Conference arrangements
Venue of the Conference
The Third United Nations Conference on the Exploration and Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (UNISPACE III) will be held from 19 to 30 July 1999 at the Vienna International Centre (VIC) (Wagramer Strasse 5, A-1220 Vienna, Austria) and at the Austria Center Vienna, which is adjacent to the VIC.
It takes approximately 10 minutes to arrive at the VIC from the centre of Vienna by underground transport (U- Bahn) on the U-1 line and around 20 minutes (depending on the traffic) to arrive at the VIC from the centre of the city or from Vienna International Airport by taxi. (For additional information concerning access to the Conference premises, see section XVIII below.)
Executive Secretariat of the Conference
The Office for Outer Space Affairs of the Secretariat will serve as the executive secretariat of the Conference. It may be contacted by telephone ((+43 1) 26060-4950), by fax ((+43 1) 26060-5830), by e-mail (OOSA@unov.un.or.at), by accessing its home page (http://www.un.or.at/OOSA) or by writing to the following address:
Office for Outer Space Affairs
United Nations Office at Vienna
Vienna International Centre
P.O. Box 500
A-1400 Vienna, Austria
Pre-Conference consultations
Pre-Conference consultations to reach informal agreement on the recommendations of the Preparatory Committee for UNISPACE III on organizational and procedural matters will be held on Sunday, 18 July 1999, at 10.30 a.m in Hall E of the Austria Center Vienna. The consultations will be open to all Member States.
Opening of the Conference
The formal opening of the Conference will take place on Monday, 19 July 1999, at 10 a.m. in Hall A of the Austria Center Vienna. Delegates are requested to be in their seats by 9.45 a.m.
Programme of meetings
The programme of meetings is set out in the final Programme of the Conference (booklet). In addition, the programme of meetings will appear in the Journal of the Conference, which will be issued on a daily basis, specifying the conference rooms and times of all meetings. That information will also be shown on television monitors in the Austria Center Vienna and in the VIC (Building C).
Organization of work of the Conference
The work of the Conference itself will take place in the Plenary, in Committee I and in Committee II, in accordance with the rules of procedure of the Conference. In general, meetings of the Plenary, Committee I and Committee II will be conducted in parallel in the Austria Center Vienna. An indicative (tentative) schedule of work for each of those three bodies is contained in annex I to the annotated provisional agenda of the Conference (A/CONF.184/1) and in the final Programme of the Conference (booklet).
Technical Forum
In addition to the Plenary, Committee I and Committee II, the Conference will establish a Technical Forum as a technical body of the Conference, pursuant to its rules of procedure. The Technical Forum will deal with technical presentations relating to the agenda of the Conference, as well as additional components of the Conference, such as workshops and seminars, the space exhibition and the Space Generation Forum. The Conference may, in addition, request that any substantive agenda item be dealt with in the Technical Forum.
The Technical Forum will be presided over by the Chairman of the Technical Forum, who will be responsible for the general conduct of the business of the Forum and the coordination of its work. The Chairman of the Technical Forum will report to the intergovernmental bodies of the Conference on the work of the technical presentation sessions and workshops dealing with substantive items, as well as other activities organized within the Technical Forum that are deemed important to the work of the Conference, and will forward for consideration or information, as appropriate, summaries of conclusions or proposals of the various bodies of the Technical Forum.
The organizers of each activity of the Technical Forum will appoint a chairman, rapporteur and any other officers for the activity as may be deemed necessary for the conduct of its work.
A full report of each activity of the Technical Forum will be issued as a conference document to be circulated after the Conference and also included in the proceedings of the Conference. The reports should be made available to the Secretariat by 6 September 1999. In addition, where it is considered appropriate, for each activity a summary of conclusions or proposals might be prepared, to be submitted to the intergovernmental bodies of the Conference for consideration. Each summary will be translated into the languages of the Conference and should be limited to one page. The rapporteur for each activity will be responsible for submitting the summary through the executive secretariat to the Chairman of the Technical Forum in time for its consideration by the intergovernmental bodies of the Conference and for ensuring that it does not duplicate proposals already contained in the draft report of the Conference. Rapporteurs are also encouraged to provide, with the assistance of the executive secretariat, written highlights of their activities for use in daily press releases. Additional organizational details for the Technical Forum activities will be communicated separately to activity organizers by the executive secretariat.
Detailed information on each of the various activities of the Technical Forum is set out in the final Programme of the Conference (booklet) and may also be found on the home page of the Office for Outer Space Affairs (http://www. un.or.at/OOSA).
Seating arrangements
At the opening of the Conference and at subsequent meetings of the Plenary, Committee I and Committee II, each government delegation will be assigned four seats: two seats at a table and two seats behind. Other seats will be identified as being for use by other participants at the Conference.
Informal and bilateral consultations
Conference participants wishing to arrange meetings of regional groups and other informal and bilateral consultations prior to or during the Conference may wish to contact Gabriele Wagner of Conference Services (room D0705, United Nations Office at Vienna, P.O. Box 500, A-1400 Vienna, Austria; telephone (+43 1) 26060-3114) concerning the availability of rooms at the Austria Center Vienna and the VIC. In view of the fact that the majority of the rooms at the Austria Center Vienna will be utilized for the Conference, it is likely that most such meetings and consultations will have to take place in the VIC. Because room availability in general is limited, requests for rooms for meetings, with the exception of meetings of regional groups, will be dealt with on a "first come, first served" basis.
Languages and records of the Conference
Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish will be the languages of the Conference.
Statements made in a language of the Conference during meetings of the Plenary, Committee I or Committee II will be interpreted into other languages of the Conference. Statements made during activities of the Technical Forum will only be interpreted where interpretation facilities are possible within available resources.
A representative may speak in a language other than the language of the Conference if he or she provides for interpretation into one language of the Conference.
Each seat in the meeting rooms at the Austria Center Vienna with simultaneous interpretation equipment will be provided with a portable receiving set and headphones. Participants are requested not to remove the portable receiving sets and headphones from the meeting rooms so that the equipment may be checked and, if necessary, adjusted before the next meeting takes place.
Sound recordings of meetings of the Plenary, Committee I and Committee II will be made and kept in accordance with the practice of the United Nations. Unless otherwise decided, no such recordings will be made of the Technical Forum or of the meetings of any working group.
All versions of the draft report of the Conference and its subsidiary bodies to be issued during the Conference, as well as final documents of the Conference for submission to the General Assembly, will be translated and issued in all languages of the Conference.
Working papers intended as in-session documents for the Conference that have been submitted by Member States in one of the languages of the Conference will be translated and issued in all languages of the Conference in time for consideration by the Conference.
National papers
National papers will be issued only in the languages of original submission. Member States should submit a sufficient number of copies of their national papers for distribution to Conference participants. (The minimum numbers recommended are as follows: (a) for distribution in one language of the Conference: 1,000 copies; or (b) for distribution in all languages of the Conference: 50 copies in Arabic, 50 copies in Chinese, 600 copies in English, 150 copies in French, 50 copies in Russian and 150 copies in Spanish.) Abstracts of the papers, submitted in one of the official languages of the United Nations, will be translated and issued in all languages of the Conference.
Statements
A minimum of 30 copies of the text of statements to be delivered in the meetings of the intergovernmental bodies of the Conference should be given in advance to the conference officer in order to ensure the best possible interpretation and other services. Speakers wishing to circulate their speeches to all Conference participants are required to give to the conference officers, who will be in the conference rooms, a sufficient number of copies of the speeches. (The minimum numbers recommended are as follows: (a) for distribution in one language of the Conference: 1,000 copies; or (b) for distribution in all languages of the Conference: 50 copies in Arabic, 50 copies in Chinese, 600 copies in English, 150 copies in French, 50 copies in Russian and 150 copies in Spanish.) All texts should be delivered before the speaker takes the floor, preferably at the start of the meeting. Conference participants are reminded that the executive secretariat will not be in a position to offer reproduction services for such texts.
If participants wish their statements to be provided to the media at the Conference site, they should provide a minimum of 30 copies to representatives of the United Nations Information Service at the Conference media centre.
Distribution of official documents
The main document distribution counter will be located at the Austria Center Vienna (main entrance level).
Each delegation will be assigned a box, or pigeon-hole, at the document distribution counter in which copies of all official documents issued during the Conference will be placed. Delegations are reminded that the pigeon-holes are to be used exclusively for the distribution of official documents of the Conference and may not be used for the circulation of any other papers or documents.
To determine the exact requirements of official documents, each delegation should advise the staff at the document distribution counter of its requirements in terms of the number of copies of each document and the language versions that it wishes to receive during the Conference. It will not be possible to provide complete sets of documents after the end of the Conference.
Other accredited participants (of the Technical Forum, the Space Generation Forum and the space exhibition) and representatives of the press/media will be able to obtain official documents of the Conference at a designated document distribution desk.
Receipt and circulation of other documents
Other documents that Governments and organizations accredited to the Conference may wish to make available to Conference participants are to be provided by those Governments and organizations in appropriate languages and quantities. The executive secretariat will not reproduce or translate such documents.
There can be no official distribution of such documents by the executive secretariat; however, they will be made available on tables set aside for that purpose. Separate tables will also be made available for the distribution of documents at individual sessions of the Technical Forum.
Security
During the Conference, the Austrian authorities will provide security outside the Conference premises. The United Nations Security and Safety Section will be responsible for all security aspects on the premises, with the exception of the exhibition area.
Specific requests regarding security arrangements on the Conference premises and related matters should be addressed to the Chief of the United Nations Security and Safety Section (room F0E21, United Nations Office at Vienna, P.O. Box 500, A-1400 Vienna, Austria; telephone (+43 1) 26060-3903, 26060-3904 or 26060-3905).
The lost and found office is located in the main office of the United Nations Security and Safety Section at the VIC (room F0E21; telephone 26060-3903).
Social events
Various receptions, social events and excursions will be scheduled during the Conference. Details of those events will be provided in the Journal of the Conference in accordance with the wishes of event organizers.
Those States and organizations arranging receptions and social events and wishing to coordinate them with other scheduled activities are urged to contact Maria-Luisa Chavez of the Office for Outer Space Affairs (room E0972, United Nations Office at Vienna, P.O. Box 500, A-1400 Vienna Austria; telephone (+43 1) 26060-4956; fax (+43 1) 26060-5830).
Conference premises
-- Access to the Austria Center and the Vienna International Centre
Participants arriving at the Austria Center Vienna by taxi may wish to be dropped off directly in front of the main entrance. Participants arriving at the VIC by taxi are advised to be dropped off in the side lane of Wagramer Strasse, to walk up the stairs or ramp to enter through Gate 1 at the VIC and to walk across the plaza to the entrance of Building C.
Participants arriving at the Austria Center or the VIC by underground transport (U-Bahn) should take line U-1 and get off at the station called "Kaisermühlen—Vienna International Centre" and follow the signs to the Austria Center Vienna or the VIC. A variety of public transport tickets are available. Tickets may be purchased at machines in every U-Bahn station, at the newspaper stand in the rotunda (Building C) of the VIC, and at tobacco shops Tabak-Trafik throughout Vienna.
Participants with physical disabilities should ask members of the United Nations Security and Safety Section to assist them as required (e.g. directing them to the appropriate elevators for getting to the Conference areas).
As mentioned in section above, registration and the issuance of grounds passes will take place in the rotunda (Building C) of the VIC from 12 to 16 July 1999 and in the main entrance hall of the Austria Center Vienna from 18 to 30 July. It is suggested that, during the Conference, participants should enter the Austria Center Vienna through the main entrance hall, since most of the meeting activities will take place there. From the Austria Center Vienna, a passageway leading directly to the VIC will be open for registered participants during the entire Conference.
Parking facilities
Parking facilities will be available at the Austria Center Vienna and at the VIC. To park at the VIC, participants must obtain parking stickers. Information on parking may be obtained at the registration counters at the Austria Center Vienna and the VIC.
At Gate 2 and Gate 3 of the VIC, security officers will give printed instructions on how disabled participants should proceed from the garage to the Conference premises and to the conference and meeting rooms.
Office space for delegations
Delegations and their permanent missions may rent office space at the Austria Center Vienna during the Conference. Interested delegations are invited to contact as soon as possible Alice Baar, Director of the Organization Department of the Austria Center Vienna (telephone (+ 43 1) 26069-2323).
No typing facilities or services will be available at the Conference.
Photocopying services
No commercial photocopying services are available at the Austria Center Vienna. There is a coin-operated photocopying machine in the VIC. It is located on the 7th floor of Building C, at the beginning of the corridor that leads to Building D, opposite the entrance to Conference Room III.
Catering services
In the Austria Center Vienna, two coffee lounges will be operated by the VIC Catering Service, one on the main entrance level and the other on the U2 level, both adjacent to the conference rooms. A third will be operated by the Austria Center Vienna in the entrance hall, next to the post office.
In the VIC, a cafeteria, a restaurant and a coffee lounge and bar are located in Building F on the entrance level. Their opening hours are as follows:
During meetings, coffee corners will be open on the 4th and 7th floors of the VIC, in the areas adjacent to the conference rooms in Building C, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Medical services
Medical attention is available in the clinic operated by the Joint Medical Service on the 7th floor of Building F of the VIC (telephone 26060-2224; for emergencies, 26060- 2222). The clinic is open on weekdays from 8.30 a.m. to 6 p.m.
A pharmacy located next to the clinic (room F0715) is open on weekdays from 12.30 to 4 p.m.
Banking services
Two Austrian banking institutions with multilingual staff offer full banking services at the VIC. Creditanstalt- Bankverein has a branch on the 1st floor of Building C and Bank Austria has a branch on the entrance level of Building D. The opening hours of both branches are as follows:
Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, 8.30 a.m.-5 p.m. and Friday, 9 a.m.-3 p.m.
Postal services
A post office on the 1st floor of Building C at the VIC provides all regular postal services, including cable, fax and long-distance telephone services. It is open on weekdays from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. It sells only United Nations stamps, which can be used only on mail sent from the VIC.
Another post office is located in the entrance hall of the Austria Center Vienna, adjacent to the press information centre. It is also open on weekdays from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Public coin-operated and card-operated telephones are located at the Austria Center Vienna and at the VIC.
Counters of the United Nations Postal Administration (UNPA) will be open during the Conference at the following locations:
Visitors' Centre at Gate 1
In the recently opened Visitors' Centre at Gate 1 of the VIC, the following facilities will be available to participants of the Conference:
Smoking and electronic equipment
Smoking is permitted in the VIC only in specially designated areas. Smoking is no longer permitted in the cafeteria, in the restaurant or in conference and meeting rooms, including those of the Austria Center Vienna, which is a part of the conference area. Smoking is restricted to special areas in the delegates' lounges and coffee bars, where, in order to facilitate the enforcement of this new policy, "smoking permitted" signs are displayed.
The use of cellular telephones and laptop computers during meetings can be disruptive. Participants are requested to ensure that such equipment is switched off during meetings.
Transport to and from the airport
An airport bus service operates between Vienna International Airport and the City Air Terminal (Hotel Hilton), located near the centre of the city, at a cost of 70 schillings (S), including luggage. Travel time is approximately 20 minutes. Buses leave at intervals of 20- 30 minutes. There is another airport bus service that operates between the two major railway stations in Vienna, the Westbahnhof and the Südbahnhof, at intervals of approximately 30 minutes. Travel time is approximately 35-40 minutes.
Regular taxis are throughout Vienna and may be used for trips to and from Vienna International Airport (the cost of a trip from the airport to the centre of the city should be approximately S450). Some airport taxi and limousine operators (e.g. C&K Airport Service (telephone 1731) and Jet Bus Service (telephone 700 78 778)) offer their services at reduced rates to customers who call in advance.