By the terms of one of six draft resolutions that the Second Committee (Economic and Financial) approved this afternoon, the General Assembly would express serious concern at the lack of progress in the Doha Round of World Trade Organization negotiations and would reiterate the call for the necessary flexibility and political will needed to break the current impasse in the negotiations.
In the four months since the adoption of resolution 2165 (2014), the United Nations had sent humanitarian aid to nearly all hard-to-reach locations in Syria’s four governorates, primarily through cross-border deliveries, but “considerable” challenges remained in accessing the most besieged areas, the Security Council heard today.
As the Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) approved 18 draft resolutions, with 14 without a vote, delegations voiced concerns regarding four texts including one on the report of the Human Rights Council, debating whether that body had been politicized, thus undermining its legitimacy and credibility.
Offering a range of solutions for moving the Middle East peace process forward, while regretting the steps backward due to escalation of violence in recent months, the General Assembly adopted six draft resolutions today by recorded vote on the question of Palestine and the situation in the Middle East overall.
Sanctions regimes have been proven to be a valuable tool for the maintenance of international peace and security, but continuous improvement was needed for better targeting, awareness, respect for rights and partnership, the Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs told the Security Council today.
The Security Council today extended the mandate of the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) until 30 May 2015, authorizing it to use “all necessary means” to carry out its civilian protection, human rights and humanitarian assistance duties, and to support the 2014 Cessation of Hostilities Agreement between the new Government and Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM).
The Security Council this morning extended the mandate of the United Nations Integrated Peace Building Office in Guinea-Bissau (UNIOGBIS) for three months until 28 February 2015, as it awaits an assessment report to decide on mandate adjustments.
In a briefing to the Security Council today, the Chair of the “1591” Committee on Sudan detailed recent discussions aimed at identifying information gaps and capacity-building requirements related to the travel ban, assets freeze and arms embargo in place against the North African country since 2005.
International efforts to keep weapons of mass destruction out of the hands of non-State actors must be continually strengthened through stepped‑up engagement by Member States, the outgoing head of the Security Council’s subsidiary body on the issued, known as the 1540 Committee, said this afternoon.
This year of solidarity with the Palestinians, in which the international community sought to achieve their right to live as a free people in their homeland, had instead seen the peace process collapse and conditions deteriorate due to Israel’s illegal actions, the General Assembly heard today as it opened an annual two-day debate on the question of Palestine and the situation in the Middle East.
