Positive developments welcomed despite delays in peace process.

Initial deployment of UN infantry battalions, improved access for humanitarian assistance, and a continuing, if fragile ceasefire in the strife-torn southern African nation of Angola were welcomed as "positive developments" by the Security Council on 15 June.

Despite what was described as "considerable progress" in implementing the 20 November 1994 Lusaka Protocol, the Council expressed concern that the peace process was lagging behind schedule.

The lack of progress in mine clearance was also cited by Council President Detlev Graf zu Rantzau of Germany in a letter (S/1995/487) to the Secretary-General. He said that had "an impact not only on the deployment" of the UN Angola Verification Mission (UNAVEM 111), but also on "the ability of the population to return to their homes and resume agricultural activity".

Within that context, Council members endorsed the Secretary-General's call for parties to "reinforce their recent actions" in mine clearance and road and bridge repair, and urged international support for those efforts.

The Council stressed that modalities for forming the "new integrated armed forces" should be worked out, and urged that preparations begin for quartering of troops of the Union for the Total independence of Angola (UNITA) and the withdrawal to barracks of the Government's rapid reaction police.

Strongly supporting the ongoing dialogue between Angolan President Jose Eduardo dos Santos and UNITA President Jonas Savimbi, Council members encouraged further consultation between the two, who had met on 6 May in Lusaka.

On 12 June, the Secretary-General's Special Representative for Angola, Alioune Blondin Beye, told the press that the political task in Angola was to "break down the wall of distrust between the two parties".

Although the leaders were in regular contact, problems remained, he said, recalling that Angola had been the "longest lasting African conflict with the greatest number of casualties".

UNAVEM III was established under resolution 976 (1995) of 8 February to help restore peace and achieve national reconciliation on the basis of the 1991 Bicesse Peace Accords, the Lusaka Protocol and relevant Council resolutions. It was authorized to deploy a maximum of 7,000 military personnel, in addition to 350 military and 260 police observers.

The Lusaka Protocol signalled the end to 20 years of civil conflict in Angola, which had left some 600,000 people dead and 3 million internally displaced, with another 300,000 as refugees, according to estimates of the off ice of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).

`A new and promising phase'

In a 4 June progress report (S/1995/458), Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali said the implementation of the Lusaka Protocol had entered "a new and promising phase".

Despite the parties' registering of complaints, including small-scale attacks and aggressive patrolling, the cease-fire "continued generally to hold", he reported. Violations had decreased and no major incidents had been reported.

On 11 May, the joint Commission - the principal body in charge of the Protocol's implementation - had established the future strength of the integrated Forgas Armadas Angolanas at 90,000 soldiers, of whom 74,000 would be ground troops provided in equal numbers by the two parties.

The Commission had also continued to monitor political, military and humanitarian developments relating to the Protocol's implementation. At a special meeting on 18 May, it focused on the opening of roads and the free circulation of persons and goods, the Secretary-General said.

UNAVEM had strongly urged the Government and UNITA to expedite mine-clearance operations, which had been initiated in various parts of the country.

Civilian observers, who monitor the activities of the national police, visit detention centres and liaise with local authorities, were receiving only varying degrees of support, according to the Secretary-General, who also saw "little progress so far in quartering the Government's rapid reaction police".

Recent political progress, he went on, had "given a new impetus to humanitarian activities in support of the peace process". Headway in opening cost-efficient over-land routes for the delivery of assistance was cited.

Humanitarian agencies also "registered an improvement in nutritional conditions in a few areas", although overall food aid requirements were "still considerable". As the peace process gathered momentum, the role of humanitarian assistance acquired "additional importance", he concluded.

Increased cooperation

sought

On 11 May, the Security Council had indicated satisfaction with the progress in the implementation of the Lusaka Protocol, welcomed the ongoing deployment of UNAVEM support units, and stressed the importance of a timely deployment of the infantry battalions. However, it remained "concerned by the slow progress in other areas".

In a statement by Council President Jean-Bernard Merimee of France, it also stressed the need for increased cooperation of the Government and UNITA with the UN in carrying out all major provisions of the Protocol, as well as relevant Council resolutions. It welcomed the 6 May Lusaka meeting between President dos Santos and Mr. Savimbi, commended the efforts of Special Representative Beye, the three observer States - Portugal, the Russian Federation and the United States - the States in the region and, in particular, President Fredrick Chiluba of Zambia for helping bring about the meeting.

"A marked improvement in the overall political climate in the country and in the attitude of the parties" was noted by the Secretary-General on 3 May (S/1995/350). Those positive developments had to be "consolidated and sustained", he added.

Reiterating a warning made in his 7 April report (S/1995/274), he said he would "not hesitate to recommend to the Council that the deployment of the troops be postponed or stopped if the parties fail to fulfil their commitments" under the Lusaka Protocol and Council resolutions. Improved security conditions had made new areas accessible to humanitarian agencies, and continuing-efforts by UNAVEM to accelerate the start of country-wide demining were also reported.

At a 20 April session of the Joint Commission in Luanda, the parties had agreed on the principle of "global incorporation" of UNITA soldiers into the national army, to be followed by gradual demobilization until the Angolan Armed Forces reached the level of 90,000 troops, it was reported.

On 13 April, the Council welcomed progress in a number of important areas, including liaison with UNITA, completion of the first phase of disengagement, and discussions of ways to incorporate UNITA into the national army.

In a statement by its President, Karel Kovanda of the Czech Republic, the Council declared that a number of developments gave "cause for concern", including reports of continuing military actions and preparations, and recent attacks on personnel of UNAVEM and non-governmental organizations (NGOS). The Council wanted increased cooperation with the UN to ensure the safety of UNAVEM III and NGO personnel.

Political will needed

In the 7 April report, the Secretary-General had stated that "after weeks of frustrating delays, the pace of implementation of the Lusaka Protocol has increased". That progress represented "only a beginning", and further resolute steps were needed to ensure that the peace process could be pursued with confidence, he stressed.

The fragility of the cease-fire, reports of military preparabons and major troop movements, and indications of the continued acquisition of weapons from abroad were causes for concern. Recent attacks on unarmed UN observers and NGO personnel "raise doubts about the willingness of the parties to cooperate in good faith", he added.

UN efforts to assist in implementing the Lusaka Protocol "must be matched by political will and concrete action on the part of the Government and UNITA", he declared. It would be impossible to deploy troops in May if the parties did not provide essential logistical support. He warned that he would recommend deployment be postponed or stopped should the parties not fulfil their commitments.

Mr. Boutros-Ghali also warned "against undue expectations that the arrival of United Nations troops will in itself solve the pressing problems that the Angolans must resolve themselves". The troops could play a useful role in fostering "a climate of mutual trust and confidence", but they could not perform the tasks that belonged to the parties themselves.

All necessary conditions for deployment must be fulfilled in a timely manner by the Angolans themselves, or the schedule would be affected and the peace process hindered, he stated. The parties would have to "bear full responsibility for the resulting delays".

In a 12 April communique to the Council President, Angola registered concern over the Secretary-General's report on the assessment of the Government's execution of its obligation in the peace process, and reiterated its "firm decision to continue its commitment in good faith" to its implementation of the Lusaka Protocol.