As
Annan Does NY,
On Finances
Only
"Some Details
Will Be Made
Known"
By
Matthew
Russell Lee
UNITED
NATIONS,
February 29 --
As Kofi Annan
prepared to
meet late
Wednesday
with his
successor as
UN Secretary
General Ban
Ki-moon, some
basic
"mechanics" of
Annan's role
for the UN and
Arab League on
Syria remain
undecided or
at least
undisclosed.
Five
days
ago on
February 24
Inner City
Press asked
Ban's two top
spokespeople a
few questions:
"What
will
Kofi Annan's
status be as
special envoy?
Will he
receive a UN
salary (on top
of his two
concurrent UN
pensions)? How
is Mr. Annan's
mission to be
funded? Will
payments be
made directly
to Annan or
through a
third party?"
Having
received
no answers, at
the February
29 noon
briefing Inner
City
Press asked
Ban's
spokesperson
Martin Nesirky
to respond. He
said "I
think the
precise
mechanics are
being worked
out between
the League
of Arab States
and the UN...
Some of the
details will
be made
known."
Video
here, from
Minute 20:11.
That
only
"some" of the
"mechanics" --
who is paying
whom, for what
-- would be
made known,
and others by
implication
kept
confidential,
peaked Inner
City Press'
interest,
leading to
follow up
question: will
the UN
disclose who
is paying
whom?
Nesirky
responded
angrily,
claiming he
had answered
the questions
and telling
Inner
City Press it
wasn't
listening. But
still no
answers have
been
provided.
Inner
City
Press asked
Nesirky to
respond to the
statement by
Jihad
Makdissi,
spokesman for
Syrian Foreign
Minister Walid
Muallem, that
"Muallem has
contacted Mr.
Ban Ki-moon to
know the
details and
goals of
Annan's
mission... We
expect a
letter
explaining the
nature
of the mission
of Kofi Annan
so we can
review it."
Nesirky
said the
statement has
been seen. But
will Ban deign
to send the
requested
letter? Watch
this site.
, 
