Santo Domingo.- The Secretary-General of the United Nations, António Guterres, arrived this Monday in the Dominican Republic as part of an official visit that precedes his trip to Haiti, where he will assess the security and humanitarian crisis affecting the neighboring nation.
During his stay in Dominican territory, Guterres held meetings with national authorities and expressed his gratitude to the Dominican Government for the support provided to the efforts of the international community to address the Haitian crisis and facilitate the establishment of support mechanisms for the international mission deployed in that country.
“On behalf of the United Nations, I want to thank the Dominican Republic for its enormous generosity. The support of the Dominican Republic has allowed us to quickly establish a support mission in Haiti for the Gang Suppression Force that is beginning, which could not have arrived so quickly without the commitment, generosity, and cooperation of the Dominican Republic. Thank you very much to the Government and the Dominican people,” expressed Guterres.
Guterres’ visit comes at a time when Haiti is facing one of the worst security crises in its recent history, marked by the control of large areas by armed groups, massive population displacement, and a growing deterioration of humanitarian conditions. According to data from international organizations, around 1.5 million people have been displaced by violence.
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Likewise, the secretary-general plans to meet with people affected by the crisis, representatives of humanitarian organizations, and Haitian authorities to assess the progress of the Gang Suppression Force (GSF), a UN-backed mission to confront the armed groups operating in that country.
The Dominican Republic has maintained an active diplomatic agenda to draw the international community’s attention to the situation in Haiti. In addition to offering logistical support to the mission, the Dominican government recently formalized a $10 million contribution to the United Nations Trust Fund aimed at supporting security operations in the neighboring nation.
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Guterres’ arrival occurs in a context of growing regional concern over the Haitian crisis and a few months before the electoral processes scheduled in that country, the holding of which depends largely on the recovery of minimum security conditions.
