Report by Daniel Safran-Hon, 22 July 2009
In a press conference given on Monday 20 July 2009, Ambassador Zahir Tanin, Permanent Representative of Afghanistan to the UN and Chair of Intergovernmental Negotiations on Security Council reform described the next steps in the consultations on SC reform towards the end of the 63rd General Assembly. The Ambassador called for good use of the summer by Member States and concluded that "there is light at the end of the tunnel".
Ambassador Tanin opened the press conference by reviewing the work of the intergovernmental negotiations since the move from the Open-Ended Working Group (OEWG) to the launch of the current process in February 2009. Moving the process from a working group to an informal Plenary of the General Assembly, he said, would bring the process closer to a form that can potentially take decisions on the issue, even without consensus.
The Chair described the first and second rounds of negotiations – the former dealing with Paragraph 14 (composition) and the latter with Paragraphs 15-17 (Functions and Powers/Voting/Procedure) of the overview document tabled by the Ambassador during the first round on 18 May 2009. This overview describes the main points and negotiables for the reform. The two rounds included 26 meetings and caused much interest by member States – many of them actively taking part in deliberations. The third round of negotiations, the Ambassador said, should naturally deal with the whole of the issues.
Ambassador Tanin used the occasion of the press conference to reiterate his encouragement, originally expressed in his letter to Member States sent on 16 July 2009, to use the coming summer constructively as a reflection period. The Ambassador hoped that member States use this time to consider their own positions as well as talk bilaterally with other missions in New York and capitals.
Ambassador Tanin added by explaining the next steps to be taken during the third round of negotiations, which were also explained in his above mentioned letter. This round is expected to open after the end of the reflection period on 27 August. Two informal consultations are scheduled for the beginning of September. The first, on 1 September, will deal with the model of expanding permanent and non-permanent membership, which is the model that got the most support from Member States speaking out during the meetings. The next meeting, following a request by many Member States, will be held on 2 September and will deal with the intermediate model (i.e. the model of a temporary reform of the council which would be reviewed at the end of a certain time frame).
Answering a question about the reason for holding two separate debates, the Ambassador explained that he had decided to accommodate the request by Member States which were interested in deliberating the intermediate model on the one hand with the large support for the model of expanding both categories on the other hand. Furthermore, in each model there is much to discus – the number of new members, the length of their membership and other questions and the Ambassador wished to give Member States sufficient time for these questions.
As to a question concerning the commitment to SC reform of the new Presidency of the General Assembly that will begin in the coming fall, the Ambassador answered that he was doing his best to keep momentum alive and that the base for these negotiations is GA decision 62/557, hence there is no need for another decision to continue the negotiations. “The incoming PGA is no doubt committed to reform but this question should be directed to him,” suggested Ambassador Tanin, adding that there is consensus within Member States concerning the need for SC reform and thus not much reason to worry about discontinuation of the process.
Asked about convergence in opinions of Members States, the Ambassador replied that in the beginning of the discussions, most Member States were talking about their own specific positions and after he distributed the review, there were signs of flexibility, although these were still not sufficient. “In all negotiations the results emerge only in the very end”, the Ambassador said. His current actions aim at helping Member States envisage the possibilities concerning this end.
The Ambassador accentuated the fact that the current process is not an exercise of the Open-ended Working Group (OEWG) where a search for consensus was necessary and discussions tended to be more abstract. Rather, this is a process where areas of agreement continue to be formulated and that could indeed lead to a real result.
The Ambassador showed cautious optimism concerning the possibility of success without detailing how this success may materialize. He also reminded that advance is now dependent on the Member States, concluding that “there is light at the end of the tunnel”.
Conclusion
If the period until 27 August 2009 is used by Member States, as Ambassador Tanin suggested, in a successful way to bring about a basis for substantial progress in the third round of discussion, such progress may set the stage for a substantial decision about Security Council reform during the next session of the General Assembly.