Q: Mr. Secretary-General, now that you've seen the report, and you've seen that it alleges some wrong-doing on Mr. [Benon] Sevan's part, and all the way up to the office of the Secretary-General, your predecessor –you've spoken before about damage to the UN's reputation. How concerned are you about the damage to the UN reputation, being tarnished by what you found out so far and what may be to come?

SG: Obviously, there were some hard knocks in the report, and we are concerned about it, and this is why we intend to take action promptly. This is a first step. There are going to be other reports from the Volcker Commission, and we look forward to the completion of his work, and we are as determined as everyone to get to the bottom of this. We do not want this shadow to hang over the UN, so we want to get to the bottom of it, get to the truth, and take appropriate measures to deal with the gaps.

Q: Mr. Secretary-General, you said that you would take disciplinary action against Mr. [Joseph] Stephanides and Mr. Sevan. I'm just wondering, how can you take effective disciplinary action against a man who is practically retired from the United Nations and a second one who is apparently something like five months away from retirement?

SG: My lawyers and others are working on that and you will hear from us very shortly.

Q: Mr. Annan, many have suggested that the report does nothing but scapegoat, and try to lay blame at the doorstep of one or two people linked to this program. How do you feel about that?

SG: I think it is a bit early to make that sort of judgment. The investigation is at an early stage. This is one of a series of reports and the comprehensive report, Mr. [Paul] Volcker has indicated, will come in mid-summer. So I think we should wait until the work is done before we draw definitive conclusions.

Q: Secretary-General, is the report as bad as critics make it out to be -- critics crying for your resignation?

SG: I think for an organization like the UN, any hint of corruption and misbehaviour and that sort of disrespect for rules is harmful, and is dangerous and we cannot dismiss it, and we do take it seriously.

Q: What is your reaction to the naming of the former Secretary-General, Mr. [Boutros] Boutros-Ghali, and the Iraq Steering Committee generally, back in the selection of the original contractors to the program?

SG: I think the report is very clear and detailed on that issue, and we have to also understand that each Secretary-General has to do things his way and in accordance with the circumstances that he finds himself in. I think Mr. Boutros-Ghali has indicated in the report, the environment and the circumstances in which he was taking those decisions and I don't want to second guess him, nor add to that.

Q: When you look at the detail of Mr. Sevan's activities in the report, is it clear to you that he specifically, on a man-to-man basis, betrayed your trust, even maybe perhaps lied to you, in the way he represented what he did?

SG: I think I'm not the only who was shocked by what we read in the report. He has been here working with many of us for quite a time and we had not expected anything of the sort. Thank you.