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New York: Lasting peace in the Middle East will only be achieved through direct negotiations between the Israelis and the Palestinians, and not through the imposition of United Nations resolutions, Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said today.

New York: The Balkans will only become a permanently stable region when all the countries that comprised the former Yugoslavia are accepted as members of the European Union, Bulgaria’s Foreign Minister told the General Assembly today.

New York: The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) said today it is appealing to the Sudanese Government for access to Southern Kordofan and Blue Nile states so that it can provide assistance to thousands of people affected by fighting.

New York: The leaders of the United Nations and the African Union today agreed to step up the joint peace efforts of the two organizations on some of the major conflicts and security issues across the continent.

New York: An Ecuadorian accord to leave vast oil reserves, conservatively valued at $7.2 billion, untapped to protect biodiversity in a national park in return for half that amount from the international community was heralded at the United Nations today as a model in the fight to save the planet.

New York: Parliamentary elections expected to take place in Zimbabwe early next year must be free, fair and peaceful, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon stressed today.

New York: Japan is making steady progress in stabilizing the nuclear power plant damaged by the massive earthquake and catastrophic tsunami which hit the country in March, but a number of challenges remain, including the removal of debris and restoring the livelihoods of people in the affected region, Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda told the General Assembly today.

WASHINGTON, DC — In an unprecedented move, seven key global partners committed today to work together in the planning and financing of disaster risk reduction and resilience strategies in critical disaster hotspots around the world.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) and Belgium signed two agreements today for a total contribution of €4.2 million (around US$5.8 million) to enhance their cooperation in capacity building, with a special focus on Belgium’s partner countries in Africa. Part of the funding represents an increased contribution to the Tax Policy and Administration Topical Trust Fund, to which Belgium becomes a lead donor.