DAILY PRESS BRIEFING OF OFFICE OF SPOKESMAN FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL

Press Briefing

DAILY PRESS BRIEFING OF OFFICE OF SPOKESMAN FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL

Juan Carlos Brandt, Senior Associate Spokesman for the Secretary- General, opened today's noon briefing by apologizing on behalf of Lakhdar Brahimi, Special Envoy of the Secretary-General for Afghanistan, who was unable to attend the briefing as scheduled. Mr. Brahimi had other commitments and his invitation would be renewed so that he could answer correspondents' questions.

Turning to Security Council matters, Mr. Brandt said the Council had concluded its consultations on the draft resolution concerning Angola and would shortly move to a formal meeting to adopt it. The text would renew the mandate of the United Nations Observer Mission in Angola (MONUA) for two months, until 30 June, and endorse the Secretary-General's recommendations to complete the withdrawal of all military personnel by 1 July, except one infantry company, one helicopter unit, the signals and medical support units and 90 military observers.

The Council would make a final decision on the mandate of MONUA by 30 June, following submission of the next report of the Secretary-General, which was due on 17 June, Mr. Brandt continued. The draft resolution also reminded Member States that sanctions were in force against the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA) and that they should continue to implement them. The text of the draft resolution (document S/1998/249) was available from the Office of the Spokesman.

He said that following its consultations on Angola, the Security Council received a briefing by B. G. Ramcharan, Director of the Africa I Division of the Department of Political Affairs, on the latest situation in Somalia.

Yesterday, a draft resolution on the establishment of a third trial chamber at the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda had been tabled. It was understood that if consensus emerged on the text, that resolution could be adopted by tomorrow, 30 April, he said.

On Afghanistan, he said the talks between rival factions in that country were continuing today in Islamabad. It was understood that they were still discussing the details of the composition of Ulema (Islamic scholars) as well as other items relating to the agenda for further talks. The current talks were expected to continue until tomorrow, 30 April.

Mr. Brandt said that the Office of the Iraq Programme was pleased to announce that as of Monday, 27 April, under Phase III of the "oil-for-food" programme, 72 approval letters to ship humanitarian goods to Iraq had been issued. Of those, 65 fell within the food sector and seven for other

humanitarian aid, including medicines. On 27 April, the total amount of funds in the United Nations Iraq Account available for humanitarian supplies was approximately $503 million. Of that amount, $493 million was used for food contracts and $10 million for other humanitarian contracts.

Prior to 27 April, funds were allocated on a first-come-first-served basis as stipulated by the rules and procedures of the Security Council Committee monitoring the sanctions against Iraq, he went on. That approach was also requested by the Government of Iraq. On 27 April, the Permanent Mission of Iraq had submitted to the Secretariat a request to consider on a priority basis contracts pertaining to tea and vegetable ghee only. That request was implemented with an understanding that other food contracts would be postponed. Currently there were approximately 170 approved contracts remaining, awaiting receipt of oil revenues under the oil-for-food programme.

On the protest march planned in Geneva today, Mr. Brandt said that close to 1,500 staff members of the United Nations, mostly from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), but also from the United Nations Secretariat and other agencies in Geneva, as well as of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), had successfully held the silent march. The marchers, led by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Sadako Ogata, and including the President of the International Committee of the Red Cross, Cornelio Sammaruga, held yellow flowers as they walked from the UNHCR headquarters to the Palais des Nations where a brief ceremony took place.

Vincent Cochetel's children held a placard reading "Please release my father", Mr. Brandt said. A message from the Secretary-General was read and a minute of silence was observed. The children then released a caged dove. The march was a protest to express outrage at the ninetieth day of Vincent Cochetel's captivity in the Russian Federation.

Mr. Brandt said that the Secretary-General had a meeting last night with Germany's Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Helmut Schaefer, who had just returned from a visit to Sudan and Djibouti. The meeting took place in Frankfurt and they spoke for about an hour and a half about African issues, the Middle East and Iraq. The Secretary-General was on his way to Addis Ababa and when he arrived, Spokesman Fred Eckhard would keep Headquarters informed about his activities.

The Deputy Secretary-General had presided over a Senior Management Group meeting, the Cabinet meeting that took place every Wednesday, Mr. Brandt said. There was no particular subject on the agenda and it was rather a tour d'horizon. It had been attended by Mrs. Ogata in Geneva, the Director-General of the United Nations Office at Vienna and Executive Director of United Nations International Drug Control Programme, Pino Arlacchi, under- secretaries-general and assistant secretaries-general who discussed their respective subjects.

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He went on to say that the Deputy Secretary-General was leaving this afternoon for Santa Fe de Bogota, Colombia, to represent the United Nations at celebrations for the fiftieth anniversary of the signing of the Charter of the Organization of American States (OAS). She would make a statement on behalf of the United Nations following opening statements by President Ernesto Samper of Colombia and Cesar Gaviria, OAS Secretary-General. Following an exchange of views by the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of the OAS Member States, the Deputy Secretary-General would attend a luncheon hosted by President Samper at the presidential palace.

While in Bogota, the Deputy Secretary-General would have separate meetings with several foreign ministers as well as with Enrique Iglesias, President of the Inter-American Development Bank, and Jose Ocampo, Executive Secretary of the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), he continued. She would also meet with the heads of United Nations organizations and agencies based in Bogota, returning to New York on Friday, 1 May. The text of the Deputy Secretary-General's speech in Bogota, which was to take place at 9:50 a.m. local time, was available in the Spokesman's office in English and French. It was embargoed and had a check-against-delivery proviso.

Mr. Brandt said a step closer had been taken at the United Nations today towards reducing emissions of greenhouse gases. Nineteen countries had signed the Kyoto Protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and a twentieth -- Ireland -- would sign this afternoon. From the European Union, the following countries had signed: Austria, Germany, Portugal, Finland, France, Sweden, Belgium, Spain, Denmark, Greece, Italy, Netherlands, Luxembourg and the United Kingdom. Also signing were Brazil, Norway, Monaco, Australia and Canada.

The Kyoto Protocol contained legally binding targets for developed countries to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions, he added. With all the signatures expected today, a total of 34 countries would have signed the Protocol. A press release with more details was available in the Spokesman's office.

In Vienna, the Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice was expected to finish its session tomorrow, 30 April, the Senior Associate Spokesman said. Pino Arlacchi, Executive Director of the Office for Drug Control and Crime Prevention, had told correspondents today that he was very satisfied with the Commission's work so far. He noted in particular that the Commission had agreed to consider drafting a convention on transnational crime, which should be finalized by the year 2000.

Mr. Brandt said the Commission was also expected to adopt a draft resolution tomorrow on measures to regulate firearms. That resolution, sponsored by 30 countries, called for the elaboration of an international instrument aimed at "combating illicit traffic in firearms".

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He went on to say that when asked what position the United Nations took on firearms control, Mr. Arlacchi had replied that the United Nations did not have an independent point of view. He welcomed the decision by Member States to consider the possibility of regulating the illicit trafficking of firearms, but stressed that the United Nations limited itself to being the instrument of the will of Member States.

Mr. Brandt said that the Executive Director of the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), Carol Bellamy, had issued a statement in which she said that UNICEF had learned with profound shock and sadness of the murder of Monsignor Juan Gerardi Conedera, General Coordinator of the Human Rights Office of the Archdiocese of Guatemala. The press release was available in the Spokesman's office.

Mr. Brandt said the Department of Public Information (DPI) had released an April 1998 update of Setting the Record Straight: Facts about the United Nations. It dealt with the financial crisis facing the Organization, questions and answers concerning peacekeeping, United Nations conferences and what they had accomplished, the environment, United Nations salaries and benefits as well as what people really thought about the Organization. Copies were available on the racks.

African ministers were in New York to promote new approaches to managing water, Mr. Brandt said. In that connection the United Nations Centre for Human Settlements (Habitat) had organized a seminar to be held at Headquarters tomorrow, Thursday, 30 April. Information on that subject was available from the Spokesman's office.

Mr. Brandt said that the fourth meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity would take place from 4 to 15 May in Bratislava, Slovakia. A press kit and a press release were available at the document's counter.

He reminded correspondents about the Conference taking place today and tomorrow in the Economic and Social Council Chamber on "Ageing and Urbanization: challenges and opportunities -- towards a community for all". That Conference was part of the preparations for the 1999 International Year of Older Persons. Correspondents were all invited to attend.

Giving the schedule of press conferences in room S-226, Mr. Brandt said that this afternoon, Nitin Desai, Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs; Klaus Topfer, Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP); and business leaders would hold a press briefing at 3:45 p.m. A high-level advisory panel on industry and sustainable development was meeting today in connection with business talks in the Commission on Sustainable Development. The two-day high-level portion of the Commission began this morning and was wrapping up a two-week session which saw an unprecedented dialogue between governments, business, labour and civil

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society and which had produced recommendations for international review of corporate environmental initiatives.

He said that at 4:15 p.m., also sponsored by the Division of Sustainable Development and the Department of Economic and Social Affairs, four leaders of international non-governmental organizations would be discussing "Industry, Consumption, Labour and Trade: Who Will Protect the Environment?". At 11:15 a.m. tomorrow, 30 April, UNEP Executive Director Klaus Topfer, South Africa's Minister for Water Affairs and Forestry Kader Asmal, and other African ministers whose names were not immediately available, would discuss the significance of the Cape Town Declaration, which was adopted last December.

At the noon briefing, UNICEF Executive Director Carol Bellamy would answer questions on her recent trip to Africa, Mr. Brandt added. At 1 p.m. Mohamed El-Ashry, Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Global Environment Facility (GEF), would tell correspondents about the launch of a book titled Valuing the Global Environment. The Facility was a strategic alliance of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), UNEP and the World Bank which financed projects in developing countries.

A correspondent sought clarification on the official United Nations position in light of the interpretation of the 23 February Memorandum of Understanding given yesterday by Mohammed Al-Sahaf, the Foreign Minister of Iraq, at his press conference. That interpretation appeared to be at odds with statements made by the Secretary-General and other Secretariat officials. Could the official United Nations position be clarified in terms of what the Memorandum meant about rights of unrestricted access to the eight presidential palace sites? Mr. Brandt said he did not have a copy of the agreement and its annex, but that if he did, he would ask the correspondent to read it and to draw whatever conclusions could be drawn from a very clear and very straightforward text.

He went on to say that the Memorandum of Understanding spoke for itself and it would not be prudent of him to analyse something that was so clear to everybody. If the understanding of the way in which the Memorandum was being analysed or interpreted by other people was different from what it contained, it would not be prudent for him to say anything about it. "I will just draw your attention to the fact that in our view, and in the Secretary-General's view, the text and language of that Memorandum of Understanding speaks for itself."

The correspondent said that Minister Al-Sahaf had characterized the Secretary-General's position. In that case could the Secretary-General be asked, as he travelled around Africa, to clarify his position on the question of access and precisely what it meant? Mr. Brandt said he had talked to

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Spokesman Eckhard last night and given him an account of what had been said at the press conference by the Iraqi delegation. Mr. Eckhard would look into it. "Hopefully I will have something for you if Fred comes back to me."

Another correspondent asked whether Under-Secretary-General for Disarmament Affairs and Head of the Special Group charged with inspection of the presidential palace sites, Jayantha Dhanapala, could come down to brief the media. Mr. Brandt said he was to have been present this morning during a press conference concerning disarmament but was unable to attend as he was participating in the morning Cabinet meeting. Mr. Dhanapala had informed officials of his department that he would be absent and they had been present to brief the media. But not a single correspondent had showed up and so the press conference did not take place.

Why had Lakhdar Brahimi, Special Envoy of the Secretary-General for Afghanistan, cancelled his briefing twice, yesterday and today? another correspondent asked. Mr. Brahimi was not due to brief the press yesterday, Mr. Brandt said. There had been a misunderstanding in the Spokesman's office as to the timing of his presence in room S-226. He was to be present today but discovered at the last minute that he had another commitment that he could not break. He called the Spokesman's office and apologized, asking that his regrets be passed to the correspondents. "I will try to make sure that he comes as soon as possible."

The correspondent then referred to the Secretary-General's proposal that sunset provisions be applied to the various new peacekeeping missions. Some countries had proposed that sunset provisions be applied to existing mandates of the United Nations. What was the Secretary-General's position and how did he feel in the wake of the latter proposal? Mr. Brandt responded that the proposal was contained in the package of reforms presented by the Secretary- General to the United Nations membership and was being studied. The decision of Member States on their course of action regarding the application of sunset provisions to peacekeeping missions and other United Nations activities would have to be awaited.

Asked by another correspondent for reactions to negotiations in Afghanistan to set up the Islamic scholars commission in the peace agreement, he said he did not have any but he would check.

The correspondent then asked for reactions to yesterday's Senate vote, which approved the payment of United States dues owed to the United Nations, but which risked veto by President William Clinton because an anti-abortion provision had been attached to it. Mr. Brandt said that he had no particular guidance for correspondents other than to say that unfortunately the situation was no further than it had been at this time last year. The Secretary-General had said repeatedly, most recently during his visit to California and Texas,

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that the issue was regrettably being held hostage by an internal political issue that had nothing to do with the question of payment of United Nations dues.

Would the anti-abortion provision, which would cut off funding for aid to overseas family planning groups, affect any United Nations agency? another correspondent asked. Mr. Brandt said he did not have full guidance on that question other than what he had already said. It would be better for him to look more closely into that particular question. The money owed to the United Nations would be used mainly to pay numerous accounts having to do with peacekeeping operations that were in a dire situation. "We do not plan to use this money for anything other than that."

Another correspondent asked whether the Secretary-General would use his influence while in Africa to do something about the long-running conflict in Angola. Mr. Brandt replied that the Secretary-General was mindful of the situation in that country. The concern in the United Nations about what was happening in Angola was quite high. It was understood that mines were being laid and it was known that attacks against personnel of the United Nations Observer Mission in Angola (MONUA), United Nations staff members and humanitarian workers were being carried out. The Secretary-General and Alioune Blondin Beye, his Special Representative, had on numerous occasions expressed their desire for a normalization of the situation. They were trying to do as much as they could and efforts were being conducted to that end.

Why could the Secretary-General, who had good relations with both parties to the conflict, not use his own influence in Angola? the correspondent asked. "The Secretary-General's good offices and the Secretary- General's work unfortunately have their limits and if the parties to a conflict do not have the political will to resolve their differences, then it is very difficult to force them into doing so", Mr. Brandt said. That applied to any other conflict in the world. Once there was that political will, and once it was expressed in a firm and concrete way, then the work of the United Nations could start. Before that happened, the only resort was prodding, asking and trying to convince. "We will continue; that is what diplomacy is all about."

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