Kofi Annan

Today's United Nations works closely with regional organizations, in Europe and beyond. However, it is our longstanding engagement with the OSCE that consistently sets the standard for such partnerships, particularly in the security, economic and humanitarian realms.

The Secretary-General was introduced by his wife, Mrs. Nane Annan:

Dear friends,

How exciting and what a challenge to introduce my husband to you: a man who has been in the public eye for so long; a man who is exactly what he appears to be, both inside and outside the home: calm, wise, compassionate.

Thank you very much, Kathleen,

My dear friends,

It is a pleasure to welcome all of you to this conference.

Q: John Bolton has resigned. Your thoughts on his term here; relationship with you; I know at times it was stormy.

SG: I think Ambassador Bolton did the job he was expected to do. He came at a time when we had lots of tough issues. As a representative of the US government he pressed ahead with the instructions that he had been given, and tried to work as effectively as he could with the other ambassadors.

Q: Did he do enough for the organization, or was he trying to chop down its effectiveness, do you feel, at times?

In the 25 years since the first case was reported, AIDS has changed the world. It has killed 25 million people, and infected 40 million more. It has become the world's leading cause of death among both women and men aged 15 to 59. It has inflicted the single greatest reversal in the history of human development. In other words, it has become the greatest challenge of our generation.

For far too long, the world was in denial. But over the past 10 years, attitudes have changed. The world has started to take the fight against AIDS as seriously as it deserves.

Thank you, Reverend Bean.

Dear friends,

My wife Nane and I are extremely moved to be here with all of you. I am so happy my colleage Peter Piot came here from Geneva to be with us. Let me thank all the organizers, and all of you who have come tonight to show your commitment to the struggle against HIV/AIDS.

My dear friends,

Few crises have demanded the attention and energy of the United Nations more than the one that continues to unfold in Darfur. While progress has been made in efforts to alleviate the suffering and resolve the political situation, far more remains to be done if this brutal and tragic conflict is to be brought to an end.

Thank you very much, Jan [Egeland]

Excellencies,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Let me start by thanking HRH [Princess Haya of Jordan] and Dr. [Denis] Mukwege [Director of the Panzi Hospital, Democratic Republic of the Congo] for joining us this morning for the launch.

The Secretary-General is deeply concerned about the reports of heavy fighting between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Sudan People's Liberation Army on 28 November in the town of Malakal in Upper Nile State, Southern Sudan. These hostilities constitute a serious violation of the security arrangements of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement.

Mr. Chairman,

Excellencies,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

I am pleased to join the Committee in observing this International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People.

I know I speak for all of us in expressing profound dismay that a peaceful settlement of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict remains so elusive.