Annan Expected to Announce Bid for Second Term

UNITED NATIONS — It’s the worst-kept secret at the United Nations: Secretary-General Kofi Annan has decided to seek another five-year term.

After months of speculation, he is expected to make it official at a news conference today, diplomats say.

When asked Wednesday about the topic for the news briefing, U.N. spokesman Fred Eckhard noted that it had been three months since Annan last held a news conference--and that the secretary-general had said he would announce whether he would pursue a second term by the end of the month.

“So you might anticipate he would have something to say about that,” Eckhard said.

Annan has already informed a number of ambassadors that he will be a candidate, several diplomats said on condition of anonymity.

Last week, the secretary-general, who is from Ghana, received a strong endorsement from the 53-nation African group at the United Nations, which pledged to campaign for him if he decides to run.

If Annan seeks a second term, the two key questions will be whether Asian nations will also submit a candidate and who will win the support of the Security Council’s five veto-wielding permanent members--the United States, Russia, China, Britain and France.

By tradition, the secretary-general’s job rotates every 10 years by region, and it’s now Asia’s turn to propose a candidate.

But Africa’s 10-year term was split after the United States successfully lobbied to prevent Annan’s predecessor, Boutros Boutros-Ghali of Egypt, from taking a second term. And a quiet campaign has been underway for months to pressure Annan to stay in the job for another five years because he is highly regarded by many nations.