VZCZCXYZ0015
OO RUEHWEB

DE RUCNDT #1094/01 3371724
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 031724Z DEC 09 ZDK
FM USMISSION USUN NEW YORK
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 7751
INFO RUEHGG/UN SECURITY COUNCIL COLLECTIVE IMMEDIATE
RUCNUNP/UNPBC COLLECTIVE IMMEDIATE

UNCLAS USUN NEW YORK 001094 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL PGOV KPKO UNSC
SUBJECT: PEACEBUILDING COMMISSION: SECURITY COUNCIL LOOKS 
TOWARD 2010 REVIEW 
 
¶1. SUMMARY. During its annual debate on the report of the 
Peacebuilding Commission (PBC), Chairman Heraldo Munoz told 
the Security Council that the PBC had consolidated its core 
advisory role and had increased its support for countries on 
its agenda.  Council members affirmed the need for earlier 
and more coherent peacebuilding efforts and looked forward to 
the 2010 five-year review of PBC as an opportunity to 
strengthen UN peacebuilding efforts. Ambassador Rice called 
for clarification of key peacebuilding roles and 
responsibilities in the Secretariat and for increased efforts 
to develop the Secretariat's civilian expertise.  The United 
Kingdom, France and other Council members suggested the PBC 
should give more focus to national priorities.  China said 
the PBC should focus more effort on economic and social 
development, while Vietnam said the PBC should rationalize 
its relationship with other UN bodies and streamline its 
working methods and procedures.  END SUMMARY. 
 
¶2. During the Security Council's annual debate on the report 
of the Peacebuilding Commission (PBC) on November 25, 
Chairman Heraldo Munoz (Chile) said the PBC had made efforts 
during its third session to enhance both global awareness of 
the commission and the PBC's interaction with other UN 
bodies, especially the Security Council.  Munoz said the PBC 
had consolidated its core advisory role and had demonstrated 
increasing support for the countries on its agenda: Burundi, 
Central African Republic (CAR), Guinea-Bissau and Sierra 
Leone.  The peacebuilding agenda had expanded since the 2005 
World Summit decision to establish the PBC, the Peacebuilding 
Support Office (PBSO) and the Peacebuilding Fund (PBF), he 
said, adding that the role of the PBSO would need to be 
enhanced as the peacebuilding agenda continued to expand. 
 
¶3. Munoz believed the PBC was uniquely positioned to play a 
strong advisory role in post-conflict peacebuilding given its 
membership composition and ability to engage non-UN actors, 
but also thought the PBC had been underutilized.  He welcomed 
revised Terms of Reference (TOR) for the Peacebuilding Fund 
(PBF), which he said would allow for more rapid and flexible 
funding for peacebuilding priorities.  He said a potential 
added value of the PBC at the country level would be to 
advance mutual accountability among national actors in 
concerned countries and their international and regional 
partners.  He acknowledged the importance of the 2010 
five-year review of the PBC as an opportunity to further 
define the PBC's role in the UN peacebuilding agenda. 
 
¶4. Security Council members acknowledged the importance of 
earlier and more coherent peacebuilding efforts in 
post-conflict countries, and looked toward the 2010 review of 
the PBC as an opportunity to strengthen the UN's role in 
post-conflict reconstruction and to refine the PBC's role in 
the effort.  Most members welcomed more flexibility in the 
working methods of the PBC as well as revised terms of 
reference for the PBF.  Most speakers also stressed the 
importance of enhanced interaction between the PBC and the 
Security Council, as well as the importance for the Council 
of early integration of peacebuilding efforts into 
peacekeeping mandates.  Council members stressed the 
importance of national ownership and leadership in 
peacebuilding efforts. 
 
¶5. Ambassador Rice recalled that the United States was an 
early supporter of the PBC, and acknowledged that it was 
still a young institution, trying to deliver on high 
expectations.  Rice noted the PBC's efforts to institute more 
flexible working methods and to mobilize resources from 
traditional and non-traditional donors, and she welcomed the 
revised TOR of the PBF, which could help the fund be 
responsive to urgent needs.  Rice recognized the importance 
of nationally driven peacebuilding strategies and the need to 
take earlier account of peacebuilding components in peace 
processes.  She underscored the importance of timely 
follow-up on the recommendations in the Secretary-General's 
report on "Peacebuilding in the immediate aftermath of 
conflict," (S/2009/304) in particular, on clarifying key 
peacebuilding roles and responsibilities, and mobilizing 
talent and expertise from developing countries to meet the 
"civilian capacity gap" in peacebuilding efforts.  Rice also 
underscored the value of greater coherence among peacemaking, 
peacekeeping and peacebuilding efforts. 
 
¶6. Several Council members suggested the PBC could improve 
its performance.  The United Kingdom said the PBC should not 
get "bogged down" in elaborating detailed peacebuilding 
strategies, but should instead make use of existing plans and 
identify practical steps to address immediate priorities-- in 
short, the PBC needed to shift its focus from New York to 
country-level action. The U.K. also said the PBC needed to 
reach out to the development community, including the 
international and regional financial institutions.  France 
 
called on the PBC to focus more attention on following up on 
projects financed by the PBF in order to ensure the coherence 
of the international community's financial assistance. 
France also said that an Integrated Peacebuilding Office on 
the ground in concerned countries is critical as a focal 
point for PBC efforts and a prerequisite for coordinated 
international efforts.  Uganda called upon the PBC to 
strengthen its review of mutual commitments of national and 
international actors.  Vietnam said the PBC needed to improve 
its working methods and procedures, and to rationalize its 
relationship with the General Assembly, ECOSOC and the 
Security Council.  China called for the PBC to focus more of 
its attention on "deeply rooted" problems, related to 
economic and social development. 
 
¶7. Some members also suggested actions the Secretariat could 
take to improve its role in post-conflict peacebuilding. 
Costa Rica said the Secretariat needed to include 
peacebuilding recommendations in its country reports.  It 
also encouraged the Secretariat to follow through on efforts 
to develop better civilian peacebuilding expertise.  Turkey 
supported strengthening the capacity of the PBSO in order to 
ensure better harmonization of peacebuilding efforts in the 
UN system. 
 
¶8. Referring to the 2010 PBC review, Japan suggested that an 
Arria-formula meeting should be organized in order to bring 
in the perspectives of experts and interested parties in 
order to enrich the effort. Japan also said the Council 
should nominate a facilitator for the review who has 
"extensive knowledge of peacebuilding and is capable of 
forging consensus." 
 
¶9. Turkey and Burkina Faso said financing for peacebuilding 
efforts should be more predictable, sustainable, transparent, 
accountable and flexible.  Turkey noted that its own 
contributions to the PBF did not include caveats. 
 
¶10. Several non-members of the Security Council also 
participated in the debate, and generally echoed the themes 
of the Council members.  Bangladesh said that countries with 
a "comparative advantage" in particular areas, such as 
disarmament, demobilization and reintegration (DDR), should 
be considered as partners when transitioning from 
peacekeeping to peacebuilding activities.  El Salvador also 
said that peacekeeping personnel could remain in country to 
participate in the peacebuilding phase of post-conflict 
situations.  Brazil emphasized the need for a strong UN 
presence on the ground during peacebuilding activities. 
Speaking on behalf of the EU, Sweden said peacebuilding 
activities needed to focus on a limited set of national 
priorities and be tailored to existing national capacities. 
 
¶11. A complete transcript of the debate can be found on the 
Security Council page at the UN web site:  www.un.org 
RICE