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Preparations for next year's World Summit on Sustainable Development advanced this week from the regional to the global level, Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs Nitin Desai told a press conference today at UN Headquarters in New York.

An independent panel dealing with Liberia sanctions has recommended that the Security Council extend the arms embargo and rough diamond sanctions on the country.

The contribution of women has been shown to be an important factor in building peace in war-torn areas, but female voices will go unheard without efforts by the international community and warring parties to include them in peace processes, members of the United Nations Security Council were told during a meeting today with representatives from women's organizations.

A new international law - described by Secretary-General Kofi Annan as "the most ambitious venture in environmental democracy undertaken under the auspices of the United Nations" - entered into force today following its ratification by 17 members of the UN Economic Commission for Europe (ECE).

Sports and healthy environmental practices will be the focus of a series of international conferences in Japan, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) announced today.

The British scientist credited with inventing the Internet in 1989 has paid tribute to the thousands of people around the world who contributed to making the World Wide Web, which he calls a collaborative venture and a "creation of volunteers," a United Nations agency said today.

Secretary-General Kofi Annan's Special Representative for Afghanistan, Lakhdar Brahimi, today reached agreement with the President of Pakistan on principles that must guide the resolution of the Afghan conflict.

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Ruud Lubbers, who has repeatedly called on Afghanistan's neighbours to open their borders to fleeing Afghans, met with the President of Pakistan today to discuss the volatile situation.

Secretary-General Kofi Annan met today with the heads of the principal organs of the United Nations to discuss how to spend the money that came with the Nobel Peace Prize awarded to the UN and Mr. Annan earlier this month.

A team of experts from the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) is visiting the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia this week to investigate sites in Serbia and Montenegro that were targeted by ordnance containing depleted uranium (DU) during the 1999 Kosovo conflict.