By violating the last de‑escalation zone in the Syria conflict, the Russian Federation and Iran are not demonstrating a commitment to protecting civilian lives, and it is absurd to think the world will pay for reconstruction as they pummel Idlib, the representative of the United States told the Security Council today.
The intergovernmental conference drafting a legally binding treaty under the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea governing marine biodiversity in ocean waters beyond national jurisdiction entered its second week at Headquarters today with speakers discussing turning their attention to how the instrument will address environmental impact assessments.
The General Assembly adopted three resolutions today, including one on the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD), which it passed by a recorded vote of 159 in favour to 2 against, (Dominican Republic, United States) with no abstentions.
In its first‑ever meeting to address the links between corruption and conflict, the Security Council today considered ways to effectively disrupt the illicit siphoning of money by leaders and other practices that weaken State institutions, thereby making a country susceptible to conflict.
Member States shared views today on area-based management tools, including marine protected areas, during the fourth day of the intergovernmental conference to draft a legally binding treaty on the conservation and sustainable use of high seas biological diversity.
The Syrian Government and its partners — currently poised at the brink of a massive military strike against the north‑west province of Idlib — must urgently rethink its strategy, the Security Council heard today, as delegates sounded the alarm about such repercussions as mass civilian casualties and the flood of up to 700,000 refugees into neighbouring countries, Europe and beyond.
The question of whether the world’s first treaty to conserve and protect marine diversity on the high seas should include an indicative and non‑exhaustive list of types of capacity‑building and transfer of technology dominated today’s discussions at the intergovernmental conference tasked with drafting that legally binding instrument.
The 2018 International Media Seminar on Peace in the Middle East concluded today with two panel discussions, one exploring media coverage of the Palestinian refugee story 70 years after the Nakba, and the other focused on the protection of journalists covering the Israeli‑Palestinian conflict.
Commemorating the International Day against Nuclear Tests today, delegates in the General Assembly evoked the catastrophic consequences and suffering caused by the testing and use of nuclear weapons, as they urged countries that have not done so to sign the Comprehensive Nuclear‑Test‑Ban Treaty.
Despite progress being made, not only was the international community’s confidence in Syria’s full elimination of its chemical weapons programme dependent upon the United Nations being able to close outstanding issues, but the lack of an accountability mechanism was a missing step in taking to task those responsible for using chemical weapons, a senior United Nations disarmament official told the Security Council today.
