The UN Security Council held an informal meeting Tuesday to discuss the situation in Zimbabwe triggered by a recent election dispute, but remained divided over how the world body should respond to it.
The closed council meeting was held at the request of Western powers who are pushing for increased UN engagement in Zimbabwe, where the delayed release of March 29 presidential election results has triggered strong opposition protest and some degree of international concern.
During the meeting, Lynn Pascoe, undersecretary-general for political affairs, briefed the 15-member council on the recent developments in Zimbabwe.
Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Pascoe told reporters that he briefed the council about the political situation in Zimbabwe, in particular about the "non-announcement as yet of the results of the presidential election."
He said he also expressed concern about incidents of violence and the humanitarian situation in the country.
Pascoe said UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon "is ready to use his good offices" in conjunction with the African Union and the Southern African Development Community (SADC) to help resolve the issue.
Pascoe said the UN chief is leaving open the possibility of sending a special envoy or a fact-finding mission to Zimbabwe because he has not decided if it is necessary.
South Africa's UN ambassador Dumisani Kumalo, the council's president for this month, said it is up to the UN chief to discuss with Zimbabwe whether it is necessary to send a special envoy or a fact-finding mission.
"Zimbabwe is not on the agenda of the Security Council," he stressed.
Kumalo said the only thing that council members "seem to agree with is that the SADC should work with the Zimbabweans, especially the independent electoral commission, to make sure that the results are coming out."
U.S. ambassador Alejandro Daniel Wolff acknowledged that there was a clear division among council members over the idea of sending a special envoy or a fact-finding mission to the country.
