India calls for termination of use of force in Libya; India supports Iran on use of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes; UNSC extends UN mandate in Afghanistan for another year; Security Council expresses deep concern on the situation in Ivory Coast
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    • India on March 22, urged all parties in Libya to abjure violence and use of force to resolve differences. The External Affairs Minister, S.M. Krishna called for the cessation of conflict. He also called for peaceful dialogue between the parties under the purview of the United Nations and other regional organizations.1

    At a Security Council meeting to discuss the status of sanctions imposed on Iran, India’s envoy to the UN, Hardeep Singh Puri said, “India has taken a consistent stand on the Iranian nuclear issue” and “Iran is entitled to the rightful use of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes and should at the same time restore international confidence to the exclusively peaceful nature of its activities.” India also noted that the misgivings about Iran’s nuclear programme needed to be addressed by “peaceful means, through dialogue and negotiation”.2

    Meanwhile, the Security Council gave strong backing to the United Nations (through resolution 1974 that extended the mandate of the UN for another year) to lead international civilian efforts in Afghanistan as the nation assumed responsibility for its own security and development. It stressed the importance of a comprehensive approach to address the challenges to a successful transition to Afghan security leadership and also emphasized that security gains must be supported by improvements in the way the country is governed and in the living standards of the people. It also expressed concern at the continuing “alarming threats” posed by the Taliban, al-Qaida and other extremist groups.3

    In other developments, the UN Security Council expressed its indignation at the shelling of a market, allegedly carried out by elements of the Ivorian Defense and security forces in Ivory Coast’s commercial capital and warned that it would punish anyone who obstructed the resolution of the country’s prolonged post-election crisis. The members of the Council expressed their “deep concern about the continuing post-electoral crisis in Cote d’Ivoire and its negative humanitarian consequences on the civilian population, including refugees and internally displaced persons”.4

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