I extend
my congratulations to Mr. Theo-Ben Gurirab, on his
election as President of the General Assembly at its fifty-
fourth session. I wish him success in guiding the work of
the Assembly.
It gives me great pleasure to extend my thanks to his
predecessor, Mr. Didier Opertti, for his effective work as
President of the Assembly at its previous session. I wish
him similar success in his future endeavours.
Allow me on this occasion to congratulate the three
new Members on their admission to the United Nations.
4

Allow me also, on behalf of my Government, to express
appreciation to the Secretary-General, for his tireless work
and laudable efforts in the midst of an international
situation that can be described — at best — as difficult and
complicated.
Of course the international situation is truly difficult
and complicated. It is no coincidence that as we meet in
this forum to discuss the affairs and state of the world
today — at this, the last session of the century, the
beginning of a new century, a new age that we once hoped
would be different from the old — we find ourselves
obliged to discuss the same problems and the same disputes
that we have been facing for over half a century. Is this not
truly deplorable and even outrageous? Does not this reality
constitute categorical evidence that all of us — States,
peoples and regional and international organizations —
have failed to learn enough from the lessons of the past,
that we have not benefited from our past experiences
enough and that we have not sought as much as we should
have, to overcome our past limitations and shortcomings?
What do we see when we look at our world today?
We see bloody conflicts that we have not yet been able to
stop and chronic crises that still await solutions that would
end the spiral of violence and suffering. Moreover, we find
that the world remains reluctant or even unable to address
problems and crises that are far removed, in terms of
content, from the course of daily politics but whose effects
and ramifications are no less dangerous than the topical
crises and conflicts that threaten our existence. We must
ask ourselves: What have we done, as we stand on the
threshold of the third millennium, to prepare ourselves to
meet the challenges of poverty, misery, unemployment,
illiteracy, disease, the spread of epidemics and the
exploitation of children?
What have we done to prepare ourselves to cope with
the dangers of organized crime, international terrorism and
drug trafficking? Have we really understood the threat of
the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and the
possibility that they may be used at any time and
anywhere?
What of the real dangers besetting our planet as a
result of environmental degradation, climate change, the
scarcity of water resources, the shortage of raw materials,
the deteriorating phenomena of drought and desertification
and the increasing frequency of natural disasters?
Have we at least begun to draft guidelines and
comprehensive universal plans to confront these global
threats, which do not differentiate between nationalities,
races, colours or creeds and which most certainly
recognize no political, geographical, economic and social
borders among nations and peoples?
Simply put, have we, as States, Governments and
international organizations, begun adjusting our priorities
so as to place the goals of development, progress,
education, health, high living standards and decent life for
our peoples ahead of the aims of conflict, disputes and
vengeance, no matter how historical, profound or
sensitive?
I cannot answer yes to any of these questions. There
is nothing in this statement to criticize anyone or detract
from their resolve or intentions. It is a sad universal
reality that requires our cooperation and joint efforts if we
truly hope to prepare ourselves for the future and its tasks
and changes. To that end, I see no better or more
comprehensive framework for this mission than this
international Organization, which we believe to be the
qualified and appropriate institution for defining the future
of our world. All of us, regardless of our interests and
our narrow, topical political calculations, must provide the
United Nations and its agencies with all the means
necessary for it to play such an important role.
We are convinced that this can be achieved only
with universal will, for in the final analysis, the United
Nations is the sum total of its Member States. We are
also convinced of the need to reform the United Nations
and to enhance the effectiveness and efficiency of its
bodies and agencies. Similarly, it is incumbent upon us,
the States Members of the Organization, to assume our
political responsibility and respect our moral and financial
commitments to it. Furthermore, in this context, we
support the idea of expanding the Security Council to
make it more democratic and representative of the
international community in the modern world. We also
support the idea of expanding the permanent membership
of the Council so as to ensure greater universal
representation on it. The same applies to restricting the
use of the veto by the permanent members and to
regulating the capacity to use this right under agreed and
specific terms and conditions.
It is perhaps not exaggerated optimism or
expectation on my part when I say that we consider this
to be an essential and vital step towards consecrating the
sound concept of globalization, as we see it and as it
must be in the twenty-first century. We believe that
globalization must be a comprehensive mechanism in the
5

service of the general welfare of all nations and peoples. If
its benefits are confined to certain States and societies, to
the exclusion of others, it will fail to achieve its objectives.
On this basis, we believe that globalization should be
the means by which we promote cooperation, interaction
and openness among the peoples and societies of the world.
We can thus steer globalization away from the pitfalls of
narrow exploitation and short-term profit and towards a
universal scope whose benefits and returns reach everyone.
It is here that we feel that a new and extremely vital role
will emerge for the United Nations in the twenty-first
century — a role in which the Organization will assume
leadership of the trend towards globalization and consecrate
it, especially in the fields of cooperation, cultural and
educational exchanges, social and economic development,
the defence of human rights, strengthening peace and
stability and consolidating the bases of cultural openness
among nations and peoples.
We will thus have taken the first essential steps
towards the establishment of the new international order
that we thought we had achieved at the end the cold war
and the age of international polarization, which lasted 50
years after the end of the Second World War. The new
international order to which we aspired did not materialize.
Unfortunately, and in spite of the many initiatives and
indications that had once seemed encouraging, the world
instead soon fell into a new spiral of disagreements,
disputes and regional, bilateral and internal conflicts. These
seemed to be the direct results of the political vacuum left
in the wake of the cold war. At the same time, new
conflicts and disputes have joined the series of historically
chronic crises that have plagued our world for decades and
for which no effective solutions have been found.
We may discuss the future and a new world in which
we seek to achieve the aspirations of all peoples to
prosperity, progress and stability, but the priority of
spending on arms and military purposes still prevails over
all others, especially in the developing and poor regions of
the world, where the need for resources for social and
economic growth and development is paramount. In the
meantime, economic conditions in these regions continue to
deteriorate, social crises are exacerbated and living
standards are plummeting ever faster.
Naturally, these are not the only problems. In the
midst of such a vicious circle, the political crises facing
these societies are intensified in turn and soon evolve into
significant threats, not only to their security and internal
fabric, but also to their neighbours. Particularly disturbing
is the fact that this phenomenon has spread and expanded
into several regions of the world. In this regard, and on
behalf of my country, Qatar, I cannot but express
satisfaction at the results of the North Atlantic Treaty
Organization (NATO) operation in the Balkans.
In the same context, my Government has followed
with concern the events that have unfolded in East Timor
in recent weeks. Qatar hopes for the success of the
international efforts currently under way to restore peace
and security. At the same time, we stress the hope that
the Republic of Indonesia will transcend this difficult
ordeal and reclaim its prominent position in South-East
Asia and in the ranks of the international community as
a whole.
While some recent developments have provided
relatively reassuring indications of the possibility of
settling regional and internal conflicts, given the resolve
and the international will to do so, we find it necessary to
recall here that we would have preferred that such
international endeavours had taken place in a pre-emptive
context that would have prevented the crises and the
ensuing tragedies and suffering, instead of subsequent
efforts aimed at salvaging whatever remained to be
salvaged.
We express this concern and call for further
international efforts to settle crises and to put an end to
wars and conflicts because we in the State of Qatar
profoundly believe in the right of peoples to live in
freedom and peace. We also believe in the need to
establish international relations on the basis of friendship,
cooperation, mutual respect, common interests and good-
neighbourliness. Proceeding from this, my country stands
firmly and unambiguously in support of the settlement of
differences and disputes in the Gulf region by peaceful
means and through dialogue, negotiations, or international
arbitration in order to consolidate security and stability in
the region.
We also wish to place on record my Government's
satisfaction at some of the positive developments and
encouraging signs that we have noticed during the past
months regarding the settlement of a number of questions
that have long been a source of concern in our region.
We welcome the progress made in settling the Lockerbie
matter and congratulate our Libyan brothers on that,
hoping that this file will be closed and this matter
concluded as soon as possible and in a way that will
ensure the rights and interests of all parties.
6

Notwithstanding the positive indications and trends,
which we welcome and hope will be strengthened, the
general regional situation is still, to our great regret, far
removed from the comprehensive peace, the lasting stability
and the modes of cooperation, development and progress
that we seek and desire for our region. The Iraqi crisis and
its continuous repercussions on security and stability in the
Gulf and the Middle East, and the cruel suffering of the
fraternal Iraqi people, are all elements that cause great
concern and prompt us to do our utmost in order to put an
end to this crisis. We believe it is high time that we
overcame the Iraqi crisis and found effective solutions to it
so that the sanctions imposed against Iraq can be lifted and
the cruel suffering of its peoples can be terminated. We
have always resorted to diplomatic solutions, in accordance
with international resolutions, in order to ensure the
preservation of the territorial integrity and national unity of
Iraq and to spare it and the entire region further dangers
and agony.
There naturally remains the essential question, which
in our view has been the main source of tension and crises
in our region for more than half a century, and that is the
question of Palestine and the Arab-Israeli conflict. I must
say that we in the State of Qatar, together with our Arab
brothers, have committed ourselves to peace as a permanent
strategic option, a commitment which still stands. However,
the peace process has regrettably failed to attain its
envisaged results. Rather, this process has suffered setbacks
over the past years, the responsibility for which, in our
view, lies with the former Israeli Government, which opted
to retreat from its commitments and pursued policies that
prevented any progress in the peace process and in
negotiations on its various tracks.
We welcome the changes that have taken place in the
Israeli Government as a result of the recent general
elections and in light of the formation of the new
Government under the leadership of Mr. Ehud Barak and
his stated intention to pursue peace more earnestly.
However, we feel that such gestures must be coupled with
concrete steps that would demonstrate good faith on the
Israeli side and sincere readiness to meet its obligations by
implementing the agreements concluded on all tracks during
the previous stages of the negotiations, and to seek a
resumption of the negotiations on the Syrian and Lebanese
tracks as soon as possible, on the basis of the resolutions of
international legitimacy and the principle of land for peace.
Perhaps it suffices here to recall the recent affirmation
by His Highness, Sheik Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Thani, the
Emir of the State of Qatar, in explaining my country's firm
position on this matter. In our view, there can be no
solution to this conflict nor peace in the Middle East
except through a permanent, just and comprehensive
settlement, based on the established principles that form
the foundations of the peace process. This means the
implementation of Security Council resolutions 242
(1967), 338 (1973) and 425 (1978); full Israeli withdrawal
from the occupied Syrian Golan Heights to the border of
4 June 1967 and from southern Lebanon and its western
Bekaa valley, to the internationally recognized borders,
and the regaining by the Palestinian people of their
legitimate national and political rights, foremost among
which is their natural right to self-determination and to
the establishment of their independent State, with
Jerusalem as its capital: the city of peace, the land of
tolerance and the cradle of divine revelations, where
religions have always coexisted in harmony and concord.
We must express concern over the continued
presence of weapons of mass destruction in the region,
especially nuclear weapons that are available exclusively
to one side, the Israeli side. In our view, this constitutes
a strategic imbalance and a threat to peace and security.
Therefore, we believe in the need for the complete
elimination of weapons of mass destruction from our
region, as an integral and complementary part of the
peace process. We also call on Israel to accede to the
international treaties providing for the limitation and non-
proliferation of such weapons.
Peace, in our view, cannot be one-sided, nor can its
benefits accrue exclusively on one side. Therefore, we
sincerely look forward to the day when a balanced, just,
comprehensive and genuine peace reigns in our region.
Then we can speak of such advantages and benefits of
peace as security, cooperation, stability, prosperity and
progress for all the States and peoples in our region
without exception.
We look forward to that day because we truly yearn
to see a new Middle East, which enters the new
millennium in a climate of peace, security and
democracy; a climate in which we all respect pluralism of
opinions, diversity of approaches and the right of peoples
and States to self-determination, to better living standards
and to living in freedom, prosperity and dignity, in
conformity with their lofty beliefs and values. This is one
of the basic human rights we cherish. Our belief stems
foremost from our profound belief in God Almighty and
in His divine revelations with which He blessed all
mankind.
7

This process of working for a better future and for our
peoples imbues us with the utmost hope that we will be
able to achieve the objective of building a new world
worthy of our young generations which will inhabit it in the
third millennium. As we are about to draw the curtain on
an old century and welcome the dawn of a new one, we
must pledge to our children that we will do our utmost so
that their world will be a better world, more capable and
better equipped to respond to their ambitions and
aspirations.


The
Republic of Haiti finds it a source of genuine satisfaction
that the fifty-fourth regular session of the General
Assembly is being presided over by Mr. Theo-Ben Gurirab,
a man for whom we have a great deal of admiration. With
positive results, he has competently and responsibly served
his country, Namibia, which is quite rightly considered one
of the symbols of the success of our Organization. We take
this opportunity to wish him every success in the
tremendous and noble task he has undertaken.
We pay tribute to Mr. Didier Opertti, Foreign Minister
of Uruguay, who so effectively conducted the proceedings
of the fifty-third session.
We also take this opportunity to convey our most
sincere greetings to the Secretary-General, Mr. Kofi Annan,
who, at a time when our world is facing many challenges,
has known how to use his intelligence and the wisdom of
his great experience to help the community of nations face
up to the inevitable changes of the twenty-first century.
We also welcome, with great satisfaction, the
admission of the Republic of Kiribati, the Republic of
Nauru and the Kingdom of Tanga as full-fledged Members
of our Organization. They will strengthen the universal
nature of the Organization and enrich its diversity of points
of view.
We take the floor this 1 October, one day after the
anniversary of the bloody coup d’état of 1991, a genuine
act of assassination of democracy and of the dream of an
entire people. Without the determined action of the United
Nations and its Members, contemplating this sad and
deadly event would have been even more painful for the
people of Haiti today. We would therefore like to express
once again our gratitude to the international community
for having ensured the restoration of democratic
constitutional order in Haiti.
Since that restoration of democracy, the Government
and the people of Haiti, helped by the international
community, have worked zealously to ensure an
environment favourable to the blossoming of democracy
and economic progress. This effort has not yet yielded the
results we had hoped for, because over the last five years
the Republic of Haiti has had to confront problems arising
from the complexity of its situation. But through the will
of our people and its Government, the Haitian dream of
democracy will become a reality.
Above all, the Government of the Republic is still
convinced of the critical importance of the renewal of its
institutions, in particular of the Parliament, most of whose
members had their term of office expire on 11 January
1999. To this end, fair, honest, democratic elections will
be organized in the next few months. The head of State,
Mr. René Préval, has repeatedly and solemnly affirmed
his determination to create the conditions to make it
possible for the elections to be organized by the
Provisional Electoral Council. Of course, as guarantor of
the functioning of the institutions, the President of the
Republic has considered that the most important thing is
the establishment of the physical conditions necessary for
well-organized elections, rather than hasty elections the
results of which might be called into question because of
organizational shortcomings. For President Préval, the
holding of the elections must lead to a solution to our
crisis and not its perpetuation, or even the creation of yet
another crisis.
In order to work to consolidate its achievements, the
Government hopes that a consensus will be found to
continue technical assistance for professionalizing the
National Police, in strict compliance with Haitian law.
The Government of the Republic wants to avoid any
interruption of the effort to thoroughly reform the judicial
system and to promote full respect for all dimensions of
human rights.
18

The fifty-fourth session of the General Assembly is
undoubtedly a highly symbolic moment. As the last session
of this century, it ought to come up with a vision that
would make our Organization an essential and efficient
instrument for meeting the challenges that await us in the
twenty-first century. We know the contours of this vision,
as they were sketched after the Stockholm Conference on
the Human Environment, the World Summit for Social
Development in Copenhagen and the Rio Earth Summit.
The sketch is filled in by the ideal of the peoples of the
whole world, as expressed in our Charter: to save future
generations from the scourge of war, to ensure respect for
fundamental human rights, to promote social progress and
to establish better conditions of living in greater freedom.
Thus, our task at this fifty-fourth session should be to fully
work out, by means of our discussions and the work of the
various committees, the concept and ways of implementing
this vision.
The fifty-fourth session will also be an opportunity for
the United Nations to give deeper thought to its mission of
ensuring international peace and security and of promoting
economic and social development. In this regard, the
Republic of Haiti is happy to note that the situation in East
Timor is improving following the actions of the
international community and its cooperation with the
Indonesian authorities. We hope that the presence of the
multinational peace force will help bring the country out of
the chaos into which it has been plunged. We urge the
Indonesian Government and its allies in East Timor to fully
respect the decision of the ballot box and to take measures
to ensure East Timor’s peaceful transition to independence
and democracy.
The Republic of Haiti also welcomes the end of the
state of war in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The
Agreement signed in Lusaka, under the aegis of President
Frederick Chiluba, between the protagonists in this conflict
is clear evidence that Africa is in the process of providing
itself with the means to become master of its diplomatic
and geographical destiny.
The Republic of Haiti calls upon India and Pakistan to
do everything possible to find a permanent solution to the
Kashmir conflict and to put an end to their nuclear arms
race, which is indeed a frightening process that diverts
tremendous financial resources and brainpower to
destruction when they could be put at the service of
survival and development.
Once again the Haitian Government reiterates its
condemnation of all forms of terrorist activities that might
cause material and human damage. We reaffirm our faith
in the fundamental rights of man and in the general
principles of international law as the basis of norms that
govern the relations among States.
In the face of the conflicts that threaten international
peace and security, it is reassuring that the Director-
General of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and
Cultural Organization, Mr. Federico Mayor, has had the
idea of promoting throughout the world the culture of
peace, which is so vital to good relations within and
between nations. The promotion of a genuine culture of
peace is inseparable from the democratization of the
international order. One of the fundamental aspects of this
democratization lies in the solution to the question of
equitable representation in the Security Council. It is time
for this Assembly to reach a consensus on this subject of
such crucial importance for the future of our
Organization.
An equally important point for establishing a
genuine culture of peace is the implementation of United
Nations resolutions in the realm of international security.
Many resolutions have not been implemented when their
implementation would be decisive, not only in the context
of North-South relations, but also in the context of the
indispensable relationships to be developed between
States, international institutions and non-governmental
organizations.
Over the last two months, the Government and the
people of Haiti have observed with sadness and
helplessness the destruction wreaked and the terrible toll
taken by the natural disasters that have struck Turkey,
Taiwan, Greece, the Bahamas and the United States. We
wish to reiterate to the people of these countries that we
share their pain and offer our heartfelt solidarity, having
ourselves, unfortunately, experienced such disasters.
We take this opportunity to repeat that the Haitian
Government is following attentively the evolution of
relations between the two countries on the Taiwan Strait.
Our Government notes with satisfaction that the two sides
are undertaking measures to establish a climate of
confidence, respect and prosperity, which will be of the
utmost benefit to the peoples who live there.
At the dawn of the new millennium, the fight for the
elimination of poverty remains one of the most noble
tasks of the United Nations system, in order to establish,
as we are bidden by our Charter, better living conditions
for the human beings living on this earth.
19

President Gurirab recently echoed the feelings of the
vast majority of developing countries when he noted that
globalization might open the floodgates of competition in
such a way that certain States would be wiped off the map.
Therefore it is up to the United Nations and to each country
to examine attentively the means of remedying the ill
effects of globalization on the social and economic
structures of every country — and particularly its effects on
small developing countries. Certainly globalization has its
positive side, bringing human communities closer together
politically, socially and culturally. But it must not be used
as a pretext for a standardization that might neutralize the
diversity that is the very strength of humanity.
On the eve of the third millennium what should unite
us more than ever, beyond our differences and often highly
divergent interests, is the laying down of foundations to
bring about the security of all and the elimination of
poverty as the initial phase of a planetary process of true
sustainable development.


I sincerely
congratulate Mr. Gurirab on his election as President of
the General Assembly at this session, the last to be held
37

before the start of the new millennium, and I wish him
great success in the performance of his duties. At the same
time I wish to thank his predecessor, Mr. Didier Opertti, for
the effective way in which he presided over the previous
Assembly.
Spain subscribes fully to the statement made by the
Minister for Foreign Affairs of Finland on behalf of the
States members of the European Union and should like to
contribute to this general debate by presenting my
delegation’s point of view with regard to the complex
problems facing the United Nations at this time.
I should also like to welcome the Republic of Kiribati,
the Republic of Nauru and the Kingdom of Tonga. Spain
offers them its full cooperation in the tasks that await them
as new Members of the Organization.
This has, indeed, been a difficult year for the
Organization. Serious crises have arisen in different parts of
the world and, at times, the role played in them by the
United Nations has been questioned. We are all aware of
the efforts made by the Secretary-General to enable the
Organization fully to play the role for which it was founded
in 1945. However, in certain sectors of international public
opinion the idea has taken hold that the United Nations has
been incapable of assuming its central and proper role in
such situations.
Like any human institution, the United Nations has
had its successes and its failures. Nevertheless, it has been
a key factor in international relations throughout the second
half of the twentieth century and it continues to be so on
the threshold of the twenty-first. It fulfils an essential
function, which will have to be progressively strengthened
as the phenomenon of globalization develops. It is indeed
a unique instrument for the international relations we are
sharing for the twenty-first century.
It is obvious that, while acknowledging the unique
value of the United Nations, we must revise some aspects
of the way in which it operates. That is why the process of
reform undertaken by the Secretary-General is so important.
We must continue to make further progress in that
direction.
I should like to stress that Spain does not think of the
reform of the United Nations as an exercise whose sole and
essential objective is to save money. Rather, we consider
such reform to be a way of enabling it successfully to meet
the challenges of the new century.
A key aspect of this process is the reform of the
Security Council. Spain believes that such reform must
pursue three basic goals. First, there must be greater
transparency in its working methods, with an increase in
the number and the quality of the consultations, both
between the countries that make up the Council and
between those countries and other Member States.
Secondly, it should be more efficient, for which purpose
it would be advisable to limit the exercise of the right of
veto. There are instances in which the exercise of this
right, or even the more or less veiled threat to exercise it,
has blocked the functioning of the Security Council and
prevented the adoption of essential decisions that enjoyed
a broad consensus within the international community. To
a large extent, that has promoted the image of the United
Nations as inefficient and impotent in the eyes of some
sectors of public opinion. Thirdly, it should be made more
democratic, which would mean adapting the Council’s
composition to recent developments in the international
community. In current circumstances, and given the split
between Member States, it seems possible to reach a
sufficient consensus only with regard to the idea of
increasing the number of non-permanent members. Spain
is in favour of increasing the representation on the
Security Council of all regional groups.
Delays in the payment of contributions by some
States are unjustifiable and endanger the very operation of
the Organization at the very time when it is called upon
to carry out increasingly complex tasks. It is not possible
to tolerate the current level of non-payment and at the
same time require the United Nations to set up the United
Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo, to
organize the transition to independence in East Timor, to
establish international criminal courts, to deal with the
plight of refugees, to send peacekeeping forces to various
parts of the world, and to allocate sufficient resources to
its numerous development programmes.
I would like my Government’s position on this
subject to be properly understood. Spain is the eighth-
largest contributor to the Organization’s regular budget,
and as such has a very direct interest in matters such as
budgetary discipline and the effective use of resources.
Moreover, Spain considers that all matters of concern to
Member States on this issue can and must be thoroughly
discussed. What is not acceptable, however, is for anyone
to make payment conditional on the granting of unilateral
demands.
The coming Millennium Assembly will provide a
good opportunity to reflect on all these issues, as well as
38

on the role of the United Nations in the twenty-first
century. That Assembly, in the preparation of which civil
society will participate, must likewise encourage vigorous
debate yielding concrete results. That debate must, in my
opinion, focus on two main issues: the elimination of
poverty and the consequences of globalization.
A policy to eliminate poverty involves, inter alia, a
strategy of conflict prevention, sustainable development
policies, good governance and the regular provision of
funds for development financing. All these mean that
efforts must be pooled and responsibilities shared by
developed and developing States alike.
Globalization is a phenomenon that involves risks, but
that also creates opportunities. The risk is that the weakest
countries and the most defenceless sectors of the population
will be marginalized from its benefits. Clearly, decisive
action by Governments is needed, along with international
cooperation. Threats to cultural and linguistic plurality
likewise require decisive defensive measures.
At the same time, globalization also generates
opportunities and benefits: economic growth, better
communications and greater access to information, as well
as possibilities for bringing different peoples and cultures
closer together. It is especially here that the unique value of
the United Nations is most striking. In the face of all these
new global problems, which go far beyond the capacity of
States for individual action, only a multilateral response
will suffice, the result of dialogue and international
cooperation. The United Nations is the most appropriate
forum for this.
With regard to peacekeeping operations, only the
United Nations, in the final analysis, has the legitimacy
necessary to authorize them. This year Spain has doubled
the number of troops that it contributes to these operations;
they are currently deployed in United Nations missions in
Guatemala, Kosovo, Bosnia and Herzegovina and East
Timor. To this should be added the large number of troops
that my country has placed at the service of missions
authorized by Security Council resolutions, such as the
Stabilization Force (SFOR) and KFOR. Spain participated
in the United Nations Observer Mission in Angola
(MONUA) until its recent termination, and is now
cooperating with the project to strengthen African
capabilities for peacekeeping operations.
As a reflection of my country’s commitment, Spain
will in the next few weeks sign a memorandum of
understanding on placing a rapidly deployable
peacekeeping force at the disposal of the United Nations.
On the eve of the twenty-first century, it is no longer
tolerable to mankind’s ethical conscience that atrocities
and war crimes should go unpunished. But until recently
the international community had not channeled these
generalized feelings into a course of concrete action. Yet
again, it was the United Nations that did this, by
convening the Rome Conference at which the Statute of
the International Criminal Court was adopted. Spain
signed the Statute, and the ratification process is now at
an advanced stage. Moreover, Spain has taken initiatives
to promote the signing and ratification of the treaty in
order that it may enter into force as soon as possible.
The United Nations has made a vital contribution to
the universalization of human rights. Having been elected
a member of the Commission on Human Rights for a
three-year period, Spain will continue to cooperate with
the United Nations in the defence of these rights in line
with one of the basic tenets of its foreign policy.
Closely related to this issue is the concept of human
security. At a previous session of the General Assembly,
Spain took the initiative to propose a draft resolution on
the safety and security of international humanitarian
personnel, which was ultimately adopted as resolution
52/167. The activity of the Special Committee on
Children and Armed Conflict is especially important at
this time, as is the significant work of the Secretary-
General’s Special Representative on this matter, Mr. Olara
Otunnu. The recent Security Council resolution 1261
(1999) is a major step forward in the approach to this
problem.
Development cooperation is undoubtedly one of the
main global issues on the United Nations agenda. The
special meeting on development financing planned for
2001 must be properly prepared, and the follow-up of the
major conferences must continue.
Spain attaches special importance to the Heavily
Indebted Poor Countries Debt (HIPC) Initiative, whose
scope and depth must be enhanced. In the wake of
hurricane Mitch, Spain initiated debt-cancellation
programmes for the most harshly affected countries of the
Central American region.
My country has made a substantial effort in recent
years in respect of its development cooperation
programmes. Not many years ago Spain was an aid
39

recipient, while it now stands above the Organization for
Economic Cooperation and Development average in the
percentage of its gross domestic product devoted to
development. In 1998, official development assistance funds
grew by 14 per cent, placing Spain among the three
developed countries which had most increased these funds
during the year.
With regard to disarmament, the United Nations and
the Conference on Disarmament will continue to prepare
for a conference on small arms to be held in 2001, and will
attempt to offset recent reversals in the non-proliferation
regime. It is essential that the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-
Ban Treaty should speedily enter into force, and that
difficulties in the preparation of the next review conference
of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons
be overcome.
It is also necessary to conclude negotiations on a
verification protocol to the Convention on the Prohibition
of the Development, Production and Stockpiling of
Bacteriological (Biological) and Toxin Weapons and on
Their Destruction, and to address the issue of fissile
materials.
There are many other global issues on which the
United Nations plays a vital role, such as the fight against
terrorism, drugs and organized crime. However, I should
like to dwell for a moment on another matter to which my
Government attaches great importance: problems of ageing
and of older people. Spain wishes to contribute to the
debate on an international strategy on older people based on
the existing model in my country. Spain has also submitted
its candidacy as the venue for the second World Assembly
on Ageing, which could be convened in 2002.
Finally, allow me to refer to the problem of
decolonization. At the conclusion of this Decade for the
Eradication of Colonization, my country continues to
endure the presence of a colonial enclave on its territory.
Gibraltar was occupied by British troops in 1704, during
one of the European wars of succession. The Territory was
turned into a military base and the Spanish population was
expelled. Until very recently Spanish citizens in Gibraltar
suffered grave discrimination in the exercise of their rights.
General Assembly resolution 2353 (XXII) backed the
Spanish views on the decolonization of the Territory,
recognizing that Gibraltar’s colonial situation should be
settled not through self-determination, but, rather, through
the restoration of Spanish territorial integrity. Unfortunately,
its terms have been ignored by the colonial Power. Spain
and Great Britain began a process of negotiation on all
the issues, including sovereignty, based on the 1984
Brussels Declaration, but no significant progress has been
made. Spain has made a proposal to the United Kingdom
that takes into account the interests of the inhabitants of
the colony and would allow for the recovery of
sovereignty over the Territory after a lengthy period, so
far without reply. My Government will continue both its
dialogue with the United Kingdom and cooperation with
the decolonization Committee in following up on this
issue.
From the crises the world has lived through this
year, we must learn certain lessons. One is without doubt
that the political resolution of the crisis in Kosovo has
only been possible thanks to the United Nations, which
faced an urgent challenge, and on the success or failure
of its response depends to a large extent the public image
of our Organization.
In the Western Sahara Spain has supported with
concrete measures the action of the United Nations
Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara
(MINURSO), and also the Secretary-General’s settlement
plan. It is willing to increase this support if asked to do
so by the Organization and if the parties directly involved
agree.
The new possibilities in the Middle East after the
signing of the Sharm-el Sheikh Memorandum are seen by
my country with great hope, and we are firmly committed
to continue cooperating with all sides so that the process
begun in Madrid continues on track.
Other regions of the world have suffered particularly
during this past year. Unfortunately, this is especially true
of Africa, and therefore I wish to emphasize my country’s
support for the integrated approach taken by the
Secretary-General in treating the causes of the conflicts
and promoting peace on that continent.
Finally, the most recent challenge to the United
Nations is the situation in East Timor. Spain welcomed
the adoption of Security Council resolution 1264 (1999),
and is willing to contribute to the multinational force to
guarantee security in the Territory. My country, likewise,
has announced a special contribution to the fund
established by the Office of the United Nations High
Commissioner for Refugees(UNHCR) to deal urgently
with the acute humanitarian situation and the refugee
problems on the island.
40

The Organization’s undertakings are sometimes
visible, at other times hidden, but they are always
indispensable. The citizens of our countries must value
them so that the United Nations may enjoy the backing that
it needs in order to perform its important duties effectively.
On the threshold of the twenty-first century, Spain
reiterates yet again its firm commitment to the Organization
and its willingness to put its capacity for external action at
the service of the purposes and principles enumerated in the
Charter.


At the outset, I wish, on behalf of the Islamic
Republic of Mauritania, to congratulate His Excellency
Mr. Theo-Ben Gurirab on his election to the presidency
of the General Assembly at its fifty-fourth session. I am
convinced that his experience and his wisdom will enable
him to guide the work of the session to a successful
conclusion. My delegation assures him of its complete
cooperation in that noble task.
I take this opportunity also to express my thanks to
his predecessor, Mr. Didier Opertti, for the distinguished
manner in which he has conducted the session just
concluded.
I would also like to pay a well-deserved tribute to
the Secretary-General of the United Nations, Mr. Kofi
Annan, for his tireless efforts in reforming and
restructuring the Organization, and in improving its
functioning and strengthening its role in all areas so that
it can adapt to the requirements and challenges of the
day. In this regard, we welcome the valuable report on
the work of the Organization that he presented at the
beginning of these proceedings.
Mauritania welcomes the Republic of Kiribati, the
Republic of Nauru and the Kingdom of Tonga to the
membership of our Organization. We would like to
express our readiness to work with them to achieve the
objectives of the United Nations.
We have to undertake immediately the reform of the
United Nations and the restructuring of its organs in order
to serve the world’s common interests. No one can deny
that the circumstances in which the Organization was
founded more than 50 years ago have changed a great
deal, and that important new changes have occurred in all
areas since then. This only makes a re-examination of the
structures and working methods of the Organization more
imperative. It is in this spirit that my delegation supports
the expansion of representation in the Security Council in
accordance with the principles of democracy, transparency
and equity in order to ensure equitable geographical
representation in that body, and to reflect the universal
nature of our Organization, as laid down in the Charter.
18

As we meet at the threshold of the third millennium,
a large portion of humanity still lives in conditions that do
not enable people to satisfy their legitimate hopes and
aspirations to live in a world where peace, justice and well-
being reign. In spite of some encouraging indicators in
certain developing countries, the general tendency is that of
a widening gap between developed and developing
countries. The latter are going through profound changes
over which they have no control, affected by, among other
things, their debt burden, deterioration of commodity prices,
poor access to international markets and weakness of
foreign investment. This situation should alert the
Organization of the need not to limit its actions to the
traditional maintenance of international peace and security.
The situation calls for the Organization to strive to lighten
the heavy burden under which the developing countries
languish in the economic and social fields. The United
Nations must also help these countries step up the pace of
their economic growth. In this regard, donor countries
should increase their official development assistance,
increase their foreign investment and open up their markets
to the products of developing countries in order to help
bring about a new world order based on dialogue,
cooperation and solidarity.
In this context, and since debt constitutes a burden that
the developing countries are incapable of bearing, it is
imperative to give the question of debt the attention it
deserves. We express the hope that initiatives taken to help
the most heavily indebted poor countries will make it
possible to eliminate the obstacles that are neutralizing and
frustrating their development efforts.
Today the world faces many troublesome situations,
the consequences of which are felt beyond the frontiers of
the countries immediately involved. Such situations threaten
security, nationally, regionally and internationally, and call
into question the progress achieved towards economic and
social development. We are required to find proper
solutions for such problems. By way of example, I would
mention terrorism, human rights violations and poverty.
In this regard, my country reiterates its condemnation
of terrorism, whatever its origin and form. It calls on the
international community to strengthen cooperation and
dialogue in order to combat this phenomenon with
determination and firmness.
Last year the General Assembly commemorated the
fiftieth anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human
Rights, which coincided with the fifth anniversary of the
World Conference on Human Rights in Vienna. That was
an opportunity to evaluate the results of the
implementation of the Vienna Declaration and Programme
of Action and the remaining obstacles in this area, and to
identify necessary measures for the full implementation of
the recommendations that the World Conference on
Human Rights had adopted and that my country is
striving to translate into reality.
We should also mention the special session on
population and development held by the General
Assembly in this very Hall at the end of last June at
which the Programme of Action of the Cairo International
Conference on Population and Development was
reaffirmed. We hope that the results of that meeting will
help improve the standard of living of all peoples and will
help bring about sustainable development thanks to the
strengthening of the correlation between questions of
population and those of development. In this area, I
would like to point out that my country has stepped up its
efforts to promote the status of women and to combat
illiteracy in all its forms, and it has produced programmes
with beneficial effects for the family, for children in
particular and for society in general.
The Islamic Republic of Mauritania has adopted a
foreign policy based on immutable principles of
promoting good-neighbourly relations, peaceful
coexistence and the enhancement of regional and
international cooperation. On the basis of these principles,
my country attaches particular importance to
strengthening stability and to containing the numerous
sources of tension throughout the world, which are likely
to jeopardize international peace and security and
compromise the development efforts of nations.
While reaffirming its whole-hearted support for the
peace process, my country believes that no just,
comprehensive and lasting peace can be brought about in
the Middle East without the application of the principle of
land for peace as agreed at the Madrid Conference, and
the comprehensive implementation of Security Council
resolutions 242 (1967), 338 (1973) and 425 (1978), which
guarantee Israeli withdrawal from all occupied Palestinian
territories, as well as from the Syrian Golan Heights,
southern Lebanon and West Bekaa, and the restoration to
the Palestinian people of all their legitimate rights, first
and foremost their right to self-determination and to the
creation of their independent State with Jerusalem as its
capital.
Today, as we embark on a new era, the international
community is looking forward to reviving the peace
19

process and to restoring it to its proper track. In this regard,
we believe that a resumption of negotiations on all tracks
between all parties concerned is a most urgent measure. We
therefore invite the two sponsors of the peace process to
shoulder their responsibilities and to exert greater efforts to
preserve the opportunity of a comprehensive, just and
lasting peace in this region.
In the Gulf region, we hope to see a combination of
regional and international efforts that would restore stability
and concord to the region. In this regard, my country
reaffirms its commitment to and respect for international
legality and the resolutions of the United Nations, and
repeats its rejection of anything that may be prejudicial to
the independence and the territorial integrity of Kuwait.
We also reaffirm our repudiation of any measure
likely to threaten the unity and territorial integrity of Iraq.
We call for lifting the embargo that for eight years now has
been inflicted on the Iraqi people, who have suffered
enormously, especially children, women and the elderly.
In the Maghreb region, my country is working
together with its brothers in the Arab Maghreb Union to
establish cooperation and dialogue in order to fulfil the
aspirations of the peoples of the region.
As regards the Western Sahara, my country welcomes
the positive steps taken towards the implementation of the
United Nations plan to resolve the dispute. We reaffirm our
readiness to do everything in our power to promote the
implementation of this plan.
With regard to the Lockerbie incident, my country
welcomes the efforts undertaken to achieve a final
settlement of this question, including the suspension of the
sanctions imposed against the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya.
Although we are pleased by the success of certain
diplomatic démarches, we nevertheless feel that it is time
for the Security Council to take the necessary steps to lift
this embargo once and for all.
As regards Guinea-Bissau, my country welcomes the
settlement that was achieved within the framework of the
Abuja and Lomé Agreements, and we support the
transitional Government. In particular, we support the
implementation of commitments entered into at the Geneva
round table and aimed at organizing pluralistic elections and
at the reconstruction of the country.
Furthermore, while expressing our profound concern
about the persistence of conflict in Somalia, we hope that
our Somali brothers will engage in constructive dialogue
and in a spirit of responsibility and patriotism so that a
peaceful settlement can be reached and Somalia will again
be united and will regain its national sovereignty in an
atmosphere of stability and concord.
My country also welcomes the Peace Agreement
reached between the legitimate Government of Sierra
Leone and the Revolutionary United Front, and fervently
calls for stability and reconciliation in that country, which
suffered tremendously during eight years of devastating
war.
My country also notes with satisfaction the gradual
return of peace to the Republic of the Congo and urges
our Congolese brothers to continue their negotiations,
with a view to bringing about a peaceful settlement of
their dispute so that that fraternal country can once again
live in peace and harmony.
As regards the Democratic Republic of the Congo,
we welcome the diplomatic efforts of the fraternal
countries of the region, in particular South Africa and
Zambia, as well as the important role played by the leader
of the Libyan revolution, Colonel Muammar Al-Qadhafi,
in containing the crisis. In this regard, we welcome the
signing of the Lusaka Agreement.
As to Angola, my country expresses its profound
regret at the resumption of fighting between the
Government forces and the UNITA movement. In this
regard, we reaffirm our wholehearted support for Security
Council resolutions 864 (1993), 1127 (1997) and 1173
(1998) and urge UNITA to respect the obligations it
entered into under the Lusaka Protocol to restore peace
and security.
On the conflict between Ethiopia and Eritrea, we
urge the two parties to respect the ceasefire and to try to
find a peaceful settlement, on the basis of the plan of the
Organization of African Unity. In this context, we place
great hope in the good-offices mission of Mr. Abdelaziz
Bouteflika, current Chairman of the OAU, to bring about
a peaceful and equitable settlement of the conflict.
On Kosovo, my country notes with satisfaction the
progress achieved in putting an end to the violence,
restoring confidence and reconstructing what was
destroyed over the long period of war.
The United Nations was created in order to achieve
objectives shared by all humanity: the maintenance of
20

peace, security and stability throughout the world. The letter
and the spirit of the Charter of our Organization provide for
a just balance between the rights and obligations of all and
aim at achieving these common interests of the international
community. Therefore, today, as we are about to enter the
third millennium, we are duty-bound to devote our efforts
to honouring the commitments laid down in the Charter and
to work together to build a new world order based on
justice and directed towards preserving international peace
and security.


By way of introduction,
let me congratulate you, Sir, on your election as President
of the fifty-fourth session of the General Assembly and
wish you every success in the execution of your important
functions. I would like to use this opportunity also to
express thanks to your predecessor, Mr. Didier Opertti of
Uruguay, for his responsible work and for the efforts he has
devoted to United Nations activities throughout the year.
The Czech Republic is very pleased that after five
years the Assembly again has an opportunity to welcome
new United Nations Members — Nauru, Kiribati and
Tonga. This further expansion of the United Nations family
is evidence of its increasingly universal nature, which the
Czech Republic unequivocally supports.
This year marks an important milestone for the Czech
Republic, which this past spring became a member of the
North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), together with
Hungary and Poland. Recalling Article 1 of the Washington
Treaty, which refers to the United Nations Charter and
commits its members to address international conflicts by
peaceful means, we believe that this historic first
enlargement of the Alliance following the end of the cold
war will contribute to the enhancement of stability and
security, and do so not only in our region. We support
NATO’s continued enlargement through the inclusion of
other countries, and we are convinced that this first step
will also have a motivating and mobilizing character for
them.
NATO’s new strategic concept emphasizes its broad
approach to security issues; it envisages the necessity of
not only facing military risks but also of monitoring
economic, social, environmental and political issues that
may disrupt security and stability. NATO has
demonstrated that it has both the functional mechanisms
for crisis management and the capacities to manage
humanitarian crises. However, there is an obvious need
for the Alliance’s potential to be fully utilized by an
effective cooperation with the United Nations, which has
the ability to oversee the restoration of civil
administration and infrastructure. It is this close
cooperation that underlines the fact that our commitment
to peace is as strong as our will to challenge gross
violations of human rights by military means. And, of
course, the concept of regional security in Europe cannot
be imagined without NATO’s cooperating also with the
Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe
(OSCE), the Western European Union or the Council of
Europe.
Because development in Europe is profoundly
influenced by ever-deeper integration, the successful
completion of the long-term process of our country’s
entry into the European Union is currently the highest-
priority goal for Czech foreign policy. Having started
accession talks in the spring of last year, the Czech
Republic is promoting political dialogue with the
European Union member States and associated countries.
Through our active involvement in the Common Foreign
and Security Policy, we are assuming our share of
responsibility for development in Europe and the world,
obviously, to date, within the restrictive framework of our
status as an associated country. We attach major
importance to the social and environmental dimensions of
European integration. We are fully aware that the
importance of these dimensions will continue to increase
in order to keep up with the advancement of
globalization.
The disintegration of the bipolar world has brought
about a transition from confrontation to cooperation given
rise to efforts to create a new security architecture, and
led to integration processes, particularly on the European
continent. However, it has also brought about the
resurgence of dormant threats and the emergence of new
centres of instability. The Kosovo tragedy and other crises
have brought us closer to recognizing the importance of
the principle of the personal security of human beings and
its guarantees as a precondition of peace and security in
the world. The fact that the worst atrocities, which have
nothing in common with the civilized world, are still
46

being committed at the end of the twentieth century makes
this recognition all the more sad and alarming. In this
context, the Czech Republic would express its appreciation
and support for the work of the International Tribunal for
the Former Yugoslavia. The Czech Republic is convinced
that the international community’s efforts should result in
just punishment for all the atrocities committed.
The United Kingdom’s Secretary of State for Foreign
and Commonwealth Affairs, Robin Cook, correctly argued
here that we must counter the culture of impunity. All
criminals should be held to account. As Secretary- General
Kofi Annan said, massive and systematic violations of
human rights should not be allowed to stand, wherever they
may take place.
Kosovo will be the benchmark for the success
achieved by international institutions. Kosovo is now in a
period when it is necessary to defend peace, a period in
which to achieve political stability and democratization,
economic stabilization and a gradual development of the
region. The Czech Republic is interested in the region’s
stability in all respects. That is why it participated, in its
capacity as the currently presiding country of the Central
European Initiative, in the Stability Pact Summit meeting at
Sarajevo and why it will be working towards
democratization, economic reconstruction and security in
the region. We are, of course, fully aware that this is far
easier said than done. The obstacles on the road are
numerous and enormous.
The United Nations plays an irreplaceable role in
providing for international peace and security. The peaceful
resolution of disputes will undoubtedly continue to be one
of the main priorities of the United Nations. The Czech
Republic therefore attaches great importance to the use of
peacekeeping operations in dealing with crisis situations and
supports the efforts directed towards their greater efficiency,
particularly as regards their rapid deployment. Speed
appears to be the key aspect in many cases. However, the
United Nations must also have adequate funding to carry
out this demanding role effectively; unfortunately, its
financial resources are considerably limited at present
because of the fact that some Member States fail to honour
their financial obligations. The United Nations Interim
Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK) has been
marked by these problems: the Mission was not financially
secured to the degree which would have corresponded with
the security situation at hand and with the very difficult
task of restoring the civil administration in Kosovo. On the
other hand, it was probably the most rapidly deployed
mission in the history of the United Nations.
The importance of UNMIK is shown by the fact
that, as the highest civilian authority in Kosovo, it
coordinates activities of international regional
governmental and non-governmental organizations. The
Czech Republic greatly appreciates the positive
cooperation between UNMIK and KFOR, although it is
evident that the international security forces cannot in the
long term replace civilian administration and police
forces.
A major degree of responsibility lies on the
shoulders of the United Nations, and especially on those
of the Secretary-General’s Special Representative, Mr.
Bernard Kouchner, in Kosovo. I had an opportunity to get
to know his difficult task at first hand during my visit to
Pristina a few days ago. The Secretary-General’s Special
Representative needs the full support of the international
community in his efforts, including the transformation of
the UCK into a non-military Kosovo protection corps.
The Czech Republic obviously supports all steps and
measures which may bring about the establishment of a
democratic and multi-ethnic society in Kosovo as
stipulated by the Washington North Atlantic Treaty
Organization (NATO) Summit. Unfortunately, during my
stay in Kosovo I did not come across any convincing
evidence that that vision could really be implemented in
any foreseeable future — just the contrary. The
diminishing number of Serbs in Kosovo, the continuous
threats of murder — even to very old Serbian ladies —
the rising influence of a mafia, which Mr. Kouchner told
me about, the ever-present spirit of revenge, the lack of
trained police forces, the absence of local civil
administration, the disease of corruption and rivalry
between different sectors of the Kosovo Albanians are
just some of the obstacles which have to be dealt with
decisively in order to prevent the vision of the future
from becoming nothing but a never-fulfilled dream.
I wholeheartedly agree with the Secretary-General’s
unequivocal statement that commitment to humanitarian
action must be universal if it is to be legitimate. This
means not only that our commitment to peace and
stability cannot end with the cessation of hostilities but
that we have to be seen to be objective and even-handed
towards all ethnic groups, as well as towards all regions.
I am glad to note that the recent argument that “East
Timor is not Kosovo” was quietly dropped. The
Secretary-General has said that humanity, after all, is
indivisible; we have to wholeheartedly agree with him.
The Czech Republic intends to continue its
involvement in peace operations under the leadership of
47

both the United Nations and regional organizations, as
borne out by, among other actions, the operation of Czech
units under NATO command in Bosnia and Herzegovina as
well as in Kosovo. The first Czech policemen should arrive
in Kosovo to join the UNMIK police force within the next
five days. The number of police necessary to maintain civil
order in Kosovo is now more than double the figure
originally estimated, Mr. Kouchner told me. Police officials,
not the military, are trained to investigate murders or, even
more importantly, to take measures to prevent murders or
other grave challenges to law and order. The Czech
Republic is also prepared to consider sending military
observers to the United Nations peace missions in Sierra
Leone and the Democratic Republic of the Congo and, of
course, following a recent request we received from
Australia and the agreement on the Security Council
mandate, also to East Timor.
The Czech Republic is concerned about the
developments in East Timor. We welcome the fact that
after decades, the people of East Timor were given an
opportunity to implement their right to self-determination,
and we feel very shocked that the results of the referendum
led to bloodshed and indiscriminate killings. Indonesia’s
acceptance of the United Nations military peacekeeping
forces has made us confident that the United Nations will
succeed in ensuring peace in that area.
Peace and security in crisis-ridden areas are also
closely related to humanitarian relief, which is provided as
a rule to afflicted civilian populations. A radical
deterioration in the security situation may cause a
devastating humanitarian crisis, as we have seen in Kosovo.
Here, too, there is a need to look at the possibilities of
simplifying the United Nations decision-making
mechanisms. It is disturbing that, for example, the Office of
the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees did
not have sufficient resources and capacities to tackle the
humanitarian crisis in that region, which was due mainly to
somewhat rigid procedures.
One of the most important tasks of the international
community is undoubtedly to prevent the proliferation of
weapons of mass destruction and to eliminate them
completely. Our aim is still a world without any nuclear
weapons. With regard to the forthcoming Review
Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on the
Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT), to be held in
the year 2000, the Czech Republic calls for overcoming the
stagnation in negotiations on the relevant treaties supporting
the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons and for developing
more positive attitudes, particularly on the part of nuclear
countries, which will create a more favourable atmosphere
in the disarmament process and lead to the adoption of
clear, practical and implementable nuclear disarmament
measures in the new millennium.
There is no question but that early ratification of the
START II Treaty between the United States and Russia
would help considerably to revive the disarmament
process. We consider the achievement of universal
applicability of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of
Nuclear Weapons (NPT) and of the Comprehensive
Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT) and their speedy
ratification a very urgent task. In this respect, we
particularly appreciate the CTBT ratification by France
and by the United Kingdom. The Czech Republic hopes
that the conference of CTBT countries, to be held at
Vienna in October this year, will help to accelerate
ratification in other countries.
We welcome efforts to improve the effectiveness of
the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical
Weapons, and we continue to express our support for
early negotiation of a verification protocol to the
Convention on the Prohibition of the Development,
Production and Stockpiling of Bacteriological (Biological)
and Toxin Weapons and on Their Destruction.
Regarding conventional arms, the Czech Republic
supports all measures that contribute to greater
transparency. It consistently fulfils its obligations to notify
the relevant registers and supports the efforts for an
expansion of their procedures which would cover
additional types of weapons. The Czech Republic also
fully shares the international community’s grave concern
over illegal transfers of hand-held and light weapons, and
supports all measures required to stop such activities. In
the context of the international efforts to limit and ban the
use of anti-personnel landmines, I can inform the
Assembly with satisfaction that, following last year’s
ratification of Protocol II to the Convention on
Prohibitions or Restrictions on the Use of Certain
Conventional Weapons Which May Be Deemed to Be
Excessively Injurious or to Have Indiscriminate Effects,
the Czech Republic has completed the process of ratifying
the Ottawa Convention on the Prohibition of the Use,
Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of Anti-personnel
Mines and on Their Destruction and will soon deposit our
ratification instrument with the Secretary-General. We
support all efforts towards achieving universal
applicability of that Convention. We continue to be
involved in international activities focused on demining
and on providing help to landmine victims.
48

The Czech Republic welcomed the enlargement of the
Conference on Disarmament by another five countries, to
which I extend warm congratulations. At the same time we
express our hope that the Conference on Disarmament will
succeed in overcoming the current stagnation and will start
talks not only on a treaty banning the production of fissile
materials for military purposes but also on other topical
problems of arms control and disarmament, including
nuclear disarmament, and on security guarantees for non-
nuclear countries.
There is no doubt that this year has been a real test for
the United Nations, as well as a critical test of transnational
decision-making during crises. This test, so crucial for the
future of the United Nations, has not yet been concluded
and properly evaluated. It is not only Kosovo that has
revealed that the United Nations in its present form does
not make full use of its potential to be an irreplaceable
vehicle for achieving the goals set out in the Charter. At the
threshold of the third millennium, the Organization
therefore looks for an answer to the question of how the
international community can become a truly responsible
community and what role the United Nations will play in
this process.
In our view, the United Nations must first of all
respond to the changed substance of conflicts in today’s
world. These are not classical conflicts between States but,
in most cases, internal conflicts rather similar to civil wars.
The United Nations and the international community in
general face the need to clearly define the relationship
between national sovereignty and the protection of human
rights and ultimately to engage in a discussion on how they
should support sensible civilian Governments that keep
armed forces under control. In this context, we should
clearly focus on the Secretary-General’s argument about
individual sovereignty and the right of every individual to
control his or her own destiny.
Secondly, the urgency of a radical acceleration of the
process of United Nations reform, particularly reform of the
Security Council, is becoming increasingly evident. The
Czech Republic fully supports the Secretary-General’s
reform efforts, and I would like to share the optimism
concerning early substantial progress in reform negotiations
which Mr. Annan expressed to me during our talks in
Prague last July. I have to admit that we consider the
results of this year’s negotiations, especially those on
Security Council reform, to be inadequate. This, of course,
corresponds to the role of the United Nations during the
initial stages of the Kosovo conflict. The composition of the
Security Council requires change. The Czech Republic
believes that the number of both permanent and non-
permanent members of the Security Council needs to be
increased, while representation of developing countries
has to be strengthened.
Thirdly, conflict-prevention mechanisms need to be
created, and attention should be devoted to questions such
as discrimination, poverty, access to raw materials and the
arms trade. The arms trade does not include only
extensive, elaborate weapons systems. It is the excessive
accumulation of hand-held and other small arms which
above all requires our tough response, because these
personal weapons play a key role in most conflicts. I
would like to express my full support for the call by the
United Kingdom Foreign Secretary, Robin Cook, to halt
the illegal trade in small arms. Cooperation with regional
organizations such as the Organization for Security and
Cooperation in Europe and the Organization of African
Unity, which may be more successful in dealing with
conflicts, should also play a role in preventing conflicts.
I very much welcome the Secretary-General’s emphasis
here on moving from a culture of reaction to a culture of
prevention.
Fourthly, the role of the United Nations in the area
of human rights and as part of a broader concept of
human security should be considerably intensified. We
welcomed the Secretary-General’s personal statement in
his address at this year’s session of the Commission on
Human Rights, in which he said, “I have made human
rights a priority in every United Nations programme”.
This, it seems to me, accurately reflects the importance
which the United Nations should give human rights issues
in the future. The United Nations should ensure that the
universal nature of human rights is accepted and projected
as a leading principle for the conduct of the international
community. By our joint efforts we should guarantee a
dignified and complete life for every individual in the
next millennium. It is unacceptable at the threshold of the
new millennium to claim that human rights are relative
and that their violation by sovereign States on their own
territory is solely their internal affair and as such may not
be a subject of interest to other members of the
international community. If the United Nations were
unable publicly to defend the existence of human rights,
it would be unable to defend its own existence.
At the same time, let us not forget the Secretary-
General’s warning about the need to ensure universal
legitimacy, which he issued in connection with the
bombing campaign against Yugoslavia. Incidentally, the
new Czech Government has adopted a foreign policy
49

concept which regards human rights as one of its main
pillars and which at the same time stresses the desirability
of United Nations mandates for peace-enforcing operations.
Fifthly, it is in the vital interest of the United Nations
for the world to step into the twenty-first century under the
rule of law in international relations. The situation in the
former Yugoslavia, including developments in Kosovo,
clearly shows the extremely important role already played
today by international judicial bodies in enhancing the
prestige of international law and its gradual integration into
the political decision-making processes. The implementation
of international law by the United Nations international
judicial bodies has considerable positive influence on how
global public opinion perceives the United Nations itself.
Let me now touch briefly on one more serious
problem. Recent earthquakes in Turkey, Greece and Taiwan
have underlined the need for the world to be prepared to
provide coordinated help to an area hit by a massive natural
disaster. This experience should, in our view, lead to the
further strengthening and deepening of the idea already
presented some time ago, namely, the idea of the “White
Helmets”. The challenge is to extend “White Helmets“ into
regular international rescue forces under United Nations
leadership, capable of coordinated action on the spot —
naturally, with the consent of the countries receiving such
assistance. The ultimate goal could be the formation of rapid-
response international forces, formed of national
contingents and permanently available, well-equipped expert
groups which could be dispatched to the stricken area in a
matter of minutes or hours.
In conclusion, let us remind ourselves once again that
the future of the United Nations is primarily a matter of the
political will of its Member States. Finding answers to the
questions which have been raised at this year’s session of
the General Assembly is therefore not only up to the United
Nations, but up to the entire international community. The
Millennium Assembly should give us a major opportunity
for finding answers to these questions. I also hope that the
Millennium Assembly will contribute decisively to the
acceleration of work on the United Nations reforms, the
need for which was so clearly highlighted by the Kosovo
crisis. I am sure that the recovery of the commitment to
multilateralism and to the leading United Nations role in the
struggle to uphold basic Charter values, such as democracy,
human rights and the rule of law, is now in sight.
My traditionally cautious optimism was, I admit,
slightly strengthened in this respect by listening here to
some politicians representing countries with far more
resources than the Czech Republic has at its disposal. Our
resources are, unfortunately, fairly limited. Nevertheless,
we will continue to support the United Nations and, as I
have said, to participate in its missions to pour millions
of dollars into humanitarian and development aid, and so
on. The point I wish to make clear in this speech, even so
late in the evening, is that we will always be ready to
help.


It gives
me great pleasure to congratulate you, Mr. President, and
the sisterly country of Namibia on your election to chair
25

the proceedings of the fifty-fourth session of the General
Assembly. This choice is truly an honour for our continent
and a tribute to your promising country. We are convinced
that under your leadership our work this year will be
successful, and this session will constructively result in the
realization of our expectations.
I would also like to express appreciation and gratitude
to your predecessor, Mr. Didier Opertti, Foreign Minister of
the friendly country of Uruguay, for his excellent conduct
of the work of the previous session.
We also welcome the new Member States that have
joined our Organization: the Republic of Kiribati, the
Republic of Nauru and the Kingdom of Tonga.
I should also like to take this opportunity to thank the
Secretary-General of our Organization, Mr. Kofi Annan, for
his admirable management of the Organization and for his
commendable efforts to infuse it with a new dynamism so
that its organs can fulfil our aspirations. He deserves our
admiration and appreciation.
Many important events have marked this century to
which we are about to bid farewell. They have led to a new
political and economic balance of power and a modification
of the international system. With the disintegration of
borders, the evolution of means of communication and the
spread of globalization in the financial and technological
fields, the universality of the issues affecting mankind has
become the most distinctive characteristic of international
relations, and the problems of the age have become too
difficult for individual countries to resolve.
The tragedies witnessed over the last few years,
including ethnic cleansing and blatant defiance of the
universal human conscience, call more than ever before for
pooling the efforts of the international community and
consolidating the role and the efficiency of the United
Nations, which is indeed the best-suited forum for settling
international disputes. This would make it possible for the
Organization to fully shoulder its responsibilities and keep
abreast of current challenges, while displaying a political
will that would enhance its credibility and strengthen its
ability to achieve its goals.
As regards the Security Council, current events on the
international scene require that we reconsider its working
methods and its composition in order to enhance its
credibility, promote its ability to preserve international
peace and security and ensure balanced representation in its
membership on the basis of equitable geographical
distribution.
Economic and social conditions in the world still
rank high among the concerns of mankind. Indeed, as
illustrated by widely divergent indicators between the
North and the South, the world is suffering from a
widening gap in economic and social conditions and
strong disparities in human development. Those ever-
increasing disparities constitute a basic factor in the
instability that characterizes our world today. This
imbalance has led to a proliferation of poverty in various
parts of the world, as well as to the spread of illiteracy,
unemployment and several other social ills that now
threaten world peace and security.
We recall with appreciation the distinguished role
played by the United Nations, as it has developed over
the last few years a special interest in various economic
and social development issues.
Morocco is fully aware of the importance of social
development as a fundamental means of achieving
comprehensive development. This awareness was the
cornerstone of several pioneering initiatives taken by
Morocco to overcome social problems, especially the
plague of poverty. To that end, an institution known as
the Mohammed V Solidarity Foundation was set up, and
is now under the supervision of His Majesty King
Mohammed, to fight poverty by mobilizing the active
components of civil society.
In keeping with its firm belief that individual and
collective prosperity cannot take place outside the
purview of democracy and respect for human rights,
Morocco has taken keen interest in the consolidation of
human rights and democratic practices. Hence, Morocco
has undertaken some pioneering initiatives in the area of
promoting human rights, disseminating a human rights
culture, and protecting them against any violation or
transgression. It has enhanced the role of the various
components of civil society, including institutions that
promote the role of women, in various political,
economic, social and cultural fields. Opting for the
multiparty system and democratic alternation of
government as a political system, Morocco has made
human rights and fundamental freedoms an individual and
a collective principle that is considered a strong pillar of
the Moroccan political system. This, in turn, has made it
possible for Morocco to hold a distinguished position
among the countries that have adopted democracy as a
system and as a way of life.
26

Convinced of the absolute necessity of coexistence
with its neighbours, in keeping with the strong historical
ties between Morocco and Spain, and given the desire of
both countries to further enhance their cooperation and
good neighbourliness, Morocco has been calling for the
implementation of the initiative of the late King Hassan II
aimed at setting up a joint Moroccan-Spanish working
group to reach a final settlement of the current status of the
two cities, Ceuta and Melilla, and the neighbouring islands,
in a way that ensures Morocco’s sovereignty over those
regions while guaranteeing Spain’s economic interests. We
do hope that the deep historical ties between the two
countries, the solid and privileged relations that exist
between them, and the ambitions of both peoples to achieve
further rapprochement and cooperation, will be a strong
incentive towards reaching a final solution to this problem,
satisfactory to both parties.
Ever since their independence, Arab Maghreb
countries have believed in the inevitable necessity to
achieve regional integration in order to counter the
challenges of development and to ensure the progress and
prosperity of their peoples. In keeping with those
objectives, the Arab Maghreb Union was set up as a
reflection of the region’s age-old shared history and an
embodiment of its peoples’ unity of faith, language, history
and common destiny. Given the blocs and groupings that
characterize the world today and the challenges imposed by
the current economic situation, we believe that it is
necessary to pursue efforts to give fresh impetus to the
Arab Maghreb Union as well as a new dynamism to its
various organs, while strengthening cooperation among its
members so that it may discharge its mission by taking up
development challenges and building an integrated Maghreb
economy.
Morocco welcomes with deep satisfaction the positive
developments witnessed on the Lockerbie issue, which have
led to the suspension of the sanctions imposed on the
sisterly Libyan Arab Jamahiriya. Because of its solidarity
with that country, a founding member of the Arab Maghreb
Union and one of the pioneering leaders among Arab and
African countries, Morocco notes with deep regret the long
lasting hardships and the grave tragedy endured by the
Libyan people due to the embargo imposed on them. We
hope that sanctions applied to the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya
will be completely and definitively lifted as soon as
possible, on the basis of the principles of justice and equity,
and that the sisterly Libyan Arab Jamahiriya will resume its
constructive role, within the international community, for
the establishment of security, stability and peace.
The international community has followed with
satisfaction the beginning of a comprehensive settlement
of the Middle East crisis. This has been achieved through
various agreements reached by the parties concerned, the
latest being the Sharm el-Sheikh Memorandum. Those
accords rekindled the hopes of the peoples of the region
in building a new future based on security, stability and
coexistence. The agreements that have been signed —
which are founded on the principle of land for peace —
set the stage for a new era based on international law, as
attested to by the commitments made by the parties
concerned. The accords uphold the right of all peoples of
the region to live in security and stability, and the right of
the Palestinian people in particular to exercise self-
determination and to establish its independent State.
The brotherly Iraqi people have been suffering for
years from the impact of an economic embargo that has
had pernicious effects on them, especially children,
women and the elderly. As it voices full solidarity with
the fraternal Iraqi people, Morocco calls for the pooling
of international efforts in order to lift the embargo and to
find a peaceful settlement to this problem within the
framework of international law and in compliance with
Security Council resolutions. In this respect, we stress the
need to preserve the sovereignty of Iraq, its security and
its territorial integrity.
Solving the many problems affecting Africa requires
that the international community seriously tackle the
economic and social conditions and the various conflicts
that beset most African countries, conditions that have
had a negative effect on the hopes of African peoples, as
well as on their legitimate right to achieve comprehensive
development and to live under stable and safe conditions.
Being deeply committed to our ties of brotherhood
and solidarity with all African countries, Morocco has
consistently placed African issues at the forefront of its
concerns. As a token of its unwavering solidarity with
African countries, Morocco devotes 95 per cent of its
annual international assistance appropriations to African
countries.
Morocco has followed with keen interest the
international endeavours aimed at restoring peace in
Kosovo and at putting an end to the bloody conflict and
ethnic-cleansing campaigns that have claimed the lives of
thousands of innocents Kosovars, in blatant violation of
international law and of the most fundamental principles
of human rights. Given its keen desire to strengthen peace
in the region, Morocco has expressed its readiness to
27

participate in KFOR and has made all possible humanitarian
efforts to provide material assistance to Kosovar refugees.
To this end, it also set up, at the initiative of Her Royal
Highness Princess Lalla Meryem, a fund to collect
donations for Kosovar children.
Because of its geographical location, its historical ties
and its economic and cultural relations with Mediterranean
countries, Morocco believes that the consolidation of
security and stability and the promotion of cooperation in
the region are an absolute necessity. Thus Morocco took
part in the Euro-Mediterranean dialogue, from the
Barcelona conference to the Stuttgart conference, which
provided an opportunity to assess the Barcelona process
three years after its inception. During the Stuttgart
conference Morocco voiced its conviction that for security
and stability to prevail in the Mediterranean basin there has
to be an effective partnership between the countries of the
region that takes into consideration the political, economic,
social and cultural dimensions.
The Kingdom of Morocco has always taken a great
interest in the question of disarmament, because it is linked
both to international peace and security and to economic
and social development. In this respect, we reiterate the
need to ensure that all the countries of the Middle East
region join the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear
Weapons and submit their facilities to the safeguards
system of the International Atomic Energy Agency. This
action, along with making the Middle East region a nuclear-
weapons-free zone, would be a decisive contribution to
restoring confidence and peace in that region.
As regards the question of the referendum in our
southern desert provinces, Morocco reiterates its full
support for the efforts of the United Nations, especially
those of the Secretary-General, Mr. Kofi Annan, aimed at
completing the process as soon as possible and under
conditions most conducive to transparency, justice and
success. As a contribution towards that objective, Morocco
has endeavoured, from the start of the process, to inform
the United Nations of any deviations that might affect the
legitimate rights of the potential participants in the
referendum. Thus, following the publication of the first part
of the preliminary lists of the Sahraouis that have been
identified, Morocco expressed concern over practices that
have affected the identification process and have led to the
elimination of thousands of names of people of Sahraoui
origin, despite the fact that they had met the agreed criteria
and conditions.
It is our dearest hope that the United Nations will
come up with equitable solutions that take into
consideration our concerns and those of thousands of
Sahraoui candidates who, had they not been compelled to
leave the region because of the fight they were waging
against colonialism, would have been covered by the
census and therefore been accepted directly by the
Identification Commission.
The phenomenon of economic globalization has been
swiftly developing and expanding. It has led to a
liberalization of markets, swifter exchange relations,
enhanced global productivity and greater financial flows.
The economic changes affecting the international arena
call for a comprehensive review of the rules of
international economic interactions in order to adapt them
to those changes and to the development needs of all of
humanity. This aspect was at the forefront of the concerns
of His Majesty King Mohammed VI in the address he
delivered, when he was Crown Prince, on the occasion of
the fiftieth anniversary of the multilateral trading system,
celebrated in Geneva in 1998. His Majesty pointed out
that
“the comprehensive project advocated by the
founders of our system remains fragile because of
the fate of hundreds of millions of people who will
not accept indefinite marginalization while
tremendous progress and prosperity are being
enjoyed by the advanced countries of the world.”
In future negotiations, and within the framework of
the World Trade Organization, Morocco is of the view
that the adoption of a global and balanced approach
reflecting the legitimate interests of all countries, while
taking into account the developmental dimension of
advanced countries, should be the best means to achieve
a just and balanced international trade system. Morocco
believes that effective solutions to the debt problem
should not be restricted to partial alleviation of the debt
burden of some countries only, but should, rather, take
the form of a comprehensive policy to stimulate the
economic activity of debt-ridden developing countries
through promoting their exports and encouraging direct
foreign investments in them.
Following the ninth ministerial meeting of the Group
of 77 and China — which I had the honour of chairing
and which was held in Marrakesh, Morocco, from 13 to
16 September 1999, in preparation for the tenth session of
the United Nations Conference on Trade and
28

Development — the Group of 77 and China adopted the
Marrakesh Declaration, which pointed out that
“the disparities in the scope and impact of
globalization have led to economic disharmony, both
at the international and national levels. This translates
into new challenges to our development ambitions.
Many developing countries are facing difficulties in
their attempts to effectively integrate with the world
economy and are suffering the consequences of
globalization.”
In conclusion, we believe that, as we stand on the
threshold of the new millennium, the international
community should exert greater efforts to create a political,
economic and social environment conducive to further
cooperation and rapprochement among peoples, so that all
of mankind can enjoy the fruits of peace and live in
prosperity and tranquility.