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Lack of direct communication between Ethiopia and Eritrea could endanger the peace process between the two countries that fought a bitter two-year long border war, and the international community must persuade them to start normalizing their relations, according to the top United Nations envoy in the region.

United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan today lent his support to the idea of six-way talks on the nuclear programme in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK).

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) today urged donor nations to start immediate work on restoring and preserving the remainders of Iraqi cultural heritage following looting and damage that occurred during and after the recent war.

As fighting resumed today in the Liberian capital of Monrovia, the United Nations said the appalling situation facing thousands of war-weary civilians crowding the streets has taken another grave twist: due to virtually non-existent sanitation and a lack of clean water, the city is now in the grips of a serious cholera epidemic.

Renewed shelling that rocked Monrovia this morning has plunged Liberia deeper into turmoil, and with a meeting between President Charles Taylor and West African officials now on hold, the political situation remains in flux amid reports that the embattled leader has left the capital, according to the top United Nations envoy for the region.

The United Nations panel monitoring progress on worldwide efforts to prevent racism and racial discrimination is set to open its second substantive session of 2003 next week in Geneva.

The United Nations Security Council this evening authorized the establishment of a multinational force - welcomed by Secretary-General Kofi Annan, who had called for speedy action by the Council - to support implementation of a recent ceasefire agreement between the Liberian Government and the country's two main rebel factions.