I extend our sincere
congratulations to Mr. Sam Kutesa on his election to
preside over the General Assembly at its sixty-ninth
session. We see him undertaking that onerous task
at a particularly important moment in not only the
forging of the future global development agenda, but
the development of international peace and security. I
therefore assure him of my Government’s support as
he sets out to discharge that important assignment. In
the same spirit, I also convey our appreciation for the
contribution made by his predecessor, Mr. John Ashe,
President of the Assembly at its sixty-eighth session.

I wish to highlight our deep concern at the global
health emergency that has resulted from the Ebola
outbreak in parts of Africa. That burden is not only
for the people of Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea;
Zambia views the epidemic as a common challenge
to humankind, and therefore stands ready to support
all efforts required to defeat the disease and ensure a
return to normalcy in the daily economic and social
lives of our sister Republics that are directly facing the
disease.

There is growing acceptance and concern that
Ebola could easily spread beyond the first four
countries that have so far borne the brunt of the
disease. The recent resurgence of the disease in the
neighbouring Democratic Republic of the Congo is a
reminder of the extent of the danger. Beyond that, we
remain deeply concerned that over 5,000 people in all
have been victims of the disease and 2,400 needless
deaths have already been recorded across the continent.
Zambia therefore supports the call for greater and wider
involvement by all Member States. The World Health
Organization has already warned that if the epidemic
is left unchecked, we will soon be dealing with over
20,000 Ebola patients.

It is equally for that reason that we continue to look
at global health issues as important parameters for global
development. The Ebola public health emergency and
other ongoing challenges, such as malaria, tuberculosis,
AIDS and other, non-communicable diseases, need a
concerted global approach.

In the past few months, the international community
has witnessed the growing desperation of extremist
terrorist organizations, notably through the abduction
of innocent schoolgirls in Borno state, Nigeria, and the
wider reign of terror, which includes bombing civilian
trading points across that important African nation.

Zambia is also concerned about the insecurity
currently being experienced as a result of the instability
in Ukraine. We have followed the counter-accusations,
which point to the deep-seated divisions and suspicions
of a bygone era. Sadly, the human losses have been
heavy, as ordinary Ukrainians are caught in the middle
of a crisis that is strongly influenced by foreign factors.
Innocent civilians from other nations have also been
drawn in through the loss of lives on Malaysia Airlines
Flight MH-17. We share in the sorrow of the families
and the nations that lost loved ones in that human-
caused catastrophe. Zambia believes that ordinary
Ukrainian citizens are of the same view and desire
nothing but peace, harmony and prosperity for their
country. They should be allowed to enjoy those basic
human conditions.

Those and other global security concerns linger,
facing a United Nations that is becoming ever more
challenged in coordinating any robust or convincing
global response.

This session of the General Assembly is also
taking place at a moment of renewed focus on the
global development agenda through the negotiations
on the post-2015 agenda and the work to produce
the sustainable development goals (SDGs). My
understanding has been that the negotiations have thus
far been engaging and have included the participation of
all stakeholders, including Governments, civil society,
the business community and academia. It can therefore
be said that we have laid a solid foundation upon which
the world will articulate its development policies for the
next decade and a half, in line with the three pillars of
the SDGs.

We look forward to the completion of those
deliberations, knowing that unless the means of
implementation are adequately covered with new
investment inflows, we risk rendering that noble effort
a futile exercise. Given the immense challenges facing
our nations, it is such multilateral approaches that will
address the underlying cross-border factors that affect
climate change, global poverty, public health, children’s
welfare, labour and migration, youth unemployment, the
advancement of women and many other issues whose
solutions lie in actions that may have transboundary
effects.

The new global development regime must therefore
demonstrate a new and more robust approach to
those problems. For that reason, Zambia supports the
related meetings being held alongside this session of
the Assembly, notably those relating to population and
development, labour and decent work, and the 2014
Climate Summit. It is hoped that those discussions will,
in the not-too-distant future, lead to lasting solutions
to the development challenges faced by many of our
countries.

On another important matter, I wish to report
that Zambia has increased its campaign to forestall
the growing problem of child marriages and early and
forced marriages. That problem is strongly rooted in
the prevailing poverty levels in some poor families
and in the quest by organized criminals to profit
from selling off under-age girls either into marriage
or to engage in exploitative vices. With that national
awakening to the problem, Zambia hosted a three-day
national symposium on the problem in July. We look
forward to working with other nations to ensure that a
global approach is developed to curb the incidences of
child, early and forced marriages, which is a problem
with greater consequences for the future advancement
of women.

Zambia is also undertaking several other initiatives
aimed at reducing the gender divide. My Government is
of the conviction that girls and women should be enabled
and allowed to reach their full potential and be able to
contribute to national growth on an equal footing with
men. In that regard, the education of the girl child and
the socioeconomic empowerment of women through
their representation in key decision-making positions is
at the top of the national agenda.

Furthermore, Zambia reaffirms its commitment
to gender equality and the empowerment of women
made at the fourth World Conference on Women, held
in Beijing in 1995, My Government has continued to
stress the importance of women’s emancipation and
their contribution to national development in line with
the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action.

The question of the reform of the Security Council
remains an important priority for Zambia and the rest
of the African continent. We remain deeply concerned
that little progress has been recorded in the negotiations
on the expansion of the Council. Africa remains fully
committed to all five clusters of the intergovernmental
negotiations process outlined in decision 62/557, of
2008. As a member of the African Union Committee
of Ten on Security Council reform, let me echo other
voices in reiterating the importance that our member
States attach to the realization of those long-overdue
reforms.

My delegation also accords due priority to the
questions relating to countries in special situations, in
particular landlocked developing countries (LLDCs),
for which group Zambia was nominated as Chair in
March. The implementation of the Almaty Programme
of Action, as adopted in 2003, has run its course, albeit
with mixed results. It is coming up for review at the
United Nations Conference on Landlocked Developing
Countries, to be held in Vienna in just over a month’s
time, from 3 to 5 November. The 32 Member States in
that grouping are counting on the support of the entire
United Nations membership to ensure a successful
Conference, which we expect will firmly place the
LLDCs on a sound path of development. I therefore
look forward to the full participation of Member States
at the Conference.

I would like to end by informing the Assembly
that our historic capital city, Lusaka, has for the past

year been celebrating its centenary. That occasion was
followed this year by two other important celebrations,
namely, the ninetieth birthday of our founding father, the
first Republican President, Mr. Kenneth Kaunda, and
the fiftieth anniversary of our national independence,
which falls on 24 October.

The commemorations have offered a unique
chance not only to celebrate, but also to reflect on
our development path. I submit that within our known
difficult struggle to achieve social and economic
development lies a strong national spirit, eager to
contribute not only to our own growth, but also to that
which the growing global interdependence demands.
Let me, on behalf of all Zambians, express appreciation
to all those that have helped our beloved country in
achieving those milestones. Zambia looks forward to a
strengthened and more versatile United Nations system
that will help create the conditions for the further
growth and development of our youthful nation.


On behalf of
the Government of the Republic of San Marino, I would
like to congratulate you, Mr. President, on your election
to the presidency of the General Assembly at its sixty-
ninth session, and to wish you every success in your
work. The delegation of the Republic of San Marino
assures you, Sir, of its full cooperation throughout
the session. I would also like to express my country’s
gratitude to the outgoing President of the General
Assembly, Mr. John Ashe, for his work during the
sixty-eighth session. My country also wishes to extend
special thanks to Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon for
the energy and determination with which he leads
the United Nations and for his sensitivity towards all
Member States, without exception.

In particular, I would like to underscore the
importance of the climate change Summit organized by
the Secretary-General in New York on 23 September.
It provided the Heads of State and Government with
the opportunity to demonstrate their political will
for a global agreement on that issue. The Republic
of San Marino contributed to the work through the
participation of its Head of State, thereby underscoring
the importance and acknowledging the indissoluble link
between climate change and sustainable development.
The effects of climate change, which are often tragic,
are one of the most serious threats to the future of
humankind and a challenge that all States, in the context
of a joint action coordinated by the United Nations, are
called on to face with commitment and determination.
We are accountable to future generations for our ability
to achieve the goals of environmental protection, energy
saving and energy generation from renewable sources.

Climate change is one of the causes of many natural
disasters that have befallen our planet, including this
year. We need to respond effectively to the many very
serious humanitarian emergencies, which show the
clear interdependence of the global threats now facing
humankind. Today, a strong, rapid and coordinated
response at the international level is necessary to
deal with the very serious outbreak of Ebola that has
developed in some West African States and has become
a global threat. The most affected countries must not
be left alone or isolated. On the contrary, they must
be supported and helped. San Marino was among the
sponsors of resolution 2177 (2014), recently adopted
by the Security Council, which underscores the need
for an immediate mobilization of the international
community.

We are deeply moved by the problems at the
international level, and, in the light of the theme
of this session, “Delivering on and implementing a
transformative post-2015 development agenda”, we
recognize the need for a renewed commitment to
freeing the world from extreme poverty, inequality
and hunger. However, we are aware that the full
achievement of such goals is seriously compromised
when peace and security, on the basis of respect for the
equal dignity of all human beings, are not ensured. This
year, we have sadly witnessed too many incidents that
represent a serious threat to peace, security and respect
for human rights. It is therefore impossible not to share
the widespread perception of a weakening of the United
Nations capacity to intervene and the subsequent
questioning of United Nations-led missions.

Let us consider the following events. Since March
2011, the conflict in Syria has already caused more than
200,000 deaths and injured hundreds of thousands. It
has forced millions of people to flee their homes and
their countries to escape a war that shows infinite forms
of cruelty and ferocity. The Republic of San Marino
has strongly condemned and continues to condemn
the violations of human rights and of international
humanitarian law committed in Syria by all parties to
the conflict, without exception. The recent resurgence
of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict has of late claimed
the lives of more than 1,000 civilians, among whom
were many women and children, for the most part
Palestinian, including those who had sought refuge in
United Nations schools. The San Marino Government
and Parliament have appealed to both sides to let their
guns fall silent and the desire for dialogue prevail,

aware that dialogue is the only way to achieve a peaceful
coexistence of the two peoples.

The situation is very serious in Iraq, where
ongoing ethnic and religious cleansing is taking place
with unprecedented violence. In the name of religion,
systematic and massive human rights violations,
only partially documented and evidenced, are being
perpetrated. Such violations constitute massive crimes
against humanity. A coalition of States is undertaking a
joint response. San Marino hopes that the interventions
are coordinated under the auspices of the United
Nations. In particular, it greeted with satisfaction and
co-sponsored resolution 2178 (2014) on foreign terrorist
fighters, unanimously adopted by the Security Council
on 24 September, under the leadership of the United
States President, Barack Obama.

The war that is being fought in some parts of North
Africa is causing the migration of thousands of desperate
people leaving for Europe every day in the hope of
arriving safely — a migration that, unfortunately,
often turns into tragedy. The Mediterranean continues
to witness the deaths of migrants from many areas
of Africa and Asia. The information provided by the
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees is
evidence — as if evidence were necessary — not only
of the utter tragedy of the situation but also of the need
for a more united European action to address it.

In addition, this year has seen the crisis in Ukraine,
which is a serious threat to the peace and security of
the entire European continent, owing to both the large
number of victims and also the fact that fundamental
principles, such as the territorial sovereignty and self-
determination of peoples, are called into question.

These events demand the presence of the United
Nations and call for the entire international community
to assume its responsibility and to restore the
Organization’s capacity to intervene in order to protect
the citizens of the entire world through the peaceful
resolution of disputes between States, as enshrined in the
Charter of the United Nations and in numerous General
Assembly resolutions. These events also underscore
the need for a reaffirmation of our Organization’s
profoundly democratic nature so that each State, large
or small, can make its voice heard and contribute to
the work and resolutions of the United Nations. These
events require that the cultural and religious diversity
and the manifold traditions represented within our
Organization do not hamper the pursuit of possible
solutions. On the contrary, they should be a valuable
resource, enabling us to adopt an approach that unites
the interests of the entire international community.

We recognize the duty and the responsibility to
work tirelessly for the definition and the implementation
of the post-2015 development agenda. However, given
the seriousness of the international situation, a simple
appeal will not suffice. On the contrary, precisely
because, in many cases, a lack of integration between
the economic and the social and environmental aspects
has hampered the full achievement of the Millennium
Development Goals, as the report notes, we are
convinced that we need new momentum and a new
beginning in order to restore elements able to promote
a culture of life, tolerance, acceptance and solidarity
within our communities and populations. The first
element of that process, aimed at building a culture of
inclusion, is the family. Recognition of the urgency to
create such a culture demands of all States a common
commitment and renewed consideration to promote
the protection and support of the family. Indeed, the
family is clearly the place where our main relationships
governing human coexistence are developed. For that
reason, weakening and marginalizing the family has
often caused great existential confusion in younger
generations with many serious personal and social
consequences.

In this spirit and with the utmost determination,
each State must assume its responsibility and leave no
stone unturned in resolving the numerous conflicts,
which Pope Francis has referred to as the third world
war, since, if they were to prevail, they would nullify the
plan for balanced development in the third millennium,
as it should be defined in the United Nations agenda.
San Marino is a small State that has in its century-old
history always considered freedom and peace as the
supreme goods to be preserved and protected. Based
on that identity, it is honoured and proud to contribute
to the community of the United Nations. With humility
we call on all States to make every effort to give the
United Nations strength and authority as the central
referral body we so keenly need today.


I
am delighted to be here today to once again make a
contribution, on behalf of the Democratic Republic of
the Congo, to the debate on the present and future of
humankind. I am especially delighted as this sixty-
ninth session of the General Assembly is taking place
at a time when the international situation is particularly
delicate. If we are not careful, three of its phenomena in
particular will surely delay us in achieving our agreed
goals. I am referring to the issues of terrorism, the
resurgence of Ebola in Africa and the many threats to
peace in various areas around the globe.

Despite the commendable efforts of States and
international organizations, terrorism, an extreme form
of human intolerance, continues to claim victims — as
many in number as they are innocent — around the
world. Africa, which was once spared this type of
senseless violence, is today at its epicentre. The people
of Libya, Mali, Kenya, Somalia, Nigeria and many other
countries in Europe, America and Asia are regularly
bereaved by attacks, hostage-taking and summary
executions. All States Members of our Organization
must face the threat collectively, as a moral obligation
and the only effective strategy to eradicate this
barbarism surely and quickly.

Since the previous session of the General Assembly,
a major public health problem has also hindered Africa
on its path towards development, namely, through the
loss in human lives caused by Ebola in some countries of
sub-Saharan Africa. In less than six months, the disease
has claimed over 2,000 lives, including approximately

40 in my own country. Africa is leading a heroic battle
against the virus. It deserves support.

I am grateful to the international community, which
is aware that, beyond the affected African populations
today, all of humankind is under threat and which has
extended its touching and effective solidarity to the
affected countries. I thank the international community
for its significant technical and logistical support in the
response against the epidemic. In the future, I hope to
see this fine example of human brotherhood prevail
over the blind competition we see so often, and for it to
occur with equal fervour in other sectors.

As for the Democratic Republic of the Congo,
which is being touched for the seventh time by this
scourge, we have not only managed to contain this new
epidemic at its origin — in Boende territory, Equateur
province — but also provided support to the fight
against the epidemic in West Africa. Now that we have
all but mastered the situation within the country, the
Democratic Republic of Congo is ready to once again
send its experts to the other affected countries.

I take this opportunity to announce from this
rostrum that, on the basis of its over 30 years of
experience in the management of Ebola outbreaks, in
October the Democratic Republic of the Congo will
set up multidisciplinary training centres to train health
personnel to respond adequately, in terms of quality
and quantity of care, to the needs of African countries
that have been or could in the future be affected by such
an epidemic.

As for the wars that are engulfing various parts of
the world, including the Middle East, Ukraine, Syria,
Iraq, Libya and the Central African Republic, we
should first recall that the United Nations was created
following a world war, in order to establish mechanisms
capable of preventing, or at least managing, situations
that bring the world only grief and despair; and then
we should ask ourselves why at this point, decades
after the San Francisco Conference, humankind seems
unable to maintain and guarantee peace. Knowing that
in this area any contribution is welcome, I would like to
reaffirm the commitment of the Democratic Republic of
the Congo to working tirelessly for peace and stability
in Africa and around the world. That is the reason for
the presence of Congolese troop and police contingents
in the Central African Republic.

The issue of peace is fundamental because,
without it, humankind cannot realize or implement a
transformative development programme, as the central
theme of this session has it. Nor can that goal be achieved
as long as terrorism is not contained and epidemics
such as Ebola are not defeated. From experience, we
Congolese know that there is no challenge that cannot
be met provided there is the will, the way and the
determination. We all know where my country was
barely 13 years ago. Today I am happy to say that the
Democratic Republic of the Congo is standing on its
feet once more. It is a country where a newfound peace
is consolidated a little more every day; a country whose
economy is one of the most dynamic on the continent,
with an inflation rate close to zero, a growth rate that
has exceeded the African average for almost a decade,
and steadily increasing foreign exchange reserves; a
country undergoing total reconstruction, with roads,
schools, hospitals and much other infrastructure being
built at an unprecedented rate and speed.

On the political front, consolidating democracy
and strengthening national cohesion remain our top
priorities. In that regard, I wish to confirm that our
forthcoming elections will soon be held according to
the schedule set by the relevant national institution, the
Independent National Electoral Commission. Every
effort is bring made to ensure that our country will
emerge from them stronger, more peaceful and more
united.

Regarding security, through the application of a
judicious mix of political dialogue, diplomacy and
military action we have moved steadily closer to the goal
we have set ourselves of banishing negative forces from
our land and thus helping to bring peace to the eastern
part of the country and to our neighbours. In order to
consolidate peace and improve social conditions for the
people, we are working to improve the business climate
so as to stimulate investment, promote greater added
value locally and create more jobs.

As can be seen, my country has resolutely taken the
road of reconstruction, development and re-emergence
and the defeat of poverty, injustice and inequality. It is
an undeniably daunting task, and we still have some way
to go to achieve our ultimate goal. But the people of the
Congo are tackling it with enthusiasm and selflessness,
determined as never before to make our march towards
progress irreversible and to propel the country to a level
of development commensurate with its potential. To do
that, we must preserve stability at all costs, and that is
what we will put the majority of our efforts into from

now on. And we count on the support of our partners in
prioritizing everything that may involve.

Before concluding my remarks, I would like to
reiterate the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s
continuing plea for Africa to be fairly represented in
the decision-making organs of the United Nations,
particularly the Security Council. The fact is that it
does not make sense that Africa, a continent with six
of the 10 fastest-growing economies in the world today,
whose growth rate and youthful population are portents
of future demographic power and whose forests,
freshwater reserves and arable lands make it essential
to the implementation of sustainable development
strategies, does not have a permanent seat within the
entity responsible for ensuring peace and international
security. It is high time that this changed. It is a question
of fairness, and it is also a condition of our collective
effectiveness.


Today I would like
to address some of the most important issues on the
General Assembly’s agenda.

First are the growing regional and international
security challenges and threats, escalating conflicts
and wars, and the aggravation of geopolitical
confrontations between large centres of power, which
could produce new areas of tension in the world and
make it more difficult to address the continuing global
financial and economic crisis. All those elements are
cause for serious alarm and deep concern. Uzbekistan
firmly believes that such acute contradictions and
confrontations can be tackled only through a political
path and peaceful means, in strict observance of the
fundamental principles of international law enshrined
in the Charter of the United Nations.

The persisting instability in Afghanistan, which is
exhibiting a tendency to escalate further, poses a serious
threat to stability and security in Central Asia and the
greater region. In the situation currently unfolding, the
accelerated drawdown of the International Security
Assistance Force may turn out to be counterproductive,
and that could further complicate the state of affairs in
Afghanistan.

Today we can say with confidence that all the
parties interested in resolving the Afghan problem
are unanimous about one thing, which is that there is
no military way to achieve peace in Afghanistan. The
President of Uzbekistan, Islam Karimov, said so as long
ago as 2008 at a NATO Summit in Bucharest, and at the
General Assembly’s 2010 High-level Plenary Meeting
on the Millennium Development Goals (see A/65/PV.3).
The presidential elections in Afghanistan this year
demonstrated vividly that the Afghan people are tired
of bloodshed and violence, long-standing misery and
devastation. Today they want peace and stability and
the right to define their fate on their own.

The only reasonable way to tackle the Afghan
problem is to search for a political settlement of the
conflict through peaceful negotiations and achieve
consensus to establish a coalition Government in which
all of Afghanistan’s parties in conflict and its national
and religious groups would be represented.

Uzbekistan adheres to a policy of non-interference
in Afghanistan’s internal affairs. We are building and
will continue to develop stable, friendly relations with
Afghanistan that proceed from the national interests of
both countries, and, on an exclusively bilateral basis,
we will support the Government elected by the Afghan
people.

Secondly, in view of the ongoing global financial
and economic crisis, transport and communications
development and strengthened regional economic
cooperation are key factors for ensuring Central Asia’s
stability and sustainable development. Implementing
large transport and communications infrastructure
projects that can connect our region with global
markets will promote interregional trade and economic
cooperation, attract investment and help develop social
and industrial infrastructure, as well as promote steady
progress in neighbouring regions. I refer in particular
to such projects as the international Uzbekistan-
Turkmenistan-Iran-Oman Transport Corridor, which
will link Central Asian countries to the Middle East
by the shortest and most reliable and secure route.
Uzbekistan’s completion of the Hairatan to Mazar-i-
Sharif railway, the first and so far the only functioning
railroad linking Afghanistan to the outside world, was
a historic landmark event.

Thirdly, as the States of Central Asia, like many
other countries, are experiencing growing water
shortages, the fair and reasonable use of the resources
of the transboundary Amu Darya and Syr Darya Rivers
becomes extremely important to the life support and
well-being of the population of Central Asia. Uzbekistan
adheres firmly to the principled position that the issue of
the reasonable use of Central Asia’s transboundary river
resources must be resolved according to the universally
recognized norms of international law and within the
framework of the relevant United Nations conventions
on the use of international watercourses, which clearly
define the principles of preventing damage to the
environment and interests of neighbouring countries.

We believe it is unacceptable that certain countries
in the region are promoting the construction of large
hydropower stations with gigantic dams without
conducting an international, truly independent,
unprejudiced and professional expert study.
Implementing such projects without thorough analysis
could exacerbate tensions and the potential for conflict
in the region. Building such grandiose hydropower
facilities in a mountainous, highly seismic area with
a potential for earthquakes of magnitude of 9 points
or highter could carry a high risk of devastating man-
made catastrophes. I wish to underscore that owing to
the potential for making ecological problems worse,
a growing number of countries around the world are

rejecting the construction of gigantic dams and opting
for small and medium-size hydropower stations that do
not damage the environment, safety or socioeconomic
well-being of their populations.

Fourthly, the dynamic development of our economy
and modernization of all spheres of the country’s life
have enabled Uzbekistan to ensure the implementation
of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) ahead
of schedule. Since achieving independence, Uzbekistan
has seen its economy grow almost five-fold and per
capita income increase 8.7 times, testifying to the
growth in our standards and quality of life. In the past
10 years, Uzbekistan’s annual rate of growth of its gross
domestic product (GDP) has exceeded 8 per cent. By
2030 we intend to increase the per capita GDP to $9,300.

About 60 per cent of State expenditures are
channelled to fund social development, with more than
34.3 per cent of that spent on education. Almost 100 per
cent of school-age children attend secondary schools.
Women now represent 45.4 per cent of employed
persons. We have achieved tangible successes in
improving maternal and child health, with the mortality
rate among children under the age of 5 reduced by a
factor of 1.8 and maternal mortality rates by 1.6.

Furthermore, Uzbekistan will do its utmost to
achieve all its intended plans for the implementation of
the MDGs as soon as possible. We will also continue to
undertake large-scale programmes in terms of the post-
2015 development agenda.


At
the outset, as this is the first time that I am attending in
my capacity as the President of the Bolivarian Republic
of Venezuela, I wish to thank the General Assembly,
all its representative Governments and the various
bodies of the United Nations system for the heartfelt
tribute that was paid simultaneously at United Nations
Headquarters in New York, in Geneva and other

places in the world to an extraordinary human being,
Commander Hugo Chávez, who always carried the
banners of peace, equality and respect for our peoples.
That is the first thing I wish to convey from my heart
on behalf of the people of Venezuela and to recall and
invoke his spirit of tackling imperialism and injustice.

We have had debates for several decades now on the
need to reform the Organization, and various Presidents
that have presided over the Assembly. This morning, I
strongly reminded Presidents Dilma Rousseff, Cristina
Fernández, Evo Morales Ayma and other Presidents
of the Americas of the need to reorient, readjust and
tweak the entire United Nations system. This system
has been in place for 70 years since the end of the so-
called Second World War, which took place in Europe
and other parts of the world between 1939 and 1945.

The United Nations Charter is one of the most
beautiful poems that we could ever read. It has well
and truly become an instrument that has been set
aside, overlooked and consistently flouted in terms of
its fundamental objectives are concerned. The United
Nations is an historic human experiment that has become
a landmark because never before has humankind had
a forum to meet to address issues of peace, affecting
life and death, and to negotiate solutions to conflicts.
After 7,000 years of civilization as we know it — a
review of which reveals a history of empires and the
ongoing battle to distribute the wealth and territory of
the world — only with the establishment of this system
in 1945 did we begin to get a glimpse of future light
at the end of a long tunnel of battles, wars and global
conflicts.

We call for the renewed relevance of the United
Nations, above and beyond any criticism that may be
levelled against it. Given the human importance of
this institution, we insist on the need for an in-depth
transformation, as Commander Hugo Chávez said on
many occasions right here in this Hall. In his famous
statements in defence of the causes of humankind,
he stressed the need for a far-reaching democratic
overhaul of the United Nations system. As President
Jacob Zuma of our sister country South Africa said, we
must democratize and overhaul the Security Council.

The role of the regions today is different from
what it was in 1945. This is another world. The United
Nations was born to deal with post-war reconstruction
and the issues that had given rise to conflicts. The
United Nations has to deal today with a multicentric,
multipolar world of numerous actors, with emerging
countries and regions that have their own thoughts,
aspirations and desire to be respected in this world. The
United Nations has to adapt and submit to the broader
sovereignty of the peoples of this world, who are crying
out for their voices to be heard, heeded and respected.

We have heard speeches today at the start of this
sixty-ninth session. We also believe in strengthening the
role of the Secretary-General. As we have said so many
times we must have a Secretary-General who represents
all of us and who has the political and institutional
clout to find solutions to the world’s conflicts. We must
reconfigure the system and functions of the General
Assembly. We must democratize it and give it a leading
role to ensure that the great debates that take place here
can always successfully address the major issues facing
the world. That is why we believe that we must build a
new United Nations in a bid for a new multipolar world
of peace where there no empire can impose its will on a
unipolar world. This is urgent for the entire world.

Above and beyond what officials of the various
Governments represented in this Hall may believe,
we already have another world where we all wish to
speak, think and decide our own fate and to achieve
peace for our peoples. A new regionalism has come to
the fore. In the late 1940s and the 1950s, we saw the
birth of the European Union as an experiment in the
new regionalism that is admired and emulated by many
throughout the world. In the 1970s and 1980s, we saw
the emergence of the Organization of African Unity, an
extraordinary system to organize the brotherly African
continent to address the issues of development and
life. Our mother Africa was one of the most suffering
regions the world.

Now as we embark on the twenty-first century,
Latin America is taking its place. We have seen new
organizations arise in Latin America. On 14 December,
we will commemorate in Havana, Cuba, a heroic
island and great homeland, the tenth anniversary of
the Bolivarian Alliance for the Americas. We have
assumed an important role in building a new social
and economic order in defence of such major causes
as climate change. In existence for 10 years now, that
youthful organization, partnership or alliance is now
looking forward to the rest of the twenty-first century.

I would also mention Petrocaribe and its
18 brotherly member States. I hope I may be forgiven if
I seem immodest, but PetroCaribe is a model that best
shows how we can have a new world of peace, justice,
solidarity, cooperation and complementarity among

nations. To the powerful of the world, those who wield
all the capital and all the economic power, I say that we
can have another world. We are starting to build it in
the Americas.

Also emerging is the Union of South American
Nations (UNASUR), representing a new southern
regionalism that was founded on 16 April 2007 with the
participation of new leaders in Latin America and our
Commander Hugo Chávez. It is a most interesting and
important bloc that is now starting to forge ties with the
rest of the emerging world.

We recently held a very interesting and important
meeting for the remainder of the decade between the
BRICS countries — Brazil, Russia, India, China and
South Africa, who represent the hope for development
through new mechanisms — and UNASUR in Brasilia,
and we decided to share our experiences. The BRICS
Bank and the Banco del Sur would be a new financial
architecture for the world that must emerge from this
new regionalism. The Community of Latin American
and Caribbean States (CELAC) was established on
3 December 2011 in Caracas, and is already growing
strong. We have held summits in Santiago de Chile and
Havana and will hold another in San José in January.
All of Latin America is coming together optimistically
in this new regionalism.

Based on this experience, we are seeing new
structures arise towards the establishment of a road
map for overhauling the United Nations system. Let
the call for reform of the Organization not fall through
the cracks here in this Hall. We must find the way.
We must try to come up with a common road map for
humankding because we need it if we are to tackle the
major issues before us.

For 22 years, the United Nations has customarily
voted with record insistence for a cause that is not
just a cause of the Americas but one espoused by the
peoples and Governments of this world. I speak of the
rejection of the economic embargo against our brother
Republic of Cuba — an anachronistic vestige of the
Cold War. The President of Estonia spoke earlier about
the anachronisms of the Cold War and the systems of
economic persecution used to impose political regimes
and subjugate peoples. We are here on behalf of the
Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela to confirm our support
for the 50-year struggle of the people and Government
of Cuba against the criminal blockade. I ask President
Obama: When will you seize the opportunity to go
down in history by putting an end once and for all to the
criminal economic and trade embargo and persecution
of our brother country of Cuba?

We also see new causes arise in the current
struggles facing our region. We have taken them on in
unison. I wish here to recognize as a great step forward
the decision taken by the General Assembly two weeks
ago in support of the Argentine Republic and President
Cristina Fernández in her struggle against the financial
plundering of the vulture funds. We want to support her
in every way we can to ensure that the General Assembly,
in accordance with the proposal of the Group of 77
and China and in as timely and efficient a manner as
possible, drafts a high-quality document mandating the
defence of the nations represented by the Organization,
especially the poor countries of the developing world,
against vulture funds that seek to plunder our economies
and impose detrimental economic, institutional and
political systems. We confirm the full solidarity of the
people of Venezuela with the people of Argentina, and
indeed the solidarity of the CELAC countries. Let us
move towards this historic decision. We received 124
votes in favour last week.

As we did at the CELAC summit in Havana,
Venezuela also calls on the United Nations to support as
closely and warmly as it can and enforce the decisions
calling on the United States of America to enforce and
execute a decolonization plan for Puerto Rico. Puerto
Rico was invited to join CELAC because it is Caribbean
and it is ours. We raise our voice to make it heard in this
Hall to call for the release of a man whose name many
here will hear for the first time. President Jacob Zuma
of South Africa spoke of the great Madiba, Nelson
Mandela, who was forgotten for many years, despite
the fact that many now claim him as a representative
of their causes. That is fine. Nelson Mandela represents
the human capacity of resilience and resistance enjoyed
by people as they seek to achieve the objectives of
justice and peace.

That is why I raise the name of a man who almost
35 years ago was imprisoned and has been subjected
to torture — a man with a family, a man from Latin
America and the Caribbean, a man like us. We are
talking about the Puerto Rican Oscar López Rivera, the
longest-held political prisoner who remains in a United
States prison to this day. We demand his immediate
release. His only sin was to fight for independence and
to defend the beautiful flag and star of the dignity of
our sister country of Puerto Rico. These are the causes
of this historic moment.

Venezuela is in the midst of a people’s democratic
revolution that began with an unimpeachable
constitutional event. For the first time in the history
of our country, the Constitution of the Republic was
debated by the people and approved by a referendum
with the participation of the sovereign vote of the
people of Venezuela in 1999. Since then, we have been
developing and carrying out a process of political and
social liberation.

We are trying to overcome poverty. In 2015, we
will have the post-2015 development agenda and the
Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) will be over.
Through great effort, the Bolivarian Venezuela led
by our Commander Hugo Chávez, was fortunately
able achieve practically all the MDGs. We have an
enrolment rate of more than 90 per cent in almost all
schools, and we offer free, quality education from basic
schools through to universities. We have lowered the
unemployment rate from 20 per cent five years ago to
5.5 per cent at the end of last year. We have changed
the curves. We had vulnerable employment to the
tune of 60 per cent; now, 60 per cent of those jobs are
protected by social security, and are remunerated at a
fair, regulated rate.

I could spend hours here talking of the progress we
have made towards the MDGs. We have been able to
salvage our oil wealth. I am sure Members will know
that we have the largest oil reserves on the planet in
the beautiful Orinoco basin, and we have the largest oil
fields there. For the first time in 90 years, we recovered
full control over our own petroleum resources as the
anchor for our economic and social development.
Venezuela has had to suffer ongoing harassment and
persecution at the hands of the imperial forces and the
allies of the United States empire, who have sought
again and again to undermine our democracy. One such
attempt was the attempted coup against Hugo Chávez.
Following his death on 5 March 2013, those forces
resumed their activities to undermine our country. I
thank the Governments of the world for their solidarity
with Venezuela, which has been struggling and
resisting. They could not prevail against Hugo Chávez
and they cannot prevail against us. We are still on the
path towards revolution, democracy, independence and
dignity, with our own voice speaking to the world.

There are major problems that we now have
to address at this point. As members well know,
one such problem — perhaps the greatest threat of
all — is the virus that causes Ebola haemorrhagic fever.
If this world and our United Nations system had been
somewhat more humane, we would have focused on
lending our support to tackling this real threat instead
of sending drones, missiles and bombs to destroy the
people of Gaza or to bomb the people of Iraq and Syria.
The President of Chad announced that his country had
decided to donate $2 million to the Ebola fund. The
Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela is going to be giving
$5 million to the fund to support Africa and the needy
people of the world.

Let us be clear. We should be discussing the
scientific reports here and taking decisions based
on those reports. We should be focused on another
important issue affecting the survival of humankind on
this Earth — climate change. A poem of the indigenous
peoples of the Americas, which was read out yesterday,
says that after they can no longer poison the rivers,
after they have poisoned our lakes, once there is not
even one fish left to eat, then the powerful of the
world will have to eat each other. They want to create
extraneous formulas when all they need to do is to make
an extraordinary effort and recognize climate change
as a climatic emergency. We should not just make
speeches and vague offers; we must restore sanity to
the Organization if we are to strengthen it, and place at
the forefront of our agenda the real common problems
facing us.

Today in the Security Council, they adopted a
series of decisions in a bid to combat terrorism. Let
us be clear: we must combat terrorism. The Bolivarian
Alliance for the Peoples of Our America has been
condemning terrorism for more than a year and a
half. We are deeply pained by the murder of Western
journalists and the dastardly acts of these terrorists, but
a year and a half ago when boys and girls were captured
by these terrorist and other groups in Syria, we were not
that pained at that time. They were beheading women
in mosques. The pain should be the same.

Should our pain be greater depending on the colour
or origin of the skin of a person or the origin of that
person? The loss of human lives should pain us all, and
we therefore condemn the terrorist attack perpetrated
by NATO and its allies to change the regime in Syria.
I am here to say, with force of truth, on behalf of the
Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of Our America
and my Government, that if the Government of Syria
had been overthrown by those imperial attacks, today
in that entire region of Syria, Lebanon, Iraq and Jordan
we would see the power of those terrorists take root.

As painful as it may be, we have to say that President
Bashar Al-Assad and the democratic and constitutional
Government of Syria has always combated terrorism
and has suffered thousands of deaths. We believe that
instead of the continual, demented bombing, must
strike a great alliance of peace against terrorism,
respecting the sovereignty of countries and sovereign
Governments throughout that region. I would ask the
delegation of the United States take note of this message
and convey it to President Obama.

Only an alliance that respects the sovereignty
of those nations, along with the cooperation of
their Governments, peoples and armed forces, will
overthrow the Islamic State and the terrorist forces
advancing like monster against the West. There is no
other way to overthrow them — certainly not with
bombs that kill mostly the innocent. They never kill the
armed forces; they always kill the innocent. After so
much death and bombing of the brotherly Arab people
of Iraq, we have to invite the sovereign Governments
of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Iraq, Syria, Lebanon,
Jordan and Egypt and indeed the entire region to come
up with a comprehensive political, military, cultural
and communication strategy that can be supported by
the Security Council. Anything else is crazy.

Let us consider what happened in Libya, as noted
by the President of Chad. It only fomented hatred and
an anti-Al-Qadhafi front. What is happening in Libya?
It has become a territory for trafficking in arms and
explosives by terrorist groups fighting for scraps of
territory. We have seen the end of the beautiful history
of the people of our brother country of Libya. It is a
crazy race towards more violence and terrorism. A
more dangerous world has emerged from the demented
work of those who lead and make decisions in the
Organization.

We humbly lend our voice and our proposal to the
table, and we do so with genuine love. That is how we
show our solidarity with the people of Palestine. We in
the Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of Our America
will continue to show our solidarity with them.
Venezuela, as Members know, has opened a modest
air-bridge to provide logistical support, food, blankets
and medicines in support of the people of Palestine who
recently suffered a brutal attack. We want peace, total
peace. Our Organization needs to be overhauled so that
everyone can enjoy total peace. It is not through the
threat of the use of force, or the use of force, or internal
competition to overthrow Governments such as the
one that I lead, that we will have stable peace. No, it
is respect for international law that will lead to stable
peace and full security.

Lastly, I wish to thank the General Assembly for
its support. Next year, 2015, Venezuela, with members’
support, will assume leadership of the Non-Aligned
Movement for the next three years. We humbly aspire
to play a genuine role in mobilizing and revitalizing the
entire process of United Nations reform. The process
must include the elaboration of an agenda of world
priorities in which we will all have a voice and a vote,
and no one can impose their will on the others. Next
year, delegations from throughout the world will be
welcome at the historic Summit of the Non-Aligned
Movement in Caracas.


At the outset,
I would like to congratulate my good friend Mr. Sam
Kutesa on his assumption of the presidency of the
General Assembly at its sixty-ninth session. I wish him
every success in fulfilling that highly responsible duty.
We are also grateful to Mr. John Ashe for all his hard
work in presiding over the sixty-eighth session.

Azerbaijan reaffirms its commitment to the
implementation of the global sustainable development
agenda and to reaching an agreement on the post-2015
development agenda. My country’s record in attaining
the Millennium Development Goals is truly unique.
Over the past 10 years, the gross domestic product
of Azerbaijan has increased by 3.4 times. Now the
economy of Azerbaijan accounts for more than 80 per
cent of that of the South Caucasus.

The unrivalled high rate of economic growth has
been achieved thanks to the prudent use of available
resources and the rapid transition to a socially oriented
market economy. The poverty rate was reduced from
49 per cent in 2004 to 5.3 per cent in 2014. Over the
same period, the unemployment rate has decreased
from 10.6 per cent to 5 per cent. The Government
has been implementing large-scale programmes on
improving good governance, strengthening the rule of
law, ensuring respect for human rights and providing
facilitated access to public services. Such programmes
also cover inclusive and equitable education, gender
equality, the empowerment of women, better access to
affordable energy and the protection of the environment.

The rapid development at the national level has
enabled Azerbaijan to embark on a new road of official
development assistance as an emerging donor. Over
the past years, Azerbaijan has continued to respond
to the humanitarian and socioeconomic challenges
faced by developing countries through the Azerbaijan
International Development Agency and other channels.
The commitment to contributing to international
development is widely shared with our people. The
leading non-governmental organization in Azerbaijan,
the Heydar Aliyev Foundation, has implemented
numerous social, humanitarian and development
projects in a number of countries.

Azerbaijan has established itself as a reliable
supplier of energy in the global market. Just recently,
a groundbreaking ceremony to launch the southern gas
corridor was held in Azerbaijan. That $50 billion project,
which envisages the construction of pipeline systems
such as the trans-Anatolian and the trans-Adriatic
pipelines, will enable Europe to obtain gas supplies

from a completely new resource base in Azerbaijan.
The Trans-Eurasian Information Superhighway
project, which was initiated by Azerbaijan, will
provide the countries of the region with information
technology services, thereby facilitating access to the
Internet, telecommunications systems and electronic
information resources for 20 countries throughout the
region. Acknowledging the value of transport as an
important mechanism for sustainable development,
Azerbaijan has successfully launched several regional
infrastructure projects. The Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway
is an important link that connects Europe and Asia.

Against the background of the various threats and
challenges facing the world nowadays, it is critical
to persistently stress the importance of promoting
key values of different cultures, enhancing better
understanding among diverse communities and
encouraging mutual respect. Located between the
two great continents of Asia and Europe, Azerbaijan
is a unique place, where the East and the West meet,
where the world’s main religions peacefully coexist and
where the values and traditions of different cultures
harmoniously complement each other. It is not a
coincidence that in recent years, Azerbaijan has hosted
numerous international events aimed at promoting
the dialogue among civilizations and enhancing
understanding among different religions, faiths and
cultures.

Violence and fragility remain the greatest
obstacles to development. The world community still
faces serious breaches of the fundamental norms and
principles of international law. Peoples throughout
the world continue to suffer from devastating wars,
aggression, military occupation and ethnic cleansing.
For more than 20 years, Armenia has used force
against the territorial integrity and sovereignty of
Azerbaijan. It has occupied approximately 20 per cent
of the territories of Azerbaijan and conducted ethnic
cleansing against almost 1 million Azerbaijanis, as a
result of which no single Azerbaijani is left in Armenia
or in the occupied territories of Azerbaijan. No single
Azerbaijani historical or cultural monument has
escaped destruction in the occupied territories or in
Armenia.

In 1993, the Security Council adopted four
resolutions that reaffirm the sovereignty and territorial
integrity of Azerbaijan and the inadmissibility of the
use of force for the acquisition of territory. Resolutions
822 (1993), 853 (1993), 874 (1993) and 884 (1993)
demand the immediate, complete and unconditional
withdrawal of the Armenian occupying forces from all
occupied territories of Azerbaijan. Furthermore, the
General Assembly, the Non-Aligned Movement, the
Organization of Islamic Cooperation and numerous
other regional organizations adopted various decisions
in support of the sovereignty, political independence
and territorial integrity of Azerbaijan and demanded
the settlement of the conflict on the basis of those
principles.

Unfortunately, Armenia disregards all of those
resolutions and the generally accepted norms and
principles of international law and continues its
military occupation of Azerbaijani lands. Armenia
regularly violates the ceasefire and deliberately
attacks Azerbaijani civilians, which results in the
killing and wounding of inhabitants residing near the
front line. Just recently, several Azerbaijani civilians
who were visiting the tombs of their relatives in the
occupied territories were taken hostage and tortured.
Some of them were even killed by Armenian forces.
It is therefore critical that the international community
play a more proactive role in ending impunity for the
crimes committed against the civilian population of
Azerbaijan. Combating impunity is important in order
to ensure sustainable peace and reconciliation.

Two days ago, the President of Armenia delivered
a statement here during the general debate and tried
to mislead the General Assembly by distorting the
facts and the situation with regard to the peace
process, misinterpreting the norms and principles of
international law and the relevant documents adopted
within that framework (see A/69/PV.6). The President
of Armenia misuses the noble principle of self-
determination to cover up his country’s attempts to
annex territories of the neighbouring State, Azerbaijan,
through the use of force. The situation, which he tries
to present as the self-determination of the Armenians
living in Azerbaijan, has nothing in common with the
principle of self-determination contained in the Charter
of the United Nations and the Helsinki Final Act. In
fact, the principle of self-determination requires the
return of the displaced Azerbaijanis to the Nagorny
Karabakh region, where they will live together with the
Armenian community in peace, dignity and prosperity
within Azerbaijan. We believe in achieving that goal by
political means.

Azerbaijan stands for a negotiated settlement of the
conflict without prejudice to its rights under the Charter

of the United Nations, in particular those set forth in
Article 51. The Government of Armenia must realize
that the military occupation of the territory of another
State does not represent a solution and that its reliance
on the status quo is a grave miscalculation. Azerbaijan
will never allow its territorial integrity, or the rights
and freedoms of its citizens that have been violated as a
result of aggression, to be compromised.

The international community’s unequivocal and
consistent support for the territorial integrity and
sovereignty of Azerbaijan has been a crucial factor.
It makes clear to Armenia that the current status quo,
which was achieved as a result of aggression, will never
be accepted. I would like to thank Member States for
upholding the letter and spirit of the Charter of the
United Nations by supporting the territorial integrity
of Azerbaijan. The international community does not,
and will not, accept attempts to change internationally
recognized borders through the use of force. Nor should
the world accept double standards. To do so would take
us back to the dark chapters of the past century. In
that regard, the time is ripe to bring to justice those
in Armenia who perpetrated acts of aggression against
Azerbaijan and crimes against humanity and to impose
sanctions on them.


Next year we will
celebrate the seventieth anniversary of the United
Nations. As we approach that milestone, it is good
to reflect on the successes of our Organization: the
extensive codification of international law, advances
in combating poverty and disease, and fighting
human rights abuses. We have established monitoring
mechanisms, such as the human rights treaty bodies,
and accountability tools, such as the International
Criminal Court, and agreed on historic policy targets
that have transformed international cooperation, such
as the Millennium Development Goals.

These are not small achievements, but sitting on
our laurels is not an option. The system of rule-bound
relations between nations is under threat, and we must
protect it. Most worrying is the growing disregard for
international law. This erodes the international legal
framework we have developed since the Second World
War. A shocking recent example is the terrorist group
operating in Iraq and Syria, the self-styled Islamic
State in Iraq and the Levant. As human beings, we are
revolted by its brutality and appalled by its mindless
destruction.

The international community cannot accept the
disregard for the fundamental principles of the United
Nations — indeed, of human decency — shown by this
group. Iceland therefore agrees with the lawful actions
taken to end these atrocities by countries of the region
and from other parts of the world. Iceland will contribute
humanitarian aid through the United Nations agencies.
No civilized nation can look the other way when the
barbarism and cruelty are so overwhelming. The United
Nations and international law must be centre stage,
and we underscore the role of the Security Council in
maintaining international peace and security.

The suffering of the Syrian people and the total
disrespect for humanitarian law in that civil war are
equally shocking. Almost 200,000 people have died,
3 million refugees are abroad, and the country is in
ruins. The prolonged foreign occupation of the State
of Palestine is another violation of international law.
Land-grabbing continues unabated. The blockade
of Gaza shows no signs of being lifted. Violations of
human rights continue, including against freedom of
movement, the right to freedom of speech and assembly
and property rights.

This summer, a pointless war between Israel and
Gaza caused an unacceptable loss of life. I condemn
the indiscriminate rocket attacks of Hamas and other
militant organizations in Gaza against civilian targets
in Israel. I also condemn the disproportionate use of
force by the Israel Defense Forces, which resulted in
more than 2,000 deaths in Gaza. Let the loss of life
not have been in vain and let the future of Palestinian
children be a future without foreign occupation. A
two-State solution, with the comprehensive support
of neighbouring countries and robust international
peacekeeping arrangements, should be the objective.
To the Palestinians I say, “Reconcile. Be your own
best friends so you can build a free and sovereign
Palestine ensuring fundamental rights and freedom
for all”. To the Israelis, I say, “The current situation
is unsustainable. Be brave, be wise and give peace a
chance. The occupation of Palestine must end.”

The violation of Ukraine’s territorial integrity
breaches the Charter of the United Nations, international
law and numerous treaties. The illegal annexation of
Crimea threatens security and stability throughout
Europe. The credibility of the Security Council is
seriously undermined when a permanent member
violates the Charter by using force to change borders,
and then can veto the necessary response and actions
by the body empowered to maintain international peace
and security. The Council is also undermined when it
proves incapable of defending civilians who are subject
to foreign occupation or is unable to prevent the use of
chemical weapons.

The United Nations was founded to ensure that
the fate of nations would never again be decided at the
barrel of a gun. Recent events have shown that we must
reaffirm our commitment to the Charter of the United
Nations and other legal instruments to safeguard the
foundations of a just and peaceful world. This holds
particularly true for the Security Council. In its role

of maintaining international peace and security,
its compass should be the Charter of the United
Nations and international law, including international
humanitarian law and human rights law. It should apply
the law equally to all parties. The Council needs to
become more solution-oriented and directly engaged.
Its working methods must improve, especially the
application of the veto. Iceland supports the recent
French- and Mexican-led proposal for framing the veto
in cases of mass atrocities. The Council should also
make use of its referral power as intended by the Rome
Statute.

In a world riven by inequality, poverty and onflict,
it is a challenge to chart a path towards the future we
want. Since the most recent general debate, we have
made real progress in preparing for the decisions to
be taken next year on a new framework for sustainable
development. The year ahead will be a test of our resolve
to deliver. Iceland will participate constructively in the
negotiations for the post-2015 agenda, as well as for a
new regime to address climate change.

Allow me to highlight a few issues that I believe to
be fundamental. With an increasing world population,
measures to ensure food security are more important
than ever. For 3 billion people, seafood provides about
20 per cent of their intake of animal protein. Nine to 12
per cent of the global population depends on the seafood
sector for their livelihood. Yet we have a paradox.
Overfishing remains a widespread problem, but at
the same time fisheries are greatly underperforming.
With improved infrastructure and better management,
the economic benefits from marine fisheries could be
increased by $50 billion per year, or more than half the
value of the global seafood trade.

It is clear that ocean issues are one of the keys
to the post-2015 development agenda. The United
Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea provides
a sound legal basis on which States can harness their
marine resources. Iceland remains firmly loyal to
the Convention, and we build our marine policy on
scientific research where sustainability guides all our
decisions. The Convention on the Law of the Sea has
been instrumental to Iceland’s success, yet what is often
lacking is the capacity of States to implement effective
monitoring and sustainable harvesting. Iceland has
been sharing know-how through the United Nations
University Fisheries Training Programme in Iceland,
where over 1,500 experts have benefited from post-
graduate studies and workshops in the field.

The second key area for ensuring food security is
land. Every decade, 120 million hectares of land — an
area the size of South Africa — are lost to desertification
and drought. Climate change is contributing to an ever-
faster rate of land degradation, which in turn releases
greenhouse gases, creating a vicious circle. Switching
to sustainable land management is therefore not only
crucial to food and water security, but an important
factor in mitigating and adapting to climate change. This
is why Iceland argues strongly for measures to achieve
a land-degradation neutral world. Iceland contributes
actively to these efforts through the Group of Friends
of the Secretary-General in New York and through the
United Nations University Land Restoration Training
Programme in Iceland.

A third key area is to ensure access to affordable,
reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all. No
society can develop without energy, yet today over
1.3 billion people have no access to electricity. As
energy production grows, it is essential to substantially
increase the share of renewable energy in the global
energy supply by 2030. Iceland is contributing to that
effort. We have partnered with a group of countries and
the International Renewable Energy Agency to identify
opportunities and to support mechanisms to scale up
geothermal production. In that connection, we invite
Member States to join the Global Geothermal Alliance.
Iceland has also been working with the World Bank on
projects in the Great African Rift Valley, and we have
run the Geothermal Training Programme of the United
Nations University in Iceland for 35 years.

In Iceland and the other Nordic countries, the
revolution in women’s education and the high level of
female participation in the labour market have been
the basis of our welfare and economic prosperity.
Without the full and equal participation of women in
all spheres of society, including in decision-making, it
will be impossible to make real and lasting progress
in addressing sustainable development challenges.
The stand-alone goal on gender equality and women’s
empowerment agreed in the Open Working Group on
Sustainable Development Goals must be maintained.
But we should not stop there. Gender equality must be
further mainstreamed throughout the new framework.
In that regard, I cannot leave out the centrality of
ensuring sexual and reproductive health and rights.

We must continue to fight for the full
implementation of the commitments we made almost
20 years ago in the Beijing Declaration and Platform for

Action. Iceland is proud to support UN-Women in the
campaign to celebrate Beijing+20. We have partnered
with Suriname to lead a friends’ group of countries
to galvanize support to promote gender equality and
to commemorate the twentieth anniversary of the
Declaration. We call on Member States to join that
effort and take concrete actions on the 12 themes of the
Platform for Action.

For our part, we want to bring men and boys to the
table on gender equality in a positive way. Iceland and
Suriname will convene a “barbershop” conference in
January 2015, where men will discuss gender equality
with other men, with a special focus on addressing
violence against women. That will be a unique
conference, as it will be the first time at the United
Nations that we bring together only male leaders to
discuss gender equality. It will provide an exceptional
contribution to the Beijing+20 conference and the
HeForShe campaigns.

We have been reminded in recent weeks of the
fragility of human beings and the need for us to work
together on the biggest threats to humankind. Let me
express our sympathy for and solidarity with the States
suffering from the Ebola outbreak. The Government of
Iceland will join in the international effort to curb the
outbreak with financial contributions to United Nations
agencies.

Next year, the States Members of the United Nations
will come together to make important decisions on
how to address climate change and pursue sustainable
development. In the North, Arctic biodiversity and
ecosystems are threatened by climate change, and
sustainable harvesting of natural resources is vital. I
pledge Iceland’s commitment to work for bold decisions
on the future of our planet and the increased prosperity
of the world community in the year 2015. May the wise
words of Nelson Mandela come true as we navigate that
path: “It always seems impossible until it’s done.”


“If you seek peace, prepare for war.” Those are the words of Publius Flavius Vegetius Renatus’ fourth- or fifth-century tract De Re Militari, written more than 1,600 years ago. People have quoted that saying numerous times and in many circumstances. If the Assembly believes after all this that I am going to speak about the wars and armed conflicts raging throughout the world, it is mistaken. Instead, I would like to speak to the Assembly about a war and a battle that we seem to be losing. It is a war we are waging against our own natural environment and against our own human nature.
Two days ago here in the General Assembly Hall, many heard the words of Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and President Obama about the dire consequences of climate change (see A/69/PV.6). We heard very detailed statistics illustrating the gravity of the situation and the need for us to pool our efforts. And we have been preparing for that for a long time.
When did we first notice signs of trouble with the environment? Few people may know that the first clear signal came in 1896, when a Swedish scientist wrote that an increase in the atmospheric level of carbon dioxide would lead to a temperature rise; 60 years later, we had precise measurements to substantiate his statement. Another 30 years had to pass before here, in the United Nations, it was understood that some type of treaty or agreement would be necessary in the future to deal with the issue. Another 10 years had to pass before the Kyoto Protocol was signed. Between the first realization and the Kyoto agreement a century had passed.
After Kyoto, a number of conferences, scientific meetings and political gatherings were held. In recent decades, many people have spoken on many occasions about the consequences of climate change and the need to do something. Still the situation has continued to deteriorate. Let me cite one statistic. Since 1990 — that is, during the past 25 years — despite all the resolve, the Kyoto agreement and all the promises, we have seen a 30 per cent increase in atmospheric carbon dioxide.
Despite the fact that Mother Nature has warned us again and again, adverse climate events continue to occur one after the other. Allow me to mention a few examples from the past year. In 2013 in the state of Uttar Pradesh in India, there were freezing temperatures in January, which was unprecedented. At the same time, in Lapland in Finland — not exactly the Mediterranean region — in May the temperature had reached 31°C, while Bethlehem experienced a white Christmas that no one remembered having seen before. In Australia, over the course of 90 days last summer, 123 temperature records were set.
The Danube is the largest river in Europe and it has warned us again and again. Allow me to report a Hungarian example. Since before the Second World War, the Danube River has flooded many times, but until recently it had never risen to the level of 8 metres, even at the flood’s highest point. In the past four years, the Danube has risen above 8 metres on four separate occasions. In fact last year, it rose close to 9 metres.
Floods, typhoons and other adverse meteorological events are taking place in regions where they have never occurred before and at unprecedented times of the year. We are meeting here in New York. Two years ago here in New York, Hurricane Sandy caused damage valued at $20 billion, and more than 40 people died. This all took place despite the fact that for years on end the New York City leadership had been cautioned by scientists that trouble would occur and that protection for embankments, among others, must be strengthened. A few hundred million dollars would have been spent to that end; instead, the damage caused by Sandy cost far more. That is why, two days ago, the Assembly heard the Mayor of New York speak of the next 35 years and the desire to reduce New York’s emissions by 80 per cent.
In recent days, we have spoken on many occasions about our preparations for the 2015 Paris conference and the desire to reach an agreement there. I believe that Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon needs to be recognized in that regard. He has truly done his utmost to ensure that we can reach a common conclusion in Paris in 2015. The question is, are we Member States doing all we can? Will we do all that we can to ensure success in Paris?
The speeches I have heard over the past few days have not made me optimistic. The speeches I have heard deflected responsibility and reflected a type of political narrow-mindedness that is not terribly promising. Why can we not listen to the wisdom and advice of our scientists? Why can we not accept scientific results that today appear evident? Why can we not accept the signals being dispatched by our planet? Why can we not learn from all of the lessons provided by Mother Nature? Why are we not learning from our own example?
There is one good example that we could learn from. It involves chlorofluorocarbon gases and the damage they cause to the ozone layer. Basically, those gases were first used in the 1950s. It took only 30 years for the ozone layer to be reduced by 40 per cent in the area above Antarctica. That was also enough time for people in every country to understand the medical consequences. I note, among others, the high incidence of dermatological cancers. It was basically only at the very last moment in Montreal that an agreement was struck, as a result of which we banned those gases. After 35 years, last week we saw the first report discussing a regeneration of the ozone layer.
Regarding political narrow-mindedness, we saw examples of that in the past. I will cite one. United States President Reagan’s Secretary of the Interior, Donald Hodel, said that one way to protect against the thinning ozone layer was to purchase wide-brim hats and wear dark sunglasses. Why must we wait for the concentration of atmospheric carbon dioxide to result in a situation as serious as that involving the ozone layer? Why can we not, late next year, make Paris as successful as Montreal?
I believe that the problem is larger than we imagine. Scientists already agree that the desired and often articulated objective of limiting the temperature increase to 2°C has become increasingly elusive. Only a few days ago, we read that the carbon dioxide concentration has never been higher than it was last year. We may well have reached the point at which, whether or not we come to an agreement today or tomorrow, scientists will tell us that all the consequences of irresponsible decisions past and present would still be felt in the future in the form of floods, typhoons and other adverse climate events.
We have to come to terms with the idea — and I would say that it will be very difficult — that the coming generation, our children’s generation, will￼unfortunately have to live with that situation. We will have to pay a dear price for our irresponsible environmental policies.
Today it is no longer enough to reduce emissions. It is no longer enough to agree to reduce emissions. We have to prepare for more and more serious natural events and disasters. We have to heed the advice of Nicholas Stern, who said eight years ago that if we did not spend 1 per cent of our gross domestic product (GDP) on prevention, then the environmental damage we would suffer could amount to as much as 20 per cent of GDP.
I have just cited the example of New York City. A few hundred million dollars would have been enough to
mitigate damages totaling several billion. The New York example tells us that we are not in the twenty-fourth hour, but in the twenty-fifth. The tragedy endured by this metropolis, the host of our meeting, again justifies the words of Vegetius, somewhat amended to the situation — if you seek calm, prepare for disaster.