By Matthew Russell Lee
UNITED NATIONS, January 13 -- As France expands its air strike on Mali from Konna to Gao, claiming it is all within the "framework of international law," questions remain unanswered.
The law at issue is Security Council Resolution 2085, drafted by France and adopted as modified on December 20, 2011. In Operative Paragraph 11, which a country involved in the negotiation described to Inner City Press as the "Algerian element," various safeguards and steps are required:
"11. Emphasizes that the military planning will need to be further refined before the commencement of the offensive operation and requests that the Secretary-General, in close coordination with Mali, ECOWAS, the African Union, the neighbouring countries of Mali, other countries in the region and all other interested bilateral partners and international organizations, continue to support the planning and the preparations for the deployment of AFISMA, regularly inform the Council of the progress of the process, and requests that the Secretary-General also confirm in advance the Council's satisfaction with the planned military offensive operation."
Focusing on the last clause, that UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon should "confirm in advance the Council's satisfaction with the planned military offensive operation," Inner City Press on January 12 asked Ban's top three spokespeople to "Please state, both as of the beginning of France's military operation and as of your response, what the Secretary General did to 'confirm in advance the Council's satisfaction with the planned military offensive operation,' specifying both what the Secretary General knew about the plans and operation, and what he knew of the Council's position on those plans and operation(s). Also, less pressingly, what did Mr. Prodi do while in Bamako?"
So far, there has been no answer; whatever is provided will be published. But there are questions of how Ban Ki-moon even COULD have confirmed in advance the Council's satisfaction with France's military offensive.
On January 10 at the Security Council, where France proposed and procured a non-binding press statemen tcalling for a speed up of the deployment of the African-led AFISMA mission, France did not meaningfully present its plans for a military offensive. So how could Ban "confirm in advance the Council's satisfaction"? Watch this site.
