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UN Secretary-general Ban Ki- moon on Wednesday appointed Sigrid Kaag as special coordinator of the joint mission of the UN and the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) tasked with eliminating Syria's chemical weapons.
The appointment came minutes after Ban's spokesman Martin Nesirky announced the official establishment of the OPCW-UN joint mission in Syria that Kaag will lead.
"The joint mission has been established in order to achieve the timely elimination of the Syrian chemical weapons program in the safest and most secure manner possible," the spokesman said.
While Kaag's appointment was not a surprise to reporters, Ban's formal introduction was.
After Nesirky finished the announcement, a door behind his podium opened and the UN chief emerged from an adjacent room.
"This is a surprise, but I am not a surprise to you," said Ban. "We have a surprise guest here -- Ms. Sigrid Kaag."
"I thought it was important that I introduce Ms. Kaag to you in person as soon as possible, so I decided to drop by briefly," he said. "I am pleased that the Security Council quickly confirmed her appointment, once again demonstrating its unity on this important matter."
Kaag will be responsible for overseeing all activities on the ground undertaken by the OPCW and UN personnel, and will be based in Damascus.
"Her role includes ensuring access and security for the OPCW inspectors, as well as logistical, communications, medical, administrative and policy support -- areas where the United Nations is uniquely capable of contributing," Ban said, adding that she will also be in charge of coordinating international assistance to the efforts of dismantling Syrian chemical arsenals.
Kaag, speaking fluent Arabic, has worked in the UN Development Programme, the UN Children's Agency and other offices around the world for the past two decades, with a particular focus on the Middle East and North Africa, said Ban, describing her as a person who brings to the job a wealth of experience in international organizations.
Appearing with the UN chief before the media, Kaag said, "I am deeply honored and I humbled to be entrusted with this complex and challenging assignment."
Kaag said she would go to the Hague, the Netherlands, where the OPCW is based, Friday evening to have consultations with OPCW's Director General Ahmet Uzumcu.
The 15-country Security Council approved Ban's plan to set up the joint OPCW-UN mission to oversee the destruction of Syria's stockpiles of chemical weapons by mid-2014.
Meanwhile, Ban announced intensified UN efforts to hold an international conference on Syria in mid-November to find a political solution to the more than two-and-half-year-old civil war which, according to the UN, has killed more than 10,000 people and displaced 6 million others.
"We have no illusions over the challenges ahead," he said. "The situation in Syria remains dangerous and unpredictable. The cooperation of all parties in Syria is required."
"While mobilizing to eliminate Syria's chemical weapons, the United Nations has not lost sight for one moment of the wider tragedy that is still destroying Syria," Ban said. "We are equally focused on reaching a political solution that will stop the appalling violence and suffering being inflicted on the Syrian people."
Lakhdar Brahimi, the special Arab League-United Nations representative, will be departing "in coming days" to the region for consultations with key parties related to the conference, Ban added.
Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs Jeffrey Feltman was in Moscow Wednesday for talks on Syria while Joint Arab League- UN Deputy Representative for Syria Nasser Al-Kidwa was heading to Turkey for discussions with representatives of the Syrian opposition, he added.
"We are working this at all levels," said Ban. "We are calling on all who truly wish to work for peace and a new, democratic Syria to focus not on military actions but rather on ensuring the success of this conference," he said.
