The following statement was issued today by the Spokesman for UN Secretary-General António Guterres:

The following Security Council press statement was issued today by Council President Jerry Matthews Matjila (South Africa):

Following are UN Secretary-General António Guterres’ remarks to the Fifth Committee (Administrative and Budgetary Committee) on the proposed programme budget for 2020, in New York today:

With international terrorist groups increasingly turning to online platforms to spread messages of hate, influence potential recruits and coordinate attacks, delegations today underscored that a holistic, global response was crucial in combatting the threat, as the Sixth Committee (Legal) took up the Secretary‑General’s report on measures to eliminate international terrorism (document A/74/151).

The launch of a credible Constitutional Committee for Syria should be the beginning of a political process to end the conflict in that country in accordance with the legitimate aspirations of all its people, the Security Council said in a presidential statement today.

Marking the one‑year anniversary of the signing of South Sudan’s latest peace agreement, the Security Council reaffirmed today the importance of that pact for sustained peace and stability in the country, calling for accelerated progress towards its implementation.

Wealth inequality, inadequate international financing and reduced official development assistance (ODA) continue to hamper developing countries in progressing towards implementing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, speakers told the Second Committee (Economic and Financial) as it began its general debate today.

Sustainable development cannot be achieved without gender equality and a meaningful enhancement in women’s political participation, delegates told the Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) today as it continued its debate on the advancement of women, amid calls for action against gender-based violence and more concerted efforts to prevent the exploitation of female migrants.

Due to visa issuance problems experienced by the delegation of Iran, the Sixth Committee (Legal), in two brief organizational meetings, was unable to adopt its programme of work for the seventy‑fourth session, resulting in the Chair adjourning the meeting to the following day.

Delegates at the Fifth Committee (Administrative and Budgetary) opened their seventy‑fourth session with the election of Andreas D. Mavroyiannis of Cyprus as their chairman as they urged each other to collaborate to handle a heavy workload that includes preparing the Organization’s first annual budget.