UN General Assembly
2003

Terrorism has also created a new urgency in solving a more familiar problem — the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. Efforts by rogue States to develop and traffic in weapons of mass destruction materials underpin the priority we give to non- proliferation. The possibility that weapons of mass destruction might fall into the hands of terrorists makes it an absolute imperative. Terrorism and proliferation do not occur in a vacuum — except, of course, a moral vacuum. It is no longer open to us to ignore the failed States which have become their incubators or the transnational crime on which they depend. The promotion of good governance and democratization are imperatives both morally and pragmatically. They have become preconditions for international security. Good governance serves both global and national interests, as improved governance will fortify the United Nations itself. Without it, developing States will never be able fully to realize the opportunities that globalization presents: chiefly, the potential to erase divisions between themselves and the developed world. That can occur only if we are all prepared to accept the