23 November 2004 – Declaring that the people of Iraq "are once again being tested by fire" after suffering decades of brutal misrule and devastating wars, United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan today called on the international community, especially neighbouring countries, to unite in promoting a stable and prosperous nation there.
"Let Iraqis come together as one people. Let the nations of this region and the world come together to help them," he told the International Conference on Iraq in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt. "And let us all work towards one goal: a stable Iraq, a peaceful Iraq, a democratic Iraq - a new Iraq," he added, pledging continued UN aid to the Iraqi people.
"Acts of violence and terror are being committed against them and against aid workers too, and they are caught in the cross-fire of deadly conflict," he said.
But, he added: "Who can doubt that they have the courage and the ability to triumph over the challenges that beset them today? The Iraqi people want a better future for their country, and they are determined to achieve it."
The conference participants agreed to a communiqué that affirmed the right of the Iraqi people to a secure and stable life, and to determine freely their future through democratic means and to exercise full control over their natural and financial resources.
Mr. Annan said a stable and united Iraq, at peace with itself, and in a peaceful region was a compelling concern for every peace-loving nation, noting that elections due in January are a critical part of the country's transition, now threatened by insecurity and indiscriminate acts of terror.
He stressed that every effort must be made to provide incentives for various Iraqi groups to participate in a national reconciliation process and the broadest possible spectrum of opinion must be persuaded of a shared interest in realizing the potential of a united and peaceful country.
Countries in the region should take the lead in helping to normalize Iraq's regional and international relations and Mr. Annan underlined the world body's role in the country, where a terrorist bomb last year killed top UN envoy Sergio Vieira de Mello and 21 others, leading to the withdrawal of international staffers.
"We cannot ignore the security risks," he declared. "But nor must we let them deter us from doing all we can, under prevailing circumstances, to help the Iraqi people."
He noted that the UN "did our utmost under difficult conditions" to help form an interim Iraqi government and an electoral commission and was now working to coordinate international aid and assist the electoral authorities.
"And we will be at the side of Iraq in the future," he vowed. "The measure of our success is not the number of staff we have in Iraq. It is the degree to which we translate our commitment into effective support for Iraq's transition. With support from both inside and outside Iraq, I am confident we can do our part in helping the Iraqi people."
On the margins of the Iraq conference, Mr. Annan had a series of bilateral meetings with European Union High Representative Javier Solana, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Arab League Secretary-General Amr Moussa.
In a meeting with German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer, he held a briefing on the timetable of the release of the report of the High-Level Panel on Threats, Challenges and Change.
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