Europe

Alvaro de Soto

Date for referenda on Cyprus set for 20 April - UN

9 March 2004
To facilitate preparations for the conduct of referenda on each side, the top United Nations adviser on Cyprus has informed the Greek and Turkish Cypriot leaders that the date for a referendum has been set for 20 April, according to the UN mission in the country.
Ambassador Sergey Lavrov

Annan looks forward to working with new Russian Foreign Minister - spokesman

9 March 2004
Secretary-General Kofi Annan is looking forward to working with the Russian Federation's incoming Foreign Minister, Sergey Lavrov, the country's former Permanent Representative to the United Nations who was appointed to the new post today, a UN spokesman said.

UN war crimes tribunal indicts two former Croatian generals

8 March 2004
Two retired Croatian generals have been charged by the United Nations war crimes tribunal for the former Yugoslavia for their alleged role in the permanent removal of Serbs from the Krajina region in August 1995.

Kosovo police disable homemade bomb outside UN headquarters compound

6 March 2004
Kosovo Police Service officers today discovered and helped to disable an improvised explosive device outside the headquarters compound of the UN mission in the province.

UN agency signs accord to help poor States retain young scientists

5 March 2004
Seeking to build scientific capacity in poor countries and stem a brain drain to the developed world, the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) has entered into an agreement with the International Foundation for Science (IFS) to provide wide technical information in the fields of agriculture, forestry and fisheries.

Women still face pay and job discrimination in the global workplace - UN

5 March 2004
Women are entering the global labour force in record numbers but they still face higher unemployment rates and lower wages, and success in crashing through the “glass ceiling” to top managerial jobs remains "slow, uneven and sometimes discouraging," the United Nations labour agency reported today.
Muhammad Ali with child at his home in Michigan

UN public service announcement to promote peace earns Emmy nomination

5 March 2004
A public service announcement for television produced by the United Nations to mark the International Day of Peace last year has been nominated for a prestigious Emmy award in the United States.

With Serbia and Montenegro's food crisis over, UN agency ends work there

5 March 2004
The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) announced today the end of its operation in Serbia and Montenegro, which at its height served 700,000 people, proclaiming the food emergency there over.

UN audit highlights problems in recruiting peacekeeping staff

4 March 2004
The United Nations Department of Peacekeeping Operations (DPKO) took an average of 347 days to recruit staff to professional-level and other senior posts in 2002 - almost three times longer than the UN target, according to a report issued today by the UN's internal auditing body.

HIV/AIDS festers in climate of prison, addiction and forced prostitution – UN

3 March 2004
Drug addiction, human trafficking and prison together form a “trilogy” of conditions contributing to the HIV/AIDS pandemic, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) said today.