27 June 2001

The President today concluded the General Assembly special session on HIV/AIDS. The Declaration of Commitment, which had been submitted by the President to Member States the day before, was adopted without a vote at the end of the session. In his closing remarks Mr. Holkeri noted that the Declaration is the first global "battle plan" against AIDS. He added that the beauty and significance of the Declaration is in its pragmatic and straight-forward approach. Mr. Holkeri concluded with saying that the real work only starts now - with new determination and vision. The full text of his statement is available at the Statements and Messages page.

Mr. Holkeri today met with H.E. Mr. Hans Dahlgren, State Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Sweden. Issues related to Security Council reform were discussed during their meeting.

Mr. Holkeri also met with Mr. Andrew Toh, Director of the Facilities and Commercial Services Division at the Office of Central Support Services. They discussed the temporary relocation of the Office of the President during expected refurbishments this summer.