In Germany, Annan urges world to refocus on poverty, security and bridging differences
After a year in which Iraq monopolized worldwide attention, the international community should concentrate in 2004 on priorities such as fighting poverty, bolstering the system of collective security and rebuilding trust among peoples, United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan said today during an official visit to Germany.
"I invite you to join me in dedicating this year this year to those three great tasks: to refocus the world's attention and resources on the needs and fears of the poor; to strengthen our system of collective security, so that no State feels it has to face global threats on its own; and to overcome distrust and division between people of different faiths and cultures, so that we can all live together in harmony and mutual respect," he said in the prepared text of his address on accepting the German Media Award in Baden-Baden, Germany.
The jury for the prize - which is based on a poll of the editors of the country's most important media - said the Secretary-General "stands, like no other politician, for the basic ideals of the United Nations, striving for a better organized and peaceful world."
On helping the poor, the Secretary-General recalled the pledges world leaders made in 2000 at a UN summit to halve poverty and hunger, halt and begin to reverse the spread of HIV/AIDS and other major diseases, and improve the lives of 100 million slum-dwellers, all by 2015.
"Last year we let ourselves be distracted from these vital tasks," he said. "We were concerned - and rightly so - with issues of peace and security."
At the same time, he warned that "there will be no peace and no security, even for the most privileged amongst us, in a world that remains divided between extremes of wealth and poverty, health and disease, knowledge and ignorance, freedom and oppression."
The Secretary-General said that to help repair the system of collective security, he has asked a 16-member blue-ribbon panel, which he appointed last November, to recommend ways of dealing with threats and challenges to peace and security in the 21st century. "The object of the exercise is to find a credible and convincing collective answer to the challenges of our time."
As for rebuilding trust and confidence between peoples of different faiths and cultures, Mr. Annan noted that many recent events - including the terrorist attacks of 11 September 2001, the war in Iraq and the continuing conflict between Israelis and Palestinians - have pushed the international community dangerously close to a "clash of civilizations."
"We must resist this," he said. "We must deal with all our fellow human beings fairly and objectively, judging them by their own individual words and actions, and not on the basis of generalizations or preconceptions about the group to which we think they belong."
Earlier Wednesday, the Secretary-General said at a press encounter that he was in touch with parties in Iraq and was still considering how best the UN can help following the request Monday by the coalition and the Iraqi Governing Council that he send a team to Iraq to assess the transition process, including elections and the proposed caucus system, before the return of sovereignty at the end of June.
"Once I have completed my reflection, and we have studied the documents, I will decide how best the UN can help and I will make a decision and an announcement as to what I am going to do. But I am still considering it," he told reporters following his meeting with Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer.
In addition to Iraq, the two also discussed the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Afghanistan, UN-German relations and the Secretary-General's high-level panel on UN change.
Asked about the political situation in Iran, the Secretary-General expressed his hope that Iranians would find a way to resolve their differences so that they could hold "free and fair elections with participation of all the parties."
On UN efforts to find a solution to the Cyprus problem, Mr. Annan said his settlement proposal was still on the table and that he was waiting to hear from all parties that they are ready to resume negotiations.
"We haven't reached the stage where I would get involved yet," he said, adding that he expected to meet with Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Davos, Switzerland, in the coming days.
photos of Mr. Annan's visit