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13.

The United Nations and Geneva:
the Present and the Future

STATEMENT
BY MR. VLADIMIR PETROVSKY
UNITED NATIONS UNDER-SECRETARY-GENERAL
DIRECTOR-GENERAL OF THE UNITED NATIONS OFFICE AT GENEVA
AT THE DIPLOMATIC CLUB LUNCHEON-DEBATE

Geneva, 16 February 1994

Your Excellencies,
Ladies and Gentlemen,

1. It is a great pleasure and privilege to participate in today's
luncheon­debate with members of the Diplomatic Club of Geneva. I
think that, from a professional point of view, we are fortunate people -
we work in one of the world's major capitals of internationalism. Geneva
International is not just a centre, it is the symbol of multilateralism. It inherited
its leading role in international politics from the founders of the League of
Nations and, subsequently, the United Nations. Our goal is to preserve and
enrich their legacy. I hope that today's meeting may provide an opportunity to
discuss ways of best achieving this objective.

2. Let me start with a few figures. There are now approximately 100,000
international civil servants in the world. Of this number, 60,000 are employed
by the universal organizations most of which belong to the UN system and the
rest by institutions with limited membership, such as the European Union,

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