Overview
The United States will hold the presidency of the Council in December. It is typically the busiest month on the calendar due to a high number of scheduled briefings and mandate renewals and the usual desire to wrap up all Council work before Christmas.
An open debate is planned on the problem of sexual violence in conflict, with a briefing by the Secretary-General’s Special Representative Margot Wallström. Also expected is a high-level event on Iraq as well as a special youth event under discussion.
Debates are also expected following the presentation of reports by the presidents and prosecutors of the International Criminal Tribunals for Rwanda and the former Yugoslavia and the briefing on Afghanistan.
In addition, several briefings are expected:
- By the chairs of the subsidiary bodies who are leaving the Council at the end of the year;
- On developments in Afghanistan and the latest Secretary-General’s report on UNAMA, by the Special Representative, Staffan de Mistura;
- By the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, Luis Moreno-Ocampo, on Sudan (followed by a private meeting);
- On the last phase and termination of the peacekeeping operation in Chad and the Central African Republic, MINURCAT (followed by consultations);
- On UNMIN, by the head of Political Affairs, B. Lynn Pascoe, following his trip to Nepal;
- On developments in and the Secretary-General’s reporton Côte d’Ivoire, (followed by consultations);
- On the developments in and the Secretary-General’s report on the peacekeeping operation in Cyprus (in consultations);
- On the UN office in the Central African Republic, BINUCA (followed by consultations);
- On Iran sanctions by the chair of the 1737 committee;
- On BINUB, the UN office in Burundi (followed by consultations);
- On the operation in Iraq, UNAMI (in consultations);
- By the High-Level Coordinator on the Iraq/Kuwait missing persons and property issues, Gennady Tarasov (in consultations);
- A briefing on the UN Office in West Africa (UNOWA) by its head, Said Djinnit;
- Preparation for the referenda in Sudan (in consultations); and
- the monthly briefing on the Middle East (followed by consultations).
Consultations are also expected to be held on:
- Sudan sanctions;
- The Development Fund for Iraq and its International Advisory Monitoring Board (DFI/IAMB);
- Liberia sanctions;
- UNDOF, the peacekeeping force in the Golan Heights; and
- Renewing the mandate of the Ad Hoc Working Group on Conflict Prevention and Resolution in Africa.
Formal sessions are expected to adopt resolutions on:
- Reconfiguration of the office in Burundi, BINUB;
- ICTR and ICTY responding to requests from the Tribunals’ presidents for extension of judges’ mandates and authorisation related to other technical issues;
- The mandate of the peacekeeping force in Cyprus, or UNFICYP;
- The mandate of UNDOF, the peacekeeping force in the Golan Heights;
- The renewal of sanctions on Liberia;
- The renewal of the mandate of CTED;
- The renewal of UNOCI in Côte d’Ivoire;
- Arrangements for the DFI/IAMB in Iraq; and
- Renewal of BINUCA, the office in the Central African Republic.
