VZCZCXYZ0000
RR RUEHWEB

DE RUCNDT #0651/01 1840000
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 030000Z JUL 09
FM USMISSION USUN NEW YORK
TO SECSTATE WASHDC 6847

UNCLAS USUN NEW YORK 000651 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: AORC IS LE PREL UNGA YI
SUBJECT: UN: FIFTH COMMITTEE ADOPTS PEACEKEEPING MISSION 
BUDGETS AND REACHES AGREEMENT ON OTHER ISSUES 
 
REF: USUN 000511 
 
¶1.  Summary:  Following weeks of sometimes contentious 
negotiations, the Fifth Committee, on June 23rd, reached 
agreement on the 14 peacekeeping operation (PKO) budgets 
financed under the peacekeeping scale of assessments and on 
other peacekeeping-related requirements for the UN 
peacekeeping financial year July 2009/June 2010.  The budgets 
and other drafts were formally adopted in Plenary on June 
30th.  The Mission was successful in achieving the overall 
objective of significantly reducing the costs of peacekeeping 
missions without undermining the ability of those missions to 
fulfill their mandates.  The Mission was successful in large 
part because for the first time in recent memory it was able 
to forge a unified western front to deal with the objection 
of the G-77 to any significant reductions from the funding 
proposal of the SYG. 
 
¶2.  At USDel's initiative, the following group of states, 
responsible for paying 90.5% of the Organization's 
peacekeeping requirements, worked as a single like-minded 
group during the negotiations: the EU; CANZ (Canada, 
Australia, New Zealand); Japan; the Rep. of Korea; and the 
US.  The total amount requested by the Secretary-General was 
$8.37 billion.  Mission was successful in reducing that 
amount by $600.54 million (7.2%) to a still record total of 
$7.77 billion - a 6.2% increase over the previous 12-month 
budget of $7.31 billion.  The reductions are slightly higher 
than those recommended by the Advisory Committee on 
Administrative and Budgetary Questions (ACABQ). 
 
¶3.  As in years past, the majority of reductions were from 
the proposed budgets of new or expanded missions.  The 
reductions, for the first time, reflect an across-the-board 
"efficiency" cut of 0.5% on all individual PKO budgets.  See 
paragraphs 6 - 20 below for reporting on the individual PKO 
budgets including on the costs involved in liquidating the 
recently-terminated UN Observer Mission in Georgia (UNOMIG) 
and on the recorded votes on the UNIFIL draft concerning the 
obligation of Israel to make reparations for the damage to 
UNIFIL facilities at Q'ana in April 1996. 
 
¶4.  The committee reached consensus on: financing the 
logistics support package for the African Union Mission in 
Somalia (AMISOM) (paragraph 21); the budget of the 
peacekeeping support account (paragraph 22), including the 
requirements for funding a three-year pilot project for 
regional hubs of the Office of Internal Oversight Services 
(OIOS) (Septel to follow), the budget of the UN logistics 
base in Brindisi, Italy (UNLB) (paragraph 23); three 
recently-closed PKOs - the UN Operation in Burundi (ONUB), 
the UN Mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea (UNMEE), and the UN 
Mission in Sierra Leone (UNOMSIL) (paragraph 24); on the 
report of the Board of Auditors on PKOs covering the period 
July 2007/June 2008: on a revised budget for the UN Political 
Office for Somalia (UNPOS) (funded under the regular budget) 
(paragraph 25); on the return of two-thirds of the credits 
available in the account of the UN Iraq-Kuwait Observation 
Mission (UNIKOM) to the government of Kuwait in the amount of 
$996,800; and on the issue of timely submission of documents 
under the item pattern of conferences (paragraph 26) and on 
rates of reimbursement to troop-contributing countries (TCCs) 
(paragraph 27).  The budget figures below do not include the 
missions' prorated shares of the support account and UNLB 
budgets. 
 
¶5.  The committee was not able to reach agreement on the 
issue of returning to Member States the funds available in 
the accounts of 16 closed PKOs with cash surpluses and 
decided to again consider the updated financial position of 
the 21 total closed PKOs including five with cash deficits 
during its 64th session (paragraph 28). The committee was 
also not able to agree on a cross-cutting resolution for the 
second year in a row.  Closing statements made at conclusion 
of the meeting and second resumed session of the Fifth 
Committee reporting Septel.  US statement of May 13th posted 
as www.usunnewyork.usmission.gov/press_releases/ 20090513_100. 
 
End summary. 
 
Missions in Africa 
 
¶6.  MINURCAT (UN Mission in the Central African Republic and 
Chad): $690.75 million - amount proposed: $768.19 million - 
reduction of $77.44 million (10.1%).  The committee decided 
to reclassify the post of the Chief of Staff in the Office of 
the SRSG from the D-1 to D-2 level; recognized that the 
improvement of national airport infrastructure is the 
responsibility of the host country, where possible; welcomed 
the dispatch of a dedicated recruitment and staffing team 
from Headquarters; commended the Mission for its initiative 
to prepare a water production and conservation policy 
reclassify; and called for enhanced regional and 
 
 
 
inter-mission cooperation. 
 
¶6.  UNAMID (African Union-United Nations Hybrid Operation in 
Darfur): $1.6 billion - amount proposed: $1.789 billion - 
reduction of $189 million (10.6%).  The committee took note 
of the OIOS report on the audit of the use of extraordinary 
measures (including awarding of a sole-source contract to the 
US firm PAE) for UNAMID and the SYG's comments thereon, 
stressed the importance of ensuring greater accountability of 
the SYG to Member States for effective implementation of 
legislative mandates on procurement and related use of 
financial and human resources, asked the SYG to ensure that 
all procurement projects are in full compliance with relevant 
resolutions and that lessons learned from previous 
application of flexibility and administrative procedures are 
fully taken into account, and asked the Independent Audit 
Advisory Committee (IAAC) to provide advice on measures to 
ensure compliance of management with the OIOS audit and 
recommendations. 
 
¶7.  UNMIS (UN Mission in the Sudan): $958.35 - amount 
proposed: $980.56 - reduction of $22.21 million (2.3%).  The 
committee established 187 disarmament, demobilization and 
reintegration posts (DDR) posts. 
 
¶8.  UNOCI (United Nations Operation in Cote d'Ivoire): 
$491.77 - amount proposed: $505.79 - reduction of $14.02 
million (2.8%).  The committee asked the SYG to make the 
fullest possible use of facilities and equipment at UNLB and 
at the Entebbe Logistics hub in Uganda, where applicable and 
to continue his efforts to recruit local staff against 
General Service posts. 
 
¶9.  UNMIL (UN Mission in Liberia): $561 million - amount 
proposed: $593.59 - reduction of $32.59 million (5.5%). 
 
¶10.  MONUC  (UN Organization Mission in the Democratic 
Republic of the Congo): $1.35 billion - amount proposed: 
$1.428 billion - reduction of $78 million (5.5%).  The 
committee approved funding for 16 general temporary 
assistance positions for the Special Envoy of the SYG for the 
Great Lakes region for six months (July - December 2009) with 
the intention of funding these positions under the regular 
budget as of 2010. 
 
¶11.  MINURSO (UN Mission for the Referendum in Western 
Sahara): $53.53 million - proposed amount $57.40 million - 
reduction of $3.87 million (6.7%). 
 
 
Mission in the Americas 
 
 
¶12.  MINUSTAH (UN Stabilization Mission in Haiti): $611.75 
million - amount proposed: $618.62 million - reduction of 
$6.87 million (1.1%).  The committee approved up to $3 
million for quick-impact projects. 
 
 
Missions in Asia and the Pacific 
 
 
¶13.  UNMIT (UN Integrated Mission in Timor-Leste): $205.94 
million - amount proposed: $210.61 - reduction of $4.67 
million (2.25%).  The committee approved $3.07 million for 
the upcoming local elections and called on the SYG to address 
the increased number of allegations of misconduct. 
 
¶14.  UNMOGIP (UN Military Observer Group in India and 
Pakistan) - funded under the regular budget - budget to be 
adopted during the main part of the 64th GA. 
 
 
Missions in Europe 
 
 
¶15.  UNFICYP (UN Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus): $54.41 
million - amount proposed: $57.48 million - reduction of 
$3.07 million (5.3%). 
 
¶16.  UNMIK (UN Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo): 
$46.81 million - amount proposed $47.08 million - reduction 
of $270,000 (.06%).  Following extensive negotiations, the 
committee adopted EU compromise language amending a Serbian 
proposal to establish additional positions, approving only 
three general temporary assistance positions.  Per prior 
agreement among USDel, Serbia and the EU, the UN Controller, 
prior to adoption of the budget in the Fifth Committee, said 
that it was the Secretariat's understanding that the three 
positions were to be utilized to ensure coordination with 
EULEX (European Union Rule of Law Mission in Kosovo) and to 
assist the SRSG in implementing activities within the 
framework of SCR 1244 and presidential statement 
 
 
S/PRST/2008/44.  Following formal adoption of the budget in 
Plenary, Serbia expressed satisfaction over the creation of 
the three positions, noting that they were intended to ensure 
coordination and cooperation between UNMIK and EULEX within 
the status neutral framework of resolution 1244.  He also 
expressed the expectation that the positions will have clear 
and well-defined roles, particularly regarding the police, 
justice and customs, the three core functions of EULEX. 
 
¶17.  UNOMIG (UN Observer Mission in Georgia): In anticipation 
that the mandate would be renewed, the SYG proposed a budget 
of $38.84 million.  Following a Russian veto in the Security 
Council on June 15, 2009 of a draft extending the mandate of 
the Mission, the committee appropriated $15 million for the 
liquidation of the Mission for the period July - December 
2009 and asked the SYG to submit a liquidation budget for the 
Mission during the main part of the 64th GA. 
 
 
Missions in the Middle East 
 
¶18.  UNDOF (UN Disengagement Observer Force): $45.03 million 
- amount proposed $45.40 million - reduction of $370,000 
(.08%).  The committee also appropriated an additional amount 
of $2.52 million for the period July 2007/June 2008. 
 
¶19.  UNIFIL (UN Interim Force in Lebanon): $589.80 million - 
amount proposed: $646.58 - reduction of $56.78 million 
(8.8%).  As in previous funding resolutions, the U.S., in 
both the Fifth Committee and in Plenary, called for a 
recorded vote and voted against four paragraphs concerning 
the obligation of Israel to make reparations for the damage 
to UNIFIL facilities at Q'ana in April 1996.  The U.S. also 
called for a recorded vote and voted against the resolution 
as a whole in both venues.  (Vote totals and selected 
explanations of vote by the U.S. and others in paragraphs 29 
and 30 below.) 
 
¶20.  UNTSO (UN Truce Supervision Organization) - funded under 
the regular budget - budget to be adopted during the main 
part of the 64th GA. 
 
 
AU Mission in Somalia 
 
¶21.  Financing of activities arising from SCR 1863 - Support 
for the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM): $138.80 
million - amount proposed: $185.67 million - reduction of 
$46.87 million (25.2%).  In taking this action, the committee 
authorized the SYG to enter into commitments to continue the 
logistics support package for the July - December 2009 period 
while asking him to ensure effectiveness, efficiency and 
transparency in the use of the resources.  The SYG was also 
asked to submit a budget for the full July 2009/June 2010 
period to enable the GA to take a decision before October 31, 
¶2009. 
 
 
Support Account 
 
¶22.  In 1991 the GA established the support account as the 
funding mechanism for backstopping and other 
peacekeeping-related activities at UN Headquarters.  The 
committee approved support account requirements of $294.03 
million - a reduction of $30.44 million from the proposed 
amount of $324.45 million (9.4%).  The funding provides for 
1,175 continuing posts, 63 new temporary posts and 83 
continuing and 60 new general temporary assistance positions, 
as well as funding for consultants, official travel, 
facilities, communications and IT. 
 
 
UN Logistics Base 
 
 
¶23.  The committee approved UNLB requirements of $57.95 
million - a reduction of $10.33 million from the proposed 
amount of $68.28 million (15.1%).  The committee welcomed the 
intention of the SYG to submit proposals on a global support 
strategy for UN peacekeeping (U-SYG Malcorra's initiative), 
requested that those proposals include a thorough 
cost-benefit analysis, and decided to relocate the Standing 
Police Capacity to UNLB. 
 
 
Recently-closed PKOs 
 
¶24.  The committee decided on the disposition of assets of 
the UN Operation in Burundi (ONUB) and on crediting Member 
States' shares of the cash available in the accounts of the 
UN Mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea (UNMEE) and the UN Mission 
in Sierra Leone (UNOMSIL). 
 
 
 
UN Political Office for Somalia 
 
 
¶25.  The committee approved (under the regular budget) a 
revised 2008-2009 budget for the UN Political Office for 
Somalia (UNPOS) in the amount of $16.18 million.  As mandated 
in SCR 1863 and decided by the committee, the budget includes 
funding of a dedicated capacity to support the development of 
the Somali security sector, including advisers on military 
and police training, security sector reform, disarmament, 
demobilization and reintegration, mine action, human rights, 
justice and corrections, in coordination with ongoing work of 
AMISOM and UNDP in those areas. 
 
 
Pattern of conferences 
 
¶26.  In addressing the problem of timely issuance of 
documents, the committee welcomed the progress achieved by 
the Secretariat task force concerning documents on 
peacekeeping financing.  The committee also noted the lack of 
conference services being provided to the Human Rights 
Council and asked OIOS to review the circumstances that led 
to insufficient conferences services being provided to the 
Council. 
 
 
Reimbursement to TCCs 
 
 
¶27.  The committee endorsed the recommendations of the ACABQ 
which did not object to the new methodology proposed by the 
SYG, requested a mock-up of the proposed methodology, and 
noted that the new methodology could lead to a change in the 
rates of reimbursement.  The committee also approved an 
increase in the payment of the recreational leave allowance 
from 7 to 15 days for military contingents and formed police 
units. 
 
 
Closing the accounts of 21 Closed PKOs 
 
¶28.  Approving the draft on Closed PKOs, the committee 
decided to return two-thirds of the credits available in the 
account of the UN Iraq-Kuwait Observation Mission (UNIKOM) to 
the government of Kuwait in the amount of $996,800 and to 
continue to consider the updated financial position of closed 
PKOs during the 64th session.  As in recent years, the 
committee was not able to agree on returning to Member States 
the funds available in the accounts of 16 closed PKOs with 
cash surpluses ($186.3 million as at June 30, 2008).  The 
Egyptian delegate again blocked consensus "as a matter of 
principle" because his government is owed reimbursements from 
one of the five closed PKOs with cash deficits.  The total 
amount of such deficits was $86.7 million at June 30, 2008 
because of outstanding payments of assessed contributions - 
the majority of which are due to the 25% cap of US 
peacekeeping contributions). 
 
 
UNIFIL - Voting and Statements 
 
 
¶29.  Recorded votes - Fifth Committee - 
 
One vote on preambular paragraph 4 and operative paragraphs 
4,5 and 15 concerning the obligation of Israel to make 
reparations for the damage caused to UNIFIL facilities at 
Q'ana in April 1996 - 74 yes, 5 no (Australia, Canada, 
Israel, New Zealand, US), 45 abstentions (including the EU, 
Albania, Bosnia/Herzegovina, Cameroon, Croatia, Georgia, 
Iceland, Japan, Liechtenstein, Macedonia, Moldova, Monaco, 
Montenegro, Norway, Panama, ROK, San Marino, Serbia, 
Switzerland, Turkey, Ukraine) 
 
On the resolution as a whole - 125 yes (including the EU, 
Albania, Bosnia/Herzegovina, Cameroon, Croatia, Georgia, 
Iceland, Japan, Liechtenstein, Macedonia, Moldova, Monaco, 
Montenegro, Norway, Panama, ROK, San Marino, Serbia, 
Switzerland, Turkey, Ukraine), 2 no (Israel, US), 0 
abstentions 
 
Note: CANZ, contrary to its position in previous years, 
decided to align its votes on both the separate paragraphs 
and the resolution as a whole.  On the separate paragraphs 
vote, New Zealand joined Australia and Canada in voting no. 
On the resolution as a whole, Australia joined Canada and New 
Zealand in voting yes. 
 
Plenary - 
 
One vote on preambular paragraph 4 and operative paragraphs 
 
 
4,5 and 19 concerning the obligation of Israel to make 
reparations for the damage caused to UNIFIL facilities at 
Q'ana in April 1996 - 75 yes, 6 no (Australia, Canada, 
Israel, New Zealand, Trinidad/Tobago, US), 46 abstentions 
(including the EU, Albania, Andorra, Bosnoa/Herzegovina, 
Cameroon, Croatia, El Salvador, Equatorial Guinea, Georgia, 
Iceland, Japan, Liechtenstein, Moldova, Monaco, Montenegro, 
Panama, ROK, San Marino, Serbia, Switzerland, Ukraine) 
 
On the resolution as a whole - 134 yes (including the EU, 
Albania, Bosnia/Herzegovina, Cameroon, Croatia, Georgia, 
Iceland, Japan, Liechtenstein, Moldova, Monaco, Montenegro, 
Norway, Panama, ROK, San Marino, Serbia, Switzerland, 
Ukraine), 2 no (Israel, US), 0 abstentions 
 
Note: see note above. 
 
¶30.  Selected Statements - Fifth Committee - 
 
US - Said that the US strongly supported UNIFIL, but the use 
of a General Assembly funding resolution to pursue claims 
against a Member State was procedurally not correct.  His 
delegation had opposed the resolutions, since they called for 
Israel to pay the costs for the 1996 incident.  The procedure 
that was normally followed was for the Secretary-General to 
present and pursue the Organization's claims against a State 
or States.  Using a funding resolution to legislate a 
settlement was inappropriate.  It politicized the issue. 
 
Czech Rep., on behalf of the EU and associated States, said 
the EU was concerned that consensus had not been reached on 
the draft and that political elements had been introduced in 
the work of the Fifth Committee.  Members of the EU had 
abstained on preambular paragraph 4 and operative paragraphs 
4, 5 and 15, because they considered the text, as drafted, 
inappropriate in the context of the resolution dealing with 
UNIFIL financing.  The broader political aspects of the 
events, including the incident at Qana, had been debated in 
the Assembly in April 1996, resulting in a resolution on the 
matter.  He underlined that, as in the past, the EU would 
have wished that the Committee's consultations could have 
been confined only to the budgetary aspects of the financing 
of UNIFIL. 
 
Lebanon - Said his delegation agreed with the principle of 
collective responsibility for PKOs.  That principle, however 
did not contradict the general principle of international law 
concerning wrongful acts of a State, including compensation 
for damages as a consequence of such acts.  GA resolution 
55/235 stated that the GA should give special consideration 
to Member States which were victims of events leading to 
PKOs.  He said 16 previous GA resolutions had asked for 
compensation for damages caused by the Israeli attack on the 
UN post in Q'ana, which had caused the death of over 100 
Lebanese, mostly children and elderly.  He requested also 
that all violations of the Blue Line should also be recorded 
and that the party responsible for the violations should be 
clearly indicated. 
 
Australia - Said his delegation had voted in favor of the 
draft just adopted and not abstained, as it had in 
the past, in order to emphasize its strong support for 
UNIFIL's work.  At the same time, Australia did not support 
the insertion of political language in a budget resolution 
and had voted against preambular paragraph 4 and operative 
paragraphs 4, 5 and 15. 
 
New Zealand - Said, that, as a long-standing supporter of 
UNIFIL, his delegation had voted in favor of the resolution. 
 NZ regretted, however, the inclusion of political paragraphs 
in a resolution, which should focus on budgetary 
requirements.  His delegation had, thus, voted against the 
paragraphs in question. 
 
Canada - Regretted that consensus had not been possible 
because of inappropriate language in the paragraphs on 
which a separate vote had been requested.  Those paragraphs 
undermined the understanding that political considerations 
did not have a place in technical resolutions.  Neutrality 
was a core aspect of peacekeeping, he said.  It was also 
inappropriate to target one party for non-compliance of UN 
resolutions.  He urged that, in the future, the paragraphs on 
which a separate vote had been requested would be omitted. 
 
Plenary - 
 
Israel - Expressed full support for UNIFIL, but said the 
resolution lacked the necessary impartiality and was a 
repetition of annual political maneuvering.  Diplomatic 
manipulation had occurred.  This past December and January, 
Israel was attacked by rockets from Lebanon and Israel's 
safety had been threatened.  Member States had hijacked this 
resolution to promote political purposes.  The Fifth 
 
 
Committee and the GA should reject this sort of political 
maneuvering that undermines budgetary and peacekeeping issues. 
 
Lebanon - Said her delegation had explained its position 
before the Fifth Committee and had not intended to take the 
floor again, but found itself obliged to do so to clarify 
some points.  She reaffirmed that the Government of 
Lebanon fully supported the activities of UNIFIL, in 
cooperation with the Lebanese army in Southern Lebanon, in 
order to avoid any possibility of renewed Israeli aggression. 
 Concerning the financing of UNIFIL, her delegation's belief 
in the collective responsibility for carrying the costs of 
peacekeeping did not contradict the principle of the 
responsibility of each individual State for its wrongdoing in 
international affairs.  The events in Q'ana in 1996 
represented such wrongdoing, carried out by Israel, and the 
international community must hold it fully responsible for 
it.  UNIFIL was carrying out important tasks, but to date it 
was still unable to carry them out fully because of Israel's 
daily violations of Lebanon's air space.   Israel also 
persisted in its occupation of the northern part of al-Ghajar 
village.  Her delegation was not the one that wanted to 
politicize a resolution of a financial character.   Lebanon 
was dealing with the issues of national reconciliation and 
dialogue in Lebanon.   Israel was the one trying to interfere 
in her country's The resolution was to provide financial and 
administrative support for Lebanon. 
RICE