UN Envoy Nimitz in
Vienna Says "Name" Talks
Intense, Admitted Saxo Bank
Stake, Said UNaware of Greek
Sub
By Matthew
Russell Lee
UNITED NATIONS,
April 25 – The UN has had an
envoy on the so-called "name
issue" between Greece and
Macedonia or FYROM for years:
Matthew Nimitz. Inner City
Press has previously reported
on his conflict of interest,
but got the chance on January
17 to ask him about it. Nimitz
admitted his long time
employer General Atlantic's
stake in Saxo Bank but said he
was unaware of its Greek
subsidiary. Assuming arguendo
that's the case, Inner City
Press then asked the UN's lead
spokesman Stephane Dujarric
why the UN's "Ethics" office
didn't even Google Saxo Bank
and the parties Nimetz had
been mediating between. UN
transcript
here and below. On April
23, the UN announced that "Mr.
Matthew Nimetz, Personal Envoy
of the Secretary-General, will
meet jointly with H.E. Mr.
Nikos Kotzias, Minister for
Foreign Affairs of Greece, and
H.E. Mr. Nikola Dimitrov,
Minister for Foreign Affairs
of the former Yugoslav
Republic of Macedonia, at the
United Nations Office at
Vienna on 25 April 2018." And
on April 25 there, Nimitz
said, "As you know these
meetings have continued for
several months now,
intensifying the talks between
the two parties under the
auspices of the
Secretary-General.
We met today with H.E. Mr.
Nikos Kotzias, Minister for
Foreign Affairs of Greece, and
H.E. Mr. Nikola Dimitrov,
Minister for Foreign Affairs
of the former Yugoslav
Republic of Macedonia. We have
had quite a few meetings, so
we know the issues very well.
The two Ministers speak with
authority. We discussed the
open issues between the
parties, dealing with the
“name” issue. It was an
intense discussion, very
cordial in personal terms.
Both sides are very dedicated
to reaching a solution. The
process will continue in the
next weeks. Thank you very
much." On and on, like
so many UN files. Back on
March 20, the UN announced
that "Mr. Matthew Nimetz,
Personal Envoy of the
Secretary-General, will meet
jointly with H.E. Mr. Nikos
Kotzias, Minister for Foreign
Affairs of Greece, and H.E.
Mr. Nikola Dimitrov, Minister
for Foreign Affairs of the
former Yugoslav Republic of
Macedonia, in Vienna on 30
March 2018. The meeting is
part of United Nations’
ongoing efforts to assist the
sides in finding a mutually
acceptable solution to the
'name' issue."Round and round.
On February 12, the UN
announced that "Mr. Matthew
Nimetz, Personal Envoy of the
Secretary-General, will meet
jointly with H.E. Mr. Nikos
Kotzias, Minister for Foreign
Affairs of Greece, and H.E.
Mr. Nikola Dimitrov, Minister
for Foreign Affairs of the
former Yugoslav Republic of
Macedonia, at the United
Nations Office at Vienna on 13
February 2018. The meeting is
part of United Nations efforts
to assist the sides in finding
a mutually acceptable solution
to the 'name' issue." On and
on with Nimetz. On January 24,
the UN without addressing the
issue announced that "At the
invitation of the Governments
of the Hellenic Republic and
the former Yugoslav Republic
of Macedonia, Mr. Matthew
Nimetz, Personal Envoy of the
Secretary-General, will travel
to Athens and Skopje from 29
January to 1 February 2018.
The visit is part of United
Nations efforts to assist the
sides in finding a mutually
acceptable solution to the
“name” issue. " From the
January 17 UN transcript:
Inner City Press: at this
Nimetz stakeout just now, I'd
asked him about whether during
his time with General Atlantic
investment firm, he ever had a
con… recused himself or had a
conflict of interest.
And he said… he acknowledged
that… that they had invested
in something called Saxo Bank
but said he didn't know they
had a Greek subsidiary.
They do. You can just go
online and find it. So, what I
wanted… what it made me won…
think, it was good that he
answered it, but who's in
charge of looking at the
potential financial conflict
of interest of UN envoys like
him? And I'm thinking of…
there are a number of other
ones. [Yemen, Burundi,
Cameroon / UNOCA, UNOWA,
etc.] Is it
self-regulation…
Spokesman: Obviously,
all the envoys… all the envoys
deal with the Ethics
Office. They are given
advice. They ask
questions. And,
obviously, we expect… we
expect them to ensure that
there is no conflict of
interest. And I think
Mr. Nimetz was very open
and transparent in answering
this question, he also made
the point that he no longer
works for the company. Inner
City Press: Right. I
agree, but it leaves me with
the question, if he tells the
Ethics Office, my firm at the
time invests in Saxo Bank,
who's the one that's supposed
to just do a Google search to
find the subsidiaries of Saxo
Bank and find that one is in
Greece? Spokesman: Well,
I think the… you know, I don't
know about this particular
case, but, obviously, our
colleagues also look into each
individual case." But that
didn't, here. When Greek
Foreign Minister Kotzias spoke
this week of resolving the
issue this year, the reporting
included no mention of the UN.
So on January 4 Inner City
Press asked UN Spokesman
Farhan Haq, UN transcript here: Inner
City Press: the Foreign
Minister of Greece, Mr.
Kotzias, had sat down with
reporters and said that the
name issue he expects to be
solved in 2018, saying this
would remove a roadblock for
former Yugoslav Republic of
Macedonia. Anyway, at least as
written up, the interview
doesn't even mention Mr.
Nimetz. And I'm
wondering, can you give some
description of what… I know
he's been on this file for a
long time. What's he
been doing recently? And
why would it be that the Greek
Foreign Minister, in
addressing the issue, the UN
didn't even seem to be part of
the picture? Deputy
Spokesman: I don't have
to clarify what the Greek
Foreign Minister would
say. That's really up to
him. For our part, Mr.
Nimetz has been going about
his work. We've always
announced whenever there are
meetings conducted on the name
issue, and we'll announce the
next one whenever we have the
time to give." How much is
this costing? What with the
conflict of interest? Now a
week later on January 11,
this: "Mr. Matthew Nimetz,
Personal Envoy of the
Secretary-General, is
scheduled to meet with
Representatives of the
Governments of the Hellenic
Republic and the former
Yugoslav Republic of
Macedonia, at the United
Nations in New York, on 17
January 2018. The meeting is
part of the United Nations’
efforts to assist the sides in
finding a mutually acceptable
solution to the 'name' issue."
Back in July 2017 amid the UN
bribery case against
Macau-based businessman Ng Lap
Seng began,
and following a UN Security
Council visit to Haiti in
which victims of the UN's
cholera criticized
the failure to follow though
on individual reparations,
Secretary General Antonio
Guterres on June 28 announced
that his Personal Envoy for
the talks between Greece and
the former Yugoslav Republic
of Macedonia (FYROM) Matthew
Nimetz would travel to Skopje
from July 1-4 and then to
Greece. UNsaid was that Nimetz
is an advisory
director of General
Atlantic, which has
a stake in a Danish
bank, Saxo Bank, with a Greek
subsidiary. Isn't this a
conflict of interest? How does
it relate to Nimetz' July 3
announcement, typical of today
UN, that after meeting
FYROM Prime Minister Zoran
Zaev and Foreign Minister
Nikola Dimitrov he "does not
expect any dramatic
breakthrough on the issue
during the coming months"?
Inner City Press inquired
about conflict of interest
with Secretary General Antonio
Guterres' holdover spokesman
Stephane Dujarric, who said it
has all been disclosed. And?
Now on July 14, this: "At the
invitation of the Government
of the Hellenic Republic, the
Personal Envoy of the
Secretary-General for the
talks between Greece and the
former Yugoslav Republic of
Macedonia, Mr. Matthew Nimetz,
is scheduled to meet with His
Excellency Mr. Nikos Kotzias,
Minister for Foreign Affairs,
in Brussels, Belgium, on 17
July 2017. The purpose of the
meeting, which follows the
visit of Mr. Nimetz to the
former Yugoslav Republic of
Macedonia earlier in July, is
to discuss the way forward in
the UN-brokered talks aimed at
finding a mutually acceptable
solution to the "name" issue."
From the UN's June 28 transcript:
Inner City Press: you said Mr.
Nimetz, and I know he's been
in the post a long time, but
I've just sort of re-reviewed
it, that he's going to Skopje
and then may go to
Greece. He's still an
advisory director to General
Atlantic, where he's worked in
the past, so it's a financial
commitment that he has.
They actually have a stake in
a bank that's in Greece, and I
wanted to know -- from the
outside, it seems like this
might be problematic, I mean,
or is it something that he
disclosed to the Ethics
Office?
Spokesman: I think
everything has been
disclosed.
And? On
June 27 Guterres headed to
Washington on June 27. But
UNlike the US, the UN did not
disclose the dinner for
Guterres hosted by Kuwaiti
Ambassador to the US Salem
Abdullah Al-Jaber Al-Sabah.
And now for June 28, while the
US states that Rex Tillerson
will meet Guterres at 1:10 pm,
the UN has said nothing. It's
"Daily Schedule" for Guterres
is still dated June 24. The UN
is UNtransparent and corrupt,
a censor. The UN states: " The
Secretary-General will travel
to Washington, D.C. on
Tuesday, 27 June. This visit
is part of the
Secretary-General's ongoing
outreach to Washington and
other capitals. He is expected
to meet with Democratic and
Republican leaders, as well as
with members of the foreign
affairs and appropriations
committees of both the House
and the Senate. He will also
be meeting with senior members
of the President's cabinet."
Tillerson will be at the
Kuwaiti dinner. Who else? And
given the composition of
Guterres' previous US
Congressional meetings (click
here for Inner City Press
coverage), who will he be
meeting with? This should be
disclosed. When Guterres held
a press conference on June 20,
Inner City Press about the UN
having brought cholera to
Haiti under his predecessor
Ban Ki-moon but now reneging
even on what Ban belatedly
proposed for individual
reparations. Inner City Press
mentioned upcoming protests in
Haiti that it will be covering
from there, June 22 and 23.
Guterres announced that he was
just then - minutes later the
announcement went out - naming
as a new special envoy on
Haiti Josette Sheeran,
formerly the director of the
UN World Food Program and now
the head of the Asia Society.
Video here.
Transcript here
and below. He seemed to say
the UN was never going to
compensate individuals or
families impacted by the
cholera the UN brought. On
June 21 Inner City Press asked
Guterres' deputy spokesman
Farhan Haq to clarify. UN
Video here,
from Minute 16:21. From the UN
transcript:
Inner City Press: this was
something that the
Secretary-General said on the
record when I asked him about
the seeming change in the
cholera in Haiti plan.
And he said that that policy
was announced by his
predecessor and had two
dimensions; one is fighting
cholera, and the other is the
possibility to support
communities impacted. It
was devised not as individual
support. And just, since
then, I went back and actually
looked at the November
A/71/620 document, and there’s
a whole section on individual
support. It was called
track 2B. So I just
wanted to--
Deputy Spokesman: And I
was here at the time.
And I remember the discussions
that the former
Secretary-General, Ban
Ki-moon, had about this.
And, at that point, it was not
determined whether it would be
individual or
community-based. Even at
that point, I believe the
discussion was towards
community-based. So
that’s something that’s… a
process that’s been crafted.
Inner City Press: I wish
I’d had that document in front
of me when he answered,
because there are many people
that are in Haiti that have
seen the new announcement made
by Amina Mohammed as a
retrenchment, as a taking back
of that before even consulting
people. Mario Joseph and
others have put out a press
release; they’re protesting on
Thursday. So I wanted to
just get your quote before
that protest, that at one time
the idea of individual
reparations to people harmed
by cholera was in a UN
document as being considered
and it’s now not being
considered at all?
Deputy Spokesman: I
wouldn’t say that it’s not
being considered at all.
And I wouldn’t say that
initially it was something
that was devised as the
primary idea. This is
something that’s been under
consideration. It
remains under consideration,
but the primary focus, for
reasons that were described at
the end of last year and again
at the start of this year,
have been
community-based. And if
you look at what Ban Ki-moon
said in December, again, it
mentions the community-based
approach.
But the UN
document in November 2016 has
a Track 2B, individual. Here's
the beginning of the press
release for the protests:
"Port-au-Prince: Haitian
cholera victims and their
advocates called on the UN
Security Council to deliver on
the promise of a new,
victim-centered approach to
cholera during its visit to
Haiti this week, by meeting
directly with victims and
committing to funding the $400
million initiative before
MINUSTAH --the peacekeeping
mission that caused the
cholera epidemic—pulls out in
October. 'The UN’s apology and
promises were promising in
December,' said Mario Joseph,
Managing Attorney of the
Bureau des Avocats
Internationaux (BAI) that has
led the fight for justice for
cholera victims. 'But seven
months later, with only a
pittance raised for the
so-called "New Approach" and
not a single promised
consultation with the cholera
victims, they look like empty
public relations gestures. It
is time for the UN to
deliver.' The 15-member
Security Council is in Haiti
from June 22-24 to finalize
the transition from MINUSTAH
to a new mission focused on
supporting justice that will
be known as MINUJUSTH. The BAI
announced two protests during
the visit: one at the UN
logistics base in Haiti on
Thursday at 11 am, and a
second one in Champs de Mars
on Friday at 11." We'll have
more on this: Inner City Press
will be accompanying and
covering, in as much detail as
possible, the UN Security
Council's visit to Haiti from
June 22 to 24. Watch this
site.
Footnote: on
behalf of the Free
UN Coalition for Access,
to which Guterres' spokesman
Stephane Dujarric does NOT "lend" the
briefing room and which has
never and will never ask for a
journalist to be thrown
out or restricted, Inner
City Press urged Guterres to
more routinely take questions,
for example on his way in and
out of the Security Council.
We'll see.
Inner City Press:
Matthew Lee, Inner City Press.
On behalf of the Free UN
Coalition for Access, thanks
for the briefing. Glad to have
it. Stakeouts would also be
useful when you speak to the
Council. But I wanted to
ask you about cholera in
Haiti. As you may know, while
you were away, your deputy
gave... gave the speech, and
many people in Haiti
interpreted it as a... as a
pulling back from the idea of
compensating victims of the
cholera that was brought.
Maybe they misunderstand it,
but they put out a press
release. There's a protest
planned there on Thursday
during the Council's
visit. So I wanted to
ask you, I know that Member
States haven't come forward
with what they might have, but
are you going to put more time
in? Do you think that the idea
of actually compensating the
people whose family members
were killed by cholera is
still alive?
Secretary-General: First
of all, in relation to Haiti,
the policy that was announced
by my predecessor had two
dimensions. One is fighting
cholera, and the other is the
possibility to support,
namely, to support communities
impacted. It was devised, not
as individual support, but
community support for the
communities impacted. As
you mentioned, there has been
little voluntary funding for
these projects. So we have
presented a proposal for the
amounts that were not spent in
the previous mission in Haiti
and that should be given back
to countries, for countries to
be ready to accept not to
receive those amounts back in
order to be able to fund the
cholera programme. And,
at the same time, we have just
appointed Ms. Josette Sheeran
as my Special Envoy for Haiti,
centred, of course, in the
fundraising for cholera. She
was, as you know, the World
Food Programme leader a few
years ago. She is now
President of the Asia Society,
and she accepted, with a
salary of $1 per year, she
accepted to be fully engaged
in fundraising for a programme
that, indeed, until now, has
received very little support
but that is very important
from the point of view of the
people and from the point of
view of the credibility of the
UN.
***
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