New York, 30 December 2023 (TDI): The United Nations Security Council adopted a resolution on the independent evaluation of Afghanistan on Friday. The purpose of the resolution was to offer suggestions to the international community to be involved in alleviating the country’s issues.
In the UN Security Council meeting to vote on a draft resolution on the Afghanistan independent assessment, thirteen votes were cast in favor. Two of the members, China and Russia, abstained while there were no votes against the proposed resolution.
On December 29, the Security Council passed resolution 2721 which emphasized the vital need for the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) to continue in place. It also called the Secretary-General to name a Special Envoy for Afghanistan to uphold recommendations, particularly regarding gender and human rights.
It came after an independent evaluation report published in November that advocated for increased engagement with Afghanistan since the Taliban retook control in August 2021.
As per the impartial assessment, the resolution emphasizes the necessity of increasing international participation in a more logical, organized, and systematic way.
Deputy Permanent Representative of the Russian Federation to the United Nations, Anna Evstigneeva, stated that careful consideration of the recommendations should be given, including discussions with the de facto authorities of Afghanistan.
She additionally mentioned that a realistic evaluation of the actual circumstance must be made, taking into consideration the Taliban’s response. That’s what Russia has been saying all along. This is what is needed to move the Afghan track forward.
“Even under the United Nations’ auspices, attempts to force Afghanistan to follow someone else’s development path or do as they choose are futile and unlikely to produce any gains. Afghanistan’s past is unfortunately filled with examples of these kinds of acts and their consequences”, Evstigneeva stressed.
Also Read: China approves Afghanistan’s new Ambassador to Beijing
As co-penholders on the matter, Japan, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) requested the draft text by resolution 2679 on March 16.
To address the current problems facing Afghanistan, Resolution 2679 asked the independent evaluation to propose forward-looking recommendations for an integrated and coordinated approach among relevant political, humanitarian, and development players, both inside and outside of the UN system.
