Almost eight years after the Security Council mandated the destruction of Syria’s chemical weapons programme, the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, tasked with effectuating that goal, continues to face challenges, including unaddressed discrepancies and insufficient cooperation, the senior United Nations disarmament official told the Security Council today.
The Fourth Committee (Special Political and Decolonization) today heard introductory statements and held interactive discussions on the work of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) and the Special Committee tasked with investigating Israeli practices affecting human rights in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, while also beginning its consideration of agenda items related to the issue of decolonization.
Instead of racing to contain the coronavirus pandemic, a number of nations have entered a deadly arms race, delegates said today, as the First Committee (Disarmament and International Security) began its general debate.
The rights of women and children are a central focus of Government policymaking as countries work to close the social fissures ripped wide open by the COVID-19 pandemic, delegates in the Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian, Cultural) said today, amid calls for greater cooperation in the response plans.
Delegates in the Fifth Committee (Administrative and Budgetary) today stressed the need to share responsibility for the Organization’s financial stability to avert any liquidity crisis and achieve the essential mandates laid out by the General Assembly.
Haiti’s Foreign Minister today called upon the Security Council to strengthen the capacity of the United Nations special political mission in that country in supporting Government efforts in the areas of security and protection of civilians.
The Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) continued its general debate today, with delegates expressing concerns about the economic and social toll exacted by COVID-19 on the free expression of human rights and drawing attention to the ways their countries are working to meet the needs of the most vulnerable as they emerge from the crisis.
The Second Committee (Economic and Financial) of the United Nations General Assembly held its first meeting of the seventy‑sixth session today, introducing the Bureau and approving its organization of work.
The Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) opened its seventy-sixth session today, with delegates emphasizing the importance of protecting the most vulnerable groups — women, children, older persons, indigenous people and minorities among them — as the pandemic continued to claim lives and livelihoods around the globe.
The First Committee (Disarmament and International Security) met for a brief organizational meeting today, approving its agenda and work programme for the seventy‑sixth session of the General Assembly.
