This was the primary decision adopted by the council on Afghanistan after the Taliban takeover. File
United Nations:
The UN Safety Council, underneath India’s Presidency, adopted a powerful decision demanding that territory of Afghanistan not be used to threaten any nation or shelter terrorists and that it expects the Taliban will adhere to commitments made by it relating to the secure and orderly departure from the nation of Afghans and all international nationals.
The Safety Council on Monday adopted the decision sponsored by France, UK and the US with 13 members voting in favour, none towards and everlasting, veto-wielding members Russia and China abstaining.
This was the primary decision adopted by the highly effective 15-nation Council on the scenario in Afghanistan following the takeover of Kabul by the Taliban and got here on the penultimate day of India’s Presidency of the Safety Council for the month of August.
Reaffirming its robust dedication to the sovereignty, independence, territorial integrity, and nationwide unity of Afghanistan, the decision “condemns within the strongest phrases the deplorable assaults” of August 26 close to the Hamid Karzai Worldwide Airport in Kabul for which the Islamic State in Khorasan Province, an entity affiliated with the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (Da’esh) claimed duty and which resulted in deaths and accidents of over 300 civilians and 28 army personnel.
The UNSC decision took be aware of the Taliban’s condemnation of the assault.
The decision “calls for that Afghan territory not be used to threaten or assault any nation or to shelter or practice terrorists, or to plan or to finance terrorist acts, and reiterates the significance of combating terrorism in Afghanistan, together with these people and entities designated pursuant to decision 1267 (1999), and notes the Taliban’s related commitments”.
The decision notes “the Taliban assertion of August 27, 2021, by which the Taliban dedicated that Afghans will be capable of journey overseas, might depart Afghanistan anytime they wish to, and will exit Afghanistan by way of any border crossing, each air and floor, together with on the reopened and secured Kabul airport, with nobody stopping them from travelling, expects that the Taliban will adhere to those and all different commitments, together with relating to the secure, safe, and orderly departure from Afghanistan of Afghans and all international nationals”.
The Council, by the decision, additionally took be aware of the “harmful safety scenario” across the Hamid Karzai Worldwide Airport in Kabul and stated it “expresses concern that intelligence signifies additional terrorist assaults might happen within the space, calls on the related events to work with worldwide companions to take steps to strengthen safety and to forestall additional casualties, and requests that each effort be made to permit for the fast and safe reopening of the Kabul airport and its surrounding space”.
US Ambassador to the UN Linda Thomas-Greenfield in her clarification of the vote stated that by the decision “we now have spoken as soon as once more on the pressing have to sort out the intense risk of terrorism in Afghanistan”. “Final week’s horrific assault in Kabul demonstrated the very actual risk that terrorist teams like ISIS-Ok pose.”
President Joe Biden has made clear that America will do what’s essential to defend our safety and our individuals. And the complete worldwide group is dedicated to making sure that Afghanistan is rarely once more a secure haven for terrorism,” she stated.
She stated the decision establishes clear expectations relating to the way forward for Afghanistan — that the Safety Council expects the Taliban to stay as much as its dedication to facilitate secure passage for Afghans and international nationals who wish to depart Afghanistan, “whether or not it is in the present day, tomorrow, or after August 31”.
On the abstentions by Russia and China, she stated, “We have been disillusioned with the abstentions of Russia and China. I’ll inform you that throughout the P5 we consulted very carefully.
“We took under consideration among the issues that each the Chinese language and the Russians raised within the draft decision that was ultimately authorized. So, the truth that they abstained, I believe they should clarify themselves. However I believe the Safety Council spoke strongly, and what’s within the decision, I believe, are points which might be necessary to each single member of the Safety Council together with China and Russia,” she stated.
Russia’s Everlasting Consultant Vassily Nebenzia stated Moscow “was compelled to” abstain in the course of the vote on the decision on Afghanistan “as a result of the authors of the draft ignored our principled issues.”
He stated that even though the decision was proposed towards the backdrop of a horrible terrorist assault, the authors categorically refused to consult with a passage on the struggle towards terrorism “containing internationally recognised terrorist organisations ISIL and the East Turkistan Islamic Motion.
“We see this as a reluctance to acknowledge the apparent and a need to divide terrorists into ‘ours’ and ‘theirs’ and… to downplay the fear threats coming from these teams.”
“We perceive the explanations that incited the authors to attempt to use the authority of the Safety Council to undertake the decision on this kind and in such a decent timeframe however maybe if we had extra time, the results of the vote would have been completely different.”
Chinese language Ambassador Geng Shuang stated the international locations involved circulated the draft decision final Friday night, “demanding motion to be taken on Monday”.
“China has large doubts concerning the necessity and urgency of adopting this decision and the stability of its content material. Regardless of this, China has nonetheless participated constructively within the consultations and put ahead necessary and cheap amendments along with Russia. Sadly, our amendments haven’t been totally adopted,” he stated.
“China has all the time opposed imposing or forcefully pushing for decision by any sponsors. Primarily based on the above concerns China has abstained from this draft decision,” he added.
He stated that “within the face of the elemental adjustments within the home scenario in Afghanistan, it’s vital for the worldwide group to interact with the Taliban, and actively present them with steering”.
The UK’s envoy to the UN Ambassador Barbara Woodward stated the decision is a crucial step in direction of a unified worldwide response to the scenario in Afghanistan.
“We’ll proceed to construct on this to make sure the Council holds the Taliban accountable on its commitments. The Taliban shall be judged by the worldwide group on the premise of their actions on the bottom, not their phrases.”
The robust decision reaffirms the significance of upholding human rights together with these of ladies, kids and minorities, encourages all events to hunt an inclusive, negotiated political settlement, with the total, equal and significant participation of ladies, that responds to the need of Afghans to maintain and construct on Afghanistan’s good points during the last twenty years.
It requires strengthened efforts to offer humanitarian help to Afghanistan, calls on all events to permit full, secure, and unhindered entry for the UN and all humanitarian actors to make sure that humanitarian help reaches all these in want.
