THIRD PART OF 2003 UNITED NATIONS PROGRAMME OF DISARMAMENT FELLOWSHIPS BEGINS IN NEW YORK

THIRD PART OF 2003 UNITED NATIONS PROGRAMME OF DISARMAMENT

FELLOWSHIPS BEGINS IN NEW YORK

The third segment of the 2003 United Nations Programme of Fellowships on Disarmament begins today at United Nations Headquarters, for a period of four weeks, with the participation of young diplomats from 30 Member States of the Organization.  The Programme started on 1 September in Geneva (see press release issued on 1 September:  http://www.unog.ch/news2/documents/newsen/dc0338e.htm).

The New York segment is meant primarily to expose the Fellows to the work of the First Committee (Disarmament and International Security) of the General Assembly.  They will be briefed on items on the agenda of the Committee by members of delegations, as well as by United Nations officials, including the Under-Secretary-General for Disarmament Affairs.  They will also attend meetings of the Committee.

The Fellows will be engaged in a simulation exercise on how to draft, introduce, negotiate and vote on draft resolutions in the First Committee.  They will also attend a two-day seminar organized by the Center for Nonproliferation Studies of the Monterey Institute of International Studies and finalize individual research papers required on a topic of their choice relating to disarmament and international security.

Diplomats from these 30 Member States are participating in the 2003 Programme:  Armenia, Brazil, Bulgaria, China, Colombia, Comoros, Cuba, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Egypt, Georgia, Ghana, Guinea, India, Japan, Lithuania, Madagascar, Mongolia, Namibia, Nepal, Nicaragua, Oman, Pakistan, Peru, Russian Federation, Serbia and Montenegro, Slovakia, Sri Lanka, United Republic of Tanzania, Uzbekistan and Yemen.

The Geneva segment of the Programme, from 1 to 17 September, was primarily aimed at familiarizing the Fellows with multilateral negotiations in the framework of the Conference on Disarmament.  The segment included a cycle of lectures by senior representatives of States members of the Conference on Disarmament, and by the Deputy Secretary-General of the Conference, on issues under negotiation in the Conference.  Members of the Geneva Branch of the Department for Disarmament Affairs, the United Nations Institute for Disarmament Research (UNIDIR), and the Geneva Centre for the Democratic Control of Armed Forces (DCAF) also took part.  The Fellows attended meetings of the Conference on Disarmament and a seminar held under the auspices of UNIDIR.

Between 18 September and 10 October, the Fellows participated in study visits to the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons in The Hague, as well as to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and the Preparatory Commission for the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization in Vienna.  They also visited Germany and Japan, at the invitation of the respective Governments.

Background

The United Nations Disarmament Fellowship Programme was launched by the first special session of the General Assembly devoted to disarmament in 1978 and aims at (a) the training and specialization in the field of disarmament of national officials in more Member States, particularly in the developing countries; and (b) enabling them to participate more effectively in international deliberating and negotiating forums.  Implemented by the Department for Disarmament Affairs, the Programme has trained, in the 25 years of its existence, some 600 officials from almost 150 countries.  A large number of them are now in positions of responsibility in the field of disarmament within their own governments.  The Programme has enabled former Fellows to participate more effectively in regional and global efforts in the field of disarmament and, by creating an informal network spanning the various regions of the world, to work cooperatively and constructively in the pursuance of disarmament and arms limitation goals.

The programme will conclude at United Nations Headquarters on 5 November.  The Fellows will be awarded certificates of participation by the Under-Secretary-General for Disarmament Affairs, Nobuyasu Abe.

For further information, please contact Jerzy Zaleski, c/o Jenny Fuchs, Department for Disarmament Affairs, Room 3150, tel.: (212) 963-2386, e-mail: fuchs@un.org.

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