The U.N. peacekeeping chief warned Friday that the crisis in Africa's Sahel region remains volatile, with insecurity and instability seriously undermining prospects for development and many lives lost every day as a result of terrorist attacks.
바카라Millions of people are displaced," Jean-Pierre Lacroix said. 바카라Children can no longer go to school, and primary health care remains inaccessible for many바카라 while the Covid-19 pandemic is still raging.
He was speaking at a U.N. Security Council meeting on the G5 Sahel force set up by five African nations -- Chad, Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger and Mauritania -- in 2017 to fight the growing terrorist threat in the vast Sahel region.
Lacroix said the joint force continues to increase its operational pace but faces 바카라enormous challenges,바카라 including the return of foreign fighters from the conflict in nearby Libya, domestic challenges, political uncertainty and major shortfalls in equipment and the capacity to carry out operations effectively.
바카라The joint force is now at a crossroads and there is a risk that it will lose the gains that have been made,바카라 he warned.
In July, U.N. experts said Africa became the region hardest hit by terrorism in the first half of 2021 as the Islamic State and al-Qaida extremist groups and their affiliates spread their influence, boasting gains in supporters and territory and inflicting the greatest casualties, including in the Sahel.
Lacroix reiterated U.N. support for the establishment of a logistical and operational support office for the G5 Sahel force financed by assessed contributions from the U.N.'s 193 member nations. The force now receives support from bilateral donors, including the United States.
U.S. deputy ambassador Richard Mills echoed the alarm of the U.N. and other council members at 바카라rising violent extremism, intercommunal violence, the growing humanitarian needs, and certain cases of democratic backsliding in the Sahel.바카라
He said last week's 바카라tragic attack in Niger that killed 69 civilians only deepens that alarm.바카라 Suspected Islamic extremists ambushed a self-defense brigade in western Niger, killing 69 people in the latest attack in the volatile border region near Mali.
Mills reiterated the Biden administration's commitment 바카라to continuing our strong bilateral partnership with member states of the G5 Sahel by providing equipment, training, and advisory support for critical capability gaps,바카라 pointing to the more than $588 million the U.S. has authorized to provide security assistance and efforts to counter violent extremism since 2017.
But he reiterated U.S. opposition to U.N. funding, saying: 바카라Let me be clear: The United States continues to believe that the UN 바카라 regardless of the mechanism 바카라 is not an appropriate vehicle to provide logistical support to the G5 Sahel joint force.바카라 He said that 바카라it is not a multilateral force on foreign soil mandated as a peace operation바카라 and the Security Council must remain forced on achieving political solutions.
바카라Our collective efforts in the Sahel must go beyond a military response ... and address problems with governance,바카라 Mills said.
Lacroix also said that 바카라security efforts alone are not sufficient to address the crisis in the Sahel.바카라 He called for a 바카라holistic approach바카라 that addresses governance problems and the root causes of poverty and exclusion so that young people in the region can see a future with opportunities.
Lacroix reiterated Secretary-General Antonio Guterres' call for the establishment of a political forum with representatives from the G5 countries, international and regional organizations, the U.N., European Union and Security Council members.
바카라This forum would both promote regional ownership and foster enhanced international support while ensuring that the operations of the (G5) force are aligned with important political processes,바카라 including the implementation of a 2015 peace agreement in Mali, he said. (AP)
