EFFECTIVE SECURTY COUNCIL MUST BE SIGNPOST FOR NEXT HALF CENTURY, SAY SECRETARY-GENERAL TO HEADQUARTERS RECPETION
Press Release
SG/SM/7272
EFFECTIVE SECURTY COUNCIL MUST BE SIGNPOST FOR NEXT HALF CENTURY, SAY SECRETARY-GENERAL TO HEADQUARTERS RECPETION
19991231Following are the remarks of Secretary-General Kofi Annan to the Millennium Reception, hosted by the President of the Security Council, at Headquarters on 29 December:
Thank you, Ambassador Greenstock or should I say Mr. President, for those generous words you offered. My thanks, also, to our hosts and to all who have helped make this event possible. I am pleased to see so many Member States together here tonight. Now this is what I call an open meeting of the Security Council. Vive la réforme.
But, perhaps it would be more accurate to think of this gathering as the United Nations very own Times Square commemoration. We may not rival the numbers expected at Times Square two nights from now, but we do represent the hopes of billions of people around the world. And certainly, if Times Square is one of the crossroads of the world, the Security Council is the crossroads of the United Nations.
When people say the words "United Nations", more often than not it is the Council they have in mind. When the general public looks to the United Nations for leadership, answers and action, it is the Council to which they turn. The Council is the heart of the Organization. That is a heavy responsibility, indeed.
I think we have reached the end of one of the liveliest and most difficult years in the Council's history. If the past year, and the past half century, have taught us anything, it is that we must never let up in the arduous work of seeking common ground, of rising above national interests, of pursuing the collective good. Let this be our signpost for the next half century. The world needs an effective, responsive Security Council.
We may, along the way, encounter obstacles and real differences over this or that resolution. But I believe we need to find overall unity is a new year's resolution we can all support. I think that will really help. I pledge to do my utmost to help reach that goal, and it is in that spirit of partnership that I would like to wish all of you a happy new year and a good millennium. I know that not many of us will be here to see the next one.
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