SC/8288
     12 January 2005

Security Council Committee Meets Senior US Officials to Discuss Implementation of Sanctions against Al-Qaida, Taliban

NEW YORK, 11 January (UN Headquarters) -- The Al-Qaida and Taliban Sanctions Committee met on 10 January under the new chairmanship of Ambassador César Mayoral (Argentina). The meeting was convened at the ambassadorial level for a briefing by senior representatives of the Government of the United States of America concerning issues relevant to the Committee’s mandate. The meeting was arranged pursuant to paragraph 11 of resolution 1526 (2004) that provides States with an opportunity, at the Committee’s request, to send representatives to meet with the Committee for more in-depth discussion of relevant issues. This was the first such meeting and was arranged in response to an invitation extended to the delegation of the United States of America by H.E. Heraldo Muñoz, former Chairman of the Al-Qaida and Taliban Sanctions Committee.

The briefing included presentations by Juan Zarate, Assistant Secretary for Terrorist Financing and Financial Crime, Department of the Treasury, and E. Anthony Wayne, Assistant Secretary for Economic and Business Affairs, Department of State. The Committee was informed in detail of current United States efforts to implement the sanctions against Al-Qaida and the Taliban imposed by the Security Council under resolution 1267 (1999).

The Committee appreciated with gratitude the substantive information and clarifications provided by the United States’ representatives. Members of the Committee find that this kind of dialogue and direct interaction with Member States can be a useful tool for further improving and enhancing effective sanctions implementation.

Other delegations wishing to benefit from the opportunity to meet with the Committee are invited to submit a brief outline of the relevant issue(s) they wish to discuss to the Committee Chairman’s office (Guillermo Kendall: email: gek@mrecic.gov.ar; fax: (212) 980-8395) and to the Committee Secretariat (Tatiana Cosio: email: Cosio@un.org; fax: (212) 963-1300).

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