Security Council briefed on UN engagement and counter-terrorism efforts in Iraq

AKHVEDELID — Thu, 31 May 2018 05:30:00 +0000

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Ms. Coninsx briefing the Security Council.

In a briefing on the UN engagement and counter-terrorism efforts in Iraq, the Security Council on 30 May 2018 heard statements by Special Representative of the Secretary-General (SRSG) and Head of the United Nations Mission in Iraq (UNAMI) Ján Kubiš, Under-Secretary-General and Head of the United Nations Office of Counter-Terrorism (UNOCT) Vladimir Voronkov, and Assistant Secretary-General and Executive Director of the Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate (CTED) Michèle Coninsx. This was the first briefing by all three principals following the joint high-level consultations by CTED and UNOCT with Iraq, undertaken in close coordination with UNAMI, in March 2018.

In her remarks, Ms. Coninsx mentioned the excellent collaboration between the two entities, and stressed that the recent visit directly responded to the call for strengthened coordination between the two entities, as expressed by the Council in its resolution 2395 from December 2017. She also referenced the counter-terrorism assessment of Iraq, concluded by CTED on behalf of the Counter-Terrorism Committee already in September 2015 and which included identifying priority technical assistance needs, formulated in collaboration with CTED’s partner organizations and adopted in accordance with their best codes and practices. These technical assistance needs were endorsed by the Government of Iraq in March 2016, and eventually adopted by the Committee, which recommended 16 priority areas, including legal and judicial matters, counter-financing, law enforcement and border management, and countering violent extremism (CVE).

“This joint visit was certainly historic in its approach, and I firmly hope that it will also be historic in terms of its results and impact, and that we thereby honour all the victims of the past in Iraq and avoid future victims in Iraq and in the rest of the world,” Ms. Coninsx concluded.

Ms. Coninsx’ statement is available here.

The statements by USGs Kubiš and Voronkov can be accessed here.

For the United Nations’ complete meetings coverage, follow this link.

The webcast of the 8271^st Security Council meeting, regarding the Eighteenth report of the Secretary-General pursuant to paragraph 4 of Security Council resolution 2107 (2013) (S/2018/353), is available here.

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Global Counter-Terrorism Coordination Compact signed – highlights importance of CTED assessments

AKHVEDELID — Fri, 23 Feb 2018 06:13:00 +0000

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CTED Executive Director Michèle Coninsx signs the UN Global Counter-Terrorism Coordination Compact (together with Head of UN OCT, Under-Secretary-General Voronkov).

On 1 February 2018, the United Nations Secretary-General and 36 UN entities, including the UN Office of Counter-Terrorism (UNOCT), as well as INTERPOL and the World Customs Organization, agreed to a Global Counter-Terrorism Coordination Compact. Adding transparency to the UN’s work in the area of counter-terrorism, the Compact will support the implementation of the UN Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy, involve UN Country Teams in counter-terrorism activities, help share relevant capacity-building and coordination and coherence related information with the Compact’s members, develop mutually reinforcing capacity-building projects, and establish a joint resource mobilization and outreach strategy with donors.

Of a non-binding nature, the Compact emphasizes evidence-based programming, the establishment of a mechanism for monitoring and evaluation of programmes, and an increased focus on capacity-building and technical assistance. The Compact specifically stresses UN Security Council resolution 2395 (2017), calling on UNOCT, all other relevant UN funds and programmes, Member States, donors as well as recipients, to make full use of CTED’s expert assessments in technical assistance and capacity-building efforts. The Global Compact Coordination Committee will be chaired by the Under-Secretary-General for Counter-Terrorism. CTED will have a seat on the Coordination Committee.

Following a decision in a meeting of the Executive Committee, UN Secretary-General António Guterres signed the Global Counter-Terrorism Coordination Compact on 23 February 2018. Heads of numerous United Nations entities present in New York, including Assistant Secretary-General and Executive Director of CTED Michèle Coninsx, will shortly add their signatures to the Compact.

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Security Council - Counter-Terrorism Committee (CTC) - coordination

Security Council briefed on UN engagement and counter-terrorism efforts in Iraq

ed_sc_briefing_iraq_30_may_2018_2-600x331.jpg

Global Counter-Terrorism Coordination Compact signed – highlights importance of CTED assessments

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