UN resolution on Darfur wins global applause
August 1, 2007 (PARIS) — The international community on Wednesday welcomed the UN decision to create a new peacekeeping force in Darfur, with France and Australia backing their applause with offers of military and medical personnel.
The resolution authorising a joint UN-African force for the strife-ridden region of western Sudan, was passed unanimously by the UN Security Council on Tuesday, having won the key support of China.
“This is the result of concerted effort and should be fully recognised and encouraged,” Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi said just hours after the UN vote mandating the 26,000-strong force.
“Good implementation of the resolution is of highest importance,” Yang said.
China is Sudan’s biggest arms supplier and oil customer, and Beijing has previously urged the international community not to pressure the government in Khartoum.
Khartoum gave a cautious welcome to the UN resolution, saying it contained “several positive elements” but its ambassador to the UN, Abdalmahmood Abdalhaleem Mohamad, warned that it should not be seen as “a blank cheque” for those seeking a hard line on Sudan.
According to UN estimates, at least 200,000 people have died from the combined effect of war and famine since the Darfur conflict started in February 2003, although Khartoum disputes the figures.
Although it backed the resolution, the United States took a tough stance toward Khartoum, warning of sanctions in the event of its non-compliance.
“If Sudan does not comply … the United States will move for the swift adoption of unilateral and multilateral measures” US ambassador to the UN Zalmay Khalilzad said.
The vote came only hours after British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, in a speech at the United Nations, also threatened sanctions if the violence in Darfur continued.
Australia was “delighted” with the resolution, said Foreign Minister Alexander Downer, who said his government was willing to contribute medical support.
“From Australia’s point of view we have a lot of commitments already, so we are limited in what we can do,” he said. “The sort of support we can provide is probably in the area of doctors and nurses.”
France, one of the co-sponsors of the UN resolution, stressed the importance of African nations contributing the bulk of the force’s military component.
“We have offered (troops). France has offered it services,” Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner told reporters.
“But there is a new phenomenon today, a very important one, which is that Africans are going to take their own affairs in hand. So the majority of the force will be Africans,” he said.
The UN resolution authorises the UN-AU force to take “the necessary action” to protect its personnel, ensure security and freedom of movement for humanitarian workers, prevent attacks and threats against civilians and back implementation of the Darfur Peace Agreement.
However, it does not authorise foreign troops to pursue alleged war criminals sought by the International Criminal Court (ICC) — an omission that drew a sharp warning from the tribunal based in The Hague.
The ICC issued arrest warrants in May this year for Ahmed Haroun, the Sudanese secretary of state for humanitarian affairs, and pro-government Janjaweed militia leader Ali Kosheib, but Sudan has refused to hand them over.
“We want to recall that the international community has called for these two arrests. This issue should not be ignored,” an advisor to ICC prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo, told AFP.
Dutch Foreign Minister Jan de Boer said the Netherlands stood ready to contribute to the joint force.
(AFP)