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

Following is a near-verbatim transcript of today’s noon briefing by Marie Okabe, Associate Spokesperson for the Secretary-General.

Good afternoon.

**Sudan

In a statement issued yesterday afternoon, the Secretary-General said he was heartened to learn that the Sudanese Government and the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement/Army parties have initialled in Naivasha, Kenya, three protocols on political and power-sharing issues.  He welcomes this development and believes it is a major step forward in the peace process facilitated by the Inter-Governmental Authority on Development.

He urges the two parties to sustain their commitment and persevere in reaching agreement on the remaining issues, especially the ceasefire arrangements, the implementation modalities and international guarantees for a future comprehensive peace agreement.  He emphasizes the interest and readiness of the United Nations to contribute to such efforts.

The Secretary-General at the same time called on the Government of the Sudan and the armed opposition in Darfur to seize the momentum created in Naivasha to reach a political solution in western Sudan, putting an end to the grave humanitarian and human rights situations there.

**SG on Darfur

Also on the Sudan, in the course of the last few weeks, the Secretary-General has received numerous communications from individuals, groups and organizations all over the world containing expressions of deep concern about the humanitarian and human rights situations in Darfur, asking him to ensure that emergency assistance is delivered to those in need and calling on the United Nations in general to do all possible to prevent the situation from deteriorating further.

The Secretary-General fully shares the concerns of the public at large, and, in that regard, would like to inform all those who wrote to him that he has been following the situation in Darfur very closely and with great concern.  In the early days of the crisis in Darfur, he engaged the Government of the Sudan, as well as external actors concerned, and sought a political settlement to the problem.  He regrets that these efforts could not help in preventing the grave humanitarian emergency and the massive violation of human rights in Darfur.

We have a note outlining the Secretary-General’s efforts to date on the humanitarian and human rights side. 

On the political side, the Secretary-General stands ready to continue to help the Sudanese parties, in close coordination with the African Union, the Government of Chad and other parties concerned, to reach a political settlement soon.  To that end, he will designate an envoy, who will represent him at the political talks due to resume in N’Djamena, Chad, shortly.

**Security Council

The Security Council today began the day with a briefing by Jean Arnault, Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Afghanistan.  The briefing in an open meeting was followed by consultations on the same subject, which are ongoing.

I had hoped to have him as a guest at the noon briefing but I understand that they are still going round the table.  And so that will not be possible.

In his briefing, which we have available in the Spokesman’s Office, Mr. Arnault highlighted the negative trends in the security situation, and gave an update on the electoral, as well as the disarmament, demobilization and reintegration process.

He said a robust international military presence in support of domestic security forces remains critical.

The persistent woes of Afghanistan -- terrorism, factionalism and criminal networks -- are as much at work today as they were two years ago, he says, and their ability to subvert state-building and a genuine political process is hardly diminished.

He concluded by saying, that at this critical juncture for the Afghan peace process, international security assistance continues to make the difference between success and failure.

**Haiti/Dominican Republic - Humanitarian update

Turning to the Haiti and Dominican Republic flood situation.  As part of the UN’s response to the devastating floods in the Caribbean region, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) is sending Disaster Assessment and Coordination Teams to Haiti and to the Dominican Republic.

The teams, comprising four to six disaster experts, are expected to leave between tonight and tomorrow morning.  The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs has provided Emergency Cash Grants of $80,000 for both countries.

National authorities in Haiti report that 638 persons have been reportedly killed or are missing as a result of the floods.  Additional assessments are planned in outlying areas where death tolls could be very high.  Meanwhile, authorities in the Dominican Republic report that 205 people are confirmed dead, and another 375 are missing.  Several UN agencies are carrying out a rapid assessment of relief needs in the hard-hit area of Jimani. 

Today, Multinational Interim Force helicopters will travel to an area in Haiti called Fonds Verrets, transporting humanitarian personnel, twelve metric tons of food provided by the World Food Programme as well as plastic sheeting and water purification tablets provided by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF).

**IAEA/US Initiative

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has welcomed the U.S. Government’s announcement of a new comprehensive global initiative to address the issue of nuclear security and reduce the threat of nuclear terrorism.

The Global Threat Reduction Initiative was announced yesterday in a meeting with senior IAEA officials in Vienna.

It aims to minimize as quickly as possible the amount of nuclear material available that could be used for nuclear weapons, and put into place mechanisms to ensure that these materials and related equipment aren’t used for malicious purposes.

We have more on this in a press release available in the spokesman’s office.

**WHO/Ebola update

We have an update on an ebola outbreak also in the Sudan.

As of yesterday, the health authorities of YambioCounty in the country’s south, have reported at least a total of 20 cases -- including five deaths.

A World Health Organization team is continuing to work with authorities to control the outbreak, and the governments of neighbouring countries Uganda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo have enhanced surveillance in bordering areas.

There is a press release with more information on that.

**Global Compact Meeting in Colombia

Two more items.  Over 150 representatives of the private sector, civil society and governments are meeting in Bogotá, Colombia, today, to discuss the role of the private sector in conflict prevention and peace-building.  This is the third in a series of regional dialogues organized by the UN’s Global Compact Office to help the private sector in contributing to conflict alleviation.    

In his message to the meeting, the Secretary-General noted that private companies operate in many conflict zones or conflict-prone countries around the world.  Furthermore, some manufacture and sell weapons, and some are involved in the extraction and sale of lucrative natural resources. 

The Secretary-General added that the private sector has an enormous stake, responsibility and potential influence in the search for peaceful solutions.  He said that the bottom line can no longer, and should no longer, be separated from some of the key goals of the United Nations and the responsible global community -- namely, peace, development and equity.    

**UNODC/Afghanistan

Antonio Maria Costa, the Executive Director of the UN Office on Drugs and Crime, is beginning an eight-day visit to Afghanistan on Saturday.

His visit comes amid growing concern that this year’s opium crop in Afghanistan may reach a record level.

He’ll review the situation on the ground and urge a more effective implementation of the country’s drug control strategy.

On his way to Kabul, Costa will visit some opium producing provinces, meet key governors, police chiefs and military commanders, as well as some opium-growing farmers.

There is more in a press release from that agency upstairs as well.

And that’s all I have for you.  Abdurrahim and then...

**Questions and Answers

**Question:  Do you have any news on when Lakhdar Brahimi may be able to make an announcement or announce the results of his contacts in Iraq and whether that announcement may come from Baghdad or he will wait till he gets here?

**Associate Spokesperson:  The latest I have on that is in a statement made by his spokesman yesterday, which we made available to you.  He said that Mr. Brahimi said that he had not yet finalized his recommendations and that, contrary to speculation, the process of consensus building is still ongoing.  As to the date and place of that announcement, we have nothing further to add on that for now.

**Question:  A couple of questions on Sudan.  Has the SG been in touch recently with either the President of Sudan, Omer Albashir, or with anybody from the opposition in western Sudan, in Darfur?

**Associate Spokesperson:  I’d have to check on his most recent telephone calls.  But the Secretary-General has been very engaged in this whole process, as you can see from the two statements -- one on Sudan and the one on Darfur.  But let me check that for you.  But in terms of the next steps, he should be reporting to the Security Council in the coming days on proposals now that these key protocols have been initialled.

**Question:  If I may, one more on Sudan…

**Associate Spokesperson:  Yes?

**Question:  The Government in Khartoum says that basically the way what’s been going on in western Sudan, the way it’s being depicted basically is designed to divert attention from progress achieved in the south.  Does that view find any sympathy from the SG whatsoever?

**Associate Spokesperson: I think the Secretary-General in his statement issued yesterday, and which I repeated here again, is fairly clear about how he feels about the progress that has been achieved on the peace process between the north and the south.  This is obviously a conflict that, if you see from the press releases, especially from the UN agencies, has taken a huge humanitarian toll in the country over the last 20 or so years.  So, the peace process to end the humanitarian suffering in that conflict is obviously one that he wants to encourage.  At the same time, in that same statement, the Secretary-General makes very clear his concerns on Darfur and as I just mentioned now, he wanted to again repeat his engagement on all sides -- on humanitarian, human rights and the political side.  And as I mentioned, he stands ready to assist in a political solution in the Darfur issue as well.  Yes?

**Question:  I just wanted to know:  will Mr. Arnault be available later today, or will he be at the stakeout, do you know?

**Associate Spokesperson:  You can try to catch him at the stakeout when he is done.  Otherwise if you’re interested in talking to him; if you want an interview with him, maybe you can talk to me or the office afterwards and we can try to arrange something.

**Question:  Okay.

**Associate Spokesperson:  Mr. Abbadi?

**Question:  Marie, does the Secretary-General believe that any action on the present resolution before the Council on Iraq should await the return of Ambassador Brahimi?

**Associate Spokesperson:  I think at the moment the Secretary-General is not commenting on the delicate discussions on this resolution, which began this week in the Security Council.  Yes?

**Question:  Yes, Marie.  Did the SG speak with the Indian Prime Minister after he took over?

**Associate Spokesperson:  Is this something that you’re asking for today?

**Question:  Yes.

**Associate Spokesperson:  I’ll have to check for you.  Yes?  [The Spokesperson later said he had not.]

**Question:  Is the reduction and monitoring of nuclear material the responsibility of a country or the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)?

**Associate Spokesperson:  I’d have to check that for you as well.  I don’t want to venture into answering that until I check with the IAEA.  If there are no other questions... Mr. Abbadi?  [She later told the reporter that governments were responsible for cleaning up nuclear materials.  As far as monitoring goes, if there is a safeguard agreement with the IAEA, then the IAEA has the monitoring responsibility to ensure that the country does meet its obligations.]

**Question:  Marie, Mr. Arnault says that there is a continuing deterioration in security in Afghanistan, and that the success or failure will depend on that.  At this stage, does the Secretary-General have any new ideas on the problem?

**Associate Spokesperson:  I think Mr. Arnault is right now discussing the situation on the ground with members of the Council.  He again makes his appeal for the importance of a strong international military presence.  I think this is a sentiment that has been reflected many times by the Secretary-General.  As to if there is any outcome from the morning consultations, hopefully we’ll find out in few minutes. Yes?

**Question:  Marie, you said there is no day yet for the announcement, but as far as when Mr. Brahimi returns from Iraq, do you know the schedule you just pointed out?

**Associate Spokesperson:  We have nothing more on that either.

If there are no more questions, have a very good afternoon.  Thank you.

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