UNSC CONSIDERS NEXT STEPS ON LIBERIA/DRC SANCTIONS

UNCLAS USUN NEW YORK 001196 SENSITIVE SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: DRC PREL UNSC PGOV ETTC SUBJECT: UNSC CONSIDERS NEXT STEPS ON LIBERIA/DRC SANCTIONS ¶1. (SBU) SUMMARY: The UN Security Council (UNSC) on 17 December heard briefings from the chairs of the UNSC Liberia Sanctions Committee and the UNSC Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) Sanctions Committee detailing recent reports from the UN expert bodies tasked with monitoring implementation of the sanctions regimes in each country. The chair of the DRC Sanctions Committee noted troubling allegations in the DRC report, among them that the Armed Forces of the DRC (FARDC) has been fighting alongside the FDLR, that Rwandan authorities are active supporters of the CNDP, and that the illicit exploitation of natural resources continues in the DRC. Italy, Costa Rica, Belgium, China and Vietnam echoed these concerns. The chair of the Liberia Sanctions Committee recognized progress in Liberia, including on diamonds and forestry, but noted that a number of overarching issues continue to have the potential to affect security. The United States introduced a draft UNSC resolution to renew Liberia sanctions for another year and noted the important role sanctions have played in supporting Liberia's democratic development. END SUMMARY. THE DRC: ALLEGATIONS OF WORRYING LINKAGES -------------- ¶2. (SBU) Indonesian Permanent Representative Natalegawa, chair of the DRC Sanctions Committee, noted in his presentation that the UN Group of Experts (GOE) assessing implementation of the sanctions in the DRC made several disturbing allegations in their report, including that Rwandan authorities have been complicit in the recruitment of children by the CNDP rebel group operating in eastern DRC and that there is extensive collaboration between the FARDC and the FDLR and PARECO rebel groups. He said the GOE also reported that some UN member states fail to implement the sanctions because they are unaware they exist, that the FDLR gains revenues in the order of millions of USD from the minerals trade, including through the taxation of mines and trade routes, and that the FARDC is a major source of arms through leaks, sale, loss, and theft. The Chair noted that the GOE made a series of recommendations to address problems in the regime, including that the DRC Sanctions Committee promote broad-based compliance with and implementation of the general arms embargo, and that the Committee request the DRC government to tell the FARDC that collaboration with non-governmental armed groups is prohibited. ¶3. (SBU) In response, several Council members deplored the situation in DRC and called for more serious efforts to implement the sanctions. Italy, stressing its hope that the UNSC will act in a timely manner to resolve the situation in the DRC, noted that serious violations of human rights and humanitarian law in the DRC must not go unaddressed and that the ongoing illicit exploitation of natural resources is a serious concern. Costa Rica supported the GOE's work in addressing child recruitment and the exploitation of natural resources to fuel the fighting in the DRC, noting further that San Jose firmly supports the GOE's recommendations and disagrees with those who might feel they infringe on the DRC's national sovereignty. Costa Rica also expressed concern over the lack of awareness among some member states of the regime and called for a more active Council role in working with governments in the region to ensure proper implementation. Belgium noted that the situation in the eastern part of the DRC reaffirms the importance of effective sanctions regimes and stressed further the need for more robust action to address the exploitation of natural resources and for countries in the region to cooperate. China supported the Chair's intention to refer the GOE's report to the Permanent Representatives of Rwanda and the DRC. Burkina Faso noted its support for most of the GOE's conclusions, the initiatives in play to resolve the conflict in the DRC, and the crucial role of MONUC. LIBERIA: MORE PROGRESS, BUT SANCTIONS FOR ANOTHER YEAR -------------- ¶4. (SBU) Libyan Permanent Representative Etthali, chair of the Liberia Sanctions Committee, provided a relatively more optimistic description of continued progress but lingering problems in Liberia throughout his presentation of the UN's Liberia Panel of Expert's (POE) report. On diamonds, for example, he said the POE determined that progress has been made since May 2008 and that a number of the issues which were considered to pose threats to the integrity of Liberia's system have been resolved, including the appointment of an independent diamond valuator. He cautioned, however, that the POE report also documents alleged recruitment and movement of arms as well as a lack of regulation of natural resource sectors. The POE recommended, among other things, that Liberia strengthen the capacity of its law enforcement agencies to monitor borders and reassess its strategy for allocating commercial timber concessions, and that the Security Council direct the UN Mission in Liberia to continue to support Liberia's security sector reform efforts and to help Liberia establish control over its natural resources. Permanent Representative Etthali also noted that since 16 June 2008 the Liberia Sanctions Committee has removed the names of four individuals from its travel ban and assets freeze lists, for a total of ten individuals in 2008, continuing a trend toward the conditioned lifting of sanctions related to Liberia. ¶5. (SBU) Following this presentation, Ambassador DiCarlo formally introduced a U.S.-drafted UNSC resolution renewing the travel ban and arms embargo in Liberia, which will come to a vote on 19 December. The assets freeze, she noted, which remains in place until the UNSC decides otherwise, is unchanged. Ambassador DiCarlo emphasized the important role targeted sanctions have played in supporting Liberia's democratic development. ¶6. (SBU) Electronic copies of the two UN expert reports and of each Chair's statement are available by contacting Lorraine Konzet (lkonzet@state.gov). Khalilzad