The Special Representative of the Secretary General and Head of the United Nations Mission in Colombia, Jean Arnault, informed the UN Security Council about the recent events in Colombia and implications for the work of the UN Mission.

Following the outcome of the referendum on 2 October, the Government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia-People's Army (FARC-EP) asked the UN Secretary General to request the Security Council to allow the UN Mission to verify the parts´ compliance with the ceasefire, according to the jointly agreed protocol on 13 October.

The Special Representative of the Secretary General — accompanied by the UN Mission’s chief of international observers, General Javier Perez Aquino — highlighted to the Security Council a broad national consensus around the ceasefire. He stressed that the provisions in the 13 October protocol are feasible and that its compliance will bring tranquillity to Colombians, who have manifested, more strongly than ever, a refusal to return to violence.

In a press stakeout after the closed-door meeting on Colombia, the President of the UN Security Council, Ambassador Vitaly Churkin of the Russian Federation, said that Security Council members took note of the outcome of the plebiscite on 2 October and welcomed the parties' continuing commitment to uphold the ceasefire.

Churkin added that the Council noted the request by the parties on 7 October for the UN Mission to monitor and verify the bilateral ceasefire, “in light of that the Members of the Council looked forward to the recommendations of the Secretary-General on the mandate of the Mission,” he added.

"The members of the Council encouraged the Parties and all political actors to maintain momentum in the peace process and reiterated their full support for those efforts," Churkin said.

"Members of the Council agreed to keep the Mission's mandate under review in light of those efforts and look forward to the appropriate to the Secretary-General’s recommendations. Council members also expressed their full support for the Special Representative of the Secretary General Jean Arnault in his work, "concluded the ambassador.

Contact:
Carolina Azevedo, Head of Communications, UN Mission in Colombia, azevedoc@un.org
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