Jordan abstains in UNSC vote on Somali charcoal, arms trade

AMMAN — Jordan and Russia on Friday abstained from voting in favour of a draft UN Security Council (UNSC) resolution on Somalia that allows inspection of ships on the Somali coast and on the high seas.

Under the new resolution, the 15-member UNSC authorised the inspection of boats suspected of carrying illegal shipments of charcoal or weapons to and from Somalia, Reuters reported.

Jordan's UN Deputy Ambassador Mahmoud Hmoud raised concerns that the council resolution does not contain "a sufficient guarantee to prevent any abuse of this authorisation and to prevent any obstruction of maritime navigation".

"It might be used for political gains that go beyond the objectives of the resolution that is to fight illicit trade in charcoal and weapons," he told the council.

However, Hmoud was quoted by the Jordan News Agency, Petra, as saying that Jordan supports, in principle, the goals of the draft resolution to achieve security and stability in Somalia. He also stressed the Kingdom’s support of the Somali federal government to address the challenges facing it — including the issue of smuggling charcoal and illicit weapons trade — and the need to take effective steps to combat them with the assistance of the international community and the UN Security Council. 

Russia's UN Ambassador Vitaly Churkin backed Jordan's concerns about the inspection of vessels and questioned the work of the monitoring group, claiming it had based some conclusions on "assumptions and rash accusations", according to Reuters. 

An international coalition of maritime forces has for several years been patrolling the waters around the Horn of Africa nation to counter piracy and other illegal activities.

The Somalia-Eritrea Monitoring Group, which oversees compliance with UN sanctions on the two countries, said illegal charcoal exports in the past year were worth at least $250 million with a third of shipments linked to Al Shabaab.

"Charcoal is giving Al Shabaab a lifeline," Britain's UN Ambassador Mark Lyall Grant told the council. "The United Kingdom is confident that the provisions set out in this resolution will ensure that it is not abused."

The Somalia-Eritrea Monitoring Group said it counted 161 vessels exporting charcoal from Somalia's southern ports of Kismayu and Barawe between June 2013 and May 2014. The cargoes were mainly destined for the United Arab Emirates, Oman and Kuwait and 60 per cent of the boats were Indian flagged or owned.