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27.

The City of Multilateralism

VLADIMIR PETROVSKY
UNITED NATIONS UNDER-SECRETARY-GENERAL
DIRECTOR-GENERAL OF THE UNITED NATIONS OFFICE AT GENEVA
ON THE BOOK BY LOUIS NECKER “LA MOSAÌQUE GENEVOISE”

April 1995
G
eneva enjoys a special respect all over the world. It is both a historic
city and the city of the future. Its name is the most often mentioned in
the manuals on the history of diplomacy. This city on the edge of
Lake Léman and the headwaters of the Rhône river is the place where the most
important international treaties, which are shaping the future of mankind are
worked out and where social, economic and humanitarian activities of the
United Nations are undertaken.

There are many reasons why Geneva has won worldwide recognition.
Perhaps, the most important of them is the spirit of openness, responsibility,
freedom, and humanism which is so common among the people of Geneva.
This city has a unique political climate of tolerance, understanding, cultural
pluralism, and friendliness which allows people from different parts of the
world to live and work together. It is not by chance that Geneva hosted the
League of Nations and now is the world's largest center of the United Nations
activities. Today, Geneva is the seat of the UN Headquarters, five UN
specialized agencies, many UN programmes, the World Trade Organization,
the Conference on Disarmament, as well as plenty of other international
governmental and non-govemmenta1 organizations, and their number
continues to grow.

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