KOFI ANNAN, the United Nations Secretary-General, cut short a hiking holiday in Britain yesterday and returned to UN headquarters in the hope of brokering a deal on reform of the world body.

Its very future is at stake in talks aimed at saving this month’s summit of world leaders on UN reform. Tony Blair is one of 178 kings, presidents and prime ministers scheduled to attend what is billed as the largest gathering of world leaders in history in New York from September 14 to 16.

UN officials began preparing the summit two years ago in an effort to heal the splits opened by the Iraq war, seeking a “San Francisco moment” to revitalise the world body created in that Californian city at the end of the Second World War.

They proposed a “grand bargain” between rich and poor nations, promising greater development in return for tougher action on human rights, terrorism, nuclear non-proliferation and UN management reform. But the outcome of the summit is in doubt because of wide differences between the UN’s 191 member states, with the United States ranged against developing nations such as Algeria, Cuba, Egypt, Iran, Malaysia, Pakistan and Venezuela.

The world summit is further complicated by expectations that next Wednesday the Volcker committee investigating the oil-for-food scandal will issue a harsh criticism of Mr Annan for failing to prevent corruption in the largest humanitarian programme in history. Diplomatic sources said yesterday that the real reason for Mr Annan’s unscheduled return was to try to mitigate the panel’s findings, particularly as they relate to the award of a UN contract to a company that employed his son, Kojo.

With time running out, UN members have formed a 32- nation core group to try to strike a deal on a summit declaration. “It’s too early to say if the process fails. We will have to face that situation if it comes to that pass,” Kenzo Oshima, Japan’s UN Ambassador and a former senior UN official, said. “We are in the midst of serious and intensive negotiations.”

The US Ambassador, John Bolton, a conservative appointed by President Bush without Senate approval, caused consternation among UN members by introducing hundreds of amendments to the 36-page draft declaration last week.

The greatest outcry was caused by America’s effort to remove all references to the UN’s anti-poverty Millennium Development Goals. Washington argues that the so-called MDGs, which have become a slogan for anti-poverty groups around the world, were created by the UN secretariat.

The US Administration also rejects the UN’s aid target of 0.7 per cent of GNP, even though the so-called Monterrey consensus of 2002 called for concrete measures to reach that level.

Jeffrey Sachs, the American economist who is the UN special adviser on the MDGs, accused Washington of trying to cast them aside so that it did not have to give more aid to poor countries. He said yesterday: “The United States knows that the MDGs have gotten a political life all over the world. The US does not like that momentum.”

Non-aligned and Group of 77 developing nations, for their part, are trying to block management reforms they see as a Western effort to take control of the organisation. They also object to any proposals that could impinge on their sovereignty, raising objections to a reformed human rights body, a new peace-building commission, and endorsement of a right to protect, allowing military intervention to prevent atrocities.

Muslim nations, in particular, are resisting a broad denunciation of terrorism against civilians, fearing that it may limit the Palestinians’ fight against Israeli occupation. China and Russia are also against proposed human rights reforms.

Meanwhile, the joint effort by Brazil, Germany, India and Japan to win support at the summit for permanent seats on an expanded Security Council has collapsed because of differences with the African bloc.

Despite the squabbling, diplomats still hope that negotiations will yield more than an anodyne one-page summit declaration. Mr Bolton said: “We are going to rock and roll for a couple of weeks and see how it goes. It will be arduous.”

DRAFT PROPOSALS

Poverty

Current draft would reaffirm states’ commitment to “eradicate poverty”. Washington fears it could commit US to raising overseas aid

Human rights

Draft calls for Human Rights Council. Third world nations, led by Cuba, oppose it, with Russia and China

Proliferation / disarmament

Draft says proliferation and risk that terrorists might obtain weapons of mass destruction are greatest threats to peace. US wants to remove references to nuclear “disarmament”

Terrorism

Draft says attacks on civilians and non-combatants “cannot be justified”. Muslim nations fear this could restrict the right to resist foreign occupation

Peace-building commission

To help countries emerging from conflict. Western countries favour Security Council control; Third world countries want supervision by General Assembly, where they have majority

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