Work on national dialogue for peace, Chinese envoy tells Malians

UNITED NATIONS: A Chinese envoy on Tuesday called on parties in Mali to engage in an inclusive national dialogue in pursuit of peace and reconciliation.

“All parties in Mali should seize the opportunity of the national dialogue to work together for peace and development in the country and peacefully resolve their differences through consultations,” Wu Haitao, China’s deputy permanent representative to the United Nations, told the Security Council.

The international community, for its part, should provide constructive assistance to Mali and help strengthen its development and governance capabilities, he added. The Security Council sanctions regime on Mali should strictly abide by the mandate given by the council, and the relevant work should help advance the political process, said Wu.

He asked the international community to help boost Mali’s security capacity-building so that the government can gradually take up all security responsibilities by itself. As terrorism knows no national boundaries, there is a need to strengthen regional cooperation and fight terrorism in and around Mali with an integrated approach, he said.

The international community should continue to support the joint military force of the five Sahel countries of Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, Mauritania and Niger, tasked with countering a growing jihadist threat in the region.

Wu also asked the international community to help Mali achieve economic and social development. China calls on all parties to honour their aid commitments and help the Malian government increase investment in the north and the center of the country, he said.

Wu said China is a major troopcontributing country to the UN peacekeeping mission in Mali, with more than 420 Chinese performing their duties in the mission. China will continue to work with the rest of the international community to contribute to peace, stability, and development in Mali, he said.