Today our continent is experiencing a time of great
opportunity, yet it is also beset by serious threats,
including a falling standard of living for the masses,
radical adjustment measures, the globalization of
financial capital and a lack of access to markets in
developed countries - all of which have not
contributed to generating sustained economic growth,
and even less to reducing poverty and inequality. The
great challenge before us is to redouble our efforts
daily to eradicate this cancer by strengthening public
institutions and forging a new social ethic, as well as a
new international order with multilateral bodies that
truly contribute to peace throughout the world, human
development and the sharp reduction of poverty, social
inequalities and the exploitation of man by man and
nation by nation.
The United Nations, this noble institution, must
not lose sight of its historic memory, its raison díÍtre
and the objectives that led to its creation, if its efforts
currently under way are to result in healthy attitude
changes and a greater political capacity to institute
regulatory frameworks that can put a stop to economic
Darwinism and conflicts throughout the world.
Today, more than ever, the possibility of building
a more just world, free from such painful
contradictions, depends upon the inclusion of the less
developed countries in the globalized economy and the
political will to overcome pure market forces. The
industrialization of the United States, Germany and
Japan in the nineteenth century could be described in
similar terms, as could their emergence from their
relative backwardness compared with Great Britain,
the pioneer nation of that time.
The failure throughout almost all of Latin
America to overcome its backwardness, poverty and
dependency is frequently due to selfishness and
historic impediments to advantageous connections
between our national economies and the worldwide
market. If this seems to be a recurrent condition, then
we should constantly keep in mind the message of the
Consensus of Brazil: we must govern globalization if
we are to turn it into a source of opportunity for all, if
globalization is not to be what it has become ó a force
synonymous with marginalization, exclusion or
conquest, dependent on markets and cheap labour,
which leads to a form of semi-slavery in many
countries.
I wish to propose to the General Assembly joint
action that can be taken in four areas.
First, social investment throughout the continent
must reach levels that will make it possible to attain
the Millennium Development Goals. To that end, the
poorest countries, which clearly cannot obtain such
levels of investment, could have recourse to a
counterpart fund for social equity with soft financing
coming from international organizations and unilateral
contributions.
Secondly, we realize that not everything can be
solved with money. Money, when it is misused,
weakens and corrupts. Accordingly, we must also
commit ourselves to carrying out the necessary
institutional reforms to ensure the proper formulation,
implementation and assessment of social policies. And
we must be ready to ensure that access to the
aforementioned funds will lead to wide-reaching
innovations in the management of public
administration, demonstrable by means of indices on
efficiency and transparency.
Thirdly, international organizations must
increasingly realize that economic and social reform
must flow from the experience and wisdom of those
countries themselves, with their own formulas that are
in keeping with their cultural standards and that
involve all the representatives of civil society.
Fourthly, with growing levels of poverty it is
impossible to meet the burden of external debt
servicing. There must be a new, realistic policy that
will put forward rational terms on future payment of
debt, terms that will make it possible to lay the basis
for sustained and equitable development, terms which
allow us to meet our commitments without pushing our
19

people into irreversible poverty. It is important to place
the needs of the poor and dispossessed over the
repayment of the debt.
That is why we must imaginatively and skilfully
devise alternative financing mechanisms for the fight
against hunger and extreme poverty. That task requires
greater intellectual resources and technical expertise
and a new and fair financial architecture, not the
accumulation of wealth, worship of the market or the
promotion of globalization that does not allow the just
distribution of the wealth produced by all of us
throughout the world. We need a new financial
architecture that enables us to reduce poverty and to
work for the stability of the worldís emerging
democracies.
One year ago, my Government inherited a
situation characterized by economic stagnation,
recession and spreading poverty and by weak and
unreliable public institutions, resulting in timid social
policies that could hardly tackle the Millennium
Development Goals.
Two major challenges face my country. First, the
indigenous population - which in Paraguay is not
large, totalling no more than 100,000 - lacks access to
its most vital needs and faces the disintegration of
much of its natural lands owing to the historical rule of
indolent landowners, and most recently to a type of
agrarian modernization that was insensitive to human
dignity.
Secondly, the unconscionable face of extreme
poverty in my country is that of the peasants. Today,
two out of three Paraguayans continue to belong to that
social sector. Likewise, one of the most significant
causes of that critical national problem is the very
unjust distribution of land that has existed for many
years in Paraguay. That is not only an urgent and very
shocking social problem, but also a political and
ethical problem that is manifested in a repeated and
increasingly grave struggle for land.
In the light of that situation, we propose a State
with social, fiscal and environmental responsibility:
social responsibility in the sense of guaranteeing
health, education and basic services and avoiding
concentration of profit and wealth; fiscal responsibility
to avoid a deficit and chronic indebtedness, which
ultimately punish social investment; and environmental
responsibility to preserve natureís reproductive
capacity and to ensure for future generations the right
to enjoy resources not created by man.
We also propose the implementation of a national
anti-poverty strategy that will channel the domestic and
external resources necessary to meet the Millennium
Development Goals. The national Government has
defined as a top budget priority an increase in social
spending to resolutely address the problems of poverty,
destitution and inequality, with the objective of
reaching 40 per cent of the central administrationís
total public spending for next year, 2005.
For development, cooperation is not enough;
there must also be access to markets on preferential
terms, liberalization of the agricultural product markets
and special treatment for the landlocked least
developed countries, such as Paraguay, punished by
history and geopolitics, which make our foreign trade
more expensive and significantly reduce our
competitiveness. There needs to be a compensatory
framework to place my country, Paraguay, on an equal
footing with other nations in terms of international
trade.
In the international context, we join in the appeal
for a more just and humanized international order in
which the least developed are not always condemned to
discrimination, indifference and backwardness. With
that objective, we must move towards an inclusive
multilateralism that will offer equality, rationality and
justice in international relations.
Similarly ó and in keeping with Paraguayís
position on Taiwan in the United Nations ó we once
more reaffirm our conviction that the brotherly
Republic of China, Taiwan, should become a full-
fledged Member of the Organization, in accordance
with the principle of universality and with norms of
international law.
Today we have heard more of the same things we
hear every year in the Assembly. But we hope that this
time we can return to our countries and share with our
peoples the news that finally, in New York, the worldís
leaders have taken important steps forward in
alleviating - even if just a little - the pain, sorrow
and hopelessness of the millions of human beings who
live on Earth. I am confident that God will give us the
wisdom and the strength necessary to lead our
countries on the path of freedom, peace, development
and justice.


At the outset, allow
me to begin by congratulating you, Sir, on your
election to the presidency of the General Assembly at
its fifty-ninth session.
The United Nations has long stood for the loftiest
aspirations and the noblest causes of mankind. In times
of strife, it is the United Nations that holds out the
hope of harmony. In times of deprivation and suffering,
it is the United Nations that holds out the hope of
healing.
After almost 60 years, however, this
Organization, on which we pin so much hope, finds
itself in the midst of an existential crisis. In a world
ever more complex and less predictable, the United
Nations has been struggling to redefine its meaning,
identity and relevance for the era of globalization. To
confront those new realities and more, no challenge
will be greater than making the United Nations a more
effective Organization for the times. No challenge will
be greater than living up to the highest ideals of the
United Nations with more action and fewer words.
Our United Nations locomotive is powered by the
commitment and good will of its Members. It can take
us as far as we want to go, but only if we all pull
together. It can take us at any speed, but only if the
power of commitment and good will is fully energized.
For whatever it is and for whatever it will be, the
United Nations is the creation of its Members. So, in
demanding more of the United Nations, we must also
demand more of ourselves. And in asking the United
Nations to do more, we must also be ready to be
committed more.
The task ahead of us all is to make sure that all
concerted efforts are made nationally, regionally and
globally to advance the causes the United Nations
stands for and to restore total confidence in the
working of multilateralism. Multilateralism cannot
thrive or sustain without foundation. The foundation of
the United Nations and its multilateralism may be its
191 Member States, but what bond binds the 191
Member States to the United Nations multilateral
system?
The world’s strategic, political and economic
landscape of the twenty-first century is certainly far
different, more complex and more intertwined than that
of 1945. The layers of interwoven fibre that support
such a multilateral institution as the United Nations
must be modified and strengthened. It is Thailand’s
belief that, given today’s international landscape, there
is a greater need than ever to create new layers of
regional and subregional building blocks to strengthen
the United Nations multilateral foundation. Those
building blocks are the bond that binds nations to the
multilateral system.
In so doing, those regional and subregional
building blocks must bear the responsibility of
supporting and advancing the United Nations goals on
security and development: reducing poverty, combating
international terrorism, fighting transnational crime,
16

promoting human dignity and human rights, and
upholding the human race as a whole.
In South-East Asia, the Association of South-East
Asian Nations (ASEAN) is to create its three-pillared
community — the ASEAN Economic Community, the
ASEAN Security Community and the ASEAN Socio-
Cultural Community — by the year 2020. The
realization of ASEAN communities, as in other
regional or subregional communities, requires bridging
the development gap.
It was Thailand’s initiative to take on the role of
building that bridge by introducing the Economic
Cooperation Strategy — known as ACMECS — and
thereby laying a faster track towards sustainable
development for its neighbours: Cambodia, Laos,
Myanmar and Vietnam. Through the creation of more
jobs and the narrowing of the income gap, that strategy
will serve as a building block for ASEAN’s three-
pillared community.
Further to the east, the ASEAN 10 are working
with its East Asian friends to create the East Asian
Community, comprising the ASEAN 10, China, Japan
and the Republic of Korea. To the west, Thailand sees
the need to connect south-east Asia’s development with
its friends in South Asia. The first summit of the
Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, Sri Lanka and Thailand
Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) — seven countries
in South-East and South Asia around the Bay of
Bengal — took place in Thailand in July, agreeing on a
free trade area within the group which forms an
economic and development bridge between the two
subregions.
These building blocks and that partnership are
part and parcel of the firm foundation for the Asia
Cooperation Dialogue (ACD), the first pan-Asian
development forum. The ACD was initiated on the
basis of Thailand’s conviction as to the virtue of
partnership in drawing strength from diversity and in
transforming diversity from a phenomenon that tears us
apart to a force that unites us.
With 25 member countries — countries from
every part of Asia — and still growing, the two-and-a-
half-year-old ACD will become an important building
block for multilateral cooperation and the United
Nations multilateral system. Through such building
blocks, we can learn to live with one another’s
differences and to cultivate a culture of peace and
tolerance in order to counteract the violence and terror
in today’s world.
We cherish multilateralism as the best means to
secure peace around the world. We cherish
multilateralism as the best means to develop prosperity
around the world. But above all, we cherish
multilateralism as the best means to achieve both
security and development worldwide. By the same
token, State security and human security, which foster
development, must always be two sides of the same
coin.
From Iraq to Saudi Arabia, from Indonesia to
Russia, shocking acts of terror have been perpetrated,
seemingly calculated to shake confidence and
undermine hope. As civilized societies, we must come
together to fight terrorism in all its forms and
manifestations, wherever it may occur. Terrorism is a
direct threat to State security, but it also undermines
human security.
That is why the development of human security
and State security must proceed on parallel tracks. The
world cannot be a secure place if its population is still
suffering from poverty and deprivation. The world
cannot really be peaceful if we cannot be successful in
our efforts to make progress towards achieving the
Millennium Development Goals.
That is why Thailand believes in the
enhancement of human security as a means of making
the nation secure. Domestically, the Ministry of Social
Development and Human Security is in charge of our
policy and implementation. Internationally, we are
active in the Human Security Network and in other
international arenas in which human security issues are
paramount.
Thailand has long advocated balanced
development, with freedom from fear and freedom
from want as the two inseparable prongs of human
security. We intend to continue to do so even more
intensively as Thailand prepares to assume the
chairmanship of the Human Security Network in 2005-
2006. We intend to further advocate such balanced
development by embracing partnership between the
Government and civil society.
The Human Security Network statement issued in
Thailand on the eve of the 15th International AIDS
Conference in Bangkok last July — which was
attended by more than 25,000 people and recognized
17

HIV/AIDS as an issue of both development and human
security — clearly reflects development and security as
interconnected.
We view the issue of landmines in the same light.
They are as much a humanitarian issue as a
development one. As President of the Fifth Meeting of
the States Parties to the Mine-Ban Convention, I have
been working with the World Bank to reflect that
approach in carrying out mine action. I am grateful for
the Bank’s cooperation in realizing the development
dimension of the landmine issue. I also appreciate the
Bank’s readiness to mobilize resources for the training
of deminers and capacity-building for survivors so that
they may function as productive members of society.
We are confident that the World Bank partnership will
provide States parties to the Convention with greater
resources that will help to achieve the Convention’s
goal.
As we try to secure peace for the world; as
attempts are made to shatter our world’s peace and
security with terror, fear, hatred and violence; as many
struggle against poverty; and as we pledge our
commitment to the Millennium Development Goals,
the multilateral system that we need to rely upon is
facing challenges and threats to its effectiveness of
unprecedented a magnitude and proportion.
However, amid those challenges, we are fortunate
to see today nations building partnership with nations;
nations learning to live with differences, and even
turning differences and diversity into a common
strength; and nations learning to achieve a higher level
of tolerance, working at the economical, cultural and
political levels to nurture a culture of peace and a
culture of tolerance.
Through building blocks like the ones Thailand
has been initiating in Asia, throughout Africa, Latin
America, Europe and elsewhere, and through South-
South cooperation, a number of responsible nations are
ready to make contributions, in their own way, to turn
differences into cooperation and partnerships. Those
partnerships and building blocks deal with security and
development, the two defining principles of the United
Nations.
Those partnerships and building blocks can lay
the foundation for a more effective functioning of the
United Nations multilateral system — a system that
needs redefining and redesigning to respond effectively
to the new geosocial and political landscape of the
world.
Present-day realities — the emergence of
building blocks, the inextricable linkage between
development and security, and the need to develop
human and State security on parallel tracks — clearly
reflect how much the world has changed since 1945.
That is why United Nations reform is not a
question only of the effectiveness of any particular
organ of the Organization. Nor is it merely a question
of numbers or composition. It is fundamental,
therefore, to ask some pertinent questions.
How can the United Nations be made more
responsive to current needs and realities, so that it
devotes equal attention to the issues of security and
development? What would be the best mechanism to
deal adequately with issues of development and long-
term global economic issues? What would be the best
mechanism to deal adequately with post-conflict
nation-building and reconstruction? What would be the
best mechanism to ensure a greater participation of
civil society, recognizing it as an important
constituency for development and conflict resolution?
How to ensure cooperation among the multilateral
United Nations system and regional, subregional and
interregional organizations, recognizing them as
important building blocks for a more effective
multilateralism?
Security Council reform is needed. That much is
not in doubt. But if expansion is needed, what realistic
criteria are necessary for the expansion to reach greater
effectiveness? Does it need to be more transparent?
What are the roles and relationship among its
members?
Concerning the General Assembly, a body
represented now by almost 200 Member States, more
than three times larger than at the time of the founding
of the United Nations, is it too cumbersome and do we
remain content with its work process? How can the
Assembly be streamlined, energized, and become more
focused?
Those are not all the questions asked, and
Thailand is not the only one asking. But all of us will
have to find the answers. While we are all entitled to
different views, opinions, and analyses, ultimately the
decision must be made by us, the Member States of the
United Nations.
18

Reform of such a venerable institution is never
easy. We have to be realistic about that. But we have
faith in the far-sightedness and wisdom of United
Nations Members to take a holistic view and choose
the right path, even if it is the path less travelled.
Thailand pledges to apply all our experiences in
forging partnerships in order to play a responsible and
constructive role in contributing to the United Nations
reform process. We have supported the High-level
Panel on Threats, Challenges and Change and will look
forward to its report in December, as well as to the
fruitful and constructive debate by all of us thereafter.
Whether the United Nations recovers from its
mid-life crisis or sinks into irrelevance is up to us, the
Member States. For what it is and what it will become,
the United Nations is our own creation made of our
own commitment and goodwill. It is up to us to rise to
the challenge. Only when nations are united, will we
get the United Nations.


This is my first address
to this body in my capacity as the Prime Minister of
Croatia. I feel privileged to be able to present the
Assembly with the Croatian Government’s strategic
priorities in the domain of foreign policy.
I would like at the outset to congratulate Minister
Jean Ping on his assumption of the presidency of the
General Assembly and to wish him every success in
performing his highly important task. He can rely fully
on Croatia’s support and cooperation.
For the first time, Croatia is addressing the
General Assembly as a candidate country for
membership in the European Union. Today, I would
like to share with you Croatia’s position with respect to
the most important tasks facing the United Nations at
this time of great multilateral challenges.
The very fact that so many heads of State and
Government leaders have gathered here in New York to
mark the beginning of the fifty-ninth General
Assembly session serves as a telling affirmation that
multilateralism is a driving force in global politics and
confirms that we live in no ordinary times.
The world at the beginning of the twenty-first
century is profoundly different from the one in which
the Berlin wall started to crumble. Never before have
we faced so many opportunities stemming from new
technologies and enhanced regional and global
cooperation. And seldom have we encountered as many
threats and challenges as we do today.
Tragic events in recent years, from New York to
Moscow, from the Middle East all the way to Southern
Asia have confirmed that terrorism currently stands out
as the most pressing threat to our world, taking, as it
has, thousands of innocent lives at random. Equally
dangerous is the threat of weapons of mass destruction
(WMDs). We must resort to all means necessary to
prevent the proliferation of these vehicles of death. If
the two evils of terrorism and WMDs are synergized,
they could bring upon mankind an unforeseeable level
of destruction.
Therefore, we must not relax our efforts in the
fight against global terrorism nor neglect the deadly
impact of WMDs. These issues must remain at the top
of our priorities; any hesitation to address them in a
timely and appropriate manner could have unforgiving
consequences.
The United Nations should continue to play a
decisive role in our quest for a stable, secure and
prosperous world. Croatia welcomes the reports of the
Secretary-General on the work of the United Nations
(A/59/1) and the implementation of the Millennium
Declaration (A/59/282). I would particularly like to
commend his reform efforts to date. He has identified
many challenges to the United Nations and we should
not hesitate to meet them. We particularly share his
assessment that the United Nations requires adequate
security and institutional agility to adapt to changing
circumstances in the world. The Security Council has a
paramount responsibility in that regard, but we must
not overlook the role of the General Assembly, whose
potential is far from being explored to the fullest.
Regarding Security Council reform, Croatia
supports the enlargement of the Council in all
categories of membership, based on appropriate
regional representation.
Let us make the United Nations even more
relevant, with a range of inventive and collaborative
approaches that will increase the effectiveness of our
joint efforts and result in the Organization’s increased
capability to respond to the needs and realities of the
new century.
The credibility of the United Nations does not
depend solely on the political will of its Member States
and its capacity to manage crises. It also depends on its
39

capacity to respond to the expectations of those who
are in dire need of assistance, who cannot protect
themselves from imbalances and injustice. We cannot
shy away from seeking all available solutions to the
fundamental global challenges we face today, including
extreme poverty, drug smuggling, the spread of deadly
diseases and global climate change. Globalization
needs to be mastered; the opportunities it offers need to
be assessed and its excesses rectified.
Finding appropriate answers to those fundamental
questions requires multilateral cooperation, with a
viable and effective United Nations at its core. We all
wish to see a strong and decisive United Nations that is
capable of effectively responding to current and future
challenges, but this cannot happen by default. It
depends solely on the contribution and dedication of
each and every Member State.
Croatia gained extensive experience in post-
conflict management after the war that was imposed
upon it in the 1990s, especially in the fields of refugee
return, confidence building, prosecuting war crimes,
economic reconstruction and the reintegration of war-
torn areas with the rest of the country. We stand ready
to contribute our knowledge and share it with those
who need it.
In confronting alarming challenges, such as
security, poverty, terrorism, pandemics and
environmental issues, collective action is most likely to
yield the best results, since not even the most powerful
among us can bear the burden alone.
At this very moment, Croatian peacekeepers are
participating in seven United Nations peacekeeping
missions. We are determined to further intensify our
participation in United Nations peacekeeping missions
with respect to the composition and number of troops
deployed, as well as the theatres of operation.
We will continue to support the training of
peacekeepers from newest troop-contributing
countries — whether provided directly or under the
auspices of the United Nations — by receiving foreign
officers as attendees of the relevant training courses in
the Republic of Croatia, as well as by sending Croatian
instructors to organize and conduct courses in the
newest troop-contributing countries.
Croatia has presented its candidacy for
membership in the Security Council for the 2008-2009
term. Our membership would not only represent a great
tribute to my country, but also a recognition of all the
effort that has been fruitfully invested in the peace and
stability of South-East Europe.
We are proud of our achievements since
becoming a United Nations Member State in May
1992. From being part of a European powder keg,
Croatia grew into one of the key generators and
promoters of stability in South-East Europe and
beyond. With a growing economy, a greatly expanded
highway network and a blossoming tourism industry,
Croatia is firmly oriented towards the future. And I can
state with confidence that the best is yet to come.
Croatia has successfully embarked upon the road
of Euro-Atlantic integration, with a clear goal of
European Union and NATO membership. The bedrock
of Croatia’s foreign policy remains good bilateral
relations with all our neighbours and beyond, cross-
border and regional cooperation and constructive
multilateralism.
My country is speedily preparing for the opening
of accession negotiations with the European Union in
early 2005. We are confident that Croatia will fully
meet all the criteria required in this demanding process
on time. We have already demonstrated our reform and
decision-making abilities through the fulfilment of the
Copenhagen criteria required for European Union
candidate status. This has been far from easy, but in the
end, Croatia’s success demonstrates that hard work and
reform-oriented policies are the best possible
investment in a country’s future.
Croatia is ready to serve as a model country in
South-East Europe, encouraging and assisting our
neighbours to realize their Euro-Atlantic ambitions.
The prospect of EU membership has proved to be the
best incentive for the countries of Central and south-
east Europe to implement comprehensive political,
economic, institutional and democratic reforms.
A unified Europe is no longer a dream; it is a
reality upon which the prosperity and security of the
entire continent is based. The European Union is
economic prosperity and cooperation; it is stability and
security; but, above all, it is its values that stand out so
strongly. We all share the same values, the same
principles and the same dedication.
A famous Croatian poet, Dobrisa Cesaric, wrote a
poem about a waterfall whose beauty and might are
40

created by thousands of small drops of water. Croatia’s
drop is a part of this wonder, called “one Europe”.
Croatia is determined to contribute to the best of
its ability to the success of this Organization and to the
principles on which it is based. Too often we fail to
fathom the true meaning of a phrase that is much more
than the mere name of our Organization: the United
Nations.
The United Nations — there can be no better
global formula in the face of the mounting challenges
and the potential, burdens, hopes and expectations of
the new century.


It is an honour for me to
stand here today to address the General Assembly at its
fifty-ninth session.
When, in 1945, Liberia joined the efforts to
establish this Organization in order to bring an end to a
global war and to pursue justice and maintain world
peace, little did we know that we had subscribed to an
insurance policy that, 59 years later, would provide
coverage for Liberia and redeem its people and its
sovereignty.
As members know, Liberia is a country in
transition from continued crisis to sustainable peace.
The United Nations, the United States and the
European Union have all worked with the Economic
Community of West African States (ECOWAS) to
stabilize the situation, attending to the humanitarian
crisis and navigating the difficult road to peace. We
remain immensely grateful for the role of South Africa
and ECOWAS for providing regional leadership in the
search for peace in Liberia. The pivotal roles played by
both the Federal Republic of Nigeria and the Republic
of Ghana deserve special commendation. We are
particularly grateful to Secretary-General Annan and
the United Nations, the United States and the European
Union for partnering with ECOWAS in these
endeavours.
I am pleased to inform this Assembly that the
Comprehensive Peace Agreement singed in Ghana in
August 2003 continues to guide the Liberian peace
process. A power-sharing National Transitional
Government comprising all warring factions, political
parties, and civil society is working. The ceasefire
agreement signed on June 17, 2003, continues to be
insured by the 15,000-strong United Nations Mission
in Liberia (UNMIL), operating with a Chapter VII
mandate. The force is now disarming and demobilizing
all armed groups.
At the beginning of the United Nations Mission
in October 2003, we estimated that some 38,000
combatants would have submitted themselves to the
disarmament and demobilization program. Today,
73,600 fighters have been disarmed. Over 22,000
pieces of serviceable weapons of all kinds have been
surrendered and decommissioned, and more than
17

5 million rounds of ammunition collected and
destroyed by UNMIL.
Meanwhile, the high number of combatants
disarmed and demobilized has overwhelmed our
capacity to rehabilitate and reintegrate them. The
absence of social infrastructures exacerbates the
situation. War-related damage to the national
infrastructures and community facilities is extensive.
Without exception, all communities have lost their
capacity to accommodate and support even the
slightest caseload of returnees.
Some of the ex-combatants have enrolled in civil
works programmes sponsored by UNMIL, the
European Commission, the United States Agency for
International Development and the People’s Republic
of China. A significant number are seeking readmission
into regular academic programmes. Others are
enrolling in vocational training institutions to acquire
life skills.
There are special efforts being made for children
and female former fighters to receive specialized care
and training through programmes sponsored by United
Nations agencies and other international and local non-
governmental organizations.
As a direct result of the civil conflict, a sizeable
number of Liberians are currently residing outside of
the country, mostly as refugees. As disarmament nears
completion and as our Government extends its
authority, the United Nations High Commissioner for
Refugees is preparing for organized repatriation of
Liberians. In addition, some 500,000 internally
displaced persons are expected to commence leaving
their camps and returning to their local communities
towards the end of October this year.
The role the United Nations is playing to bring
sustainable peace and human dignity to our country
and people is phenomenal and indicative of the new
challenges which the United Nations and the
international community must face and meet head on if
we, the people of the United Nations, are to live in
peace and enjoy our inalienable rights. Peace and the
freedom to enjoy those rights under the rule of law
require not just curative measures, but preventive
actions to address the problems of poverty, ignorance
and disease of the world’s poorer peoples and
countries.
The National Transitional Government’s recovery
agenda has as its focus the improvement of the well-
being of our people by the creation of employment
opportunities to put returnees and ex-combatants to
work. Our recent history teaches us that when ex-
combatants are not meaningfully rehabilitated and
reintegrated and that when many in our society are not
stakeholders and are excluded, we run the risk that they
will return to violent crime and conflict. We are
extremely worried about that prospect.
Against that background, there is now real
urgency to revive our economy and create jobs. That is
why, in June of this year, I pleaded with the Security
Council to lift the sanctions imposed on diamonds and
timber — two sectors that hold great potential for job
creation and economic recovery. Sanctions continue to
hurt Liberia. It must not be forgotten that the sanctions
were imposed primarily because Liberia was exporting
conflict by trafficking in arms for diamonds. A related
reason was the lack of transparency and accountability
in the management of State resources, especially from
the forestry sector and the maritime programme. That
situation no longer obtains.
Our Government is not buying arms. To the
contrary, we are disarming tens of thousands of
combatants. We are also cooperating with the
International Monetary Fund (IMF), the World Bank,
the African Development Bank, the European
Commission and the United States Treasury and State
Departments in putting into place proper mechanisms
for transparency and accountability in the use of State
resources.
In that regard, the European Commission is
funding the systems audit of five revenue-generating
agencies and the Central Bank of Liberia. The World
Bank is working with the Government to reform the
public procurement system and is assisting the Liberia
Petroleum Refinery Corporation to put into place a
system of international competitive bidding of
petroleum products. The IMF is assisting the Central
Bank to introduce transparency in the management of
the foreign exchange regime. The United States
Treasury Department is engaged with us in financial
sector reforms, particularly in the areas of monetary
policy, revenue enhancement, budgeting and
expenditure controls. Also, the United States State
Department is working with the Forestry Development
Authority in implementing an environment-friendly
forestry reform programme.
18

Given all these efforts, we once again appeal to
the Security Council to lift the sanctions to enable us to
create jobs and to attend to the enormous social needs
of our people.
In early February, the United Nations, in
collaboration with the World Bank and the United
States Government, co-hosted a donors conference for
Liberia. The aim of the conference was to seek support
for our two-year reconstruction plan. The international
community responded generously with pledges of $520
million. I am happy to report that, to date, $455 million
of those pledges have been classified as firm
commitments. Projects are under way to spend those
funds and to bring much needed relief to our people.
Elections in Liberia are not new, but most have
been characterized by widespread rigging. Thus, unfair
elections in themselves have been a major source of
conflict in Liberia. This time around, Liberians are
determined to undertake free and fair elections as an
equity participation in the investment of sustainable
peace and national renewal. The Transitional
Government remains committed to the holding of
elections in October 2005 and to the smooth transfer of
power to a democratically elected Government in
January 2006.
Liberia has developed strong collaborative efforts
with our neighbours in the Mano River Union to end
the activities of armed non-State actors. The Mano
River Union countries have committed themselves to
strictly adhering to the Non-Aggression and Security
Cooperation Treaty of the Union and the meticulous
implementation of the fifteenth protocol. Liberia
reiterates its commitment to cooperating with all
provisions on security and peace as enshrined in the
charters of the United Nations, the African Union, the
Economic Community of West African States and the
Mano River Union.
We call on the United Nations to urgently engage
in crisis prevention and in strengthening the peace in
our region. In that regard, we urge this body to work
with regional and subregional organizations, such as
the African Union and ECOWAS.
Today more than ever before, the utility of the
United Nations is being tested. Never before has the
world faced so many different types of conflicts in so
many different places at the same time. However, we
are encouraged by the fact that the high number and
complexity of those problems have not lessened the
determination of Member States to stay the course of
fostering international peace and stability.
The threat posed by global terrorism, combined
with widespread poverty, especially in developing
countries, constitutes a real barrier to the attainment of
the Millennium Goals.
The continued existence of conflicts in the
Middle East provides a source of worry. After decades,
it is time that a workable solution be found to the
Israeli-Palestinian issue.
The current Iraqi crisis is also troubling to a
world body searching for solutions to world conflicts.
Liberia calls for a unified global approach to the Iraqi
question and urges the United Nations to play an active
role in the resolution of that crisis.
In Africa, news from the Darfur region in Sudan
is frightening. We support the position of the African
Union on the Darfur problem and ask for a speedy
resolution of the crisis so as to bring relief to the
region.
The recent massacre of nearly 200 Tutsi in
Burundi sends a grim reminder of the 1994 genocide in
Rwanda. Urgent action should be taken to contain the
situation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Making peace is difficult because the resolution
of conflicts sometimes engenders new contradictions
that must be addressed. In post-conflict situations like
ours, where national capacities have been decimated,
the continued goodwill of the international community
to assist in reconstruction is paramount. We thus pray
for the continued engagement of the United Nations in
global crises.
Liberia has gone through 15 years of violent
conflicts. In Accra, Ghana, in 2003, Liberians reasoned
together to reject war and build a better society. Liberia
is now breaking through from being a failed State to
being a democratic and vibrant society. There is now a
growing sense of hope and optimism among our
people. We cannot fail now, for we have seen the cost
of war as compared to the price of peace. Liberians
have finally resolved to choose the path of peace and
stay on it.


On 10 June 2004, you, Mr. President, were elected to
serve as President of the General Assembly. As you
begin your term of office, I have the great pleasure of
conveying to you the warm and fraternal
congratulations of the people of Cameroon — brother,
neighbour and friend of your country, Gabon — as well
as from Cameroon’s Government and its President,
Mr. Paul Biya. Your election crowns an outstanding
career and is a tribute to Gabon’s diplomacy under the
wise guidance of President El Hadj Omar Bongo
Ondimba.
Cameroon would also like to congratulate the
other members of the Bureau of the fifty-ninth session
of the General Assembly. We would like to reiterate
our full cooperation to you, Mr. President, and to say
that we are at your disposal. In addition, I would like to
take this opportunity to pay tribute to your predecessor,
Mr. Julian Hunte, for the important work he
accomplished with the tireless support of the Bureau,
including in particular with regard to our common
endeavour to reform the Organization and enhance its
effectiveness by, among other things, reviewing the
General Assembly’s methods of work.
The waning year has strengthened our common
resolve to strengthen multilateralism and to give it
prominence in the management of international affairs
in the new international order, with the United Nations
as the foundation and framework of that order. Despite
the ups and downs that the United Nations has
experienced, in particular in the Security Council, it is
time for there to be an active dialogue among the
world’s nations, all of which adhere to the universality
of the Organization and its unique and irreplaceable
role in promoting economic and social development
and international peace and security. The world of
course faces numerous challenges, some of which are
new in nature. Others, however, although older and
better known, remain without real solutions — either
due to their complexity or because of a lack of
determination on the part of the international
community to mobilize ways and means commensurate
with the stakes.
In January 2005, the General Assembly will
receive a report from the Panel of eminent persons
appointed by the Secretary-General to reflect on
reforms that could make the Organization more
effective, transparent and democratic, as well as better
able to carry out its mission and tackle the new
challenges requiring our attention. I trust that the Panel
will not fail to rely upon previous relevant proposals
when framing its recommendations, in particular those
made at the Millennium Summit. As far as Cameroon
is concerned, mankind must be at the heart of any
substantive reform of the United Nations.
My country continues to promote the proposal
put forth here in New York during the Millennium
Summit by President Paul Biya. That proposal called
for the creation within the Secretariat of an
28

international ethics-monitoring centre entrusted with
the task of “promoting fundamental and universal
human values between and within nations”. (A/55/PV.5,
p. 27)
In addition, it also seems that the time has come
for the General Assembly to express its views on the
issue of Security Council reform, and in particular with
regard to expanding its membership. The proposals that
have been introduced in the General Assembly are
undoubtedly a very good basis for discussion. The
Assembly will recall that the Organization of African
Unity called for a reconstituted Security Council that
included seven seats for Africa, including 2 permanent
seats. That proposal, which Cameroon fully endorses,
still stands. Nevertheless, we must forge concrete
consensus without delay, as an indicator of greater
transparency and renewed legitimacy of a Security
Council that is more effective and credible.
Standing side-by-side with other nations,
Cameroon is resolutely committed to eradicating new
threats that seriously imperil international peace and
security. We unreservedly condemn international
terrorism and all forms of fundamentalism and
extremism, which provide it with both a breeding
ground and a vehicle. It is for that reason that we
reiterate our solidarity with all those who have fallen
victim to terrorism, most recently in Russia and the
Middle East.
The efforts undertaken by the Security Council in
that regard are encouraging. However, we believe that
the time has come for worldwide globalization and the
summit level. It is time to act together against the
terrorist hydra. Cameroon once again suggests that a
high-level conference be urgently convened to define
collectively more effective strategies to combat
terrorism.
The new threats confronting the world are real
challenges, and it is only right that they be given
certain priority. That approach will be quite appropriate
as the Organization’s other traditional concerns
continue to enjoy our full attention. Cameroon believes
that nothing can justify terrorism. Nevertheless, the
response to terrorism and to other new threats cannot
be solely a military response.
The modern world must focus on the causes of
violence and on the injustices that undermine
international peace. Resolving regional conflicts in
Africa, the Middle East and elsewhere; combating
poverty and mobilizing against great epidemics, and
against HIV/AIDS in particular; redressing the
imbalance in world trade in goods and services; and
addressing the foreign debt of poor countries — like
the new threats, all these challenges require the
Organization’s attention.
I mention this parallel because we run a real risk,
today, of getting used to the endemic poverty that kills
thousands every day, particularly in sub-Saharan
Africa. Solidarity with the poor must become a very
concrete reality rather than mere lip service. In order to
combat hunger and poverty, we need massive private
and public financing. We need relief from the burden
of debt.
The world today is faced with a paradox. The
poorest countries are the ones that have the most open
and liberal economies. Even their non-commercial
sector has been privatized, causing unemployment for
millions of citizens and the destabilization of basic
social sectors, such as water and electricity, for many
years, with harmful consequences for all economic
activity. The current economic order, if we are not
careful, could consolidate — and indeed make
permanent — current relations based on force, to the
benefit of rich countries and to the detriment of poor
countries. The rich can easily subsidize their
agriculture, their industry and their airlines, among
other sectors. The poor countries, however, under the
watchful eyes of financial institutions in which their
voices go unheard, must submit themselves to the law
of the market. Cotton from West and Central Africa is
a perfect example of unbalanced and unfair
globalization. We should not become discouraged,
however, and Cameroon is convinced that under your
presidency, Sir, the fifty-ninth session of the General
Assembly will adopt strong initiatives to help poor
countries and to ensure a readjustment of globalization,
making it more equitable and beneficial to all.
International economic relations must be profoundly
reformed with a view to ensuring greater United
Nations involvement.
The same issues that apply to the economy also
apply to the subject of health. The world, viewed in its
entirety, is rich. It has the means of providing adequate
health for all. Medicines exist that should make it
possible to contain the major pandemics. Research
scientists and the pharmaceutical industry are making
great strides on a daily basis in combating malaria,
tuberculosis, meningitis and cholera, among other
diseases. Those scourges, however, kill millions of
Africans every year. The reason for this is poverty and
insufficient means to obtain care and medicines.
29

With regard to HIV/AIDS, which is far more
terrible since it is thus far incurable, we welcome the
fact that scientific research today is making it possible
to drastically diminish its devastating scope. The
Bangkok International AIDS Conference has certainly
given reason for hope. Significant pledges to help
eradicate this scourge are announced on a daily basis.
Unfortunately, most of the persons infected by the HIV
virus are unable to obtain anti-retroviral medications
since they lack the necessary financial means.
Combating AIDS is a worldwide cause, rallying us all.
I have touched upon regional conflicts. Their
negative impact on the international environment,
whether politically, economically or in humanitarian
and security terms, requires no further demonstration.
Africa, as if not already handicapped enough, is the
continent most plagued by conflict, as evidenced by the
Security Council agenda.
The situation in some countries gives rise to
relative optimism. Developments in Liberia, Sierra
Leone, Guinea-Bissau and the Comoros give us reasons
for hope. Recent firm commitments by political actors
in the crisis in Côte d’Ivoire doubtless give rise to
better prospects for that fraternal, friendly country.
In Central Africa, despite some improvement, the
situation remains worrisome. It calls for constant
vigilance and increased involvement on all levels by
the international community. In this respect, the
international conference on the Great Lakes region,
which has been announced several times but has
always been deferred, must finally be held as
scheduled in November 2004. That will make it
possible to lay a fresh foundation for constructive
cooperation among the countries of the region,
consistent with the interests of their respective peoples.
Still with regard to Central Africa, it is our hope
that, at this session, the debate on cooperation between
the United Nations and the Economic Community of
Central African States (ECCAS) will address the
concerns expressed by our subregion’s heads of State
to the Secretary-General’s multidisciplinary assessment
mission to Central Africa. I recall here that the heads
of State had unanimously and firmly expressed a desire
for a political presence by the Secretary-General in
Central Africa through a permanent subregional
structure. We take note of the statement made here in
this connection by the delegation of the Republic of the
Congo, as Chairman of ECCAS.
The crisis in Darfur is currently a matter of grave
concern on our continent. Wishing to prevent a
catastrophe such as has occurred in the past, the
African Union has squarely embraced this question
with the decisive support of the Security Council and
other international partners. We all hope a positive
solution will be reached quickly. In order to do this,
dialogue must be ongoing, forward-looking and
voluntary on the part of all protagonists in the crisis.
To be sure, the political will and determination of the
Sudanese authorities are key; they must continue to
display these qualities. That is the only way that an
unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe will be
avoided. In any case, the international community must
be further mobilized behind the African Union in order
to ward off this curse and avert this major crisis
without delay.
My country is profoundly devoted to peace. It
will spare no effort to promote the peaceful settlement
of disputes. In that connection, it will continue to
promote peace throughout the world, and specifically
in Africa, in Central Africa and in the Gulf of Guinea.
As members know, the International Court of
Justice in The Hague, after lengthy deliberations
lasting almost 10 years, handed down its judgment, on
10 October 2002, relating to the boundary dispute
between Cameroon and Nigeria. Both countries, within
the context of the Joint Commission established by the
Secretary-General and chaired by his Special
Representative, have agreed to define the ways and
means of implementing that judgment and have
adopted a programme of work with a specific
timetable, approved on 31 January 2004 by their heads
of State and the Secretary-General. The Secretary-
General has eloquently reported on the progress that
has been made in this connection. We call upon the
United Nations family to give its full support to the
Secretary-General and to use its influence to help
Nigeria and Cameroon in implementing the judgment
of the International Court of Justice.
Whether it be the reform of our Organization to
make it more efficient, democratic and legitimate; or
the Middle East peace process to re-launch the road
map; or pacification, reconstruction, enhanced security
and institution-building in Iraq and Afghanistan; or the
settlement of African disputes and the post-conflict
reconstruction of such countries; or combating AIDS
and other pandemics; or adjusting financial and trade
mechanisms to help the weakest and most exposed
countries; or, finally, eliminating poverty:
Mr. President, our dear brother, we think that you have
a full plate. Quite fortunately, your great qualities will
30

allow you to involve the international community in
working on these problems.
Moreover, you have at your side the Secretary-
General of our Organization, Mr. Kofi Annan, Nobel
Peace Prize laureate, whose actions and commitments
to promote peace, security and development today
serve as both a lever and an engine for the activities
undertaken by the international community as a whole.
You also have at your side, I am sure, the entirety of
the United Nations membership. Cameroon, for its
part, will spare no effort to support you in your lofty
mission.


Mr. President, first
of all I would like to congratulate you on your
assumption of the important post of President of the
General Assembly at its fifty-ninth session. Let me also
21

pay tribute to His Excellency Mr. Julian Hunte for his
highly professional and fruitful work accomplished at
the helm of the General Assembly.
A year ago the Secretary-General stressed in this
Hall that the United Nations had reached a fork in the
road. This is still true today. We have a long list of
problems, but we do not have a clear vision of how to
deal with them. To choose the right way, to solve a
conflict between wishes and resources, between
desirable and achievable, we should concentrate on
priorities.
Let me outline Ukraine’s vision of the most
important issues on which the United Nations should
focus. The tragedy in the Russian city of Beslan and
other recent terrorist attacks leave no doubt that fight
against terrorism is truly the major priority. We express
our sympathy to the victims and strongly condemn
terrorism in all its forms and manifestations.
The underlying reason for terrorism is to create
chaos, to disrupt the global system of peace and
security established and promoted by our Organization.
Thus, we have to act collectively. We have to overcome
old prejudices and to establish a spirit of confidence
and a new culture of international cooperation, which
would embrace the whole spectrum of political, law
enforcement and security instruments.
Creation of a new and efficient system of
information exchange on terrorism will help prevent
new attacks and save priceless human lives. We
support the views expressed by previous speakers on
the need for a broader approach to address the complex
and interdependent nature of security. To prevent
terrorist acts and to eliminate the roots of terrorism, the
United Nations must promote better understanding, a
global rapprochement between various civilizations
and religions. There are universal values of peace and
security which are a cornerstone of our Organization
and which can serve as a basis for a new atmosphere of
tolerance in the world.
Ukraine, as a country actively participating in the
stabilization forces in Iraq, is concerned by the terrorist
insurgency and continuing violence there. Although the
situation in Iraq remains difficult, there are some
positive trends. Ukraine welcomes the transition of
power to the Iraqi people and the formation of the
interim government. It is important to ensure effective
implementation of the timetable for a comprehensive
political transition process in the country, particularly
through the holding of free and fair elections, with the
highest standards possible under the current
circumstances.
Security Council resolution 1546 (2004) clearly
envisages a central role for the United Nations in a
comprehensive political transition in the country and in
the reconstruction process. However, the Iraqi crisis
and the international fight against terrorism have
revealed the need to strengthen the United Nations as a
key instrument for safeguarding international peace
and security.
Institutional reform of the United Nations,
including the Security Council, which should become
truly representative and balanced, is an important task.
We understand the reasons behind the suggestions to
enlarge the Council in both its permanent and non-
permanent membership, and we are ready to carefully
consider relevant proposals. In this respect, Ukraine
attaches primary importance to the allocation of an
additional non-permanent seat to the Group of Eastern
European States.
But reform must not only involve some structural
changes. We should not have to embark on reform
every 20 years when a new balance of power emerges
in the international arena. Universal criteria and a
common understanding of threats and challenges are
necessary to ensure the effectiveness and efficiency of
our Organization in the twenty-first century.
We fully share the view expressed by the
Secretary-General at the beginning of the general
debate that the rule of law should be a priority both at
home and in international affairs. We look forward to
the outcome of the deliberations of the High-level
Panel on Threats, Challenges and Change. United
Nations authority should be increased, particularly
through its greater involvement in conflict prevention
and resolution. As President Leonid Kuchma of
Ukraine emphasized, conflict prevention should be
pivotal to the philosophy of United Nations work in the
new millennium.
In our region, frozen conflicts in Abkhazia, South
Ossetia, Nagorny-Karabakh and Transdnistria need to
be solved as soon as possible.
As one of the major contributors to United
Nations peacekeeping operations and the largest in
Europe, Ukraine is deeply concerned by the increasing
danger to the lives of peacekeeping personnel. We
22

stand for the universal application of the Convention
on the Safety of United Nations and Associated
Personnel and call upon all Member States to abide
strictly by its provisions.
The role of the United Nations in the field of non-
proliferation and disarmament should also be
strengthened. This year Ukraine will mark the tenth
anniversary of its accession to the Treaty on Non-
Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons. Its landmark
decision to eliminate the third largest nuclear arsenal
and to relinquish nuclear capability has significantly
enhanced the international non-proliferation regime
and global security. We hope that Ukraine’s positive
example will be followed by other countries that now
entertain the erroneous idea that they can protect their
security through access to nuclear weapons.
All achievements by the international community
may come to naught if our populations succumb to
HIV/AIDS. This disease has killed more people
annually than have all armed conflicts on the planet
added together. We highly appreciate the work carried
out by the United Nations, its specialized agencies and
by the Secretary-General personally to combat this
pandemic.
Ukraine supports the initiative to hold a high-
level meeting in June next year to review progress in
the implementation of the Declaration of Commitment
on HIV/AIDS. At the same time, we believe that
millions of our infected fellow citizens need concrete
action. We are convinced that HIV/AIDS poses a
fundamental challenge, not only to human health and
well-being, but also to the very security of our world.
In this regard, we attach particular significance to the
Organization’s declaration of a global emergency alert
in the fight against HIV/AIDS. The main focus must be
placed on prevention and treatment of the disease. As
Ukraine President Kuchma stressed last year at the
high-level meeting on HIV/AIDS, we need to elaborate
a clear system to encourage sponsorship of medical
projects as well as to expand the educational campaign
on preventing the pandemic.
In the same vein, a leading role should be played
by the mass media. Ukraine has launched an active
mass media campaign with the involvement of all
social groups, and we are ready to lead a regional
media movement in the prevention of HIV/AIDS.
Another pressing problem is trafficking in
persons, especially women and children. Ukraine
spares no effort in addressing this issue. This year
Ukraine became a party to the United Nations
Convention against Transnational Organized Crime and
its two Optional Protocols. However, tackling those
issues requires a comprehensive approach and the close
cooperation of the international community. We need
to create a truly functioning and efficient mechanism to
combine the efforts of the countries of origin, transit
and destination.
Effective strategies to combat human trafficking
should be based on both law enforcement measures and
improvement of the economic and social conditions of
potential victims. Ukraine welcomes the appointment
of the Commission on Human Rights Special
Rapporteur on trafficking in persons, especially in
women and children, and stands ready to render every
support in implementing the respective mandates.
Last year the world observed the seventieth
anniversary of the horrible genocidal famine, which
took the lives of over 7 million Ukrainian people.
Taking this opportunity I wish once again to express
our gratitude to all States that signed the joint
statement on the seventieth anniversary of the great
famine of 1932-1933 in Ukraine — Holodomor — or
whose parliaments adopted acts of condemnation and
sympathy, and to all organizations and individuals that
took part in the events to honour the victims of the
great famine.
The international community must thoroughly
study that phenomenon in order to prevent its
recurrence. We hope that the newly appointed Special
Adviser to the Secretary-General on the Prevention of
Genocide will also duly focus on this issue.
Almost two decades have passed since Ukraine
was struck by another tragedy — the Chernobyl
disaster. Ukraine together with other interested
delegations put forth an initiative to hold, within the
framework of the sixtieth session of United Nations
General Assembly in spring 2006, a special plenary
meeting to commemorate the victims of the Chernobyl
disaster.
Ukraine has fulfilled its commitments related to
the closure of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant. What
needs to be done today is to construct a new safe
confinement. We expect that funds for this purpose
promised by the Group of Seven in 1995 will be fully
provided.
23

Chernobyl remains a searing wound, which
proves every day how fragile our world is and how
easily nature can be damaged. No one should doubt our
commitment to the preservation of our environment.
That is why Ukraine is so sensitive to environmental
protection, whether it concerns building of roads,
construction of new power plants or the reopening of a
navigable waterway.
It was fashionable some years ago to criticize the
United Nations for its inability to solve the most
important problems. Today we all come to this
Assembly with the ever-stronger conviction that there
is no alternative to our Organization.
I am confident that despite all obstacles and
doubts of the past, we can act for the attainment of the
United Nations goals that are common to all of us. We
can act swiftly, collectively and with a vision.


Allow me at
the outset to join others who have warmly
congratulated you, Sir, on your election to the
presidency of the General Assembly at this session. I
wish you every success in your important undertaking,
which will enjoy the full support of the Romanian
delegation.
For some years now, this great worldwide
gathering has opened in the wake of deadly terrorist
attacks that require us to respond as one to voice strong
condemnation of all terrorist acts and a commitment to
contributing ever more energetically to the affirmation
of effective multilateralism that will make global
action increasingly effectual.
In that context, I cannot fail briefly to address the
issue of the struggle against terrorism, which is more
urgent today than ever before. Since September 2001,
the level of violence of acts of terrorism — perpetrated
in the name of ideological, territorial, religious or
ethnic differences and incompatibilities — has risen
dramatically.
At the same time, the very nature of terrorist acts
has changed. The complexity and scale of such
barbarism, claiming the lives of hundreds or even
thousands of innocent victims — often children, as in
the recent incident in Beslan — are indescribably grim
and represent immense challenges. Yet another factor
is at play in all this: the increase in the number of
terrorist acts. In such conditions, the struggle against
that scourge — whose implications are not only
immediate, but also complex and global in nature — is
an urgent and ongoing obligation for all States.
Romania promptly and meaningfully joined the
anti-terrorism campaign and has demonstrated its
resolve to contribute to eradicating it. We believe,
however, that the struggle to end terrorism must also
address its underlying causes, including poverty, and
must not be used as a pretext for flouting or violating
human rights. If that were to occur, we would be
playing into the hands of the perpetrators of terrorist
acts, who not only seek loss of life and devastation, but
strive above all to destroy symbols and values. On the
other hand, promoting respect for human rights and
democratic values is the only way to eliminate such
manifestations of hatred and violence.
The nature and, above all, the inherent dangers of
the current international context make the development
of cooperation among all kinds of international actors,
2

State and non-State alike, increasingly urgent. As an
Organization that is universal by vocation and in
legitimacy, the United Nations must fully assume its
role as the driving force behind efforts to adapt to
changes in the international environment. In an
interdependent world, no single State is safe from such
dangers or from threats to international peace and
security, including terrorism, the proliferation of
weapons of mass destruction, the increasing number of
States affected by instability, the growth of global
disparities, humanitarian crises, ethnic wars and intra-
State wars.
Managing such risks requires a comprehensive
and coherent approach on the part of the United
Nations, including through the promotion of preventive
political and diplomatic measures, such as the
strengthening of international treaties and conventions
on combating terrorism and the non-proliferation of
weapons of mass destruction; efforts to make
international export control regimes and specialized
international structures more effective; and, in extreme
cases, recourse to coercive measures, in accordance
with the United Nations Charter.
Our Organization has one strong and complex
tool at its disposal in meeting such challenges. I refer
to the Security Council, in which Romania is striving
to make a real contribution to the maintenance of
international peace and security and the establishment
of a world climate of stability, with particular emphasis
on fighting terrorism, preventing conflicts and
humanitarian crisis situations, maintaining the unity of
Council members and supporting consensus solutions,
and encouraging cooperation on stabilization between
the United Nations and regional organizations. With
respect to that last issue, I would note that Romania
has been and continues to be interested in cooperation
between the global Organization and the regional and
subregional pillars. Given the current international
context, that is of major importance.
(spoke in English)
The need to speed up the reform of the United
Nations is more urgent than ever. The series of
challenges, more or less new, that the Organization has
to face in the twenty-first century make its reform a
priority if its structures and working methods are to
adapt to the present realities. The terms of reference
continue to be efficiency, adaptability and progress.
Romania looks forward to the recommendations of the
Secretary-General on the report of the eminent persons
so that we may embrace, together with other States, a
collective effort that cannot afford delay.
We hope that the sixtieth anniversary of the
Organization’s establishment will mark significant
progress in the process of adapting the United Nations
to the new challenges, and especially the Security
Council, the essential body in the management of
world peace and stability. Our relation to that organ, as
a non-permanent member, increases our conviction that
a new configuration, closely reflecting current realities
by increasing the number of permanent and non-
permanent seats, will consolidate the representative
profile of the Security Council and thus its authority
and efficiency.
I cannot ignore another aspect of our
contemporary world. Both a source of challenges and a
most generous framework for opportunities, the
phenomenon of globalization is unavoidable and
affects us all. Given its nature, the United Nations is
ideally placed to manage the phenomenon, particularly
by correcting its consequences.
In that context, Romania fully embraces the
Global Compact Initiative of our Secretary-General,
which needs support and strengthening. All Member
States must promote regional and transcontinental
integration as vehicles and instruments of a harnessed
globalization. In this case, the European Union stands
as a success story, since it acts as a vector not only of
economic integration, but also of democratic values
and human rights. The United Nations has to try to find
ways to adjust the rules of the world market in order to
diminish, in the medium and long terms, the big gaps
that exist between the rich countries and the poor.
Another priority in our efforts to harness
globalization is the need to enhance coordination
among the specialized agencies and institutions of the
United Nations system in their work to ensure the
diffusion of information technology at a lower cost. We
need to show more determination in our attempts to
decrease the gaps in this field, and to guarantee the
evolution of less developed countries from a state of
marginalization to one catalysed by knowledge-based
development.
Allow me to turn now to another essential factor
for a better future, one that Secretary-General Kofi
Annan also underlined in his introductory speech —
the rule of law. The validity of the principles of the
3

Charter of the United Nations have not only withstood
the test of time, but they have also been reaffirmed by
a whole new network of international agreements,
mandatory standards and norms of action to which
States have voluntarily acceded, mechanisms for the
peaceful settlement of disputes and monitoring
commitments.
As a proof of our faith in the international law
system, Romania appealed this year for the first time to
the International Court of Justice — the main judicial
body of the United Nations — to resolve a question of
maritime delimitation. Romania also appealed to an
international investigation commission to solve the
case of an infrastructure works project with cross-
border impact on the Bistroe Channel in the Danube
Delta. Our appeal concerns the need for close
collaboration in order to protect a unique and fragile
place, a UNESCO world heritage site.
Our efforts towards an effective multilateralism
also involve us in other major issues on the United
Nations agenda. Romania has promptly joined, and
substantially contributed to, international efforts for the
stabilization and reconstruction of Afghanistan and
Iraq, in keeping with its long history of participation in
United Nations peacekeeping operations and the
provision of assistance in post-conflict phases.
The global vocation and aspirations of my
country are closely related to its European destiny. The
focus of Romanian diplomacy is therefore oriented
towards the democratic stabilization of our
neighbouring region and its effective connection to a
united Europe. For too long that region has been
affected by wars and all kinds of tensions, often acute
ones. Under such circumstances, Romania can only
support, alongside all of Europe, a boost to democracy,
economic development and a long-lasting stabilization
of the countries in the region.
At the same time, Romania is ready to contribute
to the stability and development of all countries in the
Black Sea region. We hope to turn this strategic area —
with its close connections to other regions of immense
potential, including the Mediterranean Basin, the
Caucasus, Central Asia and the Middle East — into a
cooperation and security zone.
I cannot conclude without making a brief
reference to another theme to which Romania attaches
particular importance. My country strongly supports
concerted action to prevent the proliferation of
weapons of mass destruction. In an international
context that is often volatile and defined by a growing
complexity and increased interdependence, we cannot
ignore the necessity for immediate action, using the
means offered by our global Organization, in particular
the Security Council Committee established pursuant
to resolution 1540 (2004).


As
French is the most widely recognized official language
in the Central Africa subregion, I should like to begin
my statement by addressing a few words to the
Assembly in that common language.
I would like to say how pleased I am to be here
with you today, Mr. President — you in your capacity
as the President of the General Assembly and me in
mine as President of my country. I am also pleased to
address the Assembly in order to speak on behalf of the
people of Sao Tome and Principe.
I shall now deliver my address in Portuguese —
which, as the Assembly is aware, is the official
language of Sao Tome and Principe.
(spoke in Portuguese; English text furnished by the
delegation)
Allow me, at the outset, to congratulate you most
warmly, Mr. President, on your election as President of
the fifty-ninth session on the General Assembly, whose
proceedings will undoubtedly benefit from your
personal qualities and your experience in international
relations. Gabon and my country, Sao Tome and
Principe, have long enjoyed a very good relationship of
cooperation at various levels, and my delegation
wishes you success in your new functions.
May I also thank the President’s predecessor,
President Julian Robert Hunte of Saint Lucia, for the
excellent work he has done.
On behalf of people of Sao Tome and Principe, I
would like to pay tribute to the Secretary-General for
his relentless efforts and dedication at the service of
the goals of the United Nations, and for his work in
promoting peace and development.
This session of the General Assembly is taking
place during a particularly complex international
situation. Violence and the violation of human rights
are increasing. The United Nations must play its role as
a matter of priority; otherwise world order could
collapse. More than ever before, Governments must
give a universal forum like this the responsibility to
rebuild international order on the basis of peace,
2

respect for human rights, security and cooperation for
development. Unilateralism must be put aside. We have
to work together for a better world.
Intolerance, terrorism, occupation, discrimination,
organized crime and social injustice are some of the
sources of today’s open conflicts. Religious differences
and drug trafficking in some countries are driving
people to high levels of violence and destruction. We
the people the United Nations have to do our best to
stop those atrocities, or unprotected groups of society
will disappear and the spiral of violence could spread
out of control.
Darfur is an example of discrimination and
atrocity. We call on Sudan’s Government to fulfil all
the provisions contained in Security Council resolution
1556 (2004), which was adopted on 30 July.
It is completely unacceptable that 50 million
people worldwide have become refugees or have been
internally displaced as a result of having been driven
from their homes by war, persecution and human rights
abuses. We now needed concrete action by leaders and
peoples to ensure that the perpetrators of criminal
behaviour are brought to justice, thereby rebuilding
confidence among peoples and nations, but especially
to address the root causes of violence.
Small island States will meet in Mauritius to
assess the progress made since the Global Conference
on the Sustainable Development of Small Island
Developing States, which was held in Barbados.
Progress in the implantation of the Barbados
Programme of Action has been mixed. At Mauritius,
key issues will be reviewed and decisions and
recommendations will be made with regard to the
questions of climate change, natural and environmental
disasters, fresh water, land resources, waste
management, tourism, energy, transport, biodiversity
and coastal and marine resources. All those are issues
affecting the ecosystems of small islands as a result of
global warming. They can only be solved gradually and
if the international community increases resources
effectively to support the sustainable development of
small island States. We would like to take this
opportunity to thank the international community for
everything it has done to date. I would like to extend a
special thanks to the Government of Mauritius for its
efforts to organize the special international conference.
As an island nation, Sao Tome and Principe
continues to see its very existence threatened by global
warming. Our shorelines are eroding and our national
territory is shrinking as the seas rise. Is my small
country to end up nothing but a tiny volcanic peak
sticking out above the waves, with the last of our
people clinging to the land left unclaimed by the rising
sea? The Kyoto Protocol must be implemented by all
for the benefit of all.
The Governments of Africa launched the New
Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD), aiming
specifically at optimally mobilizing both African and
international resources and at harmonizing
contributions through a partnership based on mutual
commitments and balanced interests and responsibilities.
Peace, good governance, security and development are
challenges that all African Governments and peoples
have to face. They must create the conditions to
achieve those goals. Those goals are far from being
reached, given the numerous conflicts and the destructive
and negatives effects of conflicts. My Government will
continuously support NEPAD and will work to create
the foundations for its implementation.
Most countries continue to face the challenge of
HIV/AIDS and other diseases. In some parts of Africa
HIV/AIDS is devastating entire families, societies,
cultures and economies. Treatment is still expensive,
and our economy has started to feel the negative effects
of the disease. Unless there are additional resources and
scientific investment to find a cure for HIV/AIDS, hope
for progress in Africa will continue to be far from reach.
It is not only health problems that afflict poor
countries. Globalization affects some because few have
all the necessary conditions to develop trade and
commerce and to take advantage of new technologies.
The latest efforts by the World Trade Organization in
Geneva are an example of the fact that those who have
too much could make a difference by giving away a
little to poor countries. If that is not done, we will
continue to face discriminatory tariffs and to
experience erosion in quality of life.
My country regrets that international relations in
some parts of the world have deteriorated to the point
where extreme violence, destruction and violation of
human rights and the environment are daily facts of
life, and where the use and abuse of dangerous
weapons is endemic. We also regret that refugees and
children are among the targets in those conflicts.
Tragedies cannot be our destiny. Tragedies and
natural disasters such as the ones we face in Iraq, the
3

Middle East, Bangladesh and some countries in Africa
and elsewhere are testimony of the fact that mankind is
moving towards facing bigger challenges. My
Government thinks that multilateralism under the
framework of the United Nations is the only way for
the international community to be able to achieve
lasting peace and development.
Terrorism around the world is causing
destruction, destabilizing Governments and killing
people in places such as Madrid, the Middle East and
elsewhere. We are confronted by a dilemma, because
thus far all the strategies employed to fight this scourge
are not producing significant results. Under the
authority of the Security Council, we must guarantee
the universality of, and compliance with, non-
proliferation treaties.
My Government supports the recommendations
of Secretary-General Kofi Annan on Timor-Leste. The
United Nations Mission of Support in East Timor is a
success we cannot ignore.
The universality of the Organization must be a fact,
and all countries have to be represented. Taiwan is not
represented. We call upon the international community
to address the issue of Taiwan’s representation. Despite
its small size, Taiwan offers development aid to a large
number of countries. Taiwan has all the elements to be an
active member of the main international organizations. A
look at its economy, trade relations, commerce,
finance, application of new technologies and support
for many countries reveals facts that we cannot ignore
any longer.
We would also like to refer to Cuba. Economic
embargo is a severe sanction. It violates the Charter of
the United Nations and international law. I would like
to request that the General Assembly lend its assistance
to bring about an end to the economic embargo against
Cuba. The cold war era is behind us, and a people in
need simply cannot continue to be the object of the
political interest of part of the electorate in Florida.
In Sao Tome and Principe we are working very
hard to consolidate our young democracy and to create
a solid foundation for sound development. Following
the agreement signed among the Government, the
international community and the military — which
mounted a coup in Sao Tome and Principe in 2003 —
we organized a national forum that brought all
segments of our society to the table to bring their views
closer together and to draw up recommendations in
order to avoid more instability in the country.
On the economic front, we are preparing the
country for a new era based on oil exploration and
production. Our National Assembly has adopted a law
on the management of the revenues that we will
eventually receive from oil companies. That shows that
corruption will be fought, that the new generation will
be protected and that the country will have enough
resources for development.
The Government and the people of Sao Tome and
Principe adhere to the principles of respect for the
sovereignty of all countries and following the path of
dialogue, tolerance and mutual understanding among
peoples. We call on all members of the United Nations
to do likewise for the sake of a better world.
I would like to conclude by expressing our
gratitude to all countries Members of the United
Nations for the support given to our country at the time
of the first-ever coup d’état in Sao Tome and Principe,
in June 2003. I would also like to thank all the countries
of Central Africa — including Congo (Brazzaville),
which currently presides over the Economic
Community of Central African States — for everything
they have done. I also wish to thank the President of
the General Assembly and our partners in Central
Africa and the African Union for their tireless efforts.