It is a great
honour and privilege to take part in the general debate
and to represent my country on this rostrum at a
significant juncture in Moldova’s modern history, the
recent celebration of the twentieth anniversary of its
independence and 20 years of its membership in the
United Nations, which we will mark in a few months.
These interrelated and complementary events
constitute an excellent opportunity to once again
express our genuine attachment to the founding
principles of the Organization, and our sincere
appreciation for the support and assistance the
international community has given my country during
this time.
 On behalf of my delegation, I have the pleasure
to extend congratulations to His Excellency Mr. Nassir
Abdulaziz Al-Nasser on assuming his high and
responsible position, and to join previous speakers in
expressing our gratitude to His Excellency Mr. Joseph
Deiss for his excellent management and the
competence he displayed during his presidency of the
Assembly. I would also like to reiterate our sincere
congratulations to His Excellency Mr. Ban Ki-moon on
his reappointment to a second term as Secretary-
General, to convey our deep appreciation for his
strenuous efforts and activity on behalf of the
international community and to wish him success in
continuing his noble mission.
 The beginning of a new decade of the twenty-first
century has been marked by major changes, sincere
aspirations and high hopes in many parts of our planet.
We wholeheartedly welcome the Republic of South
Sudan’s declaration of independence and its entry into
the United Nations as the 193rd Member State. We
have witnessed the genuine desire of young people for
democratic reforms and human rights, fundamental
freedoms and social justice. Peoples in the
Mediterranean region and in North Africa and the
Middle East have set out firmly along the road of
democracy, launching the Arab Spring. In that regard,
we recall the events that changed Moldova and
launched our country on a new, more democratic track
in 2009.
 In this time of change and historical upheaval, we
note the transition of Libya to a new phase in its

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political development, as stated expressively in the
Assembly last week by the Chairman of the National
Transitional Council Executive Office of Libya (see
), whom the Republic of Moldova, like
many other delegations, supported as Libya’s
representative in the General Assembly. The role of the
United Nations in supporting Libya’s transition to
democracy in the wake of the downfall of the former
regime has been incremental. We express our
satisfaction at the Security Council’s approval of the
creation of a mission to assist the transitional
authorities and the Libyan people during the critical
post-conflict phase.
 We have also learned that natural calamities hit
nations indiscriminately. In order to overcome the
consequences of ecological disasters, such as the great
east Japan earthquake, the Fukushima nuclear accident,
the great flooding in Pakistan and the severe drought
and hunger in the Horn of Africa, requires the common
efforts of both developed and developing States. The
international community has the great task of
strengthening its humanitarian and disaster response
capabilities.
 Faced by different challenges, it is commendable
to have a joint platform of concerted actions, managed
by the United Nations. Poverty, conflicts, climate
change, economic and financial issues, migration,
pandemics, terrorism, international crime and other
crises affecting humankind cannot be countered
individually, but only by means of global strategies.
The United Nations is a unique tool in addressing and
overcoming them.
 The United Nations should consolidate its central
role in world affairs, and, consequently, enhance its
multilateral and universal potential by making the
Organization stronger and more representative,
efficient and able to promptly react to major
challenges. A reformed Organization must
pragmatically adapt to new realities and strengthen its
influence, in strict accordance with the United Nations
Charter. The most appropriate methods of
communication, consultation and cooperation during
the reform process should be developed, in close
interaction with other actors, such as the private sector,
civil society and academics, who play a more visible
role in shaping the modern world.
 The greatest incentive for economic growth and
security is a balanced and equitable global trade
system, for which the international community has
been struggling in complex negotiations since the Doha
Round in 2001. While talks on the issue continue,
discrepancies and ruptures in our economies make it
difficult to stand against the waves of the economic
and financial crises. It is hardly possible that countries,
especially developing ones, remain immune to the
globalized economic downturn. While we are required
to implement drastic austerity measures, access to
markets is vital for our economies. That is one of my
country’s priorities. Our Government is working hard
towards the extension and diversification of market
outlets in cooperation with its partners, primarily in
Europe. We rely on openness, a constructive approach
and fair play in market relations as our best allies for
win-win solutions in global trade.
 The Republic of Moldova stands committed to its
human rights agenda. Last year, my country ratified the
Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities
and the Rome Statute of the International Criminal
Court, in a sustained effort to contribute to the
development and implementation of international
standards in the fields of human rights and the rule of
law.
 As a member of the Human Rights Council,
Moldova has taken an active part in the Council’s
deliberations and activities, with the aim of building up
a strong and legitimate human rights body. This year,
Member States underwent the complex process of the
Council’s review. Although not all the concerns of
Member States were accommodated for a far-reaching
and more ambitious outcome of the review, we should
remain committed to fulfilling the balanced and
objective agenda of the Council, while its membership
is expected to comply with resolution 60/251 to uphold
the highest standards in the field of human rights and
to fully cooperate with the Council’s mechanisms.
 The Republic of Moldova remains committed to
that principle. In approximately two weeks, my country
will engage in an intensive review by the United
Nations Human Rights Council under the universal
periodic review mechanism, involving not only the
Government but also civil society and other national
stakeholders. We intend to proceed in that exercise
with genuine openness, objectivity and a constructive
approach.
 The commemoration of the tenth anniversary of
the terrorist attacks in New York on 11 September 2001

11-51681 26

reminded us once again of the great losses, the needed
vigilance and the imperative to multiply our efforts in
combating the terrible scourge of terrorism.
 As a State party to all the universal legal
instruments on the prevention of terrorist acts, the
Republic of Moldova condemns terrorism and
extremism in all their aspects, and welcomes the
achievements of the United Nations Global Counter-
Terrorism Strategy. We advocate the earliest conclusion
of the negotiations of the comprehensive convention on
international terrorism, the convening of a United
Nations conference and the strengthening of all efforts
on combating terrorism at the national, regional and
global levels. To contribute to that end, the Republic of
Moldova is currently hosting a regional event on
preventing and countering the financing of terrorism in
South-East European States.
 Let me now refer to one of the most important
security issues faced by the Republic of Moldova —
the Transnistrian conflict. From the outset, I would like
to reconfirm that the Government of the Republic of
Moldova remains fully committed to the goal of
achieving a political, comprehensive and viable
solution to the issue, which should lead to the
reintegration of my country.
 During the past five years, in referring to the
Transnistrian issue, we have always made the same
appeal. Moldova calls for the unconditional resumption
of the negotiations on the political settlement of the
conflict in the “5+2” format. I am happy to announce
that, exactly five days ago, at the 5+2 consultations
round in Moscow, that decision was finally taken. We
express our gratitude to the Russian Federation, the
Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe,
Ukraine, the European Union and the United States —
the members of the 5+2 negotiations format — for
their efforts in reaching that result. However, the
resumption of the official negotiations was never seen
as a goal in itself. We are fully aware that the most
difficult part of resolving the conflict is still ahead.
 On this occasion, I would like to reiterate some
basic elements of the Moldovan approach towards the
problem. A viable and comprehensive political solution
can be based only on respect for the sovereignty and
territorial integrity of the Republic of Moldova, within
its internationally recognized borders. The central
question on the agenda of the five plus two
negotiations should be the special status of the
Transnistrian region within Moldova. On the one hand,
that special status should ensure full respect of the
needs, rights and freedoms of the local population. On
the other hand, it should provide for the functional
integration of the region with the rest of the country.
 Over the past year, our efforts have been focused
on mobilizing internal resources and international
support to advance the conflict resolution process. In
that regard, we continue to promote confidence-
building measures between both banks of the Nistru
River. Our current list of priorities includes the
restoration of fully-fledged rail communications
throughout the Transnistrian region, in accordance with
international standards. Another important objective is
the restoration of landline phone connections to allow
people from the Transnistrian region to communicate
freely with their relatives and friends in the rest of
Moldova.
 The main beneficiaries of such measures are,
obviously, the population and the business community.
The solutions are on the table. Our message for the
leadership in Tiraspol is clear — abandon the policy of
self-isolation and let us think together about practical
and transparent solutions that would make people’s
lives much easier.
 Let me also refer to some unresolved issues that
need further attention. We are concerned about the
situation of Latin-script schools in the Transnistrian
region, which remain under constant pressure from
local authorities. Children should never become
hostages of political disagreements. In the same
context, we emphasize the need to improve the human
rights situation in the region, in particular to resolve
the case of Mr. Ilie Cazac, who has been abusively
imprisoned in Tiraspol, in order to secure his
immediate and unconditional release.
 We need to reflect on the future of the existing
peacekeeping arrangements in Moldova. I would like
to underline the fact that Moldova has been at peace
for the past 19 years. Therefore, what we really need is
a peace consolidation, not peacekeeping, exercise. That
requires the transformation of the existing, old-
fashioned military mechanism into a multinational
civilian mission operating under a relevant
international mandate and focusing on confidence-
building activities.
 We should not avoid discussions about the
presence of foreign military forces that are stationed on

27 11-51681

Moldovan soil without the consent of the host country,
in breach of the Moldovan Constitution and relevant
international commitments. We are confident that an
early completion of the withdrawal of foreign
munitions stocks and the armed forces guarding them
from the territory of the Republic of Moldova will
positively influence the process of settling the
Transnistrian problem.
 As in the case of other conflicts, the Transnistrian
settlement process cannot advance to its final goal
without wide international support, particularly from
the mediators and observers. It is our strong belief that
genuine mediation based on shared objectives, joint
efforts and good faith is an essential factor in that
regard.
 We fully concur with the President’s focus on the
peaceful settlement of disputes, and his assessment that
peaceful settlements, including those brokered through
mediation efforts, provide the most cost-effective and
long-lasting solutions. We will actively engage in
further debate on the role of mediation in the
settlement of disputes, with a view to developing and
consolidating the role of the General Assembly as the
world’s leading peacemaker.
 Moldova’s advancement on the path to European
integration, the primary goal of which is the overall
modernization of the country, remains the absolute
priority of the domestic and external policies of the
Republic of Moldova. The Government has initiated a
series of deep reforms to ensure the rule of law, the
independence of justice and a functional market
economy where businesses and foreign investments can
find a proper place to grow. Those have proven to be
complex, lengthy and sometimes painful processes, but
they are absolutely indispensable for further
development.
 Moldova’s proactive attitude and determination in
promoting and implementing reforms has ensured a
more intense and expanded political dialogue between
the European Union (EU) and Moldova. We have made
significant progress in negotiating an association
agreement with the European Union by opening a
structured dialogue on human rights and fully engaging
in efforts to meet the conditions established during the
visa liberalization dialogue. We are ready to launch
negotiations on creating a broad and comprehensive
free trade area with the European Union.
 The European perspective continues to be the
EU’s most effective tool in promoting dynamic and
consistent reforms in neighbouring countries. We are
confident that the promotion of democratic values,
prosperity, stability and security in Europe will lay the
foundation for the future EU agenda. That projection of
soft power will be possible only if it is accompanied by
an extension of EU borders. In that context, we hope
that the Warsaw Eastern Partnership Summit will make
an important contribution to strengthening EU relations
with partner countries, developing its messages and
leaving the door open for those Eastern European
neighbours that are able to meet the accession criteria
in the foreseeable future.
 Over the past 20 years, my country has achieved
significant positive developments in the field of
internal affairs. Still, much remains to be done in the
process of carrying out democratic and socio-economic
reforms, the main objective of which is to consolidate
the Republic of Moldova as a sovereign, independent
and reintegrated European State.
 In that regard, we further count on the support of
the United Nations and its Member states in advancing
the political and economic development of my country,
resolving the Transnistrian conflict, speeding up the
withdrawal of foreign military forces and
implementing our development priorities.
 In conclusion, I would like to reconfirm the
commitment of the Republic of Moldova to the ideals
and goals of the United Nations, and its readiness to
further cooperate broadly by engaging in concrete
actions to bring those ideas and aspirations to life.


It is an honour for me to address the
international community, first of all, to express the
pleasure of the Government of the Republic of Panama
at the election of His Excellency Mr. Nassir Abdulaziz
Al-Nasser as President of the General Assembly at its
sixty-sixth session.
 The delegation of Panama is gratified by the
holding of the general debate in the presence of the
Secretary-General and representatives of the different
Member States, Observers and organizations. We
would like to congratulate the President of the General
Assembly at its sixty-fifth session for his excellent
work.
 President Al-Nasser has invited us to focus this
debate on strengthening the role of mediation in the
peaceful settlement of disputes, conflict prevention and
resolution. The importance of this theme invites us to
deeply reflect on its multiple dimensions, given that
mediation is an essential instrument in the preservation
of international peace and security.
 Panama is a multi-ethnic country where people of
different races, cultures, creeds and languages coexist
in harmony and freedom, and where love of
representative democracy, independence and respect
for the sovereignty, ideology and territorial integrity of
all countries are inalienable specific qualities that
define us as a nation.
 In our view, and as a founding member of the
United Nations, Panama will always advocate for
international peace and security, the promotion of
dialogue among Member States, the strengthening of
multilateral dynamics and facilitating the mission of
the United Nations. That is largely due to experiences
accumulated during the course of the diplomatic
history of our country. More than three decades ago,
for a second and last time, the Security Council held an
extraordinary session away from Headquarters, with
the purpose of politically mediating the dispute over
the sovereignty of Panama over its Canal and the
territories adjacent to the Canal Zone, controlled at that
time by the United States of America, which was the
platform that launched the Panamanian cause onto the
international stage.
 It was the joint will and intervention of the
members of this illustrious General Assembly,
demonstrated in its historic resolution 31/143, of 1976,
which to a great extent inspired the signing of the
Treaties between Panama and the United States in
1977. Nowadays, the Panama Canal, fully under our
sovereign authority, is one of the most important axes
of our economic development, supervised by a
Panamanian administration, for the benefit of all
nations. Panamanians will always be grateful to the
United Nations for this noble success of
multilateralism.
 In the 1980s, the Contadora Group was
established in Panama as a mechanism for multilateral
mediation. It forged a Latin American alliance
committed to democracy, economic cooperation and
regional security and led to the Esquipulas peace
agreement — an overarching advance in the
consolidation of peace in Central America. The
Contadora Group was the predecessor of the Rio
Group, which is today an important mechanism for
consultation and coordination in Latin America.
 When our democracy was restored in the early
1990s, with the support of the United Nations
Development Programme, we as a nation initiated
sustained consultations among the principal actors of
Government and civil society in order to strengthen our
administrative institutions, secure the return of the
Panama Canal to Panama, overcome asymmetries in
our country, and identify strategies to accomplish our
development priorities.
 During the past two decades, our culture of
dialogue has given us the skills necessary to transform
our country into a democratic and dynamic society that
is progressing at a steady pace under the current
Administration of the President of the Republic,
Ricardo Martinelli Berrocal.
 As a result, Panama is now considered the second
most competitive economy in Latin America, according
to the World Economic Forum classification system, in

17 11-51681

view of our first-class financial system, our ports, our
high-quality multimodal logistics infrastructure and our
efficient technology — all of this in an environment
that is open to business and generates global interest in
foreign direct investment.
 Our robust prospects for economic growth and
our effective management of public debt, in
combination with continuous, adequate and careful
financial discipline, have been the determining factors
in our recently achieved investment grade with a stable
outlook, according to the major rating agencies.
Likewise, we have begun to implement an active
cooperation agenda in the area of information
exchange and fiscal transparency. We have adopted all
of the measures suggested, which have enabled us to
comply with the recommendations of the Organization
for Economic Cooperation and Development in this
respect. However, this journey to success has not been
easy, and many future challenges remain.
 I believe that all of those here today will take on
the main challenges faced by the international
community in the process of achieving a coherent
restructuring of the world economy and the reform of
its institutions and oversight mechanisms. Panama is
fully aware of this need, and our international agenda
requires us to participate actively in the major
multilateral mechanisms and economic and commercial
integration forums in the areas of investment, tourism
and technology, for the benefit of our citizens. Panama
believes that such efforts must be promoted without
delay by the major economies if we truly wish to
overcome the turbulence in international markets.
 Our country also believes that to ensure a
favourable economic climate, domestic conflicts must
be prevented. This depends on, inter alia, the
effectiveness of the democratic regime, public security,
respect for human rights, the responsible management
of natural resources, tolerance, access to health-care
and sanitation services, the affordability of basic
goods, good governance, and inclusive and balanced
development.
 We in Panama, after living for 21 years under a
military dictatorship — until 1989 — have made a
strong commitment to democracy as a means of
peacefully resolving the disputes that arise in our
society. The experiences suffered under that
dictatorship have led us to speak out unequivocally, in
bilateral and multilateral forums, in favour of the
strengthening or re-establishment of the effectiveness
of democratic institutions wherever necessary. This has
led us to clearly express our position in defence of
democracy in cases such as those involving Honduras,
the failed coup attempt in Ecuador, and the Arab
Spring, which brought the winds of freedom to that
region of the world.
 The duty to resolve disputes that give rise to
international conflicts lies primarily with those States
whose disagreements have generated the conflicts in
question. Nevertheless, the United Nations, as the
epicentre of global diplomacy, must increasingly
perfect the art of mediation as a means of resolving
international disputes. We can never forget that this is a
fundamental principle of the Charter of the United
Nations, enshrined in its Article 33 — a mandate that
has resulted in many accomplishments around the
world, where wisdom, mutual understanding and
agreement have prevailed over aggression, hate and
destruction.
 Mediation and dialogue have formed the basis of
the stand that Panama has taken in connection with
conflicts that have a bearing on peace and international
political stability. Allow me to point out in that respect
that the Government of the Republic of Panama
believes that the Palestinian people have the right to be
recognized as a State, but that they must first resolve
their differences with their neighbour Israel, which also
has the right to peaceful and harmonious coexistence
with Palestine and the other States of the region. There
could be no better solution than one that emerges from
direct negotiations between Israel and the Palestinian
National Authority.
 We also trust in the outcome of dialogue between
the parties in the case of China. Panama, with full
respect for the existing diplomatic truce, calls for
greater participation by Taiwan in international forums
and initiatives, in recognition of the fact that its people
wish to contribute to the pursuit of global peace and
well-being.
 For that reason, and given the relevance of this
important provision of international law, we invite the
Secretary-General and the President of the General
Assembly to continue to promote and enhance the role
of mediation as a viable strategy for the peaceful
resolution of disputes.
 However, for the United Nations system to
continue its effective peace mediation activities, each

11-51681 18

Member State must honour the commitments
undertaken, so that the Organization can count on
sufficient resources. This call for international
cooperation is particularly relevant in these times of
budgetary constraints in many countries, and given that
aggressive competition for scarce resources is one of
the primary causes of armed conflicts.
 Panama is a country with a lengthy and notable
history of peace and conciliation. In our opinion, the
best option when faced with the threat of armed
conflict is comprehensive, transparent and
unconditional diplomatic dialogue between the parties.
 We welcome the fact that in July 2011 the
international community marked an important
milestone along the path to a collective security
architecture through the unanimous adoption of a
resolution entitled “Strengthening the role of mediation
in the peaceful settlement of disputes, conflict
prevention and resolution” (resolution 65/283). That
consensus represents the victory of reason over the
absurd and harmful option of confrontation. The
international community has seen clearly the major
advantages of investing in a concerted effort to
consolidate peace before it becomes necessary to
contain the human tragedies resulting from violent
conflicts, as we have witnessed and are witnessing in
Somalia, for instance, where hunger, disease and
destruction reign.
 Human history has taught us that hunger, poverty,
ignorance, injustice and social inequality give rise to
the greatest threats to peace and security. If we, the
States Members of the United Nations, remain
determined to save succeeding generations from the
scourge of war, we must opt for proactively ensuring a
peace that is based not on action taken in reaction to
political or military acts of aggression, but on faith in
and guarantees of universal and equal human rights in
all corners of the world.
 As we believe in the valuable role that the United
Nations should play, Panama is very proud to share
with this Assembly the fact that the Government of
President Ricardo Martinelli proposed the creation of a
United Nations Regional Centre for Latin America and
the Caribbean, with the aim of strengthening
coordination and dialogue among regional agencies, in
particular the 16 United Nations bodies already
established in Panama. The national Government will
finance the project, which will be a unique model of
best practices in implementing sustainable
development in Latin America and the world.
 In the past decade, our country’s privileged
geographic position and the logistical infrastructure
that Panama City offers has attracted various
humanitarian aid organizations. That has also
encouraged Panama to promote the construction of a
regional humanitarian assistance logistics centre for the
Americas. The regional centre will have the necessary
agreements to expedite the entry and exit of
humanitarian aid in order to help in the event of natural
or other disasters, such as occurred last year in Haiti,
where the international humanitarian agenda is still
very necessary.
 With such projects, we reiterate our commitment
to the multilateral system and to the United Nations
Organization, and show that, as small lower-middle
income developing countries, we also provide
international cooperation, even in such times of
economic difficulty for the large economies.
 Nor does Panama wish to miss the opportunity
before the Assembly to call for reflection on the
environmental, political and social challenges that all
our societies face and that we must overcome, once
again, through dialogue and cooperation among States
in an effort to address those global challenges.
 Without a doubt, one of those great challenges is
that posed by climate change and its effects. Climate
change is a priority of my country’s foreign policy at
the environmental level. We are committed to all
efforts aimed at strengthening international
environmental organizations and to the struggle to find
joint solutions to the causes and effects of that
phenomenon.
 As part of our support to the Organization’s own
initiatives and for the benefit of the international
community, we will host the meeting of the ad hoc
working groups of the United Nations Framework
Convention on Climate Change, soon to take place in
Durban, South Africa. Those working groups will meet
in Panama from 1 to 7 October in order to advance the
modalities for a second commitment period of carbon
emission reductions by developed countries and for
stabilization of the global temperature so as to make
progress in fully implementing the Framework
Convention through long-term cooperation
mechanisms.

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 Panama hopes that the meeting will serve as a
bridge between the results obtained in the Mexico
meeting and those that may emerge in the one that will
take place in South Africa, since it is necessary to set
clear, transparent and ambitious goals. Also, the
political will of developed countries in the matter must
be reaffirmed, as they have the primary responsibility
under the Convention.
 In conclusion, as the Secretary-General rightly
stated in his opening address to the general debate:
 “Saving our planet, lifting people out of poverty
and advancing economic growth — those are one
and the same fight.” (, p. 1)
 That is why Panama, once again and before the
General Assembly, renews its commitment to the
community of nations to work for a world where war,
sectarian hate, discrimination, intolerance and
destruction waged under different flags and creeds that,
without any justification, generate only poverty and
misery, may finally be replaced by the dialogue,
negotiation, cooperation and friendship stemming from
differences that, on the contrary, have always been a
source of wealth and well-being for the peoples of the
world.


I come
to speak before the Assembly representing a country
that is celebrating the two-hundredth anniversary of the
endeavour that led to its birth as an independent and
sovereign State, and that has preserved its aspiration to
continue offering the international community its long-
standing tradition of respect for the principles of
international law and its ongoing commitment to the
cause of peace and peaceful coexistence among
nations.
 Uruguay takes pride in its calling to serve the
international community in promoting dialogue,
understanding and the tireless search for consensus as
the most appropriate ways for interaction among its
members. It was through the application of those
principles that we recognized and welcomed this year
the 193rd Member of this Organization, the Republic
of South Sudan.
 Likewise, in March we recognized the State of
Palestine. We believe that all of the necessary
conditions have been met for this recognition to
become universal and for the realization of a two-State
solution, which Uruguay has supported since 1947, as
well as for a path that reaffirms the right of Israel and
Palestine to coexist in peace, within secure and
recognized borders, in a environment of renewed
cooperation and free from any threats or actions that
could jeopardize peace.
 The Palestinian people have a legitimate and full
right to statehood. But the Jewish people also have the
undeniable right to live in peace in a safe country, free
of terrorist attacks — attacks that Uruguay has always
rejected and condemned.
 Uruguay is proud to have made a decisive
contribution to the creation of the State of Israel,
whose hard-working people have lived up to the
historic vision of the men and women who made its
creation possible. We are convinced also that the time
has come for the Palestinian people to show the world
their decisive contribution to peace, development and
international cooperation.
 Once again, in keeping with our adherence to
international law, we cannot but express our utmost
rejection of coercive measures that violate the
principles of the Charter of the United Nations, such as
the economic, trade and financial blockade imposed by
the United States against Cuba — a unilateral measure
that contravenes not only the Charter but also
international law as well as one of the most important
principles of my country’s foreign policy, namely, the
peaceful settlement of disputes.
 We reject all manner of violence and all threat or
use of illegal force, including terrorism — an unjust
and unjustified crime, a cruel scourge that 10 years ago
most painfully affected New York City. We express our
condolences and solidarity to the victims’ families and
the American people, as well as our desire and
commitment to ensure that these kinds of acts never
happen again, here or anywhere else.
 While we are guided by the principles of
international law, the promotion and protection of
human rights and international humanitarian law also
figure among the priorities of Uruguayan foreign
policy. This a reflection of the country’s political and
institutional heritage, that of deep-seated democracy
and the solid rule of law.
 Allow me to express in that respect my gratitude
in connection with the honour conferred on us when
Uruguay was elected to chair the Human Rights
Council. We will strive to honour this vote of
confidence by working every day to strengthen the
multilateral system for the protection and promotion of
human rights.
 Uruguay has an outstanding record in this area,
not only because it is one of the countries that has
signed the widest array of conventions, but also
because it has made specific contributions in diverse
fields, including the defence of the rights of the child;
the mainstreaming of a gender perspective into all
United Nations system policies and programmes, as
reflected in the establishment and implementation of
the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the
Empowerment of Women; and the promotion of
fundamental freedoms, including, inter alia, freedom of
expression.

11 11-51384

 During the course of its mandate, our country
intends to promote a new culture of dialogue on human
rights — a culture that favours the cooperation of
countries with the system, but also of the system with
those countries that need assistance to improve their
internal human rights situation. We would also like to
enhance the Council’s working methods and promote
the implementation of its instruments in a non-selective
manner, avoiding double standards. We would also like
to strengthen the role of the Office of the United
Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, as a
key element of promotion and protection mechanisms,
by providing the resources necessary so that it can
effectively discharge the mandates that Member States
are increasingly assigning to it.
 Uruguay is not indifferent to situations of armed
conflict. That is why we have made tremendous efforts
in that respect and will continue to do so in order to
maintain and strengthen the applicable norms of
international humanitarian law.
 In keeping with this, we believe that we cannot
ignore mass atrocities such as genocide, war crimes,
crimes against humanity and ethnic cleansing. Bearing
in mind at all times the principle of non-intervention in
the internal affairs of other States — a principle that
our country and region holds dear — we recognize the
State’s primary responsibility to protect its population,
as well as the importance of fostering cooperation with
States that might require international assistance to
fulfil that obligation. The aim is not to weaken their
sovereignty but, rather, to strengthen it.
 A few months ago, we welcomed the Secretary-
General to our country, and we congratulated him once
again on his re-election, which Uruguay
enthusiastically supported from the outset. Mr. Ban
Ki-moon expressed the recognition of the international
community of one of the most relevant aspects of our
foreign policy over the past several decades: our
unwavering and committed participation in United
Nations peacekeeping operations. With approximately
30 per cent of its operational defence forces devoted to
these operations, Uruguay is the main troop contributor
as a proportion of its population and ranks 10th in
absolute terms. Uruguay thus places at the disposal of
the United Nations valuable human and material
resources in the context of work that is the flagship of
this Organization, deploying in situations and
discharging mandates of increasingly complexity.
 Given the complexity of current international
affairs, together we have begun an in-depth discussion
of the United Nations peacekeeping system. We are
convinced that these missions will be sustainable only
if we seriously reconsider the resources needed for
their proper functioning and update the conditions
offered by the system so as to ensure that the United
Nations is supplied with both equipment and human
resources.
 Today peacekeeping operations are the most
important and visible aspect of United Nations
missions and the one that most exposes the United
Nations to international scrutiny, often positive but
sometimes negative.
 Uruguay reaffirms its commitment to
peacekeeping operations and to the strictest
enforcement of the mandates and standards regulating
the conduct of field personnel. That is why, in cases of
shameful and unacceptable misconduct — such as that
perpetrated by five members of our military deployed
in Haiti, where since the beginning of the United
Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti we have
contributed tens of thousands of men and women, some
of whom have offered their lives to help that brother
country consolidate peace and stability — we have not
hesitated to act with the utmost severity and rigor as
the circumstances demanded. Under my country’s
military justice, those five individuals accused of
military crimes have now been sentenced to prison and
the case has been referred to the civil justice system to
initiate the corresponding criminal case. Thus, within
the framework of respect for due process and in the
utmost transparency and cooperation with the relevant
United Nations entities, we will stop at nothing to
uncover the truth and punish those responsible.
 Our commitment to international peace and
security has also driven our country to play an active
role in the field of disarmament. Like many countries,
Uruguay has firmly promoted all initiatives aimed at
eliminating nuclear weapons and other weapons of
mass destruction and at regulating the control and
reduction of conventional weapons, which every year
cause thousands of innocent civilian casualties.
 As a signatory of the Treaty of Tlatelolco, by
virtue of which Latin America and the Caribbean
became the first nuclear-weapon-free zone, Uruguay
has decisively contributed to strengthening both the
regional regime and the Treaty on the

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Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, which is
considered the cornerstone of the disarmament and
non-proliferation regime. Uruguay has adhered fully to
the five points identified by the Secretary-General. We
believe that the international community must make
the most of progress to date to advance firmly towards
a world free from nuclear weapons.
 The topic of this year’s general debate is linked
to the international peace and security agenda. We
therefore welcome the selection of a topic that
underlines the pressing need to strengthen the political
capacities of the United Nations. Professional and
accurate prevention and mediation efforts could save
thousands of human lives and billions of dollars of
material damage, thereby avoiding the loss of
generations, growing resentment and despair, and a
vicious cycle of violence can be broken only by
reconciliation.
 That is why we welcome efforts to strengthen the
role of mediation and preventive diplomacy as
mechanisms for dispute settlement. Such efforts can be
carried out at several levels. There can be no doubt that
the United Nations is the natural forum for such
efforts, given its intrinsic legitimacy and impartiality.
However, it cannot be denied that in practice such
efforts must be complemented by the actions of
regional entities and even individual countries, which
can be very effective, as has been shown in several
instances. In addition to the strengthening of the
aforementioned capacities, confronting global issues
requires the development of community spirit that
requires more than combined political will. A systemic
approach is fundamental.
 Climate change is probably the most obvious
example of an urgent global challenge. It is essential to
immediately start enforcing adaptation and mitigation
measures against its adverse effects, since a
compromised environment will limit any development
effort. We are aware that necessary measures require
changes in modes of production to avoid seriously
compromising resource distribution within our
countries.
 The Uruguayan Government strongly supports
negotiations on climate change under the United
Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
(UNFCCC). We take this opportunity to call for
accelerated efforts to ensure a second stage of
commitments on reducing greenhouse gas emissions in
the outcome of the next Conference of Parties to the
UNFCCC. Furthermore, it is essential that progress be
made in the negotiations on chemicals, especially in
the context of the current exercise on mercury. The
sensitivity and importance of this matter, which has
greatly potential to harm the environment, requires the
commitment of all countries in order to successfully
conclude the current negotiations.
 Another priority of our country is the particular
situation of agriculture as it relates to the climate
change phenomenon. A huge number of developing
countries, including my own, depend on that sector,
which is especially vulnerable to its negative
consequences. That is why agriculture requires a
special chapter in the framework of the UNFCC
negotiations.
 A new balance among many centres of power, the
emergence of new States and intra-State conflicts have
called for a reformulation of peace missions. Global
threats include climate change and terrorism, and an
international criminal justice entity has been
established. Profound political changes have taken
place in many countries. We now live in a different
world. But the changes do not affect only political and
security matters. Enormous transformations are taking
place in the global economy and development issues.
Developed countries are facing serious difficulties in
their efforts to recover from a deep economic crisis.
New, so-called emerging economies are playing a
growing role in setting the direction of the world
economy. In recent years, the need to establish new
regulations and global agreements has become ever
more apparent. We are entering a new era in
international economic relations.
 In that context, we must remember that peace and
stability will not be achieved without sustainable
development. This year, the United Nations has taken
very significant steps in recognizing the link between
security and development, which is born not from
political declarations, but from empirical evidence, and
is a sine qua non of capacity-building at the national
level.
 The United Nations Conference on Sustainable
Development (Rio+20) will provide us with a unique
opportunity to renew the will to achieve the goals and
commitments contained in Agenda 21 and the
Johannesburg Plan of Implementation. The quest for
long-term development must be based on a

13 11-51384

comprehensive development concept that takes
economic, social and environmental dimensions into
account. We believe it essential that Rio+20 achieve
tangible results that benefit our citizens. For that to
happen, issues related to technology transfer, technical
training and financing for developing countries must be
taken into account.
 Food security is a fundamental component of
Uruguay’s development agenda, as well as one of its
national priorities. We remain convinced that the
current critical situation is caused by structural causes
that must be resolved collectively and urgently. We are
particularly concerned by the paralysis in the
negotiations of the Doha Round of the World Trade
Organization. That ambitious exercise, one of whose
objectives is the reduction or elimination of trade
distortions, could, by strengthening trade, promote the
development of the most disadvantaged countries of
the world.
 It is essential to eliminate agricultural subsidies.
Countries that until a few decades ago were self-
sufficient for their food needs now need to import a
large part of what they consume, and they do so from
countries that subsidize their agricultural production.
The artificially low prices of agriculture exports,
sustained for decades by some countries through
subsidies and other trade-distorting measures and
limitations on market access, are mainly responsible of
the food security problems.
 Stimulating investment to increase production
and improve productivity, a successful conclusion of
the Doha Round, as well as the transfer of adequate
technology to developing countries, capable of
achieving efficient agricultural economies, are
fundamental to obtaining food security.
 As a middle-income country, Uruguay still faces
serious development challenges, particularly in
eradicating poverty, diversifying production,
introducing technological innovation and promoting
renewable energy, to name but a few. The progress
achieved must be consolidated, and to that end it is
vital for us to be able to count on the support of the
international community, and of the United Nations
system in particular. I must reiterate the urgent need to
consider in depth a new cooperation modality or
scheme that takes into account the specific
development needs of middle-income countries like
Uruguay.
 Uruguay is committed to the reform process of
the Organization. Through the Global Governance
Group, we have maintained a proactive attitude in
order to promote a strong bond between the United
Nations and informal discussion forums outside the
system. However, it is critical to lead by example. For
that reason, we believe that improving global
governance is first an internal task of the United
Nations system. In this regard, my country is very
satisfied with the results obtained in the pilot
programme of Delivering as One, whose next
intergovernmental conference will be held in
November in Montevideo.
 For all these reason, but above all because of its
firm commitment to the cause of peace and
multilateralism, Uruguay is seeking a seat as a
non-permanent member of the Security Council in
2016-2017. That would be our country’s second time in
the past 66 years, after having served in 1965-1966.
 In conclusion, consolidating multilateralism is
one of the most challenging international tasks.
Multiple ongoing crises demand immediate response
and action. The rise of new informal forums with a
limited number of members but a growing influence in
international governance requires an additional
collective effort to strengthen the role of the United
Nations as a forum for political discussion in which all
States are able to participate in decision-making.
 A permanent effort is required to combine
effectiveness with legitimacy — a challenge that has
become increasingly more significant as globalization
deepens. We need a new United Nations for the twenty-
first century. The first decade of the century has
already run its course. History is harsh with those who
cannot adapt to its challenges, and its consequences are
bitter. At the United Nations, we are responsible for
putting forward appropriate answers to the
international community. There is still time.


I am pleased to add my voice to the
unanimous acclaim of His Excellency Mr. Nassir
Abdulaziz Al-Nasser as President of the General
Assembly for this, our sixty-sixth session. A skilful and
seasoned diplomat, he has played an integral role in
establishing the State of Qatar as a central and crucial
actor in international diplomacy. I have no doubt that
he will approach his new responsibilities with similar
dedication, even-handedness and compassion.
 In recent months the winds of change have
encircled the globe, reaching and reshaping the
unlikeliest corners of our planet, for good and for ill.
Those winds have swept the nation of South Sudan into
these hallowed halls as a welcome and esteemed new
member of our global family. They are blowing away
the flimsy impediments to Palestinian statehood, and
breathing fresh air into stagnant negotiating processes.
The winds of change have howled across the sands of
the Middle East and North Africa, reshaping long-held
geopolitical assumptions.
 The grim economic storm clouds that formed
ominously on our global horizon three years ago have
yet to dissipate, and, indeed, seem to be multiplying.
Natural disasters, climate change, and the
accompanying non-metaphorical winds of hurricanes

17 11-51360

and tropical storms have buffeted my multi-island
nation and my region yet again, upending our fragile
economies and causing painful developmental
setbacks.
 The United Nations finds itself in the eye of these
increasingly turbulent geopolitical and socio-economic
storms. The role that we collectively play in response
to these howling gales will determine the contours of
the post-crisis world and the relevance of this
institution in that world. Will the international
community shield the vulnerable from these winds?
Will we harness their power for positive change? Or
will we become little more than unnecessary weather
forecasters, watching and warning about which way the
winds blow, but never acting for the benefit of our
peoples’ humanization?
 The President has wisely selected “The role of
mediation in the settlement of disputes” as the theme of
this general debate. That theme could not be more apt
or timely. Too often, the difficult work of mediation,
negotiation and peaceful resolution of disputes is
prematurely abandoned in the search for a quick fix of
militarism, brinkmanship or ill-advised unilateral
action. The very drafters of hard-fought Security
Council resolutions often cast aside the letter and spirit
of those documents before their ink has dried, and the
frenzied pursuit of a military solution to every dispute
is sometimes sickeningly palpable.
 All too frequently, the loudest champions of
expensive and unnecessary military action are those
leaders of military Powers who sometimes seek to
shore up sagging local political fortunes with bullets,
bombs and the bodies of faceless foreigners in faraway
lands. History has never been kind to such nakedly
political crusades, and those who have sown the wind
have invariably reaped the whirlwind of their bloody
campaigns, long after the triumphalist glow has faded.
Neocolonialist and imperialist adventures, however
disguised, will never triumph before the bar of history
over a people’s right to self-determination and the
inalienable embrace of sovereignty.
 The ongoing global economic and financial crisis
is a devastating storm that has shown no signs of
abating. Economies the world over remain in peril, and
none is immune from the widening and deepening
fallout of this systemic crisis of ill-regulated financial
institutions and the movement of capital. The effects of
the international global and financial meltdown are
now being felt well beyond the bottom lines of
multinational corporations. The macroeconomic and
developmental consequences of this economic tornado
are now painfully apparent, as is the terrible impact on
the lives of individuals.
 The economic crisis has spurred rising global
unemployment and poverty, and has engendered a
feeling of hopelessness, especially among young
people. The continuing fallout of the economic
upheaval can be felt in streets and cities around the
world and is a major contributor to the global unrest
that has pitted disgruntled youths and others in violent
opposition to Government forces, from Tottenham to
Tripoli. Social unrest elsewhere beckons, in dozens of
countries where neither the socio-economic conditions
nor the political institutions can contain the enormous
pressures much longer.
 Well into our third year of the international
economic crisis, we can now declare that the tepid and
timid responses of wealthy developed nations have
failed to heal the global economy. The uncoordinated
lurches from stimulus to austerity and back typify the
confusion of the self-appointed premier forums of our
international economic cooperation. The recovery that
they prematurely declared was false and fleeting, and
their counsel of patience and predictions of long-term
recovery are cold comfort to the suffering peoples of
countries that did not contribute to the crisis.
 In small, vulnerable and highly indebted middle-
income economies such as ours, the economic debacle
threatens to have debilitating and ongoing
consequences. We cannot afford to wait for the promise
of incremental or cyclical up-ticks in the global
economy. Small States need the fiscal and policy space
to creatively spur development in ways that comply not
with the checklists of discredited economic theorists,
but with real-world particularities and people-centred
policies. The international financial institutions have
yet to sufficiently grasp this simple fact.
 The General Assembly must reassert its role in
the response to the international economic crisis. In the
early days of the global economic deterioration, Saint
Vincent and the Grenadines played a leading role in the
United Nations Conference on the World Financial and
Economic Crisis and its Impact on Development.
Under the President’s leadership, the Assembly must
now meaningfully follow up on the unfulfilled
recommendations and mechanisms spelled out at that

11-51360 18

Conference. The Caribbean region has a vested interest
in this most urgent of matters.
 This year, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines was
the subject of a United Nations resolution (65/136) that
called upon the international community to provide
assistance in the wake of Hurricane Tomas, which
caused millions of dollars of damage in our region.
While we are extremely grateful to the many countries
that contributed generously to the emergency response,
our national and regional recovery is far from
complete. In the light of the welcome call by the
President of the General Assembly to focus on disaster
prevention and response during the current session, I
remind the international community of our continuing
recovery efforts and the ongoing vulnerability of small
island developing States during the still active 2011
Atlantic hurricane season.
 I remain baffled by the intransigence of major
emitters and developed nations that refuse to shoulder
the burden for arresting the climate changes that are
linked to the excesses of their own wasteful policies.
As Hurricanes Irene and Katia crept northward to
typically untouched cities in the United States and the
United Kingdom, we in the Caribbean felt saddened at
the extensive damage and tragic loss of life, which is
an annual occurrence in our region. We can only hope
that our now-common experiences can engender a level
of solidarity and constructive engagement that will lead
to binding and meaningful emissions reduction targets
and the fulfilment of commitments on adaptation
financing for vulnerable small island developing
States. Time is running out on the very existence of
many countries in the face of rising oceans and
increasingly intense storms.
 I am heartened that the President of the General
Assembly has decided to place special emphasis on
sustainable development and global prosperity during
the current session. But the citizens of the world, and
indeed many of its Governments, have lost faith in
endless self-important summits that produce little in
the way of tangible results. The archives of the United
Nations are filled with grandiloquent declarations and
outcome documents from summits whose commitments
were forgotten even before representatives had boarded
their planes to return home from their exotic venues.
 Next year, the issue of development returns to
Latin America for the United Nations Conference on
Sustainable Development (Rio+20) in Brazil. Rio+20
will take place one decade after Mexico’s heralded
Monterrey Consensus, in which developed countries
committed themselves to the target of devoting 0.7 per
cent of their gross national income to official
development assistance to developing countries. Today,
even accepting the liberal definitions and creative
accounting used by some States to measure
development assistance, developed countries are
contributing only 0.32 per cent of their gross national
income to official development assistance — less than
half of the Monterrey target. We just have to make this
better. We must do it right. It is just not good for us to
be taken for a ride all of these years with all of these
promises. It must come to an end sometime, and the
world is changing. Let us get it right. It is our
responsibility. Please.
 In that regard, our dreams remain constantly
unfulfilled. I am reminded of the poetic inquiry of
Langston Hughes, an authentic voice of America, who
asked simply this:
 “What happens to a dream deferred?
Does it dry up
like a raisin in the sun?
Or fester like a sore —
And then run?
Does it stink like rotten meat?
Or crust and sugar over —
like a syrupy sweet?
Maybe it just sags like a heavy load.
Or does it explode?”
Recent events in the streets of major cities around the
world have probably answered Langston Hughes’
queries. Talk is cheap. We must get some action.
 It should be a source of alarm and international
embarrassment that the composition of the Security
Council is an ossified relic of the Second World War,
seemingly immune to the modern realities of new
countries and new global Powers. It is an outrageous
act of international irresponsibility that such an
outmoded and increasingly illegitimate body is allowed
to decisively insert itself into local and regional
conflicts. Saint Vincent and the Grenadines is adamant
that the Security Council must be reformed, and that
the reform must be underpinned by the expansion of
the Council in the permanent and non-permanent
categories alike, with full regard for the legitimate
aspirations of Africa and the necessary
accommodations for small island developing States,

19 11-51360

which have valuable and creative perspectives on
peacebuilding and conflict resolution.
 The International Year for People of African
Descent, which was declared with much fanfare, is
almost at an end. I am grateful to the United Nations,
which has hosted a number of events to raise
awareness of the challenges facing people of African
descent and foster discussions on potential solutions to
tackle those challenges.
 Racial discrimination was justified and itself
became the justification for a brutal, exploitative and
dehumanizing system. That system was perfected
during the transatlantic slave trade and ingrained over
the course of colonial domination. The structure of the
modern world is still firmly rooted in a past of slavers
and colonialist exploitation. Today, every single
country of the world with a population of majority
African descent is still trapped in the periphery of our
global economic and developmental systems. The
peoples of African descent remain disadvantaged,
individually and systemically, by the entrenched and
unyielding cycle of discrimination. Indeed, many of the
wars that the United Nations struggles mightily to quell
or avoid are rooted in the ignorant and avaricious
cartography of the European colonizers.
 The people of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
have a long and proud history of resistance to slavery,
bigotry and genocide, dating back to the heroic
resistance of the Garifuna people against British
aggression in the late 1700s. While we celebrate the
noble heroism of the famous and the faceless alike who
resisted racist colonial hegemony, we must continue to
confront the legacy of this barbarism and continuing
injustice. The wounds of that era are deep, the crimes
against humanity are clear and the necessity for
apology and reparations is undeniable; we cannot duck
those. When we speak this year about the peoples of
African descent, we must highlight what is happening
in the Horn of Africa and in Haiti.
 The collective voices of the international
community are rising to a crescendo in support of full
Palestinian statehood. Saint Vincent and the
Grenadines echoes the relevant portions of yesterday’s
Group of 77 ministerial declaration, which welcomed
the State of Palestine’s application for full membership
in the United Nations. The State of Palestine has
brought its case to this world Assembly in keeping with
the finest traditions of multilateralism. No one should
call the Palestinian acts unilateral. They come here to
the multilateral body. We have no doubt that its action
and the solidarity of the international community will
resuscitate the moribund negotiating process between
the Palestinian and Israeli States.
 As I reflect on the sweeping geopolitical changes
being wrought in our global village, I am compelled to
raise the fact that there is no practical, legal or logical
justification for the seeming indifference of the United
Nations to the meaningful participation of Taiwan in
our important work. Surely, in the context of an ever-
expanding and inclusive United Nations, the 23 million
citizens of Taiwan can, at the very least, be allowed to
meaningfully participate in the specialized agencies of
the Organization — and that should extend beyond the
World Trade Organization and the World Health
Assembly.
 Mr. Al-Nasser assumes the presidency amid a
cyclone of international turbulence and change. We
may not be able to direct those winds, but we can, and
must, adjust our sails to harness the energy and the
potential of this moment, while riding out the storms of
uncertainty and upheaval. Former United States
President Abraham Lincoln once said, in a different
context:
  “The dogmas of the quiet past are
inadequate to the stormy present. The occasion is
piled high with difficulty, and we must rise with
the occasion. As our case is new, so we must
think anew and act anew.”
 Our stormy present requires similar resolve,
creativity and action. Let us rise to the occasion and
fulfil the immense potential of this peaceful global
Assembly. Into those swirling winds of change, let us
raise the flag of inclusiveness, equality, peace, justice
and development for all the peoples of the world to see.
May Almighty God continue to bless us all.
 The Acting President: On behalf of the General
Assembly, I wish to thank the Prime Minister of Saint
Vincent and the Grenadines for the statement he has
just made.


I sincerely greet all gathered here and offer
congratulations on the opening of the sixty-sixth
session of the General Assembly. I congratulate His
Excellency Nassir Abdulaziz Al-Nasser on his election
as President of the General Assembly at this session
and express confidence that the Assembly under his
leadership will work successfully and fruitfully.
 Allow me to convey my gratitude to Mr. Joseph
Deiss, President at the sixty-fifth session, for his

9 11-51185

effective activity in this post. In availing myself of this
opportunity I should also like once again to
congratulate Mr. Ban Ki-moon on his reappointment to
the post of Secretary-General and wish him great
success.
 As in past years, this forum is the continuation of
the process of forming suitable approaches to the
complex phenomena of the modern world — in other
words, a search for appropriate answers to questions
having global significance. It becomes more and more
evident that there is a demand for systemic measures
based on a clear definition of goals, a vision of their
possible implementation and a choice of effective
international mechanisms.
 Turkmenistan formulates these goals as follows:
peace through development. Today these concepts
cannot be considered separately. The direct connection
between peace and development is exactly what opens
wide possibilities for the consolidation of political will
and the intellectual and material resources of the
community of nations. That is important in order to
establish sustainable, stable and, at the same time,
flexible and balanced modern systems of international
ties in politics, economics and in the humanitarian
sphere.
 We are convinced that this large-scale issue and
the responsibility for its implementation lie first and
foremost with the United Nations. Turkmenistan acts
accordingly in forming its approaches to the issues of
achieving a firm peace and security, implementing the
development goals and realizing humanitarian
cooperation.
 Considering that a fundamental condition for
ensuring long-term peace and strategic stability is to
efficiently abide by the United Nations Charter,
Turkmenistan pursues a steady and purposeful policy
of peace and good-neighbourliness and actively
encourages peaceful processes. We absolutely reject
military force as an instrument of foreign policy and
intergovernmental relations. We believe that solutions
through armed force do not offer prospects for success,
do not eliminate sources of and reasons for clashes or
contradictions, and in most cases do not create
conditions for supplying appropriate answers to many
questions that arise in post-conflict periods.
 Turkmenistan attaches paramount importance to
the settlement of any situation by peaceful means and
methods. In that connection and in compliance with the
fundamental documents of the United Nations, we
suggest that at this session the Assembly start to
develop a declaration on the critical introduction of
political and diplomatic tools for the resolution of
international issues, with further consideration at
subsequent sessions. To our way of thinking, adopting
such a declaration would allow for a considerable
decrease in the probability of the use of force to
resolve clashes in intergovernmental relations. It would
help to reduce the risks concerned and threats to
general stability and security.
 At the regional level, we have proposed a number
of initiatives on maintaining peace and stability in
Central Asia and in the Caspian basin. These initiatives
were welcomed positively. In our opinion, the next step
must be taken, namely, to arrange a representative
forum on security in Central Asia and the Caspian Sea
region. Turkmenistan suggests hosting this event next
year. We believe that the establishment of an advisory
council on peaceful development in Central Asia and
the Caspian Sea region may emerge as one of the
political outcomes of that forum.
 In talking of the necessity to ensure security on a
global scale, we do not mean only its political
component. Global security is considered as a
comprehensive whole, based on indivisibility and a
whole range of key factors that define the vectors of
today’s worldwide development. That involves the
solution of economic, energy, ecological, food and
humanitarian issues.
 Today it is obvious that global security cannot be
provided unless peace and consent at national and
regional levels are reached. Therefore Turkmenistan
aims its efforts at the maximum promotion of the
processes of sustainable development, attaining the
Millennium Development Goals and creating efficient
models of multilateral reciprocal action for the solution
of urgent international issues.
 A reliable and stable transit of energy resources
on the international market is one of the issues at hand.
Our proposals on the matter received support from the
world community and were reflected in General
Assembly resolution 63/210, adopted in 2008. I believe
that the time has come to start developing concrete
measures on the resolution of energy transport issues.
 With a view to joining the efforts of the Member
States that are taking an active part in the development
of an international legal foundation in the sphere of

11-51185 10

energy supply, Turkmenistan considers it appropriate to
create a new mechanism, transparent and open to all:
an interregional energy dialogue under the aegis of the
United Nations, supposing that the Organization would
actively promote establishment of an essential format
of cooperation. We see the States of Central and South
Asia, the Caspian, the Black Sea and Baltic regions,
Russia, China, the European Union and the countries of
the Middle and Near East — all States, companies and
international financial institutions concerned — being
among its participants. The acknowledgment by United
Nations Member States of the general nature of the
long-term goals of development and a readiness to
achieve their implementation jointly act today as
determining factors for the sustainability of the global
economic system.
 The serious effects of the worldwide financial
and economic crisis have clearly demonstrated once
again the need to unite efforts to form viable models
and realistic plans, taking account of the interests and
needs of all States of the world. Turkmenistan will take
an active part in this process and will contribute to the
exchange of successful experiences gained by our
country on a number of fronts involving economic and
social development.
 We are ready to do this through the relevant
United Nations structures, first of all the Economic and
Social Council. Our country submits its candidature for
membership in that authoritative body for the term of
2013-2015. We are preparing for the work in this body,
and, if elected, Turkmenistan will spare no efforts to
successfully implement the tasks entrusted.
 Turkmenistan will also take part in the Rio+20
Earth Summit in 2012. We see it as a landmark event in
the process of making progress towards sustainable
development objectives. We intend to announce a
number of specific proposals at that forum.
 With regard to maintaining sustainable economic
growth, I should like to dwell on a crucial component,
namely, the creation of a modern transport
infrastructure.
 Over the years our country, together with partners
in the region, has been actively working on the
implementation of major projects to optimize traffic
flow in the Eurasian sphere. We believe this is a very
promising area, given the huge potential of the north-
south and east-west corridors. It is important that those
corridors, which could give a powerful impetus to
economic development and trade relations on a
continental scale, be used effectively. We believe that
the United Nations could play an important role in
coordinating the establishment of international
cooperation in the field of transport.
 In that regard, Turkmenistan suggests that there
be an initiative, during the current session, to start
developing a United Nations special programme on the
development of transport, including the study of transit
and transport opportunities between the Caspian and
Black Seas and between Central Asia and the Middle
East.
 Turkmenistan sees the environmental sphere as a
key area for international cooperation. We respect the
initiatives and decisions taken at the summits on
climate change in Copenhagen and Cancun. We are
looking forward to continuing a constructive
international dialogue on this issue in November this
year at the meeting in Durban. We are convinced of the
need to join efforts in this field at the global, regional
and national levels and to coordinate the actions of
each United Nations Member State. In that connection
I should like to emphasize that Turkmenistan is
currently preparing an extensive document, the
National Strategy on Climate Change. After the
adoption of the Strategy we will be ready to submit it
to the relevant United Nations agencies as a
contribution to our common work. We believe that it
will be possible, during the current session and in the
context of closer multilateral cooperation, to start
establishing systemic machinery in this area. To that
end, Turkmenistan proposes establishing a specialized
institution — a United Nations interregional centre on
development and issues related to climate change. We
are willing to provide for its functioning with all the
necessary infrastructure in the capital of Turkmenistan,
Ashgabat.
 A most important question that goes far beyond
regional boundaries is the environment of the Caspian
Sea. Here we are also convinced of the need to give
specific content to international efforts to preserve the
unique natural resources of the Caspian Sea. In that
regard we propose organizing a Caspian environmental
forum as a permanent body to deal with environmental
issues in the Caspian basin, as well as to make
appropriate proposals and recommendations.
 Achieving sustainable development is directly
related to the resolution of humanitarian issues, support

11 11-51185

for natural human rights, and opportunities for
individuals to achieve personal fulfilment and for
people to lead valuable lives. In that regard our country
will continue its cooperation with United Nations
humanitarian bodies for further implementation of
United Nations conventions in the field of human
rights. As a permanent member of the Executive
Committee of the Office of the High Commissioner for
Refugees (UNHCR), Turkmenistan will actively
promote the implementation of practical measures
aimed at protecting and supporting refugees. We have
found it useful, in working with UNHCR, to study our
experience in granting citizenship to refugees and
stateless persons and to organize, in that connection, an
international meeting involving all stake-holders in
Ashgabat in 2012.
 The challenges facing the Organization are
complex and ambitious, but they are realistic and
achievable because we have a common goal, namely, to
make the world a better, fairer and more humane place.
We are united by common values and shared
responsibility. We are united in our endeavour to move
forward. We rely on the vast experience gained by the
United Nations over the decades, as well as on the will,
intellect and wisdom of the community of nations. All
of this will determine the extent of our overall success.
Today each country makes its own unique contribution
to the development and progress of mankind. This
opens up enormous opportunities for creating and
implementing new ideas, for developing innovative
models of cooperation to address key issues in modern
times. Turkmenistan is ready to take an active part in
this activity, firmly following a strategic course aimed
at close and comprehensive cooperation with the
United Nations.


Luxembourg is very pleased that the President of the
European Council, Herman Van Rompuy, was able for
the first time to address this Assembly on behalf of the
European Union (see ), and I align myself
fully with his statement.
 Never before has the United Nations been so
indispensable; never before have expectations of it
been so great. We are going through a period of great
turbulence; a period, as the Secretary-General has said,
burdened by great difficulties, but also rich in
opportunity for the progress of humankind. It is our
duty to respond to the expectations placed on us by all
those across the world who seek peace, security and
dignity.
 On 9 July 2011 a new State was born before the
eyes of the entire world. In January, during their
referendum on independence, the people of South
Sudan spoke loudly and clearly. More than 98 per cent
of the electorate voted for the independence to which
the southern part of Africa’s largest country had
aspired for so long. Luxembourg is proud to have
recognized South Sudan on 9 July, even before the
historic moment of its admission to the United Nations.
 The independence of South Sudan is a testament
to the willingness of the two parties in the long
Sudanese conflict to implement the Comprehensive
Peace Agreement. It is now up to both parties to show
the same willingness to implement new agreements to
address the issues of good-neighbourly relations
between the Sudan and South Sudan. The two Sudans,
and their peoples first of all, will benefit if the
relationship finally becomes a constructive one,
allowing for socio-economic development on a new
basis.
 The international community stands ready to
support both countries. The development of the Sudan
and support of the new State of South Sudan on its path
to viability, stability and prosperity are tasks that we
must all tackle together and cooperatively. The
European Union is actively engaged. Luxembourg fully
supports its efforts and is also committed bilaterally,
particularly regarding demining activities to help
remove the vestiges of a war that was so long that it
has marked several generations of Sudanese.
 A few days ago, in recognizing the full powers of
Libya’s National Transitional Council, the Assembly
blessed, in a way, the end of Colonel Al-Qadhafi’s
dictatorial regime, one that suffocated the whole of
Libyan society for 42 years and did not hesitate to use

11-51378 2

heavy weapons against its own population without
discrimination, trampling on its people’s aspirations for
freedom.
 The international community had to react, to
assume its responsibility to protect Libyan men,
women and children who were under fire — and who,
unfortunately, are still under fire in Sirte and Bani
Walid. We did not want to reproach ourselves yet again
for having hesitated too long, for having neglected our
responsibility to protect those unable to defend
themselves against the cruelty of their own authorities.
We did not want once again to be the powerless
witnesses of large-scale violence.
 Our Organization was able to react and
demonstrate its capacity to act in a decisive, timely and
just manner. The General Assembly suspended Libya
from the Human Rights Council. Acting within the
remit of Chapter VII of the Charter, the Security
Council authorized all measures necessary to protect
the population and civilian areas under threat of attack.
The Council was able to act so decisively because the
international community, and the region in particular,
supported its action. The Arab League played a very
important role in this regard, which I heartily
commend.
 Today, thanks to their courage and the resolute
support of the international community, the Libyan
people are free to choose their future. Together with
our European Union partners, we stand ready to
support Libya on its path to democracy and to help the
National Transitional Council in its immense task of
establishing a new State, in which human rights are
respected and every element of society can find a
place. As Mr. Jean Ping, who was President of the
General Assembly at its fifty-ninth session, put it so
well in Paris on 1 September, Africa will benefit
enormously from the emergence of a democratic Libya,
at peace with itself and with its neighbours. We will all
benefit from it.
 In Tunisia and in Egypt, the people have also
prevailed in their quests for liberty and the rewriting of
the social contract, in the face of the supporters of their
former regimes. In other countries in the region, people
must, alas, continue to struggle to achieve respect for
their fundamental freedoms.
 In Syria, the regime continues to conduct a brutal
campaign against its own population. Every appeal,
including that of the Secretary-General, to end the
violence and repression has so far remained
unanswered. As the Human Rights Council on
23 August decided, commendably, to send urgently an
independent international commission of inquiry to
Syria, the Security Council should also assume its
responsibility in the matter. The credibility of the
United Nations as a moral force, one that protects
civilian populations and their rights, is at stake.
Equally at stake is the capacity of the United Nations
to be present in crises, revolts and disasters that assault
peoples’ dignity and threaten their very existence.
 Peace, security, dignity — these are also key
words when we talk about the Israeli-Palestinian
conflict: the right of two peoples to live in peace,
security and dignity.
 A solution to this conflict, which has lasted too
long and has poisoned the entire region, must
necessarily be reached through the recognition of the
right of both parties — not just one of them — to live
in a sovereign and viable State. This is unfortunately
not yet the case, despite the hope inspired by the
courageous words of President Obama at this very
rostrum last year (see A/65/PV.11). On the contrary, we
have seen neither a halt to the illegal construction of
settlements, nor a significant lifting of the embargo on
the Gaza strip. The revival of direct peace talks was
short-lived.
 We all heard Palestinian President Mahmoud
Abbas’s vibrant appeal yesterday, his call for
recognition of the his people’s legitimate right to a
State and for acceptance of the aspirations of Palestine
to have a seat in the Assembly and to fully assume its
place among the nations of the world. I can only hope
that his appeal will be heard. Israel’s legitimate desire
to live for the long term in security depends on the
realization of the right of the Palestinians to live in
dignity in their sovereign State.
 But merely responding to this appeal is not
enough. It is imperative that negotiations between the
two parties start again as soon as possible. Only
negotiations will allow tackling the root causes of the
Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The parameters for a
settlement have been known for a long time. I fully
support the proposal made yesterday by the Quartet for
a strict timetable: one month to agree on the agenda
and modalities of the negotiations, and no more than a
year to reach a comprehensive agreement.

3 11-51378

 I appeal to the parties to show proof of their
political will and ability to make the necessary
compromises and sacrifices so that by the end of 2012
peace in the Middle East finally becomes a reality.
From this rostrum, I reiterate firmly that the restart of
negotiations cannot again stumble over cement and
stones, and I dare believe that the Israeli Government
knows that. In their efforts both now and in the future,
the parties can count on the nations of the European
Union, including my country, Luxembourg.
 The events over the past year in North Africa, the
Middle East and sub-Saharan Africa remind us of the
importance of a United Nations Organization with solid
means for prevention and mediation, for peacekeeping
and peacebuilding. Conflict prevention is one of the
principal obligations set out in the Charter of the
United Nations. Primary responsibility for that belongs
to Member States, but no State can act alone. Each
must be able to count on the support of the rest.
 At the 2005 World Summit, we all committed to
promoting a culture of prevention, and we put in place
important new tools and mechanisms. The
Peacebuilding Commission, by uniting all concerned
actors and formulating integrated strategies, is an
essential element of these.
 My country is deeply convinced of the relevance
of a broad and multidimensional approach to
peacebuilding. Luxembourg is proud to be an active
contributor to the work of the Peacebuilding
Commission, notably as Chair of the country-specific
configuration for Guinea established this February. Our
priority is to support the authorities in Conakry in the
areas of national reconciliation, security sector reform
and employment for women and young people. Since
2010 Luxembourg, in its national capacity, has been
supporting mediation conducted by the Community of
Sant’Egidio between the main political and civil
society actors in Guinea.
 Both at the bilateral level and in its capacity as a
member of the European Union, Luxembourg sees
conflict prevention and providing support in post-
conflict situations as being at the heart of its activity
abroad, primarily through multilateral instruments,
with the United Nations, naturally, first and foremost
among them. The challenges we face are not limited to
political conflicts but also concern economic, social
and environmental transformation.
 Let us remember that the Arab Spring began with
an act of social protest. We therefore agree entirely
with the priority that the President intends to give
during his mandate to sustainable development,
poverty eradication and achievement of the Millennium
Development Goals.
 With our European Union partners, we will do
everything in our power to contribute ensuring that the
United Nations Conference on Sustainable
Development (Rio+20), which will take place in Brazil
less than a year from now, in June 2012, is truly
successful. Rio+20 must set a range of ambitious goals
that will ensure that we stay on track with sustainable
development and preserve future generations’ ability to
live on our planet.
 Sustainable development, in its three elements —
economic, social and environmental — has long been
at the centre of Luxembourg’s development
cooperation policy. I am happy to say that Luxembourg
has managed to maintain and even increase its efforts
in terms of official development assistance, which in
2010 reached 1.09 per cent of our gross national
product.
 We no longer need to prove the close link
between security and development. For Luxembourg,
the links between security and climate change are
equally obvious. As the Secretary-General observed,
climate change must be seen as a threat multiplier.
Luxembourg’s commitment to combating climate
change, including through the Group of Friends created
here in New York for that purpose, is also part of our
strategy for preventing conflicts before climate change
makes them worse. In that context, my country offers
support and technical assistance to small island
developing States, particularly those in the Pacific,
whose existence is threatened by climate change.
 Since the adoption of the Kyoto Protocol in 1997,
Luxembourg, together with its European partners, has
made binding commitments to reduce its carbon
emissions and mitigate the effects of climate change.
Luxembourg is also contributing to the fast start
finance initiative in order to tackle climate change. I
should stress that these resources are new and
additional to our official development assistance.
 Among the numerous other challenges that
require a coordinated and collective response, I should
like to mention one in particular: the prevention and
control of non-communicable diseases. Non-communicable

11-51378 4

diseases not only cost 36 million human lives every year;
they also result in significant losses to national revenue
and pull millions of people below the poverty line.
They affect all of us and are having an increasingly
preponderant impact on developing countries. The
response to this challenge of epidemic proportions
must be global and universal.
 I therefore commend the initiative on the part of
the Caribbean Community countries to put this subject
on the General Assembly’s agenda and to publicize,
beyond the medical community, the scope and impact
of the crisis in non-communicable diseases, including
in development terms. There is no question that the
debate in the High-level Meeting on the Prevention and
Control of Non-communicable Diseases, the round
tables and the various side events held in the last few
days have allowed us to reach that goal. We should
now fully implement the commitments undertaken in
the Political Declaration (resolution 66/2, annex). I can
assure the Assembly that Luxembourg will continue its
efforts to that end at the national, regional and
international levels.
The terrorist attacks of 11 September 2001,
whose tenth anniversary we have just commemorated,
were attacks against not only the United States, the
host country of our Organization, but against all of us,
against our values and principles, our convictions and
beliefs. Our Organization itself has become the target
of cowardly attacks. Such despicable acts must not,
however, lead us to turn inward. On the contrary, they
should encourage us to redouble efforts to continue to
act together in furthering the ideals and values of our
Organization and its Charter, to fight together against
terrorism and for a better and safer future for
generations to come, for development and respect for
human rights, for democracy and the rule of law. That
is our joint responsibility: the responsibility to prevent,
to preserve and to protect.
 Luxembourg stands ready to shoulder its
responsibilities and to continue to work for an effective
multilateralism, including — if the Assembly affords
us the opportunity — as a non-permanent member of
the Security Council in 2013-2014.


Allow me at
the outset to convey the regrets of His Excellency
Mr. Amadou Toumani Touré, President of the Republic
of Mali, who, owing to a particularly busy national
schedule at this time, was unable to attend the current
session of the General Assembly. However, he asked
me to convey his most cordial greetings and sincere
wishes for the success of our work.
 The Mali delegation is particularly pleased to
convey to Mr. Al-Nasser its heartfelt congratulations
on his election to the presidency of the General
Assembly at its sixty-sixth session. His election is not
only a just recognition of his exceptional qualities as a
seasoned diplomat, but also a tremendous tribute to his
country, Qatar, with which Mali enjoys excellent
relations. I therefore assure him of the support and full
cooperation of my delegation in discharging his
mission. Allow me also to express my great
appreciation to his predecessor, Mr. Joseph Deiss, for
the superb manner in which he presided over the sixty-
fifth session, which has just ended, to the satisfaction
of all Member States.
 Finally, I should like to congratulate Secretary-
General Ban Ki-moon on his outstanding re-election as
the head of the Organization. I remain fully convinced
that his unswerving commitment to upholding the
principles and ideals of the Organization and to the
achievement of the Millennium Development Goals
will help to strengthen further the role of the United
Nations on the international scene.
 The current global context is marked by profound
political upheavals that gravely threaten international
peace and security. This situation makes the theme
chosen for the general debate — “The role of
mediation in the peaceful settlement of disputes” — all
the more pertinent. I should therefore like first to stress
the important role of mediation and the urgency of
renewed collective efforts to prevent and resolve
conflicts and, above all, to put a halt to violence, the
untold suffering inflicted on civilian populations, and
the massive destruction of socio-economic
infrastructure.

5 11-51197

 My country remains convinced that the
prevention of conflicts and their resolution through
mediation are undoubtedly guarantees of peace and
lasting security. In that regard, Mali will continue to
encourage and support all initiatives and mediation
efforts under way with a view to combating the root
causes of conflicts and paving the way to a lasting
political solution able to guarantee peace, stability and
security, without which there can be no socio-economic
development. Part of this process are the promotion of
good-neighbourly relations and peaceful coexistence,
the non-use of force in dispute settlement,
understanding and mutual respect, the bolstering of
international cooperation, and the culture of peace and
dialogue among religions and civilizations.
 The events under way in the world are of concern
to us in that they clearly demonstrate that the quest for
peace and security remains the most pressing
challenge. In Africa, while outstanding progress has
been made in promoting peace, security and stability,
the fact remains that the situation in the Horn of Africa
and in North Africa, particularly in Libya, remains a
source of major concern. Today more than ever,
weapons and deadly confrontations must give way to
the imperative of dialogue and national reconciliation,
which are required to establish lasting peace,
consolidate national unity and maintain territorial
integrity.
 In the Middle East, the Palestinian question is
and remains a source of major concern to the
international community, which must encourage the
Israelis and Palestinians to take the steps necessary to
establish a climate of trust and launch direct
negotiations towards a comprehensive peace
underpinned, inter alia, on the relevant resolutions of
the General Assembly and the Security Council. While
reiterating its active solidarity and total support to the
Palestinian people in their just, legitimate struggle,
Mali will continue to support all initiatives towards the
creation of an independent, sovereign and viable
Palestinian State living side by side and in peace with
Israel within secure, internationally recognized
borders.
 International peace and security continue to be
threatened by other phenomena, such as international
terrorism, cross-border organized crime, and the traffic
in weapons, drugs and human beings. The attacks
perpetrated throughout the world are stark reminders
that no country is safe from terrorism, and that no
cause, howsoever just, can justify the deliberate use of
violence against innocent civilians.
 In that regard, I note the security challenges in
the vast Sahelo-Saharan strip that Mali shares with
several brother countries in the region. Our subregion
faces today the proliferation of small arms and light
weapons and the trafficking of drugs and human beings
fuelled by organized crime networks in collusion with
terrorist groups. The events in Libya and their
collateral effects could further aggravate this already
worrisome situation.
 Aware of the threats posed by these phenomena to
the stability and harmonious development of the
region, the Governments of the countries concerned
have worked to establish joint operational mechanisms
to combat our common enemies effectively. For its
part, the Government of Mali reaffirms its full support
for all initiatives of the States of the subregion seeking
to better coordinate and harmonize our efforts to meet
the multiple common challenges. Parallel to efforts at
the subregional level, our Government is intensifying
its efforts to implement the Special Programme for
Peace, Security and Development in Northern Mali.
 The year 2012 will be an important one for Mali.
After almost 20 years of democratic institutional
practices, the President of the Republic, who will not
stand for re-election, saw fit to revise the 1992
Constitution, following broad national consultations, in
order to consolidate democracy, good governance and
the rule of law in our country.
 A participative, inclusive process has already
been opened with all stakeholders — the Government,
political parties, national deputies and civil society —
to guarantee the transparency and credibility of future
referendums and future. I reiterate the commitment of
the Government to do its utmost to smoothly
implement the envisaged reforms and meet the
challenge of holding successful elections in 2012. I
remain confident of success as our democracy has
matured over the past four elections. This progress has
been inspired from Malian culture based on dialogue,
tolerance and sharing.
 The people of Mali share the ambition of the
Government to build a strong, united Mali — a
democratic and stable Mali resolutely committed to
peace, dialogue and international cooperation. They
also share the determination of the Government to
create the conditions for true prosperity in order to

11-51197 6

make Mali an emerging economy in the medium term.
That is why I solemnly call from this rostrum on the
international community and development partners to
support the electoral process under way and our efforts
to meet the challenge of organizing a constitutional
referendum and free, transparent and democratic
elections.
 As a Sahelo-Saharan country facing the
phenomenon of desertification and unpredictable
rainfall, Mali considers climate change to be one of the
major challenges affecting the survival and
development of humankind. That is why we are present
at all meetings on this issue, as borne out by our recent
participation at the High-level Meeting on the theme
“Addressing desertification, land degradation and
drought in the context of sustainable development and
poverty eradication”. I reaffirm Mali’s commitment to
continuing to step up its actions to preserve and
conserve the soils, forests and fauna, in step with the
national and international commitments of our country.
 The sessions of the General Assembly also offer
us a chance to take stock of the severity of other
challenges facing the world. I think in particular of the
struggle against HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria and
non-communicable diseases, which were the subject of
High-level Meetings on 19 and 20 September. In
addition to the challenges they pose to public health,
these scourges have become a real problem for
development. The international community must, we
believe, redouble its efforts and its vigilance to contain
these illnesses. It will also have to deliver on its
commitments to the developing countries in order to
allow them to achieve the Millennium Development
Goals.
 It is also important to give sustained attention to
the issue of reform and democratization of the United
Nations by giving a greater role to women in decision-
making in political, economic and security forums. It is
also important to democratize the international
financial institutions, bearing in mind the huge changes
that have taken place in the world and the need for
better representation for all regions.
 The global economic situation certainly remains
fragile, but the financial crisis should not become a
pretext for reducing official development assistance
(ODA). The implementation of the Programme of
Action for the achievement of the Millennium
Development Goals must remain a priority. The
international community must revive its collective will
to put into practice and even go beyond commitments
undertaken in the field of ODA in order to combat
poverty and all forms of injustice that breed violence
and insecurity throughout the world.
 Similarly, the implementation of the Istanbul
Political Declaration and Programme of Action for the
least developed countries (LDCs) for the decade 2011-
2020 will allow the LDCs to marshal the necessary
financial resources to ensure the lasting growth and
development that guarantee peace and stability in the
world. In that regard, Mali will continue to support all
innovative initiatives in development financing, trade,
the alleviation of foreign debt, and technology transfer
to developing countries in general and LDCS in
particular.
 In our quest for a safer and more just, prosperous
and peaceful world, the best way to guarantee our
common future is to strengthen cooperation and
international solidarity. Let us engage collectively to
find lasting solutions to the challenges and complex
problems facing humankind. It is in the interest of us
all and in the interest of our collective survival.