UN General Assembly
2011

I would first like to congratulate Ambassador Nassir Abdulaziz Al-Nasser on his election to the presidency of the General Assembly at its sixty-sixth session, and to express our most sincere wishes for his success in fulfilling his mandate. Similarly, I would like to convey to Mr. Joseph Deiss Guinea-Bissau’s appreciation for the spirit of engagement and dedication he brought to his successful conduct of the work of the sixty-fifth session. Let me also reiterate my congratulations to the Secretary-General, His Excellency Mr. Ban Ki-Moon, on his recent reappointment, the fruit of the excellent 11-51360 12 work he has done to help consolidate peace and development around the world. And I would like to take this happy occasion to salute the Republic of South Sudan on having joined the United Nations, becoming the Organization’s most recent full Member. Today, 24 September, Guinea-Bissau celebrates the thirty-eighth anniversary of its independence. That historic achievement was the Guinean people’s first major victory, and from this rostrum I pay the homage that is owed to our country’s freedom fighters, whose