Over 60 years have passed
since the General Assembly voted on the historic
resolution that would have put an end to the Arab-
Israeli conflict. Resolution 181 (II) called for the
establishment of a Jewish State and an Arab State. Its
title was: “Plan of Partition with Economic Union”. It
envisioned two States for two peoples, fulfilling a
distinct national aspiration. The Jewish people adopted
the resolution and established the State of Israel. The
Arabs rejected it, and this led to war.
 What happened in the ensuing years is much
different from the resolution’s original intent. While
much has changed since then, the ironies of history
summon similar circumstances today. Today, again, we
are in the middle of the lake. There is no sense going
back. Continuing forward will show how near we are
to achieving the initial goal.
 A year prior to Israel’s declaration of statehood,
its first Prime Minister, David Ben-Gurion, called me,
a young man from a kibbutz, to serve in our national
defence. Since then, I have participated in Israel’s
dynamic realities: the building of security; the striving
for peace. So, I need no books to learn the history,
since I witnessed its miraculous unfolding. We went
through seven wars. All have paid heavily. Tears still
flow down the faces of bereaved mothers.
Remembrance days fill the air with silent prayers of
widowed families who lost young boys and girls in
battle. They are, today, the same age, but lifeless.
 Israel turned military victories into peace
processes, knowing that the cost of life renders
imperfect peace superior to perfect victories.
 We have also achieved two peace agreements: the
first, with the largest Arab country, Egypt; the second,
with the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan. All the land,
all the water, all the natural resources that fell into our
hands through war were completely repatriated after
peace was signed.
 But for peace, the call in our region is to repair
the damaged environment and the wounded land which
leads to poverty. If we do not overcome the desert, the
thirst, the pollution, they will overcome us. Joint

33 08-51749

ventures can meet this call. Nature does not carry a
national passport.
 With the Palestinians, we negotiate full peace.
Both parties agreed to building a Palestinian State side
by side with Israel, living in peace, security and
respect. We tried to conclude those negotiations this
year. Apparently, this will take a longer time. I believe
it can be accomplished, in spite of this, within the next
year.
 I know that our Prime Minister is more than
ready to conclude an agreement. And knowing
President Abbas as well, I am sure he will not miss this
opportunity. We agreed to progress in spite of possible
changes that may take place in the leadership. Gaps
have been narrowed through negotiations, particularly,
and hopefully, the territorial ones.
 But peace is not just a matter of territorial
compromise. Rogue politics rejects peace even when
and where territorial disputes have been resolved. In
Lebanon, we implemented the resolutions of the United
Nations, but Hizbullah paralysed the country and cut
the road to peace.
 From Gaza, we withdrew completely and
dismantled all of our settlements. I know there are a
great many complaints about the settlements: in Gaza,
we dismantled 30 settlements by order of the
Government; Hamas responded with a bloody takeover
and turned the Strip into a base for rocket fire.
 These militants offer no positive alternative but
the agonies of Job. They added kidnapping to
bombings, bringing strife to innocent families. From
this rostrum, I call for the immediate release of Gilad
Shalit, the son of Aviva and Noam, a most peace-loving
family. This Assembly should place the release of that
person at the top of its priorities. Holding a hostage in
Gaza, causes Gaza’s isolation and could cause further
deterioration.
 At the centre of this violence and fanaticism
stands Iran. It presents a danger to the entire world. Its
quest for religious hegemony and regional dominance
divides the Middle East and holds back chances for
peace, including among Arabs, while undermining
human rights.
 Iranian support for Hizbullah divides Lebanon.
Its support for Hamas splits the Palestinians; it
postpones the establishment of the Palestinian State.
Yesterday, from this very rostrum, the Iranian leader
renewed the darkest anti-Semitic libel — the
“Protocols of the Elders of Zion” — bringing to life
one of the ugliest plots against the Jewish people. Their
despicable denial of the Holocaust is a mockery of
indisputable evidence and a cynical offence against the
survivors of the Holocaust, contrary to the resolutions
adopted by this very Assembly.
 Iran continues to develop enriched uranium and
long-range missiles. It has introduced a religion of fear,
opposing the call of the Lord to respect human life: all
humans; all life. The Iranian people are not our
enemies. Their fanatical leadership is their problem
and the world’s woe. Their leader is a danger to his
own people, to the region and to the world. He is a
disgrace to the ancient Iranian people and tradition. He
is a disgrace to the values of Islam and all religions. He
is a disgrace to this House, the United Nations, and its
basic principles and values. His appearance here is a
shame.
 The Jewish people have known throughout
history that they must stand firm and face evil.
Enlightened humanity should make it possible for
freedom and respect to prevail for all of us.
 Tehran combines long-range missiles with short-
range minds. It is pregnant with tragedies. The General
Assembly and the Security Council bear the
responsibility to prevent agonies before they take
place.
 Israel has shown that democracies can defend
themselves. We are able to defend ourselves. We do not
intend to change that capacity to defend ourselves.
 Terrorism has not solved a single problem. It
never has; it never will. It will make the world
ungovernable. If groups of killers are allowed to
threaten innocent masses, the world — if it continues
to survive — will be without order and security, a
hopeless battleground. The free world must unite to
stop this, to combat it.
 Israel, for its part, shall continue to seek peace
sincerely and fully. We suggest immediate peace with
Lebanon. Israeli Prime Ministers have indicated to
Syria that, for peace, we are ready to explore a
comprehensive compromise. To gain trust and save
time, we have suggested a face-to-face meeting with
President Assad. I say to the President: “Follow the
successful example set by President Sadat and King
Hussein”. We await an answer.

08-51749 34

 I know there is a growing concern that peace is
far away. My lifelong experience provides me with a
different judgement. True, I have seen stagnation,
regression and failure in our journey, but today I can
identify a road leading in the right direction. In
addition to the peace agreements, a series of summits
have taken place: Madrid, Oslo, Wye, Camp David,
Sharm el-Sheik, Annapolis. In fact, Israelis and Arabs
are marching towards peace. After a long internal
debate, Israel has chosen to support the two-State
solution.
 Furthermore, I must say that in Beirut, the Arab
League replaced the three “nays” of Khartoum —
which were no peace, no negotiation, no recognition —
with an initiative inaugurated by King Abdullah Bin
Abdulaziz Al Saud. I call upon the King to further his
initiative. It may become an invitation for
comprehensive peace — one to transform a
battleground into a common ground.
 I respectfully invite all leaders to come to discuss
peace in Jerusalem — which is holy to all of us —
where all of us are praying to the same Lord as
offspring of the same Father. Israel shall gladly accept
an Arab invitation to designate a venue where a
meaningful dialogue may take place at their choice.
 We are facing a serious economic crisis in the
world. Perhaps it has happened because we are rich and
light with funds and poor and heavy with ideas, while
we live in an era in which science, not land, is the basis
for a successful economy. Science does not stop at
borders; it is not disturbed by distances. Wisdom
cannot be conquered by armies. Knowledge diminishes
discrimination because it operates through goodwill
and transcends race, nationality, colour and gender.
 The global dangers unite and divide us at the
same time. The dangers are clear: degradation of the
environment, shortage of water, lack of renewable
energy, the spread of terrorism and, alas, increased
poverty among millions and millions of people. The
divisions of the free world may increase them. Unity
may offer alternatives. It would direct global
investments to new areas and to demanding challenges
such as health, security, education and the
environment.
 The future is not in the hands of oil or gold.
Intellectual assets, new inventions and superior
education hold the key to the future of each of us. In
our region, border areas could become open economic
zones, permitting the free movement of people,
commodities and ideas. They could encourage tourism
and build high-tech incubators. They could cultivate
and advance modern agriculture. Economic zones
would provide a million jobs and produce billions of
cubic metres of desalinated water for the Arabs, for the
Palestinians, for the Jordanians, for Israel — for all of
us. We have already started to do this; the initial steps
are promising.
 The Jewish people are celebrating a New Year. I
would like to end with a quote by Rabbi Nachman of
Breslav:
 “May it be thy will to remove war and bloodshed
from the world and perpetuate the wonders and
greatness of peace. All the inhabitants of the
world shall recognize and know the truth: that we
have not been placed on this earth to wage war
and not for hatred or bloodshed.”
I will repeat it in Hebrew.
 (The speaker repeated the quote in Hebrew)


I wish to
begin by thanking His Excellency Srgjan Kerim for his
leadership over the past year as President of this august
and venerable body at its sixty-second session. I also
wish to congratulate and extend best wishes to His
Excellency Mr. Miguel d’Escoto Brockmann of
Nicaragua on his assumption of the presidency of the
General Assembly at its sixty-third session.
 Twenty-five years ago almost to the day, two
Caribbean peoples who had always been separated by
water but had long been united by history, culture and
circumstance joined forces to embark upon a bold
experiment. Having between them a land mass of just
over 100 square miles and a population of
approximately 50,000, the people of Saint Kitts and the
people of Nevis decided to step forward as one nation
to join the world community of sovereign States.
 It is an honour and a pleasure for me to be here to
represent that nation at the United Nations, a potent
symbol of freedom and sovereignty. That symbolism
means all the more to my people at this particular time,
as this sixty-third session of the General Assembly
coincides with the celebration of my nation’s twenty-
fifth anniversary of political independence.
 Building and reinforcing the pillars of nationhood
has not been easy, but we have always considered it an
essential task and a challenge worth facing. Therefore,
as chief servant of my people and my cherished land, I
stand before the Assembly today, emboldened by the
pride of a nation that has taken its full and rightful
place among the community of independent nations, a
vibrant democracy with a thriving economy, a deep
commitment to justice and human rights, and an
abiding faith in social equity.
 Mine is a pride that comes not only from
realizing the benefits of the practical policies and
programmes created over the years to improve the
standard of living and uplift our people, but also from
the sense of community, partnership and civic and
personal responsibility that have shaped the destiny of
my proud nation.
 It is also the pride that comes from witnessing
first-hand the true value of freedom — a freedom that
has enabled us to share in the triumphs of democracy
and to mould the creative genius and the industrious,
enterprising spirit of our people into a single
community of goodwill and commitment that moves
our people and great country forward.
 It is a pride borne of weathering storms of
external economic shocks, including fluctuating
commodity prices and the withdrawal of preferential
market access, while being able to successfully

47 08-51851

transform three centuries of a monocultural, sugar-
based economy into a vibrant and competitive services-
driven economy. Many other small States have not
been as fortunate, however.
 That is evident in our sister Caribbean nation of
Haiti, where the devastating effects of four consecutive
hurricanes in the space of one month continue to
undermine the Government’s effort to build strong
institutions and to invest in the productive enterprises
and infrastructure that generate employment and
improved living conditions.
 The progress witnessed in Saint Kitts and Nevis
was not achieved by chance. Since the birth of our
nation 25 years ago, we have faced a multitude of
problems, some of which are fortunately behind us, but
several others of which have emerged and grown in
intensity and scope.
 However, our experience in Saint Kitts and Nevis
demonstrates that good governance and prudent
management of one’s resources; appropriate investment
in people and systems; the protection people’s freedom
of association, religion and speech; the support and
facilitation of a free and vibrant press; success at
advancing the socio-economic well-being of one’s
people; and the upholding of democratic ideals are
determined not by land mass, but by national character
and political commitment. They are the result not of
demographics or geographic size, but of long-standing
sociocultural traditions. They are a function not of
gross domestic product, but of an entrenched ethos of
striving and determination. Our faith has steadied our
resolve and belief in ourselves and our future. Of
course, along the way, we have relied, understandably
on such institutions as our beloved United Nations.
 Through membership, Saint Kitts and Nevis has
built important and strategic partnerships, stood
shoulder to shoulder with other Member States to
protect our individual rights and collective freedoms,
and have fought battles far bigger than would be
expected for a country of its size. We have also been
witnesses to the positives and negatives, the strengths
and failings of our world, but have soldiered on
together in common cause.
 That is why, 25 years later, I remain optimistic
about the progress of the United Nations and its ability
to defend the poor and needy despite the pull of
competing powerful national agendas that have
occasionally threatened to undermine the ethos of the
institution and, indeed, the common good. From where
I stand today, I have come to appreciate those
achievements and to appreciate that, even at this
juncture, providence affords us still new opportunities
to renew our cherished institution.
 It is very easy to side with the cynics when the
Security Council becomes frozen in stalemate or when
the need for action falls victim to political posturing.
But history, particularly that of the past two decades,
instructs me that the United Nations is far more than
the sum of its weaknesses, because for millions of
people around the world this Organization is their only
hope, a bridge between life and death, a bastion of
freedom and a beacon of hope.
 It is my hope, therefore, that in this “Assembly of
frankness” there will be a sober and unrelenting
analysis of the human consequences of sweeping and
globally enforced trade and economic regimes on small
States all around the globe. And it is also my hope that
the economic uncertainties now being experienced in
some of the world’s larger economies will sensitize us
all to the breadth of the uncertainty, the depth of the
anxiety and the real psychological trauma that often
grip small States when policies that are formulated far
beyond their shores and are utterly unresponsive to
their entreaties are nonetheless thrust unflinchingly
upon them.
 Recent events have brought into focus the issue
of the stability of the world’s financial systems and
financial institutions. The circumstances that have led
to collapsing financial institutions and rising prices for
food and energy were not created by small States such
as Saint Kitts and Nevis. But yet again, as in the case
of climate change, we are victims of the act of others,
but with no resources whatsoever to combat the
consequences.
 Earlier this year, I participated in the High-level
Conference on World Food Security, held in June in
Rome. The upbeat response from several heads of State
or Government and from the numerous ministers of
agriculture, forestry, fisheries, water, energy and
environment who participated in that meeting was, for
me, a strong indication of the relevance and timeliness
of the Conference for nations seeking to take positive
action on the issue of food security.
 The current trend continues to have a lopsided
impact on the poor and on the increasing numbers of
extremely poor and vulnerable people, who are those

08-51851 48

least able to counter the impact of economic
dislocations facing our countries. Mindful of our
personal responsibility as leaders and of the heightened
expectations of our citizens, the Government of Saint
Kitts and Nevis has been taking practical measures to
alleviate the suffering of our resilient people. We have
addressed the important dimensions of availability and
access to certain food staples such as rice, flour and
sugar. We have looked at how best to stabilize prices to
inject predictability into the system without prejudice
to free market economics. We have also begun to
rationalize and promote proper utilization of
agricultural lands through land use diversion and
diversification, providing financial and seedling
support to farmers and recommending water
rationalization and enhanced irrigation techniques.
 The problems to which I have alluded are not
unique to Saint Kitts and Nevis. Members will recall
popular riots in some countries, including in Haiti,
where they led to the resignation of that country’s
Government. That is evidence of just how the impact
of the rising cost of food and the despair visited upon
whole communities could easily undermine peoples’
faith in their Governments to deliver on the promises
of democracy, free market economics and
globalization.
 It was in January 2008 that the food price index
established by the Food and Agriculture Organization
of the United Nations (FAO) jumped by 47 per cent
over the previous year. This included increases for cereals
by some 62 per cent, dairy products by 69 per cent and
vegetable oils by 85 per cent. In some instances, prices of
staple foods such as maize, wheat, rice and beans have
risen by more than 100 per cent. This global economic
downturn, coupled with the dramatic upsurge in
commodity prices, has created the worst food crisis in
recent years.
 This new phenomenon will make it much more
difficult for us to address the growing incidence of
poverty in and among our nations and our ability to
achieve the Millennium Development Goal of halving
extreme poverty and hunger throughout the world by
2015.
 Against this backdrop, and given the need for
urgent action, we also urge that the issue of reform, a
recurrent United Nations theme for some 15 years, be
revisited with renewed vigour and commitment. Far
too much time has passed. Far too little has been done.
And far too much now hangs in the balance. Let us
equip the United Nations with the tools necessary to
fulfil its mandates, especially in the areas of protecting
individual freedoms and human rights and of
promoting economic development as an integral
element of human security around the world. For as
Clarence Darrow said, “You can only protect your
liberties in the world by protecting the other man’s
freedom. You can only be free if I am free”.
 The continuous suppression of freedom — overt
or disguised — under the cloak of civil order or
territorial integrity, must be tackled openly. Freedom
and personal responsibility go hand in hand. How can
we encourage people to take personal responsibility but
deprive them of their personal freedom? That is the
fundamental question.
 Our presence here today is both a demonstration
and an acknowledgement of the increasingly
interconnected nature of our world. I wish to say that
much of what Saint Kitts and Nevis has achieved over
the past 25 years has been the result of our people’s
hard work and discipline, combined with the benefits
that have accrued from both our multilateral and our
bilateral relations. In that regard, the United Nations
Development Programme has been a vibrant partner in
advancing the programmatic goals of our twin-island
federation, as have UNESCO and other United Nations
agencies. Our relationship with this Organization is
one that we cherish dearly.
 We have worked with and through subregional
entities such as the Organization of Eastern Caribbean
States, regional mechanisms such as the Caribbean
Community and hemispheric institutions such as the
Organization of American States. Through regional
mechanisms we have been able to map a course for
functional cooperation on issues such as trade, security
and health. Within the Pan-Caribbean Partnership
against HIV/AIDS, we have developed a regional
response to tackle the epidemic of HIV/AIDS. In the
area of environmental protection, we continue to
collaborate on and to work towards disaster reduction
and mitigation. And we are assiduously exploring
renewable energy sources, including geothermal
energy, on which we have made encouraging progress.
 On the issue of bilateral relations, I am pleased to
say that we have built many deeply valued
relationships over the years, and we continue to further
strengthen those relations. In the light of that, we urge

49 08-51851

that a way be found to facilitate the participation of the
Republic of China on Taiwan in the specialized
agencies of the United Nations. As world challenges
have expanded, the Republic of China on Taiwan has
stepped forward to provide technical assistance in the
areas of social and agricultural development, as well as
disaster relief in many countries, thus bringing
enormous benefits to both public and private sectors.
 Whatever the tone and tenor of the ongoing
debate, climate change is an aspect of our modern
experience. Because of our activities and our assault on
Earth’s atmosphere, many processes have negatively
impacted rivers, lakes and oceans, resulting in fast-
melting polar ice caps and rising sea levels and
exposing us to greater risks of harmful solar radiation
and greenhouse gas emissions. Wherever culpability
may reside, those processes all have serious
implications and consequences for small island States.
In varying degrees and at various levels, those changes
impact hundreds of thousands of small-scale farmers,
fishermen and other people who depend heavily on the
natural environment for their livelihood but are already
witnessing lower crop yields and smaller catches.
 It is no longer sufficient simply to lay blame at
the feet of countries, businesses and people who
pollute. We need effective strategies based on scientific
consensus and, of course, solution-focused approaches
that address such issues as the suitability of land for
various types of crops, dedicated areas for livestock,
pasture development, the marine environment, impact
on health and health care, the productivity of forests
and the increased incidence of pests and diseases, as
well as implications for biodiversity and ecosystems.
We must collaborate in addressing those effects, and
we must take necessary corrective action in order to
build a safer environment for ourselves and our future
generations.
 Our destinies and our freedoms are all
interwoven. It was Franklin D. Roosevelt who said that
“true individual freedom cannot exist without
economic security and independence”. As Saint Kitts
and Nevis commemorates its silver-jubilee year of
independence, we therefore feel compelled to call on
the United Nations and the members of the Security
Council to work together to put an end to the genocide
in parts of Africa. I also call on the United Nations to
take firm action in the lead-up to the Follow-up
International Conference on Financing for
Development so that that event will bring real relief
and development, even to the far corners of Africa.
 For much too long we have, perhaps unwittingly,
separated human security from representative
democracy and economic development from human
rights. Those are inextricably linked. When we fight
for the freedom of our brothers to vote but ignore their
inalienable right to food security, that is a skewed
principle; it is a half-measure based on a selective
morality in which our fight will always be only
partially won.
 We cannot simply tell our citizens that they are
free to vote, while failing to help them transform
freedoms into practical systems that support and
advance personal dreams. Democracy, I emphasize, is
the best vehicle through which humankind can realize
its dreams and aspirations. I firmly believe that true
independence, like freedom, can come only from doing
what is right.
 And so I continue to believe in the United
Nations, but beyond that, I have faith — an abiding
faith — in the people of Saint Kitts and Nevis, whose
confidence in themselves as a nation and whose
commitment to the future have made possible the
successes, positive growth and development that they
have achieved, as well as the international partnerships
that they have established, over the past 25 years.
 Therefore, I say to the States Members of the
United Nations: Let us commit to doing the right
things. Let us continue the important work to reform
and revitalize the United Nations. Let us tackle food
security by recognizing that globalization was meant to
improve our lives, not to worsen them. Globalization
was meant to facilitate the free movement of goods and
services, not to provide an opportunity for erecting
artificial and unilateral barriers that punish poor and
less competitive countries. Let us do the right thing
about climate change. And together, one step at a time,
let us do the right thing by using the Follow-up
International Conference on Financing for
Development to address the fundamental development
challenges facing developing countries in Africa and
throughout the world. All that and far more is within
the power and the capacity of a reordered United
Nations and of Member States that are willing to take
personal responsibility in that regard.


It gives me extreme pleasure
to extend my congratulations to Mr. Miguel d’Escoto
Brockmann on his election. I read with keen interest
the United Nations news report of His Excellency’s
election as President of the General Assembly at its
sixty-third session. I note well what he said on 4 June
this year, following his election (see A/62/PV.99): for

08-52272 6

the United Nations to be more effective, it must be
what its name implies — an organization of nations
united, not nations dispersed or, even worse,
subjugated. Our nations must be united in the struggle
to democratize the United Nations, united in their
determination to preserve the world for the sake of
present and future generations from the scourge of war
among Member States, and from acts of aggression.
 I congratulate him and the Vice-Presidents on
their election to lead the General Assembly. I believe
that Mr. d’Escoto Brockmann’s election, as a leader in
his own right, as a Christian priest and as a God-
fearing servant of the Republic of Nicaragua, to the
presidency of the Assembly is timely in these
challenging days.
 May I also extend my appreciation to His
Excellency Mr. Srgjan Kerim for his successful leadership
of the General Assembly at its sixty-second session.
 I am deeply honoured to be the first President of
the Republic of Vanuatu to address this Assembly,
since it is the first time that a Head of State of Vanuatu
has attended the United Nations since our admission to
the Organization in 1981. In this respect, please allow
me also to extend my congratulations to the Secretary-
General on his appointment and on his keen
commitment to revitalizing the United Nations.
 I am humbled and privileged to stand before the
sixty-third General Assembly to share some words and
thoughts on behalf of the people of Vanuatu. Twenty-
seven years ago, on 15 September 1981, Vanuatu
became the 155th Member of the United Nations
family. On that same day, our first and longest-serving
Prime Minister and the founding father of our nation —
the late doctor, chief and priest, Father Walter Hadye
Lini — spoke to the Assembly in the name of the
people of Vanuatu, with pride, humility and gratitude.
He acknowledged the support of the United Nations
through the active concern and assistance of the
Special Committee of 24 on Decolonization.
 Father Lini said that, because of that, the United
Nations has a very special place in the affections and
esteem of the people of Vanuatu. He also expressed our
nation’s debt of gratitude to a great number of the
countries represented in the Assembly, which assisted
our nation’s difficult progress towards independence.
 In the same spirit I call on the United Nations to
continue to pursue the interests of those countries and
peoples that continue their struggle for freedom and to
win a permanent place among us. The United Nations
is the Organization of the family of independent
sovereign nations and peoples of the world. It must
stand firm to promote peace, security and equality
throughout the world.
 The world’s majority has accepted the
phenomenon of climate change as a reality and no
longer an academic theory. From Kyoto to Bali, that
observation has been consistently repeated.
 The increase in the occurrence of natural
calamities and their destructive powers are a stark
reminder of the increasing vulnerability of today’s
global environment, where nature respects no
boundaries. The severe impact of natural disasters will
constantly remind us of the harsh experiences and
critical development challenges confronting many of
the island countries.
 I join my colleagues from the Pacific region in
our call to the international community for more
concerted action in addressing climate change as a
security issue. Unless the present trend of global
warming is reversed through sincere and concerted
international action through the United Nations
framework, some of our Pacific colleague nations will
be submerged. If such a tragedy should happen, then
the United Nations and its members will have failed in
their first and most basic duty to a Member and its
innocent people, as stated in Article 1 of the Charter of
the United Nations.
 In 2003, Vanuatu’s economic growth rebounded
to 3.2 per cent from -2.6 per cent and -7.4 per cent in
2001 and 2002 respectively. Continued growth was
recorded in 2004 and 2005, with a published growth
rate of 5.5 per cent and 6.8 per cent respectively,
driven mainly by growth in the service sector and, in
particular, tourism.
 As members know, a dimension of the least
developed country (LDC) status is the tri-annual
review by the Economic and Social Council of the list
of least developed countries with the view to
recommending countries for graduation out of or
inclusion in the group of least developed countries. It
is in that regard that I wish to bring to the attention of
our Assembly to an area of serious concern to the
Governments of Vanuatu and of several other small
island developing States of the Pacific.

7 08-52272

 It is our view that the current graduation rule
poses a systemic issue that could easily be resolved if
Member States were willing to recognize its
importance to countries such as Vanuatu and other
Pacific nations. The decision to graduate a country
from LDC status, in our view, must imply the
recognition of undisputed sustainable socio-economic
progress in the country. The criteria the United Nations
relies on to arrive at a decision are by and large sound
and fair, and I will briefly recall them: first, one
expects the country to enjoy a higher income per
capita; secondly, the country’s human assets or human
capital is expected to have made significant progress;
and thirdly, the country ought to have achieved greater
resilience to external shocks — in other words, to have
become less vulnerable economically.
 A country is recommended for graduation if it
meets any two of those three criteria. In other words,
the graduation rule implicitly postulates that all three
criteria are equally important. If a country, no matter
how vulnerable, has risen to a level of per capita
income above $900, which is not difficult in a small
State, and enjoys improved human capital, it is
assumed that that country has become structurally
stronger and is now ready to pursue its development
efforts without LDC treatment.
 Vanuatu and other Pacific countries believe it is
critical to recognize the vulnerability criterion as the
paramount criterion and accordingly give it
prominence. It is indeed the only criterion that
ultimately matters to small and vulnerable States such
as ours.
 Vanuatu and other Pacific countries are deemed
eligible for graduation on the basis of their improved
per capita income and improved human assets. They
remain among the most vulnerable countries in the
world, both economically and environmentally, and
that must be recognized by the United Nations. Our
countries may graduate from LDC status because they
have achieved a higher per capita income performance,
even though the sustainability of that income is
constantly challenged by the high vulnerability of
island economies to shocks such as frequent cyclones,
earthquakes, volcanic eruptions and sea-level rise.
 The recent hurricanes in this part of the world
remind us of the destructive impact that such natural
phenomena have on the development process of island
countries and LDCs. Members may be aware that the
“island paradox” — when relative prosperity
overshadows high vulnerability — continues to be
disregarded, despite the repeated call for a reform of
the graduation rule that would make low vulnerability
a sine qua non or compulsory criterion.
 This is not the first time that Vanuatu, in
addressing the Assembly, has called on the United
Nations to reform the way least developed countries
are identified. Some 11 years ago, in 1997, a former
Prime Minister called for an urgent review of the LDC
graduation criteria, which brought the United Nations
to introduce a vulnerability criterion, a fair and sound
move on the part of the Organization.
 I reiterate Vanuatu’s plea for a reform of the
graduation rule and wish to point out that the reform
we are calling for is a mild and reasonable one, one
that could easily be adopted by the Economic and
Social Council and the General Assembly without
altering the main components of the established
methodology. We believe the time has come for the
United Nations to come full circle by making the same
criterion a superior one, so that no highly vulnerable
country is forcibly reclassified and bound to lose the
level of concessionary support of which it remains in
need. Such a reform would do justice to countries that
have not achieved the implied structural progress.
 We are also urging experts from the Committee
for Development Policy to seriously consider the merit
of undertaking in-country visits to assess first-hand the
development experiences of affected countries rather
than making conclusions on statistical indicators that
are anomalous and theoretical.
 In 2004, the Government of Vanuatu established
its Millennium Development Goals (MDG) National
Committee, which adopted a plan of action to
implement the MDGs. In its first report, in 2005, the
MDG National Committee concluded that Vanuatu’s
outlook for the achievement of the MDGs or their
respective targets was poor to fair. That can be
attributed to poor linkages to Government priorities
and inadequate allocation of resources to implement
the plan of action.
 Nevertheless, we are pleased to report that in
collaboration with the United Nations Development
Programme, Vanuatu is endeavouring to put in place
mechanisms to operationalize its sector strategies by
identifying key issues and the  required interventions to
address them, and defining the coverage of

08-52272 8

interventions and their costing. We believe that, if we
succeed in doing that, we will be able to accelerate
progress on the MDGs and that, come 2015, Vanuatu
will be able to provide a more positive report to the
Assembly.
 At the Millennium Summit, the then Prime
Minister of Vanuatu, The Honourable Barak Sope
Maautamate, called on the United Nations to review
the legality of the United Nations action in 1962 to
endorse the New York Agreement to administer the
so-called Act of Free Choice over West Papua.
 The Charter of the United Nations espouses the
principles that continue to guide the Organization’s
efforts in the process of self-determination. That
manifestation calls for recognition and respect for the
fundamental and inalienable rights of peoples and
territories still under colonial rule to determine their
future. We cannot champion democracy if the United
Nations continues to hang this blanket of silence over
the case of West Papua, in which the United Nations
itself takes part.
 An issue of extreme national importance is the
question of submissions to the United Nations on the
extension of continental shelves. As with some other
smaller nations, technical capacity constraints and
financial resources have inhibited our progress on
submissions, and therefore we are requesting that the
United Nations consider extending the deadline for
submissions to enable countries like Vanuatu to
participate fully in the process. We call for the
understanding of our development partners and urge
them to consider providing funding for that important
exercise.
 A side issue to the question of the extension of
continental shelves in relation to Vanuatu is that there
is a dispute between Vanuatu and the French Republic,
the former colonial authority, concerning our
continental shelves to the south of the nation.
 On the question of reforms at the United Nations,
we believe that, in order to make the Organization truly
democratic, reforms are essential to make the Security
Council more representative of the membership as a
whole. In that respect, we believe that Japan and India
deserve permanent membership.
 At this critical moment of global crisis, I recall
the aphorism underpinning the foundations of the
United Nations. It is taken from the book of the great
prophet Micah and is engraved on the walls of United
Nations Headquarters:
  “They shall beat their swords into
ploughshares and their spears into pruning hooks.
Nation shall not lift up sword against nation,
neither shall they learn war any more” (The Holy
Bible, Micah, 4:3).
 It is no coincidence that the theme for this
Assembly is a much clearer manifestation of those
prophetic words, which the United Nations has
neglected over the years. As one of the smallest
Members of the United Nations family of nations,
Vanuatu reaffirms its commitment to building global
peace and security. We also remain committed to
supporting United Nations peacekeeping missions as
our modest contribution to that worthy cause.
 Finally, we welcome 2009 as the International
Year of Reconciliation. We all hope and pray that it
will be a time for real compromises and political
goodwill. We encourage all members of our family of
nations to approach 2009 with open hearts. If we are to
turn the tide of tension and animosity, we must have
the courage to reconcile our differences and come
together in those dimensions that will enhance this
noble Organization’s role in peacebuilding and
development.
 In closing, I would like to express the
Government of Vanuatu’s gratitude to all our
development partners who have generously contributed
to Vanuatu’s development efforts. In particular, we
wish to thank Australia, China, the European Union,
New Zealand, Japan, the United States of America and
France. We would also like to acknowledge the support
of other partners, including India, Turkey, South Korea,
Malaysia, Indonesia and Canada, as well as such
multilateral institutions as the World Bank and the
Asian Development Bank, and other United Nations
agencies.
 Mr. Baugh (Jamaica), Vice-President, took the
Chair.
 We are living in perilous times. In our Father’s
hands were we created, and to the hands of the leaders
of the world He has entrusted the responsibility to
ensure a world safe and just for all His peoples and
children. The world’s destiny is in our hands. That
must be our inspiration.

9 08-52272

 May God bless the United Nations. May God
bless the sixty-third session of the General Assembly.
May God bless us all.


Mr. President, on behalf of Cuba, I would
like to congratulate you on your election as President
of the General Assembly.
 We are living at a decisive moment in the history
of humankind. The threats looming over the world put
the very existence of the human species at risk.
 The promotion of peace, solidarity, social justice
and sustainable development is the only way to ensure
the future. The prevailing world order, unjust and
unsustainable, must be replaced by a new system that
is truly democratic and equitable, based on respect for
international law and on the principles of solidarity and
justice, putting an end to the inequalities and exclusion
to which the great majorities of the population of our
planet have been condemned.
 There are no alternatives. Those responsible for
this state of affairs — the industrialized countries, and
in particular the lone super-Power — must shoulder
their responsibilities. Fabulous fortunes cannot
continue to be wasted while millions of human beings
are starving or dying of curable diseases. It is not
possible to continue to pollute the air and poison the
oceans, which is destroying the living conditions for
future generations. Neither the peoples nor the planet
itself will permit that without great social upheavals
and extremely grave natural disasters.
 Wars of conquest, aggression against and the
illegal occupation of countries, military intervention
and the bombing of innocent civilians, the unbridled
arms race, the pillaging and usurpation of the natural
resources of the Third World and the imperial offensive
to crush the resistance of peoples who are defending
their rights constitute the greatest and most serious
threats to international peace and security.
 Concepts such as the limitation of sovereignty,
pre-emptive war and regime change are expressions of
the desire to mutilate the independence of our
countries. The so-called war on terrorism and the
alleged promotion of freedoms serve as pretexts for
aggression, military occupation, torture, arbitrary
detention, the denial of the right of peoples to self-
determination, unjust blockades, unilaterally imposed
sanctions and the imposition of political, economic and
social models that facilitate imperial domination with
flagrant disdain for history, cultures and the sovereign
will of peoples.
 The gap between the rich and the poor widens
daily. The very modest Millennium Development Goals
are an unattainable dream for the vast majority. While
$1 trillion is spent on weapons worldwide, more than
850 million human beings are starving, 1.1 billion have
no access to drinking water, 2.6 billion lack sewage
services and more than 800 million are illiterate. More
than 640 million children lack adequate housing,
115 million do not attend primary school and
10 million die before reaching the age of 5, in most
cases as the result of diseases that can be cured.
 With increasing frequency, the populations of the
South are suffering from natural disasters, whose
consequences have been worsened by climate change.
Haiti, Jamaica, Cuba and other countries of the
Caribbean are examples. We issue a special call for
solidarity with the brotherly people of Haiti in their
tragic situation.
 The rise in oil prices is the result of irrational
consumption, heavy speculative activity and imperial
military adventures. The desperate search for new
sources of energy has propelled the criminal strategy
driven by the Government of the United States to
transform grains and cereals into fuel.
 For many of the countries of the Non-Aligned
Movement, the situation is becoming unsustainable.
Our nations have suffered and will have to continue to
suffer the consequences of the irrationality,
wastefulness and speculation of a few countries in the
industrialized North, which are responsible for the
world food crisis. They imposed trade liberalization
and financial prescriptions of structural adjustment on
the developing countries. They caused the ruin of many
small producers; they denied — and in some cases
destroyed — nascent agricultural development in the
countries of the South, turning them into net importers
of food.
 It is they who continue scandalous agricultural
subsidies while imposing their rules on international
trade. They set prices, monopolize technologies,
impose unjust certifications and manipulate
distribution channels, financing sources and trade.
They control transport, scientific research, gene pools
and the production of fertilizers and pesticides.

08-51749 38

 We have not come here to complain. We have
come, on behalf of the Movement of Non-Aligned
Countries, to support and defend the demands of
billions of human beings who are calling for justice
and respect for their rights. The formula is not difficult;
nor does it require great sacrifices. All that is needed is
the necessary political will, less selfishness and the
objective understanding that, if we do not act today, the
consequences could be apocalyptic and would also
affect the rich and powerful. That is why Cuba, on
behalf of the Movement of Non-Aligned Countries,
calls once again on the Governments of developed
countries to honour their commitments. In particular,
we urge them to do the following.
 They should put an end to the wars of occupation
and to the plundering of the resources of the countries
of the Third World, and should free up at least a part of
their millions in military spending so that those
resources can be allocated to international assistance
for the benefit of sustainable development.
 We urge them to cancel the foreign debt of
developing countries, which has already been paid
more than once. That would release additional
resources that could be devoted to economic
development and social programmes.
 They should honour the commitment to allocate
at least 0.7 per cent of their gross domestic product to
official development assistance without conditions, so
that the countries of the South could use those
resources for their national priorities. They should also
promote access on the part of poor countries to
substantial new financing.
 They are urged to devote one fourth of the money
that is wasted each year on commercial advertising to
food production, which would provide nearly
$250 billion more to fight hunger and malnutrition.
 They should allocate the money being used for
agricultural subsidies in the North to agricultural
development in the South. Thus, our countries would
have approximately $1 billion per day at their disposal
to invest in food production.
 We urge them to comply with the commitments
set out in the Kyoto Protocol and to establish more
ambitious emission-reduction targets beginning in
2012, without seeking to increase restrictions on
countries that, even now, maintain far lower per capita
emission levels than those of the countries of the
North.
 They should promote access by Third World
countries to technology and should support the training
of their human resources. Today, on the other hand,
qualified personnel from the South are subjected to
unfair competition and incentives resulting from
discriminatory and selective migration policies
implemented by the United States and Europe.
 Something that is today more urgent than ever is
the establishment of a democratic and equitable
international order and a fair and transparent trading
system in which all States can participate, in
sovereignty, in the decisions that affect them.
 It is our deepest belief that solidarity between
peoples and Governments is possible. In Latin America
and the Caribbean, the Bolivarian Alternative for the
Americas and Petrocaribe have demonstrated this.
 The Movement of Non-Aligned Countries has
remained faithful to its founding principles. We support
the cause of the Palestinian people and their inalienable
right to self-determination in an independent and
sovereign State, with its capital in East Jerusalem. We
support the cause of those other peoples whose
sovereignty and territorial integrity is being threatened,
like those of Venezuela and Bolivia, and we endorse
the right of Puerto Rico to be independent.
 We condemn the imposition of unilateral coercive
measures in violation of international law and attempts
to implant a single model for a political, economic and
social system. We object to the negative practice of
certifying countries that follows the patterns and
interests of the powerful. We strongly oppose political
manipulation and the application of double standards in
the matter of human rights, and we reject the selective
imposition of politically motivated resolutions against
the member countries of the Non-Aligned Movement.
 The establishment of the Human Rights Council
offers the opportunity to open a new era in the
promotion of and protection for all human rights for
all, on the basis of international cooperation and
constructive dialogue. Those who caused the demise of
the old Human Rights Commission are now trying to
disqualify the Council because they have not been able
to bend it to serve their own interests. They refuse to
participate in its work in order to escape the scrutiny of
the international community within the framework of

39 08-51749

the Universal Periodic Review mechanism. The
legitimacy of the Council does not depend on the
perception that the empire has about its work, but on
its capacity to discharge its mandate with the strictest
adherence to the principles of universality, objectivity,
impartiality and non-selectivity in the treatment of
human rights issues.
 The Movement of Non-Aligned Countries will
continue to defend the interests of the Third World and
promote the building of a world which is more just,
more democratic and with greater solidarity.
 Cuba has had to pay a very high price for the
defence of its independence and sovereignty. The
heroic Cuban people have endured the longest and
cruellest blockade in history, imposed by the most
powerful nation on Earth. Despite the fact that this
Assembly has repeatedly and resoundingly taken a
stand in favour of ending that genocidal policy, the
United States Government has not only ignored the
will of the international community, but in marked
disregard of it has gradually intensified its economic
war against Cuba. Never has the foreign policy against
a country been armed with such a broad and
sophisticated arsenal of aggressive measures in the
political, economic, cultural, diplomatic, military,
psychological and ideological domains.
 Cuba has just been lashed by two intense
hurricanes, which have devastated its agriculture,
seriously affected part of its infrastructure and
damaged or destroyed more than 400,000 homes.
Allow me to take advantage of this opportunity, on
behalf of the Cuban Government and people, to thank
all those countries, organizations and persons who in
one way or another have honestly and sincerely
contributed with resources or moral support to the
reconstruction efforts undertaken by my country. That
stands in contrast with the position of the United States
Government, which continues to ruthlessly apply the
blockade.
 Cuba has asked for no gifts from the United
States Government. It has simply asked and asked
again that it be allowed to purchase in the United
States the materials that are indispensable for the
reconstruction of homes and the power grid, and that
American companies be authorized to grant Cuba
private commercial credits to buy food. The answer has
been negative and has been accompanied by an attempt
to manipulate information in such a manner that the
Government of the United States seems to be
concerned for the well-being of the Cuban people
while the Government of Cuba is perceived as turning
down their offer.
 If the United States were really so concerned for
the Cuban people, the only moral and ethical behaviour
would be to lift the blockade imposed on Cuba for five
decades, in violation of the most elemental rules of
international law and the Charter of the United
Nations. That irrational policy has a clear objective: to
destroy the process of profound revolutionary
transformation undertaken by the Cuban people since
1959 — in other words, to trample on its right to self-
determination, wrest away its freedom and its political,
economic and social conquests and push it backwards
to its former neocolonial status.
 The Bush Administration attempts to justify the
intensification of its policy against Cuba by turning
once more to fraud and deceit, with its characteristic
cynicism and hypocrisy. Its determination to dominate
and recolonize Cuba is being presented as nothing less
than as an endeavour to liberate and democratize.
 Who, other than its accomplices, recognizes that
the United States Government has any authority in this
world in the matter of democracy and human rights?
What authority could such a Government claim that
hunts down and cruelly mistreats illegal migrants at its
southern border, that legalizes the use of torture and
keeps in concentration camps — such as the one
installed in the territory illegally occupied by the
United States base at Guantánamo — people who have
not been proved of or even charged with any crime?
What respect is due to a Government that attacks the
sovereignty of other States, using the excuse of the
fight against terrorism, while at the same time
guaranteeing impunity to anti-Cuban terrorists? What
kind of justice can be promoted by an Administration
that illegally keeps imprisoned five Cuban patriots who
were only seeking information to neutralize the actions
of the terrorist groups operating against Cuba from the
United States?
 Cuba appreciates the solidarity it has received
from the General Assembly in its fight against the
blockade and the aggression that it has had to confront
for almost five decades. Cuba reaffirms its unyielding
decision to defend its sovereignty and independence.
Cuba reiterates its will to carry on, together with
members of the Non-Aligned Movement, in the battle

08-51749 40

for a better world, where the rights of all peoples to
justice and development are respected.
 To conclude, I would like to recall the words of
the Commander-in-Chief of the Cuban Revolution,
Comrade Fidel Castro Ruz: “A world without hunger is
possible. ... A just world is possible. A new world,
which our species eminently deserves, is possible and
will become reality.”


I wish to take this
opportunity to warmly congratulate Mr. Miguel
d’Escoto Brockmann on his election as President of the
General Assembly at its sixty-third session. He has the
full support of my delegation, and I wish him every
success as he guides the important deliberations of the
session at this most critical time. I also wish to take
this opportunity to express my delegation’s
appreciation to his predecessor, Mr. Srgjan Kerim, who
successfully presided over the General Assembly at its
sixty-second session.
 These are turbulent times indeed. The world
today is not getting safer by any standard. Alas, there
seems to be a vortex of perennial conflicts and crises.
The fires in Afghanistan and Iraq have not been
extinguished; to the contrary, they continue to
smoulder and intensify, punctuated by misleading,
short-lived lulls. The intractable conflict situations in
the Middle East are not nearer to a solution today. In
Somalia, humanitarian suffering of unparalleled
magnitude continues to unfold, although it remains
largely ignored by the international media.
Furthermore, the war in Georgia, with its potential
fallout for global polarization is symptomatic of, and
underscores, the extremely fragile security
environment that prevails in our troubled world today.
 To add to that gloomy mix, the world is also
witnessing volatile and speculative fluctuations in the
price of fuel oil, an unprecedented hike in food prices
and a recent spate of insolvency of financial
corporations that in combination are driving the global
economy towards recession. Rapid climatic changes
resulting from progressive environmental degradation
and the resulting spell of more frequent floods and
droughts, as well as pandemics that are affecting
millions of people, complete the grid of the immense
challenges that our global community is facing today.
These multifaceted problems stem from multiple
causes.
 At the same time, it cannot be denied that many
of those problems have been exacerbated, if not
instigated, by the misguided and domineering policies
of the United States Government. Indeed, the
fingerprints of the sole super-Power are discernible in
most of the conflict situations that are raging in many
parts of our globe, with the deleterious economic,
financial and humanitarian ramifications that they
invariably entail.
 The perplexing feature of that overarching and
negative development is the emergence of the concept
of management by crisis as a new tool of policy
promotion. These days, candid efforts are not exerted
to prevent and manage conflicts. On the contrary,
crises are deliberately spawned and allowed to fester
and the resulting necessity for management then
provides the United States with opportunity and
latitude for control, in a situation of permanent
instability. The absence of countervailing forces in a
unipolar world has only aggravated the situation.
Principal among those is the weakness of the United
Nations in pursuing an independent line and acting as a
bulwark of robust multilateralism.
 The strong misgivings that I have expressed are
attested to by the multiple situations of turbulence that
continue to unfold in our part of the world. Allow me
to illustrate this grim reality through a brief description
of the causes and complications of such turbulence.
 In the border war between Eritrea and Ethiopia,
both parties had ultimately agreed to resolve the
dispute through binding arbitration on the legal basis of
the sanctity of the colonial boundaries. These are
cardinal principles of international law enshrined in the
United Nations Charter as well as in the Constitutive
Act of the African Union. Furthermore, these
commitments were solemnly enshrined in the Algiers
Peace Agreement that was signed by the parties in
December 2000. The Algiers Agreement was
comprehensive in its details. Essentially, it had two
components: first, confidence-building provisions and

15 08-53141

measures through the deployment of a modest United
Nations peacekeeping force; and secondly, settlement
of the border dispute through final and binding
arbitration on the basis of the colonial treaties and
international law.
 As members know, the parties went through
lengthy and meticulous legal litigation in The Hague in
2001. The Eritrea-Ethiopia Boundary Commission — a
five-member arbitration panel of international
jurists — announced its unanimous final and binding
decision on 13 April 2002 and made serious efforts for
five years, until the completion of its work in
November 2007. From November 2007 onwards in
particular, Ethiopia’s military presence on sovereign
Eritrean territories has been one of blatant occupation.
This is so because the Boundary Commission has
decided to complete its demarcation functions —
which were disrupted and held hostage by Ethiopia for
five long years — through precise representation of the
boundary by coordinates.
 Throughout these years, Ethiopia’s reckless acts
of destabilization and aggression were supported by the
United States, and they continue to be. Throughout
these years, the United States not only used its
formidable clout in the United Nations system to
forestall appropriate measures against Ethiopia
pursuant to the Algiers Agreement and that were based
on Chapter VII of the Charter, but it concocted various
formulas — special envoys and extensions of the
mandate of the United Nations Mission in Ethiopia and
Eritrea (UNMEE), among other things — of
“management by crisis”, to perpetuate the conflict and
derail enforcement of the Commission’s legal decision.
 The tragedy in Somalia is another extremely
grave humanitarian situation that has been exacerbated,
if not brought about, essentially because of wrong
United States policies. Half a million Somalis are today
displaced and living in abysmal conditions mainly as a
result of Ethiopia’s military invasion in 2007.
Thousands of innocent civilians have been killed.
United States warplanes occasionally pulverize Somali
villages in the name of the war on terrorism.
 Were these interventions legal or justified? The
portrayal of Somalia and the Union of Islamic Courts
(UIC) as the epicentre or hub of terrorism was neither
true nor candid. Somalis should and could have been
given a chance to sort out their own problems through
the reconciliation processes that they had begun in
earnest. But all of those efforts were nipped in the bud
through a pre-emptive invasion by Ethiopia at the
instigation of the United States that resulted in massive
humanitarian tragedy that dwarfs other contemporary
crises in Africa.
 Nor is the situation in the Sudan any different,
either. While the complexities of the long and varied
conflicts cannot be downplayed, the fact remains that
United States policy in the Sudan is driven by other
objectives and considerations. The net outcome has
been and remains an aggravation of the multiple
problems there, whether in relation to the
implementation of the Comprehensive Peace
Agreement between the North and South or with
respect to the situation in Darfur.
 Recently, the United States, which has a military
base in Djibouti, has fabricated a new conflict situation
between Djibouti and Eritrea to keep alive the hot spots
of tension in the region. As I explained earlier, due to
United States influence, the Security Council has been
paralysed and rendered impotent in the face of
Ethiopia’s occupation of sovereign Eritrean territories,
including the town of Badme. At the same time, the
United States doggedly tried to use the Security
Council platform during its presidency last June to
fabricate a non-existent problem and establish a case
against Eritrea.
 All those destabilizing acts are sometimes
portrayed as unavoidable consequences or collateral
damage of the war on terror. The fact is that the war on
terror was derailed long ago from its original
objectives and intentions in order to undermine and
subvert forces and Governments that do not toe
Washington’s line. Furthermore, the dragnet has been
widely extended to involve the transparent interference
of the United States in the subregional and regional
organizations in our part of the world.
 This untenable state of affairs cannot go on and
should not be tolerated. The human sufferings have
been and are too great, the time too long. Therefore,
the collective international efforts to check United
States excesses are timely and imperative — all the
more so because those failures are widely recognized
and acknowledged by significant segments of public
opinion in the United States itself.
 The perils of unchecked unipolarism have
become glaringly obvious in the past few years. That
reality can only accentuate the need to bolster the

08-53141 16

United Nations to make it a democratic and robust
institution of multilateralism through prolonged and
concerted collective efforts.
 The need for prompt action requires great
urgency, particularly in our region. For that to happen,
first of all, illegal occupation of sovereign territories
must be terminated and the rule of law and the Charter
of the United Nations fully respected. Secondly, the
invasion of Somalia must come to an end and the
perpetrators of war crimes must be held accountable.
Thirdly, the interferences in and complications of the
problems in the Sudan must cease, and a conducive
climate must be created to bring about a lasting
solution. Lastly and most importantly, United States
meddling in the affairs of the Horn of Africa region,
which has invariably led to the instigation of crises,
must be terminated.
 The consequences of failing to act are dire
indeed. Unless effective measures are taken to remedy
the multiplying problems that our global community is
confronting today, we run the risk of further widening
and exacerbating them. The situation in the Horn of
Africa may in fact spiral out of control unless those
destabilizing practices are brought to an end.
 In conclusion, I sincerely hope that our plea will
be heeded so that further turmoil and suffering in our
region may be avoided.


At the outset, I wish to
warmly congratulate His Excellency Mr. Miguel
d’Escoto Brockmann of the Republic of Nicaragua on
his election as President of the General Assembly at its
sixty-third session. I can assure him of our fullest
cooperation throughout his tenure. I have no doubt that,
under his able leadership, we will be successful during this
session. I also wish to extend my high appreciation to
Mr. Srgjan Kerim of the former Yugoslav Republic of
Macedonia, President of the General Assembly at its
sixty-second session, for his relentless efforts in
guiding us to the many outstanding achievements
during the past year.
 At present, we have a number of global issues
and challenges that we need to address, both
collectively and individually, in order to ensure a better
world for all of us. Undoubtedly, peace and security
remain at the centre of our preoccupation that obliges
us to take responsibility first and foremost. Terrorism
is a stumbling block to the advancement and prosperity
of our societies and the world at large. We need to
recommit ourselves and strengthen our practical
measures, including putting in place a good strategy to
combat terrorism at the national, regional and
international levels. We must enhance at all levels the
relevant existing instruments on counter-terrorism, in
particular the United Nations Global Counter-
Terrorism Strategy, which was adopted by the General
Assembly in December 2006.
 As for Cambodia, the Royal Government has
devoted its time, energy, efforts and resources to join
the international community in combating terrorism in
accordance with the United Nations conventions,
protocols and agreements on security cooperation with
the Association of Southeast Asian Nations member
States, including its partners in the region. To live up to
our strong commitment, the Law on Counter-terrorism
was promulgated by His Majesty the King of
Cambodia in July 2007, and our national mechanism in
that area has been constantly strengthened.
 Furthermore, our world is still marred by the
spread of small arms and light weapons, which
continue to have implications for our comprehensive
security and livelihoods. We need to address that issue
with seriousness and prompt actions. As a country that
was ravaged by war and conflict for more than two
decades, Cambodia experienced suffering from the use
of small arms and light weapons and other weapons of
war. In that regard, we attach great importance to the
agreed international instruments, especially the
implementation of the 2001 United Nations Programme
of Action to Prevent, Combat and Eradicate the Illicit
Trade in Small Arms and Light Weapons in All Its
Aspects. Over the years, Cambodia has taken practical
measures to strictly control the use and circulation of
arms and ammunitions, as well as to eliminate the
illegal procurement and sale of arms.
 On the issue of landmines and unexploded
ammunition, we are of the view that landmines are not
only a security problem, but also a humanitarian one,
as their innocent victims become permanently
traumatized and physically handicapped, while their

08-53141 20

families suffer untold misery of spiritual and material
deprivation.
 The problems of landmines and unexploded ordnance
have been integrated into our national agenda — such as
the Cambodia millennium development goals, the National
Strategic Development Plan and the Rectangular
Strategy of the Royal Government of Cambodia — in
order to cope with that challenging issue. Cambodia
highly appreciates the valuable contributions of
development partners and donors in terms of financial
and material support over the years.
 With our demining experience and as part of our
contribution to international peace, security and
development, Cambodia has dispatched its third group
of 135 deminers of the Royal Cambodian Armed
Forces to the Sudan for mine clearance activities under
the umbrella of the United Nations peacekeeping
operations.
 We are now confronted more than ever with
increasing natural disasters, from floods to droughts,
from tsunamis to storms and global warming, to name
just a few that are caused mostly by climate change.
 Nowadays, industrialized countries consume 75 per
cent of the world’s energy and produce 80 per cent of
greenhouse gas emissions, while developing countries,
which produce little of such gas and have essentially
agricultural economies, are the main victims of
increasing global warming and continuing climate
change.
 According to a report of the United Nations
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, if the
temperature increases by two degrees Celsius, up to
30 per cent of plant and animal species worldwide
would be at risk of extinction. However, according to a
separate study of the Climate Change Policy Unit of
the World Wildlife Fund, it would take only 0.1 per
cent of global gross domestic product to save the
world’s climate, and thus our own human survival.
 Fully aware of the danger and consequences of
climate change and global warming on the well-being,
livelihood, and development of people around the world,
Cambodia has led a vast campaign of reforestation
throughout our country, where 14,300 hectares were
planted between 2003 and 2006. The rationalization
and ban of wood-cutting have been implemented. As a
party to the United Nations Framework Convention on
Climate Change and its Kyoto Protocol, Cambodia has
made its utmost effort to implement the Convention
and the Protocol, promote clean development
mechanism projects, and to prepare a national
adaptation programme of action on climate change.
Cambodia also strongly supports the Bali Action Plan
aimed at greenhouse gas reduction as well as the
Japanese initiative Cool Earth 50.
 We are also of the view that, to help reverse
climate change, we will need to preserve nature’s
biodiversity as much as possible and to put an end to
the ongoing deforestation in the world, especially in
the least developed countries, by assisting people in
finding sources of income other than deforestation.
 It is also important for us to actively promote
world public participation in the issue by mobilizing
public awareness of the absolute necessity to work
together to struggle against global warming and
climate change. We should forge a shared awareness of
climate change caused by industrialization, which is
the other side of the coin of development. We need to
mobilize the support of all countries, especially the
industrialized developed nations, to respect and
implement the Framework Convention and its Kyoto
Protocol.
 I would like to take this opportunity to call on the
United Nations to organize a world summit on climate
change so that the issue will remain at the top of world
leaders’ agendas and to ensure that concrete and timely
measures and action will be undertaken to help reverse
the current trend of global warming and climate
change.
 Concerning the Korean peninsula, we are
confident that the Democratic People’s Republic of
Korea and the United States, as well as other parties
involved, will maintain the momentum in fulfilling, in
good faith, the implementation of the 2005 Joint
Statement for the sake of peace, stability and security
in the region and the world at large.
 Regarding the Middle East, the peace process has
been on our agenda for long enough and we are
hopeful that all parties to the conflict will have the will
and the wisdom to end the conflict as soon as possible
in the interests of all countries concerned. In that
regard, Cambodia welcomes the 24 June 2008 Quartet
statement and the ongoing negotiations between Israel
and Palestine to bring about peace. Israel and Palestine
must seize this opportunity to use every potential for
achieving an agreement acceptable to both sides.

21 08-53141

 With regard to the Millennium Development
Goals (MDGs), eight years have gone by since their
adoption. We all know that the pace of achieving
progress towards the MDGs is very slow and that we
risk the possibility of missing the 2015 target date. The
outcomes of the high-level meeting on the Millennium
Development Goals have clearly underlined the
importance for the need to continue implementing the
MDGs with greater effectiveness by enhancing closer
cooperation between developed and developing
countries.
 In that regard, there is a need to ensure greater
flows of financing for development through foreign
direct investment, official development assistance and
more trade. At the same time, developed countries
should make greater efforts to transfer innovative and
relevant technology to developing countries.
 For its part, Cambodia is firmly dedicated to
achieving the MDGs. Various strategies for sustainable
development and poverty alleviation are in the early
stages of elaboration. The eight United Nations Goals
have been incorporated into the framework of our
National Strategic Development Plan, the Cambodian
millennium development goals and the Rectangular
Strategy. Over the years, with those development
blueprints Cambodia experienced a double-digit
economic growth of 11.1 per cent on average from
2004 through 2007 and the poverty rate dropped from
35 per cent to 31 per cent.
 In addition, Cambodia is fully committed to
implementing the principle of good governance and
maintaining macroeconomic stability and fiscal
discipline. The policy of the Royal Government of
Cambodia is to conserve its domestic resources in
order to finance the needs of national development.
 However, domestic resources are not enough to
finance investment needs for maintaining the economic
growth rate at an acceptable level and as a response to
key socio-economic targets, including the MDGs.
Therefore, Cambodia continues to need financial
cooperation from its development partners in order to
support ongoing national development and poverty
reduction.
 For years, we have all agreed that the United
Nations needs reform. Despite our concerted efforts
and some progress, differences remain on how to make
the United Nations more effective and more relevant in
dealing with the numerous challenges we face today
throughout the world. Cambodia is of the view that
United Nations reform must be comprehensive and
realistic. In order to move forward, we should continue
to build greater consensus and uphold the common
interests of all, without discrimination.
 For almost 15 years now, Member States have
intensely deliberated Security Council reform.
Cambodia has consistently reiterated its position in
support of the expansion of the permanent and
non-permanent membership of the Security Council.
 However, we have not yet achieved any
acceptable modality and clear framework for the
reform. Therefore, Security Council reform has
remained deadlocked. Although we have agreed that
the status quo is not acceptable, we must not lose the
momentum. In addition, we need to redouble our
collective efforts to ensure a breakthrough in the
current impasse of Security Council reform.


I am delivering this
statement on behalf of His Excellency Mr. Abdulla
Shahid, Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Maldives,
who, unfortunately, had to cancel his trip to New York
at the last minute owing to various pressing
engagements at home.

39 08-53141

 Permit me to begin by expressing my delegation’s
warmest congratulations to Mr. Miguel d’Escoto
Brockmann on his election to preside over the General
Assembly at its sixty-third session. I assure him of the
full support and cooperation of my delegation in his
work. I should also like to take this opportunity to
express our profound appreciation to his predecessor,
Mr. Srgjan Kerim, for the exemplary manner in which
he guided the work of the Assembly at its sixty-second
session. In addition, I should like to offer my
delegation’s heartfelt gratitude to Secretary-General
Ban Ki-moon for his inspiring leadership and
dedication in promoting the noble principles and ideals
of this Organization.
 Four years ago, the people of the Maldives
embarked on a comprehensive reform programme
aimed at strengthening and modernizing democratic
governance in the country. Within that short period of
time, unprecedented reforms have been adopted and
the political landscape of the country has been
completely transformed.
 A new Constitution that fully guarantees the civil
liberties and fundamental freedoms of our people was
adopted on 7 August 2008. To safeguard the
foundations of democracy on our islands, several
oversight bodies — a National Human Rights
Commission that complies with the Paris Principles, a
Judicial Service Commission and an independent
Elections Commission — have been established and
are now operational. Significant progress is also being
made in reforming and restructuring the legal and
judicial system of the country to align it with
internationally accepted norms and standards.
 In accordance with the new Constitution, the
Maldives will hold its first multiparty presidential
election early next week. Parliamentary elections will
be held before the end of February and local municipal
elections will be completed by July next year.
 Those gains were made with the help of the
international community, particularly the Commonwealth,
the European Union and the United Nations. I thank them
for their invaluable support, encouragement and
assistance in implementing the reform programme. My
Government is also extremely grateful to those
organizations for accepting our request for election
monitoring and assistance in the electoral process. We
are firm in our resolve that the elections shall be held
in a free and fair manner in full conformity with
internationally recognized standards and best practice.
 When the Maldives joined the United Nations in
1965, we were one of the smallest and poorest States
Members of this Organization. We lacked even the
most basic political, legal and economic infrastructure
and institutions necessary for self-governance. Our
ability to provide for the welfare of our people was
extremely limited. The economy was based largely on
subsistence fishery, and the health and education
sectors were severely underdeveloped. However, since
then, the Maldives has achieved remarkable levels of
socio-economic progress. Thirty years of strong and
unwavering political leadership, complemented by the
hard work of our people and the generous assistance of
our development partners, have enabled the country
successfully to pursue a people-centred path of
sustainable development, based on social equity and
justice.
 The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) are
now fully incorporated into our national development
priorities, and I am happy to note that we are among
those countries that are on track to achieve most of the
MDGs by 2015. We believe that the ongoing political,
legal and human rights reform agenda will further
strengthen our progress and propel us to new heights of
socio-economic development, with the support of our
partners.
 As a result of our rapid development progress,
four years ago the Assembly decided to graduate the
Maldives from the list of least developed countries.
The Maldives is also being hailed by the international
community as a major success story of the multilateral
development assistance framework.
 And yet those hard-won achievements will be
rendered meaningless if MDG 7 — environmental
sustainability — cannot be guaranteed. It is now
accepted beyond any doubt that climate change poses
the most immediate and far-reaching threat to human
security, directly compromising the most fundamental
rights, including the right to self-determination and the
right to life itself, for millions of people around the
world.
 From the highest Himalayan peaks to the low-
lying coastal areas and small islands a metre or so
above sea level, global warming and changing weather
patterns are undermining the lives and livelihoods of
millions of people around the planet, with the poor

08-53141 40

being especially vulnerable. The recent hurricanes that
left such a trail of destruction across the Caribbean
once again brought into sharp relief the acute
vulnerabilities of small island States, such as the
Maldives, to global warming and climate change.
 For the Maldives, climate change is not a distant
possibility. It is happening now and is a reality that we
are experiencing on a daily basis. The continuing
degradation of the global environment is not only
undermining our development process, but also
seriously threatening the very survival of our people
and the existence of our tiny country.
 We are all aware of the grim predictions in the
fourth assessment report of the Intergovernmental
Panel on Climate Change. If those predictions were to
come true, the Maldives and many other small island
developing States and low-lying coastal areas would
cease to exist within a relatively short period of time.
 Hence, the Maldives and many other small island
developing States do not have the luxury of hesitation
and inaction, nor can we afford to pick and choose
where and when that important issue needs to be
addressed. For us, it is not solely a development issue,
but also a moral, ethical, political, legal and human
rights issue, as well as a grave security issue.
 That is why the President of the Maldives took
the initiative in 1987 to raise that issue before the
Assembly. That is also why the Maldives participated
in the Security Council debate on the issue last year,
and why the Maldives decided to raise the issue before
the Human Rights Council in 2008.
 The inverse relationship between responsibility
for climate change and vulnerability to its
consequences is often overlooked. The Maldives and
other small island developing States contribute the
least to global warming, and yet their development
and, indeed, their very existence are fundamentally
threatened by global warming and its consequences.
 Addressing the injustices of climate change is
therefore the moral and ethical responsibility of the
entire international community. It is time that we put
people back in the climate change debate. We believe
that a comprehensive rights-based approach to
sustainable and just development, anchored in the
concept of common but differentiated responsibility, is
now an imperative.
 In that regard, we are happy that, at the initiative
of the Maldives and 80 other like-minded countries, the
United Nations Human Rights Council for the first
time, earlier this year, recognized the link between
human rights and climate change. The Council will
formally debate the issue at its tenth session in March
2009, and we hope that due consideration will be given
to the outcome of the debate by our colleagues in the
United Nations Framework Convention on Climate
Change as they work to ensure an effective and
equitable successor to the Kyoto Protocol.
 The Maldives is encouraged by the renewed
international impetus towards a more sustained and
robust approach to achieving the MDGs. Indeed, the
high-level event on the MDGs held last week clearly
illustrates the collective commitment and interest of
the international community to work towards achieving
those Goals. The interrelationship between climate
change, food security and the attainment of the MDGs
cannot be overemphasized. It is now believed that the
global food and energy crisis will drive more than
100 million more people into poverty.
 While short-term measures may ease the
immediate pressures, we believe that a sustainable
solution to the problem lies in a fair and equitable
trading regime and a shared vision of partnership and
cooperation. The early and successful completion of
the Doha Development Round and the successful
outcome of the post-Bali negotiations, as well as the
Follow-up International Conference on Financing for
Development to be held in Qatar at the end of this year
will prove critical in that regard.
 As a country that depends on importing most of
its food and all of its energy resources, the Maldives is
extremely concerned about the rise in global food and
energy prices. Although the situation in the Maldives at
present is relatively stable, the potential of a severe
blow to our economy is alarmingly high. The
Government is fully aware of the risks involved and is
taking all necessary precautionary measures to ensure
that the crisis does not adversely affect the daily lives
and well-being of our people.
 Organized crime and terrorism are continuing to
threaten the maintenance of international peace and
security. The recent bombings in India and Pakistan are
yet another tragic reminder of the evil and insidious
nature of terrorism. It is therefore important for the
international community to ensure that the war against

41 08-53141

terrorism remains a main priority on the international
agenda.
 The continued scourge of terrorism is particularly
alarming when seen in the context of the spread of
nuclear arms and other weapons of mass destruction.
The threat of a terrorist organization gaining access to
such weapons is extremely alarming.
 I am happy to note that the Maldives is now party
to almost all the international conventions on counter-
terrorism. Despite its limited resource and expertise,
the Maldives has been actively working towards
implementing its various regional and multilateral
obligations under the international counter-terrorism
regime. I would therefore like to take this opportunity
to reiterate our commitment to combating global
terrorism and to Security Council resolutions 1373
(2001) and 1540 (2004) in particular.
 A permanent and lasting resolution to the
question of Palestine remains elusive. The Maldives
reiterates its support for the right of the Palestinian
people to self-determination and to an independent and
sovereign homeland. We believe that the two-State
solution remains the only viable option and needs to be
pursued with greater vigour and vitality.
 The United Nations in the twenty-first century
must have the ability to take on emerging challenges in
an expeditious and efficient manner. While we applaud
the present efforts to reform and revitalize the
Organization, we believe that such reforms cannot be
successfully achieved without the much-anticipated
reform of the Security Council. In that regard, we are
happy that the Assembly has decided to proceed to
intergovernmental negotiations in early 2009. We look
forward to participating in those negotiations.
 Despite the criticisms levelled against the United
Nations, my country remains convinced that the
Organization is the most potent and credible universal
institution today. For the past six decades, the United
Nations has been a beacon of hope for peoples around
the world. Its universal character and the
multilateralism that it embodies hold true to the ideals
and virtues upon which it was founded and, without a
doubt, provide the only viable framework for solving
the world’s great challenges, including climate change,
sustainable development, human rights and global
terrorism.
 I therefore reaffirm the Maldives’ commitment to
the principles enshrined in the United Nations Charter.
I offer our full support to the United Nations in its
resolute efforts to maintain international peace and
security and to work towards the betterment of all
humanity.


I wish first to congratulate
Mr. D’Escoto Brockmann on his election to the
presidency of the General Assembly.
 This session of the General Assembly is taking
place at a time of great global challenges, such as the

08-51606 16

energy crisis, high food prices and instability in the
financial markets. Those are serious problems that
could erode the gains the world economy has made in
the past 10 years. Let me add that our gathering here
also provides a window of opportunity for us to review
the progress we have made, individually and
collectively, in fulfilling the Millennium Development
Goals (MDGs).
 Nevertheless, before proceeding with my
remarks, I wish first of all to update the Assembly on
the progress Kenya has made following the challenges
we faced soon after the general elections held in
December 2007.
 Kenyans, fellow Africans and the international
community held on to the hope that our country would
obtain a peacefully negotiated outcome to the political
crisis. That hope was realized on 28 February with the
signing of the National Accord and Reconciliation Act.
The Accord paved the way for the establishment of a
grand coalition Government representing all major
political parties and interests in our country.
 The Government is making use of that historic
window of opportunity to build a consensus that will
enable us to address the major challenges facing our
nation. We are, for instance, making good progress
towards the implementation of far-reaching legal,
constitutional and policy reforms that will entrench
national cohesion and meet the political, economic and
social aspirations of our people.
 I am confident that, over the past few months,
Kenya has regained its glory and redeemed its image as
a peaceful nation, a safe tourist and investment
destination and the regional hub for peace and
humanitarian efforts. I wish to express, on behalf of all
Kenyans, our profound gratitude for the engagement
and support of all our friends. In that connection, I
wish to pay special tribute to the members of the Panel
of Eminent African Personalities, led by former
Secretary-General Kofi Annan, the African Union and
the United Nations. I would also like to thank the
Secretary-General, Mr. Ban Ki-moon, for his personal
and constant support.
 As Africa grapples with the challenges of
competitive elections in fragile democracies divided by
regional, racial, religious and ethnic differences, the
time has come for us to reflect on the role of
competitive electoral processes in the building of our
national democratic institutions.
 Indeed, the challenge of attaining democratic and
inclusive elected Governments is at the core of the
conflicts and insecurity prevailing in many parts of
Africa. In the Sudan, for example, the Comprehensive
Peace Agreement (CPA) continues to hold three years
after its signing, despite challenges. I welcome the
efforts made by the parties to the CPA in overcoming
some recent difficulties. I urge them to intensify their
efforts to address all outstanding issues in the
implementation of the Accord.
 On the other hand, the situation in Somalia
remains fragile. That is mainly because the Transitional
Federal Government of Somalia has still not received
full support from the international community.
 While I pay tribute to the Governments of
Uganda and Burundi for providing troops as part of the
African Union Mission in Somalia, I urge the
deployment of the remaining troops to strengthen the
Mission. I also urge the United Nations and the
international community to assume greater
responsibility in Somalia so as to nurture the
emergence of a stable and democratic country.
 With regard to the Great Lakes, tremendous
progress has been made in promoting peace while
reducing conflict in the region. The conclusion of the
Pact on Security, Stability and Development in the
Great Lakes Region has given impetus to our efforts.
However, the implementation of the Pact faces
challenges owing to renewed tension and hostilities. I
call upon all those involved to embrace the Pact and to
seek the peaceful resolution of current problems. We
must not derail our goal of achieving economic
development and regional integration in the Great
Lakes. The Special Fund for Reconstruction and
Development, on which we all agreed, is now
operational. I appeal to the international community to
contribute to the Fund. It is a crucial pillar for the
promotion of peace and development in the Great
Lakes region.
 I now return to the food crisis, which I mentioned
at the beginning of my speech. Our meeting is taking
place at a time when Africa and many other parts of the
world are facing a severe food shortage. I am therefore
happy to note that the theme of this general debate,
“The impact of the global food crisis on poverty and
hunger in the world as well as the need to democratize
the United Nations”, pays particular attention to that
important subject. Indeed, while food prices have risen

17 08-51606

globally, their impact has been most severe and adverse
for the poorest people living in developing countries.
The continued rise in food prices has national security
implications for most developing nations.
 Therefore, in the immediate future, we must, as
Members of the United Nations, find mechanisms to
deliver sufficient quantities of affordable food to poor
people in Africa and other parts of the developing
world. In the medium term, we must also address the
issues of agricultural productivity, particularly in terms
of making available to smaller farmers in Africa better-
yielding seed varieties, modern farming techniques and
cheaper fertilizer. That will require more effective
global partnerships among developed nations,
international institutions and developing nations. In
particular, such partnerships should place food security,
agricultural technology development and transfer, trade
and agricultural credit at the centre of the development
agenda.
 Indeed, the most equitable way to lift Africa’s
people out of poverty and underdevelopment is through
the widespread commercialization of agriculture. We
must focus on the manufacture of and trade in value-
added agricultural products, supported by efficient
financial services and markets. In that regard, the
global community should hasten consensus on
agriculture and other contentious issues, so as to enable
the successful conclusion of the Doha Development
Round of the World Trade Organization.
 On the issue of escalating global oil prices, I wish
to make a passionate appeal to oil-producing nations to
consider the plight of non-oil-producing nations,
especially those in the developing world. There is need
to address the problem of speculative trading in the oil
futures market, where prices have doubled in the past
year. Indeed, the rapid increase in oil prices is hurting
developing countries the most and does not augur well
for international peace and stability. We should all be
aware that we are one global community and that none
of us is completely isolated from the instability caused
by inflationary pressures resulting from the high oil
prices.
 We have, over the years, discussed the need for a
more effective and accountable United Nations that
will enable us to address the emerging and persistent
global challenges such as climate change, international
security, poverty, conflicts and economic disparities.
Towards that end, reform at the Security Council is
imperative. We need to ensure that its composition
reflects equitable geographical representation of the
entire United Nations membership. Africa therefore
deserves permanent representation on the Security
Council.
 Reforms are also needed in other areas. We are
convinced that strengthening the Economic and Social
Council will enable that organ to reassert its authority
and its capacity to promote greater coherence and
coordination with the multinational financial
institutions, the World Trade Organization and other
United Nations bodies.
 I would like to congratulate the Secretary-
General for his continued focus on the Millennium
Development Goals and, in particular, the
establishment of the MDGs Africa Steering Group,
which has, among other interventions, proposed the
launching of an African green revolution. I also look
forward to the insights and recommendations that will
come out of the High-level Event on MDGs later this
week.
 Finally, I wish to note that the challenges facing
us today, such as the global food crisis, attaining the
MDGs and climate change, more than ever before
require coordinated global and multilateral
cooperation. A more effective and accountable United
Nations is therefore needed to meet and overcome
these challenges.