VZCZCXRO9856
OO RUEHTRO
DE RUEHC #8948/01 0800233
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O P 200226Z MAR 08
FM SECSTATE WASHDC
TO RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK IMMEDIATE 1019
INFO UN SECURITY COUNCIL COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RUEHBUL/AMEMBASSY KABUL PRIORITY 2925
RUEHNO/USMISSION USNATO PRIORITY 2055
UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 06 STATE 028948
SIPDIS
SIPDIS
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: UNSC PHUM PGOV PREL MARR AF
SUBJECT: AFGHANISTAN - INSTRUCTION FOR UNAMA MANDATE
RENEWAL
1. The Department instructs USUN to join consensus and
vote in favor of the resolution renewing for one year the
UN Mission in Afghanistan's mandate, to be considered by
the Security Council on Thursday, March 20.
2. Begin resolution text:
The Security Council,
PP1 Recalling its previous resolutions on Afghanistan, in
particular its resolution 1746 (2007) extending through 23
March 2008 the mandate of the United Nations Assistance
Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) as established by
resolution 1662 (2006), and recalling also its resolution
1659 (2006) endorsing the Afghanistan Compact,
PP2 Reaffirming its strong commitment to the sovereignty,
independence, territorial integrity and national unity of
Afghanistan,
PP3 Reaffirming its continued support for the Government
and people of Afghanistan as they rebuild their country,
strengthen the foundations of sustainable peace and
constitutional democracy and assume their rightful place
in the community of nations,
PP4 Reaffirming in this context its support for the
implementation, under the ownership of the Afghan people,
of the Afghanistan Compact, of the Afghanistan National
Development Strategy (ANDS) and of the National Drugs
Control Strategy, and noting that sustained and
coordinated efforts by all relevant actors are required to
consolidate progress made towards their implementation and
to overcome continuing challenges,
PP5 Recalling that the Afghanistan Compact is based on a
partnership between the Afghan Government and the
international community, based on the desire of the
parties for Afghanistan to progressively assume
responsibility for its own development and security, and
with a central and impartial coordinating role for the
United Nations,
PP6 Stressing the central and impartial role that the
United Nations continues to play in promoting peace and
stability in Afghanistan by leading the efforts of the
international community, including, jointly with the
Government of Afghanistan, the coordination and monitoring
of efforts in implementing the Afghanistan Compact, and
expressing its appreciation and strong support for the
ongoing efforts of the Secretary-General, his Special
Representative for Afghanistan and the women and men of
UNAMA,
PP7 Recognizing once again the interconnected nature of
the challenges in Afghanistan, reaffirming that
sustainable progress on security, governance and
development, as well as the cross-cutting issue of
counter-narcotics is mutually reinforcing and welcoming
the continuing efforts of the Afghan Government and the
international community to address these challenges
through a comprehensive approach,
PP8 Stressing the importance of a comprehensive approach
in addressing the challenges in Afghanistan and noting, in
this context, the synergies in the objectives of UNAMA and
of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF), and
stressing the need for strengthened cooperation,
coordination and mutual support, taking due account of
their respective designated responsibilities,
PP9 Reiterating its concern about the security situation
in Afghanistan, in particular the increased violent and
terrorist activities by the Taliban, Al-Qaida, illegally
armed groups, criminals and those involved in the
narcotics trade, and the increasingly strong links between
terrorism activities and illicit drugs, resulting in
threats to the local population, including children,
national security forces and international military and
civilian personnel,
PP10 Stressing the importance of ensuring safe and
STATE 00028948 002 OF 006
unhindered access of humanitarian workers, including
United Nations staff and associated personnel,
PP11 Expressing also its concern over the harmful
consequences of violent and terrorist activities by the
Taliban, Al-Qaida and other extremist groups on the
capacity of the Afghan Government to guarantee the rule of
law, to provide security and basic services to the Afghan
people, and to ensure the improvement and protection of
their human rights and fundamental freedoms,
PP12 Recalling the importance of the Kabul Declaration of
22 December 2002 on Good-Neighbourly Relations (Kabul
Declaration) (S/2002/1416), looking forward to the Third
Regional Economic Cooperation Conference on Afghanistan to
be held in Islamabad, and stressing the crucial importance
of advancing regional cooperation as an effective means to
promote security, governance and development in
Afghanistan,
PP13 Welcoming the holding of the Afghan-Pakistani Peace
Jirga in Kabul on August 2007 and the collective
determination expressed at the Jirga to bring sustainable
peace to the region, including by addressing the terrorist
threat, and expressing its support for the relevant
follow-up processes,
PP14 Recalling its resolutions 1265 (1999), 1296 (2000),
1674 (2006), 1738 (2006) on the protection of civilians in
armed conflict, its resolution 1325 (2000) on women and
peace and security, and its resolution 1612 (2005) on
children and armed conflict, and taking note with
appreciation of the 7th report of the Secretary
General (S/2007/757) on Children and Armed Conflict of
21 December 2007,
1. Welcomes the report of the Secretary-General of 6
March 2008 (S/2008/159);
2. Expresses its appreciation for the United Nations'
long-term commitment to work with the Government and the
people of Afghanistan;
3. Decides to extend the mandate of UNAMA, as defined in
its resolutions 1662 (2006) and 1746 (2007), until 23
March 2009;
4. Decides further that UNAMA and the Special
Representative of the Secretary-General, within their
mandate and guided by the principle of reinforcing Afghan
ownership and leadership, will lead the international
civilian efforts to, inter alia:
(a) promote, as co-chair of the Joint Coordination and
Monitoring Board (JCMB), more coherent support by the
international community to the Afghan Government and the
adherence to the principles of aid effectiveness
enumerated in the Afghanistan Compact, including through
mobilization of resources, coordination of the assistance
provided by international donors and organizations, and
direction of the contributions of UN agencies, funds and
programmes, in particular for counter-narcotics,
reconstruction and development activities;
(b) strengthen the cooperation with ISAF at all levels and
throughout the country, in accordance with their existing
mandates, in order to improve civil-military coordination,
to facilitate the timely exchange of information and to
ensure coherence between the activities of national and
international security forces and of civilian actors in
support of an Afghan-led development and stabilization
process, including through engagement with provincial
reconstruction teams and engagement with non-governmental
organizations;
(c) through a strengthened and expanded presence
throughout the country, provide political outreach,
promote at the local level the implementation of the
Compact, of the ANDS and of the National Drugs Control
Strategy, and facilitate inclusion in and understanding of
the Government's policies;
(d) provide good offices to support, if requested by the
Afghan Government, the implementation of Afghan-led
reconciliation programmes, within the framework of the
Afghan Constitution and with full respect of the
implementation of measures introduced by the Security
Council in its resolution 1267 (1999) and other relevant
resolutions of the Council;
(e) support efforts, including through the Independent
Directorate for Local Governance, to improve governance
STATE 00028948 003 OF 006
and the rule of law and to combat corruption, in
particular at sub-national level, and to promote
development initiatives at the local level with a view to
helping bring the benefits of peace and deliver services
in a timely and sustainable manner;
(f) play a central coordinating role to facilitate the
delivery of humanitarian assistance in accordance with
humanitarian principles and with a view to building the
capacity of the Afghan Government, including by providing
effective support to national and local authorities in
assisting and protecting internally displaced persons and
to creating conditions conducive to the voluntary, safe,
dignified and sustainable return of refugees and
internally displaced persons;
(g) continue, with the support of the Office of the United
Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, to cooperate
with the Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission
(AIHRC), to cooperate also with relevant international and
local non-governmental organizations, to monitor the
situation of civilians, to coordinate efforts to ensure
their protection and to assist in the full implementation
of the fundamental freedoms and human rights provisions of
the Afghan Constitution and international treaties to
which Afghanistan is a state party, in particular those
regarding the full enjoyment by women of their human
rights;
(h) support, at the request of the Afghan authorities, a
democratic electoral process, in particular through the Afghan
Independent Electoral Commission (AIEC), by providing
technical assistance, coordinating other international
donors, agencies and organizations providing assistance
and channeling existing and additional funds earmarked to
support the process;
(i) support regional cooperation to work towards a stable
and prosperous Afghanistan;
5. Calls upon all Afghan and international parties to
coordinate with UNAMA in the implementation of its mandate
and in efforts to promote the security and freedom of
movement of United Nations and associated personnel
throughout the country;
6. Stresses the importance of strengthening and expanding
the presence of UNAMA and other UN agencies, funds and
programmes in the provinces, and encourages the
Secretary-General to pursue current efforts to finalize
SIPDIS
the necessary arrangements to address the security issues
associated with such strengthening and expansion;
7. Calls on the Afghan Government, and the international
community and international organizations, to implement
the Afghanistan Compact and its annexes in full, and
stresses in this context the importance of meeting the
benchmarks and timelines of the Compact for progress on
security, governance, rule of law and human rights, and
economic and social development, as well as the
cross-cutting issue of counter-narcotics;
8. Reaffirms the central role played by the JCMB in
coordinating, facilitating and monitoring the
implementation of the Compact, stresses the need to
strengthen its authority and capacity to, inter alia,
measure progress towards the benchmarks outlined in the
Afghanistan Compact and facilitate the coordination of
international assistance in support of the ANDS, and calls
upon all relevant actors to cooperate with the JCMB in
this regard, including by reporting assistance programmes
to the Afghan Government's aid coordination unit and to
the JCMB;
9. Welcomes the progress made by the Afghan Government in
the finalization of the ANDS, looks forward to its launch,
and stresses the importance, in this context, of adequate
resource mobilization, including through the fulfilment of
the pledges made at the London Conference, possible new
pledges and increased assistance to the core budget;
10. Notes with interest the intention, expressed by JCMB
members at the Political Directors Meeting on Afghanistan
held in Tokyo on 5 February 2008, to prepare an
international conference to review progress on the
implementation of the Afghanistan Compact, welcomes the
offer of France to host such conference in Paris in June
2008, and requests the Secretary-General to report to the
Security Council on its outcome and to include in this
report, if necessary, further recommendations concerning
UNAMA's mandate;
STATE 00028948 004 OF 006
11. Calls upon the Afghan Government, with the assistance
of the international community, including the
International Security Assistance Force and Operation
Enduring Freedom coalition, in accordance with their
respective designated responsibilities as they evolve, to
continue to address the threat to the security and
stability of Afghanistan posed by the Taliban, Al-Qaida,
illegally armed groups, criminals and those involved in
the narcotics trade,
12. Condemns in the strongest terms all attacks, including
Improvised Explosive Device (IED) attacks, suicide attacks
and abductions, targeting civilians and Afghan and
international forces and their deleterious effect on the
stabilization, reconstruction and development efforts in
Afghanistan, and condemns further the use by the Taliban
and other extremist groups of civilians as human shields;
13. Reiterates its concern about all civilian casualties,
calls for compliance with international humanitarian and
human rights law and for all appropriate steps to be taken
to ensure the protection of civilians, and recognizes in
this context the robust efforts taken by ISAF and other
international forces to minimize the risk of civilian
casualties, notably the continuous review of tactics and
procedures and the conduct of after-action reviews in
cooperation with the Afghan Government in cases where
civilian casualties have reportedly occurred;
14. Expresses its strong concern about the recruitment and
use of children by Taliban forces in Afghanistan as well
as the killing and maiming of children as a result of the
conflict, reiterates its strong condemnation of the
recruitment and use of child soldiers in violation of
applicable international law and all other violations and
abuses committed against children in situations of armed
conflict, and stresses the importance of implementing
Security Council resolution 1612 (2005); in this context,
requests the Secretary-General to strengthen the child
protection component of UNAMA, in particular through the
appointment of child protection advisers;
15. Stresses the importance of increasing, in a
comprehensive framework, the functionality,
professionalism and accountability of the Afghan security
sector through training, mentoring and empowerment
efforts, in order to accelerate progress towards the goal
of self-sufficient and ethnically balanced Afghan security
forces providing security and ensuring the rule of law and the
respect for human rights throughout the country;
16. Welcomes in this context the continued progress in the
development of the Afghan National Army and its improved
ability to plan and undertake operations, and encourages
sustained training efforts, including through the
Operational Mentoring and Liaison Teams (OMLTs), and
advise in developing a sustainable defence planning
process as well as assistance in defence reform
initiatives;
17. Calls for further efforts to enhance the capabilities
of the Afghan National Police in order to reinforce the
authority of the Afghan Government throughout the country,
welcomes the increasing role played by the International
Police Coordination Board in policy setting and
coordination, and stresses the importance, in this
context, of the contribution of the European Union through
its police mission (EUPOL Afghanistan);
18. Calls for further progress in the implementation by
the Afghan Government, with support from the international
community, of the programme of disbandment of illegal
armed groups (DIAG);
19. Expresses its concern at the serious harm that
increasing opium cultivation, production and trafficking
causes to the security, development and governance of
Afghanistan as well as to the region and internationally;
calls on the Afghan Government, with the assistance of the
internatibnal community, to accelerate the implementation
of the National Drug Control Strategy as discussed at the
JCMB meeting held in Tokyo in February 2008, in particular
at the local level, and to mainstream counter-narcotics
throughout national programmes; encourages additional
international support for the four priorities identified
in that Strategy, including through contributions to the
Counter Narcotics Trust Fund;
STATE 00028948 005 OF 006
20. Calls upon States to strengthen international and
regional cooperation to counter the threat to the
international community posed by the illicit production
and trafficking of drugs originated in Afghanistan,
including through border management cooperation in drug
control and cooperation for the fight against the illicit
trafficking in drugs and precursors and against money
laundering linked to such trafficking, taking into account
the outcome of the Second Ministerial Conference on Drug
Trafficking Routes from Afghanistan organized by the
Government of the Russian Federation in cooperation with
the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime held in
Moscow from 26 to 28 June 2006 (S/2006/598), within the
framework of the Paris Pact initiative,
21. Welcomes the adoption by the Afghan authorities, in
accordance with the outcome the Rome Conference on the
Rule of Law in Afghanistan, of the National Justice
Programme launched at the JCMB meeting held in Tokyo in
February 2008, and stresses the importance of its full and
timely implementation by all the relevant actors in order
to accelerate the establishment of a fair and transparent
justice system, strengthen the rule of law throughout the
country and eliminate impunity;
22. Stresses in this context the importance of further
progress in the reconstruction and reform of the prison
sector in Afghanistan, in order to improve the respect for
the rule of law and human rights therein,
23. Notes with concern the effects of widespread
corruption on security, good governance, counter-narcotics
efforts and economic development, and calls on the Afghan
Government, with the assistance of the international
community, to vigorously lead the fight against corruption
and to enhance its efforts to establish a more effective,
accountable and transparent administration;
24. Encourages all Afghan institutions, including the
executive and legislative branches, to work in a spirit of
cooperation, calls on the Afghan Government to pursue
continued legislative and public administration reform in
order to ensure good governance, full representation and
accountability at both national and sub-national levels,
stresses the need for further international efforts to
provide technical assistance in this area, and recalls the
role of the Senior Appointments Panel in accordance with
the Afghanistan Compact;
24bis. Encourages the international community to assist
the Government of Afghanistan in making capacity-building
and human resources development a cross-cutting priority;
25. Notes the leading role that the Afghan institutions
will play in the organization of the next elections,
encourages the Afghan Government, with support from the
international community, to accelerate the planning and
preparation of such elections, stresses the need to
establish a permanent and accurate Civil Voter Registry (CVR)
in accordance with the Afghanistan Compact, and emphasizes
the importance of free, fair, inclusive and transparent
elections in order to sustain the democratic progress of
the country;
26. Calls for full respect for human rights and
fundamental freedoms and international humanitarian law
throughout Afghanistan, notes with concern the increasing
restrictions on freedom of media, commends the AIHRC for
its courageous efforts to monitor respect for human rights
in Afghanistan as well as to foster and protect these
rights and to promote the emergence of a pluralistic civil
society, and stresses the importance of full cooperation
with the AIHRC by all relevant actors;
27. Recognizes the significant progress achieved on gender
equality in Afghanistan in recent years, strongly condemns
continuing forms of discrimination and violence against
women and girls, stresses the importance of implementing
Security Council resolution 1325 (2000), and requests the
Secretary-General to continue to include in its reports to
SIPDIS
the Security Council relevant information on the process
of integration of women into the political, economic and
social life of Afghanistan;
28. Calls for enhanced efforts to ensure the full
implementation of the Action Plan on Peace, Justice and
Reconciliation in accordance with the Afghanistan Compact,
without prejudice to the implementation of measures
STATE 00028948 006 OF 006
introduced by the Security Council in its resolution 1267
(1999) of 15 October 1999 and other relevant resolutions
of the Security Council;
29. Welcomes the cooperation of the Afghan Government and
UNAMA with the Security Council's Committee established
pursuant to resolution 1267 (1999) with the implementation
of resolution 1735 (2006), including by identifying
individuals and entities participating in the financing or
support of acts or activities of Al-Qaida and the Taliban
using proceeds derived from illicit cultivation,
production and trafficking of narcotic drugs and their
precursors, and encourages the continuation of such
cooperation;
30. Welcomes ongoing efforts by the Government of
Afghanistan and its neighbouring and regional partners to
foster trust and cooperation with each other, including
recent cooperation initiatives developed by regional
organizations, and stresses the importance of increasing
cooperation between Afghanistan and the partners against
the Taliban, Al-Qaida and other extremist groups, in
promoting peace and prosperity in Afghanistan and in
fostering cooperation in the economic and development
sectors as a means to achieve the full integration of
Afghanistan into regional dynamics and the global economy;
30bis. Calls for strengthening the process of regional
economic cooperation, including measures to facilitate
regional trade, to increase foreign investments and to
develop infrastructure, noting Afghanistan's historic role
as a land bridge in Asia;
31. Recognizes the importance of voluntary, safe, orderly
return and sustainable reintegration of the remaining
Afghan refugees for the stability of the country and the
region, and calls for continued and enhanced international
assistance in this regard;
32. Requests the Secretary-General to report to the
Council every six months on developments in Afghanistan,
in addition to the report requested in paragraph 10 of
this resolution;
33. Decides to remain actively seized of the matter.
End Draft Text.
RICE