Week 36, 6-10 September 2021

Recent developments at the UNSC

• The Security Council adopted a resolution renewing the Mali sanctions regime on 30 August 2021.
• The Security Council adopted a resolution renewing the mandate of the UN Mission in Lebanon (UNIFIL) on 30 August 2021.
• The Security Council adopted a resolution renewing the mandate of the UN Mission in Somalia (UNSOM) on 30 August 2021.
• The Security Council discussed the situation in the Middle East, including the Palestinian Question, on 30 August 2021. Ambassador Geraldine Byrne Nason called for an end to settlement expansion, settler violence, and demolitions and evictions.
• The Security Council adopted a resolution on Afghanistan on 30 August 2021, which condemned the terrorist attacks on Kabul Airport. The resolution was adopted by a vote of 13 in favour with two abstentions (Russian Federation and China).
• Ireland assumed the rotating Presidency of the Security Council for the month of September on 1 September 2021.
• The Security Council held a meeting on chemical weapons in Syria in the first formal meeting of Ireland’s Presidency on 2 September 2021. Ireland underlined its strong support for the work of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons.

Monday –  6^th September

• UN Official Holiday.

Tuesday – 7^th September  

• The Security Council will receive a briefing from The Elders on the maintenance of international peace and security. Mary Robinson, former President of Ireland and Chair of The Elders, and Lakhdar Brahimi, former UN Special Envoy and Elder Emeritus, are the expected briefers.

Wednesday – 8^th September  

• Ireland will convene a ministerial-level open debate on peacekeeping transitions. Minister for Foreign Affairs and Defence, Simon Coveney, will chair the meeting. UN Secretary-General António Guterres, former President of Liberia Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, and a civil society representative are the anticipated briefers. A resolution on peacekeeping transitions is a possible outcome of the meeting.

Thursday – 9^th September  

• The Security Council will hold its quarterly debate on the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA). Deborah Lyons, the Special Representative for Afghanistan and head of UNAMA, and a civil society representative are expected to brief.

Friday – 10^th September  

• Monthly briefing, followed by consultations, on Yemen. Special Envoy for Yemen Hans Grundberg and Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs Martin Griffiths are expected to brief. A civil society representative may also brief. General Abhijit Guha, head of the UN Mission to support the Hodeidah Agreement (UNMHA) and chair of the Redeployment Coordination Committee (RCC), will brief in consultations.
• The Security Council will convene for a briefing on Libya. Special Representative and head of the UN Support Mission for Libya (UNSMIL) Ján Kubiš is expected to brief. A civil society representative may also brief. The chair of the 1970 Libya Sanctions Committee, Ambassador T.S. Tirumurti (India), is expected to present the periodic report on the committee’s activities.