General Assembly

KUALA LUMPUR, 29 February — Activism and regional support are vital to achieving the aspirations of the Palestinian people, speakers said today, at the conclusion of the International Conference on the Question of Palestine.

KUALA LUMPUR, 28 February — The unilateral announcement by the United States of its vision for ending the Israeli-Palestinian conflict without any attempt at dialogue or negotiation is a mockery of international efforts to resolve the ongoing crisis, the host country’s Prime Minister told the International Conference on the Question of Palestine today.

The Disarmament Commission deferred the start of its 2020 organizational session today, for the second time in as many weeks, reflecting a deepening impasse over the Host Country’s non-issuance of visas to some delegates.

The Special Committee on the Charter of the United Nations and on Strengthening the Role of the Organization concluded its annual session today, adopting its 2020 draft report and forwarding a series of recommendations to the General Assembly.

United Nations support for the right to self-determination — while slower than it was at its historic peak in the twentieth century — remains both a source of pride for the Organization and a crucial pillar of its work going forward, Secretary-General António Guterres told the Special Committee on Decolonization today.

A lasting and peaceful solution to the six-year conflict in the Ukraine can only be achieved through the full implementation of the Minsk agreements, delegates told the General Assembly today, as they discussed ongoing aggression and human rights violations by the occupying Power in Crimea and the city of Sevastopol.

Opening its 2020 session, members of the Special Committee on the Charter of the United Nations and on the Strengthening of the Role of the Organization expressed concern about a rising tide of unilateralism, debated longstanding questions on the merits and legality of sanctions and weighed such novel topics as the role of conciliation in the Organization’s broader dispute resolution toolbox.

Speakers called for more efforts to deploy women in United Nations peace operations worldwide and fully implement the Secretary-General’s strategy to make missions stronger, safer and more effective, as the Special Committee on Peacekeeping Operations concluded its annual general debate today.

The Disarmament Commission deferred the start of its 2020 organizational session meeting for 10 days today to enable the Committee on Relations with the Host Country to address the Russian Federation’s concerns over the non-issuance of delegates’ visas by the United States.

Investing more in training is among the best ways to increase the capacity of United Nations peace operations, while these missions should not be asked to do more with less resources, speakers told the Special Committee on Peacekeeping Operations today at the first meeting of its 2020 substantive session.