A/79/PV.2 General Assembly
The meeting was called to order at 10 a.m.
I now request the General Assembly to direct its attention to section II of the report of the Committee, entitled “Organization of the session”, which contains a number of recommendations concerning the General Committee, the rationalization of work, the closing date of the session, the general debate, the conduct of the meetings and so forth. Allow me to flag a few points.
In paragraph 37, the General Committee draws to the attention of the Assembly that the general debate will begin on Tuesday, 24 September, and will continue on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, 25 to 27 September, and on Monday, 30 September, and recommends that it continue on Saturday, 28 September 2024.
May I take it that the Assembly takes note of the information contained in paragraph 37 and approves the recommendation that the general debate continue on Saturday, 28 September 2024?
It was so decided (decision 79/502).
In paragraph 53, the General Committee brings to the attention of the Assembly information on rights of reply to addresses made by Heads of State.
May I take it that the General Assembly takes note of the information provided?
It was so decided (decision 79/503).
I believe it would be beneficial to address all the remaining organizational matters concerning the General Assembly as a whole.
It was so decided (decision 79/504).
I now invite members to turn their attention to section III, which deals with the adoption of the agenda. The question of the allocation of items will be dealt with subsequently in section IV.
In paragraph 93, in connection with sub-item (k) of item 18 of the draft agenda, entitled “Promoting the social and solidarity economy for sustainable development”, the Committee decided to recommend its inclusion under heading A.
May I take it that the Assembly approves this recommendation?
It was so decided.
In paragraph 94, in connection with item 37 of the draft agenda, entitled “Question of the Comorian island of Mayotte”, the Committee decided to recommend its inclusion under heading B, on the understanding that there would be no consideration of this item by the General Assembly.
May I take it that the Assembly approves this recommendation?
It was so decided.
In paragraph 95, in connection with item 59 of the draft agenda, entitled “Question of the Malagasy islands of Glorieuses, Juan de Nova, Europa and Bassas da India”, the Committee decided to recommend that consideration of this item be deferred to the eightieth session of the General Assembly and that the item be included in the provisional agenda of that session.
May I take it that the Assembly approves this recommendation?
It was so decided.
In paragraph 96, in connection with sub-item (rr) of agenda item 98 of the draft agenda, entitled “Addressing the legacy of nuclear weapons: providing victim assistance and environmental remediation to Member States affected by the use or testing of nuclear weapons”, the Committee decided to recommend its inclusion under heading G.
May I take it that the Assembly approves this recommendation?
It was so decided.
In paragraph 97, in connection with sub-item (ss) of item 98 of the draft agenda, entitled “Lethal autonomous weapons systems”, the Committee decided to recommend its inclusion under heading G.
May I take it that the Assembly approves this recommendation?
It was so decided.
In paragraph 98, in connection with item 135 of the draft agenda, entitled “Eightieth anniversary of the end of the Second World War”, the Committee decided to recommend its inclusion under heading I.
May I take it that the Assembly approves this recommendation?
It was so decided.
In paragraph 99, in connection with item 178 of the draft agenda, entitled “Observer status for the Regional Anti-Corruption Initiative in the General Assembly”, the Committee decided to recommend its inclusion under heading I.
It was so decided.
In paragraph 100, in connection with item 179 of the draft agenda, entitled “Observer status for the International Coffee Organization in the General Assembly”, the Committee decided to recommend its inclusion under heading I.
May I take it that the Assembly approves that recommendation?
It was so decided.
I turn now to the agenda recommended by the Committee in paragraph 101 of its report for adoption by the General Assembly, taking into account the decision just adopted with respect to specific items.
Bearing in mind that the agenda is organized under nine headings, we shall consider the inclusion of items under each heading as a whole. Items 1 and 2 have already been dealt with. We shall now turn to items 3 to 8. May I take it that those items are included in the agenda?
It was so decided.
We turn now to the inclusion of the items listed under heading A, “Promotion of sustained economic growth and sustainable development in accordance with the relevant resolutions of the General Assembly and recent United Nations conferences”. May I take it that the items listed under heading A are included in the agenda?
It was so decided.
We turn now to heading B, “Maintenance of international peace and security”. May I take it that the items listed under heading B are included in the agenda?
It was so decided.
Next, we turn to heading C, “Development of Africa”. May I take it that the item listed under that heading is included in the agenda?
It was so decided.
Now we come to heading D, “Promotion of human rights”. May I take it that the items listed under heading D are included in the agenda?
It was so decided.
Heading E is entitled “Effective coordination of humanitarian assistance efforts”. May I take it that the item listed under that heading is included in the agenda?
It was so decided.
Next, we turn to heading F, “Promotion of justice and international law”. May I take it that the items listed under heading F are included in the agenda?
It was so decided.
Now we turn to heading G, “Disarmament”. May I take it that the items listed under that heading are included in the agenda?
It was so decided.
Heading H is entitled “Drug control, crime prevention and combating international terrorism in all its forms and manifestations”. May I take it that the items listed under that heading are included in the agenda?
Lastly, we turn to heading I, “Organizational, administrative and other matters”. May I take it that the items listed under heading I are included in the agenda?
It was so decided.
We turn now to section IV of the report of the General Committee, on the allocation of items. We shall now turn to the recommendations contained in paragraphs 106 to 110. We shall take up the recommendations paragraph by paragraph. Before we proceed, may I remind members that the item numbers cited here refer to the agenda recommended in paragraph 101 of the report of the General Committee before us.
We shall now turn to paragraphs 106 (a) to (h), relating to a number of plenary items. May I take it that it is the wish of the General Assembly to take note of all the information that the General Committee took note of and approve all of the recommendations contained in paragraphs 106 (a) to (h)?
It was so decided.
We turn now to paragraphs 107 (a) to (c), relating to the First Committee. May I take it that it is the wish of the General Assembly to approve all of the recommendations of the General Committee contained in paragraphs 107 (a) to (c)?
It was so decided.
We turn now to paragraph 108, relating to the Second Committee. May I take it that it is the wish of the General Assembly to approve the recommendation of the General Committee contained in paragraph 108?
It was so decided.
We turn now to paragraphs 109 (a) and (b), relating to the Fifth Committee.
May I take it that it is the wish of the Assembly to approve all of the recommendations of the General Committee contained in paragraphs 109 (a) and (b)?
It was so decided.
We turn now to paragraphs 110 (a) and (b), relating to the Sixth Committee.
May I take it that it is the wish of the Assembly to approve all of the recommendations of the General Committee contained in paragraphs 110 (a) and (b)?
It was so decided.
We shall now turn to paragraph 111 of the report of the General Committee, on the allocation of items to the plenary and to each Main Committee.
I will first turn to the list of items recommended by the General Committee for consideration directly in plenary meeting under all the relevant headings. May I take it that the General Assembly approves the allocation of the items listed for consideration in plenary meeting?
It was so decided.
We come next to the list of items that the General Committee has recommended for allocation to the First Committee under the relevant headings. May I take it that the Assembly approves the allocation of those items for consideration by the First Committee?
We turn now to the list of items that the General Committee has recommended for allocation to the Special Political and Decolonization Committee (Fourth Committee) under all the relevant headings. May I take it that the General Assembly approves the allocation of those items for consideration by the Special Political and Decolonization Committee (Fourth Committee).
It was so decided.
We turn now to the list of items that the General Committee has recommended for allocation to the Second Committee under all the relevant headings. May I take it that the General Assembly approves the allocation of those items for consideration by the Second Committee?
It was so decided.
We turn now to the list of items that the General Committee has recommended for allocation to the Third Committee under all the relevant headings. May I take it that the General Assembly approves the allocation of those items for consideration by the Third Committee?
It was so decided.
We turn now to the list of items that the General Committee has recommended for allocation to the Fifth Committee under the relevant heading. May I take it that the Assembly approves the allocation of those items of consideration by the Fifth Committee?
It was so decided.
Lastly, we come to the list of items that the General Committee has recommended for allocation to the Sixth Committee under the relevant headings. May I take it that the General Assembly approves the allocation of those items for consideration by the Sixth Committee?
It was so decided.
I now give the floor to the representative of the Russian Federation.
As this is the first time that I take the floor, allow me to congratulate you, Mr. President, on behalf of the Russian Federation on your election as President.
The Russian Federation disassociates itself from the consensus on the decision to include agenda item 62 in the agenda of the General Assembly. The wording of that agenda item does not reflect reality and intentionally misleads the international community. Moreover, it rejects one of the fundamental principles of international law, namely, the principle of self-determination.
The bloody pro-Nazi coup in Kyiv in 2014, initiated by the West, brought ultra-right-wing extremists to power. The subsequent systematic persecution and physical elimination of ethnic Russians, Russian-speaking and Orthodox residents of Ukraine did not leave any choice for the people suffering other than to exercise their right to self-determination at the relevant referendums.
In addition, the one-sided and inaccurate wording of the agenda item precludes any potential constructive discussion by the General Assembly on this matter, which could contribute to a political settlement or be in line with the mandate of the General Assembly. This agenda item serves only to propagate unsubstantiated accusations and propaganda for representatives of the Kyiv regime. Moreover, the wording of the agenda item is an intrusion into the purview of the Security Council of the United Nations which regularly discusses the crisis in Ukraine.
As is this my first time taking the floor in the current session, I would like to begin by congratulating you, Mr. President, on assuming your important role and assuring you of my delegation’s full support.
We thank the General Assembly for the adoption by consensus of the inclusion of the item “The situation in the temporary occupied territories of Ukraine” in the agenda of its seventy-ninth session. As a nation that has consistently resisted brutal aggression for the past decade, we are not surprised by the manipulative tactics employed by the Russian Federation. However, I would like to draw the Assembly’s attention to the fact that this time the inclusion of the item was pursuant to the decision of the General Assembly in its resolution 77/229, which is duly documented. In that resolution, entitled “Situation of human rights in the temporarily occupied Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol, Ukraine”, the General Assembly decided:
“to include the item entitled ‘The situation in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine’ in the agenda of the General Assembly until the violations committed as a result of foreign occupation and control of parts of the territory of Ukraine are duly dealt with and the territorial integrity of Ukraine within its internationally recognized borders is fully restored” (resolution 77/229, para. 17).
That decision was also reaffirmed in resolution 78/221, entitled “Situation of human rights in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine, including the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol”.
We deeply regret the disrespectful attitude displayed by the Russian delegation towards the General Assembly, the most representative and principal organ of this Organization. Against the backdrop of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, we firmly believe that retaining this item on the agenda is of paramount importance. We are convinced that the vigilant attention of the General Assembly as a primary deliberative, policy-making and representative body is indispensable in addressing Russia’s heinous acts of terrorism and reprisals against the civilian population in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine. This year’s debate on the item has garnered substantial interest from Member States, underscoring its significance.
Russia’s actions are no different from those of any other criminal seeking to hide its crime. However, it is our collective responsibility to counter those efforts and instead ensure vigilant monitoring and demand accountability for all violations of international law and the Charter of the United Nations.
The General Assembly has thus concluded its consideration of the first report of the General Committee.
I would now like to draw the attention of representatives to a matter concerning the participation of the Holy See, in its capacity as an observer State, in the sessions and work of the General Assembly.
In accordance with resolution 58/314, of 1 July 2004, and the note by the Secretary-General contained in document A/58/871, the Holy See, in its capacity as an observer State, will participate in the work of the current session of the General Assembly with no further need for a precursory explanation prior to any intervention.
I would also like to draw the attention of representatives to a matter concerning the participation of the State of Palestine, in its capacity as an observer State, in the sessions and work of the General Assembly.
In addition, I would like to draw the attention of delegates to a matter concerning the participation of the European Union, in its capacity as observer, in the sessions and work of the General Assembly.
In accordance with resolution 65/276, of 3 May 2011, and the note by the Secretary-General contained in document A/65/856, representatives of the European Union will participate in the work of the current session of the General Assembly with no further need for a precursory explanation prior to any intervention.
116. Appointments to fill vacancies in subsidiary organs and other appointments (j) Appointment of the Under-Secretary-General for Internal Oversight Services Note by the Secretary-General (A/79/286)
Members will recall that, in its resolution 48/218 B, of 29 July 1994, the Assembly decided to establish an Office of Internal Oversight Services under the authority of the Secretary-General, the head of which would be at the rank of Under-Secretary-General. By that resolution, the Assembly also decided that the Under-Secretary-General for Internal Oversight Services should be appointed by the Secretary-General, following consultations with Member States, and approved by the General Assembly. In addition, the Assembly decided that the Under-Secretary- General for Internal Oversight Services should serve for one fixed term of five years without the possibility of renewal.
As indicated in document A/79/286, on 17 October 2019, the Secretary-General announced the appointment of Fatoumata Ndiaye as Under-Secretary-General for Internal Oversight Services for a fixed term of five years, which began on 25 October 2019 and is due to end on 24 October 2024.
The Secretary-General proposes that, notwithstanding resolution 48/218 B, the Assembly approve the exceptional extension of the term of Ms. Ndiaye as Under- Secretary-General for Internal Oversight Services by two years, until 24 October 2026.
May I therefore take it that it is the wish of the General Assembly to approve that exceptional extension?
It was so decided.
May I take it that it is the wish of the General Assembly to conclude its consideration of sub-item (j) of agenda item 116?
It was so decided.
The meeting rose at 10.35 a.m.