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Wednesday, February 17, 2010 UNITED NATIONS: UN chief Ban Ki-moon called for calm Tuesday in already tense Ivory Coast where presidential polls are being repeatedly delayed, warning against a return to internal unrest. "The Secretary General urges the Ivorian people to remain calm and avoid resorting to any action that could cause renewed violence," a UN statement said. "He also calls on the Ivorian political leaders and other national stakeholders to exercise restraint, avoid measures that could return the country to instability, and resolve the current challenges related to the already repeatedly delayed elections through dialogue," it added. The statement noted that Ban and his special envoy to Ivory Coast, Choi Young-jin, were pursuing consultations with stakeholders after Ivorian President Laurent Gbagbo's shock decision Friday to sack the government and ask Prime Minister Guillaume Soro to form a new administration. Gbagbo also dismissed the head...

Friday, September 25, 2009 UNITED NATIONS: World powers leading talks to rein in Iran's suspect nuclear ambitions have upped the pressure on the Islamic republic, as momentum grew toward imposing new sanctions.As Russian President Dmitry Medvedev appeared to make a major policy shift by countenancing tough new nuclear sanctions, the global powers said Wednesday they still had "serious concerns" about Tehran's nuclear program.Top diplomats from the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council -- the United States, Russia, China, Britain and France -- plus Germany called on Iran to meet its international obligations as they prepared for talks next week in Geneva."Iran's nuclear program remains a matter of serious concern to the international community," British Foreign Secretary David Miliband said in reading a statement from the six powers."We acknowledge the recent measures taken by Iran regarding its cooperation with the IAEA and ...

NEW YORK: The United Nations Security Council Thursday unanimously adopted a resolution calling for nuclear disarmament during a session lead by U.S. President Barack Obama.The Security Council meeting, the first presided over by a U.S. president, demonstrated increased international political will to advance the nuclear disarmament agenda Obama proposed during his speech in Prague in April, the White House said in a release.The measure, UNSC Resolution 1887, expresses the Council's concern about the threat of nuclear proliferation and the need for international action to prevent it.The resolution calls for nuclear disarmament, urging all countries to work toward establishing effective measures to effect nuclear arms reduction and disarmament, officials said.A second element called for a strengthened Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty that sets realistic and achievable goals for disarmament, non-proliferation and peaceful uses of nuclear energy.The resolution also calls for better se...

Friday, September 04, 2009 GENEVA: The world is speeding towards a climate catastrophe, UN chief Ban Ki-moon warned on Thursday, urging rapid progress in talks to cut emissions and tackle global warming. "Our foot is stuck on the accelerator and we are heading towards an abyss," the UN secretary general said in a speech to the World Climate Conference. Ban, who this week visited the Arctic to witness first hand the changes wrought by global warming, warned that many of the "more distant scenarios" predicted by scientists were "happening now.""Scientists have been accused for years of scaremongering. But the real scaremongers are those who say we cannot afford climate action -- that it will hold back economic growth," he said. "They are wrong. Climate change could spell widespread disaster," Ban warned. The UN leader pinned his hopes of a breakthrough on a summit of world leaders in New York on September 22 to discuss climate change.

Saturday, August 01, 2009 KABUL: Civilian deaths in the escalating Afghan war soared by 24 percent during the first half of 2009 compared with the same period last year, the United Nations said Friday, blaming most of the casualties on Taliban attacks launched with little regard for civilian lives.The U.N. Assistance Mission to Afghanistan also pointed to stepped-up military operations by the United States and its allies, especially airstrikes, for the steady increase in Afghan civilian casualties over the past two years.However, the report also said the number of civilians killed by the Taliban and other "anti-government forces" during the first half of the year was double those attributed to the U.S.-led coalition and Afghan government forces. The U.N. termed that a "significant shift" from 2007, when the coalition was responsible for 41 percent of civilian deaths.Both the U.S. and some elements of the Taliban appear sensitive to the issue of civilian casualties,...

The United Nations listed for new sanctions on Thursday five individuals and five entities believed to be involved in nuclear or ballistic missile development for the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK). The Security Council sanctions committee mandated to list the targets, and also announced a ban on the shipment of two sensitive goods to or from the East Asian country. New sanctions were voted against the DPRK on June 12, following a second nuclear test on May 25. Sanctions were imposed after Pyongyang's initial nuclear test in October 2006. The original measure included a ban on ballistic missile tests by the DPRK. "The committee has decided today (Thursday) to designate the following five entities for assets freeze," said Turkey's Fazli Corman, chairman of the Council panel. "These entities are linked to the DPRK's nuclear and/or missile programs." Lister were, the DPRK's General Bureau of Atomic Energy, Namchongang Trading Corp., K...