Abstract
Of the office of the Secretary-General (SG) a great deal has been written, but nothing sums up the position quite as well as the remark made by the first SG, Trygve Lie, to his successor, Dag Hammarskjold, on meeting him at New York’s Idlewild Airport on 9 April 1953, that Hammarskjold was about to inherit ‘the most impossible job in the world’. Called on to be politician, diplomat and administrator, the SG who speaks with the ostensible authority of the United Nations on matters great and small whilst at the same time working behind the scenes for the advancement of international peace and security. His – there has never been a female SG – is a continuous balancing act, serving the interests of multiple constituencies which did not elect him. Professor James Crawford reflects on the roles and challenges of the UN Secretary-General.
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