Mideast situation/Int’l Peace Conference under A/RES/38/58 C – SecGen report under A/RES/39/49 D

Report of the Secretary-General

1. The present report is submitted in pursuance of resolution 39/49 D on the question of the convening of an international peace conference on the Middle East, which was adopted by the General Assembly at its thirty-ninth session, on 11 December 1984. The operative part of that resolution read as follows:

"The General Assembly,

". . .

"1. Takes note of the reports of the Secretary-General; 1/

"2. Reaffirms its endorsement of the call for convening the International Peace Conference on the Middle East in conformity with the provisions of General Assembly resolution 38/58 C;

"3. Expresses its regret at the negative response of the two Governments and calls upon them to reconsider their position towards the Conference;

"4. Urges all Governments to make additional constructive efforts and to strengthen their political will in order to convene the Conference without delay and for the achievement of its peaceful objectives;

"5. Requests the Secretary-General in consultation with the Security Council, to continue his efforts with a view to convening the Conference and to report thereon to the General Assembly not later than 15 March 1985,

"6. Decides to consider at its fortieth session the report of the Secretary-General on the implementation of the present resolution."

2. In pursuance of that request, on 8 January 1985 the Secretary-General addressed the following letter to the President of the Security Council:

"I have the honour to refer to resolution 39/49 D, which was adopted by the General Assembly at its thirty-ninth session, on 11 December 1984, on the question of the convening of an international peace conference on the Middle East. The text of the resolution is attached. [See para. 1 above.]

"As you know, this question was first raised by the General Assembly at its thirty-eighth session, when it adopted resolution 38/58 C of 13 December 1983. The activities which I undertook in pursuance of that resolution, including my consultations with the Security Council, are described in my reports of 13 March and 13 September 1984 to the General Assembly and the Security Council (A/39/130-S/16409 and Add.1).

"It is also relevant to mention that in my report of 26 October 1984 on the situation in the Middle East (A/39/600-S/16792, paras. 40-49), I reviewed my efforts relating to the proposed conference and the difficulties encountered and commented on a possible approach to a Middle East peace conference that could be organized in the context of the search for a comprehensive settlement of the Arab-Israeli conflict.

"After considering my reports of 13 March and 13 September 1984, the General Assembly adopted resolution 39/49 D, in which it 'requests the Secretary-General, in consultation with the Security Council, to continue his efforts with a view to convening the conference and to report thereon to the General Assembly not later than 15 March 1985'.

"Bearing in mind the efforts made last year and the difficulties experienced, I feel that as a first step I should seek the views of the Security Council on the action to be taken for the implementation of General Assembly resolution 39/49 D. In the light of my reporting responsibility under that resolution, I hope that the views of the Security Council can be conveyed to me not later than 1 March 1985.

"I should be grateful if you would bring this matter to the attention of the Security Council."

3. On 26 February 1985, the President of the Security Council sent the following reply:

"I have the honour to refer to your letter of 8 January 1985, on the question of the convening of an international peace conference on the Middle East, in which you had indicated that you felt it necessary to start by requesting the views of the Security Council regarding the action to be taken for the implementation of General Assembly resolution 39/49 D of 11 December 1984.

"You had also recalled the activities you had undertaken in 1984 of which you gave an account in your reports of 13 March, 13 September and 26 October 1984 to the General Assembly and the Security Council, and noted the difficulties experienced.

"Acting on your request that the matter be drawn to the attention of the Security Council, the President of the Council for the month of January consulted the members of the Council in order to obtain and communicate their views to you by 1 March 1985 as requested. Having received the approval of the members of the Security Council during consultations held on 15 January, he had bilateral talks with each member of the Council during the following days. As President of the Council for the month of February, I have carried forward the process and completed my consultations with all members of the Security Council.

"It is clear from these consultations that almost all members are in favour of the principle of holding such a conference. Many of these members feel that it should be convened as early as possible; some others consider that the conditions that would make it possible to convene such a conference have not been met as yet.

"In this context, members of the Council invite the Secretary-General to continue consultations on the subject in any manner he deems appropriate in the light of General Assembly resolution 39/49 D."

4. The Secretary-General has taken note of the views conveyed to him by the President of the Security Council. He intends to pursue consultations on the subject and will inform the General Assembly and the Security Council of any new developments.

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*A/40/50 and Corr.l.

Notes

1/ A/39/130-S/16409 and Add.l.