The following is a near-verbatim transcript of today’s briefing by Stéphane Dujarric, Spokesman for the Secretary-General.
All right, good afternoon. Welcome to the frequent flyers and welcome to the guests.
**International Day of Peace
Today is… what is today? It doesn’t feel like Monday, it feels like Wednesday, frankly. …The International Day of Peace, exactly! Yeah, peace, do you remember that? Yeah.
We mark the International Day of Peace. In his message, the Secretary-General says we face a world where peace is dangerously in short supply, with dialogue stalling and global solidarity just plain missing in action.
But he also says that volunteers, advocates, civil society leaders, peacekeepers and peacemakers are bridging divides and building peace from the ground up. He also calls on world leaders to invest in a peaceful future for all people.
**UNGA 81 Statistics
I promised you some statistics. They have been updated regularly. For the General Debate, we expect 71 Heads of State, 45 Heads of Government, 50 Ministers, 11 Vice-Presidents and still only one Crown Prince.
Alongside the mandated meetings, we have about 166 events that are scheduled here at Headquarters during high-level week, and Member States have so far submitted 1,553 requests for use of the bilateral rooms. And again, this does not include the Secretary-General’s own bilaterals.
The numbers are still changing, and for the latest, you can always look on the UN Journal. And we have about 18,000 active badges for delegates.
**Department of Political and Peacebuilding Affairs
Also, want to flag some of the activities by our colleagues in the Department of [Political and Peacebuilding] Affairs (DPPA).
In addition to attending a number of the Secretary-General’s own meetings, Rosemary DiCarlo, the head of the department, will be meeting several delegations during the week.
On Wednesday morning, she is scheduled to deliver remarks at the Security Council meeting on Ukraine. She is also scheduled to take part in a number of side events, including a ministerial meeting of the Group of Friends of Mediation, a high-level round table on the situation in Sudan and a number of other meetings.
The Assistant Secretaries-General in the department, Khaled Khiari, Martin Kimani and Elizabeth Spehar, are also scheduled to speak at several side events.
And finally, there are a number of Special Representatives, Special Envoys and Personal Envoys that are in town. They will take part in a number of the side events organized on and off campus, as well as bilateral engagements with Member States.
Many of those events, the ones that are taking place here in UN Headquarters, you will be able to watch on UN Web TV and remarks delivered by Rosemary and others in the Department will be posted on the interweb.
**Artificial Intelligence
Also a quick note from our friends in the Office for Digital and Emerging Technologies (ODET). They tell us that the Independent International Scientific Panel on AI, which as you know was established by the General Assembly last year, released its first thematic brief.
The report is called “OpenAI-Hugging Face Incident” and it’s a report on that incident which as you know involved AI agents that were being evaluated by OpenAI and ultimately compromised parts of the Hugging Face AI Hub.
The UN Panel describes the incident as an example of a possible pathway towards loss of human control, in which capable agents communicate outside authorized channels.
The Panel warns that a failure in one system could spread across organizational and national boundaries. The brief suggests that AI safety may increasingly be a matter of collective security as well as corporate governance.
If you have any more questions on the issue, there will be an opportunity to meet with members of the Independent Scientific Panel at 2:30 p.m. in the Oasis Room, at 605 3rd Avenue. That event will also be livestreamed on YouTube. We can give you more details and the media advisory has been shared with you.
**UN Mission in South Sudan
Some sad news, unfortunately, from our colleagues at the UN Peacekeeping Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS). As you will recall, two of our peacekeepers were killed on 26 August in an ambush on a UN patrol in Jonglei State. An Ethiopian peacekeeper was also wounded during that incident. Sadly, that peacekeeper has now died from his injuries.
The tragic loss is a stark reminder of the difficult and often dangerous conditions that our peacekeepers serve in and of their steadfast commitment to protecting communities and advancing peace.
We extend our deepest condolences to his family and the colleagues, and to the Government and people of Ethiopia.
**Ethiopia
Speaking of Ethiopia, but in a completely different context, I can tell you that we are deeply concerned by the worsening security situation and recent developments in Ethiopia, including the formation of a new coalition of armed groups and reports of continued insecurity and drone strikes.
At a time of heightened tensions, we urge all stakeholders to refrain from actions or rhetoric that could further escalate the situation. We also urge them to recommit to dialogue. Military action will not resolve political differences or address underlying grievances.
The United Nations continues to support the African Union-led efforts to reduce tensions and advance the implementation of the Pretoria Agreement.
**Saudi Arabia/Yemen
Moving on to the Middle East, we reiterate our condemnation of the continued Houthi cross-border attacks against Saudi Arabia, including the attempt to target Riyadh, the capital. And this is in addition to attacks against civilians and energy infrastructure elsewhere in Saudi Arabia.
We remain deeply concerned about the ongoing military escalation in and around Yemen, including Houthi offensives in Taiz, Lahj and Marib, with grave consequences for civilians in Yemen and across the region.
We call on the parties to exercise restraint and prevent any further escalation. We further urge them to uphold their obligations under international humanitarian law; that includes the prohibition against direct attacks against civilians and civilian infrastructure.
Meanwhile, our Special Envoy for Yemen, Hans Grundberg, is currently in Muscat, where he is meeting with senior Omani officials and representatives of the Houthis.
**Yemen/Humanitarian
On the humanitarian side, our colleagues at OCHA (Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs) tell us that over the weekend 21,000 households in Yemen were displaced across the country — that is since 1 August — most of them in the governorates of Taiz and Lahj. This figure is expected to rise as the registration of the displaced continues. Displaced families urgently need food and they need shelter.
We and our partners are scaling up support for the displaced families and all those in need, but the response faces ongoing funding shortfalls and access constraints.
Health workers are paying a heavy price. On Friday, ambulances were attacked in Lahj governorate, killing a driver and an emergency medical responder. Nine health facilities or locations have been damaged, closed or directly attacked in Taiz and Lahj, and in the city of Al Hodeidah. Hospitals receiving the wounded are running short of blood, they are running short of anaesthesia and they are running short of surgical supplies.
Our colleagues at the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) estimate that there are more than 2,700 pregnant women among the displaced; 300 of those women are expected to give birth within the next two weeks and at least 500 who need emergency obstetric or newborn care. However, key emergency obstetric facilities have been closed in Taiz and displaced women are being forced to give birth in the open without any skilled medical care.
In response, our humanitarian partners have reached nearly 13,000 displaced households with rapid response kits and other urgently needed assistance. Surgical supplies and antibiotics have been delivered to four hospitals in Aden and Marib; that’s been done by our colleagues in the World Health Organization (WHO).
Again, yet again, we call on the parties to protect civilians and civilian infrastructure, and to allow for the safe and unhindered delivery of humanitarian aid wherever it is needed and to whoever needs it.
**UN Interim Force in Lebanon
And moving on to Lebanon, in southern Lebanon, over the past few days, our UNIFIL colleagues recorded extensive troop deployments, engineering operations and armoured movements and military presence throughout their area of operations.
Peacekeepers observed continued drone activity, including the placement of explosive-filled jerrycans in the vicinity of Al Mansouri. Between 17 and [20] September, these activities resulted in 33 explosions.
UNIFIL continues to record persistent violations of Lebanese airspace by the Israel Defense Force (IDF), amounting to about 145 between 17 and 20 September.
Denials of UNIFIL's freedom of movement remain a serious concern. On 18 September, Israel Defense Force (IDF) personnel halted a pre-notified UNIFIL unexploded ordnance disposal operation, and an IDF soldier pointed a rifle at peacekeepers, forcing them to abandon the task.
On [19 September], a UNIFIL patrol encountered a roadblock, and an IDF tank aimed its main gun directly at the patrol, compelling it to withdraw. UNIFIL calls on all actors to respect the freedom of movement of the peacekeepers and to ensure that our UNIFIL colleagues can implement their mandated tasks safely and without interference, in accordance with Security Council resolution 1701.
On the humanitarian front, following coordination with OCHA, humanitarian organizations conducted four missions on 17 September and three missions on 18 September.
**Occupied Palestinian Territory
Turning to the Occupied Palestinian Territory, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs tells us that over the weekend, children across Gaza returned to school after the summer break. UNICEF tells us that some 330,000 children are now attending 200 learning centres supported by UNICEF. UNRWA (United Nations Relief and Works Agency), for its part, says that many of the schools still standing are being used as shelters for displaced families. The Agency’s teams continue to support child development through temporary learning spaces and digital learning.
Meanwhile, the UN Development Programme (UNDP) tells us that yesterday, ahead of the new school year, they removed rubble from about 20 schools, 4 universities and 19 learning sites. UNDP has also cleared about 50 kilometres of roads leading to schools and other education facilities.
Although UNDP has cleared more than 1 million metric tons of rubble overall since last year, more than 60 million metric tons of rubble still need to be moved.
To ensure that such efforts can proceed safely, our mine action partners conducted about 150 assessments during the second week of September alone. They also educated thousands of people on the risks related to unexploded ordnances. They continue to warn that debris across Gaza remains heavily contaminated with explosive hazards, posing a clear danger to communities.
On the water and sanitation front, our partners have completed repairs to a damaged sewage pumping station in Jabalya area — that is in North Gaza. Operations have been restored following the local procurement of a generator. This comes as the Israeli authorities continue to restrict the entry of new generators, which remain urgently needed given to electricity blackout.
Between June and August, our partners repaired 19 water and sewage facilities. While these are now technically operational, they continue to function at limited capacity because power sources are not accessible.
Our humanitarian partners tell us that scaling up these efforts requires the Israeli authorities to approve the entry into Gaza of heavy machinery, of specialized equipment, of engine oil, spare parts and a number of other essential items.
At the same time, more funding is urgently needed for humanitarian operations, including the fuel needed to operate vehicles and backup generators. This year’s $4 billion humanitarian response plan for the Occupied Palestinian Territory is currently less than 40 per cent funded.
Meanwhile, ongoing Gaza strikes continue to imperil civilians across the Strip, as well as the facilities they depend on, with reports of civilian casualties over the weekend. Our safety and security partners tell us that last week, there were five air strikes and four incidents on the ground near our facilities or our partners’ facilities. Several people were injured, and minor damage was reported.
**Ukraine
From Ukraine, our colleagues at the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) tell us that attacks over the weekend and into today continue to impact civilians and civilian infrastructure.
Attacks in the regions of Kherson, Kyiv, Sumy, Kharkiv, Donetsk, Dnipro, Zaporizhzhia and Odesa have damaged or destroyed civilian infrastructure, including homes and apartment buildings, shops, warehouses, agricultural facilities, admin and educational premises, as well as gas and energy facilities.
We and our humanitarian partners are providing emergency assistance including hot meals and psychosocial support.
And I can tell you the Secretary-General is very concerned and alarmed by the expansion of the conflict that we have seen, which has included a number of civilian targets being hit in the Russian Federation, as well as Ukraine.
**Afghanistan
Turning to Afghanistan, the UN Assistance Mission there (UNAMA) confirmed that at least three civilians, including a man, a woman and a girl, were killed and four injured in apparent airstrikes in Kunar province in the early hours of 21 September.
Our OCHA colleagues tell us that the district of Barmal in Paktika Province was also impacted with airstrikes reportedly damaged residential structures. Local sources are telling us, thankfully, no serious civilian casualties were reported.
So far this year, UNAMA documented over 1,100 civilian deaths and injuries in Afghanistan from cross-border armed violence. We reiterate our call for respect for international humanitarian law to prevent civilian casualties. We continue to monitor the situation closely.
**Haiti
And back on this hemisphere, in Haiti, the violence continues to force people to flee their homes. In Artibonite department, an estimated 1,500 people have been displaced over the past week due to ongoing violence.
According to the International Organization for Migration (IOM), about 900 people were displaced in the communes of Saint-Marc and Verrettes and are now staying with host families. In Saint-Michel de l'Attalaye, another 600 people were forced to flee their homes due to several days of violence.
Many of those affected had already been forced to flee their homes two months ago and had only recently returned before being displaced once again. Overall, 1.5 million people, or about 12 per cent of the country’s population, remain internally displaced.
We, along with our humanitarian partners, continue to provide shelter assistance, essential household items and other critical support to displaced communities, despite an extremely challenging operating environment. We are also working closely with our partners and national authorities to coordinate the response and ensure that displaced people can safely access essential services and assistance.
As I have said many times, Haiti is no different from other humanitarian appeals; they are also underfunded, with only 47 per cent of the required $880 million received so far.
**Senior Personnel Appointment
Senior personnel appointment to share with you. Today, the Secretary-General has appointed Saada Hassan of Djibouti as the new Director of Political Affairs and Deputy Head of the UN Office to the African Union (UNOAU).
She succeeds Gerald Mitchell of the United States, to whom the Secretary-General is grateful for his service.
Ms. Hassan brings over 25 years of experience in international relations and multilateral diplomacy with her national Government and the UN.
She has lots of experience and she’s good people, and we congratulate her.
**Press Encounter
Lenka, I know you want to ask a question, but you are going have to bear with me another 12 or 8 seconds.
7:45 p.m., there will be a press encounter by the European Council President, António Costa and the President of Kenya, William Ruto.
They will be at the Security Council Stakeout following their co-hosted high-level event on partners for multilateralism, P4M, new acronym, and that will take place in the UN Trusteeship Council, and voilà! Lenka?
**Questions and Answers
Question: Thank you, Stéphane. Please, on trilateral talks between the [United States], Russia and Ukraine, has there been any discussion on this topic, or has the Secretary-General attempted to reach out to the parties to schedule something?
Spokesman: I have nothing to share with you on that at this point.
Question: Has he tried?
Spokesman: The Secretary-General and his staff remain in contact with both the Russian Federation and Ukraine.
Question: And one more question, if I may. President [Donald] Trump mentioned end of last week, again, the escalator story and that it was intentional. Just curious, have you double-checked, triple-checked?
Spokesman: What do you think?
Question: I think yes, but…
Spokesman: Yes, it has been checked and rechecked.
Question: Teleprompter?
Spokesman: Yeah, teleprompter. New arrangements were made to facilitate the [United States] delegation's use of a teleprompter. They now have a separate booth, so we hope that will work without a hitch.
Question: Thank you.
Spokesman: Greg, then Pam.
Question: Thank you, Steph. Two quick questions. The first one, could you give us more detail on the El Mansouri incident reported by UNIFIL? What's the purpose or motive of filling jerrycans with explosives? Sorry, in reference to Lebanon and the report from UNIFIL, you mentioned that there were examples of jerrycans being filled with explosives. There have been more than 30 explosions. What is the assessment of the peacekeepers?
Spokesman: Filling jerrycans with explosives is usually not done for benign reasons. That would be my uneducated assessment.
Question: But to press you, the peacekeepers, the force hasn't given an assessment as to why that is being done?
Spokesman: No, I have no more to share with you.
Question: Second question, if I may.
Spokesman: That's all right.
Question: $725 million paid by the United States into the budget last week. Is the Secretary-General of the view that Donald Trump has something worthwhile to offer here, something that could advance world peace? Or does he feel that the [United States] is doing the bare minimum to keep its vote?
Spokesman: The Secretary-General looks forward to hearing the speech by the President of the United States. And we've always said that, you know, a strong United Nations also needs strong [United States] engagement. Madame Falk?
Question: Who got the quiz today, by the way?
Spokesman: Yeah, it wasn't — the International Days isn't an official quiz, but yes, good luck. All right. Congratulations,
Question: All right. Yeah, good… So, the question is, on the 17 September press conference with the [Secretary-General], he was asked about Iran talks. Could there be some kind of talks at the sidelines of UNGA? And he didn't say no, he didn't say yes, but he said, if the parties are willing. Is there any update on that? Is there any sense that the parties may be willing or any parties?
Spokesman: Nothing more to share with you than I think his very clear answer.
Question: And do you know when they're arriving?
Spokesman: I do not know when they're arriving in the [United States]. That's something to ask for the Iranian Mission. We know when they're speaking. Thank you. OK, Abdelhamid.
Question: Thank you, Steph. An official spokesperson from the Israeli Government said that the Palestinians would be denied picking their olive oil, olive trees from what they call State land, assuming that this land is theirs. Do you have any comment on that?
Spokesman: I haven't seen that comment, but it is vital that Palestinian farmers be allowed to reap the harvest, literally, of their own olive trees in peace, without the threat from settlers of being attacked or clubbed or worse. Gabriel?
Question: Thanks, Steph. Wednesday, the Security Council has two meetings, as you know, one on, sorry, one on Ukraine and one on AI (Artificial Intelligence). Do you know who from the Secretariat will be briefing?
Spokesman: On Ukraine, it will be Rosemary DiCarlo. On AI, it will be one of the co-chairs from the independent panel.
Question: Do you know if Sam Altman will be taking part in that Security Council meeting?
Spokesman: You should ask the French Mission. I mean, I've seen some reporting, but you should need to ask the French Mission.
Question: And if he is, we don't know if he is, but if he is, would the Secretary-General meet with him, given that the AI report by the independent panel just came out?
Spokesman: I mean, we'll see what the [Secretary-General], I mean, in theory, the Secretary-General will always be interested in meeting with people. Obviously, this week is a particularly busy week for him, but we'll see. Yes, sir?
Question: Bonjour, Stéphane. This is Deepak Arora from the Tribune Online, New Delhi. I have two questions. One is that the recently held straw poll didn't show any clear winner. What is your assessment? Where would one move from here and how soon we can get a new Secretary-General?
Spokesman: We wait for the next [Secretary-General] like we wait for the Messiah. Okay, I have no… it is up for the members of the Security Council to first make a recommendation to the General Assembly. We will wait in their wisdom.
Question: And our minister is coming here, Mr. Jaishankar. Is there any meeting planned with the [Secretary-General]?
Spokesman: Yes, I believe there is a meeting. We'll have to look at the schedule, but I believe there is a meeting.
Question: Thank you so much.
Spokesman: Yes, sir?
Question: I'm Ahmed Bader from Yemen, covering for PBS NewsHour. Thank you, sir. Given the recent escalation and the growing tensions around the Red Sea and Bab al-Mandeb, how concerned is the Secretary-General about the risk of the regional escalation? And has the Secretary-General and his Special Envoy got in touch with the political parties, especially as our President Al-Alimi is not going to attend? So, thank you so much.
Spokesman: Yeah, I mean, we're extremely worried about the risk of further fighting, further damage done to Yemen, to the people of Yemen, and the growing impact it would have regionally and globally. The Secretary-General's Special Envoy remains very active. As I said, he's in Muscat today. Last week, he was in Riyadh. He is in constant touch with all necessary Yemeni parties. Yes, please, Anne. Go ahead.
Question: Thank you, Steph. I'd like to ask two questions. Can you Can you share anything about the trilateral signing event with Denmark and Greenland and the [United Nations]? And secondly…
Spokesman: I'm so eager to answer. Sorry.
Question: Does the Secretary-General have any comment on CNN and other media being excluded from the White House reporting, especially as this seems also to be affecting the UN reporting of this week?
Spokesman: Okay. So, on your first question, we are not one of the “tris” in the trilateral event, so we don't, we're obviously, we're not involved in the reported signing. Obviously, we're aware of it, and we support any dialogue and security cooperation that is consistent with the Charter of the UN.
The Secretary-General is a firm believer in the freedom of the press. I mean, I think he began his comments to you during the press conference, or either ended them by thanking you, by thanking the media for doing your job. We do not believe in putting any restrictions on which journalists can attend this briefing. It gets adversarial by nature. I don't think it gets very confrontational. I sit here. I'll answer any questions. The Secretary-General answered 27 of your questions on Wednesday. We will never do anything that will limit the press's freedom to report in this building. Thank you. Yes, sir, now I'll get to you, Benny. Yes, go ahead.
Question: Thank you, sir. This is from ARY News Pakistan. How do you view the efforts of Pakistan's army chief and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to mediate between Iran and the United States? Pakistan hosted the first round of talks in Islamabad and is still trying to arrange a meeting between President Trump and Iranian President here in the — during the UN sessions in New York. What are your thoughts on these efforts?
Spokesman: The Secretary-General is very grateful and appreciative of the efforts of the Pakistani leadership to mediate and to end the violence. And we saw, I think, the Islamabad understanding was a great achievement. Other countries have also been involved. But I think Pakistan's role has been critical, and the Secretary-General has stayed in very close touch with the Pakistani leadership on that, trying to assist as best as he could in that shared goal of ending this conflict.
Question: President Trump has already said that he's willing to meet Iranian President, but we haven't seen, heard anything from the Iranian leadership. Would you encourage Iran not to miss this opportunity for dialogue, which could potentially help end the war?
Spokesman: As I've just said, we always support dialogue. Diplomacy is our middle name, so to speak, right? So I think any re-engagement by the parties, by the [United States] and the Islamic Republic of Iran, as they had previously, would help lead us to ending this open conflict, which is hurting a lot of people. Mr. Avni?
Question: I hope you wouldn't consider me adversarial.
Spokesman: I never. Benny, we've known each other for literally 26 years, and I answer your questions all the time.
Question: I know. And God bless you.
Spokesman: But go ahead. I won't end it today. Go ahead.
Question: If I missed it, I need to know what's your assessment of the announcement of Palestinian legislation elections on 28 November and the consequent presidential election, as well, and whether you think, whether the UN thinks it will actually happen.
Spokesman: Well, you know, as I told your colleague, we're for diplomacy; we're also for elections. I don't have a crystal ball, but I can tell you we stand ready to assist in whatever way we can with these elections.
Question: Is it, I mean, there's enough UN presence in the West Bank. Is there no assessment as to how it's going to progress?
Spokesman: I mean, we'll let journalists such as yourselves make the assessment. I'm not going to publicly look into a crystal ball and tell you what will happen. I will check with our colleagues at the Electoral Division if they're offering any technical support at the request of the Palestinians. Alex, then Eric.
Question: Thanks, Steph. Do I happen to remember when there is SG's meeting with [Sergey] Lavrov and Iranian delegation by any chance?
Spokesman: With Mr. Lavrov, it is Thursday, late Thursday, if I recall. With the Iranian delegation, there is something scheduled. It's just not in my head currently. [He later said that meeting was scheduled for Friday.] Eric?
Question: Thank you. That's working. So, Finland and a group of Member States, including Australia, Kenya, Canada, Germany and others, issued a joint statement on a call for control of frontier AI models. And among other things, it called for an international standard-setting institution. They're exploring steps towards that. I was wondering if you've seen it and your reaction.
Spokesman: I mean, I think it all fits in with the general direction that the Secretary-General would like to see AI going and the governance of AI going. Okay, Abu Sufian, I think you had a question online.
Question: Yes, thanks, Steph, for giving me the floor. The countries like Bangladesh and Pakistan and Maldives and India is suffering due to sea level rise. And I have seen that there is an event on sideline on sea level rise. Does UN have any specific plan or action to solve this particular case?
Spokesman: I heard you, but I didn't fully understand what you were saying.
Question: It is a question about sea level rise.
Spokesman: Yes, sea level rise. I think we just issued a report not long ago. There is an event, a side event here in the General Assembly on sea level rise. It is an urgent and pressing crisis, which I think I don't have to explain to you and the Bangladeshi people the direct impact that it could have on millions and millions of people. Okay. I would urge you to look at the report we issued on that. Thank you all.
Just a reminder, we're not briefing tomorrow. We're not briefing Wednesday. We will likely not brief Thursday, unless we really need to. But we will see you Friday if we're all still standing. Good luck and be well.