Security Council Programme of Work for October 2026
Greece is the president of the Security Council in October. Council members adopted the provisional programme of work for the month earlier today (1 October).
Greece has chosen to organise two signature events. The first is a high-level briefing on emerging technologies, with an emphasis on maritime security, under the “Maintenance of international peace and security” agenda item. Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis is expected to chair the meeting.
The second signature event is a briefing on children and armed conflict to mark the 30th anniversary of the establishment of the children and armed conflict mandate by the General Assembly. Greek Minister of Foreign Affairs Giorgos Gerapetritis is expected to chair the meeting. Briefings are expected from Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict Vanessa Frazier, UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell, African Union (AU) Special Envoy for Children Affected by Armed Conflict Jainaba Jagne, and a civil society representative.
The Security Council will hold its annual open debate on women, peace and security (WPS) in October. Gerapetritis is expected to chair the meeting, which will be titled “Women, peace and security in the next quarter-century: fulfilling the promise through implementation”. UN Secretary-General António Guterres, UN Women Executive Director Sima Sami Bahous, and a woman civil society representative are the anticipated briefers.
The Security Council is also scheduled to hold its annual private meeting with the president of the International Court of Justice (ICJ), Judge Yuji Iwasawa.
Tomorrow (2 October), Council members are expected to hold an informal interactive dialogue (IID) on the implementation of resolution 2744 of 19 July 2024, which strengthened the mandate of the Focal Point for Delisting and re-established the Informal Working Group (IWG) of the Security Council on General UN Security Council Sanctions Issues. Yvonne Ching Ling Lee, the Focal Point for Delisting, is expected to brief at the meeting, which is being organised by Greece and Pakistan.
This month, the Council will hold its annual briefing on cooperation between the UN and regional and sub-regional organisations, focusing on the AU. Briefings are expected from Special Representative of the Secretary-General to the AU and Head of the UN Office to the AU (UNOAU) Parfait Onanga-Anyanga and AU Commissioner for Political Affairs, Peace and Security Bankole Adeoye.
AU Peace and Security Council (AUPSC) members will travel to New York for the 20th annual joint consultative meeting between the Security Council and the AUPSC, to be held on 23 October. (The annual meeting rotates between New York and Addis Ababa, the home of the AU headquarters.) The joint consultative meeting will be preceded by the 11th informal joint seminar of members of the Security Council and the AUPSC on 22 October, which will be held in a retreat format at the Greentree Foundation in Manhasset, New York.
Several other African issues are on the programme of work this month.
Regarding Sudan, the Security Council is expected to vote on a draft resolution extending the 1591 Sudan sanctions regime. It will also receive the regular 120-day briefing on the situation in the country. A UN Department of Political and Peacebuilding Affairs (DPPA) official and Personal Envoy of the UN Secretary-General for Sudan Pekka Haavisto are expected to brief. The meeting may also feature a briefing on the work of the 1591 Sudan Sanctions Committee. If the allocation of subsidiary body chairs is not decided by the time of the meeting, Greece may brief in its capacity as Council president. Closed consultations are scheduled to follow the open briefing.
The Council expects to renew the mandate of the UN Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO), which expires on 31 October. Ahead of the mandate renewal, the Council will hold a private meeting with MINURSO troop-contributing countries, at which Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Western Sahara and Head of MINURSO Alexander Ivanko will participate. Council members will also receive a briefing in consultations from Ivanko and Personal Envoy of the Secretary-General for Western Sahara Staffan de Mistura.
The Secretary-General’s Special Envoy for the Great Lakes Region, Huang Xia, is expected to provide the biannual briefing to the Council on the implementation of the 2013 Peace, Security and Cooperation Framework (PSC-F) for the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and the Great Lakes region. Closed consultations are scheduled to follow the open briefing.
Council members expect to vote on a draft resolution renewing the mandate of the UN Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) ahead of its 31 October expiry. Prior to that, the Council will hold its bimonthly briefing on the situation in Libya, at which Special Representative and Head of UNSMIL Hanna Serwaa Tetteh is expected to brief. Closed consultations are scheduled to follow the open briefing.
There will be a briefing, followed by consultations, on the work of the UN Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in the Central African Republic (MINUSCA), which will feature a briefing by Special Representative of the Secretary-General for the Central African Republic (CAR) and Head of MINUSCA Valentine Rugwabiza. The Council will also hold a private meeting with MINUSCA troop-contributing countries, at which Rugwabiza is expected to participate.
Several Middle Eastern issues will be addressed in October.
The Security Council will hold its quarterly open debate on “The situation in the Middle East, including the Palestinian question”, which Gerapetritis is expected to chair. The anticipated briefer is Acting Special Coordinator and Resident Coordinator at the Office of the UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process (UNSCO) Ramiz Alakbarov.
Assistant Secretary-General for the Middle East, Asia and the Pacific Mohamed Khaled Khiari will also brief Council members in closed consultations on the work of the UN Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF) in the Golan.
The Council will also hold its monthly briefing on Yemen. Special Envoy for Yemen Hans Grundberg and an official from the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) are expected to brief. A civil society representative may also brief. Closed consultations are scheduled to follow the open briefing.
There will be a meeting on political and humanitarian developments in Syria. The anticipated briefers are Deputy Special Envoy for Syria Claudio Cordone, an OCHA official, and a civil society representative.
On Lebanon, Council members are expected to be briefed in closed consultations by Under-Secretary-General for Political and Peacebuilding Affairs Rosemary DiCarlo on the Secretary-General’s report on the implementation of resolution 1559. (Adopted in 2004, the resolution called for the withdrawal of foreign forces from Lebanon, the disarmament of all militias, and the extension of government control over the whole Lebanese territory.) Members are also likely to continue considering options for possible arrangements after the termination of the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) to support the continued implementation of resolution 1701, which in 2006 called for a cessation of hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah.
The Security Council is expected to hold a meeting on the Iraq-Kuwait file. The meeting will feature a briefing on the Secretary-General’s report on the implementation of resolution 2792 of 17 September 2025, which authorised the appointment of a Senior Representative with a mandate to promote, support, and facilitate efforts to repatriate or return missing Kuwaiti and third country nationals and missing Kuwaiti property. Senior Representative Mari Yamashita is the anticipated briefer.
Two issues in the Americas will be discussed this month. The Council expects to renew the 2653 Haiti sanctions regime ahead of its 17 October expiry. It also plans to hold a briefing, followed by consultations, on the situation in Haiti. Briefings are expected from Special Representative and Head of the UN Integrated Office in Haiti (BINUH) Carlos Ruiz Massieu, Special Representative for the Gang Suppression Force (GSF) Jack Christofides, and a civil society representative.
The Council expects to vote on a draft resolution renewing the mandate of the UN Verification Mission in Colombia before its 31 October expiry. Ahead of that, it will also hold its quarterly meeting on Colombia. Special Representative and Head of the UN Verification Mission in Colombia Miroslav Jenča is the anticipated briefer.
Regarding European issues, the Council will hold its semi-annual briefing on the situation in Kosovo. Special Representative and Head of the UN Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK) Peter Due is expected to brief.
The semi-annual debate on Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) will be held in October. The Council is also expected to vote at the end of the month on the reauthorisation of the EU-led multinational stabilisation force in BiH (EUFOR ALTHEA) prior to its 1 November expiry.
As in previous months, the Council may hold one or more meetings on Ukraine in October.
Council members will continue following closely the crisis in the Middle East and any spillover effects, such as disruption to freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz and the Bab al-Mandab Strait. Additionally, they are likely to continue monitoring developments in Ethiopia.
In October, Council members are expected to continue conducting “straw polls” to gauge support for candidates for the position of UN Secretary-General. During today’s press briefing on this month’s programme of work, Ambassador Aglaia Balta (Greece) said that “October is the month when we need to make progress and even agree on the new Secretary-General”. She added that the presidency intends to continue consulting with other Council members on the matter, including on the use of colour-coded ballots.