Their request comes while the proceeding is completely blocked. Donald Trump and Emmanuel Macron want to organize an exceptional videoconference of the five permanent members of the UN Security Council, which brings together the United States, Russia, China, France and the United Kingdom, to fight the epidemic in conflict zones .
The American president and his French counterpart "mentioned the upcoming organization of a meeting of the five permanent members of the Security Council", the famous "P5", to increase cooperation within the United Nations in order to "overcome the pandemic "Indicate the White House and the Elysee.
"This body has divided in recent years, it would be an important signal in the face of the crisis" comments the French presidency, stressing that such a summit would be "quite exceptional", the five countries having never met in summit facing a crisis.
Oppositions between Beijing and Washington
The Security Council has been paralyzed for several weeks by oppositions between the United States and China on the origin of the virus, which Washington wants to emphasize in any discussion or text at the UN. Russia and China are also reluctant to see the Security Council, responsible for peace and security in the world, take up the Covid-19 dossier, which has been mainly health and economic to date.
For Beijing, talking about the pandemic during the Council discussions on the various ongoing conflicts would be sufficient, without the need to make it a cross-cutting issue. A week ago, the French president announced without further details preparing "an important initiative" with his American counterpart, without action at this stage.
Emmanuel Macron called his four counterparts to discuss a resolution supporting the UN Secretary General's call for an "immediate and global ceasefire" in conflict zones and to organize "access to the civilian population and avoid the spread of the epidemic in these areas, said the Elysee.
Unblock the situation
But between the United States and China, "the dispute has intensified," according to the testimony of a diplomat on condition of anonymity. A videoconference with five could help unblock the situation, hopes France, which wants rapid international cooperation in the face of the epidemic. "This is the heart of the Security Council's mandate," according to Paris.
Exasperated by this paralysis between the five permanent members, the ten other members of the Security Council, non-permanent, on the initiative of Germany, requested Thursday a meeting on the Covid-19, with a statement by the secretary general on the pandemic.
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Antonio Guterres said on Friday in an exchange with the media that this meeting could be held next week. No date has yet been set and this session may not take place until after the five-party summit desired by the United States and France.
