Foreign Minister Álvarez calls for urgent UN action in Haiti

New York.- Foreign Minister Roberto Álvarez urged the United Nations Security Council to take urgent, coherent, and bold action in response to the worsening crisis in Haiti. In a recent address, he emphasized the need to strengthen the Multinational Security Support Mission (MSS)—established by UN Resolution 2699—by adopting a hybrid model to improve its logistical and operational capacity.

Álvarez warned that the mission remains underfunded, logistically weak, and far from meeting the scale of the crisis. Citing the UN Secretary General’s report, he highlighted that over 80% of Port-au-Prince is controlled by armed gangs, 1.6 million people are internally displaced, more than 1,600 schools are closed, and Haiti’s judicial and healthcare systems are nearly paralyzed.

He called on the Security Council to anchor its response on three pillars: the UN Integrated Office in Haiti (BINUH), the sanctions and arms embargo under Resolution 2653, and the MSS. Álvarez stressed that adopting the hybrid model is essential to ensure effective operations, stable logistics, and a realistic action plan. “This is the most viable option under current circumstances,” he said.

The Dominican Republic, he noted, is actively supporting the MSS by funding medical services and evacuations, leading diplomatic efforts, and implementing measures against arms and human trafficking. He also reiterated the Dominican government’s designation of the Vivansam and Grand Grief gangs as terrorist organizations and urged the UN to sanction their leaders and supporters.