Alain Le Roy

Presser by UN peacekeeping chief Alain Le Roy

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• published: 30 Jul 2015
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SHOTLIST 1. Various of news conference held by Alain Le Roy, Head of United Nations peacekeeping 2. SOUNDBITE: (English) Alain Le Roy, Head of United Nations peacekeeping: "It's obviously very tense but we all expect, of course, or have a lot of expectations, as to what could happen on 3rd January when the three presidents of ECOWAS will come back. If the solution can be found peacefully to the crisis, that would be fine, but it's clear at the same time that already it's very tense. And in case of a failure of this last mission on 3rd January, the tension will rise. I think that's very clear. So, we are very concerned. At the same time we want to hear what President Gbagbo said, for example, about ONUCI. He said he wants ONUCI to leave but he said only with diplomatic means. He said he won't use any military means against ONUCI, and we are seeing in these last few days a bit of a reduction in attacks against the civilian population compared to last week. Of course, this is in the last few days, so that must be confirmed. So we see some signs of improvement but it's obviously a situation that's very tense. And the improvements of the last few days, nobody can promise that they will be sustained for many days or weeks. But we hope, of course.'' 3. Various of media 4. SOUNDBITE: (English) Alain Le Roy, Head of United Nations peacekeeping: "It is clear that all around the world any attack against peacekeepers could be considered a war crime, so it's a very delicate, extremely serious issue, and in French I said very clearly that, for us, it's very much a consequence of what we hear on RTI. When we hear so many propaganda against ONUCI, with fake evidence, we're very concerned because the Yopougon incidents yesterday are clearly the direct consequence of what we hear every day on RTI: instigation to violence, or hatred against the civilian population or against ONUCI. 5. Cutaway to media STORYLINE The United Nations peacekeeping chief said on Wednesday that his forces have seen "some signs of improvement" in the Ivory Coast in recent days. But Alain Le Roy maintained that the situation in the West African nation remains "very tense" amid a tug-of-war over the presidency. Laurent Gbagbo, the incumbent, refuses to step down although the world recognises Alassane Ouattara as the winner of the country's recent elections. West African leaders said on Wednesday that they will return to Ivory Coast to resume negotiations with Gbagbo after a first visit failed to force him to surrender the presidency and hand power to the internationally recognised winner of last month's election. The 15-nation regional bloc ECOWAS (Economic Community Of West African States) had threatened military intervention if Gbagbo did not step aside and allow Ouattara to take over the presidency. Instead of preparing a military strike on Wednesday, ECOWAS gave Gbagbo more time. A delegation of presidents from Sierra Leone, Benin and Cape Verde on Tuesday had delivered in person what they called an ultimatum to leave. Gbagbo rebuffed their efforts and did not depart the country into exile with them as had been hoped. Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan, whose country is the biggest player in ECOWAS, said the delegation would return to Abidjan next Monday. Nigeria has vowed to use "legitimate force" if Gbagbo does not relinquish power. The military option apparently remained on the table for ECOWAS, which has sent combat troops to at least three African states over the past two decades. At a news conference on Wednesday, Le Roy said expectations have been raised "as to what could happen on 3rd January when the three presidents of ECOWAS will come back." Gbagbo, however, points to the Ivory Coast constitutional council that said he was the winner. You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/youtube/e6f789230de1bd892d20de1ae1c3c2b3 Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork