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

PRESIDENT DISCUSSES NEXT STEPS FOR GLOBAL COMPACT WITH MOROCCAN AMBASSADOR & U.N. MIGRATION ENVOY

• The President met this morning with the Permanent Representative of Morocco and the Secretary-General’s Special Representative for International Migration, Louise Arbour.
• They discussed the way forward following the finalization of the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration.
• The conference that will formally adopt the Global Compact will be held in Morocco this December.

PRESIDENT MEETS WITH CZECH PARLIAMENTARY OFFICIAL

• The President is holding a lunch meeting right now with the Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies of the Czech Republic.
• The President is expected to brief the Speaker on progress made on his priorities – including migration and the way forward following the finalization of the Global Compact.

MEETING ON ELIMINATION OF NUCLEAR WEAPONS TO BE HELD IN SEPTEMBER

• The President has informed Member States that a one-day high-level plenary meeting will be held on 26 September to commemorate and promote the International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons.
• This will be during the next session of the General Assembly.
• The event will help raise international awareness of the threat posed to humanity by nuclear weapons and the need for their total elimination, in order to advance towards achieving the common goal of a nuclear-weapon-free world.
• The meeting will be held in accordance with resolution 72/251 of last December.
• Asked what other new events would be held at the start of the 73^rd session, the Spokesperson drew attention to the Nelson Mandela Peace Summit, which would be held the day before the general debate.

GLOBAL GOALS FINANCING TOOLBOX BEING PUT TOGETHER

• The President met this morning with the Director of the SDG Lab, an initiative led by the UN Office at Geneva, which works to advance implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
• The Director briefed the President about her work. And the President told the Director about the toolbox that his office is putting together following his high-level event last month on financing the SDGs. They agreed to collaborate going forward.