Plenary

The General Assembly today unanimously adopted two draft resolutions: one on the 2012 report of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and another regarding sports and peace and development.

Nuclear technology was fuelling countries’ efforts towards harnessing clean, cost-effective energy sources to help them in meeting the Millennium Development Goals, delegates in the General Assembly heard during the start of a two-day debate on the latest report of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

Hailing the International Court of Justice and the International Criminal Court as leading examples of ending impunity, delegates in the General Assembly today examined reports on recent achievements and elaborated on challenges ahead during a day-long debate.

The General Assembly today elected 18 members of the Economic and Social Council to serve three-year terms beginning 1 January 2014.

The General Assembly, voting nearly-unanimously, adopted its twenty-second consecutive resolution calling for an end to the United States’ decades-long economic, commercial and financial embargo against Cuba.

For African countries to continue to amass success stories towards achieving the Millennium Development Goals by the 2015 target date, the international community must deliver on commitments, building upon positive developments and promising prospects for economic growth, speakers said during the General Assembly’s joint debate today on the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) and the decade to roll back malaria in developing countries, particularly on the continent.

The General Assembly today adopted a resolution endorsing the construction at Headquarters of a permanent memorial to honour the victims of slavery and the transatlantic slave trade, and encouraging Member States and other interested parties to contribute to the Trust Fund set up to pay for it.

In one round of voting, the General Assembly today elected Chad, Chile, Lithuania, Nigeria and Saudi Arabia to serve as non-permanent members of the Security Council for the next two years.

The ideal of a world where accountability was the expectation, and not the exception, had become a reality, despite challenges of arresting fugitives and staff retention, the General Assembly heard today as the Presidents of the International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals and the International Criminal Tribunals for Rwanda and for Former Yugoslavia presented their annual reports.

In a consensus text adopted today, the General Assembly resolved that the post-2015 agenda should reinforce the international community’s commitment to poverty eradication and sustainable development.