Africa-Press – Angola. Angola’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Francisco da Cruz, on Tuesday (09) in New York called on the Security Council to ensure full and consistent political and financial support for peacekeeping operations, so they can more effectively fulfill their mandates.
According to a note from the Permanent Mission, the diplomat was speaking at the Security Council meeting on “The Future of Peace Operations – Key Issues, opportunities, and challenges in the context of the review on the future of all UN peace operations,”.
Francisco da Cruz argued that the objective is to create favorable conditions for finding lasting solutions to conflicts.
He stressed that it is essential to consider the role and competitive advantage of regional partners in peacekeeping operations to achieve a comprehensive and effective response to current and emerging threats to peace and security.
The Angolan ambassador also warned of the need to manage the expectations of host country authorities and citizens regarding UN peacekeeping mandates and what missions can realistically accomplish on the ground, in order to avoid legitimacy crises and forced early departures.
He noted that peace missions are going through challenging times, but they remain an “invaluable multilateral instrument” that allows the international community to work together to address complex security challenges.
According to the diplomat, they face unprecedented challenges, driven by the rapidly changing nature of contemporary conflicts due to “complex global geopolitics, the evolution of security threats” such as terrorism and hybrid warfare, the proliferation of non-state actors, and shifting priorities among member states.
Francisco da Cruz also noted that international support for these operations is declining, although they remain an essential tool for protecting civilians in conflict situations and promoting long-term peace and security strategies.
During his speech, the Angolan ambassador emphasized that the challenges and changes affecting peace operations and their future are of great concern to Africa.
“As the continent that hosts the majority of peacekeeping operations in the world, Africa can and must contribute to finding ways to improve the position of peacekeeping as a useful part of the toolkit for advancing peace and security,” he emphasized.
He highlighted Angola’s experience as a country that benefited from four UN missions, authorized by the Security Council, to achieve peace and national reconciliation, emphasizing that these must continue to evolve to adapt to new conflict dynamics and operational environments in order to maintain their strategic relevance.
In this context, he welcomed the adoption of UN Resolution 2719 (2023), which represents an important milestone in the partnership between the UN and the AU for peace and security, as it provides the framework for adequate, predictable and sustainable financing for AU-led peace support operations.
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