Mideast situation – SecGen visits Qatar – Press release

ACTIVITIES OF THE SECRETARY-GENERAL IN QATAR, 11 – 14 NOVEMBER

The Secretary-General arrived in Qatar from Bahrain late in the afternoon of Saturday, 11 November.

At his guest house, he huddled with his principal advisers, Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs, Kieran Prendergast, Special Adviser, Lakhdar Brahimi, and Special Coordinator for the Middle East, Terje Roed-Larsen.  They were briefed on the developments thus far by Assistant Secretary-General Ibrahima Fall, who had attended the ministerial session of the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) since mid-week.

The Secretary-General then held two bilateral meetings before the end of his day.  He met with Rafic Al-Hariri, the new Prime Minister of Lebanon, to review the situation in that country, especially in the south, where the United Nations has a peacekeeping mission to help the Government establish control over the area, following Israel’s military withdrawal.  He then met with the Foreign Minister of Egypt, Amre Moussa, for a discussion of the current crisis between the Israelis and the Palestinians.

On Sunday morning, he addressed the opening session of the OIC Summit, congratulating Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Thani of Qatar on his assumption of the OIC Chairmanship and praising the outgoing Chairman, President Seyed Mohammad Khatami of Iran.  To President Khatami, he said, “Your personal commitment to détente, openness, tolerance and the role of law has been an encouragement to all who strive for progress throughout the Islamic world.”

He highlighted three main issues in his address -– the situation in the Palestinian Territories, in Afghanistan and in Iraq (see SG/SM/7621).

On the Palestinian issue, which was a central concern of the OIC leaders, he said, “The past eight weeks have made abundantly clear to all sides that the cause of peace can only be damaged by excessive use of force, indiscriminate violence or terror.”  

“The question before the Palestinian and Israeli peoples, before this assembly, and before the world,” he continued, “is how to bring an end to the violence and killings, and how to respect the sanctity of every human life, Palestinian or Israeli, young or old.”

“The question is,” he went on, “how to respond to the legitimate aspirations of the Palestinians to personal dignity and material independence, as well as to the legitimate claims of the Israelis for recognition and security, and how to help both sides achieve a peace that is just, a peace that brings real benefits and real awards to every individual Palestinian and Israel.”

In the margins of the conference, the Secretary-General held a substantial number of bilateral meetings.

After a luncheon for heads of State and delegation hosted by the Amir of Qatar, the Secretary-General met with King Abdullah II Bin Al Hussein of Jordan, with whom he discussed only one subject -– the current Middle East violence and how to stop it.

He then met with President Abdurrahman Wahid of Indonesia.  They first discussed the Middle East.  Then the Secretary-General raised the situation in West Timor, urging the President to continue current efforts to disarm the militia, prosecute those responsible for the violence, including the murder of three United Nations staff members, and to facilitate the return of East Timorese refugees.  Their talks also touched on domestic and regional issues, including Myanmar.

In his meeting with Yasser Arafat, the President of the Palestinian Authority, the focus of discussion was again exclusively on the Middle East.  The Secretary-General emphasized the urgency of breaking the dynamic of violence that is gripping the region.  They assessed the prospects for resuming the peace talks in the waning days of the administration of United States President Bill Clinton.  

The Secretary-General’s talks with His Royal Highness Prince Rashid of Morocco concentrated on the United Nations’ efforts to organize a referendum on the future of the territory of Western Sahara.  

With the Foreign Minister of Turkey, Ismail Cem, he discussed the situation in the Middle East, the prospects for lifting sanctions on Iraq and the latest round of Cyprus talks recently concluded in Geneva.

His last appointment of the day was with the President of Iran, Seyed Mohammad Khatami.  The Secretary-General praised President Khatami for his skilful chairmanship of the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) over the past three years and his launch of the Dialogue among Civilizations.  They also discussed the situation in the Middle East and the fact-finding committee established by the United States, in consultation with the Secretary-General, to look into the causes of the current violence and how to avoid it in the future.  The President thanked the Secretary-General for his efforts to find a political solution in Afghanistan and for working closely with the OIC toward that end.

On Monday, 13 November, the Secretary-General continued his bilateral meetings in the margins of the OIC Summit.  In the morning he met with the Foreign Minister of Tunisia, Habib Ben Yahia, with whom he raised concern over the continuing violence in Israel and the Palestinian Territories, as well as the need to revive the peace process.  They also discussed Iraq, including ways to break the current impasse, and the issue of Western Sahara.

The Secretary-General then met with Amara Essy, the former Foreign Minister of Côte d’Ivoire, to review the situation in that country as well as in the West African region.

At midday, the Secretary-General met with His Highness the Amir of Qatar. They began by discussing the role of the fact-finding committee appointed by the United States to look into the causes of the Israeli-Palestinian violence and how to avoid a recurrence.  They expressed hope that the committee could get to work quickly and thereby exercise a calming influence.  They also discussed the Palestinian proposal for a United Nations protection force in the region and the prospects for a renewed peace process.  They concluded with a discussion of Iraq.

In the early afternoon, the Secretary-General held a second meeting with the Prime Minister of Lebanon, Rafic Al-Hariri.

After that, the Secretary-General met with the Foreign Minister of Qatar, Sheikh Hamad Bin Jassem Bin Jabr Al-Thani.  The Minister briefed the Secretary-General on Qatar’s latest efforts to promote reconciliation between Iraq and Kuwait, working hard to shape the draft of the final OIC communiqué on the subject.  They also discussed Iraq sanctions, their impact on innocent civilians and the need for Iraq to cooperate with the Security Council.

With the Shaikh of Sharja, representing the Ruler of the United Arab Emirates who was ill, the Secretary-General again discussed the situation in the Middle East, the fact-finding committee and the way ahead.  Their talks also focused on Iraq.

The Middle East, Iraq and Cyprus dominated the Secretary-General’s meeting with the President of Turkey, Ahmet Necdet Sezer. On Cyprus, the two men discussed the ideas that the Secretary-General made to the two sides in Geneva last week.

President Abdelaziz Bouteflika of Algeria engaged the Secretary-General in a broad discussion of Middle East issues, emphasizing that peace in the region could not be secured without a comprehensive settlement involving Lebanon and Syria as well.  They also touched on United Nations efforts to resolve the dispute over the Western Sahara.

The Secretary-General then met with the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs of the Sultanate of Oman, Yousef Bin Al-Alawi Bin Abdulla.  They discussed ways to resolve the impasse over Iraq.

In his meeting with the President of Mali, Alpha Oumar Konare, discussions focused on regional issues in West Africa.  President Konare, as current Chairman of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), reported on recent discussions he had with the leaders of Sierra Leone’s rebel group, the Revolutionary United Front (RUF).  He discussed the peace process for Sierra Leone and the way ahead.  They also discussed the situation in Cote d’Ivoire.

He then met with the President of Yemen, Field Marshal Ali Abdullah Saleh, who shared with him his views on the Palestinian proposal for a United Nations protection force.

With the Foreign Minister of Kuwait, Sheikh Sabah Salem Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, the Secretary-General discussed Kuwait's relations with Iraq, the question of missing Kuwaiti persons in Iraq, and the compensation fund set up by the United Nations to recompense losses as a result of Iraq's invasion of Kuwait.

With the Chief Executive of Pakistan, Pervez Musharraf, he discussed the situation in the Palestinian Territories and Afghanistan.  They also talked of possible Pakistani contributions to United Nations peacekeeping missions.  

In his meeting with the vice-chairman of the Revolutionary Council of Iraq, Izzat Ibrahim, he discussed Iraq’s relations with the United Nations and ways to break the current impasse.  He told the press afterwards that he considered the deadlock “unhealthy”.  He said he considered it important “that we have begun to discuss the issues”.  “Of course”, he continued, “they have issues, I have Security Council Resolutions, but we are going to find ways of discussing things”.  “I have to review what we have discussed”, he concluded, “and then the contacts will begin”.

Before leaving the conference centre, Prince Abdallah of Saudi Arabia asked to see the Secretary-General again.

The Secretary-General left Qatar for New York on Wednesday morning, 14 November.  His plane stopped in London for refueling at the same time as Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak's plane landed.  The two leaders took the opportunity to meet and discussed the situation in the Middle East.

In his meeting with Mr. Barak the Secretary-General briefed him on his visit to Doha.  Mr. Barak had a chance to share with the Secretary-General his discussions in Washington with President William Clinton of the United States.

In a press encounter following his half-hour meeting, the Secretary-General said that discussions had focussed on how to stop the violence and on how to find a way of getting the parties back to the table.

Mr. Annan also had a 10-minute phone conversation with British Prime Minister Tony Blair during the refueling stop.

The Secretary-General landed in New York late on Wednesday afternoon.

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