In this Jan 8, 2019 file photo, a group of children walk past the rubbles and remains of a house after an attack, at Sajeri village, on the outskirts of the Borno state capital, Maiduguri. PHOTO AFP UNITED NATIONS - A Chinese envoy on Tuesday called on the international community to help Africa address its most pressing challenges and to eradicate terrorist threats.
A special Chinese government representative on African affairs Liu Yuxi told the United Nations Security Council he believes that Africa still has a long way to fight terrorism by strengthening cooperation between the UN and regional organizations.
He noted that regional hotspots in Africa, such as Boko Haram, Lord's Resistance Army and al-Shabab, conspire with Da'esh and al Qaeda to cause trouble, with regional hotspots remaining volatile.
Liu said that the international community must respond to African countries' urgent needs and aspirations and work together to address the most pressing challenges and root causes of terrorism.
He said that the international community should take the opportunity of this year's eighth review of the UN Global Counter-Terrorism StrategyUN Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy to consolidate the global unity front against terrorism because of the need to build international consensus over counter-terrorism.
He said that the international community should enhance Africa's ability to safeguard peace independently and further strengthen international counter-terrorism cooperation with Africa, redirect more global counter-terrorism resources to countries in Africa, and increase funding, equipment, intelligence and logistical supplies.
The arms embargoes imposed by the Security Council on Sudan, South Sudan and other countries have had negative impacts on the security capacity of the countries concerned and should be lifted or adjusted quickly, said Liu.
He stressed the need to eliminate breeding grounds for terrorism in Africa.
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China calls for the international community to listen to the voices of African countries, give greater prominence to the continent's development agenda, take practical steps to support Africa in eradicating poverty and achieving sustainable development, and help African countries eradicate terrorist threats, said Liu.
He said that the Security Council should use the annual meeting with the Peace and Security Council of the African Union to coordinate and build synergy on African counter-terrorism issues.
Liu emphasized that African countries rely on UN peacekeeping operations to assist them in their counter-terrorism efforts, and that the UN Secretariat must ensure that peacekeeping operations are aligned with the specific needs of African nations.
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The envoy said that China is a staunch force for peace and security in Africa. We will continue to work with Africa to build a high-level China-Africa community with a shared future and make a greater contribution to lasting peace and sustainable development in Africa, as part of the Global Security Initiative and the Global Development Initiative.