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

United Nations Headquarters, New York

9 August 2018

The President will visit Turkey this Monday, August 13th.
In Ankara, the President will deliver remarks at the tenth annual Turkish Ambassadors’ Conference. This annual gathering focuses on Turkey’s foreign policy, and every year international dignitaries are invited to address it.
The President’s statement will address the state of multilateralism, as well as his priorities, including UN reform processes.
While in the Turkish capital, President Lajčák will also attend a luncheon hosted by H.E. Mr. Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, President of Turkey, and meet bilaterally with H.E. Mr. Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Turkey.

A note by the Secretary-General was issued yesterday, in which the Secretary-General proposed to appoint Michelle Bachelet of Chile as the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights.
It is now up to the General Assembly to approve that appointment.
In that regard, the President informed Member States yesterday that the General Assembly plenary will meet on this topic tomorrow at 10:00 a.m. in the Trusteeship Council Chamber.
Asked about the format for tomorrow’s meeting, the Spokesperson said it would start with the decision on the proposed appointment. Then there would possibly be statements from delegations. He added that the speakers list was not yet available.
In response to further questions, the Spokesperson said that normally it was a unanimous decision and by acclamation. Asked whether the General Assembly would complete its action on this topic tomorrow, the Spokesperson said that this was indeed what was expected.
Asked whether Ms. Bachelet would be present at tomorrow’s meeting, the Spokesperson noetd that, sometimes in the past, new appointees had taken the floor. However, tomorrow’s speakers list had not yet been determined.

On Twitter today, the President wished everyone a happy International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples.
He said he has met with indigenous representatives in the General Assembly to learn about their realities, dreams and challenges.
Noting that they are increasingly moving in search of better lives, he added that the Global Compact for Migration aims to make movement safe, orderly and regular for all.

Asked whether the President was aware that United Nations correspondents were not happy with the room that had been assigned to them during the general debate, the Spokesperson said the President was indeed aware and felt strongly that journalists should be able to do their work and to easily cover the General Assembly, including the general debate.
At the same time, the Spokesperson noted that the designation of work spaces was handled by the Secretariat. He therefore deferred to the Department of Public Information, which was in the lead on this logistical matter.