This morning, the President of the Security Council issued a presidential statement noting the steady progress made in Sierra Leone on national reconciliation and gender equality. She called on all parties to foster an environment conducive to the holding of free and fair elections.

At a press conference with Geneva-based international media today, the Secretary-General said the Syrian situation was looking calmer and that today was a critical moment for ending the violence. But, he added, the world was watching with sceptical eyes since many previous promises have not been kept.

We issued a statement on the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea in which the Secretary-General said that despite its failure, the launch of a so-called “application satellite” by the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea was deplorable as it defied the firm and unanimous stance of the international community. He said that today’s launch was in direct violation of Security Council resolution 1874 (2009) and threatened regional stability.

The first group of United Nations monitors arrived in Damascus and has begun working. Early tasks include liaising with Syrian authorities and security forces, as well as the opposition. The Secretary-General again urged the Government to end the violence, voicing his expectation that political dialogue will continue.

17 April 2012

Spokesperson's Noon Briefing

Department of Public Information • News and Media Division • New York

Daily Press Briefing by the Office of the Spokesperson for the Secretary-General

The following is a near-verbatim transcript of today’s noon briefing by Eduardo del Buey, Deputy Spokesperson for the Secretary-General.

Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen.  Welcome to the noon briefing.

The United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR) today launched a new initiative to support cities around the world to manage risk, following the worst year on record for economic losses from disasters of $380 billion. The new online tool, which has been tested in over 20 cities around the world, is part of its global “Making Cities Resilient” campaign.

The Secretary-General began the day in Washington, D.C., at the World Bank with a meeting with its President, Robert Zoellick. He then attended a meeting on Rio+20 with the world's leading finance ministers and later delivered the keynote address at an event entitled “Delivering Sustainable Energy for All: Opportunities at Rio+20”.

The Secretary-General began the day in Washington, D.C., at the World Bank with a meeting with its President, Robert Zoellick. He then attended a meeting on Rio+20 with the world's leading finance ministers and later delivered the keynote address at an event entitled “Delivering Sustainable Energy for All: Opportunities at Rio+20”.

Every minute one child dies from malaria and every year 216 million people are newly affected with the preventable disease, and an increase in collaboration and partnerships, as well as additional funding, was needed to boost efforts to fight the disease, correspondents were told at a Headquarters press conference today.

This morning, Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs Lynn Pascoe told the Security Council that achieving a full and sustained cessation of violence and seeking a peaceful resolution to the crisis in Syria is at the centre of our efforts in the Middle East. He also said that achieving peace for Israelis and Palestinians is an undiminished priority.