancy of position of the Secretary-General’s Special Representative to Afghanistan as well as the rapidly deteriorating security situation raise the possibility of a technical rollover.
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In September, Tom Koenigs, the Secretary-General’s Special Representative in Afghanistan announced that he would step down from his post on 31 December 2007. At press time, the Secretary-General was expected to choose Koenig’s successor and inform the Council by the end of the year.
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The Secretary-General's Special Representative, Tom Koenigs, is expected to brief the Council on the Secretary-General's semi-annual report on Afghanistan published on 21 September.
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The mandate of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) expires on 13 October, but the Council may renew ISAF's mandate in September. (As in 2006, early consideration is possible in order to accommodate Germany's desire that a Council resolution be in place before its parliament in October considers extending the mandate of its troops in ISAF.)
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The Council is expected to extend the mandate of the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA), which expires on 24 March. The Special Representative of the Secretary-General to Afghanistan, Tom Koenigs, will likely brief the Council.
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A Council delegation will travel to Afghanistan in mid-November. The mission will be headed by Ambassador Kenzo Oshima of Japan and will include Argentina, China, Denmark, France, Greece, Qatar, Russia, the UK and the US. During the week-long visit the mission will meet with Afghan officials, the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) and the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in various locations in Kabul, northern and southern Afghanistan, and also Pakistani officials in Islamabad.
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No formal Council action on Afghanistan is expected for October, but members will closely watch developments. Given the deterioration in the security situation, a presidential statement or statements to the press seem possible.
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The Council is expected to review and extend the mandate of the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) after it receives the recommendations of the Secretary-General in his March regular report. The report of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) has yet to be presented to the Council.
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The Council is expected to endorse the Afghanistan Compact, a five-year framework for reconstruction to be adopted in early February in London at an international conference co-chaired by the UK, the UN and the Afghan government.
