The UN Security Council will vote on two dueling resolutions on authorizing cross-border humanitarian assistance mechanism in Syria later on Thursday, Belgian Ambassador to the United Nations Marc Pecsteen de Buytswerve told reporters
UNITED NATIONS (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 19th December, 2019) The UN Security Council will vote on two dueling resolutions on authorizing cross-border humanitarian assistance mechanism in Syria later on Thursday, Belgian Ambassador to the United Nations Marc Pecsteen de Buytswerve told reporters."The vote will be this afternoon," De Buytswerve said.
Russia originally submitted a draft resolution that asks the UN Security Council to preserve extend the authorization for the mechanism for six months but preserve two of the existing four cross-border delivery points.
The so-called "Humanitarian Troika" comprised of Belgium, Germany and Kuwait prepared its draft resolution proposing extending the mechanism for one year and adding one cross-border point to the existing four.
On Wednesday, before the Humanitarian Troika submitted the new draft resolution, Russian Ambassador to the United Nations Vassily Nebenzia informed reporters about the disagreement at the UN Security Council over the two initial draft resolutions and the inability to reach an agreement.
The humanitarian Troika then proposed a "compromise" draft resolution to extend the mechanism for another year but keep three points for cross-border humanitarian assistance. The new draft resolution stipulates excluding the Al-Ramtha crossing, located on the border between Syria and Jordan.
The cross-border humanitarian assistance mechanism expires on January 10, 2020.
