ACTIVITIES OF SECRETARY-GENERAL IN UNITED KINGDOM, 22-27 FEBRUARY
Secretary-General Kofi Annan arrived in London on Saturday, 23 February.
He began his official visit to the United Kingdom on Monday by paying his first visit to the UN Information Centre, where he chatted informally with staff from all the UN agencies, funds and programmes with offices in the United Kingdom.
He then crossed the Thames to the 800-year-old Lambeth Palace, where he met with the Archbishop of Canterbury, His Grace Dr. George Carey. Their conversation focused on inter-faith dialogue in support of peace initiatives and against the spread of HIV/AIDS.
At Dover House, the Secretary-General met jointly with UK Deputy Prime Minister, John Prescott, and Chancellor of the Exchequer, Gordon Brown. They discussed the upcoming United Nations conferences on financing for development in Mexico and on sustainability in South Africa. They agreed on the need for a focused approach to the former and achievable objectives for the latter. The also assessed the prospects for increased development assistance over the long run.
The Secretary-General then went to 10 Downing Street to meet with Prime Minister Tony Blair. They discussed preparations for the UN conferences in Monterrey and Johannesburg, and in particular the development challenges in Africa. They then went on to the security situation in Afghanistan and the role of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) as a prelude to the training of a national army and police force. They then talked of recent initiatives concerning peace efforts in the Middle East, as well as the situation in Iraq and India/Pakistan.
At a press encounter afterwards, the Secretary-General was asked about the Middle East. He called for creative ideas for making peace that reached beyond the objective of security. He cited the proposal of the Crown Prince Abdullah of Saudi Arabia as “an important one”.
In response to another question, he described the situation in Zimbabwe as “worrying” and called on the Government not to interfere with the voting process. “The voice of the people must be respected”, he said.
Foreign Secretary Jack Straw then hosted a working luncheon for the Secretary-General and his delegation. The two principals met privately for about a quarter of an hour. Over lunch, their discussions ranged from Afghanistan and the Middle East to Zimbabwe, Angola, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Georgia.
After lunch, the Secretary-General inaugurated the new offices of the UK Department for International Development, where he was greeted by the Secretary of State for International Development, Clare Short. He unveiled a plaque and then addressed the assembled staff, thanking them for their strong support for the UN’s work.
He then met with the Secretary for half an hour. They discussed peace efforts in Africa, specifically in the Sudan, Angola and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. They then followed up on the earlier discussion with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on levels of official development assistance. They also talked of the security situation in Afghanistan, forthcoming elections in Sierra Leone and the Maoist uprising in Nepal.
Later that afternoon, the Secretary-General gave an address at the London School of Economics. He defined the cyclical problems that too many humans face: “poverty, hunger, disease, oppression, conflict, pollution and depletion of natural resources”.
“Development”, he said, “means enabling people to escape from that vicious circle.” “Poor people don’t want a hand out”, he said. “They want a hand up.”
“There’s a global deal on the table”, he went on to say. “Developing countries doing more to reform their economy and increase spending on the needs of the people, while the rich countries support this with trade, aid, investment and debt relief.” At the Monterrey Conference on Financing for Development, he declared, “let us clinch that deal”! (See Press Release SG/SM/8137).
Following the speech, he took questions from the audience for about half an hour.
Anthony Giddens, Director of the London School of Economics, then hosted a reception in the Secretary-General’s honour.
The Secretary-General worked from his hotel room on Tuesday as he wrapped up his official visit to the United Kingdom.
He had a few appointments late in the day, starting with a tête-à-tête with Lord Levy, Prime Minister Tony Blair's Special Envoy on the Middle East.
After that he saw Baroness Emma Nicholson, member of the European Parliament, and the World Health Organization’s Envoy on Health, Peace and Development.
His last appointment of the day was with Barbara Stocking, the newly-appointed Director of OXFAM. She briefed the Secretary-General on the full range of OXFAM programmes, especially in Africa.
The Secretary-General left for Berlin and an official visit to Germany on Wednesday, 27 February.