United Nations Daily Highlights, 00-04-03

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From: The United Nations Home Page at <http://www.un.org> - email: unnews@un.org

BY KOFI ANNAN

SECRETARY-GENERAL OF THE UNITED NATIONS

UN HEADQUARTERS, NEW YORK

Monday, April 3, 2000

The Secretary-General's news conference following the presentation of the Millennium Report

to the General Assembly substitutes for the noon briefing.

ANNAN LAUNCHES REPORT DEFINING CHALLENGES IN 21ST CENTURY

"Good Morning, Ladies and Gentlemen.

&nbsp;As you know, I submit lots of reports in the course of the year to the General Assembly and the Security Council, but this one is different. It attempts to present a comprehensive account of the challenges facing humanity, as we enter the twenty-first century, combined with a plan of action for dealing with them.

That may seem absurdly ambitious, but if the United Nations does not attempt to chart a course for the world's peoples in the first decades of the new millennium, who will?

The world's political leaders have agreed to meet here in New York in September, in the largest gathering at such a high level ever. Their peoples would be gravely disappointed if they simply came here, made a few speeches, and went away again. They need to agree on the most urgent tasks we face together, and to adopt a strategy for carrying them out.

They are the only ones who can decide, but they need a set of proposals to decide on, and it is my job as Secretary-General to provide that. So here it is; the report is in your hands.

I won't attempt to summarize its contents for you. I think you all have copies of it and you probably have read it already. Let me just say a couple of things about the general approach.

First, this is a resolutely forward-looking report. It contains some pretty alarming facts, particularly in the chapter on the environment, and some pretty shaming ones, regarding poverty. It shows that the world has been far too tolerant of gross injustice and human misery, and it argues that we have to change that.

But it's by no means all doom and gloom. The report stresses the amazing progress we have made in the last half-century on many fronts, and also the fact that new technology puts many things within our reach that previously were out.

That's especially true of information technology, which can be used without having vast amounts of hardware or financial capital. What you need above all is brains - which are the one commodity that is equally distributed among the world's peoples. So for a relatively small investment - in education, for example - we can bring all kinds of knowledge within reach of poor people, and enable poor countries to "leapfrog" some of the long and painful stages of development that others have had to go through.

The second point is that, while governments do have to work together to make these changes possible, governments alone are not going to make them happen. Much of the heavy lifting will be done by private investment, and partnerships with philanthropic foundations will also be very important.

And probably the best ideas will come from outside government - from academic researchers, from voluntary organizations, from businessmen, and from journalists like you. All of you together make up what we call "civil society", and you have an absolutely vital role to play.

The overall message is that these are problems we share, and that we have a common interest in solving them. And they are problems we can deal with, if only we summon the will.

Let me now take your questions."

ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS

On the Millennium Report and Millennium Summit

Asked about what he thought would be the most important actions to be taken at the Millennium Summit this September, the Secretary-General noted the many challenges posed by globalization, and said he encouraged the leaders who are coming to the Summit to address all of them. "Poverty stands out very clearly and the fight against AIDS," he said, but so did the need to sustain the environment. "I don't want to choose and pick" among the main themes of the Report, he said.

In response to a question on whether the United Nations could maintain its status following unilateral actions by the United States in Iraq and Yugoslavia, the Secretary-General said that the issue is "very much on the agenda." He said that the "primary role of United Nations and the Security Council when it comes to peace and security is accepted by all," even if there have been instances where the Council has been bypassed.

Asked about Security Council reform, the Secretary-General noted that he has always maintained that the Council is in need of reform to bring it into line with today's realities. "It ought to be possible to reform the Council, and give it greater representation, and keep its effectiveness," he said.

Asked about his opinion of Governments that may seek to restrict access to the Internet, Annan said, "They are depriving their people, their nations, of great opportunities by trying to limit access to these technologies." He added that, in any case, "they are going to fail, so they shouldn't waste resources in trying to block it." He said he knew some Governments might fear loss of control over their societies, but urged them to "be forward-looking for the sake of their people and their nations."

In response to a question on whether the United Nations could help persuade pharmaceutical companies to give up their right to intellectual property so as to lower the price of some medicines, the Secretary-General noted that some efforts are underway. The Joint UN Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) is in contact with a few pharmaceutical corporations, he noted, and discussions are underway with South Africa, among other concerned Governments.

The Secretary-General said, in response to a question, that he hoped to discuss the proposals in the Millennium Report with the Heads of State he will meet next week at the April 12-13 South Summit in Havana. "My message will be for them to join me in this Millennium Year in reforming the United Nations and repositioning it for the 21st century," he said.

Asked why the Report's message on "smart sanctions" could not be applied to sanctions on Iraq, Annan noted that he had indicated that the Council should bear in mind the studies that have been done by Switzerland, Canada and others on applying sanctions. Even in the Iraq situation, he noted, the Council has periodically reviewed sanctions and issued resolutions, most recently Resolution 1284 (1999) that attempt to improve conditions for Iraq's people. That task, he said, "must be an ongoing challenge for the Council."

Asked about whether more resources will be donated to UN conferences and the commitments made during them, the Secretary-General voiced his hope that Governments from developing countries will commit themselves to programs for poverty alleviation, and education for young girls in particular, and that Governments from developed countries would support such work. The exclusion apparent in some globalizing societies, he said, would not be sustainable.

On Lebanon

Asked how the United Nations could implement Security Council resolutions on Lebanon and Palestine, the Secretary-General noted that he would meet Tuesday in Geneva with Foreign Minister David Levy of Israel to discuss Lebanon. He said he believed there was "some movement" on the Lebanon question.

In response to questions on the possibility of a unilateral Israeli withdrawal from southern Lebanon, the Secretary-General said he preferred Israel's withdrawal to be part of a broader agreement between Israel, Syria and Lebanon. Following the recent meeting in Geneva between Syrian President Hafez al-Assad and US President Bill Clinton, he said, "it looks as if there is a hitch on the Syrian-Israeli track," but he added his hope that it could be unblocked.

"The Israeli authorities have made it quite clear that, with or without an agreement, they intend to withdraw from southern Lebanon by July at the latest," he said. The Secretary-General asserted that the United Nations would have to discuss with the parties how it could carry out its responsibilities under Resolutions 425 and 426. "If the withdrawal comes outside a broader agreement, obviously it's not an ideal situation," he added, saying the United Nations would have to cope with that possibility.

On other issues

Asked about the state of US-UN relations, the Secretary-General said that "things are improving. I think the exchange of visits (between members of the U.S. Senate and of the Security Council) has been healthy and I think it should continue." He said his impression was that last week's visit by the 15 Ambassadors on the Security Council to Washington had gone "extremely well."

Asked about the stroke suffered by Japanese Prime Minister Keizo Obuchi, Annan said he had not been in touch with any Japanese officials but was monitoring the situation closely. He called Obuchi "a great conciliator" and a friend, and he wished him a speedy recovery. "I think he's done a great job, and I hope he will be able to provide many more years of leadership," he said.

Asked about whether the peace process in Sierra Leone might fail, the Secretary-General said he hoped that, by the end of July, a full UN force of more than 11,000 personnel would be deployed. He noted efforts to make the Revolutionary United Front and its leader, Foday Sankoh, to understand their responsibilities under the Lom&eacute; Peace Agreement. He urged all parties to help bring peace to Sierra Leone, arguing, "People want it, they need it, and they are tired of the senseless war."

Asked whether the United Nations has been too slow in acting in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Secretary-General responded that the parties which signed the Lusaka Cease-fire Agreement must support not only the United Nations but also the full implementation of the accord by all parties. "I'm not completely convinced that the people who signed the accord are prepared to respect it," he said. He noted the recent trip by Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations Bernard Miyet to the region to secure support for the peace process, and noted that fighting continued after he left. "In these conditions, what is it possible for peacekeeping force to do?" he asked.

OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS

The Secretary-General is leaving later today to London en route to Geneva, where he will address the Human Rights Commission on Tuesday. His trip ending April 14 will also take him to Rome and Havana.

Carla del Ponte, Prosecutor of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia welcomed the latest apprehension by the NATO-led Stabilization Force (SFOR) following the detention today of the accused Momcilo Krajisnik in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The former president of the Bosnian Serb Assembly is the highest-ranking political figure to be apprehended so far by the Tribunal. For more details, click here.

The Secretary-General's Special Representative for Kosovo, Bernard Kouchner, has welcomed the decision by the Serb National Council of Gracanica to join as observers the province's Joint Interim Administrative Structure. Kouchner said that the decision would also prove a key to the reconstruction of Kosovo in a way that will enable the return of those Serbs who fled over the past nine months.

In a report to the Security Council issued today, the Secretary-General noted that the situation along the border between Iraq and Kuwait remained "generally quiet," and that the UN Iraq-Kuwait Observer Mission (UNIKOM) continued to carry out its tasks smoothly. The Security Council is expected to discuss UNIKOM in closed consultations on Wednesday, and is likely to renew the Mission, the current mandate of which expires on Thursday, in a note to the Secretary-General.

The United Nations today launched an Inter-Agency Appeal for $2.9 million for Mongolia, to help it recover from the combined effect of last summer's drought, heavy snowstorms and severe weather over the winter and years of pastural degradation.

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