Transcript of the Press Briefing by the Spokesperson of the President of the General Assembly
29 October 2024
The following is a near-verbatim transcript of today’s briefing
Good afternoon, everyone.
The President of the General Assembly is deeply concerned following the Israeli Parliament’s adoption of two laws which, if implemented, will prevent UNRWA from undertaking its essential work in Gaza and in the occupied West Bank including East Jerusalem, as mandated by the General Assembly.
A collapse of UNRWA operations in the Occupied Palestinian Territory as a result of these two laws would exacerbate an already catastrophic humanitarian situation.
Plenary meetings
In terms of plenary meetings, a debate on the report of the International Criminal Court continues today.
A debate on the Necessity of ending the economic, commercial and financial embargo imposed by USA against Cuba also started today and will continue tomorrow.
And then there is the debate on the Report of the International Court of Justice which resumes this afternoon.
And on Friday there will be a debate on the Report of the Human Rights Council.
Main Committees
And in terms of Main Committee updates, there will be a joint panel discussion of the First and Fourth Committee on possible challenges to space security and sustainability tomorrow. To note, action on all draft resolutions and decisions under First Committee will take place between 1 to 8 November.
The Second Committee concluded its general discussions with the last item on the agenda being “Group of countries in special situations”. Informal consultations on draft proposals are now taking place.
The PGA addressed in the Third Committee last week and presentations of reports were made by 19 mandate holders. Concern about the human rights situation in Gaza, Palestine, Lebanon, Afghanistan, Sudan, Ukraine, Myanmar were also discussed.
The Fourth Committee last week adopted two resolutions [by consensus], one on the “effects of atomic radiation” on 21st and the “University of Peace “on 23rd of October, both without a vote.
In terms of the Fifth Committee, the Fifth Committee discussed several budgetary issues including Special Political Missions with consideration of stand-alone Missions, namely the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) and the United Nations Assistance Mission in Iraq. The liquidity crisis had in effect forced the Missions to drastically reduce its flight rotations.
Appointments
And then with regard to appointments, the President has re-appointed H.E. Ms. Tania Romualdo, Permanent Representative of the Republic of Cabo Verde to the United Nations, and H.E. Mr. James Larsen, Permanent Representative of Australia to the United Nations, as co-facilitators to conduct the intergovernmental consultations on the declaration to be adopted by consensus at the Third UN Ocean Conference in France.
Travel of the PGA
And in terms of trips, the President, as per media advisory we shared last Friday, is in the Republic of Korea for the Annual Meeting of the Council of Presidents of the General Assembly. He is there until tomorrow.
He will then go to the People’s Republic of China and return on 3 November.
He will also be attending COP29 in Azerbaijan from 11 to 14 November.
Question #1
Thanks, Sharon. Does the PGA have any plans to reopen the emergency Special Session considering the legislation about UNRWA? And can you share the letter from the SG to the PGA with us?
Response: In terms of plans, he did receive a letter, as Stephane said, an hour ago. Consultations are taking place right now, and he is considering all options. And of course, we do have the 90 days in terms of implementation of these two laws, so we will be pulling in member states to work and drive action on tackling this issue.
Question # 2: Thank you. Sharon, do you have any idea when the Cuba vote will be tomorrow?
Response: I don’t know what time; I just know it’s taking place tomorrow. It should be at the end, but I can confirm and get back to you on this.
Ends
Media Contacts
Sharon Birch, Spokesperson for the President of the General Assembly, Tel: + 212 963 0564, M: +1 646 342 5873, Email: birchs@un.org
Dr. Mariam Shaikh, Adviser/ Social and Digital Media/Media Relations M: +1 917 3614990, mariam.shaikh@un.org
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