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, began today's press briefing by reading the following statement:

"The Secretary-General was pleased to hear the outcome of the diplomatic efforts on Iraq announced in Geneva this morning.

"He is grateful to all those who worked to manage this crisis and arrive at a political solution, especially Foreign Minister Yevgeny Primakov of the Russian Federation.

"He is hopeful that the United Nations inspectors can return to Iraq as soon as possible to resume their important work. He expects the Iraqi authorities to cooperate fully."

The Office of the Spokesman had made available this morning the Joint Statement on Iraq that had come out of Geneva, delivered by the British Foreign Secretary, Robin Cook, who was joined by the Foreign Ministers of France, Russian Federation and the United States, and the representative of the Foreign Minister of China, Mr. Eckhard said. That statement underscored the efforts of the five permanent members of the Security Council, acting in solidarity, aimed at the complete fulfilment by Iraq of all of the relevant resolutions of the Council. They expressed appreciation to the Russian Federation for their diplomatic initiative, and said that it would "lead to the unconditional decision by the leadership of Iraq to accept the return of personnel of the Special Commission of the United Nations Security Council (UNSCOM) in its previous composition, for work as stipulated in Security Council resolution 1137."

The Secretary-General had met with the Executive Chairman of the UNSCOM, Richard Butler, at 11:30 a.m., the Spokesman continued. Also today, the Permanent Representative of Iraq, Nizar Hamdoon, had transmitted to the President of the Security Council a letter from the Government of Iraq on the matter. The contents of that letter were as yet unknown, but the Security Council had called for consultations on Iraq at 3 p.m. Mr. Eckhard said that approximately 77 UNSCOM personnel could return to Iraq from Bahrain on an UNSCOM flight tomorrow morning, all of the arrangements had been made pending official notification by the Government of Iraq that they accepted the return of the inspectors unconditionally. The agreement would essentially restore UNSCOM to previous strength levels prior to the crisis, he added.

Looking ahead, he reminded correspondents that the Special Commissioners (UNSCOM's advisory body), had been called to an emergency session tomorrow. That meeting would start at 10 a.m. in Conference Room 7, and could go on into the afternoon. Following their meeting, Mr. Butler and several of the commissioners were expected to brief the Security Council.

Mr. Eckhard said that the General Assembly was today recognizing African Industrialization Day. The Secretary-General had made a statement, now available in the Spokesman's Office, in which he said that despite progress, Africa's performance in industry had been weak, but that with industrial development the continent could take decisive steps towards full-throttle competition in the globalized marketplace.

The Special Representative of the United Nations/Organization of African Unity (OAU) to the Great Lakes Region, Mohamed Sahnoun, on behalf of the Secretary-General, was attending a ministerial meeting of the Central Organ of the OAU Mechanism for Conflict Prevention, Management and Resolution, the Spokesman said. That meeting had opened in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, today, and it would be addressing a number of conflict situations which included those in Burundi, the Comoros, Congo-Brazzaville and Somalia. They would also be looking at ways to enhance Africa's capacity to undertake peace-support operations. The meeting would continue through tomorrow.

In reference to his announcement yesterday of a hostage-taking situation in Tajikistan, Mr. Eckhard said that a group had now claimed responsibility for the abduction of the two French relief workers. In exchange for their release, that group was demanding the release of Bahrom Sodirov, who had been involved in the taking of personnel of the United Nations Mission of Observers in Tajikistan (UNMOT) last February. Mr. Sodirov was currently in the custody of the Tajik authorities and was about to be sentenced for his role in the taking of those United Nations observers.

Concerning Sierra Leone, the Spokesman said that the first report to the Security Council of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) as called for by the Council was now on the racks. Also available now was an addendum to the Secretary-General's report on Western Sahara, which gave the financial implications of the expansion of the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO), so that it could resume its work following the mediation of the Special Envoy of the Secretary-General, James Baker III. The estimated cost was $129 million, and a breakdown of that figure was contained in the report.

Still on Western Sahara, he recalled that yesterday, Assistant Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations, Heidi Annabi had told the Security Council of two appointments in connection with that operation, whose names would be released shortly. That had been done before the end of the day, Mr. Eckhard said. Robert Francis Kinloch (United Kingdom), who was formerly with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), would head the

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Identification Commission for Western Sahara. He had earlier been appointed to head a new development office proposed for Congo-Kinshasa, the Spokesman explained, but that Government had not been ready to see that office established at that time. The second appointment was that of Peter J. Miller (Canada), a 29-year veteran of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, as Police Commissioner for MINURSO. Biographical notes on the two men were available in the Spokesman's Office.

Turning to Angola, he said that Behrooz Sadry, a Senior Adviser in the Department of Peacekeeping Operations, and one of the most experienced field managers of peacekeeping, had been named Deputy Special Representative, with effect from 15 November.

Mr. Eckhard drew the attention of correspondents to an advance copy of the Secretary-General's message on the occasion of World AIDS Day, on 1 December, which focused on the need to help child victims of the disease.

The United Nations World Television Forum continued today and would end tomorrow, the Spokesman went on, and the programme for the final day would go from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., he added. The President of the Union des Radiodiffusions et Televisions Nationales d'Afrique (URTNA) would moderate a panel on "New Challenges for International Cooperation". In observance of World Television Day, which was declared by the General Assembly to be observed on 21 November, there would be a video link with opera star Luciano Pavarotti in Italy. Closing remarks would be made by the Permanent Representative of Italy, Francesco Paolo Fulci, and by the Assistant Secretary-General for Public Information, Samir Sanbar, the Spokesman added.

He drew attention to an announcement in the Journal concerning closed consultations among members of the Security Council and troop-contributors on the United Nations Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF), today at 4 p.m. in Conference Room 7.

Mr. Eckhard also spoke about a press release from the Office of the High Representative for the Implementation of the Peace Agreement on Bosnia and Herzegovina, Carlos Westendorp, expressing his concern over a pattern of harassment and intimidation of the political opposition in Bijeljina.

From the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), he announced a "Special Alert on Somalia", which indicated that the floods had exacerbated what was already a precarious food situation in several parts of the country. According to FAO's estimates, at least half the cereal crops in the southern regions -- considered the country's breadbasket and accounting for a large portion of the total food production -- had suffered serious damage. A second FAO press release announced the appointment of David A. Harcharik of the United States as the agency's new Deputy Director-General.

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Mr. Eckhard also announced a press conference, sponsored by the Canadian Mission, to be held tomorrow at 2:30 p.m. It would feature the President of the Vietnam Veterans of American Foundation and co-founder of the 1997 Nobel Peace Prize winning "International Campaign to Ban Landmines", Robert Muller. He would be accompanied by several members of the United States Campaign to Ban Landmines who would be in New York City from 21 to 23 November as part of their "Ban BUS: San Francisco to Ottawa", which was aimed at highlighting the signing scheduled for Ottawa on 3 and 4 December of the Convention on the Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines and on Their Destruction. He added that the Secretary-General would be in Ottawa at that time.

The Spokesman was asked whether the letter from Mr. Hamdoon would be made public, and when. Mr. Eckhard pointed out that the letter was now being translated; it would then be circulated as a document of the Security Council and correspondents would see it. He did not know how long it would take to translate it, as that would depend on how long it was, but he hoped it would happen before the end of the day.

To another question on a briefing tomorrow for the media concerning the meeting of the Special Commission, Mr. Eckhard said he doubted there would be anything until the commissioners had briefed the Council, if that was the arrangement that was finalized. "Then it would be a matter of catching either Ambassador Butler or the President of the Council as they come out of the Council after the Council has been briefed."

Asked whether there was a document that UNSCOM was waiting for from Baghdad before its inspectors could return, he said the United Nations would be awaiting "some kind of formal notification from Iraq that the arrangements announced in Geneva in the early hours of the morning are, in fact, acceptable to them". Mr. Eckhard said he realized that Ambassador Hamdoon had told the press a few minutes before the briefing that all of UNSCOM, including the Americans, had been invited back. He stressed, however, "we would need something official from Iraq on that".

He was further asked what the method was for accomplishing that, or when he anticipated that might happen. "They write it and send it to us", he replied, adding, "I would hope that we would get it by the end of the day." He reiterated that the inspectors were standing by, with a plane ready to take them back to Iraq first thing tomorrow morning once that written notification was received. A correspondent said he could not remember any notices about the biennial meetings of the Special Commission. The Spokesman stressed that the commissioners were technical experts and he did not think that there would be great interest in their meetings. At those meetings, they were first briefed by the full-time staff, Mr. Eckhard explained, to enable them stay up to date

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on the activities of UNSCOM; in turn, they offered to the staff technical advice on things such as the safety of inspectors and the approach to inspections.

Had Iraq also withdrawn its objections to the U-2 flights? "We don't know", Mr. Eckhard replied, adding: "from our point of view, that would have to be part of the package."

Did the Secretary-General have an opinion on what the threat of military action (by the United States) meant in the resolution of the crisis? a correspondent asked. "I wouldn't address that question", replied the Spokesman, "I'm sorry."

Also asked for information on "the future of the International Civilian Mission to Haiti (MICIVIH)", in the light of a Secretary-General's statement that he would present a plan to the Security Council on the issue, Mr. Eckhard said the Council had not taken final action on it; he would not, therefore, anticipate what they might approve.

To a question on the purpose of the meeting between the United States' Secretary of Defense, William Cohen, and the Secretary-General this afternoon, and at whose request it was taking place, the Spokesman said it was at the request of the Secretary of Defense. "Apparently, he's never met the Secretary-General; he was in New York on another business and he asked to see the Secretary-General." With Ministers of Defence, the Secretary-General usually discusses peacekeeping matters, Mr. Eckhard noted, so he was assuming that that would be on the agenda, as would anything else either man wished to bring up in their first meeting.

Mr. Eckhard was also asked if the Secretary-General had met with Tim Wirth [the appointee of Ted Turner as Chief Executive Officer-Designate to the Turner Foundation, in connection with the billion-dollar gift to the United Nations] this morning. Yes, answered Mr. Eckhard, adding that he did not know if there had been an official announcement of the appointment, but the Secretary-General knew Mr. Wirth well and considered him an excellent choice.

A correspondent said that the Under-Secretary-General for Management, Joseph E. Connor, told a United States Senate subcommittee recently that some United Nations staff on the Foundation would have their salaries charged to the Fund. Was Angela Kane one of those? Mr. Eckhard replied that Mr. Connor had asked Ms. Kane, who was Director of the Library and Publications Division of the Department of Public Information (DPI), to assist him, on a provisional basis, with the preparations under way to establish the mechanisms needed to distribute the money. Said Mr. Eckhard: "Final decisions have yet to be made about what positions would be created, and what titles people would have." That was why the appointment was provisional, he explained, but it was true that the United Nations would not, out of its own budget, support staff for the running of the entity to be created. As it would eat into funds intended

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to go to humanitarian purposes, however, it was the intention of the Organization to keep whatever staff so designated to a minimum. He assured correspondents that all the details would be ready in a couple of weeks and would be passed on to them.

Would Angela Kane effectively relinquish her duties in DPI? Mr. Eckhard said he would have to ask DPI. She would be working with Mr. Connor on a provisional basis, he stressed, but he did not know if she had been replaced, or if they intended to replace her, even on a temporary basis.

Asked to clarify if Ambassador Hamdoon's notification to the President of the Security Council was not sufficiently official for the inspectors to return to Iraq, Mr. Eckhard replied: "We do not know what is in this letter." He pointed out that if, upon translation it turned out to be the official acceptance by Iraq of the announcement in Geneva last night, "then that's a go".

Would that translation be "expeditiously" provided to the press? "We always work expeditiously", Mr. Eckhard assured the correspondent, "and I am sure it would be translated as quickly as possible and we will get it to you as quickly as we have it".

Also asked if there was a precedent for the kind of arrangement being worked out for disbursing Mr. Turner's gift, he said that in the past, trust funds and special accounts had been established to accept contributions of various sorts, "but I don't think anyone has ever given a billion dollars away; in that sense, this very contribution is in a class by itself".

Alex Taukatch, spokesman for the President of the General Assembly, Hennadiy Udovenko (Ukraine), said it was a "very busy" day at the Assembly, and for Mr. Udovenko who was "trying to juggle two hats". He had begun the morning by presiding over the Assembly, said the spokesman, and then, in his capacity as the Foreign Minister, accompanied the visiting President of Ukraine, Leonid Kuchma, on his visit to the Secretary-General.

The President of Ukraine came to the United Nations from the space centre in Cape Canaveral, Florida, explained Mr. Taukatch. In that connection, he said that the President of the General Assembly welcomed the successful launch of the space shuttle Columbia with a multinational crew, including four American astronauts, a Japanese aerospace engineer and the first Ukrainian astronaut.

"The President feels that the shuttle mission demonstrates the vital role of international cooperation in the peaceful uses of outer space", said the spokesman. "In this context, the President notes the importance of the recent consideration of this issue in the General Assembly which highlighted the need to increase the benefits of such cooperation to all countries."

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Turning to other matters, he said that Mr. Udovenko had also today sent greetings to a meeting of former presidents of the General Assembly taking place at Headquarters, which he was unable to attend himself. That meeting would lead to the establishment of a Council of Presidents of the General Assembly.

Concerning Africa Industrialization Day, about which Mr. Eckhard had spoken earlier, Mr. Taukatch said that the President of the General Assembly had also made a statement at the occasion, the text of which would be made available to correspondents later in the day. Mr. Udovenko had also today made remarks in connection with Universal Children's Day, noting that in 1954, the General Assembly recommended that all countries institute a Universal Children's Day, to be observed as a day of worldwide fraternity and understanding among children and of activity devoted to promoting the welfare of the world's children. The date of 20 November marked the day of adoption by the General Assembly in 1959 of the Declaration of the Rights of the Child and the adoption in 1989 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child.

Mr. Udovenko went on to quote Charles Dickens: "In the little world in which children have their existence, whoever brings them up, there is nothing so finely perceived and so finely felt as injustice." "We should do out utmost", he said, "to protect the young generation all over the world."

Concerning the Assembly's business in plenary today, Mr. Taukatch said that the first item on the agenda was action to appoint one member of the Joint Inspection Unit (JIU), in view of a vacancy that would arise from the expiration of the term of office, on 31 December 1998, of Raul Quijano (Argentina). Taking action, the Assembly selected Colombia as a country to propose a candidate to fill that vacancy.

In other action, the Assembly adopted, without a vote, a resolution on the subject, "Towards a culture of peace". Mr. Taukatch noted that the item on "Cooperation between the United Nations and the Economic Cooperation Organization, was moved to the end of the agenda from its original schedule as the third item. Concerning the item on "Zone of peace and cooperation of the South Atlantic", a recorded vote was requested.

The General Assembly was also expected to act on several reports of the Fifth Committee (Administrative and Budgetary) today, the spokesman continued, most of them dealing with appointments to fill vacancies in subsidiary organs, as well as other appointments.

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