DAILY PRESS BRIEFING BY THE OFFICE OF THE SPOKESMAN FOR THE SECRETARY-GENERAL AND THE SPOKESWOMAN FOR THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY PRESIDENT

DAILY PRESS BRIEFING BY THE OFFICE OF THE SPOKESMAN FOR THE SECRETARY- GENERAL AND THE SPOKESWOMAN FOR THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY PRESIDENT

This is a near-verbatim transcript of today’s noon briefing by Stephane Dujarric, Associate Spokesman for the Secretary-General and Michele Montas, Spokeswoman for the General Assembly President.

Associate Spokesman:  Good afternoon and welcome to our guests.

**SG on Iraq

This morning as he was coming in to the building the Secretary-General was asked by reporters about the status of United Nations international staff in Baghdad, and said that “in principle, they should all be out or on their way out”.

Asked about changes in light of the independent panel’s report on security of United Nations personnel in Iraq, the Secretary-General replied that the United Nations was currently “trying to find out exactly who did what, who didn’t do what, and we are going to be making some changes”.

We will have a transcript of the press encounter available upstairs.

**Security Council

Concerning the Security Council, it’s a new month, and we have since 1 November, a new Security Council President, Ambassador Ismael Abraão Gaspar Martins of Angola, who is expected to discuss the Council’s programme of work for November with other Council members today.

No Council meetings or consultations are scheduled for today.

Tomorrow, it is expected that the Council will hold consultations on its programme of work for the month, and it may also hold consultations on Somalia, with a briefing by the Secretary-General’s Representative for Somalia, Winston Tubman.

Ambassador Gaspar Martins may hold a press briefing at some point this week and we will let you know.  [The Spokesman later said that Ambassador Gaspar Martins would brief the press at 11 a.m. on Wednesday.]

**Council Mission to Afghanistan

Continuing on with the Security Council, the mission led by German Ambassador Gunter Pleuger, which arrived in Kabul on Sunday to show the world’s commitment to peace and reconstruction in Afghanistan, just completed a day-long visit to the western city of Herat.  The 15-member delegation began its visit to Herat with a meeting with the Deputy Governor there and they discussed cooperation with the central government, the need to end factional fighting and violence, and the role of human rights in building a free society.

The mission also met with the Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission and other civil society representatives during which the participants underscored the importance of human rights, in particular women’s rights, in order to establish long-lasting stability.

On Sunday afternoon, immediately after arriving in Kabul, the Council delegation met with Foreign Minister Abdullah Abdullah before holding a wide-ranging discussion on the achievements and challenges facing Afghanistan with President Hamid Karzai and senior members of his Government.

That meeting at the Presidential Palace was briefly suspended to join the Afghan leaders for an Iftar meal, marking the end of the day’s Ramadan fast.

Yesterday evening, the Council members heard a briefing by Lieutenant General Gotz Gliemeroth, Commander of the International Security Assistance Force, known as ISAF.

We have copies of those press encounters upstairs.

**Somalia

Turning to Somalia, the Secretary-General, in a report to the Security Council, notes the progress made at the Somalia National Reconciliation Conference in Kenya this past June in endorsing reports by five reconciliation committees.  At the same time, he says, differences over federalism and the relationship between a future government and regional and local authorities have slowed further progress.

The Secretary-General writes, “Somali leaders face the historical challenge of bridging their differences in order to reach agreement on a viable government.  I urge them to continue their dialogue to ensure an inclusive solution that they can all support and implement in good faith”.

He adds that the United Nations Political Office in Somalia and the country team are actively developing a peace-building plan to be implemented in Somalia, once a definitive agreement is reached in the conference.

The report is due out on the racks today.

**Georgia

Another report -– the Secretary-General’s Report on Georgia to the Security Council -- notes a determined effort by the United Nations Mission in Georgia to bring the Georgian and Abkhaz sides together at a brainstorming session, and says that the presence of the two sides at one such session in July was a welcome development in the peace process.

It is important, the Secretary-General notes, that the momentum gained since last February not be lost.  He adds that, in order to achieve lasting stability and security, the political issue at the heart of the conflict ultimately must be addressed, and he strongly urges both sides, in particular the Abkhaz side, to enter into a meaningful dialogue on the core issues of the conflict.

**Democratic Republic of the Congo

And lastly concerning documents, the report of the panel of experts on the illegal exploitation of natural resources and other forms of wealth of the Democratic Republic of the Congo is finally out on the racks.

**UNMIL

      Turning to Liberia, the Special Representative of the Secretary-General, Jacques Klein, and members of the United Nations Panel of Experts monitoring sanctions on Liberia witnessed the opening and inspection of a 40-foot container loaded with about 22 tons of assorted weapons imported by the former Government.

The inspection revealed a shipment that comprised a number of mortars, and rocket-propelled grenades, as well as AK-47s.

The weapons are in the safe custody of the United Nations Mission in Liberia and the ammunition is scheduled for immediate destruction.

**Drugs

Antonio Maria Costa, Executive Director of the Office on Drugs and Crime, responded today to the resignation of that Office’s inter-regional adviser, Samuel González-Ruiz, who had alluded to irregularities in issuing contracts, petty corruption and abuses of administrative discretion, as reasons for his departure.

Mr. Costa said the Office is taking the allegations very seriously, and that the results of its examination will be made known, as soon as they are available.

The UN Office of Internal Oversight Services has already started its investigation.

Costa said that the Office on Drugs and Crime is proud of its recent reforms, and will proceed with “the necessary severity” if the allegations are corroborated.  He added that, because of the reforms, he is convinced that “major evidence of misbehaviour is unlikely”.

We have a press release from Mr. Costa upstairs.

**Government

In a message to the Fifth Global Forum on Reinventing Government, which began today in Mexico City, the Secretary-General says that “there are no ready-made, one-size-fits-all solutions to the challenges of governance”, and that Governments must find initiatives that best address their particular concerns.  The UN, he says, will continue to work closely with Governments in their quest for better, more effective governance.

We have copies of that message upstairs.  (See Press Release SG/SM/8978-ECO/43).

**UN Environment Programme

A couple more notes.  The UN Environment Programme (UNEP) reports from Tehran that Ministers from Azerbaijan, Iran, Kazakhstan, the Russian Federation and Turkmenistan are meeting there today and tomorrow to sign the Framework Convention for the Protection of the Marine Environment of the Caspian Sea.

This agreement will promote the conservation of the largest freshwater lake in the world.  The convention, negotiated under UNEP auspices, is the first legally binding treaty on any subject to be adopted by the five neighbours.

We have a press release available upstairs.

**Runners

Today, as you may or may not know, is UN Sports Day.  On that note, we are congratulating the more than two dozen United Nations staff members who ran in yesterday’s New York City marathon.

The UN Athletics Club reports the highest ranking in the final results was Stephanie Hodge of UNDP, who placed thirty second among the women with a time of 2 hours and 54 minutes, and Fred Soltau of the Department of Economic and Social Affairs was the fastest UN male, with a time of 3 hours and 26 minutes.

Club president Kevin Shelton-Smith of DPKO says he ran the marathon twice yesterday, first from the finish to the start, where he turned around and did it again.

Copies of the final results are available upstairs.

**Press Conference This Afternoon

At 4 this afternoon, President Yoweri Museveni of Uganda will be here to brief the press and I welcome you to attend.

**Guest at Noon Tomorrow

Tomorrow we will have with us at noon, Peter Hansen, the Commissioner-General for the United Nations Refugee and Works Agency for the Near East (UNRWA), and he will be discussing the financial issues facing the Agency.

**Press Conference Tomorrow

And finally also tomorrow, Nitin Desai, Special Adviser to the Secretary-General on the World Summit on the Information Society, will be here to brief you on the Summit which is taking place next month.

And that’s it for me.  Any questions?  Mark?

Questions and Answers

Question:  Two questions.  One, when are we going to get the announcement of the high-level panel on United Nations reform that the Secretary-General announced at the General Assembly?

Associate Spokesman:  We expect that before his departure tomorrow.  He leaves tomorrow for Latin America.

Question:  Okay, is there anything you can say at this stage?

Associate Spokesman:  No

Question:  The second is, when exactly are we going to see the creation of this independent team to look into accountability in the United Nations in the light of the Ahtisaari Report?

Associate Spokesman:  We also expect that within the next two days.

Question:  Can you say anything more about that?

Associate Spokesman:  No, but when I announce it, I will be able to say more.

Question:  The stockpile of ammunition and arms found in Liberia, don’t they have some sort of guidance from the Security Council on what to do with them, because they were under sanctions?

Associate Spokesman:  I don’t know of any specific guidance.  I think that the best thing for these weapons would be to catalogue them and destroy them to make sure they are out of commission and out of circulation.  Which, I think is the safest procedure, but I’ll find out if there is anything specific.

Spokeswoman for General Assembly President

Thank you, Stephane and Good afternoon.

The Assembly met this morning on two draft resolutions on sports.

The draft on the International Year of Sport and Physical Education was introduced by Abderrahim Zaouri, Minister of Sports of Tunisia and the resolution on building a peaceful and better world through sport and the Olympic ideal was presented by the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Greece, George Papandreou.

Eight additional speakers were listed on this debate on Sport for Peace and Development.  The GA will take action on both drafts.

The first text, presented by Tunisia, is a new initiative this year.  The second is now a tradition.  Since 1993 the General Assembly has adopted such a resolution, which includes a call for the observance of the Olympic truce, at the session before the Olympic Games.

The report of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) is presented today by Mohamed Elbaradei.  Twenty-two speakers are expected to address the issue.

This afternoon at 4:30 the plenary will resume in Conference Room 4 with an address by Yoweri Kaguta Museveni, President of the Republic of Uganda on Commodities and Development.

President Museveni will give a press conference this afternoon; at 4, here in room 226 on this same subject, but, of course, if you have other subjects they will be welcome.

The issue of commodities was also addressed in the Second Committee this morning when President Julian Hunte reported on the outcome of the Open-Ended Panel on Commodities held on 27 October 2003, as requested by General Assembly resolution 58/2.

The Report of the Eminent Persons was submitted to the Assembly and presented during that round table discussion.

It offers five specific recommendations, to which the Eminent Persons attached the highest priority for follow-up by the General Assembly.  They are: Enhanced, equitable and predictable market access for commodities of key importance to developing countries; addressing the problems of oversupply for many commodities; making compensatory financing schemes user-friendly and operational; strengthening capacity and institutions; pursuing the possibilities for the creation of a new International Diversification Fund.

The statement of President Hunte’s statement is available on the President’s website.

Of course, the Second Committee will introduce draft resolutions on the item of commodities very shortly.  That should be presented to the General Assembly very soon.

There is a panel discussion on microcredit today organized by the Office of the High Representative for the Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing States and the Microcredit Summit Campaign.  It takes place on the occasion of the release of the State of the Microcredit Summit Campaign Report.

It is today, from 1:00 to 2:15 in the Dag Hammarskjöld Library.

**Upcoming agenda items

Tomorrow, as you know, there is the item on Cuba:  “Necessity of ending the economic, commercial and financial embargo imposed by the United States of America against Cuba”.

It is an issue which many people have called me about.  It is set for tomorrow (Tuesday) in the morning.

This is all I have for you today.  Thank you.

Questions and Answers

Question:  Could you tell us what is happening on Thursday with cloning?   

Spokeswoman for General Assembly President:  The Sixth Committee, as you know, this is the last day of the Sixth Committee’s session and they have waited until the last day to address the issue, which has been postponed three times already.  As you know, the positions are very set and we don’t know yet what they are going to recommend to the Assembly.  One of the recommendations would be that the item be postponed until next year, which is the most likely outcome.  However, there are a number of pressures for a vote to take place on that subject.  So there will be discussion in the Sixth Committee on Thursday afternoon and, I assume, from this will emerge what recommendation they are giving the General Assembly.

Question:  So they wouldn’t vote in the Sixth Committee, they would simply recommend what the GA should do with the two different resolutions?

Spokeswoman for General Assembly President:  Yes.

Associate Spokesman:  Thank you very much.

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