Mr. Chairman,

1. I have the honor to speak on behalf of the Group of 77 and China in this organizational session of the second part of the resumed sixty-fourth session of the Fifth Committee of the General Assembly.

2. The Group of 77 and China would like to begin by expressing its sincere appreciation to you for your excellent leadership at the first part of the resumed sixty-fourth session of the Fifth Committee of the General Assembly and bringing it to a successful conclusion. As we begin the second resumed session, I would like to wish you all the best in guiding our discussions and to assure you of our full cooperation during the session.

Mr. Chairman,

3. It has become both, a practice and a principle of work of the Group of 77 and China, to support the Chairman and the Bureau of the Fifth Committee to ensure the smooth functioning of the Committee. The Group would like to reiterate these traditions, particularly during this session.

4. The Group of 77 and China also takes this opportunity to thank you and the Bureau of the Committee for preparing the draft program of work, and the Secretariat for issuing the document A/C.5/64/L.35 reflecting the status of preparedness of documentation for the second part of the resumed sixty-forth session of the Fifth Committee of the General Assembly. It is the hope of the Group of 77 and China that the draft program of work will consequently be adjusted according to the evolution of the general debates and informal consultations in the current session, as well as the availability of the relevant documents.

Mr. Chairman,

5. Many of the items to be taken up during this session related to the PKOs are of critical importance to the Group of 77 and China given that they take place in countries that are members of the Group. Any decisions taken by this Committee will have implications on the peacekeeping operations on the ground.

6. Accordingly, the Group of 77 and China will participate actively in the informal consultations, and will work and cooperate with the partners towards finishing the session on time, and achieving acceptable and consensual conclusions.

I thank you Mr. Chairman.