Security Council welcomes Somali peace and reconciliation accord

The Security Council today welcomed the recent signing of a peace and reconciliation agreement by Somalia’s warring political groups and urged the two sides in the troubled Horn of Africa nation to fully implement their commitments under the accord.

The so-called Djibouti Agreement between the Transitional Federal Government (TFG) and the Alliance for the Re-Liberation of Somalia (ARS) signed on 19 August, “should provide the basis for lasting peace, security and stability for the people of Somalia,” the Council said in a presidential statement.

That peace and security included “the ultimate withdrawal of foreign forces” from Somalia,” according to the statement, read out by Ambassador Michel Kafando of Burkina Faso, which holds the rotating Council presidency this month.

Mr. Kafando stressed in the statement that both the TFG and the ARS must implement their commitments under the agreement, which was brokered by the UN Political for Somalia (UNPOS) and the Secretary-General’s Special Representative, Ahmedou Ould-Abdallah.

“In particular, the Council underlines the crucial importance of the parties taking all necessary measures to ensure, without delay, unhindered humanitarian access and assistance to the Somali people, and of the parties and their allies terminating all acts of armed confrontation.”

The 15-member panel said it would continuously monitor the implementation of the accord and reiterated its strong support for the efforts of the African Union Mission to Somalia (AMISOM) to stabilize the country, which has not had a functioning national government since 1991.

It also noted that the TFG and the ARS requested in the Djibouti Agreement that the UN authorize and deploy an international stabilization force, and said it would consider establishing a UN peacekeeping force to take over from AMISOM, “subject to progress in the political process and improvement in the security situation on the ground.”

In addition, the presidential statement asked Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to elaborate on his contingency planning for a UN integrated peacekeeping mission in Somalia, including its mandate, size and geographical scope, as well as the countries that might contribute the necessary personnel, equipment or financing for such a mission.