Cease-fire proposal to UN Security Council removes WHO references
Source:AFP Published: 2020/5/13 18:33:40
Germany and Estonia submitted on Tuesday a resolution to the UN Security Council on a cease-fire in various conflicts around the world during the coronavirus pandemic, to replace one drafted by France and Tunisia that the United States has blocked.
Such a move is intended to help some 20 countries in crisis or at war battle the coronavirus, but it is unclear if concrete steps on the ground have been taken.
The resolution borrows from the French-Tunisian proposal, using language agreed upon by the 15 Council members during negotiations that have been ongoing since March or that had been used in previous resolutions, such as making cease-fire exceptions to battle jihadist groups.
As in the French-Tunisian resolution, the new proposal calls for a "humanitarian pause for at least 90 consecutive days" in order to allow for the delivery of aid to the hardest-hit communities.
A date has not yet been set for the vote, but it could happen quickly if none of the five permanent Council members threatens to use its veto, as when Washington criticized the mention of the World Health Organization (WHO) in the French-Tunisian resolution.
The German-Estonian text makes no mention of the WHO.
The new resolution was proposed Tuesday during a teleconference held behind closed doors and organized by Estonia, which holds the rotating presidency of the Security Council. The resolution was submitted in the afternoon.
The US stunned the Council on Friday by blocking the resolution from going forward, stating that Washington "cannot support the current draft."
The reversal came a day after Washington had agreed to the text, negotiators said on condition of anonymity.
The US State Department said the Security Council "should either proceed with a resolution limited to support for a ceasefire, or a broadened resolution" that addressed the issues of transparency and responsibility.
Washington had threatened to use its veto if there were any explicit reference to the WHO, which President Donald Trump has accused of downplaying the seriousness of the virus outbreak.
"We must find a way out from this deadlock," Estonia's ambassador to the UN, Sven Jurgenson, told AFP.
"It is [a] real shame that we, the Security Council, have not been able to fulfill our responsibility on this matter," he said, adding he hoped to quickly come to an agreement.
For two months, "despite the differences in positions and perceptions that still hinder consensus, discussions among member states have been important and constructive," Tunisia's UN Ambassador Kais Kabtani told AFP.
Newspaper headline: New resolution on pandemic truce
United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres (3rd R, front) addresses a Security Council meeting on Women, Peace and Security Agenda at the UN headquarters in New York, October 29, 2019. Photo: Xinhua
Encompassing five major points - compared to the previous draft's nine - the proposal by the two non-permanent members of the Security Council was seen by AFP "demands a general and immediate cessation of hostilities in all situations on its agenda."Such a move is intended to help some 20 countries in crisis or at war battle the coronavirus, but it is unclear if concrete steps on the ground have been taken.
The resolution borrows from the French-Tunisian proposal, using language agreed upon by the 15 Council members during negotiations that have been ongoing since March or that had been used in previous resolutions, such as making cease-fire exceptions to battle jihadist groups.
As in the French-Tunisian resolution, the new proposal calls for a "humanitarian pause for at least 90 consecutive days" in order to allow for the delivery of aid to the hardest-hit communities.
A date has not yet been set for the vote, but it could happen quickly if none of the five permanent Council members threatens to use its veto, as when Washington criticized the mention of the World Health Organization (WHO) in the French-Tunisian resolution.
The German-Estonian text makes no mention of the WHO.
The new resolution was proposed Tuesday during a teleconference held behind closed doors and organized by Estonia, which holds the rotating presidency of the Security Council. The resolution was submitted in the afternoon.
The US stunned the Council on Friday by blocking the resolution from going forward, stating that Washington "cannot support the current draft."
The reversal came a day after Washington had agreed to the text, negotiators said on condition of anonymity.
The US State Department said the Security Council "should either proceed with a resolution limited to support for a ceasefire, or a broadened resolution" that addressed the issues of transparency and responsibility.
Washington had threatened to use its veto if there were any explicit reference to the WHO, which President Donald Trump has accused of downplaying the seriousness of the virus outbreak.
"We must find a way out from this deadlock," Estonia's ambassador to the UN, Sven Jurgenson, told AFP.
"It is [a] real shame that we, the Security Council, have not been able to fulfill our responsibility on this matter," he said, adding he hoped to quickly come to an agreement.
For two months, "despite the differences in positions and perceptions that still hinder consensus, discussions among member states have been important and constructive," Tunisia's UN Ambassador Kais Kabtani told AFP.
Newspaper headline: New resolution on pandemic truce
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