PRESS BRIEFING BY PRESIDENT OF SECURITY COUNCIL

The 15 members of the Security Council would spend Saturday and Sunday viewing first-hand the political and security challenges faced by the United Nations Interim Administration in Kosovo (UNMIK), Anwarul Karim Chowdhury (Bangladesh), President of the Security Council, told correspondents today at a Headquarters press briefing.

DAILY PRESS BRIEFING BY THE OFFICE OF THE SPOKESMAN FOR THE SECRETARY-GENERAL

The following is a near-verbatim transcript of today’s noon briefing by Manoel de Almeida e Silva, Deputy Spokesman for the Secretary-General.

**Secretary-General’s Trip to the Middle East

I am going to start with the Secretary-General’s mission to the Middle East.

HEADQUARTERS PRESS BRIEFING ON CONFLICT PREVENTION

HEADQUARTERS PRESS CONFERENCE BY 'GROUP OF 77' DEVELOPING COUNTRIES

The "Group of 77" developing countries and China (G-77), as the deliberative body and collective negotiating arm of the developing world, had championed the cause of the South within the bigger United Nations family for 37 years and maintained its solidarity in the face of tumultuous global change, the G-77 Chairman for 2001, Bagher Asadi (Iran), said today at a Headquarters press conference.

DAILY PRESS BRIEFING BY THE OFFICE OF THE SPOKESMAN FOR THE SECRETARY-GENERAL

The following is a near-verbatim transcript of today’s noon briefing by Manoel de Almeida e Silva, Deputy Spokesman for the Secretary-General.

PRESS BRIEFING BY UNITED NATIONS VOLUNTEER PROGRAMME

The annual report of the United Nations Volunteer Programme (UNV) for the year 2000, Reaching Out, was launched today at a Headquarters press briefing by Sharon Capeling-Alakija, Executive Coordinator of the UNV.

DAILY PRESS BRIEFING BY THE OFFICE OF THE SPOKESMAN FOR THE SECRETARY-GENERAL

The following is a near-verbatim transcript of today’s noon briefing by Manoel de Almeida e Silva, Deputy Spokesman for the Secretary-General.

Good afternoon.  Thank you for coming.

**Secretary-General’s Trip to the United Kingdom

Let me start with the Secretary-General, who is in the United Kingdom, as you know.

DAILY PRESS BRIEFING BY THE OFFICE OF THE SPOKESMAN FOR THE SECRETARY-GENERAL

The following is a near-verbatim transcript of today’s noon briefing by Manoel de Almeida e Silva, Deputy Spokesman for the Secretary-General, and Sue Markham, Spokesperson for the President of the General Assembly.

Deputy Spokesman for the Secretary-General

Good afternoon, thank you for coming.

**Secretary-General’s Trip to United Kingdom

HEADQUARTERS PRESS BRIEFING ON KOSOVO

The United Nations Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK) was a live example of two institutions –- the European Union and the United Nations -- working together to achieve a common goal, Andy Bearpark, Deputy Special Representative of the Secretary-General and European Union Representative in Kosovo, told correspondents this afternoon at a Headquarters press briefing.

PRESS CONFERENCE BY US COMMITTEE FOR REFUGEES

It was difficult today -- on World Refugee Day -- to be celebrating the fiftieth anniversary of the 1951 Refugee Convention, at a time when the key United Nations agency mandated to support refugees was being starved for funds, Bill Frelick, Director of Policy, United States Committee for Refugees, told correspondents at a Headquarters press conference this morning.