UN General Assembly to pay tribute to Vitaly Churkin at special meeting

The UN General Assembly will hold an informal session soon in memory of the deceased Russian Ambassador Vitaly Churkin, the President of the UN General Assembly Peter Thomson said.

"At the appropriate moment in the coming period of mourning, in full consultation with the relevant parties, I will convene a formal meeting of the General Assembly to pay tribute to the memory of the late Permanent Representative of the Russian Federation to the UN, H.E. Mr Vitaly Churkin," Thomson said.

President of the UN General Assembly stressed that they have lost one of the most respected and influential members of the UN family.

Churkin, 64, who has served as Russia's Permanent Representative to UN since April, 2006, died in New York earlier on Monday.