Description: The UN Security Council has adopted the initiative filed by the US and Panama to reinforce the existing Kenyan security forces in Haiti that combat gang violence to approximately 5 and a half thousand security troops. The Council voted in favor of adopting the resolution with Russia, China and Pakistan abstaining from the vote and addressing criticism towards the US and the mission itself. Chinese UN Ambassador Fu Cong stated that the so – called Gang Suppression Force lacked concise jurisdictional limitation and could be exploited for extrajudicial activities while the funding of the mission remained a constant problem. Russian UN Ambassador, Vassily Nebenzia, stated that the mission represented an extension of the ineffectuality of international organizations and the mission was designed to fail. The Security Council according to the adopted resolution would establish a regional office in Haiti in order to coordinate the forces and provide additional logistical support for their operations.
Impact: China and Russia have opted towards internationally legitimizing themselves as humanitarian facilitators in front of the global community by absenting from the voting instead of vetoing the proposal. The new Gang Suppression Force would most definitely modify the security landscape in the country if implemented and incorporated for a longer period of time. Mounting issues still remain unresolved, such as the funding of the operation, which is heavily disputed within the UN, the incorporation of the new international forces within the existing Kenyan mission and their charter of activities and jurisdictions as well as the timeframe which is of essential value to the effectiveness of the mission. Even if the proposal is fully incorporated in practice as it is in theory, Haiti remains with manyfold problems such as the devastated infrastructure, the nonexistent economy and political governance system and a growing humanitarian crisis. The initiative would most probably affect the measures which are currently used to counter gang violence in a positive manner, as the additional troops would fill the security vacuum created in 2021 when the country’s President was assassinated and gangs started to ran riot in large parts of the country.