UNSC/PBC: CONSULTATIONS ON THE PEACEBUILDING

UNCLAS USUN NEW YORK 000075 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PREL ECON UNSC KPKO SUBJECT: UNSC/PBC: CONSULTATIONS ON THE PEACEBUILDING COMMISSION, JANUARY 23 REF: STATE 8026 ¶1. (U) Summary. The Security Council held closed consultations on the Peacebuilding Commission (PBC) on Tuesday, January 23, in advance of the January 31 open debate. The Russians, as Council President for January, sought to use the Council's engagement this month to exert leadership over a body that is widely understood to be adrift in its first year. While the discussion in the Council was largely constructive, though almost uniformly critical of the performance of the PBC to date, the debate outside the Council still appears fixed on the question of competing authority over the PBC. In response to the Security Council's efforts, the NAM requested a PBC Organizational Committee meeting (held January 30) and a General Assembly debate on the same subject (scheduled for February 6). As a signal of continued Council interest in the subject, the Slovaks have suggested another round of PBC consultations on February 26. End Summary. ¶2. (U) In Council consultations on January 23, A/SYG Carolyn McAskie briefed members on the work of the PBC and the Peacebuilding Support Office (PBSO),the Secretariat office formed to support the PBC's work. She noted that the PBC's link to the Council was critical and the PBC was "still looking at how best to express that link." She said the strength of the PBC was its ability to bring together all relevant bodies in the peacebuilding process. The PBC would meet its mandate of marshaling resources for peacebuilding if it were able to "inform" appropriate donor fora of specific needs but not, "dissolve into another donor forum" itself. ¶3. (U) European members of the Council, including the UK and France, called for a much more dynamic and aggressive PBC, particularly in-country. The UK suggested that the PBC needs to set specific goals for the next six months, including the establishment of annual workplans for the countries identified, the creation of in-country mechanisms for consultations, and agreement on new countries to consider. Belgium argued that the Council needed to "empower" the PBC by tasking it to provide specific advice on the countries currently under consideration (Burundi and Sierra Leone) and then responding to that advice in the formation of relevant Council mandates. Italy argued that the PBC needed to bring in the private sector. ¶4. (U) China argued that the PBC must not spread itself too thin without first "establishing the brand" through some concrete and tangible success in the first two countries concerned. China called for a narrow focus on concrete, specific work that strengthens the "lead role" of the country under consideration. Russia argued that the PBC should serve to strengthen the coordination mechanisms that already exist within the UN system, and not undermine them. ¶5. (U) South Africa's Dumisani Kumalo argued that the PBC had "lost its way" and continues to mean different things to different people. "We are worried, as Africans," he said, "as there is a limit to what the Security Council and peacekeepers can do." The objective of the PBC was to help countries stand on their own "after the peacekeepers leave." The PBC should not become about disbursements, as "it will never have the resources of the World Bank or the UNDP." The PBC could help fill this gap if it coordinated integrated strategies that "made a difference on the ground." ¶6. (U) Other delegations agreed that the PBC had gotten off to a difficult start. Panama noted that the PBC's complicated format and "turf struggles" within the UN system had hindered the body's ability to get down to work. Congo said that it was clear the Security Council was "unsure" how to use the PBC, and called on the PBC to focus on development issues. Only Indonesia offered praise for the PBC's country-specific meetings to date. ¶7. (U) Ambassador Wolff drew from reftel points to emphasize U.S. support for the PBC as a means to fill a gap in the UN system between the work of the Security Council and longer-term efforts to build stability in post-conflict societies. "So far, the PBC has not yet met this challenge." Wolff called for specific, concrete results from the PBC on the two countries already on its agenda. We need to approach the work of the PBC with discipline and focus, so that it effectively acts to coordinate work already being done by a wide variety of stakeholders but does not duplicate or complicate their efforts. ¶8. (U) On Thursday, January 22, the French hosted a meeting for the ten members of the Security Council who currently sit on the PBC. A/SYG McAskie told Council Members that she had gotten some criticism from other delegations for appearing before the Security Council (presumably before consulting directly with the PBC). She noted her readiness to defend herself on this account, given the SC's direct role in creating the PBC, but said that it reflected a continuing argument among the broader membership over control of the PBC. The NAM and G-77 are concerned about the Security Council's intensified efforts to engage on peacebuilding efforts (though only Indonesia expressed similar concerns in the Council consultations, and South Africa argued strongly for a robust link between the PBC and the Council). WOLFF