UNITED
NATIONS
GENERAL ASSEMBLY
Statement
of the President of the General Assembly
on the Occasion of the Winning of the 2001 Nobel
Peace Prize
by the United Nations and its Secretary-General
12 October 2001
It is with great pleasure
that I extend my heartfelt congratulations, on behalf of the whole UN
membership, to our own Organization, the United Nations, and its Secretary-General
Kofi Annan on their winning of the Nobel Peace Prize this year.
This is a well-deserved honor for all the Member States of the United
Nations as well as for the entire staff of the Secretariat.
As members of the
United Nations family, we all feel proud that during the last half century
the United Nations has always been at the forefront of efforts to achieve
peace and security as well as the prosperity and development of mankind.
This Prize is a recognition of not only the achievements of the United
Nations in serving the world community but also of that of the thousands
of UN staff members led by the Secretary-General who work with such dedication
and often in perilous circumstances to make this world a better and safer
place. At the same time, I believe this award will serve to encourage
all of us to make further efforts to accomplish our mandates for humanity.
This Nobel Peace Prize
awarded to the United Natins and Secretary-General Kofi Annan is most
fitting as we are facing formidable challenges such as poverty, terrorism,
drug abuse, environmental degradation, and HIV/AIDS.
My special and warmest
congratulations go to Secretary-General Kofi Annan, in particular. I truly
believe that all of us in the United Nations owe him a large debt of gratitude
for his outstanding leadership and services at this critical time in history,
of which the Nobel Peace Prize is a most fitting and timely recognition.
Finally, I sincerely hope that the international community will view this award not just as recognition of past achievement but, more importantly as a beacon illuminating the way forward for the United Nations as it rises to confront new challenges.
Thank you.