Pakistan to lead UNSC Taliban sanctions committee

UPDATED: Jun 4, 2025 03:11 IST

Pakistan has been appointed to chair the 1988 Taliban Sanctions Committee of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) for 2025. The committee is responsible for enforcing sanctions including asset freezes, travel bans, and arms embargoes against individuals and entities associated with the Taliban that pose a threat to peace and security in Afghanistan. Guyana and Russia will serve as vice-chairs of the committee.

In addition to this key role, Pakistan will serve as vice-chair of the 1373 Counter-Terrorism Committee, which will be chaired by Algeria, with France and Russia also acting as vice-chairs. Furthermore, Pakistan will co-chair the Informal Working Groups on Documentation and Procedural Questions and General Sanctions Issues.

Denmark will lead the 1267 ISIL and Al-Qaida Sanctions Committee, with Russia and Sierra Leone as vice-chairs.

These committees are made up of all 15 Security Council members and make decisions by consensus. Pakistan is currently serving as a non-permanent member of the Security Council for the 2025–26 term.

Previously, India chaired the Counter-Terrorism Committee in 2022 during its own term as a non-permanent member (2021–22) and has regularly voiced concerns about Pakistan’s record, noting that the country harbors a significant number of UN-designated terrorists. India has also highlighted the case of Osama bin Laden, who was found and killed in Pakistan’s Abbottabad in 2011.

The current Security Council includes five permanent members: China, France, Russia, the UK, and the US, and ten non-permanent members: Algeria, Denmark, Greece, Guyana, Pakistan, Panama, South Korea, Sierra Leone, Slovenia, and Somalia.

In elections held on Tuesday, five new non-permanent members were elected for the 2026–2027 term: Bahrain, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Liberia, Latvia, and Colombia.

With inputs from PTI

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