UNRWA Pledging Conference, AI Governance & other topics – PGA Spokesperson Briefing

Happy Monday, everyone. Just wanted to provide a few updates for this week and next week, given the holiday weekend here in the US. Today, you may have known that this morning there was an informal meeting of the General Assembly Plenary to hear a briefing on the UN80 Initiative, and that was in the Trusteeship Council Chamber. And as you know, these are ongoing briefings that are provided by USG Guy Ryder, as well as the Secretary-General, on how the reform efforts are going here at the UN. So that briefing was this morning. Tomorrow morning in the ECOSOC Chamber at 10:00 AM, there will be informal consultations on the political declaration for the high-level meeting on pandemic prevention, preparedness, and response. And that's happening in the morning and the afternoon. So it takes place in the morning in Conference Room 3, then will continue in the afternoon in ECOSOC Chamber. Tomorrow morning, Tuesday, 30 June, at 10:00 AM in the Trusteeship Council, there will be the UNRWA pledging conference. In light of the latest developments in the Middle East and the unprecedented political, financial, and operational challenges facing UNRWA, the PGA hopes that the pledging conference will provide both political and financial support from member states to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine— Palestine Refugees in the Near East. As you know, the agency provides life-saving and development services in its role across— several areas of operations and countries is indispensable. The Secretary-General of the United Nations and the Commissioner-General ad interim of UNRWA, Mr. Christian Saunders, will address the pledging conference, and again, that's at 10:00 a.m. in the Trusteeship Council. On Wednesday, the 1st of July, there's a GA plenary meeting, and it will be a debate on Item 118, which is the United Nations Global Terrorism Global Counterterrorism Strategy and the report of the Secretary General. At 10:00 AM and again in the afternoon at 3:00 PM, there will be informal consultations on the high-level meeting to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the adoption of the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action, and that is happening in Conference Room 3. Also at 10:00 AM on Wednesday, July 1st, in the ECOSOC Chamber, there will be continued discussions for the High-Level Meeting on Pandemic Prevention, Preparedness, and Response. On Thursday, the 2nd of July, in the morning and afternoon, 10:00 AM and 3:00 PM, they will continue the debate on Item 118, which is the Global Counterterrorism Strategy and the report of the SG. And then there will also be informal consultations in the afternoon on the progress declaration of the High-Level Meeting on Improving Global Road safety. Uh, and so that is Thursday afternoon, the 2nd of July. Uh, Friday obviously is a bank holiday here, uh, the 3rd of July. The offices here will be closed. Uh, and just a note that for the following week, the week of 6th July, the PGA will undertake official travel. She will travel to Geneva, Switzerland from 6th to 8th July to participate in the inaugural Global Dialogue on AI Governance. Many of you know that There has been a panel of experts who has been empaneled on this issue, and this will be the first global AI governance dialogue. She will also attend the AI for Good Summit and the World Summit on the Information Society, WiSys, their 2026 forum hosted by ITU. Through her participation, the President of the General Assembly aims to advance multilateral and multistakeholder cooperation on the governance of artificial intelligence and digital technologies in support of sustainable development, the promotion of human rights, and the implementation of the Pact for the Future. Uh, items that are happening back here in New York next week: on Monday, there will be a plenary meeting in GA Hall at 10:00 AM, and that's the 6th of July. Uh, there will be a debate on the item The Responsibility to Protect and the Prevention of Genocide War Crimes, Ethnic Cleansing, and Crimes Against Humanity, and that is under Agenda Item 131, and the report to the Secretary-General will be considered. And there is also an activity on Global Health and Foreign Policy, action on the draft resolution Sustainable and Safe Water, Sanitation, Hygiene, Waste, and Electricity Services in Healthcare Facilities. So there will be action on that draft resolution. Then on Tuesday, July 7th, there is a plenary meeting and there is a debate on the item on the commercial and economic, commercial and financial embargo imposed by the United States of America against Cuba. And they will look at taking a decision on reopening the agenda item 38 under that topic. So those are the highlights for this short week and early next week in the GA. No questions. All right. Thanks so much.

Where's your correspondent for the cutaway? I mean, seriously, do we want to wait for him?

What?

He's coming back, making the grand entrance as usual. All right, yeah, that's not my idea of fashion, but you know. All right, yeah, somebody had a cutaway looking for a correspondent. All right. Good afternoon. I see our colleague Gianluca already on the screen. Gianluca will be with you in just a moment. If I ask you just to be patient for a few more minutes. So as mentioned, we'll be joined in a short while by Gianluca Rampolla del Tienardo, the Resident Coordinator and Humanitarian Coordinator for Venezuela. He's joining us from Caracas to brief you on what is going on following the earthquakes. Obviously, our teams on the ground are working hard, and we will have more from Gianluca in just a moment. This morning, the Secretary-General delivered remarks at the 4th High-Level Conference on Counter-Terrorism. He told participants that this year's meeting takes place at a moment of acute instability. This year also marks the 20th anniversary of the UN Global Counterterrorism Strategy and an opportunity to assess progress and to strengthen our resolve. Looking ahead, the Secretary-General highlighted four priorities. He highlighted prevention, cooperation, technologies, and values. He told member states that our response must be rooted in the very principles that terror seeks to destroy, that is, um, that our efforts must be firmly grounded in the rule of law and in human rights. Terrorism is evolving, the Secretary-General said, and so must we. Through prevention, through cooperation, through unwavering commitments to human rights, we can build a safer world where people everywhere live free from fear. The full remarks were shared with you. Meanwhile, our Deputy Secretary-General is in Hamburg, in Germany today, where she participated in the third edition of the Hamburg Sustainability Conference. Delivering opening remarks, she called for urgent collective action to safeguard decades of development progress amid mounting geopolitical, economic, and climate-related challenges. Warning that these overlapping crises risk reversing hard-won gains and pushing the Sustainable Development Goals further out of reach, underscoring the need for renewed multilateral cooperation, and a more equitable international financial system and greater investment to accelerate progress towards the 2030 Agenda. Ms. Mohammed also joined the panel discussions on UNAID reform, reinvigorating multilateralism, and strengthening collective responses to the Middle East crisis. On the margins, she met the President of Germany, Frank-Walter Steinmeier, as well as other senior government officials, including the German Minister for Economic Cooperation and Development, Ms. Riem Al-Baladi, Erdoğan, and the Minister for International Trade and Development Cooperation of the Netherlands. Over the weekend, Ms. Mohammed was in Cairo, in Egypt, where she convened a high-level dialogue on artificial intelligence and human development. The dialogue brought together global thought leaders from across the sector to discuss how artificial intelligence can support sustainable development while safeguarding human dignity and shared values. In Cairo, she also met with Egypt's Minister of Foreign Affairs, Badr Abdel-Latte, expressing her appreciation for Egypt's constructive diplomatic engagements in efforts to address ongoing regional issues.

Following her engagements in Hamburg, she will travel to London, where she's convening a high-level roundtable on sustainable development in an era of flux, and that will take place tomorrow, June 30th, and you'll hear more about it. Turning to Afghanistan and Pakistan, The Secretary-General is deeply concerned by the latest violence between Afghanistan and Pakistan, which resulted in civilian casualties. He called for an immediate cessation of hostilities and the protection of civilians. The Secretary-General reiterates his call on the parties to resolve their differences through diplomacy. We continue to call on all parties to uphold their obligations under international humanitarian law and continue to stress that civilians and civilian infrastructure must be protected at all times. In a statement issued this morning, the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan, UNAMA, just confirmed that many civilians were killed and injured in these airstrikes carried out by Pakistan in the provinces of Paktia, Paktika, and Kunar, Kunar, which all these strikes took place last night. The UN mission is continuing its verification work on these incidents. We offer our condolences to the families of the victims and wish a speedy recovery for the injured. Our humanitarian colleagues tell us that the latest attacks have also reportedly triggered displacement, and humanitarian partners on the ground are assessing needs and preparing to provide emergency assistance. Turning to Lebanon, I was asked by a number of you about the latest developments on the political track between Israel and Lebanon. I can tell you that the trilateral framework between the US, The State of Israel and the Republic of Lebanon announced on June 26th constitutes a milestone in efforts to end decades of conflict and advance lasting stability.

We continue to underscore the importance of resolving outstanding issues through dialogue to achieve sustainability on both sides of the Blue Line and to ensure sovereignty and security for both Israel and Lebanon. We are committed in supporting Lebanon and Israel to fulfill their obligations towards a long-term solution of the conflict in accordance with Security Council Resolution 1701. Meanwhile, our colleagues in UNIFIL tell us that no launch of projectiles were observed in the mission's area of operations over the weekend. However, peacekeepers continue to observe IDF forces' kinetic ground activities as well as air violations over Lebanon. UNIFIL observed airstrike near Deir Sirion in sector east. And Yonmor outside UNIFIL area of operations. A UNIFIL acoustic detection system also picked up 28 explosions in Deir Sirian yesterday. On Saturday, UNIFIL peacekeepers observed two Israeli tanks opening small arms fire towards Al Mansouri in Sector West. Peacekeepers also encountered several restrictions on their movements, including yesterday when an IDF personnel blocked a UNIFIL explosive ordnance disposal team that was going to dispose of an explosive hazard on the road near al-Bayyada in Sector West. That caused a temporary halt of the mission. On the humanitarian front, UNIFIL, through its liaison branch in coordination with OCHA, facilitated 3 humanitarian missions in Sector West on Friday. Our colleagues on the ground also report some positive trends in displacement and returns. They tell us that many people who were staying in collective shelters have started to return home., with sites closing as families leave. However, around 50,000 people remain in 469 shelters across Lebanon. Safety risk remains particularly, particularly due to reported contamination by unexploded ordnance across several locations across the southern part of Lebanon. Of course, all returns must be safe. They must be voluntary and dignified, and they all— people who return must have access and sustained support for humanity from humanitarian partners. Back here, the Security Council heard from Ramiz Al-Akkaroff, the Deputy Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process. He briefed via VTC from Jerusalem and said the situation across Israel and the occupied Palestinian territory has remained volatile, adding that Israeli airstrikes and military operations have continued across Gaza, resulting in further fatalities and bringing the total killed since the ceasefire to over 1,000.

That's what the Gaza Ministry of Health is saying.

On the humanitarian side, the Deputy Special Coordinator said the needs in Gaza remain immense. Sanitation continued— conditions remain alarming. 70% of the population lacks dignified shelter. Humanitarians continue to face persistent constraints as they carry out their essential work. He continued— he condemned the continued killing and injury of Gazan civilians in Gaza, including women and children. Mr. Lakhdaroff is particularly concerned by recent increasing calls for the resumption of widespread hostilities in Gaza. This would be disastrous for the Palestinians in Gaza, for Israelis, and for the entire region, he warned. He reiterated the Secretary-General's strong condemnation of the relentless expansion and acceleration of Israeli settlements in the West Bank. They— these developments further entrench the unlawful Israeli occupation and threaten the viability of a fully independent, contiguous, and sovereign Palestinian state.

Meanwhile, on the ground in Gaza, OCHA tells us that daily strikes in populated areas and tightening of restrictions put civilians increasingly at risk. They cause displacement and limit access access to basic services by people who need them. We and our partners are currently assessing the needs of dozens of families who've been displaced since the weekend in two areas along the so-called Yellow Line in the west of the Gaza Strip— east of the Gaza Strip, excuse me.

You'll recall that this line was served to mark the part of the Gaza Strip, which is more than half of the land, that is virtually off limits to all Palestinians. Over 20 families have been displaced in eastern Deir al-Balah governorate and more than a dozen been displaced in the eastern part of Gaza City. Newly displaced people tell our humanitarian partners that they were ordered through quadcopter announcements or had fled when Israeli forces advanced towards the residential areas while dropping explosive munitions from the air. Deir al-Balah governorate, new yellow cement blocks were set up signaling— further expansion of the area that are now off limits. We and our partners are supporting newly displaced families through rapid joint distribution mechanism. This morning, an airstrike in a location about 100 meters away from UN offices in Dar al-Bala. We've seen reports of casualties, though thankfully not among our own staff. Meanwhile, areas where restrictions apply on the movement of humanitarian staff are also expanding, covering about 65% of of the land in Gaza. This latest shift to the orange line, which delineates those areas, was introduced just last Tuesday, effectively cutting—

excuse me, effectively expanding by another 800 square meters the area where Israeli authorities urged the UN and our humanitarian partners to coordinate their movements, having to coordinate every movement with Israeli authorities— in most of Gaza undermines our service provision. The impact ranges from higher operational costs to delays to complete cutting off of essential facilities such as Gaza's two sanitary landfills. Our humanitarian colleagues say that efforts are also undermined by the actions of forces affiliated by the de facto authorities who stop convoys for inspection or enter humanitarian warehouses, including in viable UN facilities. Just to note, this morning— this afternoon, the Security Council will reconvene at 3 PM for a meeting on maintenance of international peace and security at the request of Belarus, supported by the Russian Federation.

Martha Pobee, the Assistant Secretary General for Political—

for Africa in the Department of Political and Peacebuilding Affairs and Peace Operations, will brief. Turning to Sudan, I can tell you that we welcome the announcement by the Government of Sudan to extend the opening of the ADRIC border crossing with Chad until September 30th. This will continue to allow us to deliver humanitarian aid to those in need despite ongoing security. Armed clashes continue near the Chadian border, and some humanitarian partners report that their operations have been suspended due to the worsening security conditions and communications disruptions. Despite the volatile operational movement, humanitarian partners continue to deliver assistance— especially across Darfur. In West Darfur, for example, our partners last week completed cash distributions to about 250 families. In addition, general food assistance was delivered, reaching more than 42,000 people with monthly food rations. And in West Kordofan, where cholera continues to rise, our partners in health, water, sanitation say they are scaling up the response through the operation of cholera treatment facilities deployment of rapid response teams, and strengthen surveillance capacity, as well as water chlorination efforts and the distribution of cholera supplies supported by the World Health Organization. However, continued constrained access, limited operational presence, and severe water shortages make the response that much more difficult. Meanwhile, the situation in Ubayy al-Ubayyad remains concerning. Drone attacks in the city have continued for for the third consecutive week. Local sources are telling us that a drone strike on June 27th reportedly hit areas near a school for girls, injuring at least 8 of these students. Once again, all parties to the conflict must ensure the protection of civilians and civilian infrastructure and allow unimpeded humanitarian access wherever it is needed. Um, quick, uh, mention of a new report by UNDP warning that the recent military conflict in the Middle East has far-reaching economic consequences, particularly in developing countries. As oil prices surged, many governments had to spend more on fossil fuel subsidies to shield people from rising energy costs, leaving less money available for healthcare and climate action. Fossil fuel subsidies are now projected to reach $1.1 trillion this year, which is an increase of $410 billion compared to last year. Reversing recent progress of reducing such spending. Today is the International Day of the Tropics. Covering about 40% of the Earth's surface, the tropics are home to about 80% of the world's biodiversity. Tropical countries are also on the front lines of climate change, underscoring greater need for action to protect these vital systems. Chris, you may want to pay attention. We have a quiz for you today. This country is home to 7 UNESCO World Heritage Sites. And is the largest country in Africa by area?

Hmm.

Yes, who said Algeria?

There you go.

All right, I'll take questions. Oh, sorry, before I say— we thank our friends in Algiers for the regular payment in full. We're now up to 117. Algeria paid 2,760,000 $67,874 American dollars, and I can tell you we deeply appreciate it, especially at this time of low cash flow. Sherwin Bryson.

I'll keep it on the continent, all the way south. South Africa, Steph, is bracing for nationwide anti-immigration protests tomorrow, Tuesday, with concerns that they could turn violent. What message does the Secretary-General have for South Africans? Particularly in the context that many argue that undocumented migration is placing pressure on jobs and public services. How should governments respond to those concerns without undermining the rights and dignity of migrants?

Well, I can tell you that, first of all, the Secretary-General and our country team led by our colleague Nelson Mouffe have been closely following these developments, especially in advance of the mobilization announced for tomorrow. It's important that the situation remain calm, restrained, and there's full respect for human rights. I think, you know, on your second question, like anywhere else in the world, addressing the impacts on a society of migration must be done within the rule of law, without discrimination, and in a manner that upholds the human rights and dignity of all people. We're seeing many countries throughout the world face this problem, but it's a whole of a society approach, right? It, it, it's— it needs to be dealt with by ensuring inclusion of the citizens of the country, addressing the needs of, of migrants, of refugees, respecting their rights, also looking at the broader socioeconomic needs Our team in South Africa will continue to work with the government, be as helpful as they can to try to address, to try to address this. Yes, Ahmed.

Thank you, Steph. You didn't mention it in your readout, so I'll presume nothing's confirmed yet, but we have received notice that there will be a meeting in Doha between the United States and Iran on Tuesday. Will Personal Envoy Jean Arnault be in attendance?

No.

I'm not aware that Mr. Arnaud will be there. We've seen different reports about this meeting. All right, yes, please, Mona.

Thank you, Stéphane. Just two questions. First, a quick follow-up on last week's open debate on children in armed conflict. Has the SG initiated any engagement or discussions with the parties named in the report since its release?

I mean, that's what the Office for Children in Armed Conflict is there for. They are in constant contact with those parties who are willing to engage, right, to try to improve the situation. I mean, the report's not about blacklisting. The report is about helping the protection of children. So we've seen parties that have throughout the years, parties that have been listed, then working with the Office of the Special Representative are delisted because of positions they've taken. And her— Ms. Fraser's door remains open and they're actively working with those entities who are willing to be worked with.

Okay.

Just another question on the Ibrahimi Mosque. Today is the 9th day. That Israeli authorities have prevented the call to prayer over there. Has the SG raised this specific issue with the Israeli authorities, and if so, what response, if any, has the UN received? Thank you.

People should have the right to worship in any holy site, in holy sites. That's a basic— it's a basic right. Abu Sufyan, then we need to go to our guest who's been very patient.

Uh, thank you, Steph. I have very specific question on counter-terrorism. Uh, counter-terrorism is a big problem in South Asia, especially India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh. But sometimes we notice that counter-terrorism being used for political purpose. Uh, how do you see the counter-terrorism as political tool?

I think I would encourage you, Abu Sufyan, to read what the Secretary-General said, which is that the fight against terrorism must be done within the context of the rule of law. All right, I would ask our colleagues to put Gianluca back up on the screen. Great, Gianluca, we see you. Do you hear us?

Yes, now I'm here, Stefan.

Perfect. Gianluca, thank you for your patience as As promised, we're joined by Gianluca Rampolla del Tinnardo, Resident Humanitarian Coordinator for Venezuela. Gianluca, please, you have the floor and then we'll take some questions.

Stephen, if you agree, I'll be rather short so that we can open up for specific questions.

Perfect.

Yes, please.

Go ahead.

I'm not going back into the events of last Wednesday because those have been widely reported. I'll focus on where we are at this point. I mean, since Wednesday last week when we got hit by the two 7.2, 7.5 back-to-back earthquakes, we have had 500 aftershocks. And the latest was this morning. Hi, Farhan. This was this morning, early this morning, a 5.2 aftershock. So you can understand that we keep on operating in a high-risk environment. 7 states have been affected. The two that have been affected the most are the state of La Guaira and the capital district of Caracas. Let's give you a bit of numbers. We are working with and using the official numbers provided by government. As of the latest update yesterday night, 140— 100— 1,450 people have lost their life. 3,000, more than 3,000 have been injured and over 12,000 displaced. Now, these numbers will unavoidably and sadly keep on growing as the search and rescue operation continues and as we are able to detail further the assessment of the impacts of the waves. In terms of the ongoing response, the government is leading a large-scale operation that is focused primarily at this stage on still search and rescue. We are beyond the 72-hour critical window. But, and this is one of the miracles of this country, rescuers are still being able to pull out alive people. Yesterday alone, 7 persons were, were pulled out of the rubble alive. Obviously, we are focusing with the government on emergency medical care and working rapidly on setting up emergency shelter. There is a tropical wave that is expected in the next hours to reach Venezuela. This will bring heavy rains. You can imagine what this means for the displaced people. 27 countries have mobilized over 40 teams of urban search and rescue rescuers. This means 2,000— over 2,000 rescuers and personnel on the ground with over 160 dogs operating within the framework of the INSARAT, which is the platform that that the UN coordinates to mobilize support from, from all over the world. Together with the rescue, search and rescue operation, we are focusing together with government on, on providing emergency healthcare, shelter, food assistance, water and sanitation, logistics support, and in ensuring not only storage but distribution of all of the supplies that are coming into the country. And protection. From a personal perspective, and I'll leave it there and then we can move into questions, I mean, I have had the chance already to be twice, two full days now, in the most affected areas. And the show of solidarity, as often happens in these cases, but the heroism of the people and the solidarity is outstanding.. And this somehow mitigates a little bit, obviously, the pain and the needs of the people affected on the ground. The community itself has mobilized. The international solidarity also is, is heartwarming at a time in which we just heard Stefan updates on all possible conflicts around the world. Well, the world has come together and very rapidly to provide assistance to the country. So at least this is a happy story at this point. I think I'll leave it at this so that we can go straight into specific questions.

Okay. Thanks very much, Gianluca. I'll now turn the floor over to the press for questions. First question goes to Amélie Boutelier.

Thank you. On behalf of the UN Correspondents Association, thank you very much for doing this briefing. I'm Amélie Boutelier from AFP news agency. I have two questions. You said, sadly, the toll is likely to rise. Do you have any idea how many people are missing or under the rubble? And secondly, usually with this kind of catastrophe, the UN is preparing some kind of flash appeal for emergency funding. Do you have any kind of estimates of how much the UN system is going to need for— and the other organizations going to need to to face the first emergencies. Thank you.

Thank you so much, Farah. Do you want me to take a few questions or you want me to go one by one?

Let's do it one by one.

Okay, so on— thanks for the questions— on the missing, as I said, we are working hand in hand with the government and I won't start speculating on numbers that the government hasn't announced. Officially. I have given you— I actually don't think I have given you a number. It's 2,500, at least 2,500 structures affected, most of which fully collapsed. So we are definitely looking at a number that is higher than, than the one already reported. I can give you a proxy indicator. We are procuring, and this is something that has been agreed with the authorities here, 10,000 body bags. Okay, so that is, is, is somehow a planning assumption, and it's very sad. And we truly hope that actually the number is going to be, uh, smaller than that. And, um, and that's why we are focusing now on the rescue operation. And I won't give you a number of missing because we don't have that number. And I'll just give you the number of the deceased that have already been reported, which is 1,550. On the, on the appeal, the flash appeal, we will have an addendum to our existing humanitarian plan, and we're working on it now. I have to acknowledge and thank the mobilization that has been globally to provide financial assistance. The United States of America, the European Union through ECHO, other countries bilaterally, and the UN through the CERF have already pre-allocated resources, important volume of resources that we are working on already allocate and start use for the response. Okay, all right, next question.

Yes, Pan.

My name is Sean. Oh, sorry. Yeah, can you give us more details about the search and rescue? Sorry.

Oh, yeah, yeah.

Can you give us more details about the search and rescue? You said 40 teams, 2,000 people. How many people have been rescued, and so on and so forth? Thank you.

I don't have the aggregate number, also because it's a combination of the people that have been rescued by the international teams which we are coordinating together with the national rescue personnel and, and the private initiatives. So I can give you the latest, which was yesterday alone, just 4 days after the event and 1 day after the critical 72 hours, the international rescuers were able to pull out 7 alive people.

Okay.

Yes, please. Okay.

Excuse me. Thank you so much for this opportunity. My name is Mika Watsuki from Japanese newspaper Yomiuri Shimbun. I just wanted to ask you about regarding the U.S. rescue effort, that it was USAID that has has been leading disaster relief efforts, and then, as you know, has been already dismantled. And then, while collaborating with US team that is already been in Venezuela, did you notice any differences that in their rapid response capabilities? And if you also note there is any assistance that USAID has been providing, it's no longer offered. Thank you.

We are working very closely with, with the US team that has immediately deployed and are present on the ground. That is in terms of coordination of logistics. And actually, as we have received the availability of their own asset and capacities. That's on the operation on the ground. In terms of financing, actually the U.S. was the first government to announce the availability of funding to respond to the emergency. I will leave it at that.

Thanks.

Any further questions? Uh, do we have any questions online? Okay, if not, I'd like once more to thank our guest Gianluca Rampolla del Tendardo, the Resident Coordinator and Humanitarian Coordinator for Venezuela. Thanks very much and best of luck.

I see Efe here on screen with their hand up. I don't know if they wanted to—

Oh wait, yes, yes, they just joined. Oh yes, yes, Efe, please.

I can't hear you.

Hold on, please. We can't quite hear you. Can you get the audio up? What? Hold on. Try again. I don't know whether you're muted. Sorry, we still can't hear you. Maybe write out your question and then I can read it over for Gianluca. Okay, yes, Esteban from EFE has the following question: We have seen that many countries are offering aid and resources, but how can the UN ensure that it is distributed properly and reaches its intended recipients?

Not only offering, they have already provided it. I repeat, there are 27 countries that mobilized and have landed in country with, with the rescue teams and medical emergency teams. There are supplies that are coming in and there are more that are going to come and there is financing. We have established mechanisms to coordinate all of this. We have an aid architecture that has been operating since 2019 in-country. This is just to remind ourselves that we already had an ongoing humanitarian response within Venezuela. Within this architecture and through these mechanisms, we will work with government to ensure the best available and maximum impact of the resources that the world is and will keep on hopefully providing to respond to this emergency.

Thanks.

Are there any further questions? Okay, I see none. So once again, thank you very much, Gianluca, and best of luck in what unfortunately I think will be some fairly difficult days ahead. But thanks very much.

Thanks, Arun.

Thanks. Good afternoon.