The UN Security Council scheduled a vote today on a US-drafted resolution tackling sexual abuse by UN peacekeepers for the first time, and council diplomats expected it to be approved despite opposition from Russia, Egypt and others.
The UN has been in the spotlight for months over allegations of child rape and other sexual abuses by its peacekeepers in some of the world's most vulnerable and violent regions.
The United States, the biggest financial contributor to UN peacekeeping operations, said it wants the UN's most powerful body to send a strong signal that it will not tolerate the escalating problem.
The draft resolution endorses Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon's plan for reform, including his decision to repatriate military or police units "where there is credible evidence of widespread or systemic sexual exploitation and abuse."
It also asks Ban to replace contingents where allegations are not properly investigated and perpetrators are not held accountable.
The UN says there were 69 allegations of sexual abuse and exploitation by peacekeepers in 2015, with an additional 25 allegations so far this year.
For the first time, the UN secretary-general has begun naming the countries of alleged perpetrators, which is meant to pressure states to investigate and prosecute allegations that, U.N. Records show, they often have let slide.
Some states argue that the council resolution will punish thousands of peacekeepers for the actions of a few. They say the issue should be addressed in the General Assembly instead. But General Assembly actions are not legally binding, while Security Council resolutions are.
The council diplomats, speaking on condition of anonymity ahead of the vote, said they did not expect a Russian veto Friday, though abstentions or "no" votes by non-permanent members including Egypt, Angola and Senegal were possible.
Russia's deputy UN ambassador Petr Iliichev argued that the resolution is focused only on UN troops and police, not on UN civilian staffers or non-UN forces authorised by the Security Council.
It was a reference to French and other non-UN troops in Central African Republic who have been accused since early 2014 of child sex abuse.
"There should be a single set of standards for all in combatting this evil," Iliichev said.
