TRANSCRIPT OF PRESS CONFERENCE BY SECRETARY-GENERAL KOFI ANNAN AT THE VIENNA INTERNATIONAL CENTRE, 29 JUNE

Press Release
SG/SM/6622

TRANSCRIPT OF PRESS CONFERENCE BY SECRETARY-GENERAL KOFI ANNAN AT THE VIENNA INTERNATIONAL CENTRE, 29 JUNE

FRED ECKHARD (Spokesman): First, the Secretary-General has a brief statement to make. Let me introduce the Secretary-General of the United Nations.

SECRETARY-GENERAL: Ladies and Gentlemen, thank you very much for coming this morning. As you know, I announced in my remarks to the Vienna Public Assembly on Saturday afternoon the sad news of the crash of the aircraft carrying my Special Representative in Angola, Maître Alioune Blondin Beye. Yesterday, I received the tragic confirmation that Maître Beye and all those travelling with him had lost their lives. I wish to express my profound grief at the irreplaceable loss of this valued colleague, a dedicated and dynamic peacemaker, and a great son of Africa whom the Angolans dubbed "the Messiah of Peace".

I also wish to convey my deep sorrow to the families of the five colleagues accompanying him -- Koffi Adjoyi, Beadengar Dessande, Moctar Gueye, Ibikunle Williams and Captain Alvaro Costa, and the two pilots, Jason Hunter and Andrew McCurrach, who were killed with him. Their loss adds to the heavy toll of those in the United Nations who have given their lives in the cause of peace. The United Nations family is in mourning today.

I have spoken to the family of Maître Beye and the President of Mali to express my grief. I have also telephoned the Force Commander of the United Nations operation in Angola to wish him and his staff strength as they continue the important task that Maître Beye had undertaken in the last five years. I renew my appeal to the parties in Angola to redouble their efforts to complete the work for peace that Maître Beye has sadly left unfinished. I am sure that all African leaders, as well as the international community, will join me in this appeal so that Maître Beye will not have perished in vain.

I have a second important announcement to make. Following this press conference, instead of returning directly to New York, I will leave Vienna for Abuja, the capital of Nigeria, on an urgent mission to meet with the authorities of that country. For more than a year now, I have been in close contact with the military leadership in Nigeria, and in particular with the late Head of State, General Sani Abacha, in an effort to promote the release of political prisoners, the commutation of the death sentences of General Diya and five others convicted on charges of plotting to overthrow the Government, and a return to democratic rule in Nigeria. These contacts have continued in recent weeks with the new Head of State, General Abubakar.

I have been much encouraged by the discussions I have had with General Abubakar and the initial steps he has taken in this direction. I have throughout made clear that I would like to do everything I can to encourage the acceleration of a credible process that would return Nigeria to democratic rule, starting with the release of the remaining political prisoners. Following intensified discussions in recent days, and a personal invitation

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from General Abubakar, I have decided that the time is ripe for me to undertake a visit to Nigeria.

I look forward to meeting with General Abubakar and his colleagues, as well as with a wide range of Nigerian political opinion and civil society. I am hopeful that my visit will contribute to progress towards the objectives sought by all the Nigerian people with the full support of the international community.

Let me also say once again that it has been a pleasure for me to be back here in Vienna, we had a very successful human rights assembly over the weekend. And, I am also very proud of the work Mr. Pino Arlacchi is doing, and the global conference we had on drugs was an absolute success. And, I think this is what I would like to see, not only here in Vienna, but in all other United Nations offices -- a renewed dynamism, a rededication of the staff to the ideals for which we continue to serve. Now I am ready to take your questions.

QUESTION (Austrian TV): Richard Holbrooke just declared that the situation in Kosovo is near to becoming a war. Will the Security Council agree to a military intervention and will the United Nations give NATO a UN mandate?

SECRETARY-GENERAL: That is an issue for the Security Council. I know that there has been a draft resolution on the table for a while, but that discussion was suspended to allow diplomatic efforts to go ahead and this was just before President Yelzin invited Mr. Milosevic to go to Moscow for discussion, and, as you know, Ambassador Holbrooke is also continuing his shuttle diplomacy. But the issue of how the Council will act I will leave for the Council to decide. But I think the situation is critical, I think the international community should be as engaged as it is and do whatever it can to stop what could be a second Bosnia, and that will mean being on top of the problem and acting quickly to contain the crisis before it spreads.

QUESTION (Austrian TV - 0RF): Do you know already something about the Russian standpoint?

SECRETARY-GENERAL: No, the Russians have said at the time that diplomacy has not been exhausted. They believe that we should continue that effort and they are going to do whatever they can to bring President Milosevic around.

QUESTION (CBS Radio): You observed the fiftieth anniversary of the Declaration of Human Rights over the weekend, and Mr. Clinton has been travelling in China. What impact do you think President Clinton has had on human rights in China?

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SECRETARY-GENERAL: I notice he made an important statement on human rights in China. I think that kind of a discussion and open dialogue on human rights in China, as in any other country, is important for the process and it advances the cause of human rights. It is not every day that the Chinese population hear that kind of statement from a prominent statesman, and so I was happy he made that statement. Later this year, in September, Mrs. Mary Robinson, the High Commissioner for Human Rights, will also be visiting China to have discussions with the Chinese authorities. The Chinese have also indicated that they will sign the convention, and I think we are seeing some progress on that front.

QUESTION (Deutsche Welle): You said the situation is critical in Kosovo. Do you have any plans to go to Belgrade and perhaps to try to make the situation better? And, I want to ask you about the United Nations planes, because you just had another one that has crashed: Are they safe? Has enough been invested in the planes to make sure it does not happen again?

SECRETARY-GENERAL: I have no immediate plans to go to Kosovo at the moment. The contact group of six nations is leading the effort in an attempt to find a solution. We have United Nations forces in the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, whose mandate we have just extended with the possibility that the force may be strengthened.

I am in touch with those leading the process. A few days ago, three days ago in fact, I spoke to Ambassador Richard Holbrooke who was in the region and called to brief me. I met with NATO Secretary-General Solana in Rome to discuss the situation. So, I am following events very closely, supporting those who are leading the mediation and making the efforts to find a solution. At some appropriate time, maybe I will go, but in these situations, you have to make sure that you do not have multiplicity of mediators.

And about the plane, it was a tragic accident -- we don't, as you know, have any planes of our own -- we rent, we do either commercial arrangements or use military planes from governments participating in peacekeeping operations. This was a plane we have rented and have used for over a year in this peacekeeping operation. I don't know exactly what happened, whether it had hit the tops of the roofs of the trees -- it was a deep forest, it was almost a rain forest area, the plane was coming in at night. We are doing an investigation. We have tried to set up minimum standards, security standards, that companies we are dealing with must meet before we hire planes from them. So, I hope these standards are correct and that the companies we deal with are respecting them, but we will look into that again.

QUESTION (Al-Ahram and Egyptian TV): Mr. Secretary-General, what is the United Nations' reaction on the latest decision of the Netanyahu Government on the illegal enlargement of Jerusalem?

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SECRETARY-GENERAL: I did issue a formal statement on that out of New York -- you probably did not see that -- basically pointing out that I was distressed by that decision and that it was a violation of resolutions taken by the Security Council and the General Assembly.

QUESTION (Der Standard): Whatever happened to the United Nations reform plans that you launched and presented last year?

SECRETARY-GENERAL: I think the reform is alive and well. And, not only is it alive and well, it was approved by the General Assembly last October. About 85 to 90 per cent of the proposals were approved and we are moving ahead with implementation. Quite a lot of the proposals have already been implemented. There are other aspects that are still being discussed by the General Assembly and some that we are still working on, like the "millenium summit", where I have suggested that in the year 2000 the General Assembly should meet at the summit level to reflect on the years ahead the type of the United Nations they would want to have, as we move into the next millenium. I would hope that it will be practical but also a reflective session -- the sort of gathering which led to the creation of the United Nations in 1945, after World War II.

We have had the most brutal century in history and, as we move into the next one, what changes should we make, how should we strengthen the United Nations, what sort of world will we see? Alongside that, I have also suggested a people's assembly where we would have a forum for civil society -- for non-governmental organizations and others to also give us their views that would hopefully be fed into the summit. But, the reform is alive and well.

QUESTION (Austrian Press Agency): Mr. Secretary-General, you came to Austria some days before the European Union presidency of Austria starts. What do you expect of Austria's contribution to the United Nations while holding the European Union presidency?

SECRETARY-GENERAL: As you know, the United Nations has always had very good relationship with Austria. I am proud of the Austrian contribution to our work and I hope to continue our cooperation with the European Union and the Commission under the Austrian presidency. We do work well with the European Union, and I hope that, given the good relations with Austria, this will also help in our dealings with Brussels.

QUESTION (Hungarian TV): You have opened an exhibition last Saturday of Hungarian fine artists on humanity and values. How do you see the challenges of such small countries like Hungary, where there are no wars but there are still great problems?

SECRETARY-GENERAL: I think the issue of human rights applies everywhere, not only in situations of conflicts. I think when we are talking of human

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rights, we are talking of tolerance, of understanding, we are talking of compassion for the human condition and we are talking of the rule of law and good governance. I think that requirement applies to all countries, whether countries in conflict or countries at peace trying to improve a society.

I personally feel that one of the great challenges we have today is one of governance. Good government in countries, and governing is becoming more and more difficult, whether you are managing a country in crisis, a country with difficult economic conditions, or even an ordinary country, because you have in each country today organizations at subnational level -- some of them are not elected or appointed, but self-organized -- who have lot of influence, who are pulling at the centre and, at the same time, at the global level.

You have to deal with global issues, the organization of which also pulls a national government the other way. So, you need the best brains in public service and in government, but everybody wants, rather, to make money; everybody wants to go into the private sector, and we are not able to attract good people into public and government service. I hope we will find some ways of turning these things around. Maybe, since the private sector has become so attractive, a friend of mine once said, everything that costs money we leave to government, and everything that makes money we privatize. So maybe, he said, let's privatize poverty and some of the difficult issues and see if these great "creative managers" can do something about them.

QUESTION (Austrian Radio - ORF): On the occasion of the fiftieth anniversary of the Declaration of Human Rights, could you briefly outline your ideas or plans for a more efficient implementation of human rights worldwide?

SECRETARY-GENERAL: I thought we exhausted those issues over the weekend. Let me say that in my view -- I think Mrs. Mary Robinson shares this view as well -- that today the United Nations is involved in quite a lot of human rights monitoring in various countries across the world. We believe we should work with governments for them to establish their own human rights mechanisms and human rights centres. We should train people, we should raise awareness and we should reach out to the public -- and here I am talking of human rights in all its dimensions, not just political. We are talking about economic, as well as cultural and political, rights.

We also believe that we should play the role of advocate, and get the public to become engaged in human rights as their struggle, and for each individual to play his or her own role on two fronts: for people to understand that these are their rights, inherent and intrinsic, and that they should be aware of this. By becoming aware, they feel empowered, and it is much more difficult for governments to push them around. We as individuals should also be alert in protesting suffering and abuse of rights, not just of our own, but for others. We have an obligation to do so. I think over the weekend I made it clear that the United Nations is, after all, the United Nations of "we the

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peoples", not "we the governments" and, therefore, the United Nations was created to protect the rights of individuals and to protect individuals. And if indeed that is correct, then the responsibilities of the Organization does not only fall on the Member States, but on each and every one of us as well. I hope, particularly in the area of human rights, that we all will play our role.

QUESTION (Agence France Press): A two-part question on nuclear tests: Your Special Envoy is currently in Pakistan, and I gather he is due to meet the Pakistan Prime Minister today to deliver a personal message from you. Could you give us an idea what is in that message? Second part: In Vienna over the weekend have you met anybody, for example from the CTBTO [Comprehensive Test-Ban Treaty Organization], to discuss this issue, and what is your feeling, how confident are you that we are moving towards to some sort of resolution to the problem on the Indian subcontinent?

SECRETARY-GENERAL: I cannot give you the full details of a personal letter I sent to a head of State, but basically lets say that my efforts are designed to help reduce tensions in the region. It is also public knowledge that I have been making every effort I can to encourage India and Pakistan to now come forward to resume their bilateral talks on peace and security issues and on Kashmir.

With regards to your second question, I have seen Mr. Hoffmann [Executive Secretary, Provisional Technical Secretariat, Comprehensive Nuclear Test-Ban Treaty Organization], and we have discussed the issue. I think the world is faced with some important issues with regard to nuclear armaments. I think the issue goes beyond what happened on the Indian subcontinent. Yes, we should focus in the immediate on the situation created by the nuclear explosions of India and Pakistan. The next thing we need to do is to take steps to ensure that other governments do not follow the examples of India and Pakistan, particularly governments in regions with tension. We need to reactivate this whole idea of nuclear disarmament and reduction of nuclear weapons, to really move on non-proliferation and, eventually, to make an effort to disarm, to eliminate nuclear weapons all together. That is going to take some time.

But, I think the nuclear Powers also have a great responsibility and have to show the way by honouring all the commitments they have taken and lead the world in nuclear disarmament. We would need to find an appropriate forum to discuss this issue and bring everyone around, the nuclear Powers, India and Pakistan, governments with capacity to create nuclear weapons but which have decided not to do so, and the others, because this is a problem for the whole world. We need to find a way of tackling it and of discussing it in a broad frame work.

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QUESTION (Okaz Daily, Saudi Arabia): Mr. Secretary-General, what is your evaluation of the latest developments of the peace process in the Middle East, and what is the initial role of the United Nations concerning the implementation of Security Council resolution 425 in South Lebanon, after the conditional acceptance of the Israeli regime?

SECRETARY-GENERAL: I regret to say that in the Middle East peace process -- if by that you are referring in the first place to the Palestinian/Israeli discussions -- there is an impasse, and I hope everything can be done to break the impasse. Discussions and talks are going on, and I think it is essential that we find a way forward because, if we do, tensions in the region could be reduced considerably.

On your next question, I have had discussions, with both Prime Minister Netanyahu and President Hrawi, on the question of implementation of 425, as well as with President Assad of Syria. In my judgement, there can be no comprehensive peace in the region without Syria. I think 425 should be implemented unconditionally and the language is clear, I think. The Israeli offer should be looked at seriously, but we need to move ahead in tandem with other developments in the region.

The Lebanese Prime Minister, when he came to see me in New York, made it clear that they are all prepared to discuss and sign a peace agreement with Israel and would also want to see movement on the Golan, because the territories are so closely knit together that unless you have a comprehensive peace, just withdrawing the Israeli troops from Lebanon, in his judgement, will not bring peace, but that following a peace agreement which he believes can be done in three months, if there is good will, the withdrawal and other things can follow. In the mean time, I am following developments and, of course, I believe that every Security Council resolution should be implemented.

QUESTION (UNO Radio): Mr. Secretary-General, you know more about the United Nations, not only than any previous Secretary-General, but anyone else. You have been around longer you know the United Nations very well. What would you reply if I say that the policy of all Israeli governments for the last 50 years towards the United Nations was proven completely correct at one historic moment, when Serbian soldiers dragged the Muslim Deputy Prime Minister of Bosnia out of a United Nations armoured vehicle, and then, surrounded by heavily armed United Nations soldiers, shot him dead, which is something Israel has always appreciated.

SECRETARY-GENERAL: I am not sure I quite understand your question, and I do not see the relationship ...

SAME JOURNALIST: The powerlessness, basically, of the United Nations, which was proven at that moment when the United Nations troop did nothing when a man who was under their protection was killed in front of their eyes.

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SECRETARY-GENERAL: I think you are referring to an incident in Bosnia, at a very difficult and critical period, where the United Nations soldiers had not expected what happened to happen. But that linkage you are making that is something that I do not understand. We were talking about peace process, we were talking about comprehensive peace, we were talking about treatment of neighbours and fairness to each other. Whether one believes the United Nations is powerful or not should not dictate how one behaves with one's neighbours. So I really do not understand the relevance of your question.

Thank you very much.

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