Overview
In March, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) will hold the presidency of the Security Council.
The UAE is expected to organise two signature events. The first is an open debate on Women, Peace and Security with a focus on enabling public-private partnerships to contribute to women’s economic empowerment in conflict-affected and fragile settings. UAE Minister of Climate Change and Environment Mariam bint Mohammed Saeed Hareb Almheiri is expected to chair the meeting. UN Women Executive Director Sima Sami Bahous, Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) Kristalina Georgieva, and a civil society representative are the anticipated briefers.
The second signature event is a briefing on cooperation between the UN and the League of Arab States (LAS). Khalifa Shaheen Almarar, Minister of State at UAE’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, will chair the meeting. UN Secretary-General António Guterres and LAS Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul Gheit are the anticipated briefers. The UAE intends to propose a presidential statement as a possible outcome of the meeting.
In March, the Security Council is scheduled to receive the annual briefing on the activities of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) from Poland’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Zbigniew Rau, in his capacity as the new OSCE Chairman-in-Office (CiO).
Middle East issues on the programme include:
- Syria, meetings on political, humanitarian and chemical weapons tracks;
- Golan Heights, consultations on the UN Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF);
- Yemen, monthly meeting on developments;
- Lebanon, consultations on the implementation of resolution 1701; and
- The Middle East, including the Palestinian question, the monthly meeting.
African issues on the programme of work in March are:
- Libya, meeting on the latest developments in the country and the activities of the UN Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL);
- Somalia, the reauthorisations of the AU Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) and anti-piracy measures off the coast of Somalia;
- South Sudan, meeting on the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) and the renewal of the UNMISS mandate;
- Sudan, briefing by the Chair of the 1591 Sudan Sanctions Committee, as well as a meeting on the situation in Sudan and the activities of the UN Integrated Transition Assistance Mission in Sudan (UNITAMS); and
- Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), meeting on recent developments and the work of the UN Organization Stabilization Mission in the DRC.
Asian issues this month include the adoption of a resolution on the mandate of the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan and the renewal of the 1718 DPRK sanctions regime.
In terms of thematic issues, the chair of the 1540 Committee—which addresses the concern that non-state actors might use weapons of mass destruction for terrorist purposes—is scheduled to brief the Council.
An informal briefing on peacekeeping performance based on resolution 2436 of 21 September 2018 is also expected to take place in March.
A number of additional issues could be raised in March depending on developments, including Ukraine and Ethiopia, among others.
