Statement by Sonia Farrey, UK Political Coordinator at the UN, at the Security Council briefing on the Great Lakes region
Mr President, the United Kingdom welcomes the publication of UN Strategy for Peace Consolidation, Conflict Prevention and Conflict Resolution in the Great Lakes region and thanks Special Envoy Xia for the update on its implementation. I would also like to thank Ambassador Edrees, Chair of the Peacebuilding Commission, for his briefing today.
We also welcome the establishment of a cross-UN Senior Policy Group to guide implementation of the strategy, and oversee the formulation of an action plan.
Mr President, The United Kingdom remains deeply concerned about human rights violations and abuses, including as a result of increased armed group activity in eastern DRC.
We are seeking to support President Tshisekedi in working with partners to address these concerns. We welcome coordination between Special Envoy Xia and SRSG Keita of MONUSCO on eastern DRC, including on MONUSCO’s withdrawal strategy.
The United Kingdom recognises that the abundant natural resources in the Great Lakes region are a source of funding for armed groups and a driver of conflict. We therefore support Special Envoy Xia’s work to assist governments in the Great Lakes region to address management of natural resources.
Thank you, Mr President.