Keeping Hope Alive

“There are many people in the world for whom… [2001] was just another year of living with HIV/AIDS or in a refugee camp, or under repressive rule or with crushing poverty, or of watching crops dwindle and children go hungry, as the global environment comes under greater threat.”

In December 2001, United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan held a press conference with members of the international press to both reflect upon the past year and look towards the future with optimism and determination. Here is a look at what Mr. Annan had to say.

Terrorism:

Continuing the struggle - Discussions [on extending the struggle against terrorism to other countries] are taking place outside the United Nations and the Security Council. Obviously, if we were to get in a situation where it became apparent that the perpetrators being sought out in Afghanistan had moved to country X, what the reaction should be is a bridge that we will have to cross when we get there.

Defining the scourge - This is an issue that has preoccupied Member States and that has become particularly acute as we discuss a comprehensive convention against terrorism. [The definition] we can all accept is that anyone who kills or targets innocent civilians cannot claim that it can be justified, regardless of their cause.

Afghanistan:

United Nations involvement - When you start an operation like the one the United Nations is to undertake in Afghanistan, you worry about getting the population to work together - getting people to forget their bad habits and come together to work in the interests of their country and people. We will also need to rely on the cooperation of the neighbours, some of whom have considerable influence on the parties in Afghanistan.

Interim Government - The decisions leading to the formation of this interim administration were taken by the Afghans themselves. After the Bonn Agreement, Mr. [Lakhdar] Brahimi went to Kabul and talked to quite a few of the leaders and other key players who had not been there. They confirmed to him that they were by and large in favour of that agreement.

The Middle East:

Keeping the peace - I would prefer to see a collective international initiative, and for some time now a group of us - the United States, the European Union and the Russian Federation, with leaders in the Arab world, in particular Egypt and Jordan - have been working together.

Israeli-Palestinian conflict - There has been international pressure on Chairman [Yasser] Arafat to take steps to contain extremist acts that emanate from his territory. In my own discussions with him, he has indicated how difficult it is for him to carry out those functions if bombing and shelling are going on and his police cannot move around. The Israeli side also has to help create the conditions that would allow Chairman Arafat to do this.

Iraq:

War? - It would be unwise to attack Iraq now. Any attempt to do that can exacerbate the situation and raise tensions in a region that is already under strain. At the same time, Iraq will also have to understand that it has to begin responding to Security Council resolutions, particularly with regard to the return of [weapons] inspectors.

New sanctions regime to be adopted - The basic idea was to refine the sanctions and to ensure that the population is helped, while at the same time maintaining the pressure on the leadership.

India and Pakistan:

I hope it will be possible for India and Pakistan to find a way out of this without resorting to war. There really is no military solution to the differences that divide them.

United Nations work:

Bosnia and Herzegovina - I have indicated to Member States that the United Nations would have completed its mission in Bosnia by December next year, in that our mission was basically to train the police and help to strengthen the penal systems. We will be talking to the European Union, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe and others that may take on some of the residual responsibilities.

Haiti - The Organization of American States is on the lead on the Haitian issue and we are supporting it on its efforts. I do not see the United Nations going back with a peacekeeping or other operation.

Peacekeeping operations - The budget of the United Nations has not grown over the past eight years. At the same time, the mandates being given to the Organization are increasing. I hope the Member States will find a way to resolve their differences, bearing in mind that the key issue is to give us the resources we need to undertake our operations.

Hope for the new year - I think the East Timor operations are going well; in May, that country will become independent. Things are moving in the right direction in Sierra Leone and we hope to be able to bring the nation back to normalcy.

Nobel Peace Prize - Perhaps the Nobel Committee saw something in the fact that, despite the enormity of the crises that we deal with, we have not been discouraged and we keep trying. We have succeeded in many areas, but we have not done so well in others. There is hope, and without hope, we are all lost.