GA/AB/3418

FIFTH COMMITTEE APPROVES FUNDS FOR UNIFIL EXPANSION

The Fifth Committee (Administrative and Budgetary) this afternoon recommended the Assembly appropriate some $86.76 million for the expansion of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) for 1 July 2000 to 30 June 2001, in addition to some $146.83 million already appropriated.

It did this by approving a draft resolution on the financing of that mission by a vote of 109 in favour to 3 against (Israel, Marshall Islands, United States), with no abstentions (see Annex II).

By other terms of the draft approved this afternoon, the Assembly would stress that Israel must pay some $1.28 million in costs arising from the incident at UNIFIL headquarters at Qana, Lebanon, on 18 April 1996, and request the Secretary-General to report on this matter at the resumed fifty-fifth session.

Prior to the vote on the text as a whole, the Committee voted to include the fourth preambular paragraph and operative paragraphs 2, 3 and 14 of the draft -- which refer to the call for Israel to pay the costs of the damage at Qana -- by a vote of 68 in favour to 3 against (Israel, Marshall Islands, United States), with 35 abstentions (see Annex I).

The representatives of the United States spoke on the text. The representatives of Syria, Japan, France (on behalf of the European Union), Australia (also on behalf of Canada and New Zealand), Lebanon, Israel, Viet Nam, Bahrain and Slovenia spoke in explanation of vote.

The representative of C�te d�Ivoire informed the Committee of the outcome of informal consultations on the draft.

Also this afternoon, as the Committee concluded its consideration of the financing of the International Tribunals for former Yugoslavia and Rwanda, the representative of the United States said that it was important to further strengthen the efficient functioning of the Tribunals and create the conditions necessary for them to complete their work.

The Committee will continue its work at a date to be announced.

Fifth Committee - 2 - Press Release GA/AB/3418 36th Meeting (PM) 7 December 2000

Committee Work Programme

As the Fifth Committee (Administrative and Budgetary) met this afternoon, it was expected to continue its general discussion of the agenda item of the financing of the International Tribunals on the former Yugoslavia and Rwanda and to take action on the financing of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL). (For background information, see Press Release GA/AB/3417 of 6 December.)

Statements

RACHEL GEMAN (United States) said that the Tribunals� activities last year demonstrated their commitment to fulfilling their mandates. Equipped with new judicial resources, they now had the requisite experience to turn their attention to the next stages, which included further strengthening of their smooth and efficient functioning and, eventually, creation of the conditions to complete their work, ensuring their well-deserved legacies.

She welcomed the Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions (ACABQ) reports, which provided useful recommendations and comprehensive analysis of the Tribunals� budgets. She supported the Advisory Committee�s request for provision of timely and complete information, and encouraged the Tribunals to be forthcoming in their submissions. As the United States placed great value on the work of the Experts Group, she wanted to know as much as possible about the implementation of reforms, especially on the �obstacles� identified in the report, including pre-trial delays and prolonged trials.

She also agreed about the importance of longer-term planning, she said. The United States looked forward to the discussion of the modalities of such planning, as this would help the Tribunals focus on forward-looking objectives, expected accomplishments and resource needs. She agreed with the ACABQ recommendation regarding biennial budgeting and with the proposed resource recommendations, understanding that, in some cases, greater expenditures now would help improve efficiency and effectiveness in the long run.

She called on the Tribunals to make optimal use of existing resources before requesting additional funds. It was important to fill existing posts and, particularly at the Rwanda Tribunal, to ensure retention of staff. The United States also supported suggested restraint in creating more administrative slots. The caseloads of both Tribunals would continue to grow, and the United States supported establishment of a pool of ad litem judges for the former Yugoslavia Tribunal and addition of two judges for the Rwanda Tribunal to augment the Appeals Chamber. States in a position to do so should submit candidates for the positions as soon as possible. She applauded efforts to solve the problem of the unused courtroom space at the former Yugoslavia Tribunal and noted with satisfaction the efforts by the Rwanda Tribunal to maximize courtroom use and ensure the availability of judges. It was imperative to maintain those efforts.

Financing UNIFIL

Informing the Committee about the outcome of informal consultations, MANLAN AHOUNOU (C�te d�Ivoire) regretted that the positions displayed by various sides had made it impossible to obtain a consensus on the draft resolution.

CHRISTOPHER WITTMAN (United States) said that the lack of consensus on the draft was not the fault of the coordinator, but remained a problem of the text.

GERT ROSENTHAL (Guatemala), Committee Chairman, said that a recorded vote had been requested on the fourth preambular paragraph and operative paragraphs 2, 3 and 14 of the draft.

The Committee then voted to include the fourth preambular paragraph and operative paragraphs 2, 3 and 14 by a vote of 68 in favour to 3 against (Israel, Marshall Islands, United States), with 35 abstentions (for details of vote see Annex I).

The Committee then turned its attention to the text as a whole.

Mr. WITTMAN (United States) said that because the draft resolution contained paragraphs objectionable to his delegation, he requested a recorded vote be taken on the entire draft resolution as a whole.

ABDOU AL-MOULA NAKKARI (Syria) said that had he not been late for the meeting, he would have voted in favour of the inclusion of the paragraphs. He asked that that be reflected in the record.

The entire text was then adopted by a vote of 109 in favour to 3 against (Israel, Marshall Islands, United States), with no abstentions (Annex II).

SHINICHI YAMANAKA (Japan), speaking in explanation of the vote, said that his delegation decided to vote in favour of the draft as a whole from the viewpoint of its responsibility as a Member State to finance peacekeeping operations, including the UNIFIL operation. He deeply regretted that the Committee had not been able to reach consensus on the draft.

ALEXIS LAMEK (France), speaking on behalf of the European Union, said that the costs of the Qana incident were of a particular nature, and a call to finance them from voluntary contributions would be welcome. The cost of peacekeeping operations should continue to be a collective responsibility. The European Union had abstained on the inclusion of the paragraphs in question, for the text was not appropriate in the context of financing UNIFIL. The political aspects of the question had been the subject of discussion in the General Assembly, and he had stated his position on the political issues in the plenary. He would like the discussion in the Fifth Committee to be devoted to the financial and budgetary aspects.

HENRY FOX (Australia), also speaking on behalf of Canada and New Zealand, said he was glad that the text just approved provided the financing for the mission. However, he was concerned that once again consensus had not been reached and that political elements had been introduced in the work of the Fifth Committee. He also regretted that the principle of collective responsibility was being undermined. As at 31 October 2000, only 21 per cent of Member States had paid their assessed contributions for the mission in full, and he urged all those concerned to make their payments without delay.

HOUSSAM ASAAD DIAB (Lebanon) said that he reserved his right to speak on behalf of the Arab States in the plenary. However, the draft confirmed that it was up to the occupying State -� Israel -- to fulfil its responsibilities under international law. Israel should assume full responsibility for the damages at Qana, particularly as they were deliberate and directed against a United Nations mission.

RON ADAM (Israel) said that today, another attempt had been made to use the Fifth Committee as a political forum for a biased attack against his country. In the informal consultations, he had said that he would only take the floor if other countries made statements directed against his country. However, a certain State could not waste any opportunity to attack Israel.

All the delegations had heard his position on the incident at Qana, he said, where Hezbollah had deliberately chosen a site close to the UNIFIL headquarters and started launching Katyusha rockets from that position. It was unfair to hold one State responsible for the damage incurred. Any damage should be absorbed by Member States in accordance with the principle of collective responsibility. No State would stand by when rockets were being launched at its territory.

In the wake of the Israeli withdrawal from southern Lebanon, he continued, Hezbollah had quickly moved into that territory. On several occasions, it had crossed the blue line, infiltrated Israeli territory and made attacks against Israel -- the last one just last week. It had also abducted three Israeli soldiers patrolling the boundary area. He called upon the Government of Lebanon to reassert its authority in southern Lebanon.

The attention of the Committee should not be diverted from the important issues on its agenda, and the principle of consensus work had been emphasized by many speakers in informal consultations. Financing for UNIFIL should be provided without introducing political aspects into the discussion.

NGYUEN XUAN ANG (Viet Nam) said that if he had not been late for the meeting he would have voted in support of the draft resolution.

EBRAHIM AL-MUSLIMANI (Bahrain) said that had he been present for the vote he would have also voted in favour of the draft resolution.

IRENA MERNIK (Slovenia) said that her delegation had not been present for the vote. Slovenia would have voted in favour of the fourth preambular paragraph, would have abstained on operative paragraphs 2,3 and 14, and would have voted in favour of the entire draft.

Mr. DIAB (Lebanon) said that Lebanon�s position on the draft resolution just adopted was based on the need for the aggressor to bear full responsibility for its deliberate aggression against a United Nations position. It was clear to all that most of the victims of that aggression had been elderly men, women and children. It was not a political but a humanitarian question. It was important to assure for the safety and security of the Force and preserve the work it had accomplished.

As for the political question asked by the delegate of Israel, he referred him to the correspondence sent to the Security Council and the Secretary-General highlighting the various violations -- repeated on a daily basis -- by the Israeli occupying forces against Lebanese territory, thus violating the blue line adopted by the Security Council as the line of withdrawal. He asked Israel about the 19 Lebanese seized by Israel and abducted from their homes on Lebanese territory. They continued to be retained in Israeli prisons. That had even been recognized by Israel�s Supreme Court. He was surprised to hear the representative of Israel asking for international legality when his own Supreme Court approved the detention of hostages for use as a kind of currency. Would Israel allow the International Red Cross to visit the hostages held in Israeli prisons? What was Israel doing in the territory which it continued to occupy?

DURGA P. BHATTARAI (Nepal) said his delegation had voted in favour of the resolution on the whole. However, he had not been present during the vote on the inclusion of the paragraphs. Had he been present, he would have voted in favour of the inclusion of all of them.

Mr. NAKKARI (Syria) said that the items to be taken up by the Committee should be accurately reflected in the Journal. For example, this week, the Group of 77 had been informed that the voting on the UNIFIL draft would take place on Thursday, but according to the Journal, it was to be held on Wednesday. He accepted the Secretariat�s apologies in that respect but hoped that, in the future, the matter would be handled with more care.

During Ramadan food service used to be provided in the Vienna Caf�, he continued, and several delegations counted on that to break their fast. He had asked the Committee to take up that matter three times during informal consultations, but today he was forced to repeat his request in an open meeting. He hoped the Secretariat would respond to his request.

The CHAIRMAN said that the Committee would return to that subject in the future.

(annexes follow)

Fifth Committee Press Release GA/AB/3418 36th Meeting (PM) 7 December 2000

ANNEX I

Vote on Inclusion of Text in Draft Resolution on Financing UNIFIL

The inclusion of one preambular paragraph and three operative paragraphs in a draft resolution on financing UNIFIL was approved by a recorded vote of 68 in favour to 3 against, with 35 abstentions, as follows:

In favour: Algeria, Argentina, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belarus, Belize, Bolivia, Botswana, Brazil, Brunei Darussalam, Burkina Faso, Cambodia, Chile, China, Comoros, Costa Rica, Cuba, Djibouti, Dominican Republic, Egypt, Ethiopia, Fiji, Gabon, Gambia, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Indonesia, Iran, Jamaica, Jordan, Kenya, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Lebanon, Libya, Malawi, Malaysia, Mexico, Mongolia, Morocco, Myanmar, Namibia, Nigeria, Oman, Pakistan, Panama, Peru, Philippines, Qatar, Russian Federation, Saint Lucia, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Singapore, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Thailand, Togo, Tunisia, Uganda, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, United Republic of Tanzania, Venezuela, Yemen, Zambia.

Against: Israel, Marshall Islands, United States.

Abstain: Andorra, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, C�te d�Ivoire, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Germany, Ghana, Greece, Guinea, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Malta, Monaco, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Republic of Korea, Spain, Sweden, Tonga, Turkey, United Kingdom, Uruguay.

Absent: Afghanistan, Albania, Angola, Antigua and Barbuda, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bahamas, Bahrain, Benin, Bhutan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Burundi, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Chad, Colombia, Congo, Democratic People�s Republic of Korea, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Dominica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Estonia, Federated States of Micronesia, Finland, Georgia, Grenada, Honduras, Hungary, Iceland, India, Kazakhstan, Kiribati, Lao People�s Democratic Republic, Lesotho, Luxembourg, Madagascar, Maldives, Mali, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mozambique, Nauru, Nepal, Nicaragua, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Republic of Moldova, Romania, Rwanda, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Samoa, San Marino, Sao Tome and Principe, Sierra Leone, Slovakia, Slovenia, Solomon Islands, Suriname, Swaziland, Syria, Tajikistan, The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Trinidad and Tobago, Turkmenistan, Tuvalu, Uzbekistan, Vanuatu, Viet Nam, Yugoslavia, Zimbabwe.

(END OF ANNEX I)

ANNEX II

Vote on Draft Resolution on Financing UNIFIL

The draft resolution on the financing of UNIFIL (document A/C.5/55/L.11) was approved by a recorded vote of 109 in favour to 3 against, with no abstentions, as follows:

In favour: Algeria, Andorra, Argentina, Armenia, Australia, Austria, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belarus, Belgium, Belize, Bolivia, Botswana, Brazil, Brunei Darussalam, Burkina Faso, Cambodia, Canada, Chile, China, Comoros, Costa Rica, C�te d�Ivoire, Croatia, Cuba, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Democratic People�s Republic of Korea, Denmark, Djibouti, Dominican Republic, Egypt, Ethiopia, Fiji, France, Gabon, Gambia, Germany, Ghana, Greece, Guatemala, Guinea, Guyana, Haiti, Indonesia, Ireland, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Jordan, Kenya, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Lao People�s Democratic Republic, Latvia, Lebanon, Libya, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Malawi, Malaysia, Malta, Mauritius, Mexico, Monaco, Mongolia, Morocco, Myanmar, Namibia, Nepal, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nigeria, Norway, Oman, Pakistan, Panama, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Qatar, Republic of Korea, Romania, Russian Federation, Saint Lucia, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Singapore, South Africa, Spain, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Sweden, Syria, Thailand, Togo, Tonga, Tunisia, Turkey, Uganda, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United Republic of Tanzania, Uruguay, Venezuela, Yemen, Zambia.

Against: Israel, Marshall Islands, United States.

Abstain: None.

Absent: Afghanistan, Albania, Angola, Antigua and Barbuda, Azerbaijan, Bahamas, Bahrain, Benin, Bhutan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Burundi, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Chad, Colombia, Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Dominica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Estonia, Federated States of Micronesia, Finland, Georgia, Grenada, Honduras, Hungary, Iceland, India, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kiribati, Lesotho, Luxembourg, Madagascar, Maldives, Mali, Mauritania, Mozambique, Nauru, Nicaragua, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Republic of Moldova, Rwanda, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Samoa, San Marino, Sao Tome and Principe, Sierra Leone, Slovakia, Slovenia, Solomon Islands, Suriname, Swaziland, Tajikistan, The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Trinidad and Tobago, Turkmenistan, Tuvalu, Uzbekistan, Vanuatu, Viet Nam, Yugoslavia, Zimbabwe.

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