I. INTRODUCTION

1. At its forty-eighth session, the General Assembly decided in its resolution 48/26 of 3 December 1993, inter alia, to establish an Open-ended Working Group to consider all aspects of the question of increase in the membership of the Security Council, and other matters related to the Security Council. The full text of the resolution is reproduced in annex I to the present report.

2. The Working Group began its work in January 1994. The mandate of the Working Group was extended by the General Assembly at its forty-eighth, forty-ninth and fiftieth sessions.1 Reports on the progress of its work were submitted by the Working Group to the General Assembly at its forty-eighth,2 forty-ninth session3 and fiftieth4 sessions.

3. On 16 September 1996, in its decision 50/489, the General Assembly decided that the Working Group should continue its work and submit a report to the Assembly before the end of its fifty-first session, including any agreed recommendations. The present report is prepared and submitted in pursuance of that decision.

II. PROCEEDINGS OF THE WORKING GROUP DURING THE FIFTY-FIRST SESSION OF THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY

4. During the fifty-first session of the General Assembly, the Working Group held 42 meetings, from 23 October 1996 to 18 July 1997. The President of the General Assembly, Ambassador Razali Ismail, served as Chairman of the Working Group.

5. At its 1st meeting, on 23 October 1996, the Working Group appointed Ambassador Wilhelm Breitenstein, Permanent Representative of Finland to the United Nations, and Ambassador Asda Jayanama, Permanent Representative of Thailand to the United Nations, as Vice-Chairmen of the Working Group.

6. During the fifty-first session of the General Assembly, the Working Group held three substantive sessions. The first session was held from 10 to 21 March 1997. At the beginning of the session, the two Vice-Chairmen reported on the findings of their informal consultations, which they held from 28 January to 5 March 1997 with 165 Member States (A/AC.247/1997/CRP.6; see annex VII).* Written proposals were submitted by the following Member States or groups of Member States: Belgium, on behalf of Australia, Austria, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Ireland, Portugal and Slovenia (A/AC.247/1997/CRP.2; see annex III), and Poland (A/AC.247/1997/CRP.9; see annex X). The members of the Movement of Non-Aligned Countries submitted a negotiating paper on cluster II issues (A/AC.247/1997/CRP.4; see annex V), which formed the basis of the discussions of the Working Group. At the end of the session, the Chairman of the Working Group presented his paper on a reform of the Security Council (A/AC.247/1997/CRP.1; see annex II).*

7. During the second substantive session, from 28 April to 9 May 1997, a written proposal was submitted by Mongolia (A/AC.247/1997/CRP.5; see annex VI). Egypt, on behalf of the Movement of Non-Aligned Countries, informed the Working Group of the outcome of the meeting of the Ministers for Foreign Affairs of the Movement held at New Delhi regarding the reform of the Security Council (A/AC.247/1997/CRP.10; see annex XI). The Working Group also received a non-paper by the Bureau on the working methods and transparency of the Security Council (A/AC.247/1997/CRP.3; see annex IV), which was written on the basis of the discussions on the negotiating paper of the non-aligned countries on cluster II.

8. During the third substantive session, from 10 to 13 June and from 7 to 18 July 1997, written proposals were submitted by Lebanon, on behalf of the Group of Arab States (A/AC.247/1997/CRP.7; see annex VIII), and Italy (A/AC.247/1997/CRP.12; see annex XIII). Senegal, on behalf of the Organization of African Unity (OAU), informed the Working Group of the outcome of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government of OAU on the reform of the Security Council (A/AC.247/1997/CRP.11; see annex XII). The Working Group also received a conference room paper by the Bureau (A/AC.247/1997/CRP.8; see annex IX).* At the end of the session, the Working Group discussed its draft report.

9. During the substantive sessions of the Working Group, delegations also made oral proposals related to the issues discussed. In the discussion, reference was made to the written proposals and/or position papers previously presented (including those made during the forty-ninth and fiftieth sessions of the General Assembly by the following Member States or groups of Member States: Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Belize, Cuba, Czech Republic, Estonia, Germany, Hungary, Indonesia, Ireland, Italy, Malaysia, Mexico, Monaco, New Zealand, Norway, Singapore, Slovenia, Spain, Turkey, Ukraine, Uruguay, Movement of Non-Aligned Countries, Nordic countries and OAU) (see A/49/965 and A/50/47/Add.1). All proposals, written or oral, remain on the table. The Working Group affirmed that the work of the General Assembly on Security Council reform should be conducted in conformity with the relevant Assembly resolutions, fully respecting the need for transparency and open-endedness.

III. RECOMMENDATIONS

10. At its 42nd meeting, on 18 July 1997, the Working Group concluded its work for the current session of the General Assembly and decided to recommend that the consideration of this agenda item should continue at the fifty-second session of the Assembly, building upon the work done during previous sessions. To that end, the Working Group recommends to the Assembly the adoption of the following draft decision:

The General Assembly, having considered the report of the Open-ended Working Group on the Question of Equitable Representation on and Increase in the Membership of the Security Council and Other Matters Related to the Security Council,5 established pursuant to its resolution 48/26 of 3 December 1993:

(a) Takes note of the report of the Working Group on its work during the fifty-first session of the General Assembly;

(b) Decides that the Working Group should continue its work, taking into account the progress achieved during the forty-eighth, forty-ninth, fiftieth and fifty-first sessions as well as the views to be expressed during the fifty-second session of the Assembly, and submit a report to the Assembly before the end of its fifty-second session, including any agreed recommendations.

Notes

1 General Assembly decisions 48/498, 49/499 and 50/489.
2 Official Records of the General Assembly, Forty-eighth Session, Supplement No. 47 (A/48/47).
3 Ibid., Forty-ninth Session, Supplement No. 47 (A/49/47).
4 Ibid., Fiftieth Session, Supplement No. 47 (A/50/47/Rev.1).
5 Ibid., Fifty-first Session, Supplement No. 47 (A/51/47).