Europe

Distinguished UN peacekeeper from Finland dead at 81

14 January 2003
A Finnish military officer who distinguished himself in United Nations peacekeeping operations in the Middle East has died at the age of 81.
Mr. Alvaro de Soto

UN envoy back in Cyprus to push for agreement before EU membership

13 January 2003
The Special Adviser to United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan on Cyprus is back in the island nation today for meetings with the Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot leaders as part of the UN's efforts to help the parties reach a comprehensive agreement before the country joins the European Union.

UN official welcomes release of Russian relief worker abducted in Chechnya

10 January 2003
The United Nations Emergency Relief Coordinator today welcomed the release of the head of a Russian non-governmental organization who had been abducted last July while working in Chechnya.

Condemning party official’s murder, UN envoy says Kosovo ‘sick and tired’ of violence

9 January 2003
The head of the United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK) today condemned the murder over the weekend of an official in the party of President Ibrahim Rugova who had also been a prominent commander in the Kosovo Liberation Army.

UN chairs opening talks by 'technical committees' for Cyprus

7 January 2003
The members of the two ad hoc technical committees in Cyprus met today under the chairmanship of the United Nations to discuss procedural aspects and chart a course for the technical work ahead, a UN spokesperson said in New York.

Annan mourns death of British statesman Lord Roy Jenkins

6 January 2003
Mourning the death of Lord Roy Jenkins, United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan today recalled the vision and integrity that epitomized the long and distinguished career of the British politician who died Sunday in Oxfordshire, England, at the age of 82.