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Statement by Ambassador Dai Bing at Security Council Briefing on MONUSCO

2020-12-07 11:44

Mr. President,

I thank Special Representative Zerrougui for her briefing.

The situation in the DRC is largely stable. But the eastern part of the country remains turbulent. The humanitarian situation is worrying. National governance is beset with many challenges. I'd like to emphasize the following four points.

First and foremost is the need to maintain political stability. China follows closely the recent developments in the internal relations of the DRC's ruling coalition. We call on all parties in the DRC to respect the constitutional spirit, prioritize the interests of the country and the people, properly addressed their differences through dialogue and consultation, and spare no effort to preserve the hard-won political stability and unity. The international community should respect DRC's sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity and contribute to its political stability.

Second, we need to improve the security situation. The past three months have witnessed exacerbated armed conflicts and intercommunal violence in North and South Kivus causing heavy civilian casualties. MONUSCO and its Force Intervention Brigade play an indispensable role in stabilizing the situation. The contribution made by TCCs and PCCs is truly commendable. China supports the renewal of MONUSCO's mandate by one year. We welcome DRC government's engagement in the elaboration of the joint strategy on the phased and progressive drawdown of MONUSCO and agree that MONUSCO's drawdown and exit should be predicated on the security situation of the country and the response capacity of its security institutions. China supports the region's specific arrangements, taking into account the evolving situation and the conflict dynamics in different provinces, calls on MONUSCO to coordinate and collaborate with the DRC government, the UN country team, and international financial institutions to ensure an orderly, responsible and sustainable implementation of drawdown strategy and avoid creating a security vacuum. Any reform plan of MONUSCO and its Force Intervention Brigade should be adequately communicated with TCCs, PCCs and be steadily carried out.

Third, there is need for an integrated approach to address root causes of conflicts. Years of instability in eastern DRC is essentially due to the failure to turn its resource advantages into development strength, resulting in violence and conflict. Legal exploration and use of natural resources can provide people with more job opportunities and livelihoods and therefore offers the key to breaking the vicious cycle of conflict. The DDR programs being developed by the DRC government envisage more job and training opportunities for ex-combatants to facilitate their community integration. Kaisais and Tanganyika will largely transition into the peacebuilding phase where relevant development agencies should focus on improving the local blood-generating capacity and consolidate the foundation for durable peace. A new strategy for the Great Lakes region just unveiled by the Secretary General provides innovative thinking to conflict resolution in the DRC. China appreciates this and looks forward to its implementation.

Fourth, due regard should be given to the humanitarian crisis compounded by the COVID-19 pandemic and Ebola. The humanitarian situation in the DRC is increasingly fragile, with more than 5 million people displaced, and over 20 million facing food insecurity. The international community should increase humanitarian assistance to the DRC, to help improve the situation for the Congolese people. China has been among the first countries to help the DRC fight the pandemic, donating dozens of patches of anti-pandemic supplies and pairing up Chinese hospitals with their local counterparts. China has also donated remote learning equipment to poor and far flung areas of DRC to help more young people access education. We are ready to work alongside the international community to help DRC in its quest for peace, stability prosperity and development.

Thank you, Mr. President.

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