Press Conference

The United Nations should play “a particular role” in Afghanistan’s national reconciliation process, Hervé Morin, Minister for Defence of France, said today following a day of meetings with United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations Alain Le Roy.

The global economic and financial crisis had led to shortfalls in aid, trade and debt, notably in Africa, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said at a Headquarters press conference today, while emphasizing that renewed commitment to a global partnership for development was crucial for filling those gaps ahead of 2015.

Despite the enormous scale of mental illness around the world, those suffering from such conditions were often among the most marginalized groups in developing countries, according to a new report released today by the World Health Organization (WHO).

At a headquarters press conference today, United Nations Office for Partnerships Executive Director Amir Dossal said that each year since 2005 the Blouin Creative Leadership Summit provided a platform for innovators, experts, and Nobel laureates to find new ways of addressing the Millennium Development Goals.

As Pakistan’s disastrous flooding continued to spread, the new United Nations humanitarian chief said today that she planned to ask donors this Friday to scale up funding for humanitarian assistance to the growing number of victims. “More people are turning to us for help, and as a world community we need to respond,” Valerie Amos, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, said at a Headquarters press conference.

The incoming President of the General Assembly, in his first Headquarters press conference this afternoon, expressed hope that the sixty-fifth session would reaffirm the central place of the United Nations in global governance. “All the big topics that concern our planet have to be discussed in the General Assembly,” Joseph Deiss of Switzerland said following his opening of the sixty-fifth session in the Assembly Hall.

Following is a transcript of UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s press conference held in New York today, 13 September:

Welcoming the General Assembly’s accomplishments over the past 12 months – especially the spirit of consensus shown by Member States on issues ranging from achievement of the Millennium Development Goals to ensuring long-term support for disaster-struck Haiti and Pakistan — Ali Abdussalam Treki, the 192-member body’s outgoing President, today said there was nevertheless “room for improvement,” especially to strengthen it’s working methods and reassert its authority on the international stage.

Two reports launched today by the United Nations Children’s Fund stressed that targeting the world’s poorest children and communities with health interventions could save millions of lives each year and provide a more equitable, practical, cost-effective path to achieving the Millennium Development Goals by the 2015 deadline.

While progress had made in implementing the United Nations Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy, implementation had not moved as fast as many had hoped, said Jean-Paul Laborde, Chair of the Counter-Terrorism Implementation Task Force, as he urged States to implement the Strategy’s four pillars: to address conditions conducive to the spread of terrorism; prevent and combat terrorism; build State capacity; and respect human rights and the rule of law.