Following are Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s remarks to the General Assembly of the International Association of Economic and Social Councils and Similar Institutions (AICESIS), 6 July, in New York:

Following are UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s remarks to the Security Council, today, 7 July, in New York:

The United Nations African Meeting on the Question of Palestine closed today in Rabat, Morocco, with a call to the Security Council to act to prevent the further deterioration of conditions in East Jerusalem due to Israeli efforts to unilaterally change the character of the City.

On 30 June, at the first biannual meeting of the Non-Governmental Organizations Committee, 62 non-governmental organizations were associated with the United Nations Department of Public Information.

Opening a day-long debate on the protection of civilians in armed conflict today, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon told the Security Council that it must broaden its focus to both causative and normative factors in order to address a “huge common challenge”, as non-combatants remained targeted around the world.

Following are Deputy Secretary-General Asha-Rose Migiro’s remarks to the panel discussion on the role of the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNICTRAL) at the national and international levels, 7 July, in New York:

Marking the 2010 International Year for Biodiversity, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today designated two-time Academy Award-nominated actor Edward Norton as a United Nations Goodwill Ambassador for biodiversity.

The following statement was issued today by the Spokesperson for UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon:

Following is UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s message for Nelson Mandela Day, to be observed on 18 July:

With the world economy still reeling from the profound repercussions of the global economic crisis, which had rocked financial markets in the North and threatened to reverse recent gains in developing countries, the Economic and Social Council today examined the United Nations short- and long-term response, which was seen as critical to the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals.