U.N. secretary-general defends his approach to the job

No, no. I have spoken on the basis of my moral duty. I will clearly tell them that they must fully understand the expectations of the international community. The whole international community wants to see Myanmar promote the protection of human rights; release political prisoners, including Aung San Suu Kyi; treat Aung San Suu Kyi as a partner for national reconciliation. She can play an important role.

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Myanmar is an example of where it's very difficult to defer to the regional players, because the regional players are not bringing much pressure to bear.

That is why I have been working very hard to try to open up this dialogue channel. I was the one to pry open this door last year, and the United Nations was able to save at least half a million people [after] Cyclone Nargis.

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Do you think that some of the criticism you get is because there's a Western perception of how diplomacy should be conducted, and that Asian approaches to diplomacy are different?

There is a clearly Asian culture and a clearly Western culture. Both should be mutually respected and mutually complemented. Most people regard my style as low-key, soft-spoken. But this so-called quiet diplomacy is just one part of my diplomatic style.

Sometimes when you deal with a certain leader who has been quite closed, it is much more effective when you engage one-on-one. For them, they regard their face, or authority, as No. 1. They don't want to be lectured in front of many of their senior advisors. My experience tells me if I raise sensitive issues in public, then their reaction [will be] very official, very emotional and hard-line. It doesn't help the purpose of our meeting.

But if we meet [in private], we can really open up our hearts and I can really advise these leaders, very sincerely, in a direct way, a very vocal way sometimes. Sometimes it is very heated. In many cases, like in a meeting with President [Omar Hassan Ahmed] Bashir of Sudan, [Zimbabwean] President [Robert] Mugabe, or even with [Iranian] President [Mahmoud] Ahmadinejad, I've been engaged in quite direct, straightforward talks, without much diplomatic courtesy.

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If President Ahmadinejad comes to the U.N. General Assembly in September as the elected president of Iran, will you acknowledge his election as legitimate?

It's up to the member states who should represent their country. If he comes as president of Iran, I'm ready to meet with him again and discuss all matters. I expressed my dismay at the excessive use of force against civilians for expressing their feelings peacefully. They were all stopped, arrested and beaten, some people were killed -- that was totally unacceptable. Freedom of expression, freedom of assembly, freedom of information -- those are basic principles of a democracy. The genuine will of the Iranian people must be protected and respected.

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Do you think the genuine

will of the Iranian people

was reflected in that

election?

That's what we have to watch. I've been watching very carefully, closely, all of what's happening in Iran.

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bruce.wallace@latimes.com