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A/52/719
11 December 1997

ORIGINAL: ENGLISH

Fifty-second session
Agenda item 3

1. At its 1st plenary meeting, on 16 September 1997, the General Assembly, in accordance with rule 28 of its rules of procedure, appointed a Credentials Committee for its fifty-second session consisting of the following Member States: Argentina, Barbados, Bhutan, China, Côte d'Ivoire, Norway, Russian Federation, United States of America and Zambia.

2. The Credentials Committee held its 1st meeting on 17 September 1997 and resumed it on 19 September and 5 December.

3. On 17 September, Mr. Carlston B. Boucher (Barbados) was unanimously elected Chairman.

4. On 17 and 19 September, the Committee examined the situation with respect to the credentials of Cambodia. The Committee was informed that the following two sets of credentials had been received, presenting two delegations to represent Cambodia at the fifty-second session of the General Assembly:

(a) A letter dated 2 September 1997 signed by King Norodom Sihanouk, presenting a delegation headed by Mr. Unq Hout who was identified as "First Prime Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation";

(b) A facsimile letter dated 25 August 1997 addressed to the Secretary-General by Prince Norodom Ranariddh, presenting a delegation headed by Prince Norodom Ranariddh who was identified as "First Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Cambodia".

5. On 19 September, the Committee, having considered the question of the credentials of Cambodia, decided to defer a decision on the credentials of Cambodia on the understanding that, pursuant to the applicable procedures of the Assembly, no one would occupy the seat of that country at the fifty-second session.

6. On 5 December, the Committee had before it a memorandum by the Secretary-General dated 4 December on the status of credentials of representatives to the fifty-second session. The Legal Counsel made a statement relating to the memorandum, in the course of which he informed the Committee of the credentials received subsequent to its preparation.

7. As noted in paragraph 1 of the memorandum and the statement by the Legal Counsel, as at 5 December 1997 formal credentials in the form required by rule 27 of the rules of procedure of the General Assembly had been received from the following 144 Member States: Afghanistan, Two sets of credentials received, see para. 9. Albania, Algeria, Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Armenia, Australia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Bahamas, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belarus, Belgium, Belize, Benin, Bhutan, Bolivia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brunei Darussalam, Bulgaria, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cambodia, Two sets of credentials received, see para. 4. Cameroon, Canada, Cape Verde, Chile, China, Colombia, Côte d'Ivoire, Cuba, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Democratic People's Republic of Korea, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Denmark, El Salvador, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Fiji, Finland, Gabon, Gambia, Germany, Ghana, Greece, Grenada, Guatemala, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Hungary, Iceland, India, Indonesia, Iran (Islamic Republic of), Iraq, Ireland, Israel, Jamaica, Japan, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Kuwait, Lao People's Democratic Republic, Latvia, Lebanon, Lesotho, Libyan Arab Jamahiriya, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Madagascar, Malawi, Malaysia, Maldives, Malta, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mexico, Micronesia (Federated States of), Monaco, Mongolia, Morocco, Mozambique, Myanmar, Namibia, Nepal, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Niger, Norway, Pakistan, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Republic of Korea, Republic of Moldova, Romania, Russian Federation, Rwanda, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Samoa, San Marino, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, Solomon Islands, South Africa, Spain, Sri Lanka, Suriname, Swaziland, Sweden, Syrian Arab Republic, Thailand, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Togo, Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, United Republic of Tanzania, United States of America, Uruguay, Vanuatu, Venezuela, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

8. As indicated in paragraph 2 of the memorandum, information concerning the appointment of representatives to the fifty-second session of the General Assembly had been communicated to the Secretary-General, at the time of the meeting of the Credentials Committee, by means of a cable or a facsimile communication from the Head of State or Government or the Minister for Foreign Affairs, or by means of a letter or note verbale from the Permanent Mission concerned, by the following 39 Member States: Andorra, Angola, Botswana, Brazil, Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, Congo, Costa Rica, Croatia, Djibouti, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, Estonia, France, Georgia, Guinea, Italy, Kyrgyzstan, Liberia, Mali, Marshall Islands, Nigeria, Oman, Palau, Peru, Qatar, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Sao Tome and Principe, Sudan, Tajikistan, Turkey, Uganda, Uzbekistan, Viet Nam and Yemen.

9. The Legal Counsel pointed out that, concerning the credentials of Afghanistan, the following two sets of credentials had been received, presenting delegations to represent Afghanistan at the fifty-second session of the General Assembly:

(a) A communication dated 3 September 1997 signed by Professor Burhan-u-ddin Rabbani, "President of the Islamic State of Afghanistan", presenting a delegation headed by Dr. A. G. Ravan Farhâdi who was identified as "Permanent Representative";

(b) A communication dated 15 September 1997 signed by Alhaj Mulla Mohammad Rabbani, "Head of the Government of the Islamic State of Afghanistan", presenting a delegation headed by Mr. Abdul Hakeem Mujahid who was identified as "Designate Permanent Representative".

10. Having considered the question of the credentials of Afghanistan, the Committee decided to defer a decision on the credentials of representatives of Afghanistan on the understanding that the current representatives of Afghanistan accredited to the United Nations would continue to participate in the work of the General Assembly pursuant to the applicable rules of procedure of the Assembly.

11. On the proposal of the Chairman, the Committee adopted the following draft resolution, on the understanding that formal credentials for representatives of the Member States referred to in paragraph 2 of the Secretary-General's memorandum (see para. 8 above) would be communicated to the Secretary-General as soon as possible:

"The Credentials Committee,

"Having examined the credentials of the representatives to the fifty-second session of the General Assembly of the Member States referred to in the memorandum of the Secretary-General dated 4 December 1997,

"Taking into account the statements made during the debate,

"Accepts, subject to the decisions contained in paragraphs 5 and 10 of the report of the Credentials Committee, the credentials of the representatives of the Member States concerned."

12. The Chairman then proposed that the Committee recommend to the General Assembly the adoption of a draft resolution (see para. 13 below). The proposal was adopted without a vote.

13. The Credentials Committee recommends to the General Assembly the adoption of the following draft resolution:

The General Assembly,

Having considered the report of the Credentials Committee and the recommendation contained therein,

Approves the report of the Credentials Committee.