Explanation of vote by Charge d'Affaires of the Russian Federation Dmitry Polyanskiy after the UNSC vote on a draft resolution renewing the mandate of the UN Support Mission in Libya
Mr.President,
Russia supported the draft resolution renewing the mandate of the UN Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) that was proposed by Great Britain. It was the only compromise that we all could afford at this stage.
Thereby all of us understand that the current configuration of UN efforts in this country, unfortunately, fails to meet the pressing problems of Libyan settlement, which is unacceptable. It is not normal that UNSMIL has remained “headless” for quite some time already, which limits the toolkit that the Mission can use to promote Libyan dialogue. The incumbency of Stephanie Williams, Special Adviser to the Secretary-General (who does not hold a corresponding UNSC mandate), has protracted unjustifiably, despite claims that her appointment was a provisional measure.
We insist that Secretary-General Guterres should name a capable and respectful candidate to take the office of his Special Representative for Libya as soon as possible, who should then be approved by the Security Council. Such candidate must be acceptable for both major Libyan stakeholders and regional actors. The document in front of us sends a clear message that a prompt decision is needed in this regard. We do hope that we will not have to see this issue dragged out artificially for some opportunistic goals. UNSMIL needs a leader who would enjoy genuine trust of the Libyans.
Mr.President,
We cannot agree that Libyan settlement can proceed outside of the relevant UNSC framework. This is unacceptable, especially now that there is another spiral of diarchy in Libya and the country has approached a red line, upon the crossing of which armed conflict may resume. What’s at stake now is the future of Libya and its people.
Our insistence on the appointment of a new SRSG is explained solely by our concern for maintaining the effectiveness of the UN engagement to promote a settlement in Libya. Unfortunately, the uncertainty that we have now does not meet this task. We understand how dissatisfied our African colleagues are with this state of affairs. The longer this situation persists the more dangerous it becomes not only for UNSMIL, but for the role of the United Nations in Libya at large. These conditions do not encourage Libyan sides to proceed constructively towards unification of the country and its institutions.
Mr.President,
We will be ready to have the UNSMIL mandate renewed for a standard term and work on a more substantive content for the future resolution once the UN Mission in Libya finally has its leader appointed. We trust that the leadership of the UN Secretariat will perceive this message from the Security Council with all seriousness.
Thank you.
