Jerusalem is not for sale and the rights of the Palestinian people are not for bargaining. Peace be upon the General Assembly. We will keep our faith in peace, we will maintain peace, and we will achieve our independent State with peace, because God is with us, our cause is just, our people have sacrificed a great deal and Assembly members are supporters of peace. God Almighty is against those who are unjust. Allah will suffice me, and He is the best guardian.
During last year’s general debate, I came before the Assembly (see A/72/PV.8) appealing for freedom, independence and justice for my oppressed people, who have been suffering under the yoke of Israeli occupation for 51 years. I return to the Assembly today, as that colonial occupation  continues  to  suffocate  us, undermining our unwavering efforts to build the institutions of our cherished State, which the General Assembly recognized in the year 2011.
This year the Palestinian National Council,  which is the Parliament of Palestine, convened and renewed the legitimacy of our national institutions through the election of a new leadership for the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO),  the sole  and legitimate representative of the Palestinian  people. The Parliament took important decisions that
committed me to reconsidering the political, economic and security agreements that have been reached with the Israeli Government, and to reviewing the future  of the Palestinian National Authority, which has, unfortunately, been rendered powerless. In addition, the Parliament asked me to suspend the Palestinian recognition of the State of Israel until Israel in turn recognizes the State of Palestine based on the 4 June 1967 borders. Moreover, it requested that I approach international courts, including the International Criminal Court, to have them investigate the Israeli Government’s breaches of the treaties it has signed, and investigate the aggressions of the Israeli army and the terrorist practices of settlers against our people, our land and our holy sites. The Assembly will note that every single day, Israeli settlers, and even the Israeli army, desecrate our holy sites, in particular the Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.
Last July, Israel adopted a racist law that crossed every red line. It is called the Jewish nation-State law. It denies the connection of the Palestinian people to their historic homeland and dismisses their right to self- determination, their history and the United Nations resolutions relevant to the Palestinian question. It also denies the agreements concluded with Israel, which will inevitably lead to the creation of a single racist, apartheid State, thereby nullifying the possibility of a two-State solution. Israel practices racism but has now crowned its practice with that new law.
The new law also discriminates against Arab citizens of Israel, granting the right to self-determination in the State of Israel exclusively to Jews and thereby legalizing discrimination against the Arab citizens, who make up 20 per cent of the population of Israel. In addition, the law discriminates against other non-Jews who have immigrated into Israel, stripping them of their citizenship rights. At least 5 per cent of Israel’s current population are non-Jews, mostly Christian and Muslim immigrants, many of whom emigrated from the former Soviet Union. Those people have also been stripped of their rights to citizenship.
The new law constitutes a gross political and legal violation, as well as a real threat that reminds us  of the apartheid State that existed in South Africa. We therefore strongly reject and condemn it. We further call on the international community and the Assembly to take action to reject and condemn it as a racist and

illegal law that is null and void, as the United Nations did when it condemned the former apartheid State of South Africa in several resolutions, bearing in mind that thousands of Jews and Israeli citizens have also rejected the new law and demonstrated against it. Fifty-six of the Knesset’s 120 members have rejected it, because they deem it a law of racial discrimination. I therefore call on the United Nations to follow in the footsteps of those Israeli citizens who have rejected it.
That racist  law  talks  about  the  so-called  land of Israel. Could Assembly members ask the Israeli Government what exactly the land of Israel is? What are the borders of the State of Israel? I challenge anyone to give me an answer and bring me a map that shows Israel’s borders. That racist law constitutes another stigma for the State of Israel and for anyone who keeps silent about it, as well as about other Israeli laws that legitimize piracy, the confiscation of land and the seizure of the funds of the Palestinian people.
We have always engaged positively with the various initiatives of the international community that seek to achieve peace between us and the Israelis, including the Arab Peace Initiative, which was recognized by the Security Council in resolution 1515 (2003).
We have also been dealing with the Administration of President Trump from the beginning of his tenure in the same positive spirit, and we welcomed his promise to launch a peace initiative. I have met with him on numerous occasions. While we eagerly awaited his peace initiative, we were shocked by the decisions and actions he took that completely contradict the role and commitment of his Administration to the peace process. In November 2017, his Administration made a decision to close the PLO office in Washington, D.C. He then announced his recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and moved his country’s Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. He even boasts that he has taken the issues of Jerusalem, refugees, settlements and security off the negotiating table.
All such decisions threaten the Palestinian national cause and constitute a violation of international law and the relevant United Nations resolutions. The United States Administration went  even  further  in its aggression by cutting assistance to the Palestinian National Authority, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) and Palestinian hospitals in occupied East
Jerusalem. Then they talk about humanitarian aid, and even that they have already stopped.
With all of those decisions, the Administration has reneged on previous United States commitments and undermined the possibility of a two-State solution, while revealing the falsity of its claims of concern about the humanitarian conditions of the Palestinian people. It is very ironic that the United States Administration still talks about what it calls the “deal of the century”. What is there left for the Administration to offer the Palestinian people? Humanitarian solutions alone?  If it has removed Jerusalem, refugees, security and other issues from the negotiation table, what is left for a political solution in the Middle East?
The United States Congress continues to insist on viewing the PLO as a terrorist organization, although it is recognized as the sole and legitimate representative of the Palestinian people by the overwhelming majority of countries of the world, including Israel. However, the United States Congress continues to claim that the PLO is a terrorist organization, even though it is recognized by Israel, while the State of Palestine is cooperating with a majority of countries of the world, including the United States, to combat terrorism. Why is there then such animosity towards the Palestinian people, who are suffering under the yoke of an occupation that is supported by the United States?
We would like to tell that Administration that our position is firm and clear for all to see. We challenge them to find a single mistake that we have made during our long journey. However, the United States Congress says that the PLO is a terrorist organization. Why? I do not know. The Congress has decided and we must listen.
For years, we have  affirmed  to  the  United States Administration  our  willingness  to  establish  a Palestinian-American committee to examine the political and legal status of the PLO, as a means of demonstrating to the  Administration  that  the  PLO  is committed to achieving peace and combating terrorism, as well as showing that the decision of the Congress regarding the PLO is arbitrary, unlawful and unjustified, while the Congress deliberately ignores the official agreement between the PLO and the United States Administration on combating terrorism, an agreement that we have also concluded with 83 other countries. We have protocols with 83 countries under the  heading  of   combating  terrorism,  including  the

United States. However, the United States Congress calls us terrorists.
Despite all of that, I renew from this rostrum my call to President Trump to rescind his decisions and decrees regarding Jerusalem, refugees and settlements, which contravene international law and the relevant United Nations resolutions, as well as  the  understandings that we have reached aimed at salvaging the peace process and achieving security and stability for future generations. Incidentally, here is an example of those understandings. There is a letter signed by the United States Administration and ourselves concerning many issues, but the Administration now ignores all of them.
Consistent with our commitment to peace and a two-State solution, and the negotiations that we never rejected leading to their achievement, I challenge anyone to cite a single instance in which we refused  to come to the negotiation table. On the contrary, we have been invited more than once by several countries in this very Hall to sit  down with the Israelis and  with Mr.  Netanyahu. Every  single  time, I  accepted.  I challenge anyone to tell me that I ever refused or  that he accepted even once. We have never refused those negotiations, because we want to rescue the peace process. I appeared before the Security Council on 20 February of this year (see S/PV.8183) and presented an initiative calling for the convening of an international peace conference based on the relevant United Nations resolutions and internationally endorsed terms of reference. Such a conference should involve broad international participation, including of regional and international stakeholders, led by the permanent members of the Security Council and the Quartet. We will circulate to Members a document laying out the initiative in its entirety and hope that the Assembly will adopt it.
In that regard, I reiterate that we are not at all against negotiations, and we have never once rejected them. We will continue to extend our hand to achieve peace. We believe in peace as the only path to reach our cause, as I said at the beginning of my statement. We do not believe in violence and terrorism. We miss no opportunity to reiterate that fact. What is required of us? Negotiations on the basis of international legitimacy? None of the international legitimacy resolutions since 1947 has been respected up to now, so what solutions are we talking about?
Peace in our region cannot be realized without an independent Palestinian State with East Jerusalem as its capital including all the holy sites. Some people try to outsmart us by asserting that our capital is in Abu Deis and other places  surrounding  Jerusalem.  That is a manipulation of words. No. Our capital is East Jerusalem, not “in East Jerusalem”. I would ask others not to try to outsmart us by saying “Abu Deis” or “in East Jerusalem” so that they can pick and choose an area here or there. No, it is East Jerusalem, which has been occupied since 1967, that is our capital.
Peace is not possible otherwise, because there can be no peace in a State of temporary and unknown borders, like the State of Israel with its unknown borders. They invented the idea of a State with temporary borders and said: “We will give you a State but with unknown borders”. Subsequently, they said, “Let us talk”. No, we unconditionally want a State with very well-defined borders and rights. Only then can  we  coexist  with the Israelis.
There are 138 States in the Assembly that have recognized the State  of  Palestine,  recently  joined  by Colombia. That makes 139.  I  therefore  call  on  the countries of the world that have yet to recognize the State of Palestine to make that long-overdue recognition happen. I can no longer see a convincing reason justifying the continued delay in the recognition of the State of Palestine by certain countries. In that regard, I want to draw the Assembly’s attention to the fact that in 2019 the State of Palestine will chair the Group of 77 and China. Ten minutes ago, I met His Excellency President Al Sisi of Egypt in a conference room, and he announced that we have been freely elected by 134 countries to chair the Group of 77 and China. Nevertheless, there are certain countries that say, “We recognize both countries”. If so, why do they not recognize Palestine? That is entirely unacceptable. We tell those countries that if they recognize us, it does not mean that we will not pursue negotiations. On the contrary, that will bolster our international standing, and, together with their support, we will be able to participate in negotiations assisted by their recognition of the State of Palestine. That recognition should not be unilateral in the sense of recognizing one State only, while refusing to recognize the other. They have to recognize both States.
I would like to remind the Assembly once again that Israel has not implemented a single one of the hundreds of General Assembly resolutions on this topic.

The General Assembly has adopted 705 resolutions on the problem since 1947. And the Security Council has adopted 86 resolutions since 1948. Not a single resolution has been implemented by Israel. Unfortunately, I have to say frankly that Israel is supported in that by the United States. The General Assembly gave us 139 votes in favour, while 42 States abstained. Only eight countries voted against. For how long will Israel be an outlaw, do whatever it wishes and act as a rebel backed by whomever it wants?
We are resisting the Israeli occupation by legitimate means that have been recognized by the United Nations and include primarily peaceful popular resistance.  We will use no other means, only peaceful popular resistance. Is that illegal? By contrast, Israeli settlers are using weapons against the Palestinian people. They destroy cities, towns and villages with their weapons. I am not talking about the army and the police. I am talking about the Israeli settlers. We reject and will continue to reject violence and the use of force. We will reject every type of weapon and will not accept the use of arms anywhere. We call on the world to pursue efforts to achieve disarmament, including of both nuclear and traditional weapons.
We currently face a problem in Khan Al-Ahmar, where Israel is insistent on destroying a village that has been populated by Palestinians for more than 50 years. If Israel destroys that village, it will be  destroying  the unity of the West Bank, which will consequently be divided into north and south. That is what Israel wants to do. Does the Assembly agree with that? There is also the continued aggression against the Al-Aqsa Mosque. Does the Assembly remember the previous attacks on Al-Aqsa, which were stopped by peaceful popular resistance? We are now being told that the Israeli Supreme Court will approve a decision to divide Al-Aqsa by time and space. We will definitely not accept that, and I am sure that people with courage, dignity and a desire for peace will not accept it either. Israel should bear the brunt. Its senseless thuggery must come to an end. Every day there is a new decision taken as though we do not exist.
A United Nations resolution (resolution ES- 10/20) was successfully adopted for our international protection, because every day we are being attacked, and we are not capable of protecting ourselves. That resolution  was  adopted,  but  who  will  implement it? In all honesty, it is not sufficient for the General Assembly to adopt a resolution without implementing
it just like other resolutions. The General Assembly must respect its own resolutions. We applauded that resolution, but it is not being implemented. Please, tell us how we can implement that resolution. That is the Assembly’s responsibility.
While we welcome the economic and humanitarian support being provided through legitimate international institutions to our people in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, we reject the notion that such support can be considered a substitute for a political settlement. Our cause has many humanitarian aspects, but with a political settlement, that humanitarian aid would not be needed. Do not try to fool us by saying that the Assembly is helping us.
We want the right to the self-determination of our people, no more, no less. Any people, large or small, should enjoy the right to self-determination. There are 13 million Palestinians around the world. Why are we being denied the right to self-determination? It would harm no one. We want to establish an independent State that will live alongside the State of Israel. What is wrong with that? What crime we would be committing?
We  are  facing  another  problem.  We  continue  to make genuine and serious efforts to put an end to the current division in our governance and achieve reconciliation despite the many obstacles preventing us from attaining those aims. To this day, we still uphold our responsibilities towards our people in the Gaza Strip.
We express our appreciation to our Arab brethren, particularly our brother Arab Republic of Egypt, for their efforts to end the division, hoping that those efforts will be successful. We entered into an agreement, with Egypt as a sponsor, on 12 October 2017. The agreement is very simple. The Palestinian Government will carry out its responsibilities, both in Gaza and in the West Bank, and then we will establish our State on a basis of unified law, authority, regime and legitimate arms. We reject the notion of militias. However, that agreement has not been accepted by the other party. Perhaps, over the coming days, we will witness a final round of talks before taking the next steps. I would like to sum up by saying the following.
First, the Palestinian population numbers  about 13 million human beings, even if not everyone views them as human beings. We are not superfluous people. A population is never superfluous, regardless of its size. Why are we treated as a superfluous people that the

world should get rid of? That is totally unacceptable. Yet we are patient and steadfast, and we believe in peace and in peaceful means. We want to be viewed as humans. We are not superfluous.
Secondly, we have entered into agreements with the United States Administration, which has, however, reneged on all those agreements. We  are committed  to and will abide by our part of the agreements, but if the United States Administration fails to honour them, then we will not abide by them either. So an agreement should be respected by all parties to it. I respect those agreements fully, but if the other side does not respect them, I will not respect them or be committed to them either. The United States wishes to act as a mediator, and yet we see now that the United States cannot single-handedly act as a mediator. We have the Middle East Quartet, which any country can join, whether from Europe, the Americas, Africa or even the Arab region. Any country may join the Quartet to act as a mediator between Palestine and Israel, but the United States cannot act as the sole mediator, because it is too biased towards Israel.
Thirdly, there are also agreements with Israel, such as the Oslo Accords and the Paris Agreement. Those agreements have all been abrogated by Israel, and we call on it to re-engage with them. If it does not, we  will certainly not uphold our commitments. We have also concluded an agreement with Hamas, and our brothers in Egypt recognize that we have upheld our side of the agreement. However, Hamas has failed to fulfil its obligations, which is why we will not bear any responsibility from now on for the failure of that agreement, if Hamas insists on rejecting it. I would like to be perfectly clear that we will not bear any responsibility while Hamas continues to refuse to abide by the agreement.
Despite all the injustice we experience from the world, we will never resort to violence or terrorism. We will continue to combat violence and terrorism all over the world. We will never accept aggression against any country, whether that country recognizes us or not and whether it likes us or not.
I would like to make a very important point. The United States Administration stated that the number  of Palestinian refugees is only 40,000. How was that number calculated? It need only consult UNRWA to see that the number it has calculated is wrong. It does not want to consult UNRWA; rather, it wants to obliterate
it, so as to end the refugee issue forever. UNRWA was established in 1949 in order to help the Palestinian refugees until their issue is resolved. To this day, that issue has not been resolved. Of 13 million Palestinians, there are still 6 million refugees — not 40,000, as claimed by the United States Administration. That number has been arrived at haphazardly by the Administration, just the way it decided to abolish UNRWA and expected the world to agree with it. No, that will never happen.
Lastly, I call on our people to remain patient and steadfast and to continue to make sacrifices until we achieve independence and self-determination, with the establishment of an independent State with Jerusalem as its capital, not merely “in Jerusalem”. Let them not fool us. I pay tribute to our righteous martyrs and our courageous prisoners. Israel considers them criminals. Why? Israel has thousands of people who have attacked all kinds of people and are considered heroes. Why is it that the person who killed Yitzhak Rabin is considered a hero, while our people are criminals?
I send greetings to our heroic martyrs and prisoners. I would like to say to everyone that soon the dawn of freedom and independence will shine and the dark occupation will come to an end, God willing.


At the outset, I want to welcome Ms. María Fernanda Espinosa Garcés,  who  is  assuming  the  presidency of the General Assembly at its seventy-third session, and to wish her a successful mandate. I am sure that her role will promote the multilateral system. She has Peru’s support.
I assumed the presidency of Peru just six months ago, when my country was facing a serious political and institutional crisis that we dealt with by ensuring full respect for the provisions of our political Constitution, which made it possible to restore the democratic stability that my country had been  longing  for.  A  few days after my term began, we had the honour of welcoming the leaders of 30 countries to the eighth Summit of the Americas, which resulted in the signing of the Lima Commitment to democratic governance against corruption. The agreement consists of 57 specific measures and actions to strengthen the fight against corruption and regional cooperation in that fight, including increasing transparency, accountability and political parties’ use of banks in their election campaigns, as well as a call to the countries in our
 hemisphere to consider restricting access to public office for people convicted of corruption.
We are aware that corruption affects democratic governance and the rule of law. Nothing can be built on the basis of entities immersed in corruption. One of the first decisions that my Government took was therefore to establish an overall policy for the Government policy through 2021. Its main thrusts are integrity and the fight against corruption, as well as strengthening governance institutions. Within that framework, we have approved a 2018-2021 national plan for integrity and combating corruption. In addition, two months ago we submitted to the legislature a series of bills aimed at legal and political reform that also involve constitutional reforms, in which a few days ago our Congress expressed its confidence and its commitment to submitting for a referendum to be held on 9 December, involving the participation and decision-making of the entire citizenry through its vote.
I am pleased to announce that Peru is making progress towards its long-awaited political reforms and justice-system reforms through constitutional and participatory mechanisms that honour our commitments made at the Summit of the Americas in Lima. We believe that only joint efforts by the State authorities, along with transparency, accountability and citizens’ participation can enable us to build the country we deserve. In that context, I would like to announce that Peru will promote the adoption of a draft resolution within the framework of the United Nations Convention against Corruption and its Conference of States Parties, aimed at strengthening the cooperation needed to combat that scourge, especially large-scale corruption and its transnational reach. We also want to promote a decisive effort by the Assembly aimed at encouraging all States to renew their political commitment to fight corruption and to explore new and more effective ways of combating it. Every year corruption diverts 5 per cent of the world’s gross domestic product to enrich the few rather than directing those resources to effectively meeting the Sustainable Development Goals for the benefit of those who need it most.
With regard to climate change, it is clear that Peru is one of the world’s most vulnerable countries in terms of climate change. Our people’s primary natural asset is our great biodiversity, and changes in temperature and extreme climatic events such as droughts and heavy rains therefore make us particularly vulnerable. As a country we have worked hard to create a legal

framework that ensures predictability for investments with high environmental and social standards through a focus on production, protection and inclusion. In order to combat climate change, we have to overcome poverty. We need responsible investments to continue growing because the poorest of our people are the most vulnerable to the effects of climate change.
I had the privilege, in one of my Government’s first actions, to see a climate change framework law enacted with the aim of reducing our vulnerability to climate change and taking advantage of opportunities for growth through low-emission development. Furthermore, we are one of the few countries that has an action plan for both gender and climate change, because women are the most vulnerable of all. I would also like to point out that we all have a moral obligation to protect our planet for future generations and guarantee our citizens the right to a healthy environment. That is both my personal belief and a State policy, so I can assure the Assembly that Peru will continue to promote action   at the national and international levels to effectively combat climate change.
As we work to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, which have already been incorporated into our national development plans, our primary responsibility is to achieve them with political determination and courage through the involvement of citizens and the private sector. We will also pay special attention to combating violence and discrimination against women. Our objective is to overcome the structural inequalities that women and girls suffer from in Peru, to guarantee their human rights and empower them to achieve their full development potential.
In an international context in which nationalist discourses promoting economic and commercial protectionism, discrimination and xenophobia are re-emerging, I believe it is necessary to reaffirm Peru’s commitment to multilateralism and to the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations. As a member of the Security Council, Peru reaffirms its willingness to contribute to international peace and security, particularly through its active participation in peacekeeping operations. In that important body, we will continue to advocate for harmonious work based on international law and international humanitarian law. For a developing country like Peru, the United Nations represents a platform for shared action to achieve sustainable development, promote human rights
and address global challenges such as climate change, terrorism, the proliferation of weapons, systematic corruption and illicit drug trafficking.
I would like to express my country’s commitment to free trade, which has enabled us to generate wealth, reduce poverty and make progress on sustainable development. We recognize the important role played by the World Trade Organization in ensuring the stability, predictability and transparency of the multilateral trading system. I invite every country to make the same commitment and to avoid protectionist measures, which, if implemented, will represent a setback both for developed countries and for those of us in the process of development.
With regard to democracy and human rights in  our region, I would like to reaffirm our democratic orientation, which led us to head the process that resulted in the adoption of the Inter-American Democratic Charter in 2001. The Charter reflects the commitment of the countries of the Americas to defending democracy, respecting human rights and upholding fundamental freedoms in the region. That commitment encourages us to seek ways to help to re-establish the democratic order where necessary. That is why Peru condemns  the breakdown of constitutional order in Venezuela. We will continue to promote initiatives to help restore democracy in our sister country within the framework of the Organization of American States, the Lima Group and in other multilateral forums. We reiterate our concern about and condemnation of the serious human rights violations in Venezuela denounced by the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, which among other violations have reported extrajudicial killings. Peru has also filed a complaint with the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court with a view to punishing those responsible for the crimes committed in Venezuela.
My country expresses its unwavering solidarity with the Venezuelan people and calls for an urgent response to the serious humanitarian crisis in Venezuela, which has led to a flood of migrants and refugees throughout our region. My Government has taken steps to help to regulate the influx of the more than 450,000 Venezuelan migrants who have come to Peru in search of a decent future. However, the scope of the exodus is unprecedented in our region and requires a collective response from the international community.

I conclude by expressing our confidence in the potential of multilateralism,  international  law  and the principle of the  peaceful settlement  of  disputes in responding to the challenges before us, promoting sustainable peace and development and guaranteeing the human rights of  our citizens. Peru will continue  to work constructively within the framework of the Organization to achieve the goals of the founding Charter of the United Nations.


I have the immense honour of addressing this historical and important General Assembly  for  the  first  time as the President of Colombia. I arrive both proud at having been elected with the highest number of votes in our electoral history and at being a member of a new generation of Colombians who are motivated to unite our country around common objectives.
Colombia is a magical country, where many races, regions, customs and ecosystems coexist. It is a nation where culture, ancestral heritage, nature and the industrious and helpful spirit of our citizens define the resilient vastness of a society that does not bend to any adversity. Our patriotic, industrious and tireless work force has made Colombia a people that has earned the respect of the world and attracted interest in investment, and one that is charting a path towards progress, with democratic institutions.
We have been able to maintain economic growth amid complex regional volatilities. We have seen  cities transform, a boost in production sectors and an expansion of the middle class while we adapted to the challenges of globalization. We have  made progress  in gender equality and in the worlds of work and education. In recognition of that progress, I named the first Cabinet with gender parity in the history of my country. But there is much to be done on that front, and we will continue to move forward. In proudly telling of that history, I commit myself as a Colombian and I am even more so as we move towards 2019, when we will celebrate the bicentennial of our independence.
We must be more motivated today than ever to achieve social justice,  reject  hatred,  polarization and revenge and concentrate on achieving a pact for Colombia — a pact for equity. That is the invitation  we are sending: that we build a development plan and agenda to define State policies in the coming decades, using the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals by 2030 as a reference, within a framework of legality and entrepreneurship that bring us to the desired and necessary equity. I want that proposed agreement to be based in legality. Peace is an objective of all Colombians and all of us, absolutely everyone, will work decisively for it. However, peace needs to be built with the rule of law, which combines the public goods of security and justice.
Our Government is going to work so that the process of demobilization, disarmament and reintegration

put forward in the past few years will go forward successfully. We will offer those who have genuinely opted to rejoin the law and to be subject to the principles of truth, justice, reparation and non-repetition the right opportunities for progress and protection. I appreciate the support of the United Nations for its commitment to contributing to the success of  that  process.  For that reason, we have asked it to continue with those tasks. We will work in the same way to ensure that the resources and investments that give rise to hope reach all regions of the country, primarily those that have been hit by violence. The United Nations Mission in Colombia as well as our supervisory bodies know that our Government has gone through a fragile process on several fronts. The first is budgetary fragility: many commitments were made without allocating sufficient resources. The second is institutional fragility: a dispersed and complex architecture was created that has so far been unable to effectively make progress in the achievement of all the goals.
However, I want to reiterate to the Assembly that Colombia’s goal is to comply with our obligations to those who have genuinely left the path of violence behind. We hope to be able to count on the financial support of the entire international community to give the process the necessary strength. But just as we would comply with our obligations to those who abide by the rules, it is also our duty to apply the law in an exemplary manner when it comes to those who persist on the path of criminality. We will not accept a repeat of the violence. Those who continue in the world of crime and who seek to mock the victims and the generosity of the Colombian people will feel the full force of justice.
If we want peace to reign in Colombia, we must defeat drug trafficking. With regard to illicit  crops, we became aware of an alarming situation a few  weeks ago. The growing trend of the past five years cannot continue, since such seeds have fuelled and become the reason for the emergence of dangerous organized armed groups. That is why we are committed to dismantling those transnational criminal networks through a comprehensive approach.
Drug trafficking is a global threat. It is true that we must do more in terms of prevention and care for addicts from a public health perspective. That is an indisputable truth. However, it is no less true  that drug trafficking in Colombia is a predator of the environment, a destroyer of institutions and, above all, a corrupter of society. It is our moral duty to combat
that phenomenon, while at the same time promoting a society that rejects drugs because of their devastating effects on health and society.
We are already taking steps. We welcome the fact that two days ago we supported the Global Call to Action on the World Drug Problem, acknowledging that it is the task of all and requires that all countries, including those where consumption is increasing as well as those that produce chemical precursors, contribute. Under the leadership of the United States, 130 nations committed themselves to continuing that fight. We will not give up or accept as fate the addiction that is destroying the souls of so many young people.
Legality also means overcoming corruption. Corruption is a threat to democracy,  social  values and institutions and must be tackled with full resolve. From the first day of our Government, we presented measures to Congress, and then, in response to the popular clamour, we launched an ambitious and essential agenda together with all the parties. We showed the world that we are capable of uniting around national goals. I call on the international community to strengthen all sanctions tools and mechanisms to combat transnational corruption. Defeating corruption is a task that involves us all. We must do our utmost to expose those who are corrupt and to expedite their legal and social punishment.
Our commitment to development, our pact for Colombia, also seeks to promote entrepreneurship  and economic recovery. The Sustainable Development Goals support our agenda for a Colombia where science and technology are driven by connectivity, access to capital, the development of the innovative economy and the promotion of research — a Colombia committed to protecting biodiversity, promoting renewable energy, reducing the individual carbon footprint and establishing a citizenship strengthened by steadfast ethics.
The world should know that that is the Colombia that we want to build every day. We will work to achieve that Colombia. That is our challenge and our motivation. For that reason, I must tell the world that those goals face a huge challenge.
That threat or challenge that our country is experiencing today is the thousands of fearful faces of those who are cold to the bone, with hunger in their stomachs and grief for their homeland. It is the challenge of people who, at this very moment, are walking in  the open and into the unknown on Colombia’s roads.

They are our  Venezuelan  brothers  who  are  fleeing a dictatorship. Many of them are innocent children, unprotected and exposed to the tragedy of exile. While, over a period of six years, the conflict in Syria has led to an influx of 600,000 migrants a year to Turkey alone, in less than two years Colombia has opened its doors to almost 1 million of our Venezuelan brothers. We have received them with affection, and we will always  do so despite any social or financial obstacles, because brotherhood unites us.
However, we must call a spade a spade. We are experiencing the most egregious migration crisis in the region’s recent history on account of a dictatorship that denied freedoms. Today I would like to make it clear that the self-determination of peoples cannot be manipulated at the free will of the oppressors. The world must act and unite so that that tragic flight comes to an end and a people can see hope flourish.
That is a global challenge. The end of the dictatorship and the return to democracy and full freedom are the only viable way. That is why the international community must immediately demand the release of political prisoners, quickly identify the best solutions to the crisis and prevent such desolation and despair from continuing to increase.
I ask that the United Nations hear our request. We are pleased that it listened to Colombia’s request and that the Secretary-General appointed Eduardo Stein as Joint Special Representative for Venezuelan refugees and migrants, thereby elevatingthis debate. I also thank all the countries that joined us yesterday at the high-level meeting convened by Colombia, where the regional commitment to addressing that humanitarian crisis was clear. Such measures must be accompanied by the establishment of a multilateral  fund  to  care for the migrant population, which is a victim of that dictatorship. That is why we must promote the proposal announced by the Inter-American Development Bank and its President, Mr. Luis Alberto Moreno. However, it is equally important that all international mechanisms be implemented in order to ensure that those who caused that terrible tragedy are reported to, and investigated and punished by, the International Criminal Court.
It is an honour for me to address the Assembly, to set out the vision that we have for Colombia, to call  for global solidarity before the Venezuelan people and to issue them an invitation. Today  more  than ever,  the world needs cooperation and multilateralism. It
is time to come together and not to isolate ourselves. It is time to make trade and cooperation the path of shared opportunities.
We must continue to move forward in a world where partnerships make it possible to mitigate the effects of climate change, strengthen fair trade, tackle corruption and transnational crime, create employment opportunities, put an end to discrimination and promote the idea of producing while conserving and conserving while producing.
The Colombia based on legality, entrepreneurship and equality that we wish to build is already under way. Moreover, we will not allow anything to snatch from us the hope of being a country that thinks big and that dreams of a better tomorrow and of working for the community of nations.


I have the honour to address the General Assembly at its seventy-third session on  behalf  of  His Excellency Mr. Dionísio da Costa Babo Soares, Minister for Foreign Affairs and Cooperation of Timor- Leste.
First of all, allow me  to join  our voices  to those of previous speakers and present, on behalf of Timor- Leste, our deepest condolences to the people of Indonesia, particularly to the families of the victims of the earthquake and tsunami in Palu, Sulawesi.
I would like to start by congratulating Her Excellency Mrs. María Fernanda Espinosa Garcés on

her election as President of the General Assembly at its seventy-third session and also wish her success in this session under the theme: “Making the United Nations relevant for all people: global leadership and shared responsibility for peaceful, equitable and sustainable societies”. Taking into account the fact that this is only the fourth time in the history of the Organization that a woman is leading this important body, I believe that the President will also serve as an important role model for women and girls worldwide. I would like to assure her of Timor-Leste’s support.
I would also like to extend our gratitude to His Excellency Mr. Miroslav Lajčák for all his work towards achieving sustaining peace and preventing conflict. Timor-Leste also commends the manner in which the election of the seventy-third President  of the General Assembly took place under the leadership of President Lajčák, which provided an excellent precedent for future elections. We appreciate the theme chosen for this session and believe that it is most appropriate. The theme draws our attention to the need to unite peoples at a time when we are witnessing a gradual but unquestionable breakdown in the world order, which is leading to even more inequality and insecurity and further undermining faith in national and international institutions.
At a time when solidarity among peoples has assumed extreme importance in the global agenda, feelings of helplessness and impotence are evident, which divides peoples and provokes hostility. That is why the theme of this session is so important and appropriate because of its focus on inclusiveness, equality and global leadership. Timor-Leste is undoubtedly the leading example of the importance of an order based on international law. Next year, our country will celebrate the twentieth anniversary of the popular consultation organized by the United Nations, in which our people voted courageously for independence.
We cannot forget or fail to pay tribute to the then Secretary-General, our dear friend the late Kofi Annan. It was with deep sorrow and sadness that our people received the news of his death. As Secretary-General, Kofi Annan played a leading role in conducting the negotiations between Portugal and Indonesia, which culminated in the signing of the agreement of 5 May 1999, giving rise to the popular consultation in Timor- Leste. That is a significant milestone that we will also be commemorating next year.
Recently, the United Nations again played a major role in Timor-Leste’s future. For the first time, a Conciliation Commission, established in 2016 under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, succeeded in the positive resolution of a long-standing dispute between Timor-Leste and Australia about the definition of our maritime boundaries. That was a process that took about a year and a half and culminated in a new maritime boundary treaty, signed in this Hall on 6 March of this year, in the presence of Secretary- General António Guterres. The new treaty has enabled us to consolidate our national sovereignty and establish an important model for the peaceful resolution of international disputes. In a time of increasing global geopolitical tensions over maritime disputes, the success of the first conciliation process in history assumes an unprecedented international significance. Timor-Leste encourages other Member States to consider that mechanism for the peaceful settlement of maritime disputes. We believe that the mechanism will play an important role in appeasing global tensions on our seas.
Our world faces many challenges, which can be effectively resolved through dialogue, cooperation  and on the basis of international law. One of the main challenges of our times is, without a doubt, climate change. That is an issue that Secretary-General António Guterres has identified as the defining issue of our time. Timor-Leste is confident that the international community will act as one in responding to that existential threat to our planet.
I take this opportunity to highlight the importance of active and extensive cooperation aimed at pursuing urgent and real action to deal with the threat facing small island developing States, including those in the Pacific region, which are particularly vulnerable to the effects of climate change.
I also would like to emphasize a fundamental issue that also requires the attention of the entire international community, namely, global migration.  Conflicts, wars, situations of inequality and climate change have resulted in an intense migratory movement throughout the world.
Timor-Leste and the g7+ countries know that sustainable development cannot be achieved without peace. That is why we are aware of  the fact that the 17 Sustainable Development Goals will be unattainable if we are not able to build peaceful, just and inclusive

societies. We hope that the assessment of the 2030 Agenda will take into consideration those concerns so that the fragile and vulnerable countries will not be left behind.
Timor-Leste welcomes  the reforms  of  the United Nations system under the leadership of Secretary-General António Guterres. Following the implementation of the plan to enhance the role of the United Nations resident coordinators, Timor-Leste will contribute a modest amount over the next five years. We also support, without reservations, the reforms under the peace and security pillar. We commend the Secretary- General for his initiative on Action for Peace, including the Declaration of Shared Commitments on United Nations Peacekeeping Operations, which Timor-Leste has signed. In order to contribute to peace operations, Timor-Leste is currently investing in the training of its police and military personnel — with a special focus on strengthening the representation of women — in order to increase its capacity and possibilities for contributing in the near future to United Nations peace missions.
However, despite our shared efforts aimed at strengthening peacekeeping missions,  we  continue  to see conflicts and war in the world, which fills us with concern. The ongoing war in Syria is a tragedy that is causing irreparable human damage and terrible suffering for the people living in that region. Timor- Leste urges the international community to do everything possible to put an end to that war and to stop the death and destruction in that country. The people of Western Sahara are still being denied their right to self-determination. We welcome the appointment of Mr. Horst Köhler as Personal Envoy of the Secretary- General for Western Sahara. We also appeal to the Kingdom of Morocco  and  the  Frente  Popular  para la Liberación de  Saguia el-Hamra y  de  Río de  Oro  to establish a serious dialogue aimed at reaching a mutually beneficial political solution that will enable the people of Western Sahara to exercise their right to self-determination through a referendum organized by the United Nations.
Timor-Leste urges the international community to redouble its efforts with the parties concerned aimed at reaching a just, peaceful and  lasting  solution  to the question of Palestine. We reaffirm Timor-Leste’s support for the two-State solution and the urgent protection of the civilian population. Timor-Leste also remains concerned about the economic, commercial and financial embargo imposed on Cuba for more than
six decades, which has had a considerable impact on the lives of the people and the development of the country. Our region welcomes the continued dialogue for peace and reconciliation on the Korean peninsula, and we hope that the dialogue between the parties concerned will bring an end to the proliferation of nuclear weapons in our region.
Allow me to take the opportunity to talk about the current situation in Timor-Leste. On 12 May, we held early legislative elections. The elections were held in a peaceful environment and resulted in a new Government led by His Excellency Mr. Taur Matan Ruak. After a period of economic stagnation owing to the political situation, my country is resuming its development and economic growth and is on the path towards normalcy. The socioeconomic foundations that we need in order to create a prosperous and united society have already been established. With the recent adoption of the general Government budget, we hope to continue to improve our social, communications and housing infrastructure and, in turn, develop opportunities for investment and economic development.
Another important step for Timor-Leste was the Government’s decision to acquire 30 per cent of the capital in the consortium that operates the Greater Sunrise gas field in the Timor Sea, which gives  us  the possibility of connecting a pipeline to Timorese territory and accelerating the development of the southern coast. It was, once again, our historic leader and former President of the Republic and Prime Minister, His Excellency Mr. Xanana Gusmão, who successfully conducted the negotiations.
We continue to have strong relations with our neighbours Indonesia and Australia. We are also deepening our  cooperation  with  the  countries  of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, and we await patiently a decision on our request to accede to that organization. Timor-Leste remains committed to strengthening ties of friendship and cooperation with the countries of the Community of Portuguese-speaking Countries and hopes that the Portuguese language, spoken by nearly 250 million people worldwide, will also become an official language of the United Nations.
Our country has also signed the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, and  we  encourage all Member States to do so. We live in a world that is different from that of the immediate post-Second World

War period, when the United Nations was  created. The current times are full of challenges, and we all need, more than ever, to be prepared to meet those challenges and our aspirations, as well as to defend the value of multilateralism. My country firmly believes in the United Nations and in the international system. As such, we are committed to working cooperatively towards international peace, security and prosperity for the well-being of humankind.


Twenty years ago, in this very Hall, Kofi Annan set out the three great challenges facing the international community at the time: first, the challenge of security and the need to replace the post-Cold War world order with a new one, governed by peace and freedom; secondly, the challenge of development and the need  to ensure that globalization benefited all peoples and countries, leaving no one behind; thirdly, the challenge of human rights and the rule of law, and the need to protect the dignity of all without distinction as to race, colour, gender, language or any other discriminatory factor (see A/53/PV.7).
Twenty years have now gone by, and the challenges bequeathed to us by Kofi Annan — security, development and human rights — remain just as important and are still key challenges to our world order. These challenges, of course, come under new guises and take on various forms. We are no longer divided by the mistrust, fear and prejudice that were the legacy of the walls and iron curtains that emerged in the wake of the Second World War. The truth is that many factors unite us in terms of human dignity and freedoms, and we are connected by a knowledge- and information-based society that has enabled those who embrace it to reap the benefits but is indifferent and cruel to those who turn their back to it. We are living at a time of vast global transformation, which means the emergence of tremendous new opportunities as well as major new dangers.
Some believed that the end of the Cold War also meant the end of history, and that we had at last found our way and were approaching an era of peace, freedom and prosperity, based on democracy and the social
market economy. However, history will never meet its end as long as there are still free men and women who think for themselves. Accordingly, a new world order has emerged that has given rise to new divisions and tensions in many parts of the world. States are no longer the only main players in international relations.
In the area of security, we have not yet been able  to overcome serious threats to international  peace  and security such as terrorism, drug trafficking, armed conflict, organized crime, the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and illicit trafficking in weapons and persons. Furthermore, as never before, today we are compelled to face one of the biggest challenges resulting from these threats to international peace and security — large-scale migration around  the world, which is a significant challenge for the entire international community. We are aware of its causes — terrorism, war, ethnic and religious conflict, hunger and totalitarian regimes, all of which have recently caused the largest displacement of people in the history of humankind. The figures are stark and speak for themselves. There are currently 260 million people who have had to leave their countries of origin. Every year more than 1.3 million people abandon their countries for the reasons I have mentioned.
In the light of that situation, Chile’s commitment is categorical and clear. We are designing a safe, orderly and regular migration policy, in line with the New York Declaration for Refugees and Migrants and the global compact for safe, orderly and regular migration, which raise the need to establish migration policies that guarantee safe, orderly and regular migration. We want to receive and welcome all who enter Chile seeking new and better lives, who do so with the intention of obeying our laws, committing to the development of our country and to integrating into our society. With equal strength and conviction, however, we want to keep  order  in our country and bar those who enter illegally, break our laws, come to commit crimes or have committed serious crimes in their countries of origin. By doing so we can prevent and impede the entry of drug traffickers and people involved in organized crime, because all Presidents and Heads of State and Government are responsible for their citizens’ safety, which is of course a key concern for any Government.
Our migration policy seeks to strike a balance between the State’s sovereign right to regulate the manner in which migrants enter and remain in our country, on the one hand, and its duty to respect

and guarantee the fundamental rights and duties of migrants, on the other, by putting a stop to irregular immigration, punishing criminal acts and welcoming those who come to integrate legally into our societies in accordance with the law.
The second great challenge is development. Six months ago, when I  embarked  on  my  second  term as President of Chile, I pledged to undertake a great mission — transforming Chile into a developed country without poverty and with greater equality of opportunity and solidarity by the end of the next decade. Genuine development is much more than economic growth. We are therefore talking about comprehensive development that encompasses all aspects of our lives, an inclusive development that reaches all families, individuals and regions, and a sustainable development that protects and is in aligned with nature and the environment. That is the genuine development that all peoples and countries need and that we almost all ratified through our previous commitment to the Millennium Development Goals and now through the 17 Sustainable Development Goals and the 2030 Agenda  for  Sustainable  Development, to which we are committed under the auspices of the United Nations.
For that reason, the importance of defending and strengthening multilateralism and free trade, to which many have alluded this week, is now severely under threats from such things as trade and tariff wars, the consequences of which we felt as long ago as the Great Depression of the previous century. The economic dimension is, of course, very important. More than ever, we need to promote and bolster an international system that is predictable and based on clear and agreed standards, fosters free trade and enables mechanisms for settling disputes peacefully rather than through conflict, confrontation or tariff wars.
However, we must also think about creating a culture and an international community that are built on the principles and values of freedom, human dignity, full respect for human rights, gender equality and the fight against climate change and other new emerging threats, such as those related to cyberspace.
Such comprehensive, inclusive and sustainable development compels us to implement robust measures aimed at ensuring full equality in terms of rights, dignity and opportunities for both women  and  men, as well as a culture of zero tolerance for violence or discrimination against women. Our true development
can be measured by the way in which we treat our societies’ most vulnerable members, such as children, women, elderly people, those suffering from disease and the poorest. In many of  those  areas,  many  of our countries still have a long way to go.
Today our planet faces major threats and challenges, such as a deteriorating environment, global warming, growing desertification, the destruction of the ozone layer, the depletion of natural resources, the loss of biodiversity, as well as air, water and soil pollution and deforestation, to name just a few.
Some time ago, major and well-regarded magazines published photographs of the Earth with the caption “Save planet Earth”. But  that should not  be our greatest concern. Planet Earth has existed for more than 4 billion years and has survived all kinds  of catastrophes — flooding, glaciation, warming and earthquakes. What is actually at risk is the survival of the human race on planet Earth. During its long history, 99 out of every 100 species that have ever existed have now disappeared. Naturally, we do not want to add human beings to that sad list of extinct species.
We know that the environment is changing and that global warming is occurring faster than our efforts to understand, halt and stop it. The alarm bells continue to sound and our citizens continue to march, and we cannot claim to be ignorant about it. We have  a  duty to respond immediately to nature’s desperate cries for protection, so that in turn it can protect us. There is  no time to lose and no reason to procrastinate about this, because time is no longer our ally. It is our enemy. Our generation’s response to this great challenge will undoubtedly be judged by our children, grandchildren and other generations to come. The threat of climate change and the way we address it will define this and future centuries and requires a vast multilateral effort. We are aware that we are dealing with a truly serious, urgent and growing threat that we can no longer ignore, delay or downplay.
No nation is immune  to  that  threat,  but  Chile  is especially vulnerable. My country is a veritable observatory and natural laboratory, as it contains very diverse land, maritime, coastal and glacial ecosystems, among many others, as well as unique island ecosystems that are home to more than 30,000 species of plants, animals, fungi and bacteria. In addition, Chile is geographically unique because of its natural barriers, the Andes range to the east, the Pacific Ocean to the

west, the Atacama desert to the north and the Antarctic to the south, which means that we are home to species found nowhere else in the world. For example, almost 90 per cent of fish species — the highest percentage  in the world — on Robinson Crusoe Island in the Juan Fernández archipelago are endemic; in other words, they are unique to that environment.
However, that virtue is also our Achilles heel. Chile, as a natural observatory, is greatly exposed to the risks and threats of climate change  and  global  warming. In fact, seven of the nine major vulnerability factors listed in the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change apply to Chile — low-lying coastal areas, arid and semi-arid areas, large forested areas, areas prone to natural disasters, areas prone to drought and desertification, urban areas with atmospheric pollution problems, and mountainous ecosystems.
That compels us to seek urgent and effective solutions in order to adapt to and address the threat of global warming. As President of Chile, I am especially committed to sustainable development, in other words, environmentally friendly development that respects nature. A threat that was once remote is  now  upon  us, and we are currently witnessing the lethal impact of those changes and their possible future impact on present and future generations. There is no time to lose. We must take the bull by the horns and do whatever is necessary to change the course of history.
What has Chile done in that regard? First, we are committed to creating protected areas that preserve crucial biodiversity. Chile has been a regional and world leader in creating protected areas since the beginning of the last century, starting with the Malleco National Reserve. Today, there are 180 marine and land-protected areas in Chile covering more than 120 million hectares.
We are also firmly committed to conserving our oceans, their biodiversity and the sustainable use of their resources. We  have  already protected more than
13 per cent of our exclusive economic zone, which stretches along Chile’s approximately 4,200 kilometres of coastline. And we are on our way to achieving 40 per cent protection, with the largest marine protected area in Latin America, one of the largest in the world, on wondrous Easter Island, or Rapa Nui.
In addition, the energy path that we are following towards a cleaner, safer, more cost-effective and more diversified energy matrix that strongly promotes decarbonization has enabled us to make significant
headway in developing clean, renewable energy, particularly volcanic energy — Chile has 25 per cent of the world’s active volcanoes — as well as wind and solar energy, since Chile is home to a desert with the highest solar radiation levels in the world. We are also making great advances in removing fossil fuels from our transport system and moving towards electromobility, with a more definitive solution that is more compatible with those objectives.
Moreover, we are addressing the threat to our planet posed by plastic. We understand how important it is for all Governments to act in time to prevent 12 billion tons — a figure we have almost reached — of plastic waste from ending up in natural environments, meaning that there would be more plastic bags than fish in our oceans. I am very happy that the first piece of legislation to be adopted during my current term in office has banned the use of plastic bags in Chilean shops. Chile is the first country in Latin America to restrict the free distribution of any kind of single-use plastic bag. The fact is that one plastic bag takes seconds to produce and is used, on average, for 15 minutes on the journey back from the supermarket, but then takes 400 years to biodegrade, which means that for a few minutes of use, nature and humankind must suffer the harmful effects of one plastic bag for more than 400 years.
Once and for all, we must address many of those problems with a new attitude and abandon the idea that the goals of economic growth and the protection of the environment are incompatible. The fact is that if growth is unsustainable, it will simply cease to exist. We must also abandon our throwaway culture and return to embracing one of recycling.
Pollution has struck very dramatically and close to home in my country, Chile. Over the past few weeks, the two communes of Puchuncaví and Quintero, which have long been overpolluted, experienced serious episodes of environmental pollution, affecting the health of many citizens. In view of the seriousness of the situation, I immediately visited the areas concerned to meet with the authorities and the communities and to see and experience, with my own eyes and senses, the dramatic effects of that environmental disaster. During my visit, I made a promise to Chilean citizens to rewrite the future for those two communities and many others. To that end, we are  implementing  a plan to resolve the emergency situation and protect  our citizens’ health. We are also developing a long- term solution to enable us to better protect the quality

and health of our water, air and soil through ongoing monitoring with the highest available technological standards and the implementation of extraordinary emission standards for polluting companies, as  well  as a comprehensive pollution plan that will enable us to permanently resolve such situations and achieve a definitive solution, putting an end to the so-called sacrificial zones in our country.
We know that nature is not a gift inherited from our parents, and that we therefore cannot use it as we like. Rather, it is a loan from our children, grandchildren and future generations. We must nurture it and return it to them in better condition. That challenge must involve all stakeholders in society. Channelling collective and multisectoral efforts requires the commitment of us all. That is the aim of the framework law on climate change that we are implementing in Chile and that by 2030 will enable us to reduce our greenhouse-gas emissions by 30 per cent compared to the base year.
To do it, we must incorporate the climate-change perspective into all public policy and private-sector commitments. We are doing just that by incorporating environmental and climate-change policies into our national investment system and our evaluation systems for public  expenditure  and  environmental  impact. In addition, we are including those concerns and commitments in both bilateral and multilateral trade agreements, such as the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, which unites 11 countries on both shores of the vast Pacific Ocean, as well as in the ways in which we are addressing the process of adding new members to the Pacific Alliance.
Without doubt, those developments have reduced our carbon emissions and will continue to significantly reduce them while strengthening our economy. The challenge is extremely demanding and requires great determination and ambition. In that regard, we have two important allies, the first of which is technology. Today, the scientific imagination and innovation and the scientific and technological advances that have emerged from the freedom and creativity  of  free men and women have equipped us with new tools to combat this relatively new and serious threat..We must therefore continue to boost and foster our technology and scientific entrepreneurs so that they will join this fight and not repeat the errors of the past. In recent days we learned of an initiative that can clean the rubbish and plastic out of our oceans more efficiently. In our efforts
to fulfil our commitments, those are the technologies that we are using in my country.
Moreover, we have a multilateral system that enables us to act in a coordinated manner. That is precisely the point of the Sustainable Development Goals. However, we are aware that bureaucracy often slows down United Nations efforts. We must therefore improve coordination and be able to generate more delivery and accountability, while also focusing more on the results and less on the process. As a great United States President once remarked, our generation is in a unique twofold situation. We are the first generation  to feel the impact of climate change and also the last generation that can do something about it.
I shall now turn to human rights — the third challenge raised by the late  Kofi  Annan  20  years ago in this Hall — and the challenge of freedom, democracy and the rule of law. Five years ago, from this very rostrum (see A/68/PV.5), I was able to share the lessons and teachings of Chileans 40 years after the collapse of democracy in our country, and after its subsequent recovery. The lessons we have learned have specific relevance.
The first and most important lesson is that there are always moral and legal norms that should be respected by everyone: combatants and non-combatants, civilians and soldiers, leaders and subordinates, with the result that atrocity crimes such as torture, crimes against humanity, terrorism, political assassination and forced disappearances can never be justified in any context, time, place or circumstance. Freedom, democracy, peace and civic friendship are much more fragile than we tend to think, which means that we must never take them for granted. They must always be valued, taught, fostered and protected, because they are like air. When we have it, we take it for granted, but when we do not, it is often too late to get it back.
In Chile we are now a few days away from marking
30 years since the referendum of  5  October  1988  that paved the way for us to regain our freedom and democracy. I would like to take this opportunity to recall the two major transitions that our generation has had to face in Chile. The first of them enabled us to regain our freedom and democracy, which we achieved in an intelligent and exemplary manner. Normally such transitions take place amid political crisis, economic chaos and social violence, none of  which happened in

our country. We were able to restore our freedom and democracy in an admirable manner.
However, that transition is now history. The new transition, our transition, that is currently under way and depends on us consists in transforming Chile, once the poorest of Spain’s Latin American colonies, into a developed country, without poverty and with greater social justice and equal opportunities, in which we can all develop our talents and life plans and live fuller and happier lives, by the end of the next decade. We must complete that transition with the same unity, generosity and intelligence with which we carried out the transition that allowed us to regain our democracy.
On human rights, I want to clearly and strongly state today that human rights, freedom and democracy know no borders. I would  therefore like to bring to the General Assembly the voice of the Venezuelan people, which President Maduro’s regime has silenced. Venezuela is a sister nation that for many long decades was a democracy that brought great progress and well- being to its people, generously opening its borders to many Latin Americans so that they could find shelter, work and opportunity there that were not available in their own countries.
Unfortunately, today  Venezuela  is  governed  by a regime that respects none of its principles, neither freedom nor democracy nor human rights. It is a society that is being torn apart by a moral, political, social and humanitarian crisis — a  moral  crisis,  because the basic values of human rights are not respected; a political crisis, because there is no democracy, rule of law, separation of powers or freedom of expression, and there are hundreds of political prisoners; and an economic crisis, because Venezuela, once the richest country in Latin America, now has less than half the production capacity it had in its heyday.
Indeed, Venezuela is undergoing a tragedy. Its inhabitants are fleeing from a dismal and perilous existence. Many, too many, are literally losing their lives for lack of food and medicine. President Maduro, while denying the situation, is not letting in the humanitarian aid that many countries are willing to deliver. In recent years, more  than  2  million  Venezuelans  have  had to leave their country as a result of the crisis I have  just outlined. I ask myself how a President can be so ambitious and callous that he is willing to cause his own people such pain and suffering in order to prevail and cling to power.
However, Venezuela is not the only country in that situation. The same is  happening in countries such  as Nicaragua, in which more than 400 people have already died as a result of the violence fostered by the State and President Ortega’s Government. In fact, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, which has reported assassinations, extrajudicial executions, ill-treatment, torture and arbitrary detentions in that country, was expelled from Nicaragua a month ago. There are also  similar occurrences in Cuba, where for more than 60 years there has been no freedom, democracy or basic respect for human rights, as evidenced by its arbitrary detentions and, as in Venezuela and Nicaragua, its censorship of freedom of expression, which is guaranteed under article 19 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.
Chile does not recognize the legitimacy of the recent presidential elections in Venezuela, because they did not fulfil the basic requirements necessary for free, democratic and transparent elections, in accordance with international standards. We will therefore not recognize the legitimacy of the new Government that emerged from the election. Chile will continue to do all it can, in accordance with international law, to help the Venezuelan people to regain their freedom, democracy and human rights and emerge from the sad and tragic disaster affecting the country.
For that to happen, we need the support of the multilateral system, in particular the United Nations. We believe that the Organization, through  the Security Council, should address the democratic and humanitarian crises affecting those countries. As I have said before, in modern times, freedom, democracy and respect for human rights do not and should not recognize borders. Chile will therefore use all the mechanisms available under international law and work with all its strength and commitment to restore freedom, democracy and human rights in those countries.
I would like to end my statement with a reflection on the current state of the United Nations and the reforms and updates that many countries think the United Nations now urgently requires. The United Nations, which has contributed to the maintenance of international peace and security on countless occasions as the cornerstone of multilateralism, today has highly restricted and limited powers. We have lost the ability to prevent crises and to strengthen the institutions of Member States with the aim of generating a true culture of democratic resilience that is capable of surviving

breakdowns, like those suffered in some countries in our region. We therefore believe that the time has come for the United Nations to modernize, as has been suggested by many Member States on various occasions, in order to be able to act more quickly and effectively in the face of the challenges of the modern age.
The structure of the United Nations, and especially its Security Council, is a legacy of the victors in the Second World War, which ended more than 70 years ago, and it does not meet the needs and challenges of current times. In fact, we all know that some permanent members of the Security Council exercise or threaten to use their right to veto for reasons that are based more on their own interests or those of their allies than on their duty to preserve peace and security in every corner of our planet.
That behaviour has reduced and continues to reduce the effectiveness of a fundamental organ of the United Nations that not only holds enormous power but also has a tremendous responsibility, that of preserving peace and security on our planet. In addition, the current composition of the Security Council does not reflect today’s world and does not adequately represent entire continents, such as Africa or Latin America, or countries such as Germany, India and Japan.
I would therefore like to conclude by emphasizing that it is not only development that should be sustainable, but also peace. It is precisely at times like these that the values we share as an international community should guide and illuminate our actions and the path ahead. People must not be united by free trade alone. What should guide us is the maintenance of peace and security and respect for the basic values that led to the formation of the Organization, and it is therefore those same values that must illuminate and guide the path to its future.
Only by strongly and coherently reviving those values will the United Nations be able to fulfil its responsibilities and rise to the challenges of the new world we live in. Together with the formidable threats that we are confronted with, such as terrorism, global warming and mass migration, we also have magnificent opportunities that are generated by the freedom, imagination and unlimited creativity of the free men and women of this world.


I  congratulate  Her  Excellency Ms. María Fernanda Espinosa Garcés on her assumption of her presidency of the General Assembly at its seventy- third session. I assure her that the Tonga delegation will fully support her able leadership. I express our gratitude to her predecessor, His Excellency Mr. Miroslav Lajčák, for his successful and able leadership of the Assembly at its seventy-second session, in particular for making the work of the Assembly people-centred and striving for peace and a decent life for all on a sustainable planet.

I also commend His Excellency Mr. António Guterres for his ongoing stewardship of the Secretariat. Tonga fully supports the ongoing  work  he  is  undertaking on reform, including the all-important review of the United Nations multi-country offices in the Pacific Islands region.
My delegation and I also wish to congratulate the President also on the chosen theme, which is both timely and relevant. “Making the United Nations relevant to all people: global leadership and shared responsibilities for peaceful, equitable and sustainable societies” aptly reflects who we are as a collective in ensuring the work of the United Nations has meaning to those that matter most — our peoples. We welcome this theme as the guiding principle for our work during this session.
In contributing towards the implementation  of the 2030 Agenda for  Sustainable  Development  and its Sustainable Development Goals, including the internationally agreed blueprint for the sustainable development of small island developing States (SIDS), the Samoa Pathway, Tonga has made both agreements an integral part of its national planning  processes. The Government’s priority agenda from 2018 to 2021 aligns with 13 of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals, namely, Goals, 1 through 4, 6 through 9 and 13
through 17.
The High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development remains an important means, which Tonga endorses for the follow-up, monitoring and accountability of commitment by Member States through voluntary national reviews, which are linked to the 2030 Agenda and the Addis Ababa Action Agenda. Tonga looks forward to presenting its first voluntary national report  to  the  High-level  Political  Forum  in 2019.
The High-level Political Forum will also dedicate a day at its high-level ministerial segment to the mid-term review of the Samoa Pathway in 2019. Tonga was pleased to host the Pacific regional preparatory meeting for the mid-term review of the Samoa Pathway in June, the outcome report of which forms the latest iteration of the Pacific region’s sustainable development aspirations. Tonga looks forward to engaging with other SIDS and partners in Samoa at the end of next month to produce the final interregional report for the midterm review of the Samoa Pathway for consideration at the High-level Political Forum next year.
In that regard, we recognize the important contribution of the United Nations Office of the High Representative for the Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing States, the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs and the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific Subregional Office for the Pacific.
Tonga welcomes the convening of the third high- level meeting of the General Assembly on the prevention and control of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) tomorrow. Combating  the  threat  that  NCDs  poses to individuals, families and communities has been recognized as grossly underfunded given its magnitude.
We in Tonga are pleased to inform the Assembly of commendable reductions in the prevalence of tobacco smoking and alcohol consumption. Tongan people are eating healthier food and involved more in physical activities. We are, however, not without  challenges, for example, as shown in rising obesity rates. The Tongan Government is addressing the issue by making unhealthy food choices more expensive and healthier food choices cheaper for the Tongan public.
Climate change continues to pose significant security threats to us as island States. In Nauru earlier this month, Pacific leaders endorsed an expanded concept of security in their communiqué and the Boe Declaration, linking, inter alia, climate change and threats to international peace and security. In that regard, Tonga welcomes the establishment of the Group of Friends on Climate and Security to further highlight the nexus between the threats of climate change with threats to international peace and security.
We note with concern the devastating impacts of climate change on our marine environment. Baselines that determine our territorial boundaries, once established under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, should not be affected and should remain unchanged, despite the effects of sea-level rise. Our sovereignty must not be compromised by climate change. We welcome the work of the International Law Commission on this critically important and timely issue for consideration by the Sixth Committee.
Tonga looks forward to taking our important work forward at the twenty-fourth session of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change under the leadership of Poland in December. We seek to strongly address the adverse impacts of climate

change and the urgent need for innovation in adaptation for SIDS.
Tonga engaged in this year’s first intergovernmental conference on the conservation and sustainable use of biological diversity in the high seas and the seabed. We are hopeful that a gradual convergence of views will result in a zero-draft of a legally binding instrument for consideration at the second and third meetings of the intergovernmental conference, to be held in March and August 2019, respectively.
Tonga  has  also  continued  its  engagement  at  the International Seabed Authority in ensuring the appropriate management of the resources of the area. Tonga is grateful to the members of the Authority for its re-election this year to the Council, and we look forward to working together on the development of the important draft exploitation regulations. Tonga also looks forward to hosting the first regional International Seabed Authority workshop, in early 2019, to explore the benefits of seabed mining to the blue economy of Pacific Islands and to progressing development of a regional treaty on deep sea mining.
We would like to acknowledge Italy’s ongoing partnership with Tonga through the joint  committee in strengthening Tonga’s capacity in the field of the environment and the ocean. We also acknowledge the work of the secretariat of the Pacific Community, the Commonwealth Secretariat and the Pew Charitable Trust on the regional treaty.
Tonga commissioned its first independent power producer-owned solar farm last year and strongly believes that it can achieve its 50 per cent renewable energy target by 2020 through more and stronger public- private partnership arrangements. Tonga wishes to acknowledge the partnership it has established with the Government of Austria, the United Nations Industrial Development Organization and the Pacific Community to establish the Pacific Centre for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency, a specialized regional  entity to support private-sector investments in renewable energy and energy efficiency in the Pacific islands. We would also like to recognize and acknowledge the announcement made by the Government of Norway of its commitment to provide $2 million in support of the important work of the Centre.
Finally, sustainable development —  whether  it be, inter alia, through good health and well-being, climate action, life below water or affordable and clean
energy — can be realized only through international peace and security. We continue to look to the Security Council to protect the innocent from threats to international peace and security in any form, be they traditional threats such as armed conflict or newer threats such as climate change, to ensure that no one is left behind.
May Almighty God guide and bless the President of the General Assembly, all the States Members of the United Nations and their respective Governments and peoples.