Overview
Russia will hold the Council presidency in September. A ministerial-level open debate on the settlement of conflicts in the Middle East and North Africa and countering the terrorist threat in the region is planned, with Russia’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Sergey Lavrov presiding and a briefing by Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. The quarterly debate on Afghanistan with a briefing by the Secretary-General’s Special Representative and head of the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan, Nicholas Haysom, is also scheduled for September.
A briefing is expected on the work of the 1737 Iran Sanctions Committee by its chair, Ambassador Román Oyarzun (Spain).
Briefings, followed by consultations, are expected on:
- developments in Liberia and the Secretary-General’s latest report on the UN Mission in Liberia, most likely by Assistant Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations Edmond Mulet;
- the humanitarian situation in Syria, by Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator Stephen O’Brien; and
- the Middle East, by Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process Nickolay Mladenov.
Briefings in consultations are planned on:
- the implementation of resolution 2046 on Sudan/South Sudan issues, by Secretary-General’s Special Envoy Haile Menkerios;
- the work of the UN Interim Security Force for Abyei, most likely by Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations Hervé Ladsous;
- chemical weapons in Syria, by Acting High Representative for Disarmament Affairs Kim Won-soo;
- the Secretary-General’s latest report on the UN Disengagement Observer Force in the Golan Heights, by Mulet; and
- the work of the UN Regional Centre for Preventive Diplomacy for Central Asia by its head, Petko Draganov.
Formal sessions will be held to adopt resolutions to renew the mandates of:
- the UN Support Mission in Libya;
- the UN Mission in Liberia; and
- the Panel of Experts assisting the 1521 Liberia Sanctions Committee, as well as to renew and possibly modify the 1521 sanctions regime.
Several high-level meetings on issues of direct concern to the Security Council, including Syria, Mali, peacekeeping and the use of the veto are expected to be held in the margins of the general debate of the General Assembly.
Throughout the month members will be following closely developments in Guinea-Bissau, Libya, Mali, South Sudan and Ukraine, and additional meetings may be scheduled.