DPR Korea, Guatemala, Ukraine & other topics - Daily Press Briefing (24 March 2022)

The United Nations of Earth reporting on this issue: "DPR Korea, Guatemala, Ukraine & other topics - Daily Press Briefing (24 March 2022)"
The topics: Noon briefing by Stephane Dujarric, Spokesperson for the Secretary-General. Highlights - DPRK - Guatemala - Ukraine/Humanitarian - Global Growth - Mali - South Sudan - Yemen - Syria - Somalia - Tajikistan - International Day for the Right to the Truth concerning Gross Human Rights Violations and for the Dignity of Victims - World Tuberculosis Day - Madeleine Albright DPRK The Secretary-General strongly condemns the launch of a ballistic missile of intercontinental range by the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea that took place today on 24 March. This is another breach of the DPRK’s announced moratorium in 2018 on launches of this nature, and a clear violation of Security Council resolutions. The launch of the long-range missile risks a significant escalation of tensions in the region. The Secretary-General urges the DPRK to desist from taking any further counter-productive actions. He reaffirms his commitment to working with all parties in seeking a peaceful diplomatic solution for the complete and verifiable denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula. GUATEMALA And on Guatemala, the Secretary-General notes with concern reports of recent legal action against Guatemalan prosecutors and judges who played a prominent role in the anti-impunity efforts. The Secretary-General recalls the important contributions of dedicated public officials in the justice system and, during its period of operation, of the International Commission against Impunity in Guatemala and its personnel to the fight against impunity and towards eradicating corruption in Guatemala as well as strengthening its institutions. This contribution has been consistently recognized by the Guatemalan authorities, human rights defenders and the international community. Amid reports of questioning the independence of justice and criminal prosecution in Guatemala, the Secretary-General welcomes the Attorney General’s call on 16 February for a visit to the country by the Special Rapporteur on the Independence of Judges and Lawyers. That statement is online. UKRAINE Today marks one full month of the war in Ukraine - one of the most rapidly deteriorating humanitarian crises of modern times. The main humanitarian challenge remains to secure safe access into areas where civilians are trapped in ongoing fighting, such as Mariupol, and safe passage out. I just want to highlight the work of a number of UN agencies. The UN Children’s Fund said today said that 4.3 million children have been displaced in the last month in Ukraine – that’s more than half of the estimated 7.5 million children in Ukraine. The World Health Organization warned that the war has had a devastating impact on Ukraine’s health system, severely restricting access to services, and triggering an urgent need to treat trauma injuries and chronic conditions. Destroyed health infrastructure and disrupted chains of medical supplies now pose a grave threat to millions of people. WHO opened an operations centre in Rzeszów in Poland, and developed a pipeline of trauma supplies to most Ukrainian cities, and sent already more than 100 metric tonnes of medical equipment over the border, to health facilities in Ukraine. WHO said that some 36 metric tonnes of supplies are currently on their way to Lviv, with an additional 108 metric tonnes waiting to be dispatched, consisting of trauma supplies, medication for chronic diseases, paediatric drugs and blood transfusion supplies. In all areas where security permits, including in the east, we, along with our humanitarian partners, are providing assistance. Since the war started, the WFP has distributed 644 metric tonnes of food to 520,000 crisis-impacted people in Kyiv and Kharkiv. Important to note that more than 83 per cent of WFP’s food pipeline has been procured locally in Ukraine. UNICEF has delivered medical supplies to 49 hospitals in nine regions – including Kyiv, Kharkiv, Dnipro and Lviv – to improve access to healthcare for 400,000 mothers, newborns and children. For its part, the UN Population Fund has sent more than 13 metric tonnes of reproductive health supplies and other equipment to Ukraine, which are currently warehoused in Lviv. On funding, as you may recall, less than a week into the war, on 1 March, we, along with humanitarian partners, launched two coordinated emergency appeals, calling for $1.7 billion to help people across Ukraine and in border countries. Significant pledges have generously been made by donors. Two allocations at $60 million have been made from the Central Emergency Response Fund to kickstart the response. As of today, donors have reported $469 million for the Ukraine Flash Appeal. That gives us a 41 per cent coverage, that’s better than 38 per cent that we had yesterday. Full Highlights: https://www.un.org/sg/en/content/noon-briefing-highlight?date%5Bvalue%5D%5Bdate%5D=24%20March%202022


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