His name became synonymous with the most critical chapter in the modern history of the Cyprus problem. The Settlement Plan he drafted and which was put to a referendum before the people on April 24, 2004, was rejected by an overwhelming majority of citizens.

Since then, it has borne his name: Kofi Annan…

On the occasion of the seventh anniversary of his death, UN Secretary-General António Guterres, in a post on X on Tuesday, described him as a “global champion of peace.”

“Kofi Annan was my mentor and my friend. Tuesday marks seven years since his death. He was a force for good, and his legacy as a global champion of peace remains a source of inspiration in my life and work.”

Who Was Kofi Annan

Born in Kumasi, Ghana, on April 8, 1938, he studied economics at Macalester College, international relations at the Geneva Institute, and business administration at MIT. He assumed the highest office at the UN in 1997. He was the first Secretary-General to have been a member of the United Nations staff prior to his election, having served as the director of the Organization’s peacekeeping operations.

Diplomatic Career

Annan took the helm of the Organization after serving as a special envoy for his predecessor, Boutros Ghali, on the Dayton Agreement. The number of UN peacekeepers rose to 70,000 in 1995, which enhanced the Organization’s prestige and effectiveness.

In 2000, he promoted a new agenda for how the organization should move forward in the 21st century. It identified the fight against poverty as its top priority, citing 1 billion people living on the brink of destitution. In this effort, 1,000 nongovernmental organizations from 100 countries around the world joined forces.

The achievements of his tenure

His achievements during his tenure include the withdrawal of Indonesian occupation forces from East Timor in 1999, the withdrawal of the Israeli Army from southern Lebanon in 2000, as well as the initiatives he took on issues such as the fight against AIDS and poverty.

“My concern is that, if it were to be adopted, it would create conditions that would result in a proliferation of unilateral actions and the use of force without justification,” Anan had noted in the past.

The “dark” spots

His failures include the ineffective resolution of the war in Bosnia and Herzegovina and the country’s fragmentation, the UN’s uncoordinated involvement in the peacekeeping effort in Kosovo, the 2003 U.S. and British invasion of Iraq without the approval of the UN Security Council,and the failure to impose a just solution to the problems of illegal occupation in Palestine. He also faced calls to resign following an investigation into the Oil-for-Food program. According to many observers, Kofi Annan failed to demonstrate the necessary resolve and independence in his decision-making vis-à-vis the Americans, with the result that the UN’s global credibility has been irreparably damaged.

Paradoxically, one of the darkest moments of his career took place in Africa. In January 1994, he was informed of the plan for the genocide against the Tutsis by the commander of the UN peacekeepers in Rwanda, the Canadian Romeo Dalair. At that time, Annan did not promptly inform the UN Security Council.

Efforts to Resolve the Cyprus Issue

Kofi Annan was also actively involved in the effort to resolve the Cyprus issue. On November 11, 2002, he presented his plan to the Republic of Cyprus. For the first time, a comprehensive plan for a solution was put before the people in a referendum held in 2004. However, the Greek Cypriots rejected the Plan by a margin of 75.83%.

The Nobel Prize

The Nobel Prize Committee recognized his diplomatic work in 2001 by awarding him the Nobel Peace Prize. “Kofi Annan is a prominent representative of the United Nations and perhaps the most effective secretary-general in the organization’s history,” Gunnar Berge, then chairman of the committee, told DW. Upon receiving the award, Kofi Annan once again displayed great humility, saying that the award belonged not only to him “but half to my colleagues around the world who have dedicated their lives to the pursuit of peace and, in many cases, have risked or even lost their lives for peace.”

“The most exciting job in the world”

As he neared the end of his second term in 2006, addressing the man who would replace him, Ban Ki-moon, he said:

“You are about to take on the most difficult job in the world. Although this is true, I want to add that it is also the most exciting job in the world.”

The End

Kofi Annan had been living in Geneva with his second wife, Nane, for the past few years. After a brief illness, he passed away today at the age of 80 in a hospital in Bern.

*Source: Euronews, DW, and Wikipedia