Statement by H.E. Sanita Pavļuta-Deslandes at the UN Security Council meeting on the Cooperation between the United Nations and regional and subregional organizations in maintaining international peace and security (African Union)
Mr. President,
I thank SRSG Parfait Onanga-Anyanga, ASG Martin Kimani, and the representative of the African Unuion for their valuable briefings.
The UN–AU partnership already rests on strong frameworks, established channels and concrete examples that work. Our task now is to build on them, make the partnership more operational and turn momentum into progress.
Let me highlight three points.
First, we should make full use of the tools already at our disposal. We welcome continued implementation of the Joint UN–AU Framework for Enhanced Partnership in Peace and Security. The Security Council must leverage the strategic value of regional arrangements under Chapter VIII of the UN Charter.
The Secretary-General’s Peace Operations Review points in the same direction: stronger global-regional partnerships and more networked peace operations, grounded in comparative advantage and local contexts. There is no one-size-fits-all model. We should decisively advance the implementation of the Resolution 2719 and make full use of its potential. Where the AU and UN jointly identify relevant contexts, the Security Council should be prepared to act proactively.
In conflict settings, where the AU or subregional organizations are leading political efforts, we should hear from them directly and more regularly. The same logic applies beyond Africa.
Second, such cooperation is already visible in some of the most acute situations before us.
In Sudan, Latvia strongly supports the Quintet and its efforts to advance an inclusive, Sudanese-owned political process. We see clear value in the Security Council adding its collective weight to these efforts, building on the support already expressed by the AU Peace and Security Council.
In South Sudan, the engagement of the AU and Special Envoy Jakaya Kikwete, alongside UNMISS, demonstrates the value of coordinated regional and international engagement. With elections scheduled for 22 December, the Security Council should reinforce the regional call for conditions conducive to a peaceful, credible and inclusive political process, anchored in the Revitalized Peace Agreement. Our collective objective must be to prevent a return to large-scale violence.
In Somalia, we recognize the extraordinary commitment of the African Union and the sacrifices made by African peacekeepers over many years. That commitment deserves an equally serious collective effort. The upcoming AU PSC and UN Security Council joint consultative meeting is an opportunity to work towards a solution for AUSSOM that is both realistic and effective, including its future financing and support arrangements.
Third, our partnership must also advance priorities that cut across country situations. Women, Peace and Security must remain at its core – from women's full, equal and meaningful participation in political and peace processes to preventing and eliminating sexual and gender-based violence, as well as ensuring accountability for these crimes.
In this context, Latvia welcomes the trilateral UN–AU–EU cooperation in the Great Lakes region, where the three Special Envoys recently convened on the margins of the United Nations General Assembly a high-level event on women’s meaningful participation in peace efforts in eastern DRC.
We must also take climate-related peace and security risks seriously. Collectively we should move from recognition to implementation – integrating climate risks into early warning, prevention, mediation efforts and mandates of peace operations. African leadership is crucial in this regard, both because the continent is directly affected and because practical responses are already being developed and implemented on the ground.
This year comes with an additional test. As El Niño intensifies, it is increasing the risks of extreme weather events that can worsen food insecurity and displacement in already fragile settings, strain humanitarian responses and complicate the implementation of peacekeeping mandates. Anticipatory action is crucial to limit the impact.
Mr. President,
In a few weeks, the annual joint consultative meeting between the Security Council and the AU PSC will give us an opportunity to build on these examples. Latvia hopes that both Councils will engage constructively, speak with a strong joint voice, and be able to adopt an outcome document for our substantial partnership to grow into more practical, coherent and effective action.
Thank you!