Belarus

United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres has appointed Rasul Baghirov of Azerbaijan as the United Nations Resident Coordinator in Belarus, with the host Government’s approval. His start date is 29 March.

In Malawi, the United Nations and its partners are supporting the Government to respond to severe drought, which has prompted national authorities to declare a state of emergency in 23 of the country’s 28 districts. Nearly 2 million farming families and over 40 per cent of Malawi’s agricultural land has been impacted.

The Russian Federation’s recent announcement of plans to station non-strategic nuclear weapons in Belarus represents the first “nuclear sharing” agreement made since the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons entered into force in 1970, the senior United Nations disarmament official told the Security Council today, emphasizing that — against the backdrop of the Ukraine conflict — the risk such arms will be used is higher today than at any time since the end of the cold war.

The Government of Belarus’ deliberate diversion of Ryanair Flight 4978 under the false pretext of a bomb threat is an act of unlawful interference that deliberately endangered the safety and security of the flight and the lives of those on board, Salvatore Sciacchitano, President of the Council of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), told the Security Council today, citing the report of the agency and the work of its fact-finding investigation team.

In Belarus, an Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) team has been granted limited access to the Polish border, where it delivered aid with help from the International Organization for Migration (IOM).  The agencies are advocating to move people to safer locations away from the border.

Mahamat Annadif, the Secretary‑General’s Special Representative for West Africa, and Foreign Minister of Guinea, Morissanda Kouyaté, launched a new initiative to facilitate an inclusive transition in Guinea by fostering reconciliation at national and community levels and increasing participation of women and all communities.

UNICEF released a report today showing there are nearly 240 million children with disabilities around the world, a new global approximation higher than previous estimates which considers symptoms of anxiety and depression, among other difficulties across several domains of functioning.

Since Sunday night, at least 11,000 people fleeing fighting in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo have sought refuge in Uganda, the largest single-day influx in over one year, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees reports.  It is requesting urgent resources to address the new arrivals’ needs.

Responding to the violent clashes in Beirut today, Special Coordinator for Lebanon, Joanna Wronecka, condemned the use of armed violence outside of State authority and underscored the need for restraint, maintaining calm and stability and ensuring the protection of civilians.

The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) is calling for more international support for the people of Afghanistan amid continued violence that has internally displaced over 100,000 people so far this year.  UNHCR’s $123.5 million humanitarian appeal for 2021 is only 24 per cent funded.