UNSC To Hold Debates On Capacity Building In Africa, Return Of Palestine-Israel Talks: China

BEIJING, July 4 (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 04th Jul, 2017 ) : The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) will hold open debates on capacity building in Africa to maintain peace and security and try to create enabling conditions for the return of Palestine and Israel to the track of negotiation and an early materialization of the two-state solution.

"China has taken over the rotating Security Council presidency for this month. China's Permanent Representative to the UN, Ambassador Liu Jieyi chaired a consultation during which the work plan for this month was approved through discussion," Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Geng Shuang said at a regular press briefing here on Tuesday.

He informed that the Security Council would hold around 30 meetings in July to review middle East issues including Syria, Yemen, Iraq and Lebanon, African issues, including South Sudan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Burundi, the work of the United Nations Office for West Africa and the Sahel (UNOWAS), Latin American issues, including Columbia and Haiti, and the Cyprus issue.

Resolutions are expected to be adopted to extend the mandate of the UN Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus and the UN Assistance Mission in Iraq and deploy a second UN Mission in Colombia, he added. He said the Security Council would hold two open debates in July - one was on capacity building in Africa to maintain peace and security, with a view to offering support to Africa�s capacity building for peace and security.

The other was on the Middle East issue. With the Israel-Palestine issue in focus, it would try to form synergy among parties and create enabling conditions for the return of Palestine and Israel to the track of negotiation and an early materialization of the two-state solution, he added.

The spokesperson said as a permanent member of the Security Council, China had always committed itself to helping the Security Council maintain solidarity and coordination, take vigorous actions and play a key role in stopping war and upholding peace in the spirit of the UN Charter.

"We will earnestly perform our duty as President of the Security Council, stay in close communication and coordination with other members of the Security Council, and make its work more practical and efficient," he added.

Geng Shuang said at the same time, China would reinforce its interactions with non-member countries, countries directly concerned and the UN general assembly, solicit opinions and advice widely and fulfill the responsibility of the Security Council President in a more open and transparent manner.

Responding to standoff between Qatar and Saudi Arabia, he hoped that relevant parties could properly solve the differences through dialogue and negotiation within the framework of Gulf states. "We support all efforts conducive to the recovery of stability in the Gulf region including the mediation by Kuwait, and we believe the Arab states can find a solution to the particular issue that can be accepted by all," he added.

To yet another question about a loan that China had given for the Hambantota port, Sri Lanka, he said the port project was negotiated and conducted by the Chinese enterprise with the Sri Lankan side in accordance with market rules.

"Over recent years, the pragmatic cooperation between China and Sri Lanka in various fields has continuously deepened," he added. The Chinese side had, on the basis of mutual respect and treating each other as equals, provided loans and other assistance within its capacity for infrastructure construction in Sri Lanka and striven to promote its socio-economic development, he said.