General Assembly: Meetings Coverage

Continuing its 2018 substantive session, the Disarmament Commission this afternoon elected René Zelený (Czechia) as Vice-Chair by acclamation, thus filling a remaining Bureau vacancy.

The Special Committee on the Situation with regard to the Implementation of the Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples today approved Grenada as the host of its 2018 Pacific Regional Seminar, to be held from 9 to 11 May.

Stressing that road traffic deaths and injuries remained a major public health and development problem with broad social and economic consequences, the Assembly today adopted a draft resolution titled “Improving global road safety”, cautioning that, if left unaddressed, the current situation could affect progress towards the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals.

The General Assembly today adopted five texts on matters with financial implications, ranging from the downgrading of standards of accommodation for staff air travel to the modalities of a special meeting on the global fight against tuberculosis, in line with the recommendations of its Fifth Committee (Administrative and Budgetary).

Citing allegations that illegal toxins had been used in a recent incident in the United Kingdom — and by various parties to Middle East conflicts — delegates today voiced alarm over mounting threats posed by chemical weapons and their nuclear and biological counterparts, as the Disarmament Commission concluded its annual general debate.

As a universal body with a mandate to make every effort to reach consensus, the Disarmament Commission could build on overcoming its 18‑year‑long deadlock to make a unique and constructive contribution to further signs of progress, from the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea’s commitment to denuclearization to the reduction of strategic nuclear forces by the Russian Federation and the United States, delegates heard at the opening of its 2018 session, launching a new 3‑year cycle.

Concluding the first part of its resumed seventy-second session, the Fifth Committee (Administrative and Budgetary) today approved — without a vote — five draft texts, including one on the rationalization of the use of the Organization’s travel resources.

The Permanent Observer of the State of Palestine today urged States to guard against the “creeping danger” of a one-State reality, as the Palestinian Rights Committee considered the situation on the ground in the territory occupied by Israel and the “destabilizing” impact of sharp humanitarian cuts by the United States.

It was important to consider the costs associated with deploying female peacekeepers, post-deployment medical expenses and the unique challenges faced by Blue Helmet personnel working in particularly dangerous environments, speakers said today as the Fifth Committee (Administrative and Budgetary) discussed the findings of a survey on the reimbursement rate for troop- and police-contributing countries.

While the abominable buying and selling of human beings had been abolished some 200 years ago, the nefarious impacts of that practice were still present in everyday realities, speakers stressed today as the General Assembly marked the International Day of Remembrance of the Victims of Slavery and the Transatlantic Slave Trade.