Daily Press Briefing by the Office of the Spokesperson for the Secretary-General
The following is a near-verbatim transcript of today’s noon briefing by Farhan Haq, Deputy Spokesman for the Secretary-General.
Good afternoon, everyone.
**Syria
The Special Envoy for Syria, Staffan de Mistura, ended a three-day visit to Damascus, which took place in the framework of the Geneva Consultations, which are aimed at operationalizing the Geneva communiqué of 30 June 2012. In the course of his trip, Mr. de Mistura met with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and Foreign Minister Walid al-Mouallem, with the aim of listening to their views in the context of the Geneva Consultations. During his meetings, Mr. de Mistura also emphasized the necessity of protecting civilians. He underlined once again that the use of barrel bombs is unacceptable, and that it is an obligation under international humanitarian law for any Government, in all circumstances, to protect its civilians.
The Special Envoy stresses that the heavy bombings by Government forces last night on Douma, which caused significant civilian casualties, calls for a strong condemnation. No context justifies the indiscriminate targeting of civilian areas or the use of collective punishment by a Government. While in Damascus, Mr. de Mistura also reaffirmed his strong condemnation of the attacks on civilians by armed opposition forces that coincided with his presence in the country, such as Monday’s attacks in Aleppo that caused significant civilian casualties and yesterday’s mortar shelling that hit central Damascus.
In the course of his meetings, the Special Envoy furthermore underscored the dire humanitarian situation on the ground and he insisted on greater access to besieged areas and conflict-affected communities, particularly in light of the month of Ramadan. Mr. de Mistura also met with more than 30 political parties, religious figures and civil society organizations based inside the country, to hear their views in the context of the Geneva Consultations.
**Yemen
Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed, the Special Envoy for Yemen, spoke to the press in Geneva last night, and said that the significance of having both delegations to the Yemen consultations in Geneva should not be underestimated. He called it the important start towards the return to a political process. Mr. Ould Cheikh Ahmed said that, after meetings with both parties, he clearly communicated to both delegations that the number of participants should be limited to an overall number of 10 persons per delegation.
He said that both the Yemeni and international community are looking to the Geneva consultations as a peaceful way out of the conflict and to safeguard the achievement of Yemen’s transition, as set out in the Gulf Cooperation Council agreement and its implementation mechanism, and supported and followed by various Security Council resolutions, including Security Council resolution 2216 (2015) and the outcome of the National Dialogue.
He added that discussions will hopefully foster mechanisms that create confidence, increase the chances of implementation of the different Security Council resolutions and ensure that compromises on one side will not be abused by the other. The Special Envoy also met last night with members of the "Group of 16+" to brief them on the Geneva Consultations.
**Cyprus
The Secretary-General’s Special Adviser on Cyprus, Espen Barth Eide, commended the Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot leaders for their strong determination and commitment to reach a comprehensive settlement as soon as possible. Mr. Eide’s statement follows today’s meeting between the two leaders in Cyprus. The Special Adviser added that the leaders have jointly reviewed the work achieved by their negotiators to date, including the conclusion of the baseline assessment. The leaders are now entering substantive negotiations on unresolved core issues. The next meeting between the leaders is expected to take place on 29 June, following further negotiations between both sides. And Mr. Eide’s full statement is available online.
**Libya
The Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Libya, Bernardino León, continues to engage with the Libyan parties on the agreement he put forward for their consideration on 8 June. Discussions are continuing, and we were pleased to see that Tripoli has favourably responded to the agreement. We expect the same from the parliament in Tobruk in the coming days. As the UN [Support] Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) has made clear, we believe that this agreement offers the best chance for Libya to overcome the current crisis and set a path forward for the remainder of the transition that is consistent with the goals of the 2011 revolution. We expect Libyan leaders to show the required political will and to make the necessary compromises so that this can be achieved.
**Global Humanitarian Appeal
Yesterday, the global humanitarian overview status report was released, revealing record-high financial requirements to respond to increasing numbers of people in need. In six months, the required funds have increased by $2.4 billion to a record $18.8 billion to assist 78.9 million vulnerable people across 37 countries. As of early June, the funding gap was $14 billion. The UN Humanitarian Chief, Stephen O'Brien, said that, while donors give more generously every year, the gap between funds needed and funds provided continues to widen. He added that this raises questions about the ability to continue to meet the needs, especially in protracted situations, where 80 per cent of the work now takes place, and where humanitarians are asked to stay longer and to do more.
**Insurance
This morning, the Secretary-General spoke at the Global Insurance Forum. He said that, as a major source of long-term investment, the insurance industry can and must play a strong role in shaping a more sustainable future. He urged the industry to think more strategically about how climate risks can be reduced, and to adjust their investments accordingly, as well as to work with Governments, especially in developing countries, to help bring about these changes. His full remarks are available on our website.
**Force Commanders
You will have seen that this morning, Military Commanders briefed the Security Council on protection of civilians and operational threats, among other topics. The Commanders are in New York this week for the annual conference that brings together Force Commanders of 16 field missions from 15 to 18 June. On 19 June, the military commanders will be briefing the Special Committee on Peacekeeping.
**Middle East Respiratory Syndrome
The Emergency Committee of the World Health Organization (WHO) met today on the outbreak of Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) in the Republic of Korea. They concluded that the conditions for a public health emergency of international concern have not been met. However, the Committee noted that there are still many gaps in knowledge regarding the transmission of this virus between people, and it said this outbreak was a wakeup call. In a highly mobile world, the Committee said that all countries should always be prepared for the unanticipated possibility of outbreaks. The situation highlights the need to strengthen collaboration between health and other key sectors, such as aviation, and to enhance communication processes. The full statement is available online.
**Health
And I would also like to flag the launch this week in Washington, D.C., of World Health Organization’s State of Inequality report that looks at inequalities in access to health, particularly to the detriment of women, infants and children living in rural areas. The report is also available on WHO’s website.
**Desertification
In his message for the World Day to Combat Desertification, the Secretary-General says that land degradation and desertification undercut human rights, starting with the right to food. Adding that nearly 1 billion people lack adequate nutrition today, he warns that this situation could worsen if land degradation, as projected, reduces global food production by 12 per cent by 2035. He urges the international community to invest in healthy soils to secure our rights to food and freshwater. His message is available online.
**Noon Briefing Guests Tomorrow
Having recently returned from the climate change negotiations in Bonn, Germany, Jo Scheuer and Cassie Flynn, of the United Nations Development Programme’s (UNDP) Bureau for Policy and Programme Support, will be here as my guests tomorrow to provide an update on the current status of negotiations, what will happen between now and COP21 and what countries need to be doing as they prepare for the Paris conference and beyond. Yes, Masood.
**Questions and Answers
Question: Farhan, from Geneva, there are reports that talks are about to fail because most of the people are blaming this on [inaudible] bomb by the Saudi‑led coalition, which is not ceasing and they refuse to [inaudible] to the United Nations. What do you have to say about that?
Deputy Spokesman: I don't want to say anything speculative. Right now, the talks are still under way. Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed is continuing to work with the parties and we are trying our very best to make sure that they stay in Geneva and are willing to continue talking with the UN and hopefully, eventually, with each other. As matters proceed, if there is any need for any appearance before the press today, we might have Mr. Ould Cheikh Ahmed speak to the press later on today. That is not set yet, but we will have to see whether anything further comes out of Geneva.
Question: Proximity talks that we are talking about, are they succeeding or are they just there for the sake of it, because it seems everything is on its way to failure?
Deputy Spokesman: Well, you've said this about many talks over the years and sometimes they have failed and sometimes they have succeeded. In the middle of talks, it's always hard to tell how things are happening and what is just posturing between the various sides. We are glad that both sides have shown up and they have shown up ready to talk. Mr. Ould Cheikh Ahmed has been working with the parties. As I just mentioned, one of the things he is trying to make sure is that we can get a list of delegates from each side set, so we are at that stage but hopefully we can move on beyond that. As you know, we've had a number of priorities including making sure that there can be an agreement among the parties for some form of a humanitarian pause for Ramadan and we will continue to press upon that issue. Yes?
Question: Thank you, Farhan. The Independent Panel on Peace Operations, they recommend that the name of the countries be revealed in case of sexual abuse by any peacekeeping troops, but the name of the individuals will not be revealed and the rationale is because there will be an investigation until then. Will the United Nations encourage the countries after the specific troops have been convicted to reveal their name?
Deputy Spokesman: Well, first of all, regarding the report, as you know, that is still a document that is intended to go to the Member States. We hope that sometime over the course of this afternoon, in fact, the Secretary‑General will transmit the report of this High‑Level Panel to the General Assembly and to the Security Council and we will let you know if that happens over the course of the coming hours. On this particular proposal, in terms of the proposals and recommendations that have been made by the high‑level Panel, the Secretary‑General is reviewing them right now — he only received the report yesterday — to see what we can do in terms of bringing them forward. But, this is in line… the proposal you mentioned is in line with what the Secretary‑General has been saying for some time now about the need for the troop-contributing countries to be willing to share more information about personnel who commit abuses. And this is something… not just the Secretary‑General said this, but as you know the Office of Internal Oversight Services has also made clear the need to put out the names of these countries as we go forward in this. So, this is something we are trying to see how we can take this up, not just with the troop-contributing countries, but with Member States as a whole.
Question: Follow‑up on that, that the Secretary‑General wants more information about… from the countries, does that mean he is encouraging the countries to reveal their name?
Deputy Spokesman: This is something he has been encouraging for several years now and this is part of a process. And it's good to see that a number of different bodies are thinking the same way, including this High‑Level Panel. So, let's see where we can go with this. Yes, Evelyn.
Question: Yes, does somebody have to approve this naming and shaming of countries or can the [Secretary-General] just do it… well, peacekeeping can just do it? Because every time there has been an investigation of wrongdoing, whether it's peacekeeping, or anywhere else, we just never find the results. You know, we never get anything on the record. We have to scrounge around.
Deputy Spokesman: Sometimes, you actually do see the names. I would refer you to the report that was issued on Monday by the Office of Internal Oversight Services and you'll see the names of countries there.
Correspondent: Yes, I've seen that; but, I mean, that is rare.
Deputy Spokesman: It is, but the Secretary‑General has made clear his desire for this to become a more consistent step forward; and, yes, you saw it in the report just earlier this week. Joe?
Question: Yes, one of the points that was emphasized in this morning's briefings to the Security Council was the problem arising from caveats that are issued by some troop-contributing countries that undermines morale and cohesiveness and interferes with the chain of command and so forth. I didn't note yesterday any reference or discussion on that issue in the briefing we had here on the peace operations report. Do you know whether that is covered and if not, why not?
Deputy Spokesman: I think, hopefully, fairly soon, you will be able to see the report for yourself. Like I said, we expect the report to go to the Member States sometime over the course of this afternoon and hopefully we will be able to share something of this with you once that is gone. Yes?
Question: Yeah, Farhan, these delegations in Geneva, obviously, you have stated that seven plus three would be from each side. Given that there are 13 Yemeni political parties, how can they be represented by seven only? How can they agree on that? That is one thing. Another thing in the Saudi‑led delegation, Mr. Abdul Wahab al Humayqani is on the list of those who finance terrorism by the United States and some delegates raise this issue that this guy should not be on the Saudi‑led delegation. How does the United Nations deal with him and were there meetings between him and Mr. Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed?
Deputy Spokesman: Regarding your first question, Mr. Ould Cheikh Ahmed has made clear the need for each side to have seven representatives and three alternates for a total of ten on each side. How they come about it will be the business of the two respective sides, the delegations from Sana’a and from Riyadh. But, ultimately, this is the format that he believes will work as we proceed. And regarding this particular individual, as you know, it's up to the members of the Security Council to determine any steps about people on their various lists and whether they are subject to travel bans and other measures.
Question: How was this guy selected to come to Geneva, whereas many other Yemenis were denied to come?
Deputy Spokesman: We are not the party that is responsible for this selection of any of the delegates. The two respective sides select their own delegates. You would have to ask them how they select for their delegates. We will come back to you. Nizar, you know how this goes. We will come back to you. Yes, Mr. Abbadi.
Question: Thank you, Farhan. How much concern does the Secretary‑General have regarding the declared intention about members of NATO [North Atlantic Treaty Organization], as well as Russia, to install new missiles respectively in some of the former eastern European countries and in Russia itself?
Deputy Spokesman: This is something that we are following at this stage. We are aware of the reports from NATO; but beyond that, we don't have any reaction to this particular policy that's being announced and we will have to see as it develops. Yes, yes, please.
Question: Thank you, Farhan. First question, I have two questions: first one is on MERS, Middle East respiratory virus, some kind of a coronavirus that has been spreading all across Middle East. It started in Saudi Arabia and now it's been seen in Europe and in South Korea… 5,000 people were quarantined for that. Recently, a man in Germany died of it. Does WHO have any information about this virus and what you are going to do in order to stop this from being another Ebola thing? And this is the first question.
Deputy Spokesman: Before you go to the second question, I just wanted to let you know, you might have missed it, but one thing I did say is that the Emergency Committee of the World Health Organization met today about this very topic. They concluded regarding the Republic of Korea that the conditions for public health emergency of international concern have not… that is not, been met. So, this is not determined to be a public health emergency of international concern. But, at the same time, the Committee did note that there are still many gaps in knowledge regarding the transmission of the virus between people and they said that this outbreak should serve as a wake‑up call. And your second question?
Question: You will keep us updated, right, if there are any developments?
Deputy Spokesman: Yes.
Question: Thanks. And the second question is about migrants. We discussed this extensively and especially UN has been concerned of death of migrants at sea, and so on and so forth. But, recently, there was a huge meeting in European Union’s European Commission on migrant quotas, so migrants could be dispersed all around Europe and not just stay in southern ports of Italy or Greece or whatever, but, unfortunately, Dimitris Avramopoulos, who is the head of this Commission, he wasn't able to reach any agreement with the countries. And some countries threatened to put on bans, and so on and so forth, which is not alleviating the situation with these people who are dying at sea every day. Is UN watching… monitoring this situation and what kind of suggestions do you have?
Deputy Spokesman: Yes. In fact, we are watching and monitoring the situation. You will have seen that the Secretary‑General and the High Commissioner for Refugees, Antonio Guterres, have made clear the need for more equitable burden-sharing, so that no countries pay a disproportionate price in dealing with the situation of the migrants. It's very clear that there are some countries that have so far taken on a large share of the burden and we appreciate the efforts that those countries have made including the countries on the ridge of the Mediterranean themselves. But, at the same time, we wanted to be clear in this case, as in other refugee cases around the world, that a heavy share of the burden doesn't fall on one or two countries because this should be regarded as a problem for all of us.
Question: Does UN have any suggestions on this, how this quota should be disbursed or it was just a friendly observation?
Deputy Spokesman: It's slightly more than a friendly observation. But, no. We are not there to work out how the precise quotas work out. That is among Governments themselves and we will leave it to them. But, we do urge them to come to an agreement that will be fair and equitable for all. Yes?
Question: Farhan, I just wanted, first of all, to clarify [that] what I was saying was from Geneva International News Agencies saying that the talks are about to fail. It was not my opinion, okay? I wanted to clarify that.
Deputy Spokesman: Sure.
Question: I'm talking about the [inaudible] between India and Pakistan that is going on the border front, especially although Indian Prime Minister talked to [inaudible] and Mr. John Kerry talked to them but it's still… Kashmir has again exploded. And is the Secretary‑General going to call upon India to have some sort of dialog with Pakistan, not necessarily offer anything?
Deputy Spokesman: Well, our hope in this, is that the leaders of the two countries will continue to engage with each other and try to resolve the situation peacefully and amicably and we will see where they go with that. Yes, Nizar?
Question: On the delegation which came from Sana’a and which was too late for them to meet with the Secretary‑General, some of them suggested that they should come to New York and make their issues heard here by the Secretary‑General and the Security Council, as well. Is that something the United Nations would consider doing, should the Geneva Conference fail?
Deputy Spokesman: Well, let's not speculate on what happens with the failure of the Geneva Conference at this stage. Still, the consultations are still going on and what we are focusing on at this stage is making sure that the consultations continue, that the parties stay in Geneva to talk with Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed and then hopefully, eventually with each other, and see whether we can make this consultations process succeed. Yes?
Question: Thank you, Farhan. Briefly, Syria, do you know what opposite armed opposition group you were talking about? Everybody has a gun, but, I mean, who really was dangerous? And in Yemen, is this place or the wrong place to also mention hitting hospitals as the Houthis just did and killing of civilians as the Saudis do from the air regularly? I know the UN says it, but I'm wondering if it's going to come up there.
Deputy Spokesman: It's difficult at this stage to determine all the things that will be discussed at the talks, we are still in the early stage. We have made clear our concerns about the hitting of hospitals, about the ways in which areas of high civilian concentration have been hit, and we are opposed to all these activities by either side. So, we will continue to press those points wherever and whenever we can do that. Regarding the armed opposition elements in Syria, that is as much detail as we have right now. But, Mr. de Mistura has spoken about this several times in recent days. Yes, there are a number of opposition elements. And it was clear in this case that some of the violence in recent days has been from the opposition side and some of it by the Government side. And he has made clear the opposition to all the various attacks. Yes?
Question: Thank you, Farhan. Yesterday, Secretary‑General urged Egypt for a moratorium on death penalties. Do you have any response from them or did the Secretary‑General speak to anybody from the Egyptian Government?
Deputy Spokesman: I don't have anything further from what we said on this yesterday. That still holds. Have a good afternoon, everyone. Wait, Joe, yes?
Question: Yes, in light of the real potential that Greece could default by the end of this month, has the Secretary‑General expressed any concern or has any study been undertaken within the Secretariat as to the wider potential implications? I realize this is now a dispute between Greece, the EU [European Union], the IMF [International Monetary Fund], but it could have more global implications.
Deputy Spokesman: Yes. We are watching the situation. At this stage, of course, we will see how it works out among the various parties, which, of course, includes the International Monetary Fund. But, we will see how this works out and let's hope that they can come to an agreement that is acceptable to all. Yes, Linda?
Question: Thank you, Farhan. Regarding the migrants being resettled in Europe, I thought I heard you say, and correct me if I didn't, that resettling the migrants is a problem for all of us. Does that mean or is there any efforts within the UN to ask other countries, perhaps other continents, Latin America or South America, et cetera, to take on some of these migrants?
Deputy Spokesman: It would be good if the burden… the sharing of the burden could be more equal and spread more broadly, so it doesn't just hit one region, but it can be dispersed more evenly. This is what we tried to do as you know in the Middle East. The problem is, of course, getting other countries and other regions involved. But, this is something that the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) tries to do as a consistent basis and they will continue to try in this case, as well. Yes?
Question: I think the same applies to the migrants of Myanmar, Bangladeshis who are now temporarily taken in by Indonesia and Malaysia. Does the same thing apply?
Deputy Spokesman: Yes, exactly. This is policy across regions, to make sure that the responsibility of dealing with the influx of migrants and refugees is borne by a larger number of nations, not just by a few.
Correspondent: So, there was still a story today that Australians are still offering huge amounts of money to the human traffickers to take these people who are seeking asylum back to the seas and towards other countries, not towards them.
Deputy Spokesman: I'm not aware of the veracity of those reports but certainly you're aware of our opposition to human trafficking in all its forms. Yes?
Question: Thank you, Farhan. I have raised this issue before with Stéphane and he promised to get back to us, so I thought maybe you would have some updates. And it's about Saudi Arabia and the blogger Raif Badawi. They sentenced him to 10 years and also to 1,000 lashes of flogging and many people and world leaders called this a medieval punishment. Is UN going to make an official statement about this? Is UN going to stop this somehow? Like, what is your official reaction to this?
Deputy Spokesman: We have made clear our concerns about the situation of Raif Badawi. The Secretary‑General has mentioned this many months ago, as has the High Commissioner for Human Rights who in particular talked about the level of punishment that was being meted out. And, as you're aware, this form of punishment carries with it severe risks, including the risk that the person involved, Raif Badawi, might not even survive the carrying out of such a sentence. So, we've made those views known to the Saudi authorities as early as, I believe, February; and that continues to be our view today. Yes?
Question: Yesterday, the Bahraini authorities sentenced Sheikh Ali Salman, the Secretary‑General of Al Wefaq political organization, for four years of jail for no offense except for expressing his views. Does the United Nations have anything to say about that?
Deputy Spokesman: I'll check whether we have anything specific about that case. Have a good afternoon.