Despite a decline in its production of raw opium in 2000, Afghanistan remained by far the world's largest opium poppy producer, Pino Arlacchi, Executive Director of the United Nations International Drug Control Programme (UNDCP), said at a Headquarters press briefing this afternoon.
The European Union should no longer be seen as merely a group of countries with a large financial capacity, but as a protagonist in the areas of foreign policy, diplomacy, defence policy and particularly all aspects of international peacekeeping operations, correspondents were told at a Headquarters press briefing this afternoon.
Secretary-General Kofi Annan has said that he believes the time had now come for the parties to the Cyprus problem to "move ahead" with meaningful negotiations leading to a comprehensive settlement.
The lifting of the European Union sanctions on Austria was a victory for reason and for Europe, Benita Ferrero-Waldner, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Austria, told correspondents at a Headquarters press conference this afternoon.
As the coordinator of the United Nations system at the country level, its arm for development and its main advocacy tool, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) was going to play the largest role in the implementation of the Millennium Declaration, Associate Administrator Zephirin Diabre told correspondents this afternoon at a Headquarters press briefing.
The Burundi Government's main concern was to reach agreement with the armed opposition to end the civil war between the army and rebel forces by 20 September, Séverin Ntahomvukiye, that country's Minister for External Relations and Cooperation, said at a Headquarters press conference this afternoon.
