Q: Good morning, and welcome back. Mr. Secretary, there are several figures in the Sudanese Government who are talking tough about not cooperating with that Security Council resolution, or are threatening people who might come in. What is your reaction to all of that?
SG: I do expect the Sudanese Government to cooperate with the Resolution, because the Resolution is in line with what they publicly agreed to do. And the Council is insisting that they just protect their own population. I think the recent comments from Khartoum indicate that the Government will comply, would want to cooperate with the Security Council. Yesterday, at a meeting in Khartoum of the Joint Monitoring Mechanism, which was co-chaired by [Jan] Pronk, my Special Representative, and the Foreign Minister, they went over what needs to be done, and what further steps the Government can take to protect the population. So my sense is that they are moving in the direction of implementation.
Q: Are you following up with warnings to them, that they have to comply, they should read the Resolution?
SG: I think the Resolution is very clear that if they do not perform there will be consequences. I think the Government of Sudan has got the message loud and clear. And you can tell by their reaction.
Q: Mr. Secretary-General, the Government of Sudan has been saying that this Resolution undercuts agreements with you and with the African Union which they say gives them 90 days rather than 30 days. Would you clarify that?
SG: Yes, I think there is some confusion. When we met on the 1st of July there was a 90-day agreement, humanitarian emergency plan, which was put on the table as to how the humanitarian community is going to organize itself to deliver maximum assistance in 90 days, and what was required of the Government particularly in the area of access and offering visas to NGOs and UN officials as well as allowing supplies and equipment to come in without impediments. That was a separate issue from the government's responsibility to protect its people. And that we discussed with the Government. And in fact, in the Security Council Resolution, it warns them to demonstrate within a month that that is being done. They want to see results on the ground. I don't think even the Council Resolution says they should do it within a month. They must show demonstrably that they are determined, that they are serious, and that they are protecting the people. And this has to be seen by the people, and felt by the people, not by public declarations.
Q: What is your understanding of the latest security threats in New York, but also to UN affiliated organizations –in effect, the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund? What does that mean? How safe do you think the UN is now?
SG: I think we all live in a rather difficult and unpredictable world. We do take these threats seriously. We need to take precautions. But we need to get on with our work and our lives. And this is exactly what we are doing.
Q: One year ago, coming up, August 19th, the bombing of UN headquarters [in Baghdad]. You are going to be in Geneva. What does it mean, the anniversary, for you? What are the lessons that you think that have been learned? I know you have talked about it is a new world for the UN. One year later, what has happened?
SG: I think the anniversary, in a way, reminds all of us of the wonderful colleagues and friends that we lost. It reminds us of what a dangerous environment UN staff have to work in around the world. It reminds us of the need to take greater precautions on security, and it reminds us of the fact that the blue flag cannot be assumed to protect us any longer. But above all, we will be thinking of those who are no longer with us, and also will be looking forward as to how we plan to protect those who are with us and are taking risks daily, going out into distant places to assist those in need.
Q: Secretary-General, welcome back from the Summit on Cote d'Ivoire in Accra, Ghana. The problem in Cote d'Ivoire seems to have dragged on quite a bit, but you managed to get some agreement. How optimistic are you that this agreement could hold, peace will come to Cote d'Ivoire and to the West African sub-region?
SG: Well, I think the agreement was signed willingly by the Ivoirean leaders, in the presence of a whole set of leaders from the region and the public. And I sense that they themselves were beginning to feel that the time has come for them to move on. And besides, the people are tired and want to get on with their lives. And this places greater responsibilities on the leaders to really bare in mind the needs of the people and the needs of the nation. I appealed to them to put aside their own individual desires and work for the nation and the people. I saw the spirit in the room when they signed the agreement, how relieved they all seemed to be. And we need to maintain the pressure on them to implement it. We all hope that, this time around, it is serious and they are going to go back and honour their commitments. Thank you.