The High Commissioner for Refugees, Antonio Guterres, sits among two young boys from Syria who are playing with a Playstation in the Moria Identification Center. ; The UN High Commissioner for Refugees, Antonio Guterres, visits Greece to assess the humanitarian response to the Mediterranean crisis, the needs of those affected by it and to determine how UNHCR can further contribute to these efforts. The High Commissioner’s mission comes as the number of people arriving in Greece this year has surpassed 400,000.
UNHCR warmly welcomes the recommendation by the UN Security Council of its former High Commissioner, António Guterres, as the next United Nations Secretary General.
“During his ten years at UNHCR, Mr. Guterres managed some of the biggest refugee crises of our times,” said High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi. “We know that he will lead the United Nations with the vision, political skills and deep sense of humanity needed to make an unprecedented push for world peace.”
Faced with a surge in the number of people displaced by conflict and persecution, António Guterres skillfully managed UNHCR’s responses, introducing important reforms to make these more effective.
“But António Guterres was – above all – a tireless advocate for refugees, the internallydisplaced and the stateless, defending their rights in the field and at the highest political levels. He placed a strong emphasis on finding innovative solutions to help them find safety and a dignified life, as well as on pushing for an end to the conflicts driving so many people from their homes,” Grandi said.
“We at UNHCR are especially happy that the world’s most senior peacemaker will be somebody who knows so well the terrible human consequences of war”.
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