The General Assembly,

Having considered the report of the Secretary-General on the financing of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon for the period from 1 July 2001 to 30 June 2002 1/ and the related report of the Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions, 2/

Bearing in mind Security Council resolution 425 (1978) of 19 March 1978, by which the Council established the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon, and the subsequent resolutions by which the Council extended the mandate of the Force, the most recent of which was resolution 1365 (2001) of 31 July 2001,

Recalling its resolution S-8/2 of of 21 April 1978 on the financing of the Force and its subsequent resolutions thereon, the most recent of which was resolution 55/180 B of 14 June 2001,

Reaffirming its resolutions 51/233 of 13 June 1997, 52/237 of 26 June 1998, 53/227 of 8 June 1999, 54/267 of 15 June 2000, 55/180 A of 19 December 2000 and 55/180 B,

Reaffirming also the general principles underlying the financing of United Nations peacekeeping operations, as stated in General Assembly resolutions 1874 (S-IV) of 27 June 1963, 3101 (XXVIII) of 11 December 1973 and 55/235 of 23 December 2000,

Noting with appreciation that voluntary contributions have been made to the Force,

Mindful of the fact that it is essential to provide the Force with the necessary financial resources to enable it to fulfil its responsibilities under the relevant resolutions of the Security Council,

Concerned that the Secretary-General continues to face difficulties in meeting the obligations of the Force on a current basis, including reimbursement to current and former troop-contributing States,

Concerned also that the surplus balances in the Special Account for the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon have been used to meet expenses of the Force in order to compensate for the lack of income resulting from non-payment and late payment by Member States of their contributions,

1. Takes note of the status of contributions to the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon as at 15 November 2001, including the contributions outstanding in the amount of 179.4 million United States dollars, representing 4 per cent of the total assessed contributions from the inception of the Force up to the period ending 31 December 2001, notes that some 15.5 per cent of the Member States have paid their assessed contributions in full, and urges all other Member States concerned, in particular those in arrears, to ensure payment of their outstanding assessed contributions;

2. Expresses its appreciation to those Member States that have paid their assessed contributions in full and on time, and urges all other Member States to make every possible effort to ensure payment of their assessed contributions to the Force in full and on time ;

3. Expresses its deep concern that Israel did not comply with General Assembly resolutions 51/233, 52/237, 53/227, 54/267, 55/180 A and 55/180 B;

4. Stresses once again that Israel should strictly abide by General Assembly resolutions 51/233, 52/237, 53/227, 54/267, 55/180 A and 55/180 B;

5. Expresses concern about the financial situation with regard to peacekeeping activities, in particular as regards the reimbursements to troop contributors that bear additional burdens owing to overdue payments by Member States of their assessments;

6. Also expresses concern at the delay experienced by the Secretary-General in deploying and providing adequate resources to some recent peacekeeping missions, in particular those in Africa;

7. Emphasizes that all future and existing peacekeeping missions shall be given equal and non-discriminatory treatment in respect of financial and administrative arrangements;

8. Also emphasizes that all peacekeeping missions shall be provided with adequate resources for the effective and efficient discharge of their respective mandates;

9. Reiterates its request to the Secretary-General to make the fullest possible use of facilities and equipment at the United Nations Logistics Base at Brindisi, Italy, in order to minimize the costs of procurement for the Force;

10. Takes note of paragraph 11 of, and endorses the remaining conclusions and recommendations contained in, the report of the Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions, 2/ and requests the Secretary-General to ensure full implementation;

11. Requests the Secretary-General to take all necessary action to ensure that the Force is administered with a maximum of efficiency and economy;

12. Also requests the Secretary-General, in order to reduce the cost of employing General Service staff, to continue efforts to recruit local staff for the Force against General Service posts, commensurate with the requirements of the Force;

13. Reiterates its request to the Secretary-General to take the necessary measures to ensure the full implementation of paragraph 8 of its resolution 51/233, paragraph 5 of its resolution 52/237, paragraph 11 of its resolution 53/227, paragraph 14 of its resolution 54/267, paragraph 14 of its resolution 55/180 A and paragraph 15 of its resolution 55/180 B, stresses once again that Israel shall pay the amount of 1,284,633 dollars resulting from the incident at Qana on 18 April 1996, and requests the Secretary-General to report on this matter to the Assembly at its resumed fifty-sixth session;

14. Decides to appropriate the amount of 137,257,440 dollars gross (133,375,991 dollars net) for the maintenance of the Force for the twelve-month period from 1 July 2001 to 30 June 2002, inclusive of the amount of 642,540 dollars gross (594,091 dollars net) for the support account for peacekeeping operations, in addition to the amount of 6,021,721 dollars gross (5,284,652 dollars net) already appropriated for the support account for peacekeeping operations and the amount of 629,045 dollars gross (564,879 dollars net) already appropriated for the United Nations Logistics Base in its resolution 55/180 B, and inclusive of the amount of 99,548,960 dollars gross (97,558,500 dollars net) authorized in its resolution 55/180 B;

15. Decides also, taking into account the amount of 99,548,960 dollars gross (97,558,500 dollars net) already apportioned for the period from 1 July to 31 December 2001 and the amount of 6,650,766 dollars gross (5,849,531 dollars net) already apportioned for the period from 1 July 2001 to 30 June 2002 in accordance with the provisions of its resolution 55/180 B, to apportion among Member States the amount of 6,820,197 dollars gross (6,464,658 dollars net) for the period from 1 to 31 January 2002 in accordance with the levels set out in its resolution 55/235, as adjusted in its resolution 55/236 of 23 December 2000, and taking into account the scale of assessments for the year 2002, as set out in its resolution 55/5 B of 23 December 2000;

16. Decides further that, in accordance with the provisions of its resolution 973 (X) of 15 December 1955, there shall be set off against the apportionment among Member States, as provided for in paragraph 15 above, their respective share in the Tax Equalization Fund of the estimated additional staff assessment income of 355,539 dollars approved for the Force for the period from 1 to 31 January 2002 ;

17. Decides to apportion among Member States the amount of 30,888,283 dollars gross (29,352,833 dollars net) for the period from 1 February to 30 June 2002, at a monthly rate of 6,177,656 dollars gross (5,870,566 dollars net) in accordance with the scheme set out in the present resolution and taking into account the scale of assessments for the year 2002, as set out in its resolution 55/5 B, subject to the decision of the Security Council to extend the mandate of the Force beyond 31 January 2002;

18. Decides also that, in accordance with the provisions of its resolution 973 (X), there shall be set off against the apportionment among Member States, as provided for in paragraph 17 above, their respective share in the Tax Equalization Fund of the estimated additional staff assessment income of 1,535,450 dollars net approved for the Force for the period from 1 February to 30 June 2002;

19. Emphasizes that no peacekeeping mission shall be financed by borrowing funds from other active peacekeeping missions;

20. Encourages the Secretary-General to continue to take additional measures to ensure the safety and security of all personnel under the auspices of the United Nations participating in the Force;

21. Invites voluntary contributions to the Force in cash and in the form of services and supplies acceptable to the Secretary-General, to be administered, as appropriate, in accordance with the procedure and practices established by the General Assembly;

22. Decides to keep under review during its fifty-sixth session, under the item entitled "Financing of the United Nations peacekeeping forces in the Middle East", the sub-item entitled "United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon".

91st plenary meeting
21 December 2001

Notes

2/ A/56/510 and Corr.1.

Sources: The United Nations

UN General Assembly Resolutions: Resolution 56/214