DAILY PRESS BRIEFING OF OFFICE OF SPOKESMAN FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL

Press Briefing

DAILY PRESS BRIEFING OF OFFICE OF SPOKESMAN FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL

(Incorporates briefing by Spokesman for General Assembly President.)

Fred Eckhard, Spokesman for the Secretary-General, informed correspondents at the start of today's briefing that the mission appointed by the Secretary-General at the weekend, to travel to Baghdad in an effort to help resolve the situation there concerning the United Nations Special Commission set up under Security Council resolution 687 (1991) in connection with the disposal of Iraq's weapons of mass destruction (UNSCOM), would depart New York tonight, and was expected to arrive on Tuesday or latest on Wednesday. In a telephone conversation this morning, he said the Secretary- General had been informed by the Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister, Tariq Aziz, of the readiness of the Government of Iraq to receive the mission, which was made up of the Under-Secretary-General for Special Assignments in support of the Secretary-General's preventive and peacemaking efforts, Lakhdar Brahimi (who will head it); the former Permanent Representative of Argentina to the United Nations, Emilio Cardenas; and the Secretary of State in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Sweden, Jan Eliasson.

Mr. Eckhard said that UNSCOM was sending letters to the Security Council describing the latest incidents in Iraq. Earlier today, the Chairman of UNSCOM, Ambassador Richard Butler, had ordered his inspectors to attempt to get into the field and conduct investigations, following which three teams -- a missile team, a chemical weapons team and a biological weapons team -- had gone out. The missile team had been the first to reach the inspection site, where they were told that they could proceed with the inspection, but without any members of United States nationality. The leader of the team had then explained to the Iraqis that that was unacceptable, as the skills of the Americans were essential to a full and adequate investigation. The team had then turned around and returned to its base. By prior agreement, when the other two learned of the experience of the first team, they had also returned to their bases.

The Permanent Representative of the People's Republic of China was this month's President of the Security Council, the Spokesman said, and was holding bilateral consultations today, the first working day of the month. However, he had called for closed consultations at 5 p.m. today on the subject of Iraq.

Mr. Eckhard announced that the report of the Secretary-General on the United Nations Transition Mission in Haiti (UNTMIH) was out as a Security Council document today. In it, the Secretary-General expressed his concern that Haiti had not had a fully-functioning government for more than four months, and urged the Haitian authorities and political leaders to find a political solution to the crisis in a spirit of tolerance and reconciliation. Mr. Eckhard said that the Secretary-General had also received a letter from

President Rene Preval, dated 29 October, in which President Preval indicated the need for "the assistance of a civilian police mission to support the training of police". That letter was attached to the Secretary-General's report. In light of that letter, the Secretary-General had already approached several governments for contributions of civilian police, should the Security Council decide to take action on a follow-up mission in Haiti, he added.

Mr. Eckhard said that the new Office for Drug Control and Crime Prevention had been formally established in Vienna on Saturday, 1 November. It would enable the United Nations to focus on, and enhance its capacity to address the interrelated issues of drug control, crime prevention and international terrorism. The two secretariat entities in Vienna were now the United Nations Office, and the Office for Drug Control and Crime Prevention; Under-Secretary-General Pino Arlacchi would head both of them. The Office of Drug Control and Crime Prevention would consist of the United Nations International Drug Control Programme, and the Centre for International Crime Prevention. A press release was available in the Spokesman's Office which explained those arrangements.

The Spokesman said that delegates had left Bonn last Friday after revising the draft text on emissions reductions that would be adopted at the Third Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, in Kyoto next month. Last week, the United States and the "Group of 77" developing countries had introduced their proposed targets and timetables for the first time. The final preparatory round would be resumed on 30 November in Kyoto, just before the Conference itself, which would last from 1 to 10 December. The Kyoto Agreement would contain legally-binding commitments by developed countries to reduce their emissions around the year 2010. A press release from Vienna on that subject was also available in the Spokesman's Office.

Mr. Eckhard also told correspondents that a report of the Secretary- General on the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT) was out as document A/52/545. It contained the status of signatures and ratifications of the Treaty as of 29 October, as well as declarations and reservations to the CTBT made upon signature. As of 29 October, there were 148 signatures and seven ratifications, he added.

Turning to Congo-Brazzaville, he announced that in light of the relative improvement of the situation in Brazzaville, the United Nations Security Coordinator had downgraded the security level to Phase Four. With that adjustment, the entire country was now under Phase Four, which meant that security and essential humanitarian staff could go back to work in that country soon.

Mr. Eckhard drew attention to the following, also available in the Office of the Spokesman:

Daily Press Briefing - 3 - 3 November 1997

-- text of the statement delivered on behalf of the Secretary-General by the Special Adviser to the Secretary-General for Public Policy, Gillian Martin Sorensen, at the twentieth General Assembly of the Conference of Non- governmental Organizations in consultative status with the Economic and Social Council, in Geneva today; and

-- text of an address by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Sadako Ogata, to the General Assembly's Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) this morning.

Concerning press conferences, he announced that tomorrow, sponsored by the Mission of Portugal, Mario Soares, the former President of Portugal, in his capacity as Chairman of the Independent World Commission on the Oceans, would address correspondents.

A correspondent wondered what the point was about the mission of the Secretary-General's three-man team to Iraq, since they could not negotiate. Was the idea simply to read the "riot act", in view of the fact that the Iraqi Government had already been made aware that they have to comply with the United Nations resolutions? The Spokesman said there was nothing to negotiate. He stressed that it was a diplomatic effort to defuse a very tense and dangerous situation, adding that a number of governments had conveyed their concern to Iraq. "Any sense that the Security Council is divided on this issue has now been dispelled, and the next step is up to Iraq. This mission is looking to facilitate that next step."

He told another correspondent that there was no fixed duration for the mission. He noted that Mr. Cardenas had arrived in New York this morning; along with Mr. Brahimi who was already here, the two would leave for Geneva tonight, where Mr. Eliasson awaited their arrival. Tomorrow, the three men would leave for Baghdad. The Spokesman refused to discuss "potential responses or options that could be used to force the Iraqis to comply" with the Security Council resolution.

Asked whether the ambassadors had had any contact, or would meet with the Security Council before their departure, Mr. Eckhard said that Ambassador Cardenas had met with the Secretary-General this morning, along with Mr. Butler. He said he did not know whether the Council would ask to see them, but that there had been active consultation with members of the Council throughout the weekend on the proposed diplomatic mission.

Mr. Eckhard was also asked under what Article of the United Nations Charter the current actions were being taken. He drew the correspondent's attention to the Council's consultations on Iraq, which were scheduled to begin today at 5 p.m. It would not be appropriate to comment at this time, he added.

Daily Press Briefing - 4 - 3 November 1997

Recalling that the issue of weapons inspections in Iraq had originally been expected to last for a few months, a correspondent asked Mr. Eckhard to address the relationship between Iraq and the United Nations over the past seven years. He said that while it was true that the Commission initially set up had expected to be in existence for only a matter of months, it had soon become clear that Iraq's cooperation would only be sporadic. Permanent staff was gradually taken on, and had been at work for six years. Mr. Butler had best summed it up at his press conference last week when he said that Iraq wanted to eat its cake and have it as well, as it seemed to want to hold on to the weapons and yet have the sanctions lifted. "The choice of which it is to be is up to Iraq", Mr. Eckhard said.

To another correspondent interested in UNSCOM personnel statistics, he said there were approximately 100 United Nations staff of UNSCOM, of which about 40 were inspectors, and the rest support or technical staff. American personnel of that 100 in Iraq today were seven.

Asked whether Americans taken out since last Wednesday were being replaced by other nationalities, he said he did not know. The idea was that the rotation would continue normally, and the rotating back in of Americans had not been possible; but the rotating out of Americans, along with others, had continued. The Spokesman said he was not aware there was any attempt to replace Americans who were not allowed in with others, but he would double- check. He would also double-check about rotations for next Wednesday.

To a correspondent who asked whether there was a scheduled U2 flight on Thursday, he replied: "I don't think we announce the U2 flights".

Alex Taukatch, spokesman for the President of the General Assembly, Hennadiy Udovenko (Ukraine), said that in plenary this morning, the General Assembly had been preoccupied with the item on the elections to fill vacancies in one of the principal bodies of the Organization -- the Economic and Social Council. He recalled that on Thursday, 30 October, the Assembly had elected 17 out of the 18 seats becoming vacant on 31 December. This morning, the Assembly was trying to fill the remaining seat -- which belonged to the Latin American and Caribbean States.

At the time of the briefing, they had already gone through two unrestricted votes. In the first, which had been inconclusive, the required two-thirds majority was 115, Mr. Taukatch said, but none of three countries inscribed on the ballot -- Peru, Saint Lucia and Guatemala -- had got that. The Assembly had then gone on to a second vote, the result of which the spokesman had not yet received at the time of the briefing. Meanwhile, Guatemala had announced that it was withdrawing its candidature. Mr. Taukatch reminded correspondents that the unrestricted vote meant that any Member State from the Latin America and Caribbean States group may be a candidate -- except those who would remain members of the Economic and Social Council as of 1 January 1998, as well as those who were already elected for a three-year term beginning on 1 January 1998. * *** *