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Mine action a dynamic part of peacekeeping, Security Council told

Mine action a dynamic part of peacekeeping, Security Council told

USG Guéhenno briefs Security Council
Mine action is a dynamic component of peacekeeping operations that contributes to the way the United Nations plans and conducts its operations, the UN's chief peacekeeping official said today.

The Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations, Jean-Marie Guéhenno, told an open briefing of the Security Council in New York that early planning by mine action specialists is essential to any efficient emergency peacekeeping operations.

He cited the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Eritrea and Ethiopia, Cyprus and Lebanon as examples of the ways in which mine action has helped the peacekeeping operations in those countries, either by allowing them to be deployed safely, or by building confidence between the opposing sides of a dispute.

In his remarks, Mr. Guéhenno also suggested to the Council that it might wish to consider a formal instrument to tackle the questions of unexploded ordnance and other explosive remnants of war.

The Director of the Geneva International Centre for Humanitarian Demining, Ambassador Martin Dahinden, told the same briefing that the international community needs better information management systems to exchange data on landmines, as well as the establishment of formal standards in de-mining work.

After their briefings, the Council heard statements made by the representatives of all 15 members.

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Video of Security Council meeting