DAILY BRIEFING OF OFFICE OF SPOKESMAN FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL

Press Briefing

DAILY BRIEFING OF OFFICE OF SPOKESMAN FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL

Fred Eckhard, Spokesman for the Secretary-General, began today's noon briefing by announcing that the United Nations was making itself more accessible to civil society and the private sector with a new website, (www.un.org/partners). He then introduced Denise O'Brien, a private sector expert, hired by the Secretary-General's office to help develop a site that provided useful, user-friendly information to businesses and nongovernmental organizations that wanted to deal with the United Nations. The project was being implemented under the leadership of Deputy Secretary-General Louise Fréchette, as part of the Secretary-General's reform package. Ms. O'Brien was to brief correspondents later. (Ms. O'Brien's press conference will be issued separately.)

On the Secretary-General's european tour, Mr. Eckhard said that in announcing the beginning of that trip yesterday he had mentioned Ireland, Belgium and Switzerland. He apologized for failing to add Luxembourg, "a small country, with a big heart". He said that in Dublin this morning, the Secretary-General had held talks with Ireland's Foreign Minister, David Andrews. They had discussed United Nations peacekeeping and the Organization's reform, as well as many of the world's trouble spots. The Irish Minister had briefed the Secretary-General on recent developments relating to Northern Ireland, including the establishment of a national human rights commission. The two had then met with the press, which correspondents might have seen on local television this morning.

The Spokesman said the Secretary-General had told the press that he had spoken earlier by telephone with the Foreign Minister of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, Zivadin Jovanovic, urging Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic to defuse the current crisis over Kosovo. It was not too late, the Secretary- General had said, for the President to change his mind on the expulsion order for Ambassador William Walker, the head of the european monitoring mission in Kosovo, or on his decision to deny access to the Chief Prosecutor of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, Judge Louise Arbour, who had been requesting access to Kosovo. "At this stage, we are dealing with a situation where sometimes leaders go all the way to the brink and then climb down. I have not given up", the Secretary-General had said. The Spokesman's Office expected to have a full transcript of the press conference shortly.

Mr. Eckhard said that the Secretary-General had then travelled 32 miles south of Dublin, to visit the United Nations Training School for Peacekeeping at the Military College Curragh Camp. He had been greeted there by Defence Minister Michael Smith. The Secretary-General had given a speech there, saying that when it came to peacekeeping, expectations had too often outstripped abilities, and demands had ignored realities on the ground. A full text of the speech was available in the Spokesmans office for interested correspondents. He said the Secretary-General had been briefed on Ireland's

participation for over 40 years in United Nations peacekeeping by Commanding Officer Oliver MacDonald. He had then planted a tree to commemorate that anniversary. Mr. Eckhard said Ireland contributed 760 troops to 13 United Nations peacekeeping missions today, and 75 Irish peacekeepers had lost their lives in the line of duty.

The Minister of Defence had then hosted a lunch, and this evening the Foreign Minister would give a dinner, both in the Secretary-General's honour. Tomorrow, Thursday, 22 January, the Secretary-General was scheduled to meet with the Taoiseach or Prime Minister of Ireland, as well as with the Minister of Justice. He would be awarded an honourary degree by the National University, the Spokesman said, adding that details on that ceremony would be provided tomorrow.

The Security Council had started its formal meeting at 10 a.m. this morning on "Promoting peace and security: humanitarian activities relevant to the Security Council", the Spokesman said. The Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, Sergio Vieira de Mello, who had briefed correspondents yesterday on an embargoed basis, had made a statement, highlighting what he described as "the pervasive disregard for international norms" by warring parties in most contemporary conflicts. He had said: "Breaches of human rights and humanitarian law including mutilation, rape, forced displacement, denial of the right to food and medicines, diversion of aid and attacks on medical personnel and hospitals are no longer inevitable by-products of war. They have become the means to achieve a strategic goal".

Mr. Vieira de Mello had urged Council members to support humanitarian agencies in their ability to access populations in need and protect their staff, and had outlined ways in which United Nations mechanisms could be used more often to support humanitarian operations. The Spokesman said copies of the statement were available in his Office.

The Security Council was, at that juncture, wrapping up its meeting and would move immediately to consultations on the subject of Angola with a view to a possible formal meeting. As correspondents were aware, the Council members were considering a draft presidential statement on Angola, the Spokesman added.

Correspondents might already have seen press reports on the press conference given in The Hague by Judge Arbour, the Chief Prosecutor of the former Yugoslavia Tribunal, Mr. Eckhard said. She had presented to the press the ideas that she had put before the Yugoslav authorities previously -- to allow her to investigate in Kosovo without the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia having to agree on the issue of the Tribunal's jurisdiction. She had also said: "This question of access to the territory and the evidence available on the territory is a critical issue". A summary of her remarks prepared by her press office in The Hague was available in the Spokesman's Office. Efforts

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were being made to obtain for correspondents an audio feed or a recording of that press conference.

The High Commissioner for Refugees, Sadako Ogata, had today renewed her appeal for an end to hostilities in Kosovo amid attempts by her agency's staff to escort frightened civilians to safety. "I am distressed to see women and children once again having to abandon their homes in the middle of a harsh Balkan winter. A political solution should be found immediately to end the conflict in Kosovo," Mrs. Ogata said in a press release issued in Geneva and available to correspondents in the Spokesman's Office. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) had estimated that about 5,300 people had fled from the latest conflict in and around the village of Racak in Kosovo.

On Angola, the Spokesman said that as the Secretary-General had indicated in his report on Angola, the relocation of United Nations peacekeeping personnel and equipment was under way and it was proceeding without problems. So far, 17 out of 20 team sites had been relocated to Luanda, and 5 out of 6 regional headquarters would be relocated towards the end of the month. Three remaining team sites and 1 regional headquarters would be relocated in February. Meanwhile, the Secretary-General had instructed his Special Representative in Angola to consult urgently with the Government and others concerned on the future role of the United Nations and the modalities and conditions under which it was to conduct its future activities in the country.

The Spokesman recalled that at his meeting with the Troika countries -- Portugal, the Russian Federation and the United States -- as well as with the African Group, on Tuesday, the Secretary-General had asked the Governments concerned to use their influence with the Government of Angola. He had also asked then to help re-open and maintain contacts with the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA).

So far this year, Mr. Eckhard said, the Security Council's 661 Committee, which oversaw sanctions on Iraq, had approved 52 contracts for the supply of urgently needed spare parts and equipment for Iraq's oil industry. Of that number, 43 contracts had been earlier placed on hold by members of the Committee pending additional information or clarification as to the impact of the equipment on increasing Iraq's ability to produce oil for export. The Executive Director of the Office of the Iraq Programme, Benon Sevan -- also the United Nations Security Coordinator -- had welcomed the sharp increase in contract approvals, in line with the Secretary-General's request on 29 December for the Committee to expedite the approval of contracts and to further review those placed on hold. The value of the 52 contracts approved this year was $29,284,695, including the 43 -- worth $11,709,796 -- which had been released.

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Available at the Spokesman's Office was a press release from the Iraq Compensation Commission stating that the Commission, at a special session, had today elected the Permanent Representative of the Netherlands, Ambassador Hans Heinemann, as its President. The Council had also elected the Permanent Representative of Argentina, Ambassador Guillermo Enrigue Gonzalez, as Vice- President.

On Haiti, the Spokesman said Julian Harston, the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for that country, and Colin Granderson, head of the United Nations International Civilian Mission there, were continuing their consultations at Headquarters today. In the afternoon, along with senior Headquarters officials, they would meet with the Friends of Haiti group (Argentina, Canada, Chile, France, United States and Venezuela). The Spokesman said the media briefing on Haiti which had been announced yesterday would now not take place this afternoon. He was not sure whether it could be rescheduled again before the two officials returned to Haiti.

The Spokesman said that the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Mary Robinson, had this morning given her first press conference of the year in Geneva. The Geneva briefing notes were available in his Office. Mrs. Robinson had touched on a variety of human rights subjects, such as the upcoming World Conference on Racism and the situations in China, Kosovo, Indonesia, Sudan, Colombia, Mexico and Iraq.

Also in Geneva, the Spokesman said, the Conference on Disarmament had adopted its agenda this morning. "That doesn't sound important, but it is significant when you consider that the whole of 1997 they were without agreement on an agenda". He told correspondents to pick up a press release from Geneva for the details.

On payments to the Organization's regular budget, the Spokesman announced that almost $17 million had been received today -- "that should keep us going for a few more days in January". The payment ($16,947,566) was from the Netherlands, the 24th Member State to pay in full for the regular budget. That was twice the number of countries to do so at this time last year.

The Southeast Asian economic crisis was disproportionately affecting girls and women, especially their reproductive health, education and employment, according to a new report by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), the Spokesman noted. A press release on the report was available in his Office.

A correspondent observed that the remarks about Kosovo, as well as those of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Mrs. Ogata, indicated that Security Council resolutions 1160 and 1199 were being "defied" by the authorities in Belgrade. Responding, the Spokesman said he did not think there had been any specific reference to those resolutions in any of those statements.

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A correspondent sought the Secretary-General's reaction to the possible adoption by the Security Council of a statement supporting a continued United Nations presence in Angola, in the light of the Secretary-General's recommendations that the United Nations Observer Mission in Angola (MONUA) should be withdrawn at the expiration of its mandate. "Let's see what the Council finally decides", the Spokesman said, adding that, as he had earlier mentioned, the Secretary-General had met with the Troika countries -- Portugal, Russian Federation and the United States -- as well as with the African Group on the subject and had explained his position. His recommendation was based on his assessment of what the prospects were for the continued presence of the Mission. The Secretary-General felt that the United Nations humanitarian and human rights work should continue and he had proposed the appointment of a Special Envoy. "So, we have to see what the Council comes up with, and I will give you a reaction to that".

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