US changes tack on Haiti peacekeeping push amid China, Russia opposition

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US changes tack on Haiti peacekeeping push amid China, Russia opposition

******* NATIONS (Reuters) – The ******* States has dropped a push for the U.N. Security Council to ask for a plan to transform a security mission helping ****** armed gangs in Haiti into a formal U.N. peacekeeping operation, a move some diplomats said was made to appease Russia and China.

A senior U.S. administration official, however, pushed back against that assessment, saying Washington changed its strategy to support a call last week by the head of Haiti’s transition council, Edgard Leblanc, for a U.N. peacekeeping mission.

“It is not at all that we are bowing to those who might not have the best interests of the Haitian people at heart,” said the official, speaking on condition of anonymity. “We are being strategic about how we’re going about this and building on the shot of momentum that we heard from the Haitian president.”

The 15-member Security Council will vote on Monday on a draft resolution to extend the mandate for the Multinational Security Support (MSS) mission until Oct. 2, 2025. The U.N. first approved the mission a year ago after the Caribbean country asked for assistance.

Diplomats say Russia and China did not want the council to ask for a plan to transition the U.N.-backed security force to a formal U.N. peacekeeping operation, so the U.S. removed that language from the draft resolution, seen by Reuters.

Russia wants to allow more time for the security force to establish itself, Deputy Russian U.N. Ambassador Dmitry Polyanskiy said on Sunday, adding: “We don’t want to prejudge MSS’s outcome. Too early to make conclusions.”

‘FULL SUCCESS’

Haitian leaders speaking at the ******* Nations General Assembly last week warned of worsening insecurity in the country despite the partial deployment of the security force.

Powerful gangs, armed with weapons largely trafficked from the ******* States, have ******* in the capital under a common alliance and now control most of the city and are expanding to nearby areas.

Leblanc told the U.N. General Assembly on Thursday: “I am convinced that this change of status, whilst recognizing that the errors of the past cannot be repeated, would guarantee the full success of the mission in Haiti.”

The senior U.S. official said Washington would “work with partners over the coming weeks to support that call.” U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken raised the issue of transforming the security force into a U.N. peacekeeping operation during a visit to Haiti earlier this month.

Many Haitians are wary of an armed U.N. presence after previous missions left behind a devastating cholera epidemic and **** ****** scandals.

The current Kenyan-led international security mission, while authorized by the U.N. Security Council, is not a ******* Nations operation. Countries voluntarily provide money and personnel.

The mission has made little progress toward helping Haiti restore order with only 400 Kenyan police officers on the ground so far and a shortfall in funding.

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said earlier this month that establishing a U.N. peacekeeping force would not be the best solution for Haiti, which faces a humanitarian crisis with mass displacements, ******* ********* and widespread hunger.

Gang ********* has displaced more than 700,000 people in Haiti, according to U.N. estimates. (This story has been refiled to fix a spelling error in the headline)

(Reporting by Michelle Nichols; Editing by Lisa Shumaker and Nick Zieminski)

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