Noon Briefings

The Secretary-General arrived in Vienna this morning. He has been holding talks with Austrian officials, including Foreign Minister Michael Spindelegger. They discussed, among other topics, the Millennium Development Goals, disarmament, the Balkans and peacekeeping. The Secretary-General also addressed a conference on fighting corruption. The event is part of the founding conference for the new International Anti-Corruption Academy, which will open soon.

The Secretary-General condemns the killing of four Israeli citizens in the West Bank on 31 August. He extends his condolences to the families of the victims and calls for the perpetrators of this crime to be promptly brought to justice. This attack must be recognized for what it is: a cynical and blatant attempt to undermine the direct Israeli-Palestinian negotiations starting tomorrow.

This morning, the Secretary-General spoke at the launch of the Global Plan of Action against Trafficking in Persons here at UN Headquarters. Describing the Plan of Action as a clarion call, he said that despite steps taken to stop human trafficking, a common, coordinated and consistent approach must be taken and a Plan of Action will help to achieve exactly that.

The Secretary-General welcomes the fully independent review of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) conducted by the InterAcademy Council, which was released this morning. He has expressed his gratitude to the Council for conducting this review of the working practices of the IPCC, which he co-commissioned with the Chairman of the IPCC in March. He also firmly maintains that the fundamental science on climate change remains sound.

The Secretary-General welcomes the release of a US national during the visit to Pyongyang by former US President Jimmy Carter. He appreciates the decision of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea to release Mr. Aijalon Mahli Gomes on humanitarian considerations. The Secretary-General commends former President Carter for his humanitarian mission.

The Security Council today, through a press statement, expressed their outrage at the recent case of mass rape in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. They also welcomed the Secretary-General’s decision to dispatch Assistant Secretary-General Atul Khare to the country, and his instruction to his Special Representative on Sexual Violence in Conflict, Margot Wallström, to coordinate follow-up. Both officials will brief the Council on their findings.

The Secretary-General addressed the Security Council during its open debate on Somalia piracy this morning. He said that more could be done and he added that that would require political and financial commitment from Member States. He set out seven possible options to further the aim of prosecuting and imprisoning persons responsible for acts of piracy and armed robbery at sea off the coast of Somalia. The Council later adopted a presidential statement.

The Secretary-General is outraged by the rape and assault of at least 154 Congolese civilians, during an attack by armed elements of the Mai-Mai and the Forces démocratiques de libération du Rwanda, in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. This is another grave example of both the level of sexual violence and the insecurity that continue to plague the DRC. He calls on the Government to investigate and bring to the perpetrators justice.

United Nations agencies are continuing their work to provide relief in Pakistan, even as the floods there continue to affect more than 15 million people. To date, the World Food Programme has reached about 1.3 million people with a one-month emergency ration of food. But the agency says that approximately 6 million people in all are expected to require food assistance over the next three months.

The Quartet issued a statement today at 11 a.m. United States Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and United States Presidential Envoy George Mitchell also extended an oral invitation to the parties to join in launching direct negotiations on 2 September in Washington.