On 28 March 2002, U.N. Security Council Resolution 1401 created the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) to replace the smaller, longstanding U.N. Special Mission in Afghanistan.1 Led by Special Representative of the Secretary General (SRSG) Lakhdar Brahimi, UNAMA has a 12 month, renewable mandate to fulfill tasks entrusted to the United Nations under the 5 December 2001 Bonn Agreement (S/2001/1154, Annex 2). Resolution 1401 also gives the SRSG “full authority…over planning and conduct of all United Nations activities in Afghanistan.”2 Lacking troops or police, aside from a handful of military and police advisor/liaison officers, the mission reports to the U.N.’s Department of Political Affairs rather than the Department of Peacekeeping Operations (DPKO). DPKO provides the mission’s logistical support. The Security Council has requested that the Secretary-General report every four months on the implementation of UNAMA’s mandate.
