In a farewell speech to the Republic of Korean parliament on November 10 before assuming the new post, the former RoK Foreign Minister said he will appoint a special envoy to try to end the nuclear crisis.

"I will be using my mandate as UN Secretary General to the maximum to make sure that this issue is resolved thoroughly," said Mr Ban, who will take office at the United Nations in January 2007 to succeed Kofi Annan. 

"After being appointed as secretary general, I was somewhat scared and humbled to think that all issues in the world, such as UN reform, regional conflict, terrorism, and proliferation, are related to myself," he told his parliamentary colleagues.

One of the issues he is keen to focus on is greater internal accountability and transparency.
"The reform of the UN, which has been put off for the past 60 years, must be carried out in earnest," he said.

Mr Ban ended 37 years of diplomatic service on November 10. He became RoK Foreign Minister in January 2004 and has been closely involved in international efforts to settle the nuclear crisis with Pyongyang.

The UN General Assembly elected Mr Ban the next UN Secretary General at a meeting last October.