DAILY PRESS BRIEFING BY THE OFFICE OF THE SPOKESMAN FOR THE SECRETARY-GENERAL

DAILY PRESS BRIEFING BY THE OFFICE OF THE SPOKESMAN FOR THE SECRETARY-GENERAL

The following is a near-verbatim transcript of today’s noon briefing by Manoel de Almeida e Silva, Deputy Spokesman for the Secretary-General.

Good afternoon, thank you for coming.  Our guest today, following my briefing and your questions, is Sharon Capeling-Alakija, the Executive Director of the United Nations Volunteer Programme.  She’ll be talking to you about “Reaching Out”, which is the United Nations Volunteers (UNV) annual report.  UNV is celebrating now its 30^th anniversary.  So in a few moments we’ll know more about that.

**Secretary-General’s Trip to the Middle East

I have a note here –- it is a little bit long –- on the Secretary-General’s visit to the Middle East, because it is on the events of the weekend.  While for many of us here in New York the weekend was sort of quiet, he was moving around all over the place.

On Saturday, the Secretary-General went to Ramallah, in the West Bank, to meet with the President of the Palestinian Authority Yasser Arafat.  The President and the Secretary-General met with their delegations for about a half-hour, and then one-on-one for another 15 minutes.

At a press conference afterward, Arafat welcomed the Secretary-General warmly and thanked him for his efforts to advance the peace process.  "We are disciplined and we are committed to fulfilling all the agreements related to the ceasefire," he said.  "And we hope the other side will make the same commitment," President Arafat concluded.

The Secretary-General replied that he was gratified that both the Palestinians and the Israelis had accepted the ceasefire "so that we can move on,” he said, “to the other essential and important aspects of the Mitchell Report." The Secretary-General assured Arafat that the United Nations and other international actors would work with both parties to secure peace, and they must also do their part.

Asked whether the Mitchell report replaces Security Council resolutions on the Middle East, the Secretary-General responded firmly, "The United Nations resolutions stand and are relevant.  The Mitchell report provides a road map to the negotiating table, where discussions will take place in the framework of resolutions 242 and 338, based on the concept of land for peace.”

In a concluding comment, the Secretary-General referred to the suffering and economic deprivation caused by the conflict.  He urged quick implementation of the Mitchell recommendations, so that people could begin to rebuild their lives.

President Arafat then hosted a lunch for the Secretary-General and his delegation.  After lunch, the Secretary-General met with Abu Ala, the Speaker of the Palestinian Legislative Council.

He then visited a girls' school run by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA).  Children suffering psychological trauma receive special counselling in that school.  He also visited nine clinics in the West Bank where people receive rehabilitation from traumatic injuries -- mostly nerve damage and multiple fractures.  As you know, some

20,000 Palestinians were injured in the Occupied Territories during the current uprising.

The Secretary-General then had a private meeting with United States Ambassador to Israel Martin Indyk, and United States Consul-General Ron Schlichter, who deals with the Palestinian Authority.

At sundown, the Secretary-General travelled by helicopter to Jerusalem, where he had a private dinner at the residence of Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon.

On Sunday, the Secretary-General met a series of Israeli leaders from different parts of the political spectrum, starting with an impromptu visit by former Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu.  He then saw former Justice Minister Yossi Beilin, followed by Dan Meridor, current Chairman of the Foreign Affairs and Defence Committee of the Knesset.

He then went to the Presidency to meet with the President of Israel, Moshe Katsav.  Back in his hotel, he had another meeting with Ambassador Indyk, before a private session with Israeli Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Shimon Peres.  The Secretary-General and Peres then met the press.  The Foreign Minister welcomed the Secretary-General warmly, saying that the Secretary-General’s present mission in the Middle East was “of great importance,” as he can carry a message “of objectivity, hope and promise.” 

In his opening statement, the Secretary-General said that his purpose in coming to the region was “to seize the opportunity offered by the present ceasefire and to use it to help restore the movement towards a lasting peace, negotiated within the framework of United Nations resolutions”. 

He said he was encouraged that both Palestinian Authority President Yasser Arafat and Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon had repeated to him their commitment to fully implement the recommendations of the Mitchell Commission.  The Secretary-General said, “I have been pressing them to agree on time-lines and to accept the help of third parties in whom they both have confidence.”

In response to a question, the Secretary-General denied he had any disagreement with the Israeli Government on implementation of the Mitchell report.  "But what I would want to see is a clearer definition of the road ahead, with time-lines," he said, "so that people do not think the only issue they are dealing with is a ceasefire."  The Secretary-General added that people have to see that there are good and positive things ahead to give hope and to encourage them to work for peace.

After the press conference, the Secretary-General visited a high school outside Tel Aviv that had lost seven of its students in the suicide bombing near Tel Aviv which claimed the lives of 20 young people.  The Secretary-General laid a wreath before a display that included photos of the seven students who died, and he spoke to the students.  "My dear young friends”, he said, “it is difficult to come into a room full of young faces of young people . . . who had to go through the shock that you went through."  He added, “if you are able to come through by supporting each other, by remaining strong, you're going to be much better for it. I came here in the name of peace,” he said, “you have many friends outside Israel who are all working together in the name of peace.”

The Secretary-General offered his deepest sympathy and condolences to the students, and to the friends and families of the victim.

The Secretary-General and his party then left the Middle East yesterday evening and flew to London.  Today he met privately with his Special Coordinator for the Middle East, Terje Roed-Larsen.

Tomorrow, he goes to Oxford, initiating the visit to the United Kingdom that I gave you the details of on Friday.

All of the transcripts of the Secretary-Generals’ press conferences in the Middle East are available on our Web site, but also in hard copy in the Spokesman’s Office.

**Palestinian Symposium

Still on the Middle East:  Today in Paris, in a message delivered at an international media encounter on the theme “The Search for Peace in the Middle East”, the Secretary-General said, “this theme could not possibly be more topical, indeed urgent, than it is today.”

The Secretary-General told participants at this two-day event, which is organized by the Department of Public Information (DPI) for prominent journalists and Middle East experts, that he believes that both sides understand that they need the help of the international community.  “Your interest is therefore very important,” he said, “only a well-informed world public opinion can provide the basis for effective international action.”

The full text of the Secretary-General’s message, which was delivered on his behalf by Shashi Tharoor, the interim head of DPI, is available in our office upstairs.

We also have available a summary of this morning’s presentations by the different speakers in the symposium.

**Angola

Moving now to Angola, I have a statement attributable to the Spokesman.

“The Secretary-General strongly condemns the attack in Angola on Friday

15 June against two World Food Programme-chartered planes, which were en route to Kuito with food supplies.  Fortunately, there were no casualties.

“This is the second deliberate attack in the last 10 days against WFP flights and directly impacts on the well-being of the country's most vulnerable civilians.  At present, Kuito has only two days of emergency food stocks to sustain a population of over 200,000 people.

“The Secretary-General reiterates that this heinous targeting of relief personnel, who carry out humanitarian operations on the basis of impartiality and neutrality, is unacceptable.”

**Security Council

The Security Council mission, comprising all 15 Council members, today met in Belgrade with President Vojislav Kostunica, Foreign Minister Goran Svilanovic and other senior officials, and agreed with Kostunica to work together to support the common quest for a multi-ethnic Kosovo.

Council members discussed the constitutional framework for an interim Government, the return of Serbs to Kosovo, the upcoming elections and the issue of missing and detained persons.

Ambassador Anwarul Karim Chowdhury of Bangladesh, who is leading the Council mission, told reporters after the meetings, "We have made a new beginning in the relation with the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and the international community."

Ambassador Chowdhury, in a press conference in Kosovo on Sunday, said that Kosovo's communities should look to the future, and organize their lives for peaceful coexistence.

We have a press release with more information in our office upstairs.

Shortly before the press conference on Sunday, the delegation held a hastily-scheduled meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin, who had made a surprise visit to Kosovo from Belgrade to review the 3,000-strong Russian contingent at Pristina airport.

Council members and the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Kosovo, Hans Haekkerup, had a full and frank discussion with President Putin on the implementation of Security Council Resolution 1244, which established the United Nations presence in Kosovo in June 1999, as well as on the upcoming elections and security concerns.

Earlier Sunday, the Council mission travelled to the divided city of Mitrovica by Kosovo Force (KFOR) helicopters and met with representatives of the Kosovo Albanian and Serb communities in back-to-back meetings.  The Council urged both communities to reach out so their efforts can jointly contribute to the future of Kosovo.

The Council mission is flying back to New York today, and they have scheduled an open meeting tomorrow afternoon to discuss their trip.  As you know from the programme, there is no Council meeting scheduled for today.

**Afghanistan

Today in Kabul, the WFP resumed distribution of bread at bakeries that provide food assistance to some 282,000 people.  The renewal of food distribution, which briefly halted following the close of business Friday, comes after the United Nations and the Taliban reached an agreement, acceptable to both sides, on how to perform an adequate survey of the beneficiaries of the food programme in Kabul.

The WFP, which had supported the bakeries, believes the agreement will allow it to conduct the survey in an impartial manner.

We also have today a press release announcing the appointment of a new United Nations Coordinator for Afghanistan, Mike Sackett of Australia.  Sackett replaces Erick de Mul, who left Afghanistan on Friday to take up a new post as United Nations Coordinator for Angola.

Upon taking up his appointment, Sackett said he shared the concern about the intensely difficult situation many Afghans face in the months ahead.

Also on Afghanistan, we have a press release detailing the recent trip of the Secretary-General's Personal Representative for Afghanistan, Francesc Vendrell, to Turkmenistan and Iran, which wrapped up today.  Vendrell met in Turkmenistan with President Saparamurat Niazov and other senior officials, and met in Iran with Foreign Minister Kamal Kharrazi, among others.

The discussions focused on the current situation in Afghanistan, including the renewal of fighting, prospects for negotiations between the warring parties and the humanitarian crisis.

**Sierra Leone

Moving to Africa -– I am reaching the end of this briefing:  On Saturday, the Secretary-General's Special Representative in Sierra Leone, Oluyemi Adeniji, and the Force Commander of the United Nations mission in Sierra Leone, General Daniel Opande, met in Makeni with a delegation headed by Revolutionary United Front (RUF) interim leader Issa Sesay.

The discussions concerned security issues, the disarmament and reintegration process, and the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and Special Court that are being proposed for Sierra Leone.  The RUF drew attention to their concerns about security following the disarmament exercise, and Adeniji said that the United Nations mission would investigate all credible reports on security concerns.

**Press Releases

Finally, we have a press release from the World Food Programme announcing that contingency stockpiles and extra staff are being mobilized to Kosovo to assist the new wave of Albanian refugees fleeing the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia.  More than 18,000 refugees have crossed into Kosovo in the past week and there are now more than 41,000 people requiring assistance.

**Questions and Answers

Question:  The United States Government decided a few hours ago to resume bombing on a little island in Puerto Rico.  Since this territory is on the special agenda of the Special Committee, does the Secretary-General have anything to say about that?

Deputy Spokesman:  I am not aware of the latest development.  I would have to look into it before committing any statement at this point.

Question:  Are resolutions 242 and 338 the basis for negotiation between the Palestinians and the Israelis, and what is the status at this moment?

Deputy Spokesman:  This has been the reference of the international community for quite some time now.  In fact, the Madrid Conference was in the context of those resolutions, and that remains the reference.  Of course, before you reach the negotiation stage, you need to get the parties together for that purpose.  The ceasefire has now been negotiated.  Confidence-building measures are

required to reach the negotiating phase, which would be having as reference these two resolutions, as the Secretary-General has reaffirmed during his visit.

Question:  A few weeks ago, the Government of Haiti asked the Secretary-General to assign a Special Representative.  Do you know anything about it?

Deputy Spokesman:  This request came forward and there has been no decision. Therefore no announcement was made by us as yet.  The necessary consultations are taking place.

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