This is the first visit of the Chair of the 1533 Sanctions Committee to
Angola, and the seventh visit to the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). H.E. Dr Michael Imran Kanu, Sierra Leones’s Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the United Nations is the current Chair of the Committee. He and the visiting members of his delegation are participating as members of the Committee, not in their national capacity.
Dr. Michael Imran Kanu praised Angola’s leadership in efforts to achieve peace in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo and their tireless mediation efforts between the DRC and Rwanda in the Luanda Process.
The general purpose of the Chair’s visit to the region is to obtain first-hand information concerning the effective implementation of the sanctions measures imposed by the Security Council.
The visit will provide an opportunity for the holding of consultations with concerned Member States in order to ensure full implementation of the sanctions measures set forth in the resolution, in pursuance of paragraph 30 of resolution 2360 (2017).
The Chair’s visits serve to deepen the Committee’s understanding of the challenges on the ground, thus improving its ability to address those challenges.
Sanctions are not intended to be an act of coercion, but rather as part of the Security Council’s efforts to positively change the conflict dynamics of the region, to isolate spoilers and to contribute to achieving peace and stability in the DRC.
In his meeting with both the President and Minister of External Affairs of Angola, Ambassador Kanu, stressed that the deterioration of the situation in the east of the country could also lead to a deterioration of security and stability in the Great Lakes region. Thus, the Security Council committee called on “both parties to comply with the harmonized plan, with a view to achieving a lasting peace solution, and reiterates its support for the implementation of the Luanda and Nairobi Process”.
For further information, please contact:
Ms. Onike C. Spencer-Coker
Spokesperson
Permanent Mission of the Republic of Sierra Leone to the United Nations
+1-347-445-2051
[email protected]
