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 Marie Okabe, Associate Spokeswoman for the Secretary-General.

**Noon Guest

Good afternoon.  I’m sorry I’m a little late.  I was waiting for something from the Middle East.  Our guest at the noon briefing today is Mr. Joseph Chamie, Director of the Population Division, Department of Economic and Social Affairs.  He’ll brief us on the most recent update of the demographics of population and a new wall chart prepared by the Population Division will be made available.  He’s already here and I’ll turn the floor over to him directly after the briefing.

**Secretary-General on Kosovo

The Secretary-General issued a statement earlier this morning in Berlin after receiving information of the agreement reached on a government in Kosovo from his Special Representative there, Michael Steiner.  He said, “After more than three months of political stalemate, this is good news for Kosovo.  I am glad that the political leaders appear to have put their difficulties behind them.  I also appreciate the hard work of Michael Steiner, who having just arrived in Pristina, has facilitated this crucial agreement.”

The statement continues.  “Building a coalition such as this takes courage.  Now, after endorsement by the Kosovo Assembly the real work will begin.  I am very pleased with the nominations of Dr. Ibrahim Rugova as President of Kosovo and

Dr. Bajram Rexhepi as Prime Minister.  I know that both are committed to building a positive future for all of Kosovo, and both can count on my support.”  The full text is available upstairs.

Following a briefing on Kosovo by the UN Assistant Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations Hédi Annabi in closed consultations today, members of the Security Council also expressed their pleasure at the agreement, calling it “an important step forward in the implementation of resolution 1244.”  We have the press statement by Council President Adolfo Aguilar Zinser of Mexico upstairs.

The agreement came after more than five hours of discussions among the leaders of the three main Kosovo Albanian parties in the early hours of the morning.  Steiner witnessed the signing of the agreement.  The elections of Rugova and Rexhepi are expected to be voted on by the Kosovo Assembly on Monday, when the remaining members of the Presidency of the Assembly are also to be named.  Steiner said later, “It was not easy, there is no doubt about it.  But I think in the end, what prevailed was that the leaders recognized that the people want a solution.”  We have more details in a press release from the UN Mission in Kosovo.

**Secretary-General in Germany

The Secretary-General this morning went to the German Bundestag, or Parliament, where he met one-on-one with the speaker Wolfgang Thierse before he addressed a regular session of the Bundestag on "Building Sustainable Peace",

becoming the first Secretary-General and only the fourth non-German to do so.  Sustainable development, he argued, is one of the conditions of lasting peace.  "You Germans," he said, "who rebuilt your own country so magnificently after the Second World War, with the help of your friends and allies in the international community, are perhaps better placed than any other people to understand what I mean."

He noted as well the importance of staying engaged for the long haul, particularly pointing to the way Afghanistan was now at the centre of world attention after “a long and shameful period of neglect.”  He added that peacekeepers should leave as soon as they can, but should never be withdrawn abruptly or prematurely, which is why, he said, “I very much hope the present International Security Force in Afghanistan can be extended beyond its present mandate.”  It’s the International Security Assistance Force.  At the end of the speech, the parliamentarians rose and gave him sustained applause.  We have copies of that speech upstairs.

At midday, he went to the Federal Chancellery, where he was welcomed with military honours by German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder.  They began by discussing the breakthrough on Kosovo earlier this morning, and also talked about other Balkan issues, including the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and Bosnia and Herzegovina.  Then they turned to Afghanistan, the Middle East and next month’s conference on Financing for Development in Mexico.  They also touched on the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and expansion of the European Union.  Then they jointly spoke to the press.  The Chancellor announced that Germany would not assume the leadership role from the United Kingdom, of the International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan, but neither would it reduce its military presence there.

In the afternoon, the Secretary-General met with German Defence Minister Rudolf Scharping.  At a press encounter afterwards, the Secretary-General was asked about Germany’s decision not to take a lead role in the Security Force in Afghanistan, and he said that German officials had explained to him why they were not in a position to take that role.  He added, “I would have welcomed it if it were possible.”  In the evening, he will have a working dinner with Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer.  We will have the transcript of his remarks in the Spokesman’s Office.

**Palestinian Refugees

The following is a statement by Peter Hansen, Commissioner-General of the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East, issued in Gaza:

Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) supported by tanks and helicopter gunships have entered the Palestinian towns of Jenin and Nablus, including Jenin and Balata refugee camps.  The Balata UNRWA Boys School has come under attack from Israeli forces and suffered considerable damage.  Latest reports are that the school has been taken over by the Israeli forces.  Fighting has continued in the area through much of the day.  The refugee camps have also sustained considerable damage.  Eleven Palestinians have been reported killed in the operations and 119 have been injured.  One IDF soldier has been reported killed and five injured.

The Commissioner-General of UNRWA has expressed deep dismay and concern at the heavy casualties and loss of life, and at the occupation of an UNRWA school by Israeli forces.  He also expressed his deep concern for the safety of the population in the two camps, which have been under heavy fire through much of the day.  The UNRWA medical staff and ambulances have been active in treating and evacuating the wounded.  The Commissioner-General stressed the obligation of the Israeli authorities, in accordance with international law, to ensure the security and safety of UN staff and installations.   

**Security Council

Now we go on to the Security Council.  After the consultations on Kosovo, which I just told you about, the Council began a private meeting to review its work during the month of February, under the presidency of Mexican Ambassador Adolfo Aguilar Zinser.  Ambassador Aguilar Zinser, in addition to talking to the press about the Kosovo agreement, also said that Council members welcomed the summit meeting in Morocco held by the leaders of Guinea, Sierra Leone and Liberia, the three Mano River Union countries.

Yesterday afternoon, the Security Council cleared a number of items off its agenda for the month, beginning with a briefing by the Secretary-General’s Personal Envoy for Western Sahara, James Baker, who discussed the four options for the Western Sahara dispute presented in the Secretary-General’s recent report.  He told reporters afterward that the Council would decide which option to choose, but that Council members had indicated that one option, the withdrawal of the UN Mission in Western Sahara, was not being considered.

The Council then had a briefing on the Council delegation’s visit to Ethiopia and Eritrea, and the leader of that delegation, Ambassador Ole Peter Kolby of Norway, said the matter would be discussed further next month.  Council members have received a written report on the Council mission to those two countries.

The Council then held three formal meetings yesterday afternoon.  First, it unanimously adopted a resolution extending the UN Mission in Western Sahara by two months, until April 30.  Then, it unanimously adopted a resolution re-establishing its Panel of Experts on Liberia sanctions for a five-week period, starting no later than 11 March and requesting the panel to conduct a follow-up mission to Liberia and neighbouring States.  And finally, the Council concluded its open debate on the situation in the Middle East, including the question of Palestine, which had been suspended late the previous evening and resumed at 6 p.m. yesterday.

**Ethiopia-Eritrea Mission Report

I just mentioned to you the report of the just-concluded mission of the Security Council to Ethiopia and Eritrea, and I said it’s expected to be discussed in an open meeting of the Security Council in the middle of next week.  In the report, the mission congratulates the two leaders of Ethiopia and Eritrea on the progress made in the peace process and conveyed its satisfaction that a final legal settlement of the border issues was about to be reached in accordance with the Algiers agreement, which opened the way to peace between the two countries.

The mission welcomes recent statements by both sides, reaffirming that the decision by the Independent Boundary Commission, based in The Hague, is final and binding.  The commitments of both parties in this regard represent a pivotal measure of their dedication to the peace process, the report says.  And regarding the implementation of the decision by that Commission, the mission emphasized that transfer of territory and civil authority should take place in an orderly manner, without unilateral actions.  Please see the report for all of the recommendations and points raised by the Council mission.

**Afghanistan Appeal

In Kabul today, representatives of the United Nations, the Interim Authority, donors, and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) formally launched the Immediate And Transitional Assistance Programme for the Afghan People,

2002 (ITAP).  That appeal calls for about $1.8 billion in assistance for 9 million Afghans who will need humanitarian aid in 2002, and the appeal includes

$1.18 billion in new money above what has been received so far.  The area covered by the appeal is wide ranging.  It includes, among many others, food, sanitation, education and mine action.  At the launch, the Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Afghanistan, Lakhdar Brahimi, said it was essential that the international community work with and through the Interim Authority.  It is a partnership of equals, he said.

I quote:  “Let us prove ourselves to be reliable and supportive partners of the Interim Administration and of the people of Afghanistan,” Brahimi said in concluding his speech.  “It is clear that much remains to be done.  We cannot afford to lose time.”

**Afghanistan Poppy

Also on Afghanistan, a pre-assessment survey of opium poppy cultivation in that country, conducted by the UN Drug Control Programme (UNDCP) this month, confirms earlier indications that cultivation has resumed at a "relatively high level" throughout the country after the considerable decline recorded in 2001.  The results were announced this morning in Vienna by Steinar Bjornsson, the Programme’s officer-in-charge.

The Afghan Interim Authority, as you know, banned opium poppy cultivation on 17 January of this year.  At that time, however, most opium poppy fields had already been sown.  Although most farmers interviewed during the pre-assessment survey said they were uncertain currently about being able to harvest opium this spring because of the ban, the high prices offered by local traders create a powerful incentive.  A comprehensive survey covering all opium poppy growing villages in Afghanistan will be conducted by the UN Drug Control Programme during the opium poppy flowering and opium harvesting period later this spring.  The results of the comprehensive survey will be released in September 2002.  For more information, you can see the press release issued by the Drug Programme on this survey.

**Somalia

In a report issued yesterday, just to note, that the Secretary-General said that Somalia “remains one of the most dangerous environments in which the United Nations operates,” and that security conditions for UN staff vary radically in different locations and are difficult to predict.  In particular, he says, the security situation in Mogadishu does not allow for long-term UN presence, and therefore, a comprehensive peace-building program cannot yet be launched.  Please see the report, which is available on the racks.

**East Timor

And from East Timor, the UN Mission there (UNTAET) informs us that Indonesia and East Timor will begin a 10-day joint survey to demarcate the countries’ common land borders.  Please see the briefing note if you want more on that.

**Press Releases

The World Food Programme is appealing for assistance for 77,000 people in Sri Lanka.  The World Food Programme has been assisting the residents of the centres, who had been displaced by fighting in the north and east of the country.  And we have a press release on that, which you can pick up upstairs.

**Deputy Secretary-General Honored

The Deputy Secretary-General, Louise Fréchette, will receive the Benjamin Rush Award for the Humanistic Values Incorporated in Government Life 2001/2002 at Dickinson College, Pennsylvania, this evening.  And we will have the address she will deliver at the awards ceremony later this afternoon.

**Library Symposium

Tomorrow, the Dag Hammarskjöld Library will host a one-day symposium to commemorate its fortieth anniversary.  The event will pay tribute to the late Secretary-General after whom the Library is named and will feature two panel discussions.  The morning discussion, “Dag Hammarskjöld and the United Nations Library as a Library Promoting Peace”, will be moderated by Interim Head of the Department of Public Information, Shashi Tharoor and will feature former Under Secretary-General Brian Urquhart.  The panel for the afternoon discussion, “The Changing Role of the Library -– Bridging the Information Gap between Developing and Developed Countries”, will include distinguished librarians from a number of countries around the world.  You can pick up a release on that event.

**Briefings

And finally, our guest tomorrow will be Olara Otunnu, the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict.  And he will speak about children in post-conflict Guatemala.  And that’s what I have for you today.  Before we turn to Mr. Chamie on the anti-ageing report, do you have anything for me?

**Questions and Answers

Question:  Marie, you mentioned last night that the Security Council had an open meeting on the Middle East.  I would like to put on the record a complaint, not only on behalf of myself but on behalf of a large number of my colleagues.  That’s about the quality of the translation from Arabic to English, especially the speech by the Saudi Ambassador, which was the most important speech, in our eyes, of the evening, as well as of the Iraqi Ambassador.  The translation was so bad that there were hardly any usable quotes, and in fact several Arab-speaking Ambassadors told us afterwards, privately, that it was the worst translation that they had heard.  We’d appreciate if you could look into this matter and try to see what can be done in the future, because it’s totally unacceptable.  It makes our reporting almost impossible.  We don’t know whether in fact we’re going to be misleading the public on what, in this case, was a very important speech, potentially.

Associate Spokeswoman:  I note your comments.  They’ve been read into the record.  I’m sure a lot of people have already heard, but I’ll make sure that the proper authorities are apprised of what you just said.  Thank you.

Question:  Can you give us a little background on what led to the breakthrough in Kosovo, in terms of how they brokered this compromise or deal?

Associate Spokeswoman:  All I know at this point is that Michael Steiner called the Secretary-General in the wee hours of the morning to report that they had reached this breakthrough.  There is a press release upstairs on the agreement and we have the agreement itself.  As you know, since the elections of

17 November, they’ve been working on trying to come up with an agreement.  As the Secretary-General said, this is very welcome news.  But, as to the details on how it came about, I don’t have them at the moment.

Question:  How would you summarize what the problem has been until now?

Associate Spokeswoman:  The people voted in the election, and as Michael Steiner said when he first took office just a couple of weeks ago, he urged the political leaders to quickly move on forming a government to reflect the wishes of the people so they could move forward for the future of Kosovo.

Question:  The United States administration, now through its own Under-Secretary-of-State, has called for the Rwanda and Yugoslavia Tribunals to wrap up by 2008.  His remarks to the House were relatively discouraging.  I wonder if you have a reaction to both the call to wrap it up by 2008, and also to the accusations of mismanagement that we’ve heard before.

Associate Spokeswoman:  I don’t have anything new on your line of question for the briefing today and we just saw the media reports in this morning’s Wall Street Journal.  I don’t have anything new for you on that, or a reaction.  [The reporter was later told that the Presidents of the two Tribunals have been engaged in dialogue with the Security Council on ways to expedite the work of the Court.  Steps have been taken to expedite the Tribunals’ work, such as the addition of “ad litem" or short-term judges.

Question:  Any word on the inter-Congolese dialogue?  I understand it’s postponed.

Associate Spokeswoman:  I have no new guidance on the dialogue.  As you know, the Secretary-General said it was up to the inter-Congolese parties, that they have the primary responsibility in ensuring the success of that dialogue.  And we continue to strongly support the work of the facilitator, and the Secretary-General calls on all parties to cooperate with them.

Question:  Before the meeting on Thursday between the Secretary-General and the Iraqi Foreign Minister, would you give us some idea of timings and photo opportunities and whether either the Secretary-General or the Foreign Minister will be speaking to us afterwards in any sort of formal sense?  Just for our planning purposes.

Associate Spokeswoman:  We’ll try to get you that information as soon as we can.  I understand there’s a lot of interest.

Question:  I know the Iraqi Foreign Minister will be addressing the Council.  I know resources are tight, but if Benon Sevan spoke outside the Security Council, you’d need a treble telescope to hear what he had to say.  Two things I might have missed.  UNICEF has a reported kidnapping.  Did you speak on that?  Do you have news?

Associate Spokeswoman:  I can only confirm what you’ve seen in the media reports, but I don’t have anything more than that a UNICEF official has been kidnapped.  There was also another incident in Mogadishu reported yesterday, in which a UNICEF consultant was killed, again reflecting what the Secretary-General

said in his report about the dangerous conditions that the staff are going through in Somalia.

Question:  On the child sex abuse story, where is the independent team that’s supposed to be investigating?

Associate Spokeswoman:  The team is in Sierra Leone, in the region.  It’s conducting an independent investigation, so we probably won’t be reporting on the daily movements of where they are.  As I said yesterday, this is a team that’s composed of two investigators from the Office of Internal Oversight Services, supported by a staff member from the UNHCR Inspector-General’s Office and a pediatric consultant.  They have been there a few weeks and they hope to conclude their work in early March.

Question:  Do you have any news on Colombia?

Associate Spokeswoman:  I haven’t seen anything very recently, but as you know, Colombia is one of the countries with the highest internally displaced populations in the world today.  I believe we’re talking about a million or so.  I believe there’s a grave humanitarian situation there, which requires attention. 

Question:  With all these discussions between the Secretary-General and German officials, where is the question of Germany acceding to the veto status in the Security Council?

Associate Spokeswoman:  I have no information on that.  If there are no other questions, I’ll ask Mr. Chamie to join us.  

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