Incoming UN ambassador: Isis under 'pressure'

Isis supporters in Mosul, northwest of Baghdad. File photo / AP

New Zealand is leading efforts at the United Nations to cut off the Islamic State's fundraising activities, the incoming UN ambassador says.

Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade deputy secretary Gerard van Bohemen, who will soon replace Jim McClay as permanent representative to the UN, gave MPs a summary this morning of New Zealand's first two months as a member of the UN Security Council.

He told a Parliamentary committee that getting used to the pace of the council's discussions had been a "steep learning curve". Since New Zealand joined the council, members had debated the issues of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) in Iraq and Syria, Boko Haram in Nigeria, Israel's occupation of Palestine, conflicts in Ukraine, Yemen and Libya as well as "more routine" matters in Cyprus and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Discussion of ISIL had dominated the council's agenda.

Mr van Bohemen said the council had not been asked to take enforcement action by Iraq, and was instead focusing on starving ISIL of funds.

New Zealand chaired the Al-Qaeda Sanctions Committee, which was tasked with counter-terrorism measures including targeted sanctions for terrorist groups.

"We are in that sense directly involved in the Security Council mechanism that monitors sanctions and seeks to impose the controls [on] ISIL," Mr van Bohemen said.

The Security Council has passed a resolution which banned the trade of oil, stolen antiquities and other goods with ISIS.

If any entities were found to be purchasing from ISIL, the UN could order sanctions against them.

Mr van Bohemen said he understood that ISIL's income flow was beginning to dry up.

"As you know, it is an area of lawlessness, particularly around Syria. There is no national police force around Raqqa and places like that.

"But I am confident that the pressure is going on. These sanctions regimes work through a process of slow strangulation rather than overnight impact."

Mr van Bohemen said that while the council's membership was divided around how to deal with the Syrian conflict, member nations were unified in taking action against ISIL.

In its first month on the council, New Zealand also made its position clear on the Israel-Palestine situation.

Mr van Bohemen said: "We deliberately cast our statement at the level of general principle. We wanted to make it clear that we support the two-state solution, that we want an end to the occupation, we want two governments living in peace and we want the council to have a role in advancing that outcome."

He said the statement was seen as "quite a strong position" by council members.

A motion tabled by Jordan to establish an independent Palestinian state and end Israeli occupation fell short by one vote late last year.

A similar motion was expected to be reintroduced this year.