This morning the Secretary-General had a good meeting with President Bill Clinton to talk about Haiti and President Clinton’s role as Special Envoy. He specifically asked President Clinton to assume a leadership role in coordinating international aid efforts, from emergency response to reconstruction of Haiti. The Secretary-General said this would require extraordinary leadership; and he said he couldn’t think of a better-suited leader than President Clinton.
In progress at UNHQ
Noon Briefings
The Spokesperson for the Secretary-General would like to clarify erroneous reports about remarks attributed to the Secretary-General and reaffirm his position on Sudan, which is in accordance with the Comprehensive Peace Agreement and the United Nations mandate in Sudan. Any suggestion that the United Nations may have taken a position that may prejudge the outcome of next year's referendum is incorrect.
The Secretary-General is in Cyprus today, where he met separately with Turkish Cypriot leader Mehmet Ali Talat and Greek Cypriot leader Dimitris Christofias, before meeting the two of them together. He made brief remarks at a press conference afterwards and read out a joint statement on behalf of the two leaders.
The Secretary-General is on his way to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, to attend the Fourteenth African Union Summit this weekend. On Sunday, he will deliver an opening address, in which he will highlight the need for African leaders to mobilize behind the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals, especially with the deadline of 2015 fast approaching.
The Secretary-General today addressed the London Conference on Afghanistan, saying that we face a long and complex process of recovery and institution-building in that country. He said the international effort to deal with Afghanistan must be inclusive; it must strengthen governance and meet the basic needs of the Afghan people; it must respect human rights; and it must foster an environment conducive to justice and accountability, where corruption cannot thrive.
“This is really a children’s emergency. You know, in Haiti, 40 per cent of the population is under 14, so the number of children affected is really huge. And what we’re doing is for the moment very much focusing on life-saving operations,” Dr. Guido Cornale, Country Director for United Nations Children’s Fund, told reporters today during a video link briefing on Haiti.
Thousands of civilians have had to flee their homes in the North Kivu Province of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The UN refugee agency says that it has registered more than 15,500 newly displaced persons since mid‑December. Those displaced are fleeing the negative repercussions of a Government military campaign against Rwandan rebels, as well as widespread banditry.
The Secretary-General strongly condemns the bomb attacks in Baghdad today that have killed dozens of people and injured scores more. No cause can justify these attacks on civilian targets. He extends his heartfelt condolences to the Government of Iraq and to the victims of these criminal acts, as well as to their families.
In July last year, the United Nations submitted to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Israel a claim for reimbursement for the losses that the United Nations had sustained in a number of incidents that occurred during the Gaza conflict of 27 December 2008 to 19 January 2009. Pursuant to an arrangement reached, the Government of Israel has made a payment of $10.5 million to the United Nations in respect of the losses sustained.
The UN Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH) is welcoming the establishment of a humanitarian corridor between the Dominican Republic and the Republic of Haiti -- that is between Santo Domingo and Port-au-Prince. And this will allow the speedy delivery of aid to the areas most affected by the earthquake. And the Mission, as well as the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), says that the security situation remains under control.