United Nations Daily Highlights, 01-05-25

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From: The United Nations Home Page at <http://www.un.org> - email: unnews@un.org

FROM THE NOON BRIEFING

BY FRED ECKHARD

SPOKESMAN FOR THE SECRETARY-GENERAL OF THE UNITED NATIONS

UN HEADQUARTERS, NEW YORK

Friday, May 25, 2001

There will be no briefing on Monday, May 28, a holiday at UN headquarters .

ANNAN TO VISIT U.S. CHAMBER OF COMMERCE, UNIVERSITY NEXT WEEK

Secretary General Kofi Annan will give the keynote address in Washington, D.C. next Thursday evening at the Global Health Council to inaugurate the $1 million Gates Award for Global Health.

Then on Friday morning, he will address a breakfast meeting of some 500 members of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, to make an appeal for support for his global AIDS initiative.

On Monday, the Secretary-General will attend commencement exercises at Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island, where he is to receive an honorary doctorate "honoris causa" in recognition of his contribution to world peace.

The Secretary-General is not speaking at the commencement. Among the other honorary degree recipients at Brown University next Monday will be former U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright.

ANNAN RETURNS FROM WASHINGTON TRIP

The Secretary-General returned to UN Headquarters today, one day after he visited members of the U.S. Congress in Washington, D.C.

On Thursday afternoon, after he had an off-the-record session with the editorial board of The Washington Post, the Secretary-General went to the Senate side of Capitol Hill, where he met with seven members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, including Chairman Jesse Helms of North Carolina. Their talks focused almost exclusively on the Secretary-General's fight against AIDS and the details of the proposed Global Fund for AIDS and other diseases.

His last meeting of the day was with Senator Tom Daschle of South Dakota, the Senate Democratic leader.

Washington was in tumult Thursday as a result of the decision by Republican Senator James Jeffords of Vermont to leave the Republican Party, thereby shifting control of the Senate to the Democrats. Daschle was therefore expected to become the new Majority leader.

Daschle kept his appointment with the Secretary-General and also invited a number of members of the Senate Appropriations Committee to join in. Again, the discussions focused almost exclusively on the Secretary-General's AIDS initiative. The Secretary-General also appealed for support on the payment of UN dues.

In coming into the building this morning, the Secretary-General commented, "I had gone to Washington to see the Majority Leader and the Minority Leader; by the time I got there, their roles had changed."

Asked whether the change in the U.S. Senate would improve relations with the United Nations, the Spokesman noted the Secretary-General's good working relationship with Republicans in the Senate, including current Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Jesse Helms. The Helms-Biden plan to repay US arrears to the United Nations, he said, was a bipartisan effort.

Eckhard said that the United Nations hoped the next tranche of that repayment, amounting to some $582 million, would arrive soon.

Asked whether the Secretary-General had discussed the Balkans with Congress, the Spokesman said he had highlighted, among other key concerns discussed Thursday, the need for Congress to seek a comprehensive solution in the Balkans.

Asked why the Secretary-General was traveling so frequently to Washington, Eckhard said that it was in part to get in touch with the new U.S. administration, and in part due to circumstance. The Secretary-General, he noted, tends to meet the Government, Parliamentary and opposition leaders in each country

EXPERT PANEL PROPOSES AFGHAN SANCTIONS MONITORING MECHANISM

The report by a five-member Committee of Experts on enforcing sanctions against the Taliban has been transmitted by the Secretary-General to the Security Council, detailing how the arms embargo and closure of terrorist training camps demanded in the Security Council Resolution 1333 could be monitored.

Chaired by Ambassador Haile Menkerios of Eritrea, the members, who traveled to the region for four weeks, said that no sanctions monitoring will be effective unless there is total commitment of the member states involved with its implementation.

The Committee said it considered it essential to look into the illicit drug trade by the Taliban, and, while noting the Taliban ban on opium production, also pointed to a sizeable stock of opium and heroin. The report said, "If Taliban officials were sincere in stopping the production of opium and heroin, then one would expect them to order the destruction of all stocks existing in areas under their control."

The report made seven recommendations, including one that calls for the establishment of a monitoring mechanism to work alongside the border control services in the countries neighboring Afghanistan.

It identified a certain a type of aviation fuel, as well as fluids and lubricants needed for use in armed vehicles to be specified in the embargo. There is also a recommendation for the movement of a controlled substance linked to the production of heroin to be monitored.

The Security Council is expected to take up the report in early June.

Asked about the UN response to the recommendations, the Spokesman declined comment until the Council takes up the issue next month. He said that Ambassador Menkerios would talk to the press around the time that the Council is briefed on the report.

[Asked by reporters about his reaction to the recommendation for a monitoring mechanism, the Secretary-General today said, "I am going to be discussing it with my staff, not only those here but those in the field, to see how we can do that, if we can, and what changes we will have to make in our own operations."]

UN ENVOYS WELCOME ANNIVERSARY OF ISRAELI LEBANON WITHDRAWAL

In Beirut today, the Secretary-General's Personal Representative for Southern Lebanon, Staffan de Mistura, welcomed the first anniversary of the Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon, saying, "For one year now, the people of the South have enjoyed a level of calm and stability that they have not experienced for 22 years."

De Mistura took the occasion to note the continuing risk of escalation and further violence in the region and warned, "Recent threatening statements do not serve the interests of any one in the region, in particular the people of Lebanon."

He urged all sides to avoid actions that could create an unwanted spiral of violence, and said that the United Nations would continue to work towards achieving a comprehensive peace in the region, based on the implementation of Security Council Resolutions 242 and 338.

UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Terje Roed Larsen delivered an address on Lebanese television to the people of Lebanon, emphasizing that the Israeli withdrawal demonstrates that abiding by Security Council resolutions, and ending occupation, is the way to peace.

ANNAN WELCOMES HALT TO AERIAL ATTACKS IN SOUTHERN SUDAN

The Secretary-General welcomed the announcement by the Government of the Sudan that it had declared on May 24 an immediate halt to aerial attacks in southern Sudan and the Nuba Mountains.

He hoped that this positive step would help reduce the sufferings of the people in these areas and also enhance the prospects for peace.

SECURITY COUNCIL MISSION WRAPS UP VISIT TO GREAT LAKES REGION

The Security Council has not scheduled any meetings until next Tuesday, when the Council's mission to the Great Lakes region of Africa, led by French Ambassador Jean-David Levitte, will provide a briefing in closed consultations on its eight-country tour.

Today, the 11 Security Council ambassadors on that mission left Kigali, Rwanda, for Kampala, Uganda, the last stop on their trip.

They first met this morning with Jean-Pierre Bemba, the leader of the Congolese Liberation Movement (MLC), and a number of his top lieutenants. The discussions centered on working out the details of the recent announcement by Bemba that he would disengage his forces from the front lines in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. During the meeting, Bemba expressed his support for the recent announcement of the reopening of the Congo River to civilian traffic.

Later, the Council delegation met with President Yoweri Museveni, who said he would withdraw most of his forces from the Democratic Republic of the Congo ( DRC) in the next three weeks.

UN MISSION CONFIRMS CEASE-FIRE VIOLATION IN SIERRA LEONE

The UN Mission in Sierra Leone ( UNAMSIL) reported another cease-fire violation in the Koidu area in the diamond-rich part of the country. On Thursday, a pro-Government militia, the Civil Defense Force, attacked Revolutionary United Front positions.

The UN Mission's Force Commander, Lt. Gen Daniel Opande, is in Koidu today.

REFUGEES FLEEING FYROM INTO SOUTHERN SERBIA, SAYS UNHCR

Up to 2,000 people have fled to southern Serbia from villages in the north of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM), as fighting intensified between FYROM forces and ethnic Albanian rebels, reports the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees ( UNHCR). UNHCR said the outflow started Thursday evening, and continued through the night and this morning.

In a separate development, UNHCR has increased its staff presence in the Presevo area to help ease the tension and anxiety among ethnic Albanian villagers as the Yugoslav Federal Army took over the control of Sector B of the Ground Safety Zone from NATO.

ANNAN TO DELIVER A MESSAGE TO ISLAMIC CONFERENCE MEETING

On Saturday, in Doha, Qatar, the Foreign Ministers of the Organization of the Islamic Conference will be holding an emergency meeting on the situation in the Palestinian territories, and Under-Secretary-General Lakhdar Brahimi, who deals with special assignments in preventive and peace-making efforts, will attend on the Secretary-General's behalf.

Brahimi will deliver a message by the Secretary-General to that meeting, calling for restraint and statesmanship, and especially for an end to the bloodshed.

OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS

Today is the first anniversary of the adoption of the two Optional Protocols to the Convention on the Rights of the Child by the General Assembly. Carol Bellamy, Executive Director of the UN Children's Fund ( UNICEF) encouraged States that have not yet signed or ratified the Optional Protocols to do so. She went on to say, "It would be a splendid sign of commitment to children if this were to be done prior to the UN Special Session on Children."

The World Food Programme (WFP) announced today that it has begun to provide food aid to some 1,500 Afghans stranded on a border island between Tajikistan and Afghanistan.

In response to a question, the Spokesman noted after the briefing that the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization was considering a proposal to set aside a day to mark the safeguarding of cultural heritage. That day, it was proposed, would fall on the anniversary of the Taliban's destruction of Afghanistan's Buddha statues.

The UN Mission in East Timor has begun preparations for the visit, starting next Monday, to West Timor by the Bishop of Baucau, Basilio do Nascimento. The Bishop plans to meet with the chairman of the pro-autonomy Timorese militia "UNTAS" and also intends to visit East Timorese refugees living in West Timor.

Thailand today became the 82nd Member State to pay its 2001 regular budget in full with a payment of more than $2.8 million.

The UN Postal Administration today launched eight new stamps in the Flags of Member States series. The stamps represent the flags of Slovenia, Palau, Tonga, Croatia, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Kiribati, Andorra and Nauru. A souvenir folder and special first day cancellation will also be available.

THE WEEK AHEAD AT THE UNITED NATIONS

Saturday, May 26

The Security Council mission to the Great Lakes is expected to return to New York.

Sunday, May 27

Monday, May 28

Today is Memorial Day in the United States. UN Headquarters will be closed.

The Secretary-General will receive an honorary degree from Brown University in Rhode Island.

In Rome, the Food and Agriculture Organization's Committee on World Food Security will meet through Thursday.

Tuesday, May 29

The Security Council will hear a briefing in closed consultations from its mission to the Great Lakes, which was led by French Ambassador Jean-David Levitte.

Wednesday, May 30

The Security Council is expected to hold a formal meeting on the UN Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF) in the Golan Heights, the present mandate of which expires on May 31.

The Secretary-General will be among the speakers as the Security Council hears an open briefing on the Council mission to the Great Lakes.

Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs Nitin Desai will speak on behalf of the Secretary-General at the 11th Summit of the Group of 15 in Indonesia.

The Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) will organize a conference on financial and corporate restructuring in East and South-East Asia, which will be held through Friday in Seoul, Republic of Korea.

In Geneva, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Mary Robinson and International Labour Organization (ILO) Director-General Juan Somavia will co-chair a panel discussion by business, labor and human rights experts on combating workplace discrimination. The panel's work is part of the process leading up to the World Conference on Racism to be held in Durban, South Africa, starting August 31.

The Federation of International Civil Servants Associations will brief the press at UN headquarters 11:15 a.m. on staff security.

Thursday, May 31

The Security Council expects to hold consultations on the "oil-for-food" program. Phase IX of that program is to expire on June 3.

In Washington, D.C., the Secretary-General will speak at an awards ceremony of the Global Health Council, co-chaired by Melinda Gates and Graca Machel.

This is World "No Tobacco" Day.

The UN International School will hold its yearly graduation ceremony at the Trusteeship Council Chamber.

The guest at the noon briefing will be Anna Tibaijuka, head of the UN Centre for Human Settlements (Habitat), who will speak about the General Assembly's Special Session to follow up on the 1996 Habitat Summit in Istanbul.

Friday, June 1

In Washington, D.C., the Secretary-General will meet with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce to discuss the fight against AIDS.

Ambassador Anwarul Karim Chowdhury of Bangladesh will take over as President of the Security Council for the month of June, replacing Ambassador James Cunningham of the United States.

Towards the end of the week, the Security Council expects to receive the Secretary-General's report on the UN Force in Cyprus (UNFICYP) and the quarterly report of the UN Monitoring, Verification and Inspection Commission (UNMOVIC) dealing with Iraq.

Office of the Spokesman for the Secretary-General

United Nations, S-378

New York, NY 10017

Tel. 212-963-7162

Fax. 212-963-7055

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