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Name: Kofi Annan

Title: Former Secretary-General of the United Nations (UN)

Position: CON to the question "Should the U.S. have attacked Iraq?"

Reasoning:

"Today, despite the best efforts of the international community and the United Nations, war has come to Iraq for the third time in a quarter of a century.

Perhaps if we had persevered a little longer, Iraq could yet have been disarmed peacefully, or - if not - the world could have taken action to solve this problem by a collective decision, endowing it with greater legitimacy, and therefore commanding wider support, than is now the case...

Over the past weeks, the peoples of the world have shown what great importance they attach to the legitimacy conveyed by the authority of the United Nations. They have made clear that, in confronting uncertainty and danger, they want to see power harnessed to legitimacy. They want their leaders to come together, in the United Nations, to resolve the problems shared by all humanity.

I will do my utmost to ensure that the United Nations rises to this challenge."

"Statement by the Secretary-General on Iraq"
New York, March 20, 2003
Credibility
Ranking:
 Experts
PhD's, JD's (lawyers), Judges, Members of Congress, Ambassadors, Consulate Generals, heads of government, Cabinet-level positions, military generals/admirals, members of legislative bodies with significant involvement in, or related to, the U.S.- Iraq conflict.

Involvement:
  • 1997-2007 - Seventh Secretary-General of the United Nations (UN)
  • 1993-1996 - Headed Peacekeeping Operations, UN
  • 1990-1992 - Positions held at the UN: Programme Planning, Budget and Finance, and Controller
  • 1987-1990 - Human Resources Management and Security Coordinator, UN
  • 1974-1976 - Director of Tourism, Ghana
  • 1962 - Budget Officer, World Health Organization

Education: M.S., Management, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), 1972
B.S., Economics,Mcalester College, 1961

Affiliations/
Honors:
Awards Received:
  • Crystal Tiger Award, Princeton University, 2006
  • International Achievement Award, Inter Press Service, 2006
  • Max Schmidheiny Foundation Freedom Prize, University of St. Gallen, Switzerland, 2006
  • Order of the Dutch Lion, Grand Cross, 2006
  • Grand Collar of the Order of Liberty (Portugal), 2005
  • JFK Memorial Museum's "Profiles in Courage Award," 2002
  • Nobel Peace Prize, 2001

Contact Info:
Phone: None listed Fax: None listed
E-Mail:  None listed
Web Sitehttp://nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/peace/laureates/2001/annan-bio.html

Other: Select Publications
  • Confronting Anti-Semitism: Essays by Kofi A. Annan, Elie Wiesel, et al, New York: Ruder Finn Press, Inc., 2006
  • Prevention of Armed Conflict, New York: United Nations Publications, 2002
  • "We the Peoples: The Nobel Lecture Given by The 2001 Nobel Peace Laureate Kofi Annan," New York: Ruder Finn Press, Inc., 2002
  • "Global Values," Singapore lecture, Institute of Southeast Asian Studies, 2000
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