GENERAL ASSEMBLY WOULD REDUCE 1996-1997 BUDGET TO $2.603 BILLION IF IT ADOPTS DRAFTS RECOMMENDED BY FIFTH COMMITTEE
Press Release
GA/AB/3132
GENERAL ASSEMBLY WOULD REDUCE 1996-1997 BUDGET TO $2.603 BILLION IF IT ADOPTS DRAFTS RECOMMENDED BY FIFTH COMMITTEE
19961218 Administrative and Budgetary Deliberations Due to Continue This MorningThe General Assembly would resolve that the level of the appropriation for 1997 of about $1.299 billion would be financed mostly by assessing $1.248 billion among Member States, if it adopts several draft resolutions approved without a vote by its Fifth Committee (Administrative and Budgetary) in a meeting that started at 5:20 p.m. yesterday, and, after several suspensions, adjourned at 12:25 a.m. this morning.
By the terms of one of the texts approved, the Assembly would adjust downwards the 1996-1997 appropriations of $2.608 billion by about $5 million and decrease the budget income estimates of $471.4 million by $23.7 million. Those figures update the adjustments proposed in a separate draft text on the first performance report on the budget, which was also approved. The draft on the performance report would have the Assembly approve a cut of $5.6 million in the $2.608 billion expenditure level and a $19.7 million cut in income estimates.
By another draft resolution approved, the Assembly would provide about $2.8 million for the International Seabed Authority in 1997, which would be charged to the contingency fund. By that same text and an oral proposal by the Chairman, approved earlier, the Assembly would note that a balance of about $15.4 million remained in the contingency fund.
The Committee also approved several draft texts on the pattern of conferences, scale of assessments, human resources management, the funding of the International Tribunals for Rwanda and for the former Yugoslavia, the financing of four combined forces in the former Yugoslavia and the United Nations Support Mission in Haiti (UNSMIH), and on the common system.
Action on a draft resolution on the pension system was postponed until late this morning at the suggestion of Zambia's representative.
By the terms of the draft text on the common system, the Assembly would approve an increase of up to 0.4 per cent in base/floor salary scale for Professional and higher category staff.
Under the terms of a draft on pattern of conferences, the Assembly would ask the Secretary-General to include Eid Al-Fitr and Eid Al-Adha in the list of official United Nations holidays and request that no United Nations meetings be held on Eid Al-Fitr and Eid Al-Adha, which in 1997 occur on 10 February and 17 April, respectively.
By other terms of that draft, the Assembly would strongly urge the Secretary-General to propose ways to facilitate developing countries' access to the optical disk system in the six official languages. It would also ask him to ensure that the texts of all new United Nations public documents and information materials are available in the Organization's World Wide Web site daily in the six languages and are accessible to Member States without delay.
Regarding the financing of Tribunals and peace-keeping operations, the Committee approved four draft resolutions that would have the Assembly appropriate some $87 million gross for the first half of 1997 for the Tribunals for Rwanda and for the former Yugoslavia, UNSMIH and the combined forces in the former Yugoslavia.
The total amount would comprise:
-- $23.6 million for the Tribunal in the former Yugoslavia; -- $23.1 million for the Tribunal for Rwanda; -- $27.4 million for UNSMIH; and -- $12.9 million for the combined forces in the former Yugoslavia -- the United Nations Protection Force (UNPROFOR), the United Nations Confidence Restoration Operation in Croatia (UNCRO), the United Nations Preventive Deployment Force (UNPREDEP) and the United Nations Peace Forces headquarters.
On the scale of assessments, the Fifth Committee approved a draft resolution proposed by the "Group of 77" developing countries and China, which would have the Assembly continue considering the scale as a matter of priority in the first part of its resumed session. It would also have the Assembly adopt, not later than 31 March 1997, the methodology which will instruct the Committee on Contributions to use in recommending to the fifty-second session a scale of assessments for the period 1998-2000.
On human resources management, the Assembly would defer consideration of the agenda item and related reports submitted to the first part of the resumed session. The draft would ask the Secretary-General, pending the consideration of the item, to review the need for the general recruitment freeze and to oversee all recruitments, placements and promotions through the Office of Human Resources Management. In doing so, he should take into account the need
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to recruit from unrepresented and under-represented States and to achieve gender balance.
The text would also have the Assembly, on an interim basis, ask the Secretary-General not to expand existing arrangements for delegating authority in recruitment, placement and promotion. It would also ask him to limit short-term appointments against regular budget posts to temporary replacements in cases of mission service and leave. He would also be asked to limit exceptions from regular rules and procedures for recruiting, placing and promoting under-secretaries-general, assistant secretaries-general, special envoys and staff of the Executive Office of the Secretary-General.
The Committee is scheduled to meet again at 11 a.m. today, 18 December, to continue taking action on other drafts.
Committee Work Programme
The Fifth Committee (Administrative and Budgetary) met yesterday afternoon to take action on a series of draft texts. It has before it draft resolutions and decisions on the pattern of conferences, the scale of assessments, human resources management, the financing of United Nations Peace Forces in the former Yugoslavia, the International Tribunals for the former Yugoslavia and Rwanda, administrative and budgetary aspects of peace-keeping operations, and the financing of UNSMIH.
The Committee is also scheduled to take action on the United Nations common system, the Organization's pension system, programme planning, the 1996-1997 programme budget, and the review of efficiency.
Pattern of Conferences
In section A of the five-part draft resolution on pattern of conferences (document A/C.5/51/L.17), the Assembly would decide that no United Nations meetings shall be held on Eid Al-Fitr and Eid Al-Adha, which will be observed in 1997 on 10 February and 17 April, respectively. The Assembly would request the Secretary-General to make the necessary arrangements to ensure strict implementation of that decision when preparing all future draft calendars of conferences and meetings of the United Nations and would request that the two days be included in the list of United Nations official holidays.
By other provisions of the draft, the Assembly would request that the bodies that have not fully utilized their meeting entitlements, including the duration of their sessions, review their meeting entitlements and report to the Assembly through the Committee on Conferences. The Assembly would express concern that the overall factors for utilization of conferences have fallen further and were below the established benchmark figure of 80 per cent in 1995. In expressing concern also about the underutilization of conference
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facilities at duty stations outside Headquarters, the Assembly would emphasize the need for the most effective use of such facilities and endorse the initiatives of the Chairman of the Committee on Conferences to assist bodies to achieve the optimum utilization of conference-servicing resources and assess realistically their need for such resources.
Also by the draft, the Assembly would express concern that 35 per cent of requests were denied for interpretation services for meetings of regional and other major groupings of Member States. It would urge intergovernmental bodies to take account of meetings of their regional and other major groupings of Member States in the planning stages, to make provisions for such meetings in their work programme and to notify Conference Services in advance of any cancellations so that unutilized conference-servicing resources could be reassigned to meetings of such groups of Member States. The Assembly would reaffirm that priority should be given to meetings of Member States in the use of conference rooms.
Section B of the draft text would have the Assembly stress the need for strict compliance with the existing limits of 24 pages for Secretariat documents and 32 pages for reports of subsidiary bodies. It would request the Secretary-General to inform bodies when they request reports, whether they could be produced within established page limits and reaffirm that should a report be issued late, the reasons for the delay should be indicated in each of the six United Nations languages. The Assembly would reiterate its request to the Joint Inspection Unit (JIU) to conduct a comprehensive survey of the role publications play in implementing mandates of intergovernmental bodies and the extent to which recurrent publications could be made more cost-effective and to submit a report on the matter no later than by the end of the fifty-first session.
Under section C of the draft resolution, as a matter of priority, the Secretary-General would be strongly urged to provide proposals to the Fifth Committee's first resumed session on facilitating access by developing countries to the optical disk system in all six languages, taking into account the possible savings from the reduced copying and distribution costs. He would be requested to ensure that all the texts of all new public documents and information materials of the United Nations are posted on the Organization's World Wide Web site daily in all six official languages and are accessible to Member States without delay. The Assembly would further request the Secretary-General to complete the task of uploading all important older United Nations documents on the United Nations Web site on a priority basis, so that those archives are also available to Member States through that medium.
By other terms of the draft, the Assembly would strongly urge the Secretary-General, as a matter of priority, to develop the cost-accounting system for conference services no later than the substantive session of the
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Committee on Conferences, using voluntary and internal expertise within the United Nations system. It would request the Secretary-General to report, through the Committee on Conferences, to each subsidiary organ of the Assembly and the Economic and Social Council, on the cost of conference services each utilized in the year concluded to enable those organs to plan more effectively. It would decide that the use of new technologies as the optical disk system and the Internet shall not constitute an alternative to traditional documents.
Section D of the text would have the Assembly note the efforts made by translation services to improve the quality of translation of documents in all six languages and request the Secretary-General to pay attention to the management rules in translation-related matters. Section E expresses appreciation to the Secretary-General and the Secretariat for the timely implementation of resolutions 49/211 and 50/206 on pattern of conferences.
Scale of Assessments
The Committee has before it one draft decision and two draft resolutions on the scale of assessments for apportioning the expenses of the United Nations.
By the draft decision, submitted by Costa Rica on behalf of the Group of 77 and China (document A/C.5/51/L.24), the Assembly would decide, as a matter of priority, to continue consideration of the scale of assessments at the Fifth Committee's first resumed session. It would also have the Assembly approve, no later than 31 March 1997, the methodology that will instruct the Committee on Contributions to recommend to the fifty-second Assembly a scale for the period 1998-2000.
One of the draft resolutions on the scale of assessments (document A/C.5/51/L.21), submitted by Mexico, would have the Assembly request the Committee on Contributions to recommend to the Assembly's fifty-second session a scale of assessments for the period 1998-2000 on the basis of several elements, including the following: a statistical base period of six years; uniform exchange rates; the debt adjustment approach used in preparing the 1994-1997 scale; a low per capita income allowance formula with a per capita income limit of the average world per capita income for the statistical base period and a gradient of 85 per cent; a floor rate of 0.001 per cent; a ceiling rate of 25 per cent; the phase-out of the scheme of limits; and the expression of the scale in the three decimal places.
Also by the text, the Assembly would decide that in phasing out the scheme of limits, the allocation of the additional points to developing countries benefiting from its application shall be limited to 15 per cent of the effect of the phase-out. It would also decide that individual rates for the least developed countries shall not exceed the level of 0.01 per cent.
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By the terms of another draft resolution on the scale of assessments (document A/C.5/51/L.25) submitted by the Chairman of the Fifth Committee, the Assembly would endorse the Committee on Contributions' conclusion that the failure of the Comoros to pay the minimum amount necessary to avoid the application of Article 19 of the United Nations Charter was attributable to conditions beyond its control. As a result, the Assembly would decide that the Comoros should be permitted to vote through the Assembly's fifty-first session and that any extension that may be requested shall be subject to review by the Committee on Contributions.
Human Resources Management
The Committee has before it two draft decisions on human resources management.
By the terms of a draft decision submitted by the Committee's Rapporteur following informal consultations (document A/C.5/51/L.18), the Fifth Committee recommends that the Assembly take note of the amendments to the 100 and 200 series of the Staff Rules contained in a report of the Secretary-General (document A/C.5/51/7), without prejudice to the consideration of agenda item 120, human resources management, at the first part of its resumed fifty- first session.
By the terms of the other draft decision on human resources management also submitted by the Rapporteur (document A/C.5/51/L.30), the Assembly would decide to defer consideration of agenda item 120 (human resources management) and the reports submitted under that item to the first part of the Assembly's resumed fifty-first session and to consider it as a priority item. The reports include: the JIU report entitled "Inspection of the application of United Nations recruitment, placement and promotion policies (Part II, Placement and promotions)", and the reports on "Management-Staff Union relationships in the United Nations system" and "Comparison of methods of calculating equitable geographical distribution within the United Nations system".
Also by the draft text, the Assembly would request the Secretary-General, pending consideration of the agenda item and on an interim basis, to review the need for the general recruitment freeze and to oversee and monitor all recruitments, appointments, placements and promotions through the Office of Human Resources Management of the Secretariat, taking into account the need to recruit from unrepresented and under-represented Member States and to achieve gender balance.
Further by the draft, also on an interim basis, the Secretary-General would be requested not to expand existing arrangements with regard to the delegation of authority in recruitment, appointment, placement and promotion matters. He would also be requested to limit short-term appointments against
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regular budget posts to temporary replacements in case of mission service and leave; and to limit exceptions from regular rules and procedures to the recruitment, appointment, placement and promotion of under-secretaries- general, assistant secretaries-general, special envoys at all levels, and staff of the Executive Office of the Secretary-General.
Also on an interim basis, the Secretary-General would be requested to continue not to convert fixed-term contracts into permanent contracts until the Assembly has taken action on the respective report, and to report on all recruitment, appointment, placement and promotion activities after 1 November 1996 to the Assembly at the first part of its resumed fifty-first session.
Financing of Missions in Former Yugoslavia
The draft decision on the financing of the United Nations Protection Force (UNPROFOR), the United Nations Confidence Restoration Operation in Croatia (UNCRO), the United Nations Preventive Deployment Force (UNPREDEP) and the United Nations Peace Forces headquarters (document A/C.5/51/L.26) would have the Assembly authorize the Secretary-General to commit $12.9 million gross ($12.2 million net) for the liquidation of the combined forces and the provision of common support for the period from 1 July 1996 to 30 June 1997. The amount would include an additional $895,000 for the support account for peace-keeping operations.
Financing of International Tribunals
The draft resolution on the financing of the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (document A/C.5/51/L.22) would have the Assembly appropriate about $23.7 million gross ($21.2 million net) for the Tribunal for the period 1 January to 30 June 1997.
In financing that appropriation, the Assembly would, according to the draft, take into account an anticipated unencumbered balance of about $5 million in the Tribunal's account for 1996. When that $5 million is taken into account, half of the remaining $18.7 million gross ($16.2 million net) of the total appropriation would be financed by transferring $9.3 million gross ($8.1 million net) from credits arising from previous budgets of the United Nations Peace Forces in the former Yugoslavia. The other $9.3 million gross ($8.1 million net) would be apportioned according to the 1997 scale of assessments.
The draft resolution on the financing of the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (document A/C.5/51/L.23) would have the Assembly appropriate some $23.1 million gross ($20.9 million net) for the Tribunal for the period 1 January to 30 June 1997.
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In financing that appropriation, the Assembly, according to the draft, would take into account an anticipated unencumbered balance of about $12 million in the Tribunal's account for 1996. When that $12 million is taken into account, half of the remaining $11.1 million gross ($8.9 million net) of the total appropriation would be financed by transferring $5.6 million gross ($4.4 million net) from credits arising from previous budgets of the United Nations Assistance Mission for Rwanda (UNAMIR). The other $5.6 million gross ($4.4 million net) would be apportioned according to the 1997 scale of assessments.
The draft resolutions on both Tribunals would have the Assembly revert to the consideration of their financing at its first resumed session in 1997. The consideration would be based on the revised budgetary estimates to be proposed by the Secretary-General and the forthcoming reports of the Office of Internal Oversight Services, which was requested to identify problems and recommend ways to enhance the efficient use of resources.
Financing of UNSMIH
By a draft decision on the financing of the United Nations Support Mission in Haiti (UNSMIH) (document A/C.5/51/L.27) submitted by the Committee Chairman, the Assembly would decide to appropriate $27.4 million gross ($26.2 million net) for the maintenance of the Support Mission for the period from 1 July 1996 to 30 June 1997, in addition to $28.7 million gross ($27.5 million net) already appropriated for the period from 1 July to 31 December 1996.
The Assembly would also decide, as an ad hoc arrangement, and taking into account the amount already apportioned for 1 July to 31 December, to apportion the additional amount of $27.4 million gross ($26.2 million net) for the period from 1 July 1996 to 30 June 1997 among Member States at a monthly rate of $4.6 million gross ($4.4 million net) and the scale of assessments for the year 1997, subject to the decision of the Security Council to extend the mandate of the Support Mission beyond 31 May 1997.
Other terms of the draft would request the Secretary-General to take all necessary actions to address relevant findings and relevant recommendations of the Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions (ACABQ), the Office of Internal Oversight Services, and the Board of Auditors in respect of the Support Mission and the United Nations Mission in Haiti.
United Nations Common System
A draft resolution on the United Nations common system: report of the International Civil Service Commission (ICSC) (document A/C.5/51/L.35), submitted by the Committee Chairman, would have the Assembly reconfirm the continued application of the Noblemaire principle -- by which the salaries of
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the Professional category are determined by reference to those of the best- paid national civil service, and reaffirm the need to continue to ensure the competitiveness of the conditions of service of the common system.
Concerning the comparator, the Assembly would take note of the further steps taken by the Commission to complete its study to identify the highest paid national civil service and decide to consider at its fifty-second session the part of the Commission's 1995 report on the matter.
Regarding margin considerations and base/floor salary scale, the Assembly would approve, with effect from 1 January 1997, the revised scale of gross and net salaries for staff in the Professional and higher categories contained in annex I to the draft resolution and the consequential amendment to the Staff Regulations of the United Nations (regarding staff assessment rates), as reflected in annex II of the text.
The Assembly would decide that the net remuneration margin methodology without the modifications recommended in the Commission's twenty-first annual report should continue to apply. It would reaffirm that the range of 110 to 120, with a desirable mid-point of 115, for the margin between net remuneration of officials in the Professional and higher categories of the United Nations in New York and officials in comparable positions in the United States federal civil service should continue to apply, on the understanding that the margin would be maintained at a level around the desirable mid-point of 115 over a period of time. It would also be noted that, for 1996, the margin is 114.6.
Other provisions of the text would request the Secretary-General to make operational proposals to the Assembly by 1 October 1997 on the possibility of introducing a system of performance awards or bonuses, in the context of the performance appraisal system, to a limited number of staff in recognition of their outstanding performance and specific achievements in a given year, for the Assembly's consideration at its fifty-second session.
In addition, the executive heads of the organizations of the common system would be invited to develop and submit proposals, as a matter of priority, to their relevant intergovernmental bodies on the possibility of introducing performance awards or bonuses to a limited number of staff in recognition of their outstanding performance and specific achievements in a given year, and to coordinate, to the extent possible, those proposals with those developed by the Secretary-General. The Commission would be requested to provide general comments on the concept of performance awards and bonuses to the Assembly at its fifty-second session.
On supplementary payments, the Assembly would request the Secretary-General and the executive heads of the organizations of the common system to take measures and make proposals to end such practices. All
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organizations would be requested to issue or reissue, as appropriate, instructions to staff regarding the unacceptability of receiving supplementary payments. Member States would be invited to discontinue such practices.
On post adjustment matters, the Assembly would reiterate its request to the Commission urgently to complete its study regarding the methodology for establishing a single post adjustment index for Geneva, and to complete the study needed to implement the single post adjustment at the earliest date, and no later than 1 January 1998. It would request the Commission to review further all the issues relating to the post adjustment system and report to the Assembly on the matter at its fifty-third session.
On dependency allowances, the Assembly would approve, with effect from 1 January 1997, an increase of 7.98 per cent in the children's allowance (including that for disabled children) and secondary dependant's allowance.
On general service and other locally recruited categories, the Assembly would urge the representatives of staff to participate fully in the Commission's working groups in its review of the salary survey methodologies. It would request the Commission, as part of its review of the methodology for salary setting for General Service category of staff, among other things, to: resolve, to the extent possible, inconsistencies between the methodology and the one which is applied pursuant to the Noblemaire principle, including by examining the question of overlap in remuneration between the two categories; study the feasibility of increasing the weight of public-sector employers in the salary surveys at headquarters duty stations and submit a report on the review of the methodology at the Assembly's fifty-second session.
Further by the draft, the Assembly would request the Commission to defer a final decision on the General Service salary-setting methodology pending the Assembly's review of the application of the Flemming principle at its fifty-second session and to adjust its programme of headquarters salary surveys as appropriate.
On the common staff assessment scale, the Assembly would approve, effective 1 January 1997, the revised staff assessment scale recommended by the Commission for determining the pensionable remuneration of all categories of staff as well as for use in conjunction with gross salaries of the General Service and related categories of staff, and the consequential amendments to the Staff Regulations. The Commission would be requested to report on the impact of the differences in national and local tax rates at the seven headquarters duty stations on the gross pension benefits of locally recruited staff in the General Service and related categories at those duty stations in comparison with the compensation for such taxes provided by the common staff assessment rates.
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On the education grant, the draft would have the Assembly approve increases in the maximum reimbursement levels in seven currency areas, as well as other adjustments to the management of the reimbursement of expenses under the education grant, as recommended by the Commission. On appointments of limited duration, the draft takes note of the Commission's reporting on that issue and requests it to continue its review of the subject of limited duration without delay.
By other provisions of the draft the Assembly would approve the Commission's recommendations regarding the mobility and hardship scheme. It would endorse the Commission's decision to de-link hazard pay for Professional and higher level staff from the base/floor salary scale and to review the level of hazard pay every two years.
United Nations Pension System
A draft resolution on the United Nations Pension System (document A/C.5/51/L.36) would, among other things, have the Assembly take decisions on the pensionable remuneration of staff, pension adjustment system, admission of the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea into the United Nations Joint Staff Pension Fund, as well as on the Fund's administrative expenses and investments.
On actuarial matters, the draft would have the Assembly approve, with retroactive effect as from 1 July, amendments to article 28 of the regulations of the Fund, set out in an annex to the draft. [Note: According to an annex in the report of the United Nations Joint Staff Pension Board, the proposed amendments are the consequences of the increase in the maximum number of years of contributory service which went into effect on 1 July 1995.]
On the pensionable remuneration of staff, the Assembly would retain the use of the income replacement approach in New York as the basis of the methodology for determining the pensionable remuneration of Professional and higher category staff. The methodology to determine the current scale of pensionable remuneration, contained in the report of the ICSC, would continue to be used in the future.
Also by draft text, the monitoring of the pensionable remuneration and the United Nations/United States income replacement ratios should be carried out during the periodic comprehensive reviews of the pensionable remuneration and consequent pensions of such staff. Between the comprehensive reviews, the ICSC should review, every two years, the factors affecting the comparisons of pensionable remuneration and income replacement ratios and, if necessary, report to the Assembly. [Note: The ICSC defines the income replacement ratio as the ratio of gross pension to average net pay received in the three-year period used to determine a pension benefit.]
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The draft would also amend, with effect from 1 January 1997, article 54 (b) of the Fund's regulations, to incorporate the revised scale of pensionable remuneration for staff in the professional and higher categories. Based on that scale, the pensionable remuneration staff at Step I of P-2 would be $59,564; $72,604 for P-3; $87,233 for P-4; $105,510 for P-5; $119,218 for D-1; and $175,139 for an Under-Secretary-General.
Regarding the General Service staff, the draft would have the Assembly decide that the income-replacement approach and its related methodology should continue being used in determining the pensionable remuneration of such staff, including the use of 66.25 per cent in the net pensionable pay for grossing-up purposes.
Further by the draft, the Assembly would ask the ICSC to undertake, in the year 2002, further comprehensive reviews of the methodologies for determining pensionable remuneration for Professional and General Service staff and for adjusting such remunerations between comprehensive reviews. It would also ask the ICSC to submit recommendations on the matter to the Assembly's fifty-seventh session.
On the pension adjustment system, the draft would have the Assembly approve changes in that system which would include a special measure for determining local currency track pension amounts for beneficiaries living in countries which had introduced new currencies that were significantly stronger in relation to the United States dollar. The special measure would take retroactive effect on 1 January 1996.
[Note: The proposal is the result of a request by the Pension Board for its Secretary to prepare a study on the problems which may arise in operating the pension adjustment system in countries which have had or might have very wide fluctuations in the exchange rate, thus affecting the exchange rate stability required in determining local currency pensions. In a 1995 study, the Secretary analysed the problems experienced by beneficiaries in Argentina and Brazil and suggested the special measure. The introduction of new currencies in Argentina and Brazil had led to the sudden and significant strengthening of their respective currencies against the United States dollar. As a result, there had been a considerable loss in the purchasing power of the dollar pension entitlements in both countries. The special measure is to help address that problem.]
On the problems regarding the 1981 Transfer Agreements between the United Nations Joint Staff Pension Fund and the former Soviet Union, Ukrainian SSR and Byelorusssian SSR, the Assembly would note that the Fund had transferred to the Social Security Fund of the former Soviet Union the actuarial value of the pension rights accrued by individual former United Nations Pension Fund participants. The draft would have the Assembly take note of the legal opinion of the United Nations Legal Counsel, as contained in
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the report of the Pension Board to the forty-eighth session of the Assembly. It would also take note that the proposed Agreement between the Russian Federation and the Pension Fund did not give rise to any rights for any person under the Fund's regulations and the provisions of the proposed Agreement were not incorporated in any way in the Fund's regulations or administrative rules.
Also by the terms of the draft, the Assembly would concur with the proposed Agreement, which would represent the first step in resolving the problems that have arisen in relation to the applications of the Transfer Agreements.
In addition, the draft would have the Assembly take note that some Member States have expressed concern that the proposed Agreement covered certain former Fund participants who were now citizens of the Russian Federation.
Also by the draft text, the Assembly would endorse the further steps envisaged in the proposed Agreement and paragraph 246 of the report of the Pension Board, as endorsed by the ACABQ. Towards that end, the Assembly would urge the governments of the Member States concerned to hold direct talks to resolve the financial issues regarding the former Fund participants who were their citizens or permanent residents. It would then ask the Pension Board to report to the fifty-third Assembly session on the developments of those talks and make recommendations to it as appropriate.
[Note: In paragraph 246, the Board approved the proposed agreement and decided to convey to the Assembly the importance of similar agreements being reached with the other Member States whose citizens had transferred their pension entitlements under any of the three 1981 Transfer Agreements. The Board recognized that financial arrangements regarding the actuarial costs of such agreements should be pursued further by the States concerned. It asked its Secretary to keep searching for a comprehensive solution on the claims of those former Fund participants from the countries concerned who were not covered by the proposed Agreement.]
Under other provisions of the draft, the Assembly would ask the Secretary-General to continue making the United Nations procurement and contracting system available to the Fund.
According to further provisions of the draft resolution, the Assembly would approve the admission of the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea into the Pension Fund as from 1 January 1997.
On administrative expenses, the draft would have the Assembly approve the additional staffing sought by the Pension Board, involving $1.2 million for 1996-1997, which would be charged to the Pension Fund. [Note: In its report, the Board had recommended that the Assembly approve two new P-5 posts
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and the conversion of four temporary positions (one P-4, three General Service).]
On other matters, the Assembly, taking note of the cap that had been set on what United Nations pensioners would earn from the Organization, would ask the Pension Board to continue its consideration of amendments to relevant Fund regulations on the re-employment of pensioners. It would have the Board submit recommendations to the fifty-third Assembly session on that issue.
Review of Efficiency
Under the review of efficiency the Committee has before it two draft decisions and one draft resolution.
The draft decision submitted by the Chairman (document A/C.5/51/L.28) concerns action taken on certain items. Under its terms, the Assembly would decide that the Fifth Committee should continue its consideration of the following agenda items and relevant reports at its resumed fifty-first session: financial reports and Board of Auditors reports; review of the efficiency of the Organization's administrative and financial functioning; improving the financial situation of the United Nations; the 1996-1997 programme budget; scale of assessments for apportioning the Organization's expenses; human resources management; the United Nations common system; and the United Nations pension system.
The following agenda items would also be considered at the resumed session: the financing of the peace-keeping operations and the International Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia and Rwanda; the administrative and budgetary aspects of peace-keeping operations; and the Secretary-General's Report on the activities of the Office of Internal Oversight Services.
By the other draft decision (document A/C.5/51/L.29), the Assembly would approve the Fifth Committee's biennial programme of work for 1997-1998. The annex to the decision lists the agenda items to be considered for the entire period. For 1997, the Committee's programme of work would include the following: financial reports and the Board of Auditors reports; the review of the efficiency of the Organization's administrative and financial functioning; the 1996-1997 programme budget; the proposed 1998-1999 programme budget; improving the United Nations financial situation; the JIU; pattern of conferences; scale of assessments; the United Nations common system; the financing of peace-keeping operations; administrative and budgetary aspects of peace-keeping financing; the report of the Economic and Social Council; and the appointments to fill vacancies in subsidiary organs and other appointments.
For 1998 the Committee's work programme would comprise all the items listed above as well as the following: 1998-1999 programme budget; programme
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planning; administrative and budgetary coordination of the United Nations with the specialized agencies and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); human resources management; and the United Nations pension system. The JIU would not be included in the work programme.
A draft resolution on the outline of the proposed 1998-1999 programme budget (document A/C.5/51/L.31) is submitted by Costa Rica, on behalf of the Group of 77 and China. The draft text would invite the Secretary-General to prepare his proposed programme budget for the biennium 1998-1999 on the basis of the total preliminary estimate of $2,608 million at initial 1996-1997 rates, re-costed to $2,574 million at revised 1996-1997 rates. The Assembly would decide that the contingency fund shall be set at the level of 0.75 per cent of the preliminary estimate at 1998-1999 rates, namely at $20.1 million dollars.
By other terms of the text, the Assembly would note that the Secretary-General's proposed budget outline for 1998-1999 contains a provision of $85 million for special missions, which represents a serious departure from current budgetary practice, and would decide that no provision for mandates yet to be approved should be included in the budget outline for 1998-1999.
In addition, the Assembly would request the Secretary-General to submit, in the context of the proposed 1998-1999 programme budget, the following information: the rates of exchange and inflation used in the outline; the outputs deferred, postponed or curtailed in 1996-1997; the amount related to the proposed 6.4 per cent vacancy rate; the total number of posts for the biennium; and the impact of activities approved in 1996-1997 that would continue in 1998-1999. It would reaffirm that the outline should provide a greater level of predictability of resources required for the following biennium, promote a greater involvement of Member States in the budgetary process and thereby facilitate the broadest possible agreement on the programme budget.
Programme Budget for 1996-1997
The draft resolution on the implementation of resolutions adopted by the Assembly's fiftieth session that approved the 1996-1997 budget and mandated savings of some $154.1 million (document A/C.5/51/L.33) would have the Assembly express concern that the Secretary-General's proposals on how to achieve those savings did not contain a clear indication of the extent to which the approved vacancy level of 6.4 per cent had been exceeded in order to reach the mandated savings. It would also reiterate its decision that savings in the 1996-1997 budget should not affect the full implementation of mandates.
By other terms of the draft, the Assembly would note the Secretary- General's assurances that he will not take any decision on the involuntary separation of staff members, including those on the redeployment list, to
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achieve mandated savings of some $154.1 million. It would then ask him to report to the Committee's resumed session on the progress he had made in placing those on the redeployment list. He would also be asked to report, through the Office of Internal Oversight Services, no later than 1 March 1997, on the use of consultants and associated contractual procedures in the United Nations in 1996.
The draft would have the Assembly further ask the Secretary-General to review the effect of vacant posts on programme delivery and to recommend, if appropriate, the restoration of the funding of those posts in the context of the 1998-1999 budget. It would also ask the Assembly to take all necessary actions to avoid duplication of efficiency review procedures and to integrate, where appropriate, efficiency reviews with programme planning and budget reviews.
Regretting that the programme performance report it had requested from the Secretary-General had not been submitted, the draft resolution would request him to present, no later than 1 March 1997, the above-mentioned performance report on the impact of approved savings measures on the implementation of mandates. The Assembly would then consider that report as a priority in the resumed session. It would then decide that no changes to the budget methodology can be implemented without prior approval by the General Assembly, through the ACABQ.
The draft resolution on the first performance report on the 1996-1997 budget (document A/C.5/51/L.38) would have the Assembly approve a net decrease of some $5.6 million in the appropriations for 1996 and 1997 and a net decrease of $19.7 million in the estimates of income for those two years. They would be apportioned among the budget's expenditure and income sections.
The draft resolution on the International Seabed Authority (document A/C.5/51/L.39) would provide $2.8 million for the Authority's administrative expenses in 1997 and charge it to the contingency fund.
By other terms of the draft, the Assembly would authorize the Secretary- General to provide conference services for the Authority's meetings from the resources available under the budget's section on conference services. The meetings are due to be held from 17 to 28 March and from 18 to 29 August 1997.
A consolidated draft document on the 1996-1997 budget (document A/C.5/51/L.32) contains two draft texts.
Draft resolution I contains various separate draft texts on the budget such as those on revised estimates resulting from the resolutions of the Economic and Social Council, the subvention to the United Nations Institute for Disarmament Research for 1997, allocation for the International Seabed Authority on the first performance report on the budget, and on the
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contingency fund. The draft on the Seabed Authority contains a bracketed paragraph 5, which would have the Assembly decide that the provision of $2.8 million be charged to the contingency fund or that the charges would be offset by cuts from provisions for construction, improvements and major maintenance at the United Nations. It would also have the Assembly note that a balance of $15.4 million remained in the contingency fund.
Draft resolution II, on the budget appropriations for 1996-1997, would have the Assembly resolve that the appropriations of $2.608 billion should be adjusted by about $5 million, according to other provisions of the proposed text. In addition, it would also decrease the 1996-1997 income estimates of $471.4 million by $23.7 million. Also, the Assembly would resolve that the 1997 appropriations of $1.299 billion would be funded mainly by assessing $1.248 billion among Member States.
Contingency Fund
Also before the Committee is a report of the Secretary-General on the contingency fund (document A/C.5/51/44), which would inform the Assembly that a balance of about $15.4 million would be left in the Fund should the Committee approve almost $4.1 million for the International Seabed Authority ($2.8 million), international drug control ($817,300) and crime control ($501,000). The contingency fund currently has a balance of about $19.4 million.
Action on Pattern of Conferences
SYED RAFIQUL ALOM (Bangladesh), Vice-Chairman of the Committee who had conducted informal consultations on the draft on pattern of conferences on behalf of the Committee Chairman, introduced the text and reviewed some of its provisions. He said the draft resolution was the result of agreements that had been reached after a paragraph-by-paragraph review of a text that had been circulated to delegations, and of subsequent proposals from them. The informal consultation held by the Committee on 15 December had recommended that the draft resolution contained in document A/C.5/51/L.17 be approved by consensus. "Consensus was not reached easily this year; it required painstaking effort, which ultimately resulted in our achieving a 'delicate' balance following a thorough review of numerous interrelated items", he said. The draft resolution should be approved by consensus.
FEDERICO RIESCO, Director of Conference Services, said that paragraph 4 of section A of the draft resolution had been addressed by the Secretariat. He added that, since the procedures established by the Assembly in resolutions 41/213 and 42/211 had not been abrogated, they would continue to be applied to the question of conferences. The Secretariat had been instructed to schedule eight weeks of meetings for the resumed sessions of the Fifth Committee, releasing some conference-servicing capacity for other meetings.
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MARTA PENA (Mexico) said she had had the understanding that 10 weeks would be left for the Fifth Committee's meetings. The Secretariat should give clarifications on the issue.
Mr. RIESCO said that the communication he had received regarding the dates and schedules for the Fifth Committee had asked for eight weeks of meetings in the inter-sessional period. The reduction in the number of Fifth Committee meetings to eight weeks would release seven weeks for the meetings of other bodies.
The Committee approved the draft resolution without a vote.
Speaking in explanation of position, MICHAEL BOYNTON (United States) said that the United States had joined the consensus with reservations. The mandate of the Committee on Conferences should be fully respected and implemented. Additions to meetings should be based on the recommendations of the Committee on Conferences. It was not for the Fifth Committee to amend the calendar of conferences on behalf of the Committee on Conferences.
He had objected to the use of the contingency fund to finance the additional meetings, which might be funded from voluntary contributions. With regard to paragraph 6 in section A, the United States believed that there would be nine paid official holidays.
B. CONLEY (United Kingdom) spoke on paragraphs 5 and 6 of section A, on the inclusion to the official list of holidays. He had agreed to the adoption of the draft resolution with the understanding that the adoption of the new holidays would not lead to a change in the number of official holidays. The adoption of the draft resolution should not affect the ability of the Security Council to perform its functions accordingly.
PETER MADDENS (Belgium) said that paragraph 5 of section C of the draft resolution should have stated that documents would be available through Internet World Wide Web sites after they had been included in the optical disk system of the United Nations.
HIDEKI GODA (Japan) shared the concerns of the United States regarding the relation between the Fifth Committee and the Committee on Conferences.
Mr. RIESCO said that paragraph 5 in section C would have been more accurate if it had said that documents would be available through the Internet Web sites rather than saying that they would be posted onto the Web sites. The documents were available through the optical disk system.
NGONI FRANCIS SENGWE (Zimbabwe) proposed an editorial amendment to effect a change in the text accordingly.
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Action on Scale of Assessments
Ms. PENA (Mexico) introduced a draft resolution on the scale of assessments contained in document A/C.5/51/L.21 and suggested that action on it be deferred.
HO TONG YEN (Singapore) said he supported the elements of the above- mentioned draft resolution, which should be carefully considered in the resumed session. He expressed hope that the Committee could agree on a methodology for the scale of assessments by the end of next year. He expressed support for the draft resolution contained in document A/C.5/51/L.24, submitted by the Group of 77, which would have the Committee continue considering the scale of assessments at the resumed session.
The Committee decided to defer the consideration of the draft resolution proposed by Mexico on the scale of assessments.
The Committee then approved the draft submitted by the Group of 77 without a vote, under which it would consider the scale of assessments in its resumed session.
TRYGVE GJESDAAL (Norway) introduced a draft resolution contained in document A/C.5/51/L.25, which would allow the Comoros to vote in the Assembly through the current session.
The Committee approved the draft resolution without a vote.
Speaking in explanation of position, FUMIAKI TOYA (Japan) said he had joined the consensus in the belief that any decision would have to be made by consensus. The function of the United Nations should be strengthened; it was necessary that reforms be carried out in a balanced manner, with emphasis placed also on its role on economic and social development. Japan would not support financial reforms without reforms in other areas. He expressed hope that all working groups on reforms would make simultaneous progress next year. Reforms, including those on the scale methodology, should be pursued next year.
Action on Human Resources Management
IGOR GOUMENNY (Ukraine), Rapporteur of the Committee, introduced the draft decision contained in document A/C.5/51/L.18, on the amendment to the staff rules, and the draft decision contained in document A/C.5/51/L.30, on the deferral of consideration of the agenda item on human resources management.
The Committee approved the draft decisions without a vote.
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Speaking after the action, VLADIMIR CHUMICHEV (Russian Federation) referred to the draft decision which deferred consideration of human resources management to the resumed session. He cited the subparagraph which requested the Secretary-General to limit exceptions from regular rules and procedures to recruitment, appointment, placement and promotion. The consequences of the haste of reaching consensus on the draft text were of concern. However, in the interest of achieving consensus, he had agreed to the text on the understanding that its provisions were only temporary and would be discussed in detail in the resumed session.
WOLFGANG STOECKL (Germany) said he had joined the consensus on the draft decision to defer consideration of the agenda item on human resources management. He also cited the subparagraph referred to by the representative of the Russian Federation in connection with the recent reclassification of six General Service posts to Professional level posts in the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC). According to established rules, all P-2 posts were either available for candidates taking the "G to P" examinations or the national competitive examinations. The six Professional posts now available in ECLAC had to be filled through those examinations. The six posts should be placed in the quota of posts available for those examinees.
REGINA EMERSON (Portugal) said she supported the intervention of the representative of Germany. The situation referred to was one more case of exceptions which should not be allowed in the Organization.
Action on Peace-keeping Missions in Former Yugoslavia
MOVSES ABELIAN (Armenia) introduced the draft decision contained in document A/C.5/51/L.26 on the United Nations Peace Forces headquarters and proposed that it be approved without a vote.
The Committee approved the draft decision without a vote.
Action on Financing of International Tribunals
Ms. PENA (Mexico) introduced the draft resolution contained in document A/C.5/51/L.22 on the financing of the International Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia and proposed that it be approved without a vote.
The Committee approved the draft resolution without a vote.
SAM HANSON (Canada) introduced the draft resolution contained in document A/C.5/51/L.23 on the financing of the International Tribunal for Rwanda. He said consensus on the text was reached in informal consultations, and recommended that it be approved without a vote.
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The Committee approved the draft resolution without a vote.
Financing of UNSMIH
Ms. PENA (Mexico) introduced the draft decision contained in document A/C.5/51/L.27 on the financing of UNSMIH. She said consensus had been reached on the text in informal consultations and it was, therefore, recommended for approval by the Committee.
The Committee approved the draft decision without a vote.
Speaking in explanation of position, HENRIETTA RIECK (Germany) said she had repeatedly expressed her country's reservations on the approval of peace- keeping budgets. In that connection, she referred delegations to the statement she had made on the matter in the recent meeting of the Committee when a decision was approved on the financing of the United Nations Angola Verification Mission (UNAVEM III).
Mr. SENGWE (Zimbabwe) said he was suspending the meeting until 9:30 p.m. so that the Committee could continue its informal consultations on the outline of the proposed 1998-1999 budget. Noting that there were still some outstanding issues to be negotiated, he expressed the hope that agreement would be reached by then on the budget outline and the medium-term plan for the period 1998-2000. He appealed to delegations to exercise maximum flexibility.
Action on Review of Efficiency: Budget Outline for 1998-1999
NAZARETH INCERA (Costa Rica), speaking for the Group of 77 and China, introduced the draft resolution contained in document A/C.5/51.L.31, which would invite the Secretary-General to prepare his proposed budget for 1998- 1999 on the basis of the total preliminary estimate of a re-costed $2.57 billion at revised 1996-1997 rates.
Mr. SENGWE (Zimbabwe), the Committee Chairman, said her proposed text would be the subject of informal consultations.
Mr. ALOM (Bangladesh), Committee Vice-Chairman, said that the consultations on the medium-term plan for 1998-2001 were not encouraging. It was time for all issues to be considered seriously, meticulously and judiciously. Delegations might have "informal informal" consultations on the issue, hold informal meetings on the medium-term plan at 8 p.m. and report back to the Fifth Committee at 9:30 p.m.
Ms. PENA (Mexico) said the draft resolution introduced by the representative of Costa Rica should be the first draft to be considered when the Committee resumed its meeting as scheduled at 9:30 p.m. The absence of a
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resolution on the medium-term plan would not allow for the adoption of a resolution on a budget outline, given the procedures of the United Nations. The medium-term plan must be agreed to before the proposed budget outline for 1998-1999 could be considered. She appealed for cooperation from all sides.
PRAYONO ATIYANTO (Indonesia) appealed to every delegation to be flexible to allow a consensus on the medium-term plan.
CHEN YUE (China) asked the Secretariat to correct operative paragraph 6 in the Chinese text of the draft resolution. "The figure should be $85 million, not $8,500."
PATRICK KELLY (Ireland), also speaking for the European Union, said he was surprised by the introduction of a draft resolution on the budget outline by the representative of Costa Rica, even though an informal text of the Chairman still being discussed would incorporate elements sought by the Group of 77. One of the principles of Assembly resolution 41/213 was that the consensus should guide the deliberations of the Committee. He expressed hope that the Committee would be able to agree to a text it would be able to approve tonight.
ANA SILVIA RODRIGUEZ ABASCAL (Cuba) said that some progress had been made on the question of the medium-term plan. The points made by the delegation of Mexico were pertinent.
Addressing the Committee, RAZALI ISMAIL (Malaysia), President of the General Assembly, said he had been under the impression that the Fifth Committee would conclude its work at 6 p.m. and have its reports taken up in plenary at 9 p.m. Failure to meet those deadlines would be very disappointing. He expressed hope that the Assembly would finish its work on the day scheduled. "I am in your hands and the General Assembly would be in your hands", he said. He asked whether the Committee would like to have a few more days to finish its work. "Please tell me what you want me to do. You want me to keep the Assembly waiting for you?" he asked. "You can quarrel over the figures until the cows come home. Let us not go over and over again over the same areas."
BONG HYUN KIM (Republic of Korea) asked whether there would be a 9 p.m. plenary meeting, adding that his question had been answered by the Assembly President.
Ms. PENA (Mexico) said she could not accept the statement by the representative of Ireland, since it was part of the sovereign rights of Member States to present draft resolutions for consideration by the Committee.
Ms. INCERA (Costa Rica), speaking for the Group of 77 and China, responded to the statement by Ireland's representative. She said that
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Assembly resolution 41/213 had not specifically stated that resolutions must be adopted by consensus. It had only stated that consensus would be the preferred method of approving draft resolutions. She endorsed the statement by Mexico.
Mr. HANSON (Canada) said that the medium-term plan and the outline were important in the preparation of the budget. However, even if the Fifth Committee could agree on them or not, the duty of the Secretariat to prepare a budget remained unaltered.
The Chairman suspended the meeting until 9:30 p.m.
Action on Common System
When the meeting resumed, DENISE ALMAO (New Zealand) introduced the nine-part draft resolution contained in document A/C.5/51/L.35 on the United Nations common system, which had been the result of the Committee's consideration of the ICSC's 1995 and 1996 reports. The draft increased the base/floor salary scale of the Professional and higher categories of staff by 0.4 per cent. It requested the Secretary-General to make proposals to the Assembly by 1 October 1997 on the possibility of introducing a system of performance awards or bonuses. She recommended the draft text for approval without a vote.
The Committee approved the draft resolution without a vote.
Speaking after the action, PAUL MENKVELD (Netherlands) expressed dissatisfaction with the scheduling of the agenda item which resulted in a short period for discussion. Only one week was left for the debate on the agenda item during the Committee's most busy week. Next year, the ICSC report should be introduced in the first half of October. Expressing dissatisfaction with part I of the draft resolution dealing with the conditions of service of Professional and higher categories, he said he did not think the result of the consultations were in the Organization's best interest. Stressing the importance of the Noblemaire principle, he said the ICSC had reported that the total levels of the present comparator were no longer superior, which would warrant a change of comparator.
However, the ICSC did not consider it opportune to recommend the change, but proposed that the results of the comparator study be taken account of as a reference point for the margin. He concurred with that recommendation, which should have resulted in increasing the present margin from 10 to 20 per cent to a range of 20 to 30 per cent and a new mid-point of 125, providing a substantial increase of the base/floor salary level.
The main reasons other delegations did not accept that increase were related to the fact that they believed in the existing competitiveness of the
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common system and they were concerned about the cost issue, he said. However, all Member States did not agree that the common system was competitive and attractive. Not honouring the Noblemaire principle would lead to practices that were not in the Organization's best interest such as the hiring of less qualified staff.
Regarding the cost element, he said he did not believe that the objective of implementing the Noblemaire principle should be held hostage to or influenced by current financial difficulties. He had noted the expressed intention by the Secretariat to absorb the cost of the salary increases as far as possible. If that absorption was not possible, then the remaining financial consequences would have to be taken up in the context of the performance reporting mechanism. He favoured restoration of the salary level of Professional and higher categories of staff to the level of the best-paid national civil service. It was regrettable that it was not achieved through the draft resolution.
Action on the Pension System
Ms. ALMAO (New Zealand), who had conducted informal consultations on the draft resolution contained in document A/C.5/51/L.36 on the pension system, introduced it on behalf of the Fifth Committee Chairman. There had been agreement on all of the text's paragraphs with the exception of operative paragraph 3 of section IV, in relation to the Transfer Agreements between the Pension Fund and the former Soviet Union, Ukrainian SSR and the Byelorussian SSR.
[Note: The paragraph reads as follows: "Concurs with the proposed Agreement, which would represent the first step in resolving the problems that have arisen with respect to the application of the Transfer Agreements;"]
Mr. SENGWE (Zimbabwe), the Committee's Chairman, decided at about 11:42 p.m. to suspend the meeting for five minutes to facilitate consultations between the Russian Federation and Ukraine on the draft resolution.
After the brief suspension, YURI BOHAYEVSKI (Ukraine) said that his delegation had been seeking a comprehensive, balanced and fair decision on the matter, which would take into account the interests of all parties concerned. "Even extensive consultations have brought us to nothing", he said. He asked whether the Committee wanted to adopt a comprehensive solution or a decision that would be based on an unfair approach to the problems. The members of the Committee should give his country one more chance to try to settle the problems related to the Transfer Agreement bilaterally.
He then proposed a resumption of the consideration of the item by the Fifth Committee's resumed session in March. The deferral for a short period
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would enable the concerned countries to work out a bilateral agreement that could report to the Assembly.
ILYA ROGACHEV (Russian Federation) asked the Chairman to explain whether the Committee was having two proposals: the Chairman's draft resolution and the suggestion by Ukraine.
The Chairman said that was case.
WOLFGANG STOECKL (Germany) asked whether Ukraine wanted a deferral of the particular paragraph or of the entire draft resolution.
Mr. BOHAYEVSKI (Ukraine) said he wanted the deferral of only part IV of the draft resolution.
Mr. ROGACHEV (Russian Federation) said he objected to that proposal.
ALBERT MUCHANGA (Zambia) suggested that the Committee could consider the item tomorrow at 11 a.m.
Mr. SENGWE (Zimbabwe), the Committee Chairman, said that a proposal had been made to defer action until tomorrow. With no objections, the Committee decided to defer action until tomorrow morning.
Action on Drafts on 1996-1997 Budget
KLAUS DIETER-STEIN (Germany), Vice-Chairman of the Committee who had conducted informal consultations on the draft resolution contained in document A/C.5/51/L.39 on the International Seabed Authority, introduced the draft and asked for its approval without a vote.
The Committee approved it without a vote.
Mr. STEIN (Germany), a Committee Vice-Chairman, introduced the draft resolution contained in document A/C.5/51/L.38, on the first performance report, and recommended that it be approved without a vote.
The Committee approved the draft resolution without a vote.
YUKIO TAKASU, United Nations Controller, introduced the Secretary- General's report on the contingency fund (document A/C.5/51/44).
Mr. SENGWE (Zimbabwe), Committee Chairman, proposed an oral draft text on the contingency fund by which the Committee would recommend that the Assembly "take note that a balance of $15.4 million remained in the contingency fund".
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The Committee approved the oral draft proposal without a vote.
Mr. STEIN (Germany) introduced a draft resolution contained in document A/C.5/51/L.33 on the implementation of the budget resolutions 50/214 and 50/215 and recommended that the draft text be approved without a vote.
The Committee approved the draft resolution without a vote.
DONALD GELBER (United States), citing previous Assembly decisions, said it was his understanding that the Secretary-General would not proceed to implement the proposal.
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