The Secretary-General spoke separately by telephone today with Roza Otunbaeva, Chairperson of the Interim Government of Kyrgyzstan, and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. He told Ms. Otunbaeva the United Nations was closely coordinating with others to respond to the humanitarian crisis in the south of Kyrgyzstan. In his call with Mr. Lavrov, he expressed appreciation for Russia's efforts to address the alarming humanitarian situation.
In progress at UNHQ
Noon Briefings
The Secretary-General spoke by telephone on Saturday with the Foreign Minister of Kazakhstan, Kanat Saudabayev, who is the Chairman-in-Office of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), and they discussed the growing tensions in Kyrgyzstan. The Secretary-General said he was alarmed by the scale of the clashes, the inter-ethnic nature of the violence, the mounting casualties and the large number of displaced people.
The Secretary-General is in South Africa today, where he has been attending the FIFA World Cup opening ceremony and the opening match at the Soccer City Stadium in Johannesburg. He regards this World Cup tournament as a major landmark for the people of Africa, and was thrilled to be able to experience the exuberance of the opening ceremony and match.
The Secretary-General arrived in Yaoundé, Cameroon, around midnight from Burundi, and he has another full programme today on the latest leg of his second Africa trip this month. He has already held talks with President Paul Biya and he is scheduled to visit a project site at Mbalmayo outside Yaoundé.
The Security Council this morning adopted a resolution increasing sanctions on Iran, by a vote of 12 in favour, 2 against, which were Brazil and Turkey, and 1 abstention, which was Lebanon. In the resolution, the Council affirms that Iran has so far failed to meet the requirements of the International Atomic Energy Agency’s Board of Governors.
The Secretary-General has arrived in South Africa, at the start of his second trip to the continent this month. He will meet President Jacob Zuma of South Africa for bilateral talks. Very early on Wednesday morning, the Secretary-General will fly to Bujumbura for an official visit to Burundi. He will meet the President, Pierre Nkurunziza, and other officials.
The Secretary-General arrived in Washington, D.C. last night and this morning delivered the opening address at the “Women Deliver” 2010 Conference. That Conference brings together 3,500 participants from 140 countries, in what the organizers describe as the largest ever conference on maternal health. “When we work together, we succeed,” he told the Conference.
The Secretary-General, here at UN Headquarters, this morning addressed a meeting on increasing the participation of women in UN police operations.
The Secretary-General was deeply shocked to learn of the death in Kinshasa of Floribert Chebeya, President of La Voix des Sans Voix (The Voice of the Voiceless). Mr. Chebeya was a well-known and widely respected human rights defender in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
In Geneva, the Human Rights Council today decided to send an independent international fact-finding mission to investigate violations of international law resulting from the Israeli attack on a humanitarian aid flotilla bound for Gaza.