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.

**Secretary-General/Iraq Conference

The Secretary-General addressed the International Conference on Iraq in Brussels today by saying that the meeting of more than 80 countries and organizations sends a message that the international community supports the Government and people of Iraq and is determined that Iraq’s reconstruction succeeds.

The Secretary-General urged that the process of drafting a new constitution must be participatory, inclusive and transparent.  “Iraqis must find it within themselves to reach out to one another and address issues on which they may differ”, he said.

The United Nations, he promised, will continue to implement its mandate to the fullest extent possible, and he added, “We are delivering.”

Just over the past hour, as the Conference ended, the Secretary-General said that the meeting “marks a watershed for Iraq”, in which a sovereign, elected Iraqi Government has presented a comprehensive view of its future to the international community.  He added, “I am confident that this will be a turning point in Iraq’s transition.”

We have copies of his statement upstairs.

**Secretary-General/Bilateral Meetings

On the sidelines of the Conference, the Secretary-General met with a number of key participants.  Immediately following the meeting, the Secretary-General held a bilateral meeting with US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.  They discussed a number of issues, including Iraq, resolution 1559, UN reform and the situation in Uzbekistan.

Later, the Secretary-General spoke to Iranian Foreign Minister Kamal Kharrazi on the continuing dialogue between Iran and the Governments of Britain, France and Germany on nuclear issues.

And, we have a full note of today’s programme available for you upstairs, for those of you who are interested in reading more about his programme in Brussels. 

**Iraq

And, Ashraf Qazi, the Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Iraq, co-chaired a session at the Brussels Conference on the political process in that country, and he said at that session that Iraq today is going through the most critical phase of its transition process.

He noted that there is not much time left before the 15^th of August deadline for the completion of the draft text of the constitution.  Nonetheless, Qazi said, there is optimism that a credible public discussion process, which will be essential to developing a sense of public ownership towards the final text of the constitution, will be possible within the time available.

**Statement on DRC

I have two statements:  one on the Democratic Republic of the Congo; and the other on the General Assembly hearings today with non-governmental organizations (NGOS).

“The Secretary-General has taken note of the decision taken on 17 June jointly by the National Assembly and Senate of the Democratic Republic of the Congo to extend the transition period for six months and welcomes the peaceful commencement of voter registration on 20 June in Kinshasa.  This crucial step in the electoral process paves the way for the holding of elections in the Democratic Republic of the Congo for the first time in 40 years.

“The Secretary-General appeals to all the Congolese parties to respect the decision of their parliamentary institutions to extend the transition, and to actively participate in the process in a peaceful manner.

“The Secretary-General expects the holding of the constitutional referendum and elections to be in accordance with the electoral timetable published by the Independent Electoral commission.  He urges the Government of Transition and the  Electoral Commission to expedite the electoral process and to keep the Congolese population regularly informed, in a transparent manner, of all major developments in this crucial process for the future of their country.”

**Statement on General Assembly

And now on the General Assembly.

“The Secretary-General is pleased that the General Assembly will hold its first interactive hearings with non-governmental organizations, civil society organizations and the private sector on 23 and 24 June.

“He welcomes the hearings as an important opportunity for civil society and the private sector to exchange views with Member States on how to build a more secure, just and prosperous world.  He notes that the hearings come at a crucial time, as Member States discuss a draft outcome document for the World Summit scheduled in September.

“The Secretary-General has written to the Permanent Representatives of all Member States, hoping that they will accept the invitation of the General Assembly President to participate personally in the hearings.

“Noting that civil society contributes to the legitimacy, transparency and accountability of the United Nations, the Secretary-General also hopes that the General Assembly will engage more actively with civil society on a regular basis, as recommended in his report, ‘In Larger Freedom’.”

**Security Council/Cyprus

And here at UN Headquarters, today in the Security Council, they met on Cyprus and heard an assessment on the situation there from Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs Kieran Prendergast, who said that, while outsiders could help, the parties themselves had to summon the vision, courage and political will needed to make a settlement.  In short, leaders had to lead, not just follow their supporters.

He welcomed the fact that all parties accepted the UN plan as a basis for resumed negotiations.  At the same time, however, he regretted that confidence between the parties did not seem high.  He also said that Greece and Turkey must keep in mind that the Cyprus problem should be settled in the interests of the Greek Cypriots and the Turkish Cypriots.  We have his full statement upstairs.

The Security Council is holding consultations on Cyprus and other matters, and I see that was already concluded, and Mr. Prendergast just spoke to reporters at the stakeout.

**Security Council/Haiti

Prior to the meeting on Cyprus, the Security Council unanimously adopted a resolution on Haiti, extending the mandate of the UN Mission there until the 15th of February 2006.  The resolution also urges Haiti’s Transitional Government to investigate human rights violations, and calls on all Member States to support Haiti’s disarmament, demobilization and reintegration programme.

**Sudan

And turning to Sudan, the Special Representative for Sudan, Jan Pronk, is on his way to Kampala, Uganda, today where he will be discussing with authorities there a range of issues, in particular, assistance to UN deployment of troops and equipment to Sudan.  UN troops and assets to be positioned in certain southern areas have to transit through neighbouring countries, in particular Uganda.

Pronk is expected to discuss the opening of the Yei-Juba road, which, according to the Mission, is of strategic importance for all operations of all actors operating in southern Sudan.  We have the weekly press briefing notes from Khartoum upstairs in the Spokesman’s Office.

**Security Council Update/Lebanon

I think I just got an update on the Security Council, on the adoption of a presidential statement on Lebanon elections, as we speak.  And, we should have that draft available upstairs in the Spokesman’s Office.  And on Lebanon, we understand that in consultations the Council did also take up the matter.

**UNODC/Laos

And, turning to the UN Office on Drugs and Crime, it launched today its Laos Opium Survey in Vientiane, in the Lao People’s Democratic Republic.  The survey shows a 73 per cent decline in opium poppy cultivation and a 67 per cent drop in opium production since 2004.  This marks the first time in many years that the Lao People’s Democratic Republic no longer qualifies as a major supplier of illegal opiates to the international drug market.  We have a press release with more information on this, upstairs.

**AIDS

Turning to AIDS, almost $22 billion will be needed in 2008 to reverse the spread of AIDS in the developing world, according to the latest estimates.  These figures feature in a new report on estimated funding needs, produced by the Joint UN Programme against HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), which is to be released to the UNAIDS Programme Coordinating Board at the end of June.  And, there’s a press release on that with more details. 

**General Assembly/September Summit

And, as we mentioned yesterday, the General Assembly is conducting informal meetings of the plenary yesterday and today on the draft outcome document of the September Summit, which General Assembly President Jean Ping submitted to Member States in early June.  The meeting is closed to the media.  We told you we had a list of speakers.  And, the GA President, Jean Ping, will have a press briefing later this afternoon, at 2:30, with a civil society representative to give a preview of the NGO hearings, and also to give an assessment of the consultations today and yesterday of his draft outcome document.

A media advisory is available on the press briefing and on the NGO hearings, and I see that the GA Spokesman, Djibril Diallo, has joined us.  If you have any questions for him, I’m sure that he would answer them.

**Sixtieth Anniversary/UN Charter

And, then on Monday morning, there would be a brief commemorative event in the General Assembly Hall from 9:30 a.m. to 10 a.m. in observance of the 60th anniversary of the signing of the United Nations Charter.  The General Assembly President and the Secretary-General will make statements.

**General Assembly/‘FFD’ Dialogue

And then next week, Monday and Tuesday, the General Assembly will hold a high-level dialogue on financing for development.  We hope to have advance press materials for you on that meeting by tomorrow.  And, that will come from the General Assembly Spokesman’s Office.

**Statement on Yakovlev

And, finally, in response to questions yesterday about Mr. Alexander Yakovlev, I have a statement and an update: 

“Mr Alexander Yakovlev, Procurement Officer, who is being investigated by the Office of Internal Oversight Services for possible misconduct, submitted his resignation yesterday evening.  The Assistant Secretary-General for Central Support Services accepted his resignation this morning with immediate effect.  Mr. Yakovlev was also informed that the OIOS investigation will continue despite his resignation.

“And separately, the Independent Inquiry Committee (IIC) requested last night that Mr. Yakovlev’s office be sealed to allow them to access materials that might pertain to their investigation.  The UN complied with that request.”

And, that’s all I have for you.  Do you have any questions for me?  Yes?

**Questions and Answers

Question:  First of all, did he give a reason for resigning, and how old is he?  Is he close to retirement?

Associate Spokesperson:  I don’t have answers to either one of those questions.  Maybe I should just say up top that this is all the information that I have on this development.  [She later announced that Mr. Yakovlev is 52 and that he had eight years to go before qualifying for retirement. He submitted his resignation letter citing, “allegations involving (his) violating of the applicable Staff Rules and in order to protect the integrity, reputation and the interest of the Organization”.]

Question:  Okay, to something else.  The meeting may be closed, the GA, but people have printed statements that they’re passing around, and could see that the GA coordinator, or whoever, brings us those statements because they shouldn’t be so secretive, lying on tables some of them, others inside.

Associate Spokesperson:  The GA Spokesman is right here so he’s listening to your request.

Question:  Fine.  Thank you.  Secondly, why is there such a secret about the sixtieth anniversary celebration compared to the fiftieth?  I mean, for those of us who have staff in San Francisco, it’s impossible to prepare them since no literature has really been given out in this place, and I’m just curious what the political reason is.

And, thirdly, when is Mr. Roed-Larsen going back to Syria?  I hear it’s soon.

Associate Spokesperson:  I heard nothing on Mr. Roed-Larsen’s travel plans.  We looked into that, but as of now, we have not had anything to announce on that.  As for your other question, about the sixtieth anniversary, we just mentioned that there will be a brief commemorative service here at the GA Hall, and as for other events, I’m told that the Department of Public Information’s Media Outreach is the one with the information.  And, I’m sure if they haven’t been in touch, they will be shortly ...

Question:  What I’m saying is it’s a little late.  San Francisco reporters have other things to do.  If the UN wanted any coverage of this in San Francisco, they should have put out something in this place.  And, it seems to me, compared to the Day of everything else that happens that gets commemorated here, this is unusual and ...

Associate Spokesperson:  We take note of that.  My understanding is that Shashi Tharoor, the Under-Secretary-General for Communications and Public Information, will be representing the Secretary-General in San Francisco. 

Question:  Very quietly, it seems.

Question:  Marie, a couple of questions about Mr. Yakovlev –- why was the decision taken to so quickly accept his resignation, especially if he’s under examination -- why not prolong things?  Is he going to be cooperating fully with an investigation since he’s no longer employed by the Organization?  And, also, will the investigation by OIOS be broader than just looking at the case of IHC services and misconduct that might have taken place in that area –- will it look at various projects that Mr. Yakovlev has been involved in as a procurement officer?  And, who is leading the investigation for OIOS on this?

Associate Spokesperson:  On your first question -- I’m sorry, I already forgot your first question.

Question:  The first question is, if he’s resigned, he’s no longer working for the Organization -- why such haste?  Why not arrange some sort of scenario, maybe along the lines of Benon Sevan, where the man is kept on and the investigation ends, and he will cooperate, or hopefully cooperate?

Associate Spokesperson:  In terms of Mr. Yakovlev’s case, as I just mentioned, I really do not have further information than what I gave you.  But, my understanding is that he gave his assurance to the United Nations that he would fully cooperate with the OIOS investigation.  I have no further information about the OIOS investigation.  As you know, what we told you, that as soon as information came to our attention on the alleged actions of Mr. Yakovlev -- that’s when the OIOS investigation began.  Specifically, I don’t know what individual is in charge of OIOS, but as I said, the officer in charge of OIOS right now is Barbara Dixon.

Question:  You say he made some assurances that he would cooperate, but really there’s no financial pressure or some sort of other pressure that can be exerted on him to ensure that he is complying with things?

Associate Spokesperson:  I have nothing further on this other than the fact, as I mentioned, that the Assistant Secretary-General for Central Support Services accepted his resignation, and that he has been informed that the investigation will continue, and that he has assured the Assistant Secretary-General that he will fully cooperate.

Question:  And, again, just to understand -– what did he say were his reasons behind his resignation, and the question that’s sort of running in my mind is –- was there a move under way to fire him, actually, if there had been some findings made by OIOS?  Is he pre-empting a firing?  What exactly is ...?

Associate Spokesman:  This is something, obviously, he would be the only one to know.  I do not know the reasons for his resignation, as I said.  This is something that has just been brought to our attention, and I’m responding to some queries that we had been asked about developments on Mr. Yakovlev.  And, as for the involvement with the independent inquiry committee, really, it will be up to them to discuss further.  I’m going to move to some other people who have questions.

Question:  Just a request -- could we get a clearer picture of exactly how this whole resignation came about, what exactly was in his letter requesting resignation, and why the resignation was accepted so quickly?  Just those two questions would be ...

Question:  Who is sealing his office, Marie?

Associate Spokesperson:  The Independent Inquiry Committee (IIC).

Question:  And, what puzzles me is that, from the information that my good colleague’s website has released, there seems to be a rather tenuous connection with oil-for-food.  So, are they looking at contracts, in general, or what, because the conflict of interest in getting his son a job with a company -- was it a company that dealt with Iraq?

Associate Spokesperson:  As I mentioned, the OIOS investigation was into allegations that involve his allegations of his son working for a company that was doing business with the United Nations.  And, in the statement, I also mentioned that, separately, in a separate move, the Independent Inquiry Committee requested that his office be sealed.  And, you’d have to ask them what it is that they are looking for.  We understand that the IIC will be coming to the UN today to examine the contents of the office.

Question:  Where do things stand with Mr. Maurice Strong?  I mean, he’s still not working, or working -- what’s the situation because he was seen at his UNDP office last week moving some files.  Has he come back to work for the United Nations, do you know?

Associate Spokesperson:  As far as I know, no, he has not.

Question:  He has not come back?

Associate Spokesperson:  As far as I know, no.  He has stepped aside from the position of the Korea envoy.

Question:  The question is, then why was he in his office removing files?

Associate Spokesman:  This is the first I hear of that, so I’d have to look into that. [The correspondent was later told that Maurice Strong is still a staff member -- that is why he was in the Building.]

Question:  My name’s Stacy.  I’m with CNN.  I’m wondering if you could comment -- there’s a story in the New York papers today about Lindsey Lohan’s uncle who has been charged with fraudulently using a loan he received -- his business apparently worked closely with the United Nations as the exclusive agent to Hyundai, with the UN, and now he’s been charged with fraudulently using loans that he got after claiming that his business with the UN had faltered.  Do you have any comment on that?

Associate Spokesperson:  This is the first I’m hearing of this.  Why don’t you, maybe afterwards, give us a few more details so we can look into it for you.

Question:  When a UN staff resigns, does she or he receive a salary?

Associate Spokesperson:  It depends on the conditions of his resignation.  The answer is, I don’t know.  [She later announced that the answer is no.]  If there are no other questions, have a good afternoon.

* *** *