Annan congratulates former US President Carter on winning Nobel Peace Prize

The United Nations Secretary-General, Kofi Annan, today called to congratulate former United States President Jimmy Carter on winning the 2002 Nobel Peace Prize, a UN spokesman said in New York.

"I'm delighted," the Secretary-General said in Boston, responding to a reporter's question on the award being given to President Carter. "He deserves it."

Last year, on the 100th anniversary of the Peace Prize, Mr. Annan and the United Nations were jointly honoured for "their work for a better organized and more peaceful world."

Mr. Annan was the second Secretary-General to receive the Nobel Peace Prize. The Organization's second chief, Dag Hammarskjöld, was awarded the prize posthumously in 1961 for his action in strengthening the United Nations.