Kofi Annan

Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue

An Interview with Kofi A. Annan

The Prisoner of Peace

UN. Secretary-General

Transcript of Press Conference by Secretary-General Kofi Annan at United Nations Headquarters, 24 February

"[A] resolute, detailed, and unflinching review of [Annan’s] most difficult hours…No one ever came closer to being the voice of “we the peoples” and no one paid a higher price for it. The world still needs such a voice, but the next person who tries to fill that role will want to reflect long and hard on the lessons of this candid, courageous, and unsparing memoir." --Michael Ignatieff, The New York Review of Books Receiving the Nobel Peace Prize in December 2001, United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan spoke to a world still reeling from the terrorist attacks of September 11. “Ladies and Gentlemen,” proclaimed Annan, “we have entered the third millennium through a gate of fire. If today, after the horror of 11 September, we see better, and we see further—we will realize that humanity is indivisible. New threats make no distinction between races, nations, or regions.” Yet within only a few years the world was more divided than ever—polarized by the American invasion of Iraq, the Arab-Israeli conflict, the escalating civil wars in Africa, and the rising influence of China. Interventions: A Life in War and Peace is the story of Annan’s remarkable time at the center of the world stage. After forty years of service at the United Nations, Annan shares here his unique experiences during the terrorist attacks of September 11; the American invasions of Iraq and Afghanistan; the war between Israel, Hizbollah, and Lebanon; the brutal conflicts of Somalia, Rwanda, and Bosnia; and the geopolitical transformations following the end of the Cold War. With eloquence and unprecedented candor, Interventions finally reveals Annan’s unique role and unparalleled perspective on decades of global politics. The first sub-Saharan African to hold the position of Secretary-General, Annan has led an extraordinary life in his own right. His idealism and personal politics were forged in the Ghanaian independence movement of his adolescence, when all of Africa seemed to be rising as one to demand self-determination. Schooled in Africa, Europe, and the United States, Annan ultimately joined the United Nations in Geneva at the lowest professional level in the still young organization. Annan rose rapidly through the ranks and was by the end of the Cold War prominently placed in the dramatically changing department of peacekeeping operations. His stories of Presidents Clinton and Bush, dictators like Saddam Hussein and Robert Mugabe, and public figures of all stripes contrast powerfully with Annan’s descriptions of the courage and decency of ordinary people everywhere struggling for a new and better world. Showing the successes of the United Nations, Annan also reveals the organization’s missed opportunities and ongoing challenges—inaction in the Rwanda genocide, continuing violence between Israelis and Palestinians, and the endurance of endemic poverty. Yet Annan’s great strength in this book is his ability to embed these tragedies within the context of global politics, demonstrating how, time and again, the nations of the world have retreated from the UN’s founding purpose. From the pinnacle of global politics, Annan made it his purpose to put the individual at the center of every mission for peace and prosperity. A personal biography of global statecraft, Annan’s Interventions is as much a memoir as a guide to world order—past, present, and future.

A Life in War and Peace

Interventions

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Nader Mousavizadeh

O antigo secretário-geral da ONU e prêmio Nobel da Paz realiza um balanço crítico de sua carreira diplomática, entremeando memórias pessoais com penetrantes análises da política internacional. Primeiro funcionário de carreira da ONU a ser eleito para o cargo de secretário-geral, primeiro africano negro a comandar a maior organização multilateral do mundo, à frente de um orçamento de 10 bilhões de dólares e de mais de 40 mil funcionários em diversos países, o ganense Kofi Annan dedicou a maior parte de sua vida à defesa da paz mundial e à promoção dos direitos humanos. Sua eleição pela Assembleia Geral, no final de 1996, coroou uma carreira diplomática integralmente dedicada às Nações Unidas. Formado nas melhores universidades dos Estados Unidos e da Europa, e com vasta experiência em missões de manutenção da paz, Annan exerceu dois mandatos marcados por êxitos significativos na solução de conflitos armados e no combate ao desrespeito dos direitos humanos - mas também por lamentáveis fracassos como o genocídio em Ruanda (1998) e as "guerras contra o terror" deflagradas pelos atentados de 11 de setembro de 2001. Como ele mesmo avalia nestas aguardadas memórias, a ONU - fundada em 1945 com a finalidade de evitar uma nova guerra mundial - tem enfrentado, desde o fim da Guerra Fria, as consequências dramáticas do antagonismo entre os interesses geopolíticos das grandes potências e os direitos e garantias mais básicos dos habitantes do planeta. Em parceria com Nader Mousavideh, seu ex-assessor e respeitado especialista em relações internacionais, o vencedor do prêmio Nobel da Paz de 2001 expõe os bastidores do jogo geopolítico mundial por meio de uma interpretação lúcida e honesta dos acontecimentos históricos de que foi testemunha e protagonista.

Uma vida de guerra e paz

Intervenções

Over forty years of service to the United Nations - the last ten as Secretary-General - Kofi Annan has been at the centre of the major geopolitical events of our time. As much a memoir as a guide to world order, THE ARC OF INTERVENTION provides a unique, behind-the-scenes view of global diplomacy during one of the most tumultuous periods in UN history. With eloquence and immediacy, Annan writes about the highs and lows of his years at the United Nations: from shuttle-diplomacy during crises such as Kosovo, Lebanon and Israel-Palestine to the wrenching battles over the Iraq War to the creation of the landmark Responsibility to Protect doctrine. He is remarkably candid about the organization's failed efforts, particularly in Rwanda, Bosnia and Darfur. Yet Annan embeds these tragedies within the context of global politics, revealing how, time and again, the nations of the world have retreated from the UN's radical mandate. Ultimately, Annan shows readers a world where solutions are available, if we have the will and courage to see them through.

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Kofi Annan

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