United Nations Daily Highlights, 02-11-18

United Nations Daily Highlights Directory - Previous Article - Next Article

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

OF THE NOON BRIEFING

BY HUA JIANG

DEPUTY SPOKESMAN FOR THE SECRETARY-GENERAL OF THE UNITED NATIONS

UN

HEADQUARTERS, NEW YORK

Monday, November 18, 2002

ANNAN URGES IRAQI PRESIDENT TO COMPLY WITH UN RESOLUTION

In a statement that he issued in Sarejevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Secretary-General Kofi Annan said that the chief UN weapons inspectors, Hans Blix and Mohamed ElBaradei, arrive in Baghdad today to begin a crucial new phase of disarmament.

Annan said that Security Council Resolution 1441 states clearly what the Government of Iraq must do. Acting in unison, Council Members demanded that Iraq grant prompt and unfettered access to all and any sites.

He asserted, I urge President Saddam Hussein to comply fully with the Councils demands, for the sake of his people, regional stability and world order.

ADVANCE TEAM OF UN WEAPONS INSPECTORS ARRIVE IN BAGHDAD

An advance team from the UN Monitoring, Verification and Inspection Commission (UNMOVIC) and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) arrived in Baghdad at about 1:30 p.m. local time. This advance group will concentrate on getting the inspection offices up and running again after a prolonged absence from Iraq.

The 30-member team, led by IAEA Director General Mohammed ElBaradei and UNMOVIC Executive Chairman Hans Blix, were met at the airport by General Hosan Amin, the head of Iraqs National Monitoring Directorate, and by Ramiro Lopes da Silva, the head of the UN humanitarian office in Iraq.

Before leaving Cyprus earlier today, Blix said the first inspectors would arrive in a week later and they planned to start weapons inspections from November 27 onwards. Blix added that he would report to the Security Council two months after the resumption of inspections. The Iraqi declaration to be submitted no later than December 8 would be analyzed by UNMOVIC and serve as an important basis for verification.

ElBaradei said, This is an opportunity for peace. He hoped that Iraq would make full use of this opportunity and cooperate in the implementation of Security Council resolutions, which would open the way for them to come back as a full member of the international community and suspend and eventually eliminate sanctions.

Blix and ElBaradei will have a meeting later today with senior Iraqi officials. The two also plan to hold a press conference later on Tuesday afternoon in Baghdad.

SECRETARY-GENERAL ENDS VISIT TO BOSNIA, GOES TO KOSOVO

The Secretary-General was in Sarejevo earlier today, where this morning he met with the three members of the Bosnian Presidency: Mirko Sarovic, Dragan Covic and Sulejman Tihic.

He welcomed their common resolve to introduce a series of reforms to bring Bosnia into compliance with European economic and social standards as a prelude for applying to membership in the European Union. He urged them to continue these efforts after the UN Mission ends its work in Bosnia next month and to work with its neighbors to fight terrorism, human trafficking and organized crime, and he also pledged continued UN support to improve the economy and strengthen the rule of law.

The Secretary-General then met with the Council of Ministers, with whom he reiterated his offer of UN support for Bosnian reforms, telling them that, speaking from experience as a reformer, he knew that process would take time. He suggested that the Government consider demilitarizing the country, as Costa Rica has done, to reduce military spending and free up resources.

After that meeting, the Secretary-General spoke to the press, saying that rebuilding is more than bricks and mortar, and that we need to reconcile; we need to seek justice; we need to ensure that the returnees are reintegrated peacefully.

Before leaving Sarajevo, the Secretary-General met with three representatives of the Mothers of Srebrenica, who lost their children during the 1995 massacre there, and told them he could barely imagine the pain they had experienced.

He has since travelled to Kosovo, where he was briefed by his Special Representative, Michael Steiner, and afterward spoke to assembled staff of the UN Mission. This afternoon he met with President Ibrahim Rugova, Prime Minister Bajram Rexhepi and other senior officials.

ANNAN MEETS HEADS OF PRINCIPAL ORGANS IN BOSNIA

On Sunday, the Secretary-General arrived in Sarajevo and had a working lunch with the heads of the principal international organizations in Bosnia and Herzegovina, including the United Nations, the Office of the High Representative, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, and the NATO-led Stabilization Force, among others.

He dedicated a monument to UN personnel who lost their lives in the former Yugoslavia, and said of the monument, which stands outside the UN Headquarters in Sarajevo, This memorial will serve to reinforce our own determination as peacekeepers, citizens and members of the human family to build better lives for succeeding generations.

Nane Annan, the Secretary-Generals wife, today in Sarajevo visited an inclusive kindergarten for Roma children, supported by the UN Childrens Fund and yesterday witnessed an interactive presentation by and for young people on avoiding the dangers of AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases.

UN KOSOVO ENVOY VISITS DAMAGED SERB ORTHODOX CHURCHES

The Secretary-Generals Special Representative for Kosovo, Michael Steiner, on Sunday visited the municipality of Istok, to see two Serbian Orthodox churches that had been damaged over the weekend, and voiced his condemnation of what he called religious vandalism.

He said, Those responsible for these acts want to undermine Kosovos success, especially on the eve of the visit of the Secretary-General They will not achieve their aim.

The UN Mission will launch reconstruction work on the churches.

TALKS ON DR-CONGO CONTINUE OVER WEEKEND IN SOUTH AFRICA

Talks aimed at concluding an all-inclusive transitional power-sharing agreement in the Democratic Republic of the Congo continued over the weekend in Pretoria, South Africa, among the Congolese parties under joint United Nations/South African mediation. The informal consultations, co-chaired by UN Special Envoy Moustapha Niasse and South African Minister Sydney Mufamadi, had resumed on Friday following a 12-day suspension.

At a plenary session on Saturday, the participants were given copies of a working document prepared by the mediation team, which synthesizes the various power-sharing proposals submitted by the Congolese parties.

On Sunday and today, the mediation team met with each of the Congolese groups, to hear their comments on and proposed amendments to the synthesis document.

The talks are expected to run through 23 November. Any agreement reached on transitional power-sharing arrangements would then be formally endorsed by the Inter-Congolese Dialogue, chaired by the Facilitator, former Botswanan President Ketumile Masire.

ONE YEAR LATER, ANNAN NOTES CHALLENGES FACING AFGHANISTAN

In a message to the Panel on Afghanistan, One Year Later, the Secretary-General noted a listed of achievement since the Bonn Agreement. The list is long, and is one everyone associated with the work of the United Nations in Afghanistan can be very proud of, he said.

However, he underscored in the message, which was delivered by Kieran Prendergast, Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs, that the challenges facing Afghanistan remain immense: from security to development to creating the political and social institutions necessary for a stable, free and prosperous society with equal rights for all.

Also on Afghanistan, the former world champion boxer and UN Messenger of peace, Muhammad Ali, started Sunday a 3-day mission to the country. Ali is undertaking a humanitarian mission to Afghanistan to raise awareness of the humanitarian needs of the people of Afghanistan and the work of the United Nations there.

There will be a two-day meeting in Munich, Germany, starting on Friday, focusing on the preservation of the Bamiyan Buddhas. The meeting is expected to finalize the work of the UNESCO committee on safeguarding Afghanistans cultural heritage.

Also, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) is currently distributing 3,700 metric tons of wheat seed and 7,000 metric tons of fertilizer to about half a million people in almost all the provinces in Afghanistan.

UN ENVOY COMPLETES NINTH VISIT TO MYANMAR

Razali Ismail, the Secretary-General's Special Envoy for Myanmar, completed his ninth mission to that country on Saturday.

Razali continues to believe that dialogue on substantive issues is essential if a lasting and durable national reconciliation in Myanmar is to be achieved. He urged the Government and the National League for Democracy to maximize and develop the existing channel of discussion in order to bring such a dialogue about.

The Special Envoy indicated to the Government that it should take steps to reconvene the National Convention in a manner acceptable to all parties committed to the national reconciliation process. He made a similar appeal to the National League for Democracy and the representatives of Myanmar's other political parties. Razali also reiterated his call for the Government to release at one time a very substantive number of political prisoners by the end of 2002.

The Special Envoy remains committed to helping to facilitate national reconciliation and democratization in Myanmar. He intends to return to Myanmar early next year to assess developments.

SECRETARY-GENERAL SATISFIED WITH PROGRESS ON SUDAN

A statement issued on Saturday noted that the Secretary-General that morning had phoned Sudans President, Omar Al-Bashir, and John Garang, leader of the Sudan People's Liberation Movement, to convey his encouragement for the current peace talks going on in Kenya.

He registered his satisfaction with the progress made to date and urged the two sides to continue negotiating in good faith until peace prevails in the Sudan.

OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS

Asked about whether the Secretary-General had received responses to his proposals on Cyprus, the Spokeswoman noted that the Secretary-General said this morning in Sarajevo that he had asked the two leaders to give him their reactions to his proposal today. He is now waiting to get those reactions through his Special Representative, Alvaro de Soto, and he will analyze the situation at the end of the day and decide what to do next. The Spokeswoman added that de Soto is scheduled to meet Greek Cypriot leader Glafcos Clerides shortly.

There are no Security Council meetings or consultations scheduled for today. On Tuesday, the Council has scheduled consultations to consider the Secretary-Generals most recent report on the oil-for-food program in Iraq, with a formal meeting scheduled for Thursday.

Deputy Secretary-General Louise Fréchette arrived today in Berne, Switzerland, to participate in the launch of the 2003 Consolidated Appeals for humanitarian assistance on Tuesday.

The two-week conference of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species Wild Fauna and Flora, or CITES, ended on Friday in Santiago, Chile. Among the key decisions adopted was the addition of mahogany to the list of endangered species requiring governments to ensure all exports are sustainable and covered by CITES export permits.

UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) Executive Director Carol Bellamy began a more than two-week visit to Africa today. She will visit Senegal, Ghana, Namibia, Tanzania and Ethiopia and will focus on AIDS, girls education and the effects of the drought in the Horn of Africa. While in Senegal, she will launch the State of the Worlds Vaccines and Immunization report.

Today, the United States paid more than $30 million, and Italy paid more than $6 million, to the UN peacekeeping budget.