United Nations Daily Highlights, 02-09-25

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

OF THE NOON BRIEFING

BY FRED ECKHARD

SPOKESMAN FOR THE SECRETARY-GENERAL OF THE UNITED NATIONS

UN

HEADQUARTERS, NEW YORK

Wednesday, September 25, 2002

SECURITY COUNCIL BRIEFED ON IRAQ OIL-FOR-FOOD PROGRAM

Benon Sevan, Executive Director of the Iraq Programme, briefed the Security Council on the oil-for-food program and presented a note, in lieu of the regular 90-day written report reviewing the programs work.

In his written comments, Sevan told the Council that the oil-for-food program has continued to face a number of difficulties over the past year, foremost among them a growing revenue shortfall stemming from the substantial reduction of Iraqi oil exports.

The level of oil exports has fallen from an average of two million barrels per day in 2000 to under one million barrels per day in recent months, leading to an estimated loss of some $3.2 billion in revenue from the beginning of June until mid-September. Over the past week, however, there has been an encouraging development, with oil export levels averaging 1.9 million barrels per day.

Several factors have contributed to the drop in Iraqi oil exports, including Iraqs periodic unilateral suspension of exports and the continued absence of an agreement between the Iraqi Government and the Security Councils 661 Sanctions Committee on oil pricing.

The note presented to the Security Council reviews the health situation in central and southern Iraq, reporting a decrease in cholera, diphtheria, malaria, tuberculosis and other major diseases, as well as an overall improvement in water quality since 1997. Meanwhile, the preliminary results of a UNICEF-supported nutrition survey show a reduction in the rates of chronic malnutrition in children under five, compared to 2000.

On the other hand, access to, and quality of, education have declined significantly over the past decade, with dropout rates having increased by 5 percent over the past five years.

IAEA TO HOST VIENNA TALKS ON IRAQ

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) will host the talks expected to begin in Vienna on September 30 between Iraq, on the one hand and the UN Monitoring, Verification and Inspection Commission (UNMOVIC) and the IAEA on the other.

The IAEA delegation will be headed by its Director-General, Mohammed ElBaradei. Hans Blix, the Executive Director of UNMOVIC, will head his delegation. The United Nations has not yet received from Iraq the names of those in its delegation.

SECURITY COUNCIL EXTENDS SIERRA LEONE MISSION BY SIX MONTHS

On Tuesday night, the Security Council adopted a six-month extension of the UN Mission in Sierra Leone. Taking note of the Secretary-General's proposals for adjustments to the size, composition and deployment of the mission, the Council urged the Mission to complete the first two phases of those proposals, including a reduction of 4,500 troops within eight months.

On Tuesday afternoon, the Council held consultations on Somalia and Liberia. Members heard briefings by UN Assistant Secretary-General for Political Affairs Tuliameni Kalomoh and agreed on two public statements, which were read out by Council President Stefan Tafrov of Bulgaria.

On Somalia, the Council expressed support for the reconciliation process sponsored by the Inter-Governmental Authority on Development (IGAD).

On Liberia, Council members called for an immediate halt in the fighting. They also called on the parties to work with the international community to promote the conditions for free, transparent and inclusive elections in 2003.

UN WEST AFRICA ENVOY MEETS LEADERS IN COTE DIVOIRE

The Secretary-Generals new Special Representative for West Africa, Ahmedou Ould Abdallah, is in Abijdan, Cote dIvoire.

An aide traveling with him said that Ould Abdallah met Tuesday with President Laurent Gbagbo, and the envoy urged moderation and dialogue as a means to resolve the situation.

Today, he also met with both Government and opposition leaders, including Alassane Ouattara and former President Henri Konan Bedie.

He is meeting as many people as possible, including the UN country team and members of the diplomatic community.

On the humanitarian side, a team comprising UN humanitarian agencies and non-governmental organizations is in the process of assessing the number and condition of people displaced within Abidjan. The humanitarian community in Cote d'Ivoire planned to send similar missions to affected areas like Bouake and Korhogo, as soon as security conditions allowed.

The UN High Commissioner for Refugees reported that it was helping about 200 refugees, mostly from Sierra Leone and Liberia, whose homes were destroyed in Abidjan following last week's coup attempt.

In a statement issued last week, the Secretary-General Kofi Annan unequivocally condemned any attempt to settle disputes through violence and reaffirmed the United Nations commitment to work with the Government and people of Cote dIvoire to restore peace, stability and progress in the country.

UNRWA DETAILS COSTS CREATED BY ISRAELI SECURITY MEASURES

At a donors meeting in Amman, Jordan, today, the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East or UNRWA responded to questions from donors about the diversion of its humanitarian funds because of Israels security regime in Gaza and the West Bank, by noting the additional costs it has incurred because of recent security measures.

Among those costs, the Agency has paid more than $2.5 million in additional port and storage charges because of Israeli security measures. It has been forced to spend hundreds of thousands more to repair buildings damaged during recent military operations, and has submitted a claim for $535,000 to Israel, just to cover the cost of building damage.

Costs have also been incurred because of lost working days among the Agencys teachers and health workers, caused by restrictions on movement, and by the need to accommodate staff in hotels when they have been trapped by curfews.

UNRWA Commissioner-General Peter Hansen told the donors that the Agency finds charges levied by Israel to search consignments of food and medicine, destined for the occupied Palestinian territory, to be unreasonable. He said, This amounts to a tax on humanitarian aid.

SECRETARY-GENERAL WELCOMES DR-CONGO WITHDRAWALS

In a statement issued Tuesday afternoon, the Secretary-General welcomed the continuing withdrawal of the armed forces of Rwanda, Uganda, Zimbabwe and Angola from the territory of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). He encouraged the Governments of Rwanda, Uganda, Zimbabwe and Angola to continue with the withdrawal of their forces, in accordance with recent agreements and relevant Security Council resolutions, and to share all information with the United Nations Organization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUC).

The Secretary-General urged all parties in the DRC to work in good faith towards an expeditious resolution of the conflict that has caused so much suffering.

ANNAN WELCOMES MONGOLIAN ACTIONS ON NUCLEAR ARMS

The Secretary-General welcomes the message of the President of Mongolia, addressed to him today on the occasion of the 10th Anniversary of Mongolias declaration of its nuclear-weapon-free zone. He was gratified by the Presidents appreciation for the active UN involvement in promoting that status.

Noting the adoption, on February 3, 2000, of legislation in Mongolia defining and regulating its nuclear-weapon-free status, the Secretary-General commended Mongolia for these concrete actions, and also noted the joint statement made by the five nuclear weapon States in October 2000 on security assurances in connection with that declaration.

UN REPORTS UNPRECEDENTED INCREASE IN ARMS TRANSPARENCY

There has been unprecedented increase in transparency in defense spending and international arms transfers, the UN Department for Disarmament Affairs said today.

Since 2000, two decades after the UN Standardized Instrument for Reporting Military Expenditures was established by the General Assembly, the number of Governments that report their defense spending has increased by over 50 percent. A total of more than 100 States have reported at least once, so far, while 77 States have submitted their annual reports this year.

The Department also said that there has been a significant increase in participation level for the UN Register of Conventional Arms.

In the year 2001, 120 Governments submitted reports, which is the highest level recorded so far, representing more than a 20 percent increase over the last two years.

Also today, the Secretary-General issued reports on reducing nuclear danger, in which he has concluded that the time is not yet ripe for convening an international conference to identify ways of eliminating nuclear dangers, as proposed in the UN Millennium Declaration; and on small arms, in which he noted recent initiatives taken by the Security Council in arms embargoes and conflict prevention and identified areas where further Council action is required.

ANNAN ADDRESSES DAG HAMMARSKJÖLD MEMORIAL FUND LUNCH

This afternoon, the Secretary-General attended the annual luncheon of the Dag Hammarskjöld Memorial Scholarship Fund at the West Terrace of the Delegates Dining Room, where he congratulated this years three memorial scholars and briefly discussed the extraordinary challenges the United Nations is facing.

He told the journalists present that they can help to create the will and determination to make the world a better place, by telling the truth and making it harder for people to look the other way and do nothing.

This evening, the Secretary-General will attend the United Nations Association of the United States (UNA-USA)/Business Council for the UN Global Leadership Award dinner at the Sheraton New York Hotel.

WHO, UNICEF SAY ETHIOPIA, SUDAN, SOMALIA NEARLY POLIO-FREE

The UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) and the World Health Organization (WHO) said today that Ethiopia, Somalia and Sudan were one step away from being certified as polio-free. So far this year, only two cases have been reported in Somalia and no cases in the other two countries.

UNICEF says it must continue a final mass polio immunization campaign to ensure there are no more new cases and has launched an appeal for $50 million for the period 2003-2005 to immunize 22 million children.

The campaign to rid these countries of polio is part of the Global Polio Eradication Initiative, which has succeeded in reducing the number of countries in which polio is endemic from 125 in 1988 to just 10 at the beginning of this year. The number of cases has decreased from 350,000 in 1998 to 483 in 2001.

OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS

In Hamburg, Germany, today, Lennox Ballah of Trinidad and Tobago was sworn in as a judge of the International Tribunal of the Law of the Sea. Ballah was elected to the Tribunal in April following the death of Edward Laing, to serve the remainder of his term and to serve for a further nine-year term, beginning on October 1. Ballah has a long history of involvement in the Law of the Sea, and was most recently his countrys representative to the International Seabed Authority.

Mirta Roses of Argentina was elected this morning as the new Director of the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO). This is the first time a woman and an Argentine has been elected to the post. Roses, who will serve a five-year term, replaces George Alleyne whose term ends January 31, 2003.

The UN Environment Programme says that the hairy kneed camel, the Blind River Dolphin and the Great White Shark, made popular in the Jaws movies, are three of the endangered species that have been added to the lists maintained under the Convention on Migratory Species. The tri-annual meeting of the Parties to the Convention, which ended Tuesday in Bonn, Germany, assessed the situation of 36 species and added them to the Appendices to the Convention.

The Office of the Secretary-Generals Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflict announced today, the launch of a new website. It features multimedia technology and includes a special Youth Zone aimed at children.

This afternoon at 4:00, Nane Annan, wife of the Secretary-General, will visit a special memorial tribute for the victims of the September 11 attack on New York, accompanied by New York fire fighters and their families. The exhibit, displayed in the Visitors Lobby, contains artwork from all over the world sent to the United Nations following the attack and includes glass-engraved portraits of fallen fire fighters, a quilt made by women in Idaho and drawings from children from all over the world.

Jamaica this morning became the seventh country to ratify the Protocol on the Privileges and Immunities of the International Seabed Authority.

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