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Security Council discusses ways to improve support for United Nations peacekeeping operations; Members stress need for clear mandates, importance of humanitarian efforts, electoral assistance, adequate resources, economic reconstruction -- Page 2 of 2.

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M2 PRESSWIRE-29 August 2003-UN: Security Council discusses ways to improve support for United Nations peacekeeping operations; Members stress need for clear mandates, importance of humanitarian efforts, electoral assistance, adequate resources, economic reconstruction -- Page 2 of 2(C)1994-2003 M2 COMMUNICATIONS LTD

RDATE:08282003

EMYR JONES PARRY (United Kingdom) paid tribute to the men and women who had risked their lives to carry out peacekeeping operations, often in more difficult situations of intra- and inter-State conflict. What was needed was an efficient, targeted effort across a spectrum involving, among other aspects, peacekeeping, peace-building and reform towards the creation of democratic, sovereign, stable States. Post-conflict peacekeeping was a consequence of earlier failures. Thus, an earlier warning system was crucial to allow for the opportunity to act properly and intervene as necessary. Prevention was very much better than cure.

But peacekeeping should be part of an integrated, multidimensional approach -- an essential element of which was the development of justice in transition.

Regarding "partners" in peacekeeping, he said the United Nations normally and properly took the lead, but it worked with regional organizations, countries in need of help, their neighbours and others.

The representatives of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) yesterday had emphasized how effort on the ground could be much improved by regional input. When regional organizations or individual States undertook peace operations, it was preferable that those were covered by a Council resolution, although that was not always possible.

Always necessary was that such activities were consistent with the United Nations Charter.

He asked whether enough was being done to help regional organizations and whether there was enough practical military support and training.

Those were among the many elements required, in order to deploy a coherent military force in a way that, when it hit the ground as a multinational presence, it could operate effectively and with guaranteed security for all participants. That was a formidable task, and the question was whether enough support was being provided towards that goal. Peace operations required readily deployable and trained troops with robust rules of engagement, early preparation, firm leadership, prompt decisions by the Council and, above all, strong political will.

History had demonstrated that prompt intervention could "quench the appetite for conflict"; however, confronting crisis "out there" depended on the political will of the nations "in here".

MICHEL DUCLOS (France) said that since the Brahimi report, United Nations peacekeeping had achieved significant progress, and it was important to continue trying to improve performance even further.

A specific case before the Council was the Democratic Republic of the Congo, which allowed for the drawing of some important lessons, he said. In approving an emergency force for Bunia and expanding the mandate of the United Nations Organization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUC), the Council had acted urgently without locking itself in the security approach alone. It had also focused on the political dimension of the problem, in particular during the period of...