UN General Assembly
2008

It is based on the sovereign responsibility of States to protect their own populations as well as the United Nations Charter. We must maintain that conceptual clarity and provide for consistent implementation of the Summit decision. In spite of the lofty aspirations expressed at the 2005 World Summit, we are still far from taking a common approach to the development agenda, and the challenges are growing rapidly. Climate change, the food crisis, the energy crisis and the faltering international financial system are just a few examples. All those challenges hit particularly hard those who already live in poverty, and they also threaten to undermine the effectiveness of our development cooperation. We therefore need a consensus on financing for development that builds on the Monterrey Consensus. Such an agreement will require significant sacrifices and compromises on all sides, and it is sorely needed to strengthen the development pillar of multilateral cooperation. Let me say in conclusion that we have always stood and fought for a strong General Assembly. By that, we do not mean an Assembly that develops an