The meeting was called to order at 10.15 a.m. Adoption of the agenda The agenda was adopted. Reports of the Secretary-General on the Sudan The President (spoke in Spanish): In accordance with the understanding reached in the Council’s prior consultations, I shall take it that the Security Council agrees to extend invitations under rule 39 of its provisional rules of procedure to Mr. Thabo Mbeki, Chairperson of the African Union High-Level Panel on Darfur; Mr. Djibril Bassolé, Joint African Union- United Nations Chief Mediator for Darfur; Mr. Ibrahim Gambari, Joint African Union-United Nations Special Representative for Darfur; and Mr. Haile Menkerios, Special Representative of the Secretary-General for the Sudan.

There being no objection, it is so decided. The Security Council will now begin its consideration of the item on its agenda. The Council is meeting in accordance with the understanding reached in its prior consultations. At this meeting, the Security Council will hear briefings by Mr. Mbeki, Mr. Bassolé, Mr. Gambari and Mr. Menkerios. I now give the floor to Mr. Mbeki. Mr. Mbeki: We would like to thank you, Mr. President, for giving us this opportunity to engage the Council on the issue of the Sudan.

As members will recall, the last time we were here, in December 2009, we informed the Council that the African Union (AU) had expanded our mandate to follow up on its decisions on Darfur on the implementation of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) and the process of democratization in the Sudan. Indeed, our Panel has been doing what it can to honour that mandate. In that regard, I am happy to inform the Council that, by common agreement, our Panel works in close cooperation with the three institutions that are playing a central role in assisting the people of the Sudan to resolve their problems. I refer here to the African Union-United Nations Hybrid Operation in Darfur (UNAMID), the United Nations Mission in the Sudan (UNMIS) and the AU-United Nations Joint Chief Mediator for Darfur — all of which are correctly represented at this meeting and will, as the President has said, address the Council.

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