New York  - The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, which is under Greek leadership this year, should do more to help settle conflicts around the world, Greek Foreign Minister Dora Bakoyannis said Friday.

Bakoyannis cited the brief war last August in the Caucasus, which pitted Russian troops against Georgian forces over the breakaway region of South Ossetia, as well as the situation in Kosovo and Afghanistan.

New York  - The Sri Lankan government has been urged to hold back its final military battle in areas where tens of thousands of civilians remain trapped, the United Nations' chief humanitarian emergency coordinator said Friday.

The UN's John Holmes recently visited the troubled island nation to gain first-hand information of the humanitarian situation in refugee camps.

Hamburg  - The International Olympic Committee (IOC) wants to strengthen its partnership with the United Nations by gaining observer status at the UN General Assembly.

The UN confirmed an application had been received from the IOC, and told Deutsche Presse-Agentur dpa that a decision could be expected by the beginning of September.

Vienna  - Britain, France, and Germany are formulating further sanctions if Iran continues to defy UN Security Council resolutions, but European diplomats said Friday they would not act before the start of direct talks between the United States and Iran.

The Europeans' aim was to "strengthen (US President Barack) Obama's hand during the talks as much as possible," a diplomat said in Vienna.

Geneva  - United Nations agencies and other groups started a polio vaccine campaign Friday which aims to immunize 53 million children in West Africa over the course of the next month.

The vaccination campaign will take place in two rounds and will target eight countries, including Cote d'Ivoire, Ghana and Nigeria.

The large campaign, which has received funding from numerous donors including the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, was in response to a polio outbreak last year, which spread from northern Nigeria to six other nearby countries.

Belgrade  - Serbian politicians and media on Friday vehemently criticise the United Nations war crimes tribunal over the sentencing it handed to officials from Slobodan Milosevic's regime for a campaign of terror they commanded against Kosovo Albanians a decade ago.

The court cleared the former Serbian president Milan Milutinovic, but sentenced the ex-Yugoslav deputy premier Nikola Sainovic and four army and police generals to between 15 and 22 years in prison.