Security Council: Reform Key is Two African Nations as Permanent Members (Guterres)
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres highlighted the pressing need for Security Council reform to include two African nations as permanent members during a press conference in Addis Ababa, as reported by the organization’s press service.
“There is now a consensus among member states that the Security Council must be reformed, and a key aspect of that reform is to have two African members as permanent members,” he stated alongside Moussa Faki Mahamat, Chairperson of the African Union Commission.
In this context, Guterres pointed out that several decisions have been made regarding “the capacity to deepen our cooperation with the African Union in areas such as prevention, mediation, peacebuilding, and collaboration to address the numerous conflicts affecting both Africa and the world today.”
“I returned from the summit with the conviction that the conditions are now ripe for the international community to begin delivering justice to the African peoples,” he added.
Co-chairing the 8th Annual African Union-United Nations Conference in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, the UN Secretary-General underscored the importance of ongoing collaboration between the two organizations as they embark on the implementation of the Pact for the Future, which was adopted by UN member states in September in New York.
Furthermore, discussions at the conference centered on the progress made in executing cooperation frameworks between the two organizations, as well as the implementation of Security Council Resolution 2719, which establishes the funding framework for peace support operations conducted by the African Union through mandatory contributions from the UN. This was highlighted by Farhan Haq, Deputy Spokesperson for the UN Secretary-General, during a press briefing in New York.
Participants also addressed challenges related to peace, security, development, human rights, and the impact of climate change on the African continent, along with the execution of the Pact for the Future.
