Asia Pacific

Jean-Marie Guéhenno briefs Security Council

Immediate security improvements needed in Afghanistan, Security Council told

24 February 2003
Citing "recent and worrying trends," the top United Nations peacekeeping official today called for immediate measures to improve security in Afghanistan, where international assistance agencies have come under threat of kidnapping and other hostile action.

Timor-Leste: UN helping in probe of deadly attack on minibus

24 February 2003
United Nations police and peacekeepers are helping authorities in Timor-Leste investigate an attack on vehicles near the border with West Timor today that left one passenger dead and three seriously injured.
Lakhdar Brahimi

UN envoy calls on donors to fund disarmament effort in Afghanistan

23 February 2003
Lakhdar Brahimi, the senior United Nations envoy to Afghanistan, has urged donors meeting in Tokyo to support the country's efforts to help ex-soldiers lay down their arms.

DPR of Korea: UN fears gains in child nutrition could be lost

20 February 2003
Though child malnutrition in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) has fallen considerably over the past four years, according to survey findings announced today, United Nations relief agencies said the gains could be lost if humanitarian assistance to the country continues to slacken.
Lakhdar Brahimi

Senior UN envoy to attend special Tokyo conference on Afghan disarmament

20 February 2003
The senior United Nations envoy for Afghanistan left Kabul today for Japan to attend a special international conference on disarmament in the Central Asian country, one of the world's most heavily armed.

One case of 'bird flu' confirmed in Hong Kong, UN health agency reports

19 February 2003
Results from two laboratories confirmed today the presence of avian influenza, or "bird flu," in a nine-year-old boy in Hong Kong, where the United Nations lead health agency is now collaborating closely with authorities to provide needed support.

Japan gives UN $35 million to help disarm ex-combatants in Afghanistan

19 February 2003
Japan signed an agreement with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Kabul today for a $35 million contribution towards disarming and reintegrating former combatants in Afghanistan, one of the world's most heavily armed countries.

Security Council refers IAEA letter on DPR of Korea to experts first

19 February 2003
The Security Council has referred a letter from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) on the situation in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) to its experts for further consultations before beginning any discussion of the matter, the President of the 15-nation body said today.

Cambodia: Annan set to dispatch UN delegation to resume talks on Khmer Rouge court

18 February 2003
United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan is set to resume detailed negotiations with Cambodia in a bid to reach agreement on a special court to try the former leaders of the Khmer Rouge.

Pakistan successfully eradicates deadly cattle disease rinderpest - UN

18 February 2003
Pakistan has declared itself "provisionally free" from the deadly cattle plague rinderpest, the United Nations announced today in Rome.