From correspondents in New York, United States, 03:31 PM IST

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon Wednesday urged the UN Security Council to join the international community in efforts to deal with the swine flu, which has spread to four continents.

Ban said the UN has taken the lead and gathered resources to fight the flu, working with the World Health Organisation (WHO) and governments. At UN headquarters, Ban's deputy secretary-general Asha-Rose Migiro is chairing a core group of UN officials to coordinate activities with WHO in Geneva.

'I sincerely hope that with global participation and support, we will be able to overcome, suppress and combat swine flu,' Ban told the 15-nation council as it held an open session to discuss children and armed conflict, a thematic debate held regularly to raise awareness on child issues.

'In addition to the global financial crisis, climate change, the energy crisis, the food crisis - now on top of this we are experiencing this very serious pandemic,' he said.

The council, however, has rarely involved itself in health crises. Its main responsibility is global peace and security.

(Staff Writer, © IANS)