The capital of Kazakhstan is Astana. Top news of the day | Friday: Zaporizhia NPP, Secretary General in Central Asia, DPRK, Doha UN
The main news of the day in the UN and in the world: as a result of shelling and fire, an external radiation monitoring station near the Zaporozhye Nuclear Power Plant was destroyed, the head of the UN will visit Central Asia, a group of UN experts is investigating reports of North Korean supplies of weapons and ammunition to Russia, Deputy Secretary-General for Political Affairs Rosemary DiCarlo heads to Doha for a meeting on Afghanistan.
The situation at Zaporizhia NPP
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has received information from the Zaporozhye Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP) that an external radiation monitoring station was destroyed by shelling and fire this week, further reducing the ability to detect a radioactive release in the event of an emergency. As IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi said on Friday, Zaporizhia NPP personnel lost contact with the monitoring station on Monday afternoon. Due to the difficult security situation, a team of experts was unable to get to the site to confirm the damage.
UN chief’s trip to Central Asia
On June 29, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres will go on a tour of all countries of Central Asia. He last visited the region in 2017. Spokesperson for the UN chief Stephane Dujarric announced this at a briefing in New York on Friday. According to him, in each country the Secretary General will meet with the head of state and senior government representatives, and will also get acquainted with projects related to the fight against climate change and communicate with local activists. The first stop of the tour is Uzbekistan. In Kazakhstan, on July 4, the Secretary-General will take part in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit.
Reports of arms transfers from North Korea to Russia
A UN panel of experts is investigating reports that North Korea has supplied conventional arms and ammunition to Russia in violation of sanctions. UN High Representative for Disarmament Affairs Izumi Nakamitsu stated this while speaking at a meeting of the Security Council on Friday. According to her, in recent months there have been allegations of the transfer of ballistic missiles and ammunition from the DPRK to the Russian Federation, in violation of relevant Security Council resolutions, for use in the conflict in Ukraine. Earlier, a group of experts reviewed a report from Ukraine on the debris of short-range ballistic missiles produced in the DPRK and allegedly used by the Russian armed forces.
Rosemary DiCarlo will go to Doha
Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs Rosemary DiCarlo travels this weekend to Doha, Qatar, where she will preside over the UN chief third meeting of special envoys for Afghanistan. On Tuesday, DiCarlo and the special envoys will meet with representatives of Afghan civil society, including human rights and women’s groups. During meetings with the de facto authorities of Afghanistan, the deputy UN chief will raise issues of women’s and girls’ rights, human rights in general and political inclusion.