UN General Assembly
1998

Allow me at the outset to congratulate Mr. Opertti on his election to the presidency of the General Assembly at its fifty-third session. I am fully confident that his experience and skill will ensure the success of the work of this session. The world continues to labour under events that attest to the inability of the international community to avert the effects of international transformations which carry within them the elements of tension and conflict, given the imbalance at the international level caused by a unipolar system wherein a sole dominant player in the international arena seeks to impose its hegemony on the international community. That sole player is not concerned except with its selfish and narrow interests, and with imposing its dominance over international institutions and organizations. As a result, the United Nations faces a serious challenge represented by the degree of its ability to regain the balance required of it in order to accomplish its objectives as set forth in the Charter. In this context, the United Nations witnesses attempts to reform its structures and work mechanism to