Kofi Annan
Kofi Annan
Kofi Atta Annanis a Ghanaian diplomat who served as the seventh Secretary-General of the United Nations from January 1997 to December 2006. Annan and the United Nations were the co-recipients of the 2001 Nobel Peace Prize "for their work for a better organized and more peaceful world." He is the founder and the Chairman of the Kofi Annan Foundation, as well as being the chairman of The Elders, a group founded by Nelson Mandela...
NationalityGhanaian
ProfessionPolitician
Date of Birth8 April 1938
CityKumasi, Ghana
CountryGhana
Kofi Annan quotes about
This will be our first encounter, ... I have no idea what sort of atmosphere it's going to be, what he is like, how he reacts. Obviously, this is going to be a very difficult discussion. It is an issue that has persisted for 10 years.
If they are not able to resolve it before the summit (in September), the issue is not going to die, ... They will have to pursue it and, I hope, resolve it before we all go away for Christmas.
Men can make a particular difference -- by being more caring, by taking fewer risks and by facing the issue of AIDS head-on.
Obviously if he came in the expectation that he will leave this issue behind us, then it has not succeeded.
Libya has also agreed to a trial in a third country and believes that it ought to be possible to find answers to all other outstanding issues relating to this matter,
It is a serious matter. And we shouldn't forget that the council as a whole got the resolution only last Monday, ... For them to take time and discuss this issue seriously is something we should be grateful for.
There are some who believe that threats propelled them to demand the talks, but I really do not know, ... I know that regional leaders would want to see this issue settled peacefully, and they are all looking forward to a positive outcome.
keep working with determination on the tough issues on which progress is urgent but has not yet been achieved.
We have a lot of issues on the agenda to discuss and I'm looking forward to the meeting. We will of course discuss the Iranian issue, the situation in Iraq, the Middle East... I would not be surprised if the issue of the cartoons comes up.
In the short term, the most pressing issue is the continued existence of predatory armed groups, ... Although there is no easy military solution to this dangerous phenomenon, those guilty of the worst atrocities and human rights abuses -- and especially those guilty of genocide -- must not be allowed to escape unpunished.
The issue is not the acceptance, but the performance on the ground, ... So let the inspectors go in, and I urge the Iraqis to cooperate with them and to perform, and I think that is the real test we are waiting for.
The issue is not the acceptance, but the performance on the ground,
The fact that you have not reached agreement on these and other issues does not render them any less urgent,
The council is beginning to look at these issues more critically and with a bit more of an open mind,