The Secretary-General welcomed the participation of the Foreign Ministers in the Security Council’s open debate on cooperation between the UN and regional and subregional organizations in the maintenance of international peace and security to be held on 6 August.  The Secretary-General hoped that the debate would consider ways to expand cooperation with CELAC, UNASUR and other regional organizations.

The Foreign Ministers expressed concern about reported large-scale surveillance programmes and regarding the incidents that affected the 2 July flight of President Evo Morales of Bolivia.  They also raised the question of the Falkland Islands (Malvinas), the embargo against Cuba and the situation in Haiti.

The Secretary-General noted, as the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights had stated recently, that UN human rights mechanisms had pointed to important rights and privacy issues at stake in connection with surveillance.  He reiterated the need to safeguard these fundamental rights.  The Secretary-General reiterated that a Head of State and his or her aircraft enjoy immunity and inviolability.  The Secretary-General thanked the region for its contribution to Haiti, discussed the latest developments on the sustainable development agenda and the hemispheric debate on the issue of drugs.