President of the UN General Assembly Srgjan Kerim appealed to member states on Monday to observe an Olympic Truce, a worldwide cessation of all hostilities for the duration of the Beijing Olympic Games.

"As President of the General Assembly at its sixty-second session, I solemnly appeal to all member states to demonstrate their commitment to the Olympic Truce for the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, and to undertake concrete actions at the local, national, regional and world levels to promote and strengthen a culture of peace and harmony based on the spirit of the Truce," Kerim said in a statement.

In 1992, the International Olympic Committee had renewed the ancient Greek tradition of the ekecheiria (Olympic Truce), a hallowed principle of the games.

In 1993, the General Assembly adopted a resolution to urge member states to observe the Olympic Truce from the seventh day before the opening to the seventh day following the closing of each Olympic Game.

Last October, the assembly adopted a resolution in connection with the forthcoming 29th Olympiad and the Paralympic Games to be held in Beijing, urging member states to observe the Olympic Truce from August 8 to 24 and from September 6 to 17, 2008, respectively, based on the slogan "One World, One Dream."

(Xinhua News Agency July 29, 2008)