8 August 2006 Dear Bill, I Am Honoured by Your Kind Invitation To

THE SECRETARY-GENERAL

8 August 2006

Dear Bill,

I am honoured by your kind invitation to Nane and me to attend the press announcement and luncheon of the Praemium Imperiale arts awards in New York on 7 September 2006.

This event, which encourages artists to take an active role in promoting the ideals of the United Nations, is naturally of great interest to both of us. I regret to inform you, however, that owing to other official commitments, particularly in relation to the opening of the sixty-first session of the General Assembly, it will not be possible for us to join you on this occasion.

I send you my best wishes for a successful event and my warm personal regards.

Yours sincerely,

Kofi A.

His Excellency Mr. William H. Luers New York UNITED NATIONS msm NATIONS UNIES

EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY-GENERAL

Dear SG,

As promised to you during the last trip, please find attached the relevant information on the Praemium Imperiale invitation. Earlier this year Ambassador Luers had written to you inviting both yourself and Mrs. Annan to a "major event" in September which would take place at the United Nations. This event has nothing to do with Ambassador Luers' position as head of UNA-USA. Before your latest trip, Kevin followed up with the Ambassador who explained they had decided to "scale down" considerably given that many of the most prominent people invited were not available. The event was being reduced to a luncheon at the Rainbow Room on 7 September. Attached the interim reply I have sent to the Ambassador.

Many thanks.

ALICIA BARCENA CHEF DE CABINET

26-08964 86 OFFICE \v\? UNITED NATIONS NATIONS UNIES

POSTAL ADDRESS - ADRESSE POSTALE : UNITED NATIONS, N.Y. 10017 CABLE ADDRESS - ADRESSE TELEGRAPHIQUE : UNATIONS NEWYORK

EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY-GENERAL CABINET DU SECRETAIRE GENERAL

24 July 2006

Dear Ambassador Luers,

On behalf of the Secretary-General, I would like to thank you for your letter of 10 July 2006, sent to us in your capacity as the American Advisor to the Praemium Imperiale art awards, inviting him and Mrs. Annan to take part in the press announcement of the awards, which will be held in New York on 7 September 2006

Your kind invitation to the Secretary-General and Mrs. Annan is very much appreciated and will be brought to their attention. I trust you will understand, however, that it is too early to determine at this stage whether the Secretary-General's programme and that of Mrs. Annan will permit them to attend. Please be assured your invitation will be kept in mind as their schedules for the early part of September are developed.

Yours sincerely,

Alicia Barcena Chef de Cabinet

His Excellency < Mr. William H. Luers New York ?.' ; JUL 3 1 2005 U'

WILLIAM H. LUERS "nnrinrT 410 EAST 57TH STREET July 10, 2006 NEW YORK, NEW YORK 10022 .JUL

VIA FACSIMILE and FEDERAL EXPRESS EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY-GENERAL H.E. Kofi Annan Secretary General of the United Nations \ Office of the Secretary General East 42nd Street and First Avenue i ^ _.X Room S-3800 New York City, NY 10017 , t

Dear Kofi, ' jrv ^ vvt> I sen^you_aJetterXcogy; attached) on February 23, 2006to inquiry whether you would accept my Tm/lEatignj as> fhVAmerican.Advisor to the Praemium Imperiale art awards, to participate"irfour Press Announcement of the 2006 award recipients.

We^have now finalized, our plans and have decided to concentrate our efforts on the press "announcement and luncheon, which will take place alJhfi_RaiQb^M_RQD.ni.^.lSeptember7 at 11:30 am. This will be the only Praemium Imperiale event in New York City for this announcement and I hope that you and Nane will be able to attend as our Honored Guest.

As mentioned in my earlier letter, we would greatly appreciate your participation in the announcement as we would like to dedicate some time in our program to demonstrating the vital role that artists play in bringing cultures together. As Secretary General, you have made such a wonderful contribution in encouraging artists to take an active role in promoting the ideals of the United Nations in the area of Peace and Humanitarian Action. If you agree to participate, we would be pleased to work with your staff in conceptualizing the message of the gathering to celebrate this important dimension that you have thoughtfully and effectively brought to the work of the UN.

To present our artistic program, we have asked past laureates and leading authorities in the arts to announce the five prize winners for lifetime achievement in the categories of Painting, Sculpture, Architecture, Music and Theatre/Film. In addition, we will be presenting a Grant for Young Artists to an organization that nurtures young talent. With the exception of the youth grant, which will be given at the time of our New York event, the Praemium Imperiale Awards will be presented to the laureates by His Imperial Highness Prince Hitachi in Tokyo on October 17,2006.

I have attached the invitation to the 2006 Praemium Imperiale Press Announcement.

My best regards to you and to Nane.

Sincerely, •) iv

Enclosure • r

WILLIAM H. LUERS A P 410 EAST 57TH STREET NEW YORK, NEW YORK 10022 July 10, 2006 JUL 1

VIA FACSIMILE and FEDERAL EXPRESS EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY-GENERAL H.E. Kofi Annan Secretary General of the United Nations k Office of the Secretary General East 42nd Street and First Avenue Room S-3800 New York City, NY 10017 , (

Dear Kofi, —• I sent you a letter (copy attached) on February 23, 2006 to inquire whether you would Accept my 1rwiFafion7as"the American "Advisor to the Praemium Imperiale art awards, to participate~in bur Press Announcement of the 2006 award recipients. ~~~"

We have now finalized our plans and have decided to concentrate our efforts on the press announcement and luncheon, which will take place aLthe_Ramb&wJELaojrij)^^ 11:30 am. This will be the only Praemium Imperiale event in New York City for this announcement and I hope that you_and Nane will be able to attend as our Honored Guest.

I have attached the invitation to the 2006 Praemium Imperiale Press Announcement.

My best regards to you and to Nane.

Sincerely,

Enclosure Invitation from Ambassadors Luers re: the Praemium Imperials

Early this year Bill Luers raised this with the SG in a conversation. In February he wrote to invite the SG and Mrs. to a "major event" in September which would take place at the United Nations.

(The event has nothing to do with Amb. Luers's position as head of UNA-USA.)

I followed up with Amb. Luers some time ago. He told me they were reviewing the event in light of the fact that many of the most prominent people invited were not available. Shortly before the SG's latest trip, I spoke to him again. He explained that they had decided to "scale down" considerably. The event was being reduced to a luncheon at the Rainbow Room on 7 September. I asked him if could send a new letter updating the invitation.

KSK 20 July 2006 UNITED NATIONS MJim NATIONS UNIES S^SSi? ~*T-!='

EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY-GENERAL

24 July 2006

Dear SG,

Many thanks.

ALICIA BARCENA CHEF DE CABINET

26-08964 WILLIAM H. LUERS 419 EAST 57TH STREET NEW YORK, NEW YORK 10022

February 22, 2006

VIA FACSIMILE

H.E. Kofi Annan Secretary General of the United Nations — =-? Office of the Secretary General ~ East 42nd Street and First Avenue Room S-3800 New York City, NY 10017

Dear Kofi:

I write you in my private capacity as one of the six international advisors to the Praemium Imperiale - an award for artists that is becoming known as the Nobe! Prize for the Arts. I mentioned to you in an earlier conversation that this year it is my turn, as the American international advisor, to host the announcement of the 2006 laureates of the Praemium Imperiale. It is scheduled to take place in New York on September 7, and I would greatly appreciate your involvement in the announcement.

Our plan is to start the day with a breakfast at The Museum of Modern Art, which would be followed by a press conference at the Rainbow Room. We would conclude our program with a dinner celebration in the delegates dinning room at the UN. We are including MoMA and the Rainbow Room in our program in view of the fact that David Rockefeller was the first American international advisor and his son David was the second before this task passed to me. Moreover, Yoshio Tanaguchi, the architect of the new Modern, was the winner of last year's Praemium Imperiale for architecture.

The Praemium Imperiale is an award of the Japan Art Association organized under the auspices of the Imperial Family and supported financially by Fujisankei, the large Japanese media conglomerate. Each year five awards of approximately $150,000 each are given to artists from around the world who have achieved the highest measure of creativity in the categories of painting, sculpture, music, architecture and drama. The list of winners reads 'ike a "Who's Who" of contemporary art. For example, Fumihikc Maki, whose design was selected to build the UN's DC 5 south of 42nd Street, was an early winner of the Praemium Imperiale. The six international advisors (UK, Italy, France, Germany, Japan and the U.S.) make annual recommendations from which the committee of the Japan Art Association make the final selections.

We thought that this year the Praemium Imperiale should make a special effort to connect this arts award to the role of the artists around the world in promoting the ideals of the United Nations, most particularly the promotion of Peace and Humanitarian Action. As Secretary General, you have made such a wonderful contribution in encouraging artists who promote the ideals, which you represent in your current position and in your life. We expect that among the nearly 200 guests to the ceremonies on September 7 will be the Japanese hosts of the award, all of the 2006 laureates, as many past laureates as we can gather together, and hopefully many of the artists who are working with the United Nations in so many important roles on behalf of the UN's work in humanitarian affairs and in the promotion of peace and understanding. We also expect each of the international advisors to be present on September 7: President von Weizsacker (Germany), Nakasone Yasuhiro (Japan), Raymond Barre (France), and Lamberto Dini (Italy), along with a distinguished group of Japanese.

I would like to make this a joint effort with the UN in conceptualizing the message of the gathering and dedicate part of the time in the announcement to demonstrating the vital role that artists play in bringing cultures together. If you were to agree to participate in one or more of the events on September 7, we would be pleased to work with you and your staff to make this year's announcement uniquely international in approach. We need for now your agreement in principle and some indication that you and Nane would be willing fo participate in tne dinner celebration at the United Nations and perhaps in the press announcement.

We will also be inviting many distinguished leaders connected with the arts, prominent New Yorkers, as well as Mrs. Laura Bush and several dignitaries from Washington, D.C., including the Chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts. In the past two American announcements of the awards, the White House was directly involved.

Kofi, we see this as another unique opportunity to celebrate this particular dimension you have so thoughtfully and effectively brought to the work of the UN. We believe that the events we are planning will also be an excellent means of promoting greater appreciation of these splendid awards by a broader global audience.

I have attached the Program from the 2004 Praemium Imperial ceremony to give you a flavor of the events around the announcement and the awards ceremony in Tokyo.

My best regards to you and to Nane,

Sincerely,

/-UU-M,

Willia^H.,^^? '"""^ Aj.£ j. ; A ^.,r t l**^

WHL/pmt

Attachment v* Note to Mr. Gambari

Seventh High-Level meeting with Regional and other Intergovernmental Organizations

In response to note of 3 May regarding the date to convene the Seventh High-Level Meeting with Regional and other Intergovernmental Organizations, the Secretary-General has agreed with your suggestion of organizing the event close to the Security Council meeting with regional^organizations in September.

The Secretary-General has also agreed that, in order to accommodate his schedule, his attendance should be limited and restricted to opening remarks. / f

Garlos Lopes 8 May 2006

cc: Mr. Malloch Brown

ItUf L

26-05571 THE SECRETARY-GENERAL

8 August 2006

Dear Bill,

I am honoured by your kind invitation to Nane and me to attend the press announcement and luncheon of the Praemium Imperiale arts awards in New York on 7 September 2006.

I send you my best wishes for a successful event and my warm personal regards.

Yours sincerely,

Kofi A

His Excellency Mr. William H. Luers New York UNITED NATIONS NATIONS UNIES

POSTAL ADDRESS - ADRESSE POSTALE : UNITED NATIONS, N.Y. 10017

CABLE ADDRESS - ADRESSE TELEGRAPHIQUE : UNATIONS NEWYORK

EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY-GENERAL CABINET DU SECRETAIRE GENERAL

24 July 2006

Dear Ambassador Luers,

Yours sincerely,

Alicia Barcena Chef de Cabinet

u-( His Excellency Mr. William H. Luers New York WILLIAM H. LUERS HJJLJL! 419 EAST 57TH STREET Ir^ July 10,2006 NEW YORK, NEW YORK 10022 ijii JUL I

VIA FACSIMILE and FEDERAL EXPRESS EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY-GENERAL H.E. Kofi Annan Secretary General of the United Nations Office of the Secretary General East 42nd Street and First Avenue r. Room S-3800 New York City, NY 10017 , t

Dear Kofi, i ' YV*v ^you jajetter (copy attached) on February 23, 2006 to inquire whether you would accept my Invitation, as" the AmericarTAdvisor to the Praemium Imperiale art awards, to participate~Ffr6ur Press Announcement of the 2006 award recipients. ~

We have now finalized our plans and have decided to concentrate our efforts on the press announcement and luncheon, which will take place aJLthe-RainbQW.JgojDriL^,§^|^ember_7 at 11:30 am. This will be the only Praemium Imperiale event in New York City for this announcement and I hope that you and Nane will be able to attend as our Honored Guest.

I have attached the invitation to the 2006 Praemium Imperiale Press Announcement.

My best regards to you and to Nane.

Sincerely, '' -,i

Enclosure Invitation from Ambassadors Luers re: the Praemium Imperials

Early this year Bill Luers raised this with the SG in a conversation. In February he wrote to invite the SG and Mrs. to a "major event" in September which would take place at the United Nations.

(The event has nothing to do with Amb. Luers's position as head of UNA-USA.)

KSK 20 July 2006 UNITED NATIONS iSijjm NATIONS UNIES

EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY-GENERAL

24 July 2006

Dear SG,

Many thanks.

ALICIA BARCENA CHEF DE CABINET

26-08964 WILLIAM H. LUERS i'"]) «?-^-J2-?-iLj£. 419 EAST 57TH STREET f' ' - • ~*.A-"""" ^ • w ' • ^/y-• ^ Li>.!, NEW YORK, NEW "YORK 10022 I [i i FEB 2 4 2008

February 22, 2006

VIA FACSIMILE

H.E. Kofi Annan Secretary General of the United Nations Office of the Secretary General East 42nd Street and First Avenue Room S-3800 New York City, NY 10017 / _ y- Dear Kofi: ?<* ^

I write you in my private capacity as one of the six international advisors to the Praemium Imperiale - an award for artists that is becoming known as the Nobel Prize for the Arts. I mentioned to you in an earlier conversation that this year it is my turn, as the American international advisor, to host the announcement of the 2006 laureates of the Praemium Imperiale. It is scheduled to take place in New York on September 7, and I would greatly appreciate your involvement in the announcement.

Our plan is to start the day with a breakfast at The Museum of Modern Art, which would be followed by a press conference at the Rainbow Room. We would conclude our program with a dinner celebration in the delegates dinning room at the UN. We are including MoMA and the Rainbow Room in our program in view of the fact that David Rockefeller was the first American international advisor and his son David was the second before this task passed to rne. Moreover, Yoshio Tanaguchi, the architect of the new Modern, was the winner of last year's Praemium Imperiale for architecture.

The Praemium Imperiale is an award of the Japan Art Association organized under the auspices of the Imperial Family and supported financially by Fujisankei, the large Japanese media conglomerate. Each year five awards of approximately $150,000 each are given to artists from around the world who have achieved the highest measure of creativity in the categories of painting, sculpture, music, architecture and drama. The list of winners reads like a "Who's Who" of contemporary art. For example, Fumihikc Maki, whose design was selected to build the UN's DC 5 south of 42nd Street, was an early winner of the Praemium Imperiale. The six international advisors (UK, Italy, France, Germany, Japan and the U.S.) make annual recommendations from which the committee of the Japan Art Association make the final selections.

I would like to make this a joint effort with the UN in conceptualizing the message of the gathering and dedicate part of the time in the announcement to demonstrating the vital role that artists play in bringing cultures together. If you were to agree to participate in one or more of the events on September 7, we would be pleased to work with you and your staff to make this year's announcement uniquely international in approach. We need for now your agreement in principle and some indication that you and Nane would be willing to participate in tne dinner celebration at the United Nations and perhaps in the press announcement.

I have attached the Program from the 2004 Praemium Imperial ceremony to give you a flavor of the events around the announcement and the awards ceremony in Tokyo.

My best regards to you and to Nane,

Sincerely, l~

Willia C&lst£^,*

WHUpmt

Attachment Note to Mr. Gambari $•

Seventh High-Level meeting with Regional and other Intergovernmental Organizations

The Secretary-General has also agreed that, in order to accommodate his schedule, his attendance should be limited and restricted to opening remarks.

los Lop< 8 May 200t

cc: Mr. Malloch Brown

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FROM: nr> DE: iL(^ Roo m No. - No de BureaiSf"a Extension - Poste Date S-3894D ' 3-2343 07-08-2006

FOR ACTION POUR SUITE A DONNER

FOR APPROVAL POUR APPROBATION FOR SIGNATURE POUR SIGNATURE

FOR COMMENTS POUR OBSERVATIONS MAY WE DISCUSS? POURRIONS -NOUS EN PARLER? YOUR ATTENTION VOTRE ATTENTION AS DISCUSSED COMME CONVENU AS REQUESTED SUITE A VOTRE DEMANDS

NOTE AND RETURN NOTER ET RETOURNER FOR INFORMATION POUR INFORMATION

Attached please find a letter of regret to Ambassador Luers for the signature of the SG..

Thank you.

SGtoLuers0808.doc

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