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A proposed Global Fund for AIDS and Health would provide an efficient and cost-effective way of channelling resources in the fight against the epidemic, according to the chairman of a roundtable discussion held as part of the United Nations special session on fighting the pandemic.

Secretary-General Kofi Annan today welcomed the announcement by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) that it would release more than 250 soldiers and policemen, some of whom had been held hostage for close to three years.

After hearing statements from representatives of over 150 nations, including 26 heads of State and Government, the General Assembly's special session on HIV/AIDS concluded today three days of intensive plenary debate during which it heard startling statistics on the effects of the epidemic, as well as strong appeals for concrete action to stem its spread.

Culminating an historic three-day special session on HIV/AIDS, the General Assembly today adopted a comprehensive Declaration of Commitment containing specific timetables and setting out a blueprint for mobilizing a greatly accelerated response to the pandemic.

Secretary-General Kofi Annan today said the United Nations General Assembly special session on HIV/AIDS was a "truly historic event" that would produce a clear battle plan for the war against the pandemic.

Noting recent media statements on the possibility that trials of Khmer Rouge leaders in Cambodia could begin this year, Secretary-General Kofi Annan said today that no trials could start until a Memorandum of Understanding between the United Nations and Cambodia is signed and ratified.

Reacting to the latest developments in the Central African Republic, United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan welcomed all efforts to promote national reconciliation and stability in the country, and described the resolution adopted by the National Assembly at an extraordinary session last week as "a step in the right direction."

The positive developments in Sierra Leone over the past eight weeks constitute grounds for "cautious optimism" that the country is on the path towards long-awaited peace, Secretary-General Kofi Annan says in a report released today at United Nations Headquarters in New York.

While much has been achieved in Guatemala, the poverty and discrimination facing large sectors of the population threaten the gains of the country's peace process, Secretary-General Kofi Annan says in a just issued report to the General Assembly on the United Nations Verification Mission in Guatemala (MINUGUA).

The International Court of Justice (ICJ) today found that the United States had breached its obligations to Germany and to the LaGrand brothers -- two German nationals who faced the death penalty -- under the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations.