ACTIVITIES OF SECRETARY-GENERAL IN RUSSIAN FEDERATION, 21 - 24 JUNE
Press Release
SG/T/2186
ACTIVITIES OF SECRETARY-GENERAL IN RUSSIAN FEDERATION, 21 - 24 JUNE
19990625 The Secretary-General arrived in St. Petersburg on Monday, 21 June, at 3:30 in the afternoon. He was greeted by a delegation led by the Governor of St. Petersburg, Vladimir Yakovlev. At 5:15 p.m., the Secretary-General and the Governor met for over half an hour at the Governor's guest house. After the meeting, they had a brief press encounter, and the Secretary-General said that he was happy to be back in St. Petersburg (his first visit was two years before) and to conclude discussions he had held with the Governor at earlier occasions in St. Petersburg and at United Nations Headquarters in 1997.In answer to a question about St. Petersburg's wish to be designated a European cultural capital in 2003, the Secretary-General said that he and the Governor had discussed it. Mr. Yakovlev is already in discussion with the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), and the Secretary-General said that he would support his efforts. He said, "This is a great city -- a wonderful city -- with lots of history. It should have a good chance."
He was also asked about the role of the Security Council after Kosovo. The Secretary-General said that "after the Kosovo crisis, Member States will have to ponder and are pondering. I think that all of us have to draw lessons -- including the permanent members -- from what happened and make some judgements as to what we should do to make the Security Council more effective, more responsive and more democratic".
Following the press encounter, the Secretary-General was taken on a tour of the Petopavlovsk fortress. In the fortress complex, he visited the St. Peter and St. Paul's Cathedral and a prison which used to hold political prisoners. The fortress was founded in May 1703. The Cathedral is where all czars were buried since Peter the Great. A walk to the Neva River was cancelled because of bad weather.
The Secretary-General began his second day in St. Petersburg -- 22 June -- by laying a wreath at Piskarev Cemetery. The date is Remembrance Day in the Russian Federation, when Russians commemorate the beginning of Russia's war to defend its people against Naziism. The date also marks the beginning of the Russians' involvement in the Second World War. During the Second World War, some 1 million people from St. Petersburg died. Of these, 420,000 civilians and 70,000 military personnel are buried in Piskarev Cemetery.
The Secretary-General also visited the Cemetery's small museum, which documents the suffering of St. Petersburg and its people during the war. The Secretary-General wrote in the museum's visitors' book that this was "a moving experience". Upon leaving, the Secretary-General was asked by journalists about wars and the inability of the League of Nations to prevent the Second World War, and the role of the United Nations to stop today's and future wars. The Secretary-General said that the United Nations was set up after the Second World War "with the ambition of preventing future wars. We've not been able to stop every conflict, but I think we've made quite a lot of difference, and we are going to continue our efforts to prevent wars, and to get people to live in peace and security and prosperity". He referred to the "moving experience" he and his colleagues had just had, and added, "knowing that about half a million people are buried here, knowing what happens in wars, should make us even more determined to prevent future wars, and we all need to work together to make that happen".
The Secretary-General and his delegation then visited the Hermitage Museum. He had lunch with the Governor of St. Petersburg, Mr. Yakovlev, at Smolny Palace, where he delivered an address to the international conference being held to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the First International Peace Conference, which was held on the initiative of Russia in 1899 at The Hague (see Press Release SG/SM/7039).
The Secretary-General left St. Petersburg later in the day for Moscow, where he addressed the Russian Media Congress (to be issued).
The Secretary-General's first meeting on Wednesday, 23 June, was with Alexander Bessmertnykh, President of the International Council of Former Foreign Ministers. Mr. Bessmertnykh offered the support and cooperation of the Council to the Secretary-General. This Council has former foreign ministers from many countries, and currently has 120 members.
Following that, he met with Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov at the Foreign Ministry Guest House. The meeting lasted almost two hours, and they covered several topics on the international agenda. When discussing Kosovo, they reviewed the role of the United Nations and the Minister reaffirmed the importance of the Organization. They discussed the implementation of resolution 1244 (1999) and the various aspects and complexity of the international civil administration.
Other issues discussed during the meeting and working luncheon that followed were Iraq, Middle East, Afghanistan, India-Pakistan relations and areas of conflict within the Commonwealth of Independent States. The Foreign Minister and the Secretary-General had a very brief press encounter at the end of their luncheon.
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At 3 p.m., the Secretary-General met Gennady Seleznev, Speaker of the Duma, at the Duma House. The discussion was about Kosovo and lasted some 40 minutes. The Secretary-General explained what the United Nations was doing since the adoption of resolution 1244. Mr. Seleznev said assistance should be for all in need, including Serb refugees in the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. The Secretary-General said that United Nations agencies are returning to the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, and that he himself had sent a humanitarian assessment mission during the war in Kosovo to also look at the needs of Serb refugees there. The two had a press encounter at the end of their meeting.
At 4 p.m., the Secretary-General met Prime Minister Sergei Stepashin at the "White House". The meeting took an hour and Kosovo was the main focus of the discussion. They also talked about human rights and the recent visit of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Mary Robinson, to Moscow, the need for a new international financial structure and payments to the United Nations, among other topics.
In each of the meetings with the three Russian authorities, the Secretary-General thanked Russia for the crucial role it played in the search for a solution to the Kosovo crisis.
At 5:15 p.m., the Secretary-General, at his guesthouse, met with the Foreign Minister of Denmark, Niels Helveg-Petersen. It was a short meeting and was about Kosovo.
Mr. Annan attended a dinner that evening in his honour organized by the United Nations Association-Russia.
In his final day in the Russian Federation, the Secretary-General met with President Boris Yeltsin for about 45 minutes, and then had an additional hour with the President over lunch. They had a broad review of the international agenda, including Kosovo.
The Secretary-General flew to London from Moscow for an unofficial visit. He will make major speeches there on Friday, 25 June, and Monday, 28 June.
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