The United Nations Office at Geneva
Multimedia Newsroom
Press Conferences | UNOG , UNITED NATIONS
UN.Special Envoy for SYRIA Press Conference 17 October 2021
UN Special Envoy for Syria, Geir Pedersen, on Sunday welcomed the consensus reached by both Co-Chairs of the Syrian Constitutional Committee (Small Drafting Body) to not only agree to prepare for constitutional reform, but also to start “a drafting process” on a text that will help support a peaceful future for the country, after more than a decade of war.
The development follows close to nine months of negotiations led by Mr. Pedersen with the Co-Chairs - who represent the Government of Syria and the opposition - to reach consensus on constitutional reform. Syrian civil society is represented by the so-called “Middle Third”.
It comes after the fifth meeting of the 45-member Small Drafting Body in January, where the Special Envoy said that insufficient progress had been made and that there was a realization that “we could not continue the way we have been going”.
To prepare for the week-long session in the Swiss city, the Special Envoy explained that in a first on Sunday, the two Co-Chairs “were sitting down together with me for a substantial and frank discussion on how we are to proceed with constitutional reform and indeed what we are planning for the week ahead of us”.
Important as constitutional reform is to a durable peace in Syria, Mr. Pedersen insisted that the Committee would not be able to solve the Syrian crisis on its own, in an appeal for continued international efforts to help the devastated country and its people.
“There are more than 13 million Syrians in need of humanitarian assistance and 90 per cent of those in the country live below the poverty line,” he said.
It is nearly two years since the first meeting of the full Syrian Constitutional Committee, a 150-member body which comprises 50 representatives of the Syrian Government, 50 from the opposition and 50 from civil society. Fifteen members of each bloc represent the Small Drafting Body.
ends
Similar Stories
1
1
Press Conferences | OCHA
Embargoed until Monday, December 8, at midnight (NY)/6:00am (Geneva)
Tom Fletcher, the Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, on funding requirements ahead of the release of the 2026 Global Humanitarian Overview
1
1
1
Press Conferences | UNESCO , OCHA , UNICEF , IFRC , FAO , OHCHR , IPU
Alessandra Vellucci, Director of the United Nations Information Service in Geneva, chaired a hybrid press briefing, which was attended by spokespersons and representatives of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, the United Nations Children’s Fund, the Food and Agricultural Organization, the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, the International Federation of the Red Cross and the Inter-Parliamentary Union.
1
1
1
Press Conferences | OHCHR
The Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination to announce findings on Burundi, Guatemala, Maldives, New Zealand, Sweden and Tunisia
1
1
1
Press Conferences | UNMAS
Protecting people from mines and other explosive ordnance in complex settings
1
1
1
Press Conferences | UNODA
Twenty-Second Meeting of the States Parties to the Convention on the Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines and on Their Destruction
1
1
1
Press Conferences | ITU , UNDP , UNHCR , WMO
Alessandra Vellucci, Director of the United Nations Information Service in Geneva, chaired a hybrid press briefing, which was attended by the representatives and spokespersons of the United Nations Development Programme, the World Meteorological Organization, the United Nations Refugee Agency, the United Nations Children’s Fund, and the International Telecommunication Union.
1
1
1
Press Conferences | UNIDIR
Landmine Monitor 2025 report launch
1
1
1
Press Conferences | OHCHR , ICRC , UNCTAD
Alessandra Vellucci, Director of the United Nations Information Service in Geneva, chaired a hybrid press briefing, which was attended by the representatives and spokespersons of the International Committee of the Red Cross, the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights and the UN Refugee Agency.
2
1
2
Press Conferences , Edited News | UNAIDS
World AIDS Day 2025: Overcoming disruption, transforming the AIDS response
1
1
1
Press Conferences | UNESCO , UN WOMEN , OHCHR , WFP
Alessandra Vellucci, Director of the United Nations Information Service in Geneva, chaired a hybrid press briefing, which was attended by the representatives and spokespersons of UN Women, the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, and the World Food Programme.
2
1
2
Press Conferences , Edited News | UNCTAD
A new report by UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD) finds that the prolonged military operation and long-standing restrictions have driven the economy of the Occupied Palestinian Territory into its most severe contraction on record, wiping out decades of development gains and deepening fiscal and social fragility.
1
1
1
Press Conferences | WHO , WFP , UNICEF , OCHA , UNCTAD
Rolando Gómez, Chief of the Press and External Relations Section at the United Nations Information Service in Geneva, chaired a hybrid press briefing, which was attended by the representatives and spokespersons of the World Food Programme, the World Health Organization, the United Nations Children’s Fund, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, and the United Nations Trade and Development.