HIGHLIGHTS OF PRESS BRIEFING BY BRENDEN VARMA, SPOKESPERSON FOR GENERAL ASSEMBLY PRESIDENT MIROSLAV LAJČÁK

United Nations Headquarters, New York

29 June 2018

The President will visit China from 1 to 3 July.
In Beijing, the President will meet with Chinese officials, including the Vice President; the Director of the Foreign Affairs Commission Office of the Communist Party of China’s Central Committee; the Minister for Foreign Affairs; and the Deputy Chairman of the National Supervisory Commission.
The President will be back in the office on 5 July.
Asked for additional details, the Spokesperson said the President would also visit the National Science Library in the Chinese technology hub of Zhongguancun and a number of cultural and historical sites.

On Security Council reform, the President will present a draft oral decision to Member States for adoption today. That will be at 4:00 p.m. in the Trusteeship Council Chamber.
In his remarks this afternoon, the President is expected to say that the United Nations is judged by the performance of its Security Council. In that regard, everything the United Nations does – from humanitarian aid to sustainable development– is at stake.
He will say that, if people lose faith in the United Nations, that could undermine our entire system. That is why the Security Council reform process is so important.

President Lajčák is meeting now with the President of the Italian Senate.
They are expected to discuss a number of topics, including multilateralism, the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration, and collaboration between the UN and parliamentarians.

Today, the President held the 12th in his series of Morning Dialogues with United Nations ambassadors.
Fifteen Permanent Representatives attended today.
The topic was “Bridging the Global Divide – the influence of Like-Minded Groups”.

Asked whether this afternoon’s General Assembly plenary meeting would deal with Fifth Committee matters, the Spokesperson clarified that today’s meeting would focus on Security Council reform.
Asked when the Fifth Committee would handle peacekeeping operations, the Secretary-General’s management reform proposals and the Global Service Delivery Model (GSDM) report, the Spokesperson said that the Committee was currently dealing with all pending matters and would try to conclude its work today. He added that it was up to the Fifth Committee to decide on its own schedule.
Asked if and when the plenary would consider any outcomes from the Fifth Committee, the Spokesperson said that Fifth Committee outcomes would indeed go before the plenary as per standard practice, but there was no date scheduled for any such plenary meeting at this time.