© Mike Segar / ReutersU.N. headquarters in New York, December 17, 2015
The resolution is the result of a joint effort by Russia and the US, which are both leading anti-IS campaigns in Syria.
Comment: It's strange to see the US and Russia working together to fight ISIS. So we have this new resolution, on top of Kerry admitting Assad's future will be determined by the Syrian people, the US pulling 12 fighter jets from the Incirlik base in Turkey, and in a dramatic reversal of the NATO narrative on Turkey's invasion of Iraq, Vice President Biden calling on Turkey to withdraw from Iraq. It was only a month ago that Obama said Assad must go, and just a few days ago the State Dept. was dodging questions from RT about Turkish troops in Iraq. As some have put it, it's been a strange few days in US foreign policy. One has to wonder if it wasn't something Putin said during his meeting with Kerry that has led to practically a 180 degree reversal by the US in certain foreign policy decisions. Perhaps he made it abundantly clear that moving forward with the US's previous policy would mean war with Russia, and just how outmatched the US was for such a possibility.
It stems from a UNSC action taken in February against illegal trafficking of antiquities from Syria, which threatened sanctions on anyone buying oil from IS or the Al-Qaeda-linked Al-Nusra Front and urged that kidnap ransoms not be paid.
Before the Council meeting on Thursday, Russian UN envoy Vitaly Churkin told reporters that one of the main objectives of the new resolution is to "circle IS as a separate, most vital terrorist threat."
"Formerly... the Security Council's documents referred to IS as one of Al Qaeda's divisions," he said. "Now the document offers expanded criteria of listing, which makes it possible to impose limitations on any individuals or corporates smudged by relations with IS."
The key objective of the new resolution, according to Churkin, is the "enforcement of a framework to reveal and disrupt illegal financing of IS and groups related to it by means of trade in oil, artifacts, and other illegal sources."
"The countries did have respective obligations well before this, but, unfortunately, those obligations have not been observed by everyone and constantly," he said.
Under the revised document, UN monitoring and sanction mechanisms "will be focused clearly on eradication of those developments."
The document, which is based on UN Charter Article VII and takes effect immediately, calls for members to "move vigorously and decisively to cut the flow of funds" to IS.
It says that governments must prevent its citizens from funding or providing services to "terrorist organizations or individual terrorists for any purpose, including but not limited to recruitment, training, or travel, even in the absence of a link to a specific terrorist act."
Reader Comments
US, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, UAE and all the rest of the supporters and funders of the Daeshbags are on notice now. 'Twill be interesting to see if any of these nefarious nincompoops are ever held accountable or stopped in their tracks.
As for the 180 degree turnaround, I'm thinking this is what can happen when people of principle (Putin, Lavrov, Shoigu, et al.) refuse to be bullied and actually stand up to bullies and say NO -- and mean it. It's an inner attitude that brooks no debate, waffling or weaseling. And it can and was done with grace, finesse, politeness, and calmly voiced. No need to scream or yell at bullies. You just look them straight in the eye and refuse to budge an inch from your righteous position. And then you declare they have mush-for-brains. LOLOL
But keep your enemies even closer.
Interesting times coming..
After thinking about it it seems the US realizes they are in a losing position with Russia exposing the real supporters of ISIS, such as NATO's Turkey, which is getting dangerously close to showing the US's role outright. Russia is destroying ISIS funding and operations in rapid fashion and is also about to form a coalition with Iraq against ISIS and degrade the US's position in the Middle East, so it seems the US wants to call timeout with the new UN resolution (http://www.sott.net/article/308799-Five-global-powers-agree-on-UN-Security-resolution-draft-to-settle-Syrian-crisis-reports) and try and pull what they did in the Ukraine and sue for a peace deal when the situation has obviously gone against US interests. Time will tell if the cooperation falls apart after the US regroups. That is what I would bet on.