The international political environment is indeed difficult, but our commitment to supporting countries in their efforts to prevent and resolve conflict and build sustainable peace is undiminished. We look to the global community in turn to continue to back our work, politically and financially, to enable us to fulfill our important mandate.<\/p>\n
Active Around the World<\/p>\n
Here\u2019s a quick look at some of our areas of work as covered in our online newsletter,\u00a0Politically Speaking<\/a>.<\/p>\n DPPA and the UN system provided electoral assistance to over 40 countries in 2025. In\u00a0October<\/a>, we looked at how this support aims to make elections worldwide peaceful, inclusive, and credible, always at the request of Member States and under national ownership. It highlights local examples \u2014 from Malawi to Liberia, Vanuatu, Ecuador, Jordan, and others \u2014 to show how assistance is adapted to each country\u2019s needs, whether through strengthening electoral institutions, improving laws, supporting information integrity, or ensuring that women, youth, persons with disabilities and other marginalized groups can participate fully. Demand for UN electoral support is growing, even as funding declines, and multiple UN entities coordinate this work as a cost effective investment in good governance and conflict prevention.<\/p>\n \u201cGenuine elections that reflect the will of the people are not guaranteed. Gains can be reversed. Sustained commitment and investment are essential to ensure inclusion, protect electoral integrity and maintain public trust.\u201d<\/p>\n UN sanctions<\/a>\u00a0have evolved from broad, country-wide measures to more targeted tools \u2014 such as arms embargoes, travel bans and asset freezes \u2014 aimed at specific individuals, groups or sectors that threaten international peace and security. Today, 14 sanctions regimes support conflict resolution, counter terrorism and non-proliferation, and are designed to work alongside diplomacy, mediation and peace operations rather than punish entire populations.<\/p>\n \u201cSecurity Council sanctions can be broadly considered as measures strategically imposed to restrict activities in a wide range of areas, aimed at achieving peace and security objectives.\u201d<\/p>\n DPPA was a partner in the\u00a0\u201cThrough Her Lens: Women Rising for Peace\u201d<\/a>\u00a0photo exhibit, launched at the 2025 Photoville Festival. The\u00a0exhibit<\/a>\u00a0showcases women as protagonists in making and keeping peace, challenging the stereotype of women as only victims of war.<\/p>\n \u201cThese images are more than art \u2014 they are a collective story of resilience, acts of resistance, and transformation.\u201d<\/p>\n Recent IMF research shows that well targeted macroeconomic policies can be a highly cost effective tool for preventing armed conflict. It is estimated that every $1 spent on prevention can yield returns of $26\u2013$75 in countries without recent violence and up to $103 in countries emerging from conflict.<\/p>\n We\u00a0looked<\/a>\u00a0at how DPPA and its Peacebuilding Support Office apply a \u201cprevention lens\u201d in practice, working with international financial institutions and governments to design and implement national prevention and peacebuilding plans, support youth empowerment and inclusion, and engage early in fragile contexts through diplomacy, mediation and local peacebuilding efforts.<\/p>\n \u201cWe found that an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.\u201d<\/p>\n Indigenous Peoples, though disproportionately affected by climate risks and conflict, remain underrepresented in decision-making, even as they steward a large share of the world\u2019s land and biodiversity. In 2025, we\u00a0examined<\/a>\u00a0Indigenous-led, climate-informed peacebuilding, focusing on the shift from viewing Indigenous communities as vulnerable groups to recognizing them as key partners.<\/p>\n \u201cPlease don\u2019t worry about us, just include us.\u201d<\/p>\n Looking Back \u2026 and Ahead<\/p>\n The situation in five countries on the Security Council\u2019s agenda \u2014 and monitored by DPPA \u2014 saw significant developments in 2025, reflecting, notably, the effects of a substantially changed geopolitical landscape.<\/p>\n Gaza\u00a0continued to retain much of the Security Council\u2019s attention during 2025. DPPA and\u00a0UNSCO<\/a>, the Jerusalem-based special political mission it oversees, briefed the Council regularly on the impact of the fighting in the territory and the need to reach a ceasefire, release the hostages and prisoners and allow the unimpeded delivery of aid into Gaza. In September, the United States, with Egypt and Qatar, brokered a ceasefire in Gaza, which was welcomed by the Secretary-General and later endorsed in October by the Council in\u00a0resolution 2803<\/a>. Briefing the Council in December, Ramiz Alakbarov, Deputy Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process,\u00a0said<\/a>\u00a0the ceasefire \u201cremains fragile, as we have seen with continued attacks and strikes in Gaza.\u201d He welcomed the \u201congoing efforts by the mediators to avert further escalation, support implementation of current commitments \u2014 including the recovery and return of the last Israeli hostage \u2014 and to advance discussions on the next phase and implementation of the Comprehensive Plan for Gaza, in line with UN Security Council Resolution 2803.\u201d UNSCO and DPPA continue to support the implementation of the ceasefire by supporting humanitarian efforts and providing expertise and advice on ceasefire implementation to pave the way toward a path to a political process and sustainable peace.<\/p>\n Amid broadly somber global political sentiment at the beginning 2025, there were some signs of hope, and none more prominent than the change of government in\u00a0Syria\u00a0after decades of repression and 14 years of a bloody conflict. As Bashar al-Assad fled Syria in December 2024, the Secretary-General\u00a0said<\/a>: \u201cWe will need the support of the international community to ensure that any political transition is inclusive and comprehensive and that it meets the legitimate aspirations of the people of Syria, in all their diversity.\u201d Many countries lifted bilateral sanctions on Syria in 2025, and in November, the Security Council\u00a0removed<\/a>\u00a0Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa and Minister of Interior Anas Hasan Khattab from its ISIL (Da\u2019esh) and Al-Qaida Sanctions List. In December 2025, Under-Secretary-General Rosemary DiCarlo\u00a0told<\/a>\u00a0the Security Council that, \u201c[o]ne year ago, the hope of millions of Syrians was realized when then President Assad fled the country.\u201d She commended the people of Syria for the progress made since, \u201cdespite the undeniable and daunting challenges before them.\u201d She added that the Office of the Special Envoy of the Secretary-General for Syria, the special political mission for the country, continues to be fully engaged with the Government and Syrian society and provides them with good offices support on issues related to the transition, including transitional justice. The Office, with DPPA support, is seeking to be on the ground in Damascus to engage in a structured and supportive way throughout the transition.<\/p>\n In\u00a0Sudan, however, there is no end in sight to the war. After nearly 1000 days of brutal fighting between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), the country is in the grip of the world\u2019s\u00a0largest humanitarian crisis<\/a>. Throughout 2025, UN leaders condemned the violence at the hands of both parties. In October, shortly after the fall of El Fasher to the RSF, Assistant Secretary-General Martha Pobee\u00a0warned<\/a>: \u201cThe risk of mass atrocities, ethnically targeted violence and further violations of international humanitarian law, including sexual violence, remains alarmingly high across the country, and particularly in El Fasher.\u201d<\/p>\n The situation is simply horrifying. In the past week, the UN Human Rights Office has documented widespread and serious human rights violations in and around El Fasher. These include credible reports of mass killings in various locations and summary executions during house-to-house searches and as civilians have tried to flee the city.<\/p>\n The conflict is being fanned by other countries in the region and farther afield. As Assistant Secretary-General Khaled Khiari\u00a0told<\/a>\u00a0the Council in December, \u201cThe continued supply of weapons \u2014 increasingly sophisticated and deadly \u2014 remains a key driver of the conflict. Sudan is saturated with arms. Calls to end these flows have gone unheeded, and there has been no accountability. Moreover, the parties remain unwilling to compromise or de-escalate. While they were able to stop fighting to preserve oil revenues, they have so far failed to do the same to protect their population.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n The Secretary-General\u2019s Personal Envoy meets with interlocutors in Port Sudan to discuss the situation in Sudan. 17 September 2025. OPESG-Sudan<\/p>\n The Secretary-General\u2019s Personal Envoy for Sudan, Ramtane Lamamra, is in contact with the warring parties to encourage them to engage in discussions on concrete and implementable measures to de-escalate violence and advance the protection of civilians in Sudan. Lamamra is also engaging closely with members of the Quad, composed of the United States, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. \u201cConsistent coordination of peace efforts is essential to increase our collective impact,\u201d Khiari said, adding that preparations are underway for the fifth Consultative Meeting on Enhancing Coordination of Peace Initiatives. The next meeting is expected to be held in Cairo in early 2026.<\/p>\n The situation remained critical in\u00a0Haiti\u00a0in 2025, but there was also a significant breakthrough.\u00a0The Security Council in September\u00a0authorized<\/a>\u00a0the creation of a multinational, non-UN mission \u2014 the Gang Suppression Force \u2014 to counter the criminal groups terrorizing the population. The Council took on board several important recommendations by the Secretary-General to make increased security support for Haiti more effective, notably the establishment of a support office funded by the UN\u2019s peacekeeping budget \u2014\u00a0UNSOH<\/a>\u00a0\u2014 to provide logistical and other backing to the GSF.\u00a0Speaking<\/a>\u00a0to the Council in October, the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Haiti Carlos Ruiz Massieu said the establishment of the GSF and UNSOH reflected \u201cthe continued engagement of the Security Council in supporting the restoration of security in Haiti. More importantly, it has generated a renewed sense of hope among Haitians.\u201d He emphasized that improving the security situation is vital to support Haitian-led efforts to advance the political process and set the stage for elections to renew the country\u2019s political institutions. The Special Representative heads BINUH, the UN\u2019s special political mission in Haiti.<\/p>\n In\u00a0Libya, too, there was progress in 2025 in preparation for future elections. Through its integrated electoral team, UNSMIL continued to provide technical and advisory support to the High National Elections Commission (HNEC) in the organization of municipal council elections across the country. Building on the successful polling conducted in November 2024, HNEC implemented a phased nationwide approach, with polling conducted in over one hundred municipalities in 2025 and additional local elections anticipated in 2026. In December, the UN Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL)\u00a0announced<\/a>\u00a0the launch of a key step in an initiative announced at the end of 2024 to help clear a path to national elections and unified institutions. On 14 and 15 December, over 120 Libyan personalities \u2014 representing key sovereign institutions, civil society actors, political parties, academia, cultural and linguistic components \u2014 took part in the inaugural session of the Structured Dialogue, a forum mandated to generate recommendations to, among others, create the conditions for credible elections, bring an end to successive transitional arrangements, advance economic and security sector reforms and support national reconciliation and human rights. The Structured Dialogue is an integral part of the political roadmap that UNSMIL is facilitating and that Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Libya Hannah Tetteh\u00a0presented<\/a>\u00a0to the Council in August.\u00a0Addressing<\/a>\u00a0the Council in December, Tetteh, the head of UNSMIL, said \u201cthe country\u2019s path to elections remains fraught with complications that are challenging, but we believe can be overcome.\u201d<\/p>\n In February, as the expanded war in\u00a0Ukraine\u00a0hit the three-year mark after the full-scale Russian invasion, Under-Secretary-General DiCarlo\u00a0underscored<\/a>\u00a0the need for a just and comprehensive peace, in line with the Charter of the United Nations, international law, and resolutions of the General Assembly. A month later, the Under-Secretary-General\u00a0told<\/a>\u00a0the Council that it was meeting at a potential inflection point in the war amid intensified efforts to bring the parties to negotiations. However, despite cautious optimism around resumed diplomatic efforts, 2025 has been\u00a0particularly deadly<\/a>\u00a0for Ukrainian civilians. In November, the Under-Secretary-General\u00a0visited<\/a>\u00a0Ukraine to express solidarity with the Ukrainian people and reiterate the call for a just and lasting peace. In Ukraine and before the Council throughout 2025, the Under-Secretary-General and other senior DPPA officials consistently conveyed the UN\u2019s readiness to support all meaningful efforts to achieve such a peace.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"By\u00a0Rosemary DiCarlo, Under-Secretary-General for Political and Peacebuilding Affairs We are coming to the end of one of the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":205632,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[42,43,40,38,41,39],"class_list":{"0":"post-205631","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-headlines","8":"tag-headlines","9":"tag-news","10":"tag-top-news","11":"tag-top-stories","12":"tag-topnews","13":"tag-topstories"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/205631","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=205631"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/205631\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/205632"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=205631"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=205631"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=205631"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/0*fPPSpe1mYjltY6k-.jpeg\")
Voters at a polling station during the 2025 Malawi general elections on 16 September 2025. NICE TrustELECTORAL ASSISTANCE<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/0*XtrTVKaa9JHTqCdV.jpeg\")
The Security Council unanimously adopts resolution 2288 (2016), lifting sanctions on Liberia. It reflected the Council\u2019s recognition of Liberia\u2019s progress in post-conflict recovery. UN Photo\/Loey FelipeSANCTIONS<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/0*3zDNlLGDzaszYF2S.jpg\")
Randa Siniora, Director of the Women\u2019s Centre for Legal Aid and Counselling, engages in dialogue with Palestinian women on issues affecting their rights and protection. Maisa GhazalehWOMEN, PEACE AND SECURITY<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/0*yV8G3jRWiJpRgcfY.jpeg\")
Women for Water and Peace project, supported by the Peacebuilding Fund. UNCDF\/Olusoji SeyeCONFLICT PREVENTION<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/0*u0qKAQ3smMt6V59l.png\")
Participants at the opening ceremony of the Fifteenth Session of the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues. May 2016. UN Photo\/Manuel EliasINDIGENOUS PEOPLES<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/1*LKUzdTIYWpZEV_aEUs2L6g.jpeg\")
Ramiz Alakbarov, UN Deputy Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator, briefs the Security Council meeting on the situation in the Middle East, including the Palestinian question. 29 September 2025. UN Photo<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/1*sNzEL7-GpY7pRBonxa57HA.jpeg\")
UN Special Envoy Geir O. Pedersen (center left) and UN Deputy Special Envoy Najat Rochdi during a meeting with Interim President Al-Sharaa (center right) and Foreign Minister Al-Shaibani (right) on security developments and political processes. 29 June 2025. OSESG-Syria<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/0*5KlCZgf_cWkCQE-s.jpg\")
A child sits next to a stove in Tawila after his family fled El Fasher. UNICEF\/Mohammed Jamal<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/1*JpnYQgKh5Hg5xpAAfxfIzQ.jpeg\")
<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/1*PB4RZSq-xzAJVZxIoJL92w.jpeg\")
Carlos G. Ruiz Massieu (left on dais), Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Haiti and Head of the United Nations Integrated Office in Haiti, addresses the Ad Hoc Advisory Group on Haiti of the Economic and Social Council on Haiti. 23 September 2025. UN Photo<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/0*b6OxZZTVwM2uSaG6.jpeg\")
The opening session of the UNSMIL-facilitated Structured Dialogue in Tripoli, bringing together a diverse group of Libyan participants. 15 December 2025. UNSMIL<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/1*DCHSjlcTXvXwiiMEnGYduQ.jpeg\")
Under-Secretary-General for Political and Peacebuilding Affairs Rosemary DiCarlo meets with Ukraine\u2019s Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha during her latest visit to the country. 19 November 2025. UNDPPA<\/p>\n