Remarks to the press following briefing to the Security Council on the situation in the Middle East

I have just briefed the [Security] Council on the situation in the Middle East and shared with them my grave concern, and also indicated the encouragement that we all feel by the announcement made by [US] Secretary of State Colin Powell, that he is strengthening his team in the region for them to assist the parties in their search for a solution. And as he indicated, they will help them with timelines and some road maps. But of course, the parties will have to decide to engage. We also indicated that we believe that the Mitchell Report and the Egyptian-Jordanian proposals offer a possible way out for the parties. And as I have indicated to many of you, I hope the parties will seize this opportunity and work with the international community to come out of this tragedy.

I also indicated to the [Security] Council that in my own discussions with world leaders, and particularly last week in Europe, where I had a working dinner with all the EU [European Union] Foreign Ministers plus Mr. [Romano] Prodi, Mr. [Javier] Solana and [Mr.] Chris Patten, we all agreed that the international community will have to work together. And they are all supporting the two proposals and the documents as a basis for moving forward.

I had similar discussions in Moscow with President [Vladimir] Putin and [Foreign Minister] Mr. [Igor] Ivanov. And of course, I am constantly in touch also with the US Administration, and the Egyptian and Jordanian leadership. And the group that met in Sharm-el-Sheikh has stayed very closely together in trying to find a way out of this effort and I think the Council is going to play its role.

I also indicated to the Council that I will keep up my active involvement and, at the appropriate time, will be ready to go to the region.

Q: Mr. Secretary-General, the British oil-for-food resolution grants you broad responsibilities to oversee or establish the arrangements for conducting trade between Iraq and its neighbours. Are you confident that you will be able to persuade Iraq's neighbours to cooperate in this arrangement? There are concerns that they are liable to suffer retaliation from Iraq?

SG: First of all, we have a proposal on the table and I will have to await [Security] Council action and Council decisions. Once the Council has acted, we in the Secretariat would take appropriate measures. As to whether I'll be able to encourage the neighbours to stick to the Security Council resolution, I think it would depend on the nature of the resolution, and I will say that only time will tell.

Q: Are these two issues linked at all? Some Arabs make the linkage between the Iraq situation and the Israeli-Palestinian situation. Do you see these issues linked at all?

SG: In the minds of many people in the region and in the minds of people in the streets, it is linked. I visit the region often and you hear the comments on why is it that it is only in our region and on Arab States that sanctions are imposed. So in the minds of people in the streets, this is very much linked. And this is something that we should be conscious of.

Q: Mr. Secretary-General, the Taliban today ordered all Hindus in the country to wear some kind of identification. Is this something that the United Nations is concerned about and plans to object to?

SG: I need to have all the details before I determine what the UN can do or should do.

Q: Mr. Secretary-General, how significant is the new Iraq resolution in both easing humanitarian suffering in Iraq, and also getting closer to Iraq meeting its obligations on UN resolutions?

SG: I think, as I indicated, you have a draft resolution on the table. And I do not know what the final outcome would be. And I think it would be premature on my side to jump into this and make judgements or conclusions one way or the other.

Q: Mr. Secretary-General, two things. In the past, you've played a big role in bringing the Summit at Sharm-el-Sheikh together a few months ago, a year ago. Are you willing to do that now, to bring a Summit for the Sharm-el-Sheikh partners together? And secondly, there is an idea for monitoring the implementation of the Mitchell Report rather than for sending monitors as requested by the Palestinians. So there is the new idea of monitoring implementation -- a certain body to do so. Do you support that?

SG: I think, let me say that on the issue of a Summit, there may be eventually a need for a Summit. But at this stage, what we are trying to do is to encourage the parties to work on the constructive basis of, and the specific recommendations of, the Mitchell Report, to try and end the violence, begin confidence-building measures, and eventually get to the table. On the issue of monitoring, yes, it has for the first time been raised. But any monitoring mechanism will have to be worked out with the parties.

And you've raised the question of whether I'll be prepared to bring the parties together in a Summit. I think when the time for a Summit comes, I am sure that the parties I've referred to, the group that I've indicated are working hard on this, and I've also indicated that there is a convergence, I think if the time comes, they will be ready, but I'm not sure.

Q: Do you support the monitoring idea of the implementation of the Mitchell Report, do you find that helpful?

SG: The monitoring mechanism can be helpful in the sense that you have targets and benchmarks would address specific tasks, which one would monitor to ensure that they are being implemented, I suspect the parties themselves would be doing some monitoring. The question is, if you're going to set-up a third party monitoring, it will require discussions and cooperation with the parties.

Q: Mr. Secretary-General, Iraq now is threatening to stop the oil-for-food programme. Does the Secretariat have any contingency plan to alleviate the suffering if Iraq stops the programme?

SG: I hope it doesn't come to that. But if Iraq were to stop the programme, or refuse to participate in the programme, the Secretariat will have no means of providing assistance to the Iraqi people. We use the resources from the sale of the oil to do that. And you know how difficult it has been for the Secretariat to raise sufficient resources for humanitarian work around the world. If it were to happen, the demand for the Iraqi population would be quite high and I'm not sure we'll be able to raise the money. So my hope is that the scheme will continue. Obviously, some of the efforts are being made to improve the conditions of the Iraqi people and make sure that the sanctions do not harm them. But if Iraq were to "turn off the taps", then we'll be in a very serious situation.

Q: The new United States government does seem more ready, Secretary-General, to take more of a part now in the Middle East process. Do you think that's a good thing? Do you think it's perhaps a little late in coming? And what do you think the US role should be to try and stop the violence?

SG: I think the steps that the US announced yesterday and the strong support it has given the Mitchell Report is very encouraging and I think is very positive. Beyond that, they have put a team in place that is to assist the parties in implementing aspects of the Mitchell Report so that they can end the violence and bring this tragedy to an end. And I think the Secretary of State [Colin Powell] indicated that he personally is prepared to do more if required. And I know that he is working in close coordination with other leaders and with myself. And I would hope that the efforts which began yesterday, and in fact the team apparently is already on the ground now, will make some progress. I know that there are people who felt that the Administration should have pursued the Middle East effort with the same involvement and energy as the Clinton Administration. But we have to understand when a new administration comes and is taking stock and making a judgement as to how it should tackle a certain issue, it does deserve the time to do this. But anyway, what is important [is] today, they are directly engaged and they are doing more. And they have indicated they are prepared to do more if necessary. And we should all work together to get some results. *****