UN
United Nations Peacekeeping
3 Mar
2009
Security Council takes steps to strengthen eight-month old arms embargo on eastern DRC
Unanimously Adopts Resolution 1533 (2004)
Reiterating its concern at the abiding insecurity and the flow of illegal weapons throughout the Democratic Republic of the Congo -– driven chiefly by armed groups and militia in North and South Kivu and in Ituri -- the Security Council today established a Committee to monitor progress in implementing an eight-month old arms embargo against all foreign and Congolese armed groups operating in the east of the country. The Council also authorized the United Nations Mission there to seize or collect, and to dispose of arms or related material found in violation of the ban.
Reiterating its concern at the abiding insecurity and the flow of illegal weapons throughout the Democratic Republic of the Congo -– driven chiefly by armed groups and militia in North and South Kivu and in Ituri -- the Security Council today established a Committee to monitor progress in implementing an eight-month old arms embargo against all foreign and Congolese armed groups operating in the east of the country. The Council also authorized the United Nations Mission there to seize or collect, and to dispose of arms or related material found in violation of the ban.
Acting under Chapter VII of the Charter, the Security Council unanimously adopted resolution 1533 (2004), which condemned the continuing illicit flow of weapons into the Democratic Republic of the Congo and declared the 15-nation body's determination to closely monitor compliance with the arms embargo imposed by its resolution 1493 (2003). That text demanded that States, particularly those in the region, ensure that no direct military or financial assistance was given to the movements and armed groups present in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
The Committee established by today's action would report to the Council regularly on its work, with its observations and recommendations, in particular, ways to strengthen the effectiveness of the measures aiming to prevent the direct, indirect supply, sale or transfer of arms and related materiel and the provision of training or military assistance to all foreign and Congolese armed groups in the east of the country. States were requested to report to the Committee within 60 days on their actions taken in this regard.
Further by the text, the Secretary-General was requested, in consultation with the Committee, to create, within 30 days, and for a period expiring on 28 July 2004, a group of experts consisting of no more than four members, to examine and analyse relevant information gathered by the United Nations Organization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUC) in its efforts to monitor the arms embargo. For its part, MONUC was requested to continue to use all means to monitor the movements and presence of armed groups, and to continue its inspections, without notice, of aircraft cargo or of any transport vehicle using ports, airfields and military bases and border crossings in North and South Kivu and in Ituri.
The text also underscored the right of the Congolese people to control over their natural resources and stressed the need for all States to work to bring an end to the illegal exploitation of such resources, as well as trafficking in the region's raw materials.
Following the adoption of the text, Stuart Holliday (United States) said the move represented a "critical step forward" and that it created a Sanctions Committee that could and should play a key role in bringing coordinated, unified Council and international pressure against those who continued to ship arms into the Democratic Republic of the Congo, in direct violation of existing multilateral restrictions.
He said the Council had an obligation and a responsibility to take all necessary steps to ensure that its decisions were respected and upheld by all parties, whether the situation involved the Congo, or other areas of conflict in the world. When instances of non-compliance with Council directives were brought to that body's attention, it must respond promptly, in a unified action. While, today's resolution provided the Council with helpful tools, he added that the value of information and recommendations brought to its attention -- by experts and others –- would be lost if it failed to act in response to such findings.
Sohail Mahmood of Pakistan said that, in the context of illegal exploitation of Congolese resources, his delegation had always stressed the need to eliminate the root causes of such practices, as well as the financial implications of trafficking in raw materials. Pakistan would have wished that the resolution just adopted had better reflected that view. But, in the spirit of consensus, Pakistan had voted in favour and would continue to support the Council's efforts in this regard.
The Committee established by today's action would report to the Council regularly on its work, with its observations and recommendations, in particular, ways to strengthen the effectiveness of the measures aiming to prevent the direct, indirect supply, sale or transfer of arms and related materiel and the provision of training or military assistance to all foreign and Congolese armed groups in the east of the country. States were requested to report to the Committee within 60 days on their actions taken in this regard.
Further by the text, the Secretary-General was requested, in consultation with the Committee, to create, within 30 days, and for a period expiring on 28 July 2004, a group of experts consisting of no more than four members, to examine and analyse relevant information gathered by the United Nations Organization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUC) in its efforts to monitor the arms embargo. For its part, MONUC was requested to continue to use all means to monitor the movements and presence of armed groups, and to continue its inspections, without notice, of aircraft cargo or of any transport vehicle using ports, airfields and military bases and border crossings in North and South Kivu and in Ituri.
The text also underscored the right of the Congolese people to control over their natural resources and stressed the need for all States to work to bring an end to the illegal exploitation of such resources, as well as trafficking in the region's raw materials.
Following the adoption of the text, Stuart Holliday (United States) said the move represented a "critical step forward" and that it created a Sanctions Committee that could and should play a key role in bringing coordinated, unified Council and international pressure against those who continued to ship arms into the Democratic Republic of the Congo, in direct violation of existing multilateral restrictions.
He said the Council had an obligation and a responsibility to take all necessary steps to ensure that its decisions were respected and upheld by all parties, whether the situation involved the Congo, or other areas of conflict in the world. When instances of non-compliance with Council directives were brought to that body's attention, it must respond promptly, in a unified action. While, today's resolution provided the Council with helpful tools, he added that the value of information and recommendations brought to its attention -- by experts and others –- would be lost if it failed to act in response to such findings.
Sohail Mahmood of Pakistan said that, in the context of illegal exploitation of Congolese resources, his delegation had always stressed the need to eliminate the root causes of such practices, as well as the financial implications of trafficking in raw materials. Pakistan would have wished that the resolution just adopted had better reflected that view. But, in the spirit of consensus, Pakistan had voted in favour and would continue to support the Council's efforts in this regard.
