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The United Nations has fully embraced new media tools to tell its story while still relying on traditional means such as radio, television and print to get its messages out, a senior official said today, stressing the flexibility of the world body in a rapidly changing information environment.

Climate change will exacerbate water stress in Pacific Islands, particularly small islands that rely on seasonal rain for their freshwater needs, according to a United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) report, issued in Bangkok, Thailand, today.

Marking World Book and Copyright Day, the head of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) today highlighted the importance of translation to ensuring that everyone has access to the tremendous potential of books.

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon will later this week head to Myanmar, which he said is at a “critical” moment in its transition, preceded by an official visit to India.

Raising the possibility of targeted sanctions, the United Nations Security Council today demanded the immediate restoration of constitutional order in Guinea-Bissau, as well as the reinstatement of the West African country's legitimate government.

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today informed the leaders of Cyprus' Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot communities, Demetris Christofias and Derviþ Eroðlu, that there was not enough progress on key aspects of reunification talks to warrant holding an international conference on the divided Mediterranean island nation.

The Security Council today authorized the establishment of a United Nations observer mission to Syria, for an initial period 90 days, to monitor the cessation of violence there, as well as monitor and support the full implementation of a peace plan.

The head of the joint United Nations-African Union peacekeeping mission in the western Sudanese region of Darfur today expressed serious concern over developments in the region’s south, following attacks by armed movements on three towns earlier this week.

The UN refugee agency today said that one month after the United Nations issued an appeal for $84 million to help Syrian refugees in Jordan, Lebanon, Turkey and Iraq, only 20 per cent of the funds had been received.

Following the release last week of two opposition leaders from prison in Belarus, the UN human rights office today called on the country’s authorities to begin dialogue with the opposition and to unconditionally release all prisoners who are serving sentences for exercising their fundamental human rights.