UNSC
To Belatedly
Meet Jan 3 on
Central
African
Republic,
& Yemen
By
Matthew
Russell Lee,
Exclusive
UNITED
NATIONS,
January 2, updated
-- As the US,
France, China
and other
evacuated
their citizens
from Central
African
Republic, and
the UN pulled
out
all of its
international
staff, the UN
Security
Council has
not held
a meeting
about CAR
since December
19.
On
January 2 as
each Security
Council member
came to meet
with January's
Council
president
Pakistan,
Inner City
Press asked
when they
might at
least get a
briefing about
the Seleka
rebels'
advance on
Bangui.
French
Permanent
Representative
Gerard Araud
said there
"could" be
a meeting, but
it's "the
regional
organizations
that are in
charge." This
was not the
approach taken
when the M23
rebels
moved on Goma;
so much for
consistency.
Inner
City Press
asked US
Deputy
Permanent
Representative
Rosemary
DiCarlo
is there would
be a Council
meeting about
the Central
African
Republic
before the
regular,
pre-scheduled
one about the
UN's
political
mission there
-- all of
whose
international
staff have
been
removed.
Ambassador
DiCarlo
told Inner
City Press,
""I think
there will be
one." Later
other
diplomats
confirmed a
briefing for
January 3
in the
afternoon,
after the
Council meets
to adopt its
program of
work for
January.
One
of the new
Council
members, more
open than the
rest, told
Inner City
Press
exclusively
that the
Thursday
afternoon
Council
session will
also concern
Yemen, and a
possible
Council trip
there.
On
Central
African
Republic, at
Wednesday's UN
noon briefing,
the first
since December
21, Secretary
General Ban
Ki-moon's
spokesman
Martin
Nesirky
confirmed that
all UN
international
staff were out
of the
country, but
said that
envoy Margaret
Vogt is in
touch with the
Department of
Political
Affairs.
But is she in
touch with
Bozize?
What is the
UN's role now?
What has this
political
mission being
doing?*
[See below.]
Footnote:
All of the
five new
Security
Council
members sent
their
Permanent
Representatives
for bilateral
meetings with
January's
President,
Pakistan's
Permanent
Representative
Masood Khan.
This
was true for
two of the
Council's
Permanent Five
members.
Chinese
Permanent
Representative
Li Baodong
stopped and
noted Kim Jong
Un's overture
to South
Korea, saying
that it is
important to
facilitate
better
relations on
the Peninsula.
Some
might say,
this make
follow up on
the Council's
elements to
the press
about the
launch less
likely. Watch
this site.
Update
of 3:40 pm --
after
publication,
this came in:
From:
UN
Spokesperson -
Do Not Reply
[at] un.org
Date: Wed, Jan
2, 2013 at
3:33 PM
Subject:
Questions
To: Matthew
Russell Lee
[at]
innercitypress.com
On the Central
African
Republic: But
is she in
touch with
Bozize? What
is the UN's
role now? What
has this
political
mission being
doing?
As made clear
at the noon
briefing,
while as a
security
precaution,
international
staff have now
all been
temporarily
relocated
outside the
country, we
remain engaged
in efforts to
resolve the
crisis. The
Special
Representative
has remained
in close
dialogue with
the key
parties in the
Central
African
Republic and
the region and
has offered
support to
political
negotiations.
, 
