Russia to preside over UN Security Council in August.

UNITED NATIONS, August 1 (Itar-Tass) - The Russian delegation will
hold the presidency of the U.N. Security Council in August. Following the
principal of alphabetic rotation, adopted at the U.N. Security Council,
Russia's permanent ambassador at the United Nations Vitaly Churkin will
replace Nigerian ambassador to U.N. Joy Ogwu on Sunday.
On Monday, August 2, the new president will hold bilateral meetings
with his colleagues at the Security Council to agree on a plan of work for
the next month.
The U.N. Security Council member will officially endorse the plan at
consultations on Tuesday, August 3. After that, Vitaly Churkin will hold
a briefing journalists accredited at the United Nations to tell them what
exactly the Council is going to do in August.
The activities of the peacekeeping missions in Iraq and the Lebanon
will be on the agenda. The Council will hold an open discussion on the
situation in Kosovo. It will listen to a report of Serbian Foreign
Minister Vuk Jeremic. Skender Hiseni, the foreign minister of the
self-proclaimed Republic of Kosovo, will deliver a speech in a private
capacity.
In August, the Council will listen to a traditional briefing of the
United Nations Secretariat on the situation in the Middle East. The head
of the United Nations Regional Centre for Preventive Diplomacy in Central
Asia is expected to deliver a speech. Besides, the U.N. Security Council
will have to decide on the future of the United Nations missions in
eastern Chad and in the Central African Republic. Under the Russian
presidency, the U.N. Security Council may resume debates on the problem of
piracy near the coast of Somali.
The United Nations Security Council consists of `15 members, five of
which are permanent: Britain, China, Russia, France and the United States.
The permanent members have the right of veto. All the other members of the
U.N. Security Council are replaced by half every year.
The Security Council is the United Nations main body responsible for
maintaining peace and international security under the U.N. Charter. U.N.
Security Council resolutions are mandatory for all the U.N. member states
and refusal to implement them may entail enforcement measures, including
the use of force.