New York
UN
Statement attributable to the Spokesman for the Secretary-General on the Democratic Republic of the Congo
Statements | Spokesperson for the Secretary-General
Statements | Spokesperson for the Secretary-General
The Secretary-General was heartened by the Security Council's approval on Friday of a robust multinational force to work alongside the UN Mission of the Democratic Republic of the Congo to restore stability to the town of Bunia and help improve the humanitarian situation there.
The Secretary-General is grateful to France for having assumed the role of lead nation and for contributing roughly half the troops for the force, on which the people of Bunia, and indeed of all of the northeastern region, count to help them restore normalcy to their lives.
With advance elements scheduled to be deployed in a matter of days, and full deployment to begin in two weeks, the multinational force offers the parties in the DRC a chance to rebuild the peace process in that country, which is essential to the stability of central Africa. The Secretary-General urges them to cooperate fully with the force as well as with United Nations peacekeepers in pursuit of that goal.