Meetings Coverage

The peace process in the Central African Republic had reached a critical stage, with progress hinged on the successful holding of elections and the completion of the disarmament, demobilization and reintegration of some 8,000 former combatants, both of which had so far met with delay, the Security Council heard today.

The Security Council committee monitoring implementation of sanctions on Iran was continuing to examine reported violations and was ready to carry out the tasks assigned to it by the 9 June Council resolution that imposed a fourth round of sanctions against that country, its Chairman told the Council this afternoon.

Tackling complex development issues required pragmatic decision-making, the President of the Economic and Social Council said today, challenging diplomats to come up with straightforward solutions to the need for higher standards of living and greater socio-economic progress, especially for women, as the 54-member body opened the high-Level segment of its 2010 substantive session.

Concluding its 2010 session, the Special Committee on Decolonization unanimously approved today a draft resolution, which, if adopted by the General Assembly, would pave the way for the Third International Decade for the Eradication of Colonialism beginning in 2011, as well as a draft decision by which the Assembly would designate 14 December as the day for commemorating the fiftieth anniversary of the Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples.

As the third Global Compact Leader’s Summit concluded this afternoon, more than 1,200 corporate executives, Government ministers, civil society leaders and other participants vowed to step up their efforts to build a sustainable and inclusive global economy, at what they called a critical moment in history.

After hearing petitioners on the question of the Falkland Islands (Malvinas) as well as a statement by the Foreign Minister of Argentina, the Special Committee on Decolonization recommended today that the General Assembly reiterate its call for direct negotiations between Argentina and the United Kingdom over that Non-Self-Governing Territory.

Acting on the recommendations of its Fifth Committee (Administrative and Budgetary), the General Assembly this afternoon adopted a peacekeeping budget of $7.2 billion for the period from 1 July 2010 to 30 June 2011.

Meeting in a special event on the beleaguered nation of Haiti today, the Economic and Social Council heard updates on the start-up last week of the Interim Haitian Reconstruction Commission and the steering committee for its companion fund, and considered ways to optimize the coordination and coherence of its own actions for the country, which first found its way onto the Council’s agenda in 1999.

Businesses and global corporations were stepping up their efforts to become more ethical, sustainable and responsible at just the right moment, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said today, hailing good corporate citizenship as one of the keys to overcoming complex and interlinked crisis — from financial market meltdown to environmental degradation — and to unlocking long-term growth and development for all.

Expressing deep concern that colonialism had not yet been totally eradicated 50 years after the General Assembly adopted the seminal Declaration on Decolonization, the “Special Committee of 24” unanimously approved today a draft resolution reaffirming the obligations of all administering Powers to create the necessary economic, social and other conditions to enable Non-Self-Governing Territories under their purview to achieve genuine self-government and economic self-reliance.