SECRETARY-GENERAL MEETS PRESIDENT CLINTON, SENATOR HELMS, SPEAKER GINGRICH BEFORE CONCLUDING FIRST OFFICIAL VISIT TO WASHINGTON, D.C.
Press Release
SG/T/2082
SECRETARY-GENERAL MEETS PRESIDENT CLINTON, SENATOR HELMS, SPEAKER GINGRICH BEFORE CONCLUDING FIRST OFFICIAL VISIT TO WASHINGTON, D.C.
19970124 WASHINGTON, D.C. (23-24 January) -- On Thursday, 23 January, continuing his first official visit to Washington, D.C., Secretary-General Kofi Annan met with President William J. Clinton in the White House. The meeting was followed by a press opportunity in the Roosevelt Room that was televised. The Secretary-General then had a working luncheon with the Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs, Samuel Berger.On Thursday afternoon, Mr. Annan attended an hour-long meeting with Senator Jesse Helms, Republican of North Carolina and Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. The Secretary-General was accompanied to the meeting by the Executive Coordinator for United Nations Reform, Maurice Strong; Under-Secretary-General for Administration and Management, Joseph E. Connor; and the Secretary-General's Executive Assistant, Elizabeth Lindenmayer.
After meeting with Senator Helms, Mr. Annan attended a reception by the Chairman of the United Nations Association of the United States (UNA-USA), John Whitehead, at the Metropolitan Club, which was followed by a private dinner hosted by the President of the World Bank, James D. Wolfensohn.
On 24 January, the last day of his first official visit to Washington, D.C., the Secretary-General's first activity was a working breakfast with the Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Michel Camdessus, and with the President of the World Bank, Mr. Wolfensohn. They discussed closer coordination between their organizations and the United Nations, particularly in the field of development.
Later on, in the United States Congress, the Secretary-General had a 20-minute meeting with the Senate Majority Leader, Senator Trent Lott, Republican of Mississippi. They discussed the United States' rate of contributions to United Nations budgets. Mr. Annan asked the Senator to keep in touch and to visit the United Nations whenever he was in New York.
Mr. Annan then had a joint meeting with the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Newt Gingrich, Republican of Georgia, and the Chairman of the House Committee on Appropriations, Robert L. Livingston, Republican of Louisiana. During the meeting, Mr. Gingrich told the Secretary-General that they should continue their talks when they attended the World Economic Forum
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in Davos, Switzerland, next week (1-2 February). Speaker Gingrich also indicated that he was "very understanding" of the need to respect the other 184 United Nations Member States' sovereignty.
The Secretary-General then met with the Chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, Senator Ted Stevens, Republican of Alaska. During the meeting, Senator Stevens indicated his readiness to work with the Secretary-General and pledged to clarify any misperceptions about the United Nations.
The Secretary-General then went to the National Press Club where he delivered a statement and answered questions from correspondents.
Later in the afternoon and before returning to New York, the Secretary- General proceeded to a briefing by the Emergency Coalition for United States Financial Support of the United Nations, headed by Ambassador David Birenbaum, a former United States delegate to the United Nations. Finally, the Secretary-General met with African ambassadors in Washington, in an event hosted by the Dean of the African Diplomatic Corps there, Ambassador Roble Olhaye (Djibouti).
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