NOON BRIEFING HIGHLIGHTS BY PAULINA KUBIAK GREER,
SPOKESPERSON FOR GENERAL ASSEMBLY PRESIDENT ABDULLA SHAHID
United Nations Headquarters, New York

BAHRAIN

I have a trip advisory to announce. President of the General Assembly Abdulla Shahid will undertake an official visit to The Kingdom of Bahrain from 22 to 25 January.

The visit will include meetings with His Majesty King Hamad Bin Isa Al Khalifa; and His Royal Highness Crown Prince and Prime Minister, Salman Bin Hamad al Khalifa.

He is also expected to with one of his predecessors, the President of the 61st Session of the General Assembly, Her Excellency Haya Rashed Al Khalifa.

In Bahrain, President Shahid will deliver a lecture at the Mohammed Bin Mubarak Al Khalifa Academy for Diplomatic Studies. His remarks there will reflect his belief in the enduring importance of multilateralism to meet global challenges.

The visit comes at the invitation of the Government of the Kingdom of Bahrain. All expenses for the trip will be covered by Bahrain.

 

OLYMPIC TRUCE

The President of the UN General Assembly, Abdulla Shahid, today made a Solemn Appeal to the UN Member States for the observance of the Olympic Truce, ahead of the Olympic Winter Games. This comes after the resolution was adopted in December.

The resolution calls for the Olympic Truce to be respected from 27 January to 20 March 2022 – seven days before the start of the Olympic Winter Games until seven days after the Paralympic Games.

[The General Assembly took note of the Solemn Appeal.]

Related, I can announce today that President Shahid will be attending the Beijing Games, at the invitation of the International Olympic Committee. While in Beijing, he will participate in the Olympic torch relay. The President of the IOC Thomas Bach will pass the flame to President Shahid.

You can expect a media advisory ahead of the visit.

Related: Full text of the Solemn Appeal is at https://www.un.org/pga/76/2022/01/20/solemn-appeal-made-by-the-president-of-the-general-assembly-in-connection-with-the-observance-of-the-olympic-truce/

Video is available from UNifeed at https://www.unmultimedia.org/tv/unifeed/asset/2702/2702375/

 

HOLOCAUST DENIAL

Also this morning, the General Assembly adopted by consensus the resolution on Holocaust denial.

It was co-sponsored by 114 Member States.

Among the points in the resolution, it urges Member States to develop educational programmes that will teach future generations about the lessons of the Holocaust in order to help to prevent future acts of genocide.

Ahead of today’s General Assembly briefing, President Abdulla Shahid met with a group of Holocaust survivors. The group included Dr. Albert Bourla, CEO of Pfizer, and son of a Holocaust survivor.

Related: Tweet is at https://twitter.com/UN_PGA/status/1484193793322762240

LDC CONFERENCE

The morning session also included adoption of a resolution related to the timing of the Fifth United Nations Conference on the Least Developed Countries. That conference was due to be held in Doha from 23 to 27 January.

The General Assembly agreed to postpone the Conference to a date to be decided at the earliest possible time.

 

ECOSOC

This afternoon, the Presidents of the General Assembly and ECOSOC will hold a joint briefing in the General Assembly Hall.

The GA and ECOSOC share multiple mandates that span the three pillars of sustainable development – economic, social and environmental.

Today’s briefing will update Member States about ongoing efforts to ensure coherence in the work of both organs, including on joint events.

 

GENDER EQULITY

And looking to tomorrow. In the morning, President Shahid will preside over the General Assembly, as the Secretary-General presents his priorities for the year.

Among his appointments in the afternoon, President Shahid will meet with members of the Advisory Board on Gender Equality. This will be their second meeting. The first meeting was held on in October of last year.

President Shahid will reflect on the work done so far to advance gender equality and seek the Board’s guidance on upcoming events.

 

QUESTIONS

The Spokesperson was asked about the correct terminology for the action that the General Assembly took following the Solemn Appeal. She can clarify that it should be “took note” of the Solemn Appeal.

The Spokesperson was asked about why Bahrain was paying for the President’s visit and would that limit his ability to meet with opposition leaders. The Spokesperson noted that a Member State paying for an official visit at the invitation of that Member States is typical in the OPGA. The President will continue to raise issues that he deems of importance, with Member States. On this particular visit, the President will meet with civil society leaders, including with women’s groups, as he strives to do on all official visits.

 

VIDEO

https://media.un.org/en/asset/k1e/k1e0otfgkz