UN General Assembly
1992

I should like to begin by offering to Mr. Ganev my heartfelt congratulations on his assumption of the high office of President of the General Assembly. He takes up the presidency at a time when the world is looking with renewed confidence towards the United Nations. As a politician from an area with a proud tradition of representative democracy, he has played a commendable role in the vanguard of the democratization process in his own country and in Eastern Europe. His unanimous election as President of the General Assembly for the current session highlights the continuing efforts of his region in its transformation to market-driven, democratic societies and the global prerogatives of the post-cold-war era. I am sure that his experience, training and diplomatic skill will do much to ensure that the forty-seventh session of the General Assembly is fruitful and constructive. Let me also take this opportunity to extend to his predecessor, Mr. Samir S. Shihabi of Saudi Arabia, our best wishes and our appreciation of