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| | IRAQ, MIDDLE EAST, AFGHANISTAN, AFRICA KEY ISSUES BEFORE SECURITY COUNCIL IN 2003 |
 | | In a presidential statement of 18 December, the Council extended the mandate of Yuli Vorontsov, the Secretary-General’s High-Level Coordinator regarding repatriation and return of all Kuwaiti and third-country nationals, or their remains, and on the return of all Kuwaiti property, including archives, seized by Iraq, in accordance with resolution 1284 (1999). |
 | | UNAMSIL’s mandate was further extended until 31 March 2004 through resolution 1508, adopted on 19 September. The Council welcomed the Secretary-General’s intention, should the security environment remain favourable, to reduce troop strength to 11,500, starting in November. It is envisaged that by October 2004 troop strength will stand at 5,000. |
 | | Later that month, on 27 August, the Council, in a presidential statement, welcomed the Comprehensive Peace Agreement of 18 August. That action followed a ministerial-level briefing by senior officials of ECOWAS. |
| www.un.org /News/Press/docs/2004/sc7982.doc.htm (3195 words) |
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