Overview
The UK is planning to focus on conflict prevention in Africa during its presidency in March. Council members start the month with a visiting mission to the Lake Chad Basin region with stops in Cameroon, Chad, Niger and Nigeria. This will be followed by a briefing on the visiting mission.
There will be two high-level briefings, one on Somalia and the other on South Sudan. Both will be chaired by UK Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson. The new Somali President Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed “Farmaajo”, together with Special Representative Michael Keating, will participate in the briefing on Somalia. Secretary-General António Guterres and the AU High Representative, former Mali President Alpha Oumar Konaré, will brief on South Sudan. In March, the Council will also renew the mandate of UNSOM and receive a briefing on the 751/1907 Somalia Eritrea Sanctions Committee.
Another African issue this month is the situation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, with a resolution to be adopted to renew MONUSCO’s mandate and an update on the implementation of the DRC’s Peace, Security and Cooperation Framework Agreement.
The UK is also planning a ministerial-level open debate on modern slavery, forced labour and conflict.
Regarding Middle East issues, members are expecting a briefing by Special Envoy Staffan de Mistura on political developments in Syria early in the month, following the intra-Syrian talks which began in Geneva on 23 February. The regular monthly briefings on the Syria humanitarian situation and chemical weapons investigations have been scheduled.
There will be discussions on several other Middle Eastern issues this month:
- Golan Heights, quarterly briefing on UNDOF;
- Israel/Palestine, monthly briefing and the first report of the Secretary-General on the implementation of resolution 2334 on Israeli settlements;
- Lebanon, briefing on UNIFIL’s activities; and
- Yemen, update on the Yemen political situation and 2140 sanctions regime.
Other issues on the programme of work include:
- Afghanistan, renewal of UNAMA;
- DPRK, renewal of the mandate of the Panel of Experts of the 1718 DPRK Sanctions Committee; and
- Non-proliferation, briefing by the chair of the 1540 Committee.
