Security Council extends mandate of political office

The UN Security Council has agreed to extend the mandate of the UN Political Office for Somalia (UNPOS) up to 2005. UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan had requested the Council to maintain UNPOS's current budget through 2005, according to a UN press statement. In a letter to the Council, Annan said that since its inception, UNPOS had been assisting his efforts to advance the cause of peace and reconciliation in Somalia, and that it was his intention to continue its activities for the next two years. Since it was established in 1995, UNPOS's mandate has been extended every two years. UNPOS, along with international observers, has been assisting the regional Inter-Governmental Authority on Development's technical (now facilitation) committee in promoting the Somali peace process. Annan said he might submit a proposal to the Council to adjust UNPOS's mandate and expand its budget if he felt that a peace-building office should be set up in Somalia.