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DH/2021

DAILY HIGHLIGHTS FOR: 13 November 1995

13 November 1995


Press Release
DH/2021


DAILY HIGHLIGHTS FOR: 13 November 1995

19951113 * Security Council adopts annual report to General Assembly, covering period 16 June 1994 to 15 June 1995.

* Croatian Government and Serbs sign Basic Agreement on Eastern Slavonia; Security Council to establish transitional administration to govern Region.

* Secretary-General visits Auschwitz concentration camp; to address European Parliament in Strasbourg tomorrow.

* Streamlining of financial and administrative procedures has enhanced United Nations peace-keeping capabilities, Under- Secretary-General Kittani says.

* Georgian-Abkhaz peace process remains deadlocked, Secretary- General reports; build-up of pressures could lead to resumption of hostilities.

* Secretary-General continues efforts to convene regional conference on security and stability in Africa's Great Lakes Region.

* Federal Republic of Yugoslavia is meeting commitment to close border with Serb-controlled areas of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Co- Chairmen of ICFY report.

* United Nations premises in Guatemala and Angola attacked over weekend.

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The Security Council today adopted its fiftieth report to the General Assembly, covering the period 16 June 1994 to 15 June 1995. During that period, the Council held 152 meetings, adopted 70 resolutions and issued 82 Presidential statements. In addition, Council members held 274 consultations of the whole, totaling some 420 hours. The Council considered around 100 reports by the Secretary-General and more than 1,000 documents and communications from States and regional and intergovernmental organizations.

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Part I of the report deals with questions considered by the Council under its responsibility for international peace and security. Items under that heading include the situation concerning Rwanda, the situations in the former Yugoslavia, Haiti, Somalia, Liberia, Burundi, and Georgia, and the situation between Iraq and Kuwait. Other items relate to Somalia, Angola, Mozambique, Central America, Afghanistan, the Middle East, and Tajikistan.

Part II deals with other matters, such as the Presidency of the Council, the current draft report, the election of members of the International Court of Justice, admission of new members, and Council working methods and procedure. Part III covers the work of the Military Staff Committee, while Part IV lists communications on matters brought to the Council's attention but not discussed at formal meetings.

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Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali today congratulated the Croatian Government and the local Serb authorities on the signing of the Basic Agreement on the Region of Eastern Slavonia, Baranja and Western Sirmium. He described it as an encouraging step in the peaceful resolution of all issues in the former Yugoslavia, for which the United Nations had worked tirelessly.

The Basic Agreement requested the Security Council to establish a transitional administration to govern Eastern Slavonia for a transitional period of 12 months. It also requested the Council to authorize an international force to maintain peace and security and otherwise assist in the Agreement's implementation. The force would also determine the schedule and procedures for the demilitarization of the Region.

The Secretary-General said the United Nations was prepared to become fully engaged in the implementation of the Basic Agreement, once the relevant Council resolution had been adopted and adequate financial resources had been made available. He appealed to the parties to demonstrate their goodwill and to cooperate fully with the transitional administration in the implementation of the Agreement.

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The Secretary-General was in Strasbourg, France, today for an official visit to the European Parliament, according to a United Nations spokesman. He had meetings with representatives of the Council of Europe and with the Mayor of Strasbourg. He was scheduled to address the Parliament and to meet with the European Commission tomorrow.

Before concluding his visit to Poland yesterday, Mr. Boutros-Ghali visited the Auschwitz concentration camp. After touring the camp, he laid a wreath at the Wall of Death. He later laid another wreath at the Memorial of Nations at Birkenau.

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"The Auschwitz camp is a symbol of all the evil that man can do to man," he said. "It is important that people all over the world know what happened here to avoid the repetition of Auschwitz in different parts of the world. The international community has to continue to strive to prevent similar atrocities from happening ever again. This is one of the objectives of the United Nations."

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The streamlining of financial and administrative procedures has improved the Organization's ability to respond to situations in the field, the Under- Secretary-General for Peace-keeping Operations, Ismat Kittani, said today. He made that comment to the Fourth Committee (Special Political and Decolonization) as it began its consideration of peace-keeping operations.

In the past year, the Office of Planning and Support had been strengthened, Mr. Kittani noted. Meanwhile, the Military Adviser's Office and the Office of Operations had been modestly enhanced, mostly with military officers made available by Member States on a short-term basis, at no cost to the United Nations. However, if the Organization were to develop an experienced staff, the structure should be comprised of core posts.

Regional training workshops had been conducted in Europe and Latin America, and more were planned for Asia and Africa next year, Mr. Kittani continued. The United Nations had also established teams to assist interested countries in developing training programmes. Stand-by arrangements were also being developed. "Building on this relatively new, but promising, system will remain a priority, and I take this opportunity to encourage all Member States to participate," he added. * * *

The Georgian-Abkhaz peace process remains deadlocked, mainly because the Abkhaz side is unwilling to offer concessions on its future political status, according to the Secretary-General. In a report dated 8 November, he said the Abkhaz side hoped that changes in the external political environment could enable it to maintain its present position in the negotiating process. He warned that the longer the conflict remained unresolved, the more those hopes could lead to a further isolation of the Abkhaz side, particularly in view of the international community's consistent support for the territorial integrity of Georgia. More disturbingly, a build-up of pressures could lead to a resumption of hostilities.

The Secretary-General said his Special Envoy remained ready to mediate between the two sides. Meanwhile, the resident Deputy was working to help reactivate the negotiation process by consulting intensively with all sides, including the Russian Federation. However, for real progress to be achieved, both sides must show that they were willing and able to reach a comprehensive settlement based on three essential elements -- the safe and orderly return of refugees and internally displaced persons, maintenance of Georgia's territorial integrity, and a special status for Abkhazia. * * *

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The Secretary-General has been continuing his efforts to convene a Regional Conference on Security, Stability and Development in the Great Lakes Region of Central Africa. In a letter to the Security Council President dated 10 November, he said his Special Envoy for the purpose had held high-level consultations with the Organization of African Unity (OAU) and the Governments of Burundi, Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, Uganda and Tanzania.

Most Governments supported the idea of a regional conference, he continued. However, Rwanda had expressed strong opposition to it, while Uganda was not keen to have the United Nations actively involved in the process. "Notwithstanding these reservations, the United Nations will continue to monitor developments in the region and I shall revert to the Security Council if it appears that conditions exist for the successful convening of a conference."

In a letter to the Secretary-General dated 10 November, the Security Council expressed support for all efforts to reduce tension and restore stability in the Great Lakes Region. It encouraged him to continue his contacts with the aim of convening a conference.

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The Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (Serbia and Montenegro) is meeting its commitment to close its border with Serb-controlled areas of Bosnia and Herzegovina, according to the Co-Chairmen of the International Conference on the Former Yugoslavia. In a report on the operations of the Conference's Mission to the Federal Republic, they also concluded that there had been no commercial transshipments across the border between the two countries in the last 30 days. The report was transmitted by the Secretary-General to the Security Council in a letter dated 10 November.

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Twenty-five bullets were fired at a regional office of the United Nations Mission for the Verification of Human Rights in Guatemala (MINUGUA) over the weekend, a spokesman for the Organization said today. Nobody was injured in the attack and no motive was established for it.

Meanwhile, two grenades were thrown at a United Nations Angola Verification Mission (UNAVEM III) complex in the Kabinda region of Angola. A Bangladeshi officer was injured in that attack, although he was later reported to be in a stable condition. The attackers were not apprehended.

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For information media. Not an official record.