Meetings Coverage

The surge in demand for humanitarian assistance in often high-risk environments — geared to support the growing numbers affected by the increase in frequency, scale and scope of emergencies — required effective, sustained and well-financed intervention by the international community, said delegates today during the General Assembly’s annual wide-ranging debate on strengthening the United Nations coordination of humanitarian and disaster relief assistance.

Concluding its 2010 substantive session, the Economic and Social Council today elected members to some of its subsidiary bodies, adopted one draft resolution and postponed consideration of several other items until next year’s session.

In order to continue addressing core peacebuilding priorities in the Central African Republic, the Security Council this morning supported a one-year mandate extension for the United Nations Integrated Office in that country, until 31 December 2011.

The United Nations Mission in the Central African Republic and Chad (MINURCAT) would “lower its flag” at the end of December and start liquidation on 1 January 2011, Youssef Mahmoud, Special Representative of the Secretary-General and Head of Mission told the Security Council today.

Urging the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia to take all possible measures to complete its work, the Security Council today allowed two judges to serve beyond the expiry of their term of office to enable them to complete work on cases in which they were involved.

Decolonization was a remarkable but incomplete chapter in the history of the United Nations, Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon said today as he marked the fiftieth anniversary of the adoption of the Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples by calling on the international community to remain committed to making good on its promise to end colonialism, once and for all.

Calling on the Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot leaders to develop a plan for overcoming remaining differences before the Secretary-General’s visit in January 2011, the Security Council this morning extended the mandate of the United Nations Peacekeeping Force on Cyprus (UNFICYP) until 15 June 2011. By a vote of 14 in favour to 1 against (Turkey), the Council adopted resolution 1953 (2010).

The Security Council, while urging the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda to take all possible measures to complete its work expeditiously, today allowed three of its judges to serve beyond the expiry of their term of office so they could complete work on cases in which they were involved.

Israeli and Palestinian leaders should focus with urgency in the coming year on the essential elements of a “negotiated two-State endgame, for the benefit of both peoples”, the United Nations Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process told the Security Council this morning. “The parties have set for themselves important timelines that have received strong international endorsement and 2011 is the year in which these are to be met,” Robert Serry told the Council.

Concerned over the persistent backlog of reports of States parties awaiting consideration, the Economic and Social Council today adopted a resolution asking its Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights to improve its working methods in order to enable the Council to determine how to address that backlog, including by temporarily giving it more time if necessary, and to report back to the Council’s July 2011 session on efforts to do so.