Closing its annual session today, the Committee on Information approved two draft resolutions, the second of which also stresses that Member States should refrain from using information and communications technology in contravention of international law, including the Charter of the United Nations.
The Forum on Forests closed its fourteenth session today, approving a draft decision that its fifteenth session will be held at Headquarters from 4 to 8 May 2020, as well as a document containing that session’s provisional agenda — all to be sent to the Economic and Social Council for adoption.
The General Assembly decided today to convene a high-level conference in Lisbon from 2 to 6 June 2020 that will focus on the conservation and sustainable use of the oceans, seas and marine resources in the context of the Sustainable Development Goals.
Convening on the penultimate day of the United Nations Forum on Forests’ fourteenth session, delegates considered efforts to streamline sustainable forest management and respect for biodiversity across the work of Governments, regional groups and industries, with speakers diverging on the importance of ensuring a fully synchronized global approach to such endeavours.
Continuing their consideration of the Secretary-General’s proposed budget of $6.6 billion for United Nations peacekeeping operations in 2019/20, speakers in the Fifth Committee (Administrative and Budgetary) expressed hope today that delegations will, for the first time in three years, achieve consensus on cross-cutting issues, including ongoing efforts to combat sexual exploitation and abuse.
A fully operational secretariat is essential for the Forum on Forests to fulfil its important mandate as the only global voice on policy, conservation and sustainable management of the world’s woodlands, delegates stressed today as they voiced concerns over proposals for its restructuring under broader reforms taking place in the Department of Economic and Social Affairs.
With clashes continuing across Libya amid persisting impunity for war crimes, urgent action is needed to end the hostilities and ensure a return to negotiations on restoring peace and justice, the International Criminal Court’s Chief Prosecutor told the Security Council today.
The senior United Nations official in Bosnia and Herzegovina urged the Federation’s leaders today to abandon destabilizing and divisive rhetoric, create governments at the local, state and federal levels, and keep the country moving forward along the path to integration with the European Union.
The Security Council underscored the importance of peacekeeping as one of the most effective tools available to the United Nations in the promotion and maintenance of international peace and security.
As its regular budget continues to face severe liquidity issues, the United Nations is depending on Member States meeting their financial obligations in full and on time to deliver on its mandate, the head of the Organization’s management department told the Fifth Committee (Administrative and Budgetary) today as she laid out the Organization’s semi-annual financial situation.
