Meetings Coverage

“Nothing can justify terrorism — ever,” Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon declared at the opening of a high-level meeting of the Security Council today, capped by a presidential statement expressing that body’s deep concern over the terrorist threat and its determination to combat it by all means in all its forms and manifestations, in line with the United Nations Charter and international law.

The Secretary-General’s Special Representative reported to the Security Council this morning that agreements, including a ceasefire, had just been signed in Libreville to contain the latest wave of rebellion in the Central African Republic and define the modalities for power sharing and political transition.

Emerging from protracted negotiations that continued throughout the weekend, the Fifth Committee (Administrative and Budgetary) today wrapped up the main part of its sixty-seventh session by recommending that the General Assembly retain the existing formula for assessing Member States’ financial contributions to the Organization’s regular budget and its peacekeeping operations during the 2013-2015 period.

The General Assembly this evening — resuming a meeting suspended on Friday pending agreement by its Budget Committee — concluded the main part of its sixty-seventh session with the adoption of 22 texts, two of which set the rates Member States will pay for the regular and peacekeeping budgets over the next three years.

The Quadrennial Comprehensive Policy Review of United Nations operational activities for development, and implementation of the outcome document of the Rio+20 United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development, were among the most prominent concerns today as the Second Committee (Economic and Financial) recommended its draft resolutions for adoption by the General Assembly.

The Commission for Social Development held the second meeting of its fifty-first session this afternoon to elect a new Chairman and two Vice Chairpersons.

Affirming that the entrenchment of terrorist and criminal groups in northern Mali posed an urgent threat to that region and the entire international community, the Security Council today authorized the deployment of an African-led mission to support efforts by national authorities to recover the north.

In an open debate on post-conflict peacebuilding today, the Security Council emphasized the importance of inclusivity in advancing nationally owned and led processes and ensuring that the needs of all segments of society were taken into account and best served by an integrated approach based on coherence among political, security, development, human rights, rule of law and justice activities.

The General Assembly today adopted 56 resolutions and 9 decisions recommended by its Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural), including a text strongly condemning “widespread and systematic” gross human rights violations by Syrian authorities and calling on them to immediately end such abuse.

Resuming its substantive session today, the Economic and Social Council filled vacancies on five of its subsidiary bodies, with all new members elected by acclamation.