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, began today's noon briefing by stating that the Security Council had met this morning to discuss several items. First, it had consulted on the question of Tajikistan. The current mandate of the United Nations Mission of Observers in Tajikistan (UNMOT) would expire on 15 May, and the Secretary-General had recommended a six-month extension. The Council had before it a draft resolution on the matter and formal action was expected for Thursday, 14 May.

Under other matters, the Council had received a revised draft resolution on the establishment of a third trial chamber for the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia, Mr. Brandt said. The text was expected to be put in blue -- in final draft form before approval -- today, with a view to its adoption tomorrow. The Council was currently discussing the nuclear tests carried out yesterday by India. There might be some sort of formal action on that matter, probably in the form of a presidential statement, tomorrow.

Mr. Brandt said the "661 Committee", which oversaw the sanctions on Iraq, last week approved 23 humanitarian sales contracts, put four applications on hold, and blocked none, according to the latest weekly report on the implementation of the "oil-for-food" programme. To date, the Committee had approved a total of 338 humanitarian sales contracts out of 383 submitted to it under Phase III. The total oil proceeds now exceeded $1.2 billion, of which approximately $770 million was available to finance humanitarian supplies.

Mr. Brandt said the United Nations oil overseers had approved three more oil contracts last week -- one with a United Kingdom company for 1 million barrels, another with a Spanish company for 2 million barrels, and the third with a Russian company, also for 2 million barrels. That brought the oil contracts approved so far under Phase III to 52, for a total of 183.9 million barrels. The 661 Committee would meet again this afternoon, and its Chairman would brief the press on its proceedings in room 226, as usual, following his briefing to interested delegations.

The Secretary-General's report on the situation in Abkazia, Georgia, had been sent to the Security Council today, Mr. Brandt said. In it the Secretary-General expressed his concern about the personal safety of unarmed United Nations military observers, of which there were around 100 at present. He suggested that a 294-person self-protection unit might be deployed to guard each of the Mission's facilities, except in Tbilisi.

The Secretary General also offered alternatives to that approach for the Council's consideration, Mr. Brandt said. The first would be to reduce the United Nations Observer Mission in Georgia (UNOMIG) to a minimal presence. The second option would be to redeploy UNOMIG at its present strength using armour-protected vehicles. The third option would be to strengthen security arrangements with the peacekeeping force of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). The current mandate of UNOMIG would run until 31 July. The Council was scheduled to hold consultations on Georgia tomorrow, 13 May. The report of the Secretary-General on Georgia was available at the document counter on the third floor.

The Director-General of the United Nations Office at Geneva, Vladimir Petrovsky, issued a statement today on the nuclear tests carried out by India yesterday, Mr. Brandt said. Copies were available on the third floor. In it, Mr. Petrovsky stressed that the tests demonstrated the need for additional efforts within the framework of the Conference on Disarmament, aimed at maintaining continuity in disarmament negotiations, as well as maintaining the results-oriented dialogue on security and disarmament.

Mr. Brandt drew attention to a report from the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Geneva, expressing its belief that the number of persons displaced as a result of the tense situation in Kosovo was increasing, and that there were now more than 31,000 displaced people moving from one host family to another.

The UNHCR also said that traumatized refugees from Sierra Leone continued to arrive in Guinea, fleeing the atrocities of rebel troops, Mr. Brandt went on to say. More than 150,000 refugees had so far arrived in Guinea, as well as 56,000 in Liberia since the beginning of the year, bringing the overall number of refugees from Sierra Leone in the area to more than half a million.

Fighting continued in the north-eastern part of Sierra Leone, where the rebels had launched a campaign of terror among civilians, Mr. Brandt said. Last week, 13 civilians whose arms and legs had been cut off by the rebels arrived in Freetown. In the camps in Guinea there were women who had managed to flee after being gang-raped by rebel forces for months. In one camp, a field officer reported that one adult and four children had died of starvation and disease on their arrival.

Mr. Brandt said that briefing notes available in room 378 also provided information on the Kampala Conference on Refugees, and contained a reminder that today was the 103rd day of Vincent Cochetel's captivity.

Yesterday afternoon in Paris, the Secretary-General visited the headquarters of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), where he met with its Secretary- General, Donald Johnson, said Mr. Brandt. They discussed the programme of the OECD and its relations with the United Nations system, particularly the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD).

He said the Secretary-General met last night over dinner with French Prime Minister Lionel Jospin and Foreign Minister Hubert Vedrine. The Secretary-General had reported on his recent trip to Africa and on some of the topics he had discussed with African leaders, such as the situation in Sudan, Somalia and the Great Lakes region. They also touched on issues outside the African continent -- the Middle East, Iraq, Kosovo, United Nations reform, and prospects for the creation of an international criminal court. This morning, the Secretary-General met with French President Jacques Chirac. They talked about the situation in the Middle East, Iraq, and the Secretary-General's recent trip to Africa.

At midday today, the Secretary-General met with Deputy Prime Minister of Iraq, Tariq Aziz, said Mr. Brandt. They reviewed the status of the implementation of the Memorandum of Understanding between Iraq and the United Nations concerning inspections by 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). The Deputy Prime Minister reaffirmed Iraq's commitment to unimpeded access for inspectors, and the Secretary-General said he would live up to his part of the bargain so that Iraq might see light at the end of the tunnel with respect to the sanctions regime. Following the meeting, the two men had spoken to the press. A transcript of the press briefing was awaited, although some elements of it had already appeared on the news wires.

The Secretary-General and his wife, Nane, then had lunch with former Secretary-General Javier Perez de Cuellar and his wife Marcella, said Mr. Brandt. In the afternoon, the Secretary- General visited the headquarters of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), where he met with its Director-General, Federico Mayor. They discussed UNESCO's current programme, including its "Culture for Peace" activities, as well as UNESCO's relationship with the United Nations. The Secretary-General suggested that UNESCO look into renewal of the faculty of third world universities, particularly in Africa.

At 5 p.m. today, Paris time, the Secretary-General was due to meet at the Foreign Ministry with French Foreign Minister Hubert Vedrine and his staff, Mr. Brandt said. The Secretary-General would travel tomorrow to Nice, where he would participate in the opening of the Cannes Film Festival. The festival this year was devoted to the commemoration of the fiftieth anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

At 4 p.m. today, Deputy Secretary-General Louise Fr chette would meet with the outgoing Force Commander of the United Nations Observer Mission in Angola (MONUA), Mr. Brandt said. As he had mentioned at yesterday's noon briefing, the Deputy Secretary-General addressed the International Peace Academy last evening on the theme "The price of peace: the crucial role of development in peacemaking and peacekeeping".

In her speech, the Deputy Secretary-General had reminded her audience that "the wounds of war are slow to heal" and that to be serious about peace-building, it was necessary to be prepared to make long-term investments, Mr. Brandt said. The example she gave was that in Bosnia and Herzegovina today, roughly three times the amount spent on European recovery through the Marshall Plan was being spent on every man, woman and child. However, while that was an extraordinary sum and a remarkable level of commitment, when compared with the human costs of conflict, with the cost in ravaged lives and damaged societies, it was a small price to pay for peace. The text of her speech would be available on the racks.

Pino Arlacchi, Executive Director of the United Nations Office of Drug Control and Crime Prevention, was in Myanmar on an official visit, Mr. Brandt said. He arrived in Yangon yesterday and met with General Khin Nyunt, a member of the ruling State Peace and Development Council. They discussed matters of common interest in the area of drug control. Today, Mr. Arlacchi left Yangon, accompanied by Foreign Minister Ohn Gyaw and the Minister of Home Affairs, Colonel Tin Hlaing, for a visit to the north-east of the country. There, he was to meet with local leaders to discuss the possibilities for United Nations assistance in the area.

Mr. Brandt then announced that the monthly summary of troop contributors to peacekeeping operations as of 30 April was available on the third floor.

The fifty-first World Health Assembly opened yesterday in Geneva at the Palais des Nations in the presence of more than 1,200 delegates, including numerous Ministers of Health, representing the 191 Member States of the World Health Organization (WHO), Mr. Brandt said. The opening session of the six-day Assembly was chaired by Salem Iqbal Shervani of Bahrain, President of the fiftieth World Health Assembly. The fifty-first session of the World Health Assembly was to finish on Saturday, 16 May. A press release was available in room 378.

Mr. Brandt said a press release had been received from the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), stating that Carol Bellamy, its Executive Director, had stressed the importance of regional cooperation for children in her address to the summit of the Economic Cooperation Organization.

There was also a press release from the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), which said that rehabilitating West African land from river blindness was expected to provide food for some 17 million people, Mr. Brandt said.

On behalf of the United Nations Correspondents Association (UNCA), Mr. Brandt said there would be a reception at the UNCA Club at 11 a.m. on Wednesday, 13 May, to meet the new Permanent Representative of Turkey, Volkan Vural. Refreshments would be available. The new Permanent Representative would present his credentials to the Secretary-General the following day. Mr. Brandt also reminded correspondents that Helene Gosseline of UNESCO would be at the UNCA Club at 2 p.m. today, to talk about the United Nations Pavilion at the World Expo in Lisbon, Portugal. A correspondent referred to press reports that the new head of the World Health Organization (WHO), Gro Harlem Brundtland, would receive payment for a lease in Geneva. Did United Nations rules about receiving gifts from Member States apply to the WHO? Mr. Brandt said that was a subject that had been addressed in the past. A statement on behalf of the Secretary- General on that question had been issued on 18 March (see Press Release SG/SM/6494). The statement basically said that payments to staff members was technically a violation of the staff rules. He said it was an issue the Secretary-General had chosen to bring to the attention of the Member States in the form of a question on the code of conduct. He had asked the United Nations membership to discuss the issue and to decide on it among themselves. On the one hand, the integrity, independence and autonomy of the international civil service had to be preserved. On the other hand, the United Nations system had to be able to attract and keep the best possible personnel for the very difficult tasks ahead of it. It was a question that was considered to be of the utmost importance by the Secretary-General and by everyone in the house, but it was also a question that Member States had to study and come to a decision on. Was payment of a lease considered a gift under the regulations? the correspondent asked. Mr. Brandt said that any payment, in any form or manner, that was not consistent with United Nations rules was technically in violation of the staff rules. That was why it was very important for the Secretary-General to call the attention of the Member States to the issue in order to clarify the question of compensation. The United Nations wanted to have the best possible staff members working for it. The Organization wanted to be competitive with the outside world which it was not; but at the same time, it did not want to be seen as breaking its own rules. The WHO was an organization "partly inside and partly outside" the Organization, the correspondent said. Did the rules of the United Nations apply? It was within the United Nations system and the rules of the United Nations applied, Mr. Brandt said. All the rules should apply system-wide. A correspondent asked how the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) could sanction signatories, or non signatories, who violated it. Mr. Brandt said a complete copy of the treaty itself was available under "disarmament" on the United Nations website, and the Spokesman's Office would make copies available to correspondents who had difficulty accessing it electronically. He said he was not an expert on that issue and could not comment on sanctions that could or could not be imposed under the CTBT. However, in the opinion of the Secretary-General, the nuclear tests in India were inconsistent with the pattern that had been endorsed by the international community. * *** *