A total of 20 donors today announced contributions, or their intention to contribute, to the 2018 budget of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), as officials called for stable financing for the Agency amid devastating conflicts and violence in the Middle East.
Preventing atrocity crimes was not only essential in humanitarian terms but also economically more effective than crisis response, speakers stressed as the General Assembly today opened its debate on the responsibility to protect civilians and avert genocide, war crimes, ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity.
The General Assembly, meeting concurrently with the Security Council today, elected Yuji Iwasawa (Japan) to the International Court of Justice until 5 February 2021.
The Special Committee on Decolonization concluded its 2018 substantive session today, having approved a total of 22 draft resolutions and decisions on lingering self‑determination questions in Non‑Self‑Governing Territories spanning Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean, the South Pacific and beyond for submission to the General Assembly.
The General Assembly today adopted two resolutions, the first of which urged the Russian Federation to unconditionally withdraw its troops and armaments without delay from the territory of the Republic of Moldova.
The Special Committee on Decolonization approved a draft resolution today reiterating that a peaceful and negotiated settlement of the sovereignty dispute between Argentina and the United Kingdom was the only way to end the “special and particular” colonial situation of the Falkland Islands (Malvinas).
Delegates in the Fifth Committee (Administrative and Budgetary) today aired their concerns about the security risks and lagging management reforms that persist throughout the Organization’s Information and Communications Technology (ICT) system more than two years since the Secretary-General began carrying out a five-year plan to modernize the vast network.
With the long-term goal of improving the United Nations worldwide delivery of administrative support services in mind, the Fifth Committee (Administrative and Budgetary) today took up the Secretariat’s proposal to create three shared service centres — in Nairobi, Budapest and Mexico City — to handle dozens of transactional services.
The Special Committee on Decolonization approved two draft resolutions for the General Assembly’s consideration today, as it heard petitioners on the questions of Guam, Turks and Caicos and the United States Virgin Islands.
Spotlighting the impact of Hurricanes Irma and Maria on Puerto Rico’s already serious economic and social challenges — including unemployment, insolvency and poverty — the Special Committee on Decolonization approved a draft resolution today that would call upon the United States to shoulder its responsibility to facilitate the realization of the right of Puerto Ricans to self‑determination.
