The United Nations on Monday approved a plan to send a coalition of multinational forces to Haiti in a support mission designed to address soaring gang violence and crime in the country.
The U.N. Security Council unanimously approved a resolution authorizing a one-year deployment of troops, which would be sent from Kenya to Haiti.
Thirteen countries approved the resolution. Russia and China abstained from the vote but chose not to veto it, which would have killed authority for the mission.
U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield hailed the passage of the “historic resolution,” which she said showed the council’s “ability to galvanize collective action.”
Along with Kenya, countries expected to contribute to the mission are Jamaica, the Bahamas, Antigua and Barbuda.
The deployment could come within just a few months.