Guyana Assumes Presidency of UN Security Council

Guyana Assumes Presidency of UN Security Council; President Ali to Chair High-Level Debate on June 19

News Room Reports. Guyana has officially assumed the Presidency of the United Nations Security Council as of June 1, 2025, for a one-month term.

The month’s packed schedule includes several mandated meetings addressing critical issues in Syria, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Iraq, Afghanistan, Central Africa, Sudan, Libya, and Yemen. Additionally, there will be a mandated meeting concerning Resolution 2334, which addresses Israeli settlements in Palestinian territories.

On June 19, Guyana’s President, Dr. Mohamed Irfaan Ali, will chair a High-Level Open Debate titled “Poverty, Underdevelopment and Conflict: Implications for the Maintenance of International Peace and Security.” This event will feature briefers from the United Nations system and the African Union, along with participation from various UN Member States. The debate aims to build on previous discussions about the relationship between sustainable development and international peace and security, specifically focusing on poverty and underdevelopment as both drivers and consequences of conflict. This discussion comes at a critical time when armed conflicts are on the rise, and the Sustainable Development Goals are not on track for completion by 2030.

Additionally, Guyana will host the annual Children and Armed Conflict Open Debate on June 25. This debate will include briefings from the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict, Virginia Gamba, and UNICEF Executive Director, Catherine Russell. Member States will also provide statements in response to the Secretary-General’s annual report on the issue.

Guyana plans to direct the Council’s attention to priority areas such as conflict prevention, the security-development nexus, the impacts of climate change on peace and security, the protection of children in armed conflict, and the women, peace, and security agenda.

Council members are expected to adopt the Programme of Work on June 2, after which Guyana’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Ambassador Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett, will brief the media on the Programme and the plans for the Presidency.

Guyana was elected to the Security Council for a two-year term from January 2024 to December 2025. Before this current term, Guyana served on the Council in 1975-1976 and 1982-1983.

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