RASC News Agency: The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) is set to vote today Sunday, March 16, on a draft resolution to extend the mandate of the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) until Monday, March 17. According to a Security Council report, if passed, the resolution will prolong UNAMA’s mission for another year without altering its core priorities or operational scope. The draft mandates UNAMA to continue its engagement on human rights particularly the rights of women and girls women, peace, and security, Afghanistan’s economic and humanitarian crisis, counterterrorism, narcotics trafficking, small arms proliferation, the plight of internally displaced persons (IDPs) and refugees, and the impact of natural disasters.
The UN Security Council anticipates that all 15 permanent and non-permanent members will endorse the resolution. However, negotiations over its content have been fraught with intense disagreements, particularly between the United States, France, China, and Russia four key permanent members. Russia has advocated for the inclusion of provisions on formal engagement with the Taliban, while China has pushed for language supporting the release of Afghanistan’s frozen assets from Western banks demands that have been categorically rejected by the U.S. and France.
Conversely, Washington and Paris have insisted that the resolution focus on human rights and holding the Taliban accountable a position strongly opposed by Moscow and Beijing. Ultimately, provisions related to Taliban accountability, a key demand of human rights organizations and Afghanistan’s civil society particularly women have been omitted from the final draft. Moreover, the resolution’s human rights framework has been significantly diluted, narrowing its focus to the employment of women under Taliban rule restricted to roles within non-governmental organizations (NGOs) rather than addressing the broader spectrum of human rights violations and systemic repression.
