Cooperation between the United Nations and the League of Arab States

Posted by admin
Posted in UNSC

COOPERATION BETWEEN THE UN AND REGIONAL AND SUBREGIONAL ORGANIZATIONS (LEAGUE OF ARAB STATES)

Carolyn Oppong-Ntiri (Mrs)
Deputy Permanent Representative
June 08, 2023

Thank you, Mr. President, Your Excellency Khalifa Shaheen
My delegation welcomes your participation in this important meeting on the cooperation between the UN and subregional organisations, focusing on the League of Arab States. We thank the Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs, Rosemary DiCarlo, and the League of Arab States Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul Gheit for their insightful briefings. We are also grateful to the civil society representative Dr. Omnia El Omrani, for her perspectives on the subject.

Mr. President,
Close cooperation between the United Nations and regional organizations remains indispensable to addressing peace and security challenges confronting various parts of the world. It is not surprising that Chapter VIII of the Charter of the United Nations acknowledges the critical role of regional organizations in the maintenance of peace and security in the world. Harnessing the combined global experience of the United Nations and the local knowledge of regional organizations of the dynamics of the political, security, and other developmental challenges in their respective regions are critical to resolving many of the crises we are confronted with. The intractable nature of some of the issues in the Arab world on the Agenda of the Security Council, including the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the Lebanese crisis, and the Yemeni conflict, justify today’s meeting, as it offers an opportunity for a re-think of strategy and approach in dealing decisively with the challenges. These conflicts continue to undermine the stability and development potentials of the region with security implications for the rest of the world.

In this regard, there is a need for enhanced collective regional and international efforts to find lasting solutions to the conflicts in the Arab world. To make a meaningful impact in resolving the crises in the region, we express our full support for the conscious incorporation of local and regional concerns and perspectives into every peacebuilding initiative. We believe that the United Nations Liaison Office to the League of Arab States, if properly equipped, will be instrumental in spearheading this push for renewed coordination and collaboration in addressing challenges confronting the region. It is against this backdrop that I make the following points:

First, we welcome the recent restoration of diplomatic ties between the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Islamic Republic of Iran as a positive development, as improved bilateral relations between the two countries could be instrumental in the peaceful resolution of some of the regional conflicts. We note, in particular, the positive and detailed discussions currently engaged in by the parties to the Yemeni conflict with the support of regional stakeholders. The UN and the League of Arab States must seize this moment to get the parties to reach a permanent ceasefire agreement to create the needed condition for resuming a Yemeni-led Yemeni-owned political process under the aegis of the United Nations.

Secondly, the recent readmission of Syria into the League of Arab States gives the League a strategic stake in the search for a solution to the Syrian conflict. We fervently hope Members of the League of Arab States will leverage the reinvigorated bond of fraternal relations to help end the country’s crisis. The setting up of a Ministerial Committee comprising the Secretary-General of the League, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Iraq, Lebanon and Egypt is a step in the right direction, and we call on the Syrian Authorities to engage constructively with the Committee to address the main drivers of the conflict and pertinent issues of concern to its Arab neighbours. These renewed efforts should complement the ongoing work of the UN Envoy in charting an inclusive political path to a sustainable solution that will address the concerns and grievances of all parties to the Syrian conflict in accordance with resolution 2254 (2015). To this end, we encourage the Committee to reach out to all parties, including women, with a view to comprehensively addressing all grievances fuelling the conflict.

Thirdly, we support strengthening trilateral cooperation among the LAS, the AU and the UN. Strengthening cooperation among the three organizations is critical to effectively deal with the challenges afflicting countries like Libya, Somalia and Sudan, considering their dual membership of the AU and the LAS. In Libya, for instance, bolstering the support of the three organizations for national dialogue and reconciliation efforts and the holding of inclusive elections in the country this year could help quicken the pace of resolution of the crisis. On this note, we renew our
condemnation of the presence of foreign forces on Libyan soil as it not only undermines the country’s territorial integrity but also derails every effort at finding a solution to the conflict.

Mr. President,
As we reaffirm our support to African leadership in the search for peace in Sudan, we underscore the need for coordination of the various roles played by the UN, the AU, the Intergovernmental Authority on Development, and the League of Arab States to ensure coherence and effectiveness in the efforts to secure a viable peace process, and the resumption of the transition to democracy in the country. More importantly, there is a need to deepen collaboration between the United Nations and the League of Arab States to help revive the Middle East peace process. We must not waver in our commitment to advancing the peace process to give rise to a two-state solution based on the pre-1967 borders to give true meaning to the legitimate aspirations of the Palestinian people in a way that guarantees security for the State of Israel. As a troop-contributing country to the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon, we remain concerned that the socioeconomic and financial crisis in the country continues to affect ordinary citizens severely. The League and the UN need to redouble efforts to assist the Lebanese people in putting in place an effective political leadership to urgently navigate the people of Lebanon out of their current predicament through meaningful political, economic, and financial reforms.

Finally, we share the concerns of the civil society briefer on the impact of climate change as a factor in exacerbating conflict in the developing world. As the United Arab Emirates is preparing to take on its presidency for the twenty-eighth session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, we need to remind ourselves of the devastating effects of climate change and our collective obligation to adopt mitigation strategies to deal with the challenge. In conclusion, we remain resolute in our support for deeper and more productive cooperation between the United Nations and the League of Arab Statesto address the region’s challenges.

I thank you for your attention.