Highlights
– South Africa assumes one-month rotating presidency of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC)
– United Nations (UN) seeks to increase ties with regional organizations, including the African Union (AU)
– Empowered AU will be crucial in establishing peace and security throughout the continent
On April 1, 2008, South Africa assumed the one-month, rotating presidency of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC). As one of Africa’s most important and powerful countries, Security Council President Dumisani Kumalo announced South Africa would use the presidency to further increase cooperation between the United Nations (UN) and the African Union (AU).
Increased Cooperation
The UN is currently working to increase ties with regional organizations throughout the world. Cooperation between the AU and the UN is particularly important for several reasons. The UN is involved in several important peacekeeping missions throughout Africa. The UN’s largest peacekeeping force in the world is in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Additionally, the UN took control of the AU’s peacekeeping mission in the Darfur region of Sudan on January 1, 2008 with a mandate to expand the peacekeeping force to create a hybrid force of UN and AU peacekeepers. Further, the UN is currently considering sending a peacekeeping force to Somalia to reinforce the under-funded and understaffed AU peacekeepers already in Mogadishu. The UN also has peacekeeping forces in several other African countries, including along the Ethiopian-Eritrean border.
Preventing Emerging Conflicts, Resolving Ongoing Conflicts
In recent years, the AU has made significant steps towards increasing its role as a primary and effective peacekeeping organization in the region. In addition to sending peacekeeping forces to ongoing and recently resolved conflict areas, the AU has worked to prevent heightened political tensions from resulting in an outbreak of hostilities. For example, former UN Secretary General, Kofi Annan, backed by the AU and the UN, was able to resolve the post-election situation in Kenya in March 2008.
The AU has also sent election monitoring teams throughout the continent to ensure elections are free and fair. The recent AU military operation to restore government control to the rebel-held island in the Comoros further demonstrates the organization’s ability to assemble forces capable of operating together to restore peace and stability among African nations.
Outlook
The focus of South Africa’s UNSC presidency on improving links to regional organizations, with a primary focus on the AU, will serve to strengthen the AU. The AU allows African nations to resolve conflicts primarily through regional cooperation, including the use of political, economic, and military means. Enhanced relations between the UN and the AU will further strengthen the AU’s ability to manage conflicts, both emerging and ongoing, throughout the continent. As the AU continues to expand its capabilities, it will be able to accomplish its goals of preventing and resolving conflicts, as well as supporting political and economic conditions throughout the region. This will become increasingly important as the current UN peacekeeping operations continue and ongoing conflicts continue to threaten regional stability.
Also important, further empowering the AU will assist African nations newly emerged from civil war in ensuring multi-party democracies are established and threats to stability are dealt with primarily through political means. The increased ties between the AU and the UN will, in the long-term, result in greater stability throughout Africa by creating and empowering mechanisms to resolve potential threats to security and stability throughout the continent.
