31.   Malaysian Foreign Ministry Secretary-General Ahmad Kamil Jaafar said the various aspects of assistance were discussed with the Bosnian delegation during the three-day preparatory meeting.

32.   Ministers attending a preparatory meeting for the summit Saturday indicated that Zimbabwe had the support of the regional trading bloc, currently chaired by Malawi.

33.   Nigeria sent no one to preparatory meetings before the summit, and was represented Monday by a diplomat from its mission in neighboring India.

34.   Nigeria did not send anyone to the preparatory meeting, fueling speculation that the oil-rich African nation may withdraw from the bloc.

35.   Once those exchanges take place, the sides could resume preparatory meetings for a second session between the heads of their semiofficial negotiating bodies, Shi said.

36.   On Tuesday, South Korean officials said they and their North Korean counterparts would no longer hold preparatory meetings for the summit in the border village of Panmunjom.

37.   Organizers are planning regional preparatory meetings throughout the year.

38.   Preparatory meetings among officials and ministers begin Thursday.

39.   Preparatory meetings for Habitat II have been held in Geneva and Nairobi.

40.   Semiofficial organizations of Taiwan and China will hold a preparatory meeting later this month in Taipei for high-level talks in July, officials said Wednesday.