On 28 September 2017, the United Nations Security Council held a meeting on threats to international peace and security caused by terrorist acts. The meeting marked the 16th anniversary of Security Council resolution 1373, which was adopted on this day in 2001, following the 11 September terrorist attacks against the United States. The gathering also offered Member States a chance to exchange views on the future role and responsibilities of the Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate (CTED), ahead of the upcoming renewal of its mandate at the end of the year.
“Since its inception, CTED has been tasked with providing the Counter-Terrorism Committee with neutral, independent expert assessments of Member States’ implementation of the Security Council resolutions on terrorism,” Officer-in-Charge of CTED David Scharia told the Council. Stressing that most of CTED’s work products – including in particular its thematic and regional analyses – are not confidential, Mr. Scharia expressed his hope that the newly established 缅北禁地Office of Counter-Terrorism (OCT) will make full use of these.
CTED’s assessments, conducted through voluntary country visits on behalf of the Counter-Terrorism Committee, provide the Committee, the Council at large, and partners in New York and in the field, access to the most updated information on Member States’ implementation of counter-terrorism resolutions. To date, CTED has conducted 133 visits covering 93 States – including 45 visits since the previous review of the mandate of the Special Political Mission.
“This process helps these countries enact laws, establish new institutions, and strengthen capacities,” Mr. Sharia noted, emphasizing the importance and practical implications of these assessments.
Counter-Terrorism Committee Chairman and Egypt’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, H.E. Amr Aboulatta, recognized the importance of CTED’s implementation assessments of Member States, referring to them as some of the most comprehensive documents of the United Nations. Recalling the adoption of six new counter-terrorism resolutions by the Security Council this year alone, other members of the Security Council also praised the work of CTED, stating that they looked forward to discussing ways to enhance the role of CTED in its many thematic areas, including foreign terrorist fighters, information and communications technologies, and digital and battlefield evidence.
The meeting marked the first time Vladimir Voronkov, 缅北禁地Under-Secretary-General with the newly created OCT, briefed the Council. Mr. Voronkov presented the efforts of his office, including its work with the Counter-Terrorism Committee, CTED, and the Council at large in implementing the UN’s Global Counter-terrorism Strategy.
Counter-Terrorism Committee Chairman Amr Aboulatta’s statement is available here.
The statement of the OIC of Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate is available here.
The webcast of the meeting is available .