Click to play videoNew York: It was a hectic on Thursday for UN Undersecretary General Shashi Tharoor after his name was announced as India's nominee for the post of UN Secretary General.
In an exclusive interview to CNN-IBN's Anirudh Bhattacharyya, Tharoor talks about himself and the challenges ahead.
Anirudh Bhattacharya: Did you know that you were being considered as India’s candidate for UN Secretary General?
Shashi Tharoor: Well, I was certainly told by the Government a couple of days ago that they would make the announcement but it happened very quickly and it's been a busy day as a result.
Anirudh Bhattacharya: Where did the initiative for the candidature come from?
Shashi Tharoor: There were mutual conversations between the Government and myself. The Government was interested and I was interested so it turned out, at the end of the day, the right thing for both of us.
Anirudh Bhattacharya: What is your particular interest in running for the Secretary General of the United Nations?
Shashi Tharoor: I've devoted pretty much my entire adult life to the United Nations. I began 28 years ago. I've worked with refugees, humanitarian work, peacekeeping, the Secretary General's office and finally, the management of a rather large department which has given me an overview of the United Nations, in a sense, from the inside, from the group up, of the challenges a Secretary General needs to be familiar with and needs to face. Obviously, when you're doing that you do feel it would be a great honor, a great privilege to lead this wonderful institution.
Anirudh Bhattacharya: Of course, it's a tough campaign ahead for you. How are you planning to coordinate with the Indian Government and the Permanent Mission of India here in New York?
Shashi Tharoor: The Government certainly has a vital role to play because they are nominating me. I'm in a slightly unusual position, not unprecedented, that's I'm a serving official of the United Nations. I have a job to do so my primary duty is to my work and the United Nations and to fulfill obligations and the campaign, to that degree, comes second in the course of a normal working day. For example, even though this has been the day on which the announcement was made, I've had to deliver a speech to the United Nations Association of the US, takes questions from NGO activists, I've done a briefing on the Human Rights Council and I've received the Commissioner of New York City that deals with the United Nations and so on and so forth. A normal day, a normal busy day in addition to the calls I've been fielding and the visits I've been taking on this question. So, it's a challenge but I do feel, at this point, its something one simply has to adjust to. There's only a few months, I imagine, left in the race. Kofi Annan's term finishes at the end of this year and we expect a decision to be made a couple of months before that. So, it'll be a bit insane, there won't be enough sleep for the next few months but once it've over, it's over.
Anirudh Bhattacharya: Did you manage to speak to Mr Annan? Any feedback from him?
Shashi Tharoor: Oh, of course, I spoke to Mr Annan the moment the matter looked likely to come to a head. Above all, there's the fact he's my boss, he's the person to whom I report and it's only appropriate that he should be aware before I take such a step. He's been very gracious about it and, of course, it's an unusual coincidence that he himself had come from such a background as Undersecretary General. I'm certainly hoping to be worthy of the extraordinary standards he has set in this organization.
Anirudh Bhattacharya: Did you get any feedback from other representatives of other countries today?
Shashi Tharoor: Many many members have been kind enough to be in touch with me both before this decision and after it. Some ambassadors have dropped by, some have telephoned. The way the day's been going, I haven't even returned all the calls that have come in. It's good to know that certain diplomatic representatives have taken an interest and are supportive. Beyond that, it's not appropriate for me to characterize what other Governments are thinking or saying, it's for them to say.
Anirudh Bhattacharya: Where do you think the major challenges lie for you in this campaign?
Shashi Tharoor: The major challenge lies in persuading a majority in the Security Council, and above all, to ensure that the five permanent members, which each have a veto, don't choose to exercise it against the Indian candidate.
Anirudh Bhattacharya: One of those countries is the United States, which has been very critical of Kofi Annan's Secretariat of which you are a part. How do you plan to overcome that?
Shashi Tharoor: I think three will be a number of conversations. Some of which have happened, some of which have not yet happened, with various decision-makers in Washington and in New York just to let them know what the qualities are that one offers, brings to the table. Ultimately, certainly it's their choice and as you may understand, with a job like this, there's a number of considerations coming in some of which are related to the merits of the individuals, some of which are political, some which are linked to totally different considerations. So, rather than to try and divine the mystery, one does one's best, one puts one's best face forward and let the Governments decide how they want to take it forward. Traditionally, the Security Council will send only one name to the General Assembly, so we'll see which name they send.
Anirudh Bhattacharya: The interesting thing is that when an Indian candidate comes forth, we obviously hear from Pakistan. One of the things we heard from Pakistan today, it's Permanent Representative Munir Akram, is that this sends out a "strong message" that India's giving up its bid for a permanent seat on the United Nations Security Council. Do you think it's possible for India to have two campaigns simultaneously?
Shashi Tharoor: First of all, I don't think the two issues are linked at all. Just as India campaigned for the Human Rights Council and simultaneously for this position, these are two different and unrelated matters. I want to point out that the issue of reform of the Security Council is one that precedes not only this campaign but the previous Secretary General's campaign. The Security Council issue, the reform issue, have been on the table of the General Assembly since 1992. This election for this race will be over in a few months. That issue is one that will continue. As far as I am concerned, the two issues are unconnected to each other.
Anirudh Bhattacharya: Other than being a diplomat, you're also an author. Do you think you'll have any time for writing now?
Shashi Tharoor: I already don't have any time for writing. I used to write evenings and weekends. The evenings disappeared, then the weekend disappeared particularly in recent years when the job has involved a lot of traveling which takes place on weekends so I don't miss too much of the working days at my desk. And then when I come back, I find that despite having done a lot of work on the Blackberry while traveling, I still have a backlog to catch up on. Net result - I haven't worked on a new book, a new novel, for the last three years already. And I certainly don't expect that to change. If this race goes the way I hope it will, then I certainly won't have any time to write for the foreseeable future. If it goes badly, I'm going to have all the time in the world to write. So, one can look at silver linings, one can look at clouds.
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