Security Council: Algeria, locomotive of reform train

ALGIERS- Algeria, a non-permanent member of the Security Council, has unfailing credibility, which should enable it to play a leading role in promoting reform and democratization of this UN body, with the aim of strengthening regional and international peace, security and stability, Arab diplomats and political leaders said on Wednesday.

In a statement to APS, Azzam Al-Ahmed, a member of the Central Committee of the Palestinian Fatah Movement, said that Algeria rightly deserved this membership not only to represent the Arabs, but also to be the voice of the African continent and the Non-Aligned Movement, victims of a historic injustice in terms of representation and the settlement of regional conflicts.

Accordin to Azzam, "Algeria is highly qualified to play this important role, particularly in the context of the international situation and the wars raging throughout the world, especially the devastating war being waged by the Zionist entity in the Palestinian territories, in Ghaza and the West Bank, where crimes of immeasurable barbarity are being committed daily against Palestinian civilians, in full view of the international community."

The Palestinian official expressed his "optimism" about Algeria's ability to make Palestine's voice heard loud and clear at the Security Council, a mission that the country's high authorities, headed by the President of the Republic, Adelmadjid Tebboune, or via the Algerian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, have undertaken to take on, since the Palestinian question, a central cause, is one of Algeria's top priorities during its term of office at the Security Council. 

Azzam took the opportunity to pay tribute to Algeria under the leadership of President Tebboune and to the Algerian people, pointing out that "the Palestinians remember by heart the famous quote by the late President Houari Boumediène, who never stopped saying that 'Algeria will always support Palestine, whether it is right or wrong."

"The sacrifices made by the Algerian people for their independence were also made in support of the Arab peoples," he said, adding that the Palestinian people would continue their struggle until the end of the occupation and the establishment of the independent State of Palestine, with Al-Quds as its capital.

For his part, the Polisario Front representative in Switzerland and to the United Nations and international organisations in Geneva, Oubi Bouchraya Bachir, said that "despite the major shortcomings recorded, particularly with regard to the balance of power and the lack of equitable geographical distribution within the Security Council, Algeria has the moral authority and credibility to play a key role in reforming and democratising this UN body."  

Algeria "will also work to ensure that the voice of Africa, which aspires to play a leading role, is heard, while strongly advocating the United Nations Charter and its spirit, in particular Resolution 1514 on the granting of independence to colonial countries and peoples, particularly in Palestine and Western Sahara," he said.

In addition, the Polisario Front's representative to the UN and coordinator with MINURSO, Sidi Mohammed Amar, said that "Algeria continues to contribute to UN action, recalling the three previous mandates of Algeria in the Security Council (1968-1969, 1988-1989 and 2004-2005).

The diplomat also recalled Algeria's "central role" after independence in the fight against colonialism and support for peoples struggling for their freedom and independence in Africa and elsewhere, as well as its pioneering role within the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) in restructuring international affairs in the service of peace, international security and global development, on the basis of balance and equality.

He praised Algeria for its "diplomatic efforts to spread peace in its neighbourhood and elsewhere, and for working in close coordination with the United Nations and regional organizations, in particular the African Union (AU)," saying that its membership represented an "important added value" for the work of the Security Council in ensuring compliance with the UN's decisions on issues on its agenda.

"Algeria will certainly make a major contribution to the ongoing debates on United Nations reform, and specifically on Security Council reform,e je said.

Meanwhile, Algeria has always defended Africa's legitimate right to obtain two permanent seats on the UN body, and to boost its non-permanent representation from three to five seats, in accordance with the "Ezulwini Consensus" and the "Sirte Declaration," he added.