DAILY PRESS BRIEFING OF OFFICE OF SPOKESMAN FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL

Press Briefing

DAILY PRESS BRIEFING OF OFFICE OF SPOKESMAN FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL

Fred Eckhard, Spokesman for the Secretary-General, began today's noon briefing by announcing that the Security Council was currently discussing Western Sahara. A draft resolution had been circulated and it was the Council's intention to adopt it on Monday, 26 January.

Concerning the Council's work programme for the rest of January, Mr. Eckhard said the subject of Angola would be taken up tomorrow. The Council would also hear a briefing by Garry Dillon, head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) action team on Iraq. The IAEA last week submitted to the Council a report on the visit to Iraq from 19 to 21 December by one of its technical teams. That report had been previously flagged to correspondents.

On Friday, 23 January, most likely in the morning, the Council would hear Ambassador Richard Butler, Executive Chairman of the United Nations Special Commission (UNSCOM) monitoring the disposal of Iraq's weapons of mass destruction, Mr. Eckhard said. On Monday, 26 January, the Council would take up Western Sahara in a formal meeting and would also discuss a draft resolution on Angola. On Tuesday, it was expected to take up the peacekeeping missions in Lebanon and in Georgia. The mandate of those missions would expire at the end of January. A formal meeting on Georgia was expected on 27 January, and then two formal meetings on Angola and Lebanon were expected on 29 January.

Ambassador Butler met with Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister Tariq Aziz again at 10 a.m. today for about 45 minutes, and then, at 11 a.m. local time, gave a press conference at the Canal Hotel, where he was staying, the Spokesman said. Following the press conference, he left Baghdad and was expected back in New York tomorrow afternoon.

At his press conference, Ambassador Butler indicated that Iraq had asked UNSCOM to freeze its inspections of presidential and sovereign sites until the planned technical evaluations were completed, Mr. Eckhard said. Mr. Aziz also indicated that he and Ambassador Butler could meet again in April. Ambassador Butler said the Iraqi request flew in the face of the Security Council's decision. He could not and would not agree to do that until he received different instructions from the Council. The next step was for him to report to the Council and for the Council to respond.

Yesterday, the United Nations provided Iraq with weekly report number 48 on the implementation of the "oil-for-food" programme, Mr. Eckhard said. Last week, the Sanctions Committee approved 11 humanitarian sales contracts, blocked none and put four applications on hold. Those had all been under Phase II -- the previous phase -- of the "oil-for-food" programme. For Phase I, the Committee had approved 15 contracts. There were now three phases running simultaneously.

Mr. Eckhard said the United Nations oil overseers had now approved two more oil contracts -- one for a Dutch company for 3.96 million barrels and one for a Turkish company for 1.8 million barrels. As of this morning, 26 contracts out of 33 received had been approved. The total volume of oil contracts approved amounted to 123.68 million barrels.

The Spokesman then responded to a question asked yesterday regarding the meeting between the Secretary-General and Andre Mwamba Kapanga, the Permanent Representative of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. "It was a good meeting", he said. The Secretary-General welcomed the recent increase in cooperation between the Democratic Republic of the Congo and United Nations agencies and said he hoped they would continue. The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), for example, has been facilitating the secondment of that country's nationals from the United Nations system worldwide to return home to assist with reconstruction.

Also at that meeting, the Secretary-General said he looked forward to some high-level visits to the Congo by heads of United Nations agencies, the Spokesman added. He had expressed concern that with the reshuffling of the Government by President Laurent Kabila, the human rights investigative team did not have a clear ministerial contact person, and he hoped one would be identified soon. The Secretary-General had also suggested a second high-level contact for that team.

Mr. Eckhard said the weekly Senior-Management Group, or "Cabinet", met this morning and reviewed the priorities for 1998. That had been on the basis of a discussion paper produced as a result of consultations on this subject by the four Executive Committees.

The UNDP "Flash" was out today, Mr. Eckhard said. One item indicated that its Crisis Committee had allocated $2 million for rehabilitation and restoration of the Bougainville community in Papua New Guinea. That press release was available in the Spokesman's office.

Australia has paid its full assessed contribution for 1998 with a check for $15,469,437, Mr. Eckhard said. There were now 12 Member States which were paid in full for 1998. At this time last year, there had been 11 such States.

Correspondents could see in today's Journal that there would be a United Nations International Police Transitional Force (UNIPTF) police contributors meeting on Friday, 23 January, at 3:30 p.m. in Conference Room 5, Mr. Eckhard said. That meeting would be chaired by Lieutenant General Manfred Eisele, Assistant Secretary-General for Planning and Support, Department of Peacekeeping Operations. There would also be a briefing on the increasingly specialized skills required by UNIPTF monitors by Mark Kroeker, Deputy Police Commissioner of UNIPTF, United Nations Mission in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Daily Press Briefing - 3 - 21 January 1998

Correspondents could also see in the Journal that on 22 January, Nitin Desai, Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs, would give a briefing on the note of the Secretary-General entitled, "The World Economy at the Beginning of 1998". That briefing, to which the press was invited, would take place immediately following the conclusion of the meeting of the organizational session of the Economic and Social Council in the Trusteeship Council Chamber.

There would also be a World Bank Seminar, Mr. Eckhard said. An informal presentation on "Poverty Alleviation: Challenges and Opportunities for Developing Countries" by Michael Walton, Director of the Poverty Reduction Group of the World Bank's Poverty Reduction and Economic Management Network, would take place on 28 January at 1:30 p.m. in Conference Room 7. The press was invited.

A correspondent asked why Mr. Eckhard had characterized the Secretary- General's meeting with Ambassador Kapanga as a good meeting. "I gave the reason, or one of the reasons", he replied. "There has been steady improvement in recent times in the Government's relationship with the United Nations system as a whole, in part because of some of the programmes that the agencies have been carrying out in the Congo, and the Government is pleased with that, and we have noticed a general improvement in the relationship. That was, I think, the high point in the meeting yesterday."

With respect to Angola, what would the Security Council be discussing? the correspondent asked. Mr. Eckhard said the issue was the follow-on presence, the follow-on work of the United Nations through the end of the mission in Angola. There had been a huge United Nations investment in Angola and the hope was that it could be brought to final fruition through the full implementation of the peace accords.

Why was the Secretary-General, an African, having so many difficulties with the problems in Africa? a correspondent asked. "I don't think it's his fault that these problems are difficult", the Spokesman replied. "I think you just have to give him credit for making an effort. I don't think, in fact, that he is making a special effort in Africa -- he is involved worldwide. But certainly Africa has provided us in recent times with a significant number of crises that the United Nations is involved with. Two that he has particular interest in that will be coming before the Council will be Sierra Leone and the Central African Republic. So he has flagged those members of the Council as ones he hopes they will deal with."

To a question about an upcoming visit to Africa by United States President Clinton, Mr. Eckhard said he knew nothing about such plans.

Asked to elaborate on the "increasingly specialized skills" needed for UNIPTF monitors, Mr. Eckhard said he did not, as yet, know the specifics of Mr. Kroeker's forthcoming briefing. As that briefing would be closed, the Spokesman's Office would let correspondents know afterwards.

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