The Secretary-General, on his last day in Johannesburg, South Africa, said at a press conference that the World Summit on Sustainable Development, which concludes this afternoon, “will put us on a path that reduces poverty while protecting the environment, a path that works for all peoples, rich and poor, today and tomorrow.”
He said that governments attending the Summit had agreed on an impressive range of concrete commitments, in particular in the five priority areas of water, energy, health, agriculture and biodiversity. He added that the Summit marked “a major leap forward” in the development of partnerships between governments, civil society, businesses and other key actors.
In response to a question, he acknowledged that there were people disappointed that not everything that was expected to take place in Johannesburg was achieved, but said he was satisfied with the results. He said, “I think we have to be careful not to expect conferences like this to produce miracles, but we do expect conferences like this to generate political commitment, momentum and energy for the attainment of goals.”
On Iraq, he said he had told Deputy Prime Minister Tariq Aziz yesterday that UN inspectors should go in and that Iraq should comply with UN resolutions, adding that other leaders around the world are also asking Iraq to comply.
On Zimbabwe, he said he had been in touch with President Robert Mugabe, and had raised with him press reports that the distribution of food in that country was being politicized. President Mugabe, he added, had assured him that that was not the case.
The Secretary-General held several bilateral meetings on the margins of today’s proceedings, beginning with a meeting this morning with Finnish President Tarja Halonen, with whom he discussed the Summit.
After a brief one-on-one meeting with Food and Agriculture Organization Director Jacques Diouf, he met with the Greek Foreign Minister, George Papandreou, with whom he discussed Iraq and Cyprus. You’ll recall that he will meet with the Cypriot leaders this Friday in Paris, along with his Special Adviser, Alvaro de Soto, before returning to New York.
The Secretary-General then met with US Secretary of State Colin Powell, and briefed him on the meeting he had had yesterday with Tariq Aziz, and relayed to.
