15 MAY 2008

The fifth U.N. Secretary General Javier Perez de Cuellar will be holding a press conference at the Sorbonne University in Paris on Monday 19 May to launch The Council for Global Governance. The group is to be composed of a number of distinguished former senior U.N. officials, Permanent Representatives and prominent members of the intellectual communities around the world. It will have special interest in the potential role of the U.N. at these very trying times and stress on the kind of reform that will enable the Organization and its Secretary General to perform designated functions. There will be special focus on the issues of LEADERSHIP -- how could the Secretary General be enabled to accomplish uniquely difficult role with less obstacles and the interrelationship with member states -- large and small. Ways of practical collaboration would be explored to enhance the U.N.'s stature and image rather than attempting to corner the Secretary General in vulnerable situations.

Renowned as a most elegant diplomat's diplomat, the two-term Secretary General would seek to work closely with the current Secretary General and to offer his views and those of his group to help facilitate his task as defined by the Charter. Our understanding is that he is already in touch with his successor's office to arrange for a meeting during a visit to New York next July, when it is hoped some concrete initial trends could be meaningfully presented.