ANNAN STRESSES THAT COTE D'IVOIRE ELECTIONS MUST BE FREE, FAIR
AND TRANSPARENT  

This would be in accordance with the determination made by President
Mbeki in this regard following the Pretoria Agreement signed by the Ivorian
parties on 6 April 2005.

The Secretary-General welcomes this development while stressing that it
is vital that the parties take all necessary steps to ensure that the
elections are free, fair and transparent and conform to international
standards.

The Secretary-General once more urges the parties to implement their
respective commitments under the Pretoria Agreement promptly, in good faith
and without exception or reservation, in order to expeditiously move the
peace process forward.

ANNAN WELCOMES FORMATION OF NEW IRAQI GOVERNMENT  

The Secretary-General notes the ongoing efforts to ensure that the new
Government is as representative and inclusive as possible, and hopes that
these efforts meet the expectations of all of Iraq’s communities. 

The United Nations is committed to doing everything possible to assist
Iraq to move forward to the next phase of its political transition,
particularly the drafting of a new constitution and the holding of a
referendum and national elections. 

To that end, the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (

The Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Iraq, Ashraf Qazi,
also welcomed the formation of a new Iraqi government, saying that the
establishment of the transitional government is an important step in Iraq's
democratic transition.

Qazi stressed that the convening of the Transitional National Assembly
and formation of the government have prepared the ground for the
constitution making process which is expected to be completed by August 15
and to be put to the people of Iraq in a referendum on October 15 this year. 

SECURITY COUNCIL TO DISCUSS SYRIAN WITHDRAWAL FROM LEBANON
TOMORROW  

Council members will be briefed by the Secretary-General’s Special Envoy
dealing with resolution 1559, Terje Roed-Larsen. The Secretary-General will
attend that briefing.

Council members will then hold consultations on the same subject.

Asked about the work of the team investigating the killing of former
Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, the Spokesman said that the administrative team
for that investigation is on the ground, and he added that there is no news
about the head of the team.

He added that the team verifying the Syrian withdrawal from Lebanon is
doing their work, and is expected to report within 10 days on whether they
have sufficient manpower for that work.

Asked about the situation of detainees in Syria, the Spokesman said that,
if asked, the Secretary-General’s good offices are always open.

ANNAN CALLS FOR RETURN TO CONSTITUTIONAL RULE IN NEPAL  

The Secretary-General said that it would be preferable for Member States
to agree on Security Council reform by consensus, but inability to reach
consensus should not become an excuse for postponing action.

The Secretary-General also participated in an exchange of questions and
answers after his lecture, and then gave a press conference before leaving
New Delhi .

Asked about the situation in Nepal, the Secretary-General said that he
had met the King recently in Jakarta.  The Secretary-General had told
the King that he wanted to see a return to constitutional rule as soon as
possible.  

The Secretary-General added that it was important that the political
parties be allowed to resume their activities.

On the question of weapons and arms to Nepal, he said that, obviously,
individual countries had their own policies, but that the UN often
discouraged transfer of arms, or shipment of arms, into any area of
conflict, because that would only exacerbate what was going on.

Asked about what the UN could do in Nepal, the Secretary-General said the
Organization was already very active on the ground.  In addition to
providing humanitarian assistance, the UN had just decided to send a human
rights team to monitor what was going on on the ground. 

 He added that, if at any future date, it became necessary for the UN to
do more, and that was agreed with the government and others, obviously the
UN would be prepared to do that.

The Secretary-General also said the UN was in touch with neighbours and
other friends of Nepal, including the government of India.

The Secretary-General is now on his way back to New York.

NEW U.N. POLITICAL MISSION TO FOLLOW PEACEKEEPING
OPERATION IN TIMOR-LESTE  

The follow-on mission, the UN Office in Timor-Leste, is to remain in the
country until 20 May, 2006 . It will include 45 civilian advisers to support
the development of critical state institutions, and will have 40 police
advisers to support the development of the Timorese police. The Office is
also to have up to 35 additional advisers to support the work of the Border
Patrol Unit, and ten human rights officers.

Also today, the Security Council decided to extend the mandate for the

BRITISH NEWSPAPER APOLOGIZES TO U.N. OFFICIAL  

We are pleased to see that the UK daily, The Independent, today
issued an apology for misrepresenting his conduct.

The newspaper had implied that he had been involved in sexual
exploitation of Congolese women.

In its apology, it acknowledged that Grinberg has been at the forefront
of efforts to combat sexual abuse by peacekeepers in the Democratic Republic
of the Congo, and is a highly respected and experienced UN staff member.

U.N. REFUGEE AGENCY SENDS EMERGENCY TEAM TO BENIN, AS TOGOLESE
REFUGEES FLEE UNREST  

As of today, more than 3,600 refugees have arrived in Benin since Togo’s
election results were announced on Tuesday. The majority of them are women
and children. The agency also reports that an additional 450 Togolese
refugees have sought shelter in Ghana.

NO GROUNDS FOR DISCIPLINARY ACTION AGAINST FORMER CHEF DE
CABINET  

OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS

U.N. REFORM GOOD FOR DEMOCRACY: This evening, Ernesto Zedillo – former
President of Mexico and one of the Secretary-General’s UN reform envoys – will
deliver a message on behalf of the Secretary-General to the Community of
Democracies, which is currently meeting in Santiago, Chile. The message is
expected to advance the idea that the UN reforms proposed by the
Secretary-General would be good for democracy and therefore worthy of the
Community’s support.

LETTER FROM BENON SEVAN’S LAWYER NOT THREATENING: In response to
questions concerning a letter from the lawyer for Benon Sevan, the Spokesman
said that he would not characterize the letter as a threat. The United Nations,
he said, had received the letter earlier this month, asking the UN to reconsider
its earlier decision not to reimburse Sevan’s legal fees. The
Secretary-General’s position on this remains unchanged, the Spokesman said,
noting that the UN would not reimburse those fees.

ANYONE KNOWING ABOUT OIL-FOR-FOOD PROBLEMS URGED TO COME FORWARD: Asked
about the possibility that UN staff members possess knowledge about problems in
the

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