Eurasia Press & News
Roundtable Discussion with Members of the Organization for Islamic Cooperation
The UN Security Council: Assessing Twenty Years of Counterterrorism
Roundtable Discussion with Members of the Organization for Islamic Cooperation
Event Summary
June 7, 2022
Overview
The Securing the Future Initiative (SFI) roundtable discussion on 7 June 2022, co-hosted with
the Permanent Mission of the Republic of Indonesia to the United Nations and Permanent
Mission of Tunisia to the United Nations, convened representatives from member states of the
Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) to discuss the impacts of the UN Security Council’s
(UNSC) counterterrorism (CT) activities over the past two decades on Muslim-majority countries
and the OIC more broadly. It was one of a series of consultations that will ensure that the SFI
report and recommendations, which will be published in Fall 2022, benefit from a diversity of
views.
Ambassador Arrmanatha Nasir, Permanent Representative of Indonesia to the UN expressed
his support for the SFI’s mission and thanked the attendees for prioritizing international
cooperation in efforts to counter terrorism and violent extremism. He recalled Indonesia’s term
as Chair of the 1267 (Al-Qaida and ISIL/Daesh) sanctions committee and their wider
experiences as active members of the Counter-Terrorism Committee.1 He stressed the
importance of reflecting on past efforts in order to improve future counterterrorism activities.
Nesrine Elmansouri, the representative from the Permanent Mission of Tunisia to the UN, also
conveyed her support for the SFI’s mission and thanked attendees for their willingness to
engage on the impacts of UNSC CT activities from across disparate perspectives. She recalled
Tunisia’s term as former Chair of the UN Counter-Terrorism Committee (CTC), reflecting on the
lessons learned and the importance of evaluating past UNSC CT measures. She emphasized
how international and regional cooperation is key in efforts to counter terrorism and violent
extremism moving forward.
Below is a summary of key discussion points. It is not a transcript of the event and does not
necessarily reflect the views of the co-hosts, the OIC, The Soufan Center, or SFI sponsors.
Assessing Impact
Many participants noted that UNSC CT resolutions had encouraged international cooperation on
the issue of countering terrorism and violent extremism. However, they pointed to the
challenges of assessing their impact. These include the lack of agreed metrics and that
outcomes were often interwoven with the impacts of initiatives taken by bilateral partners and
other multilateral actors. Participants also stressed the uneven impacts of the UNSC CT work
across different countries and communities.
Several attendees pointed out that although there have been positive outcomes of UNSC
counterterrorism resolutions, there have also been numerous adverse impacts on states and
civil society arising out of UNSC CT measures. These effects are particularly acute in the
humanitarian sector, they noted, where legitimate faith-based aid organizations have been
effectively shut down by banks’ decisions to de-risk their operations.
Participants also stressed that twenty years after the adoption of UNSC Resolution 1373, the
UNSC’s CT architecture must evolve to meet the changing nature of the threat posed by
terrorist organizations globally. The regionalization of terrorist groups like al-Qaeda and Daesh,
as well as the rise of far right and white supremacy extremists were all raised as evidence for
the need for change. Consequently, while the defeat of Daesh on the battlefield may be
considered a success for the Global Coalition, numerous states are still affected by ongoing
terrorist violence.
The Importance of Terminology, Focusing on All Forms of Terrorism, Avoiding
Discimination, and Safeguarding Humanitarian Action
Speakers expressed concern that past and ongoing CT activity had resulted in stigmatization of
and discrimination against Muslim communities and civil society actors working within them.
Many attendees agreed that the designation of only two groups (Al-Qaida and Daesh) by the
UNSC 1267 Committee and the narrow focus on the actions of these so called Islamist groups
and their affiliates had contributed to the creation of a series of problematic narratives
surrounding the fight against terrorism. The consequent association between terrorism and
Muslim communities was highlighted as a key concern for many OIC states, and speakers
stressed the importance of ensuring the UN was addressing all forms of terrorism, including
those involving violent far-right groups. Further, some speakers highlighted the importance of
not using terminology that linked groups to a particular religion (e.g., favoring the use of ‘Daesh’
instead of ‘Islamic State). They emphasized that, as its CT approach evolves, the UNSC should
ensure that it avoids discrimination.
The tensions between counterterrorism and humanitarian action also surfaced as a theme of the
discussion, with speakers raising concerns about the unintended consequences of
counterterrorism measures on non-governmental actors who were often active in complex
terrorism and other conflict-affected zones.
Participants also stressed the need to ensure human rights-compliant responses by the security
sector and avoid framing counterterrorism and the protection of human rights as mutually
exclusive objectives. One participant said that narratives that portray them as distinct goals
hindered international cooperation.
Ensuring Legitimacy of Current and Future UNSC CT Activities
Participants acknowledged the important norm-setting role the UNSC has played on CT
particularly through the adoption of Chapter VII resolutions. However, several participants
stressed that this role should reside in the General Assembly; its universal membership granted
it the legitimacy to adopt globally applicable norms. Participants also noted the important roles
of other intergovernmental bodies, such as the Global Counterterrorism Forum and the
Financial Action Task Force which have a more diverse range of members and partners and
may be better suited to follow up and support implementation of capacity-building efforts than
the UNSC. However, it was also pointed out that these bodies were not sufficiently inclusive.
Participants acknowledged the Council’s comparative advantage as an influential body endowed
with singular capabilities to rapidly address threats to international peace and security under
Chapter VII of the UN Charter. With these unique capabilities in mind, attendees recommended
reserving UNSC deliberations where an immediate response to an acute threat is needed.
However, some speakers highlighted that the perceived legitimacy of the Security Council’s
counterterrorism work was challenged at times by uneven willingness by its own members to
implement resolutions, noting that it was essential for many non-permanent members to see the
permanent members leading by example in the Council.
