Overview

The Russian Federation will preside over the Security Council in March.

An open debate on Afghanistan is planned, to be presided over by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and the Executive Director of the UN Office on Drugs and Crime, Yury Fedotov, are expected as briefers.

A debate on Haiti is planned with a briefing by the acting head of MINUSTAH, Nigel Fisher. Also expected is the quarterly debate on Kosovo (originally scheduled for February and postponed until March), with a briefing by Farid Zarif, the Special Representative and head of UNMIK.

A briefing is expected on the work of the 1737 Iran Sanctions Committee by its chair, Ambassador Gary Quinlan (Australia).

Also expected is a briefing on cooperation between the UN and the OSCE, by its Chairperson-in-Office Leonid Kozhara (Ukraine).

Briefings, followed by consultations, are likely on:

• the DRC Framework Agreement by the Secretary-General who witnessed the 24 February signing ceremony between the DRC and Angola, Burundi, CAR, Congo, Rwanda, South Africa, South Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia;
• South Sudan and UNMISS, most likely by the Special Representative and  head of mission, Hilde Johnson; 
• Sierra Leone and UNIPSIL, by its head Jens Anders Toyberg-Frandzen, and by the chair of the PBC country configuration, Ambassador Guillermo Rishchynski (Canada);
• Libya and UNSMIL, by the Special Representative and head of mission, Tarek Mitri;
• the work of the 1970 Libya Sanctions Committee by its chair, Ambassador Eugène-Richard Gasana (Rwanda);
• Liberia and UNMIL, by the Special Representative and head of mission, Karin Landgren, and by the chair of the PBC country configuration, Staffan Tillander (Sweden); 
• Iraq and UNAMI, by the Special Representative and head of mission, Martin Kobler;
• developments in the Middle East, most likely by the head of DPA, Jeffrey Feltman; and
• Mali, also by Feltman.

Briefings in consultations are likely on:

• the situation in Guinea-Bissau and the latest report on the restoration of constitutional order, most likely by the Assistant Secretary-General for Political Affairs  Tayé-Brook Zerihoun;
• the most recent report on resolution 1701, most likely by the Special Coordinator for Lebanon, Derek Plumbly;
• the most recent Secretary-General’s report on UNDOF (Golan Heights), most likely by the head of DPKO, Hervé Ladsous;
• the situation in Yemen, by Special Adviser Jamal Benomar;
• the situation between Sudan and South Sudan, by DPKO on one occasion and by Special Envoy Haile Menkerios on another; and
• the work of the 751/1907 Somalia/Eritrea Sanctions Committee, by its chair, Ambassador Kim Sook (Republic of Korea).

Also possible is a briefing in consultations by Alexander Downer, the Special Adviser to the Secretary-General on Cyprus, on the prospects for progress in negotiations between the Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot communities.

Formal sessions will need to be held to adopt resolutions to reauthorise AMISOM (Somalia) and renew the mandates of UNAMA (Afghanistan), UNIPSIL (Sierra Leone), UNSMIL (Libya) and the Panel of Experts supporting the 1970 Libya Sanctions Committee.

Throughout the month, Council members will be following closely developments in Syria and a meeting on this issue may be scheduled.