HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NOON BRIEFING
BY EDUARDO DEL BUEY, DEPUTY SPOKESPERSON FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL BAN KI-MOON
MONDAY, 26 MARCH 2012
SECRETARY-GENERAL ATTENDS NUCLEAR SECURITY SUMMIT IN SOUTH KOREA
- The Secretary-General arrived in South Korea over the weekend and is taking part in the Seoul Nuclear Security Summit on Monday and Tuesday. He attended a working dinner with the other leaders attending the summit on Monday.
- While in Seoul, the Secretary-General has been having a range of bilateral meetings with world leaders.
- On Saturday, he met South Korean President Lee Myung-bak and on Sunday he had discussions with the Thai Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra.
- In his meeting with the South Korean President, the Secretary-General again urged the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) to reconsider its declared plans to launch a satellite. He called on the DPRK to fully comply with Security Council resolutions, notably the one that prohibits any launch using ballistic missile technology.
- On Monday, the Secretary-General met the President of Gabon Ali Bongo Ondimba and the new President of Finland Sauli Niinistö, as well as the Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard and the Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.
- The Secretary-General will speak at Tuesday’s working lunch and plenary session at the summit.
SYRIAN GOVERNMENT RESPONDS TO ANNAN’S 6-POINT PLAN
- The Syrian Government has formally responded to the Joint Special Envoy for Syria, Kofi Annan's 6-point plan, as endorsed by the UN Security Council.
- Mr. Annan is studying it and will respond very shortly.
- Asked if Mr. Annan would consult with the Secretary-General before responding, the Deputy Spokesperson said that the Secretary-General was in regular contact with the Joint Special Envoy.
BUILDING CONFIDENCE “CRITICAL” IN U.N. PEACEKEEPING OPERATIONS
- On Monday morning Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations, Hervé Ladsous, told the Security Council that building peace means helping national institutions reach a point where they are able to maintain a sufficient level of stability and security, in particular through respect for the rule of law and human rights.
- Building confidence between the host government, key national stakeholders and the international community and clearly articulating the facts of a transition through continued dialogue and communication strategies is critical to a successful drawdown planning, he said.
- The Under-Secretary-General for Field Support Susana Malcorra described the impact of procurement for peacekeeping operations on local markets, and for propelling people into long term economic viability and out of poverty.
- The Security Council also issued a Presidential Statement on the situation in the Sahel. The Security Council encourages international community to provide support to resolve the crisis in Mali and the Sahel region based on an integrated strategy for immediate and long-term needs, encompassing security, development and humanitarian issues.
U.N. ENVOY MEETS MALI JUNTA LEADERS
- Mr. Said Djinnit, the Secretary-General’s Special Representative for West Africa, participated in a joint mission of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), the African Union and the United Nations which was dispatched to Bamako on Friday, 23 March under the leadership of ECOWAS.
- The members of the mission met a delegation of the junta led by Captain Adama Diarra and spoke on the phone with Captain Amadou Sanogo whom they could not meet personally for security reasons.
- They reiterated the appeal launched by the ECOWAS, the African Union and the United Nations for an immediate return to the constitutional order. They also urged the junta leaders to guarantee the physical security of President Amadou Toumani Touré, as well as that of the other persons detained. The delegation reaffirmed the attachment of the ECOWAS, the AU and the UN to Mali’s territorial integrity.
- Mr. Djinnit has been invited and will attend the ECOWAS Summit to be held on Tuesday 27 March in Abidjan during which the ECOWAS Heads of State will examine the prevailing situation in Mali.
U.N. CONVOY DELIVERS AID TO MYANMAR’S KACHIN STATE
- A United Nations convoy carrying essential items has reached some of the displaced population in the areas affected by the conflict in Kachin state in Myanmar.
- The Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator has voiced hope that this will now lead to a sustained delivery of aid by the UN and its humanitarian partners to internally displaced persons.
- The UN has continuously made the case for independent humanitarian access in accordance with humanitarian principles with both the Government and the Kachin Independence Organization.
- It looks to all of its humanitarian partners to join in the effort to provide humanitarian support to all displaced people in Kachin.
- Asked if the Secretary-General would visit Myanmar in April, the Deputy Spokesperson said that he had said so publicly but that the dates and modalities were still being worked out.
U.N. DECLARATION ON GLOBAL AND SOCIAL INEQUITIES ADOPTED AT FORUM
- Last Friday, delegates at the first Global Human Development Forum unanimously adopted the Istanbul Declaration, which calls on the world community to take bold action against global social inequities and environmental deterioration at the Rio+20 conference this June.
- The Declaration stresses the need for global and national development strategies to put strong emphasis on social inclusion, social protection, and equity, in recognition of the fact that economic development has too often gone hand in hand with environmental degradation and increased inequality.
- It endorses the recommendations of the Secretary-General’s High-Level Panel on Global Sustainability and the UN Development Programme’s 2011 Human Development Report.
- The Declaration also stresses the need to maintain progress towards meeting the Millennium Development Goals in 2015, while building a consensus for a new post-2015 global framework.
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