UN General Assembly
2006

New Zealand remains unwavering in its support for the United Nations. Our commitment has not changed since we helped found the Organization 61 years ago. This year’s events have only reinforced our belief that the world would be substantially worse off without the United Nations. It would be remiss of me at this time not to pay tribute to Kofi Annan. It is to his vision, determination and courage that we must attribute many of the reforms achieved thus far. Five years ago, when he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, the Nobel Committee paid tribute to his efforts on reform. Since then he has continued to work tirelessly for a United Nations that can live up to the hopes that “we the peoples” have invested in it. This is all the more remarkable given that, for much of his stewardship, the United Nations has been confronted with some of the most difficult international crises of its existence. New Zealand is committed to multilateralism. This is not some act of faith, but a commitment to a