CONFERENCE ON DISARMAMENT HOLDS PLENARY MEETING TO DISCUSS ITS ANNUAL REPORT TO THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY

The Conference on Disarmament this morning held a plenary meeting to discuss the preparation of its annual report to the General Assembly.

Ambassador Kim In-chul of the Republic of Korea, taking the floor for the first time as President of the Conference on Disarmament, said he would brief the Conference on his plans as President. One of the tasks to carry out before the end of the session was finalizing the report of the Conference to the General Assembly. He had asked the secretariat to circulate informally the first draft of the report, which was available in English only. It was presently being translated into all the official languages of the United Nations and would be circulated as soon as possible. Briefly outlining the report, he said it followed the structure, format and language of past reports adopted by the Conference, without going into great detail but faithfully recording on a factual basis the actions taken and views expressed by States.

Ambassador Kim thanked States and the secretariat for their contributions during the informal consultations. He would continue to work with all delegations and would remain available for meetings with any delegation wishing to discuss the draft. He was grateful if all could send their written comments by Friday, 26 August at noon.

Ambassador Kim welcomed participants in the 2016 United Nations Programme of Fellowships on Disarmament who were attending the plenary today.

Pakistan congratulated Ambassador Kim for taking on the Presidency of the Conference and expressed confidence in his work to finalise the report. Pakistan welcomed the excellent draft report and appreciated Ambassador Kim’s professional approach and the extensive informal consultations that he had carried out. The report followed the previous established pattern of recording relevant details in a concise and factual manner and its early availability would give delegations time to hold consultations with their capitals. Pakistan expressed full support in the common endeavour to ensure the smooth adoption of the report. Pakistan welcomed participants in the 2016 United Nations Programme of Fellowships on Disarmament, congratulating all of them for being part of it.

Australia extended its full cooperation and support to the President and welcomed the text that they had before them. Australia would work closely with the President and could support the report. Australia greeted the participants in the 2016 United Nations Programme of Fellowships on Disarmament who were representing their countries, welcoming them to the interesting world of the disarmament global community.

The next public plenary of the Conference will be held at 10 a.m. on Tuesday, 30 August. The Conference will close the third and last part of its 2016 session on 16 September.



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