Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
09USUNNEWYORK1125
2009-12-17 13:23:00
UNCLASSIFIED
USUN New York
Cable title:  

SIXTH COMMITTEE CONCLUDES DEBATE FOR THE 64TH

Tags:  PREL AORC UNGA 
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VZCZCXYZ0376
RR RUEHWEB

DE RUCNDT #1125 3511323
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 171323Z DEC 09
FM USMISSION USUN NEW YORK
TO SECSTATE WASHDC 7815
UNCLAS USUN NEW YORK 001125 

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PREL AORC UNGA
SUBJECT: SIXTH COMMITTEE CONCLUDES DEBATE FOR THE 64TH
SESSION...AGAIN

REF: USUN NEW YORK 1114

UNCLAS USUN NEW YORK 001125

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PREL AORC UNGA
SUBJECT: SIXTH COMMITTEE CONCLUDES DEBATE FOR THE 64TH
SESSION...AGAIN

REF: USUN NEW YORK 1114


1. Summary: On December 14, the Sixth Committee concluded
debate on agenda items 169: Observer status for the
Parliamentary Assembly of the Mediterranean (PAM) in the
General Assembly and 171: Observer status in the General
Assembly for the Council of Presidents of the General
Assembly. Saudi Arabia, on behalf of the cosponsors of
resolution A/C.6/64/L.20 on granting Observer status to the
Council of Presidents of the General Assembly, withdrew the
resolution and noted that a letter would be sent from the
Chairman of the Sixth Committee to President of the General
Assembly Ali Treki recommending that the General Assembly
identify appropriate ways of making use of the expertise of
the Council. As regards resolution A/C.6/64/L.19 on granting
Observer status to the PAM, it was adopted without a vote
after several interventions by Iran. End Summary.


2. The Chairman began the debate by explaining that after
informal consultations, the cosponsors of the Council of
Presidents of the General Assembly resolution had agreed to
withdraw their resolution, on the understanding that the
Chairman would send a letter to the President of the General
Assembly. Saudi Arabia took the floor to confirm this
understanding. The Chairman read the letter which noted that
"during the debate, several delegations(suggested that
appropriate ways of making the unique expertise and
institutional memory of the former Presidents of the General
Assembly be identified, during the 64th session, in order to
assist the Organization in meeting new challenges facing the
international community." There was no objection to the
Chair sending this letter to the President of the General
Assembly. Consequently, the Sixth Committee finished
consideration of the agenda item.


3. Debate then shifted to consideration of resolution
A/C.6/64/L.19 on granting Observer status to the PAM. Iran
took the floor, in the first of many interventions, to urge
the deferral of the agenda item to the 65th session. It
commented that the review of the Sixth Committee when
granting Observer status should not be a "rubber stamp" and
noted that its position had not changed since last week. It
characterized the reopening of the Sixth Committee as an
"unprecedented move." Malta, the chief cosponsor of the
resolution, acknowledged that the Sixth Committee was
reviewing the issue late in the session but argued that it
had submitted the agenda item over two months ago, blaming
the General Committee for the delay.


4. Several delegations (Libya, Egypt, France, Tunisia, and
Colombia) expressed support for the resolution stating that
Iran only had procedural objections to the resolution, not
substantive ones. Iran quickly responded that it had
intentionally omitted substantive arguments but that it
believed that the PAM did not meet the criteria for observer
status set forth in General Assembly decision 49/426,
particularly its limitation to intergovernmental
organizations. Iran stated that the PAM should not be
compared to the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU),noting that
the IPU was granted Observer status "as an exception to the
criteria of resolution 49/426," and that it took several
years for it to even obtain it.


5. The Chairman concluded debate on the topic and asked the
Committee if there were any objections to adopting the
resolution without a vote. Iran objected to the Committee's
taking action on the resolution without further consideration
of whether PAM met the criteria, but declined to call for a
vote. The Committee adopted the resolution without a vote.
Iran disassociated itself from the adoption of the resolution
while Argentina explained its position noting that it did not
regard the PAM as an intergovernmental organization.
RICE