Let me start by
congratulating you on your election, Madam President,
and by wishing you every success in the coming
months of hard work. The outgoing president of the
General Assembly, Mr. Eliasson, left an impressive
track record of progress on a number of reform issues.
It is my expectation that you will continue to meet the
high standards set by him.
 Behind many of the changes here at the United
Nations over the past decade we have noted the light
and decent hand of one distinguished person, Mr. Kofi
Annan. As he prepares to leave his position at the helm
of the Secretariat, I would like to take this opportunity
to thank him most cordially for all he has done. He has
made it very difficult and challenging for his successor
to do the job with the same vigour, skill and
dedication.
 To choose the right successor to the Secretary-
General will definitely not be an easy task, but I do not
want to leave the Hall without stating clearly the
preferences of my country. No one from my own
regional group has thus far occupied this important
post. We think that time has come to seriously consider
such an option. Mrs. Vaira Vike-Freiberga of Latvia is
an excellent candidate who qualifies perfectly well for
the position of Secretary-General. She can count on our
full support.
 Let me also welcome a new Member of the
United Nations, the Republic of Montenegro, whose
presence here brings us closer to the goal of a truly
universal United Nations.
 The President of Finland spoke on behalf of the
European Union (EU) a few days ago. The Czech
Republic fully associates itself with that statement. The
EU has made an enormous effort to contribute to the
preparations for this session, and my country was an
integral and active part of that process. I shall therefore
limit myself to sharing with the Assembly just a few
ideas and comments on issues that are at the forefront
of our interests.
 I strongly believe that all of us want the world to
be a safer place. That is the bottom line. Yet, the
absence of safety and security seems to be almost
omnipresent. There is a lack of support for billions of
people suffering from hunger and disease in developing
countries. There is a lack of protection for many people
exposed to various environmental risks and natural
hazards. There is a widening debate regarding energy
security. There is lack of freedom and dignity for many
women and men living under oppression. There is a
lack of peace, and a sense of vulnerability vis-à-vis all
kinds of armed conflict.

06-53952 2

 On top of all that there is the ominous threat of
terrorism — often fed by Islamist extremists — which
is creating fear and striking targets around the world,
including their very own countries. All that makes it
imperative for us to continue to adapt our security
systems; otherwise we will not be able to face that
threat. And we need to be efficient.
 To make the world a better and safer place is a
complex challenge. It involves individual States as
well as various international organizations. But, at the
global level, the role of the United Nations in
responding to that challenge is irreplaceable. The
Millennium Summit of 2000 and the 2005 World
Summit contributed enormously to shaping our agenda
to that effect by, inter alia, balancing security,
development and human rights concerns. We know
what should be done. But we often fail to deliver
because our collective will is not strong enough to
support the implementation of designed measures and
actions. We often know the diagnosis. We know the
right remedy. And, yet, we are unable to apply it.
 Two weeks ago, we commemorated the fifth
anniversary of the horrible terrorist attacks against not
only the United States but, dare I say, against our
shared values. The world after 9/11 is not what it was,
and the United Nations has had to adapt accordingly.
On the eve of that chilling anniversary, we succeeded
in adopting the landmark United Nations Global
Counter-Terrorism Strategy (resolution 60/288),
building on previous efforts by both the Security
Council and the General Assembly. I hope that the
Strategy will provide more than guidance, and that it
will become a real tool that provides real help for those
who fight the scourge of terrorism in the field.
 There is general agreement that the international
community and the United Nations should do much
more for States and territories recovering from conflict
and disorder. We now have the United Nations
Peacebuilding Commission. There is a spirit of hope
that the Commission will lead the efforts in generating
both the political will and the means to assist countries
in post-conflict environments while promoting the rule
of law and democratic values and preventing those
countries from slipping back into conflict. The Czech
Republic stands ready to assume its duties as a member
of the Commission beginning in January 2007.
 Peacebuilding has to maintain strong ties with
peacekeeping. Indeed, we are facing a surge in demand
for that service provided by the United Nations, with
Lebanon as the most recent example. But even if the
number of Blue Helmets were to be multiplied, there
would still be room for meaningful engagement with
regional organizations in assisting the United Nations
to maintain peace and security. I welcome recent
debates on the role of those organizations, which
already shoulder a fair part of the burden in
Afghanistan, the Balkans, the Democratic Republic of
the Congo and the Sudan. From our trans-Atlantic
perspective, I particularly applaud the intensifying
cooperation among the United Nations, the EU and
NATO. I am proud to say that my country plays an
active part in that regard. We have a strong presence in
the Kosovo Force and the International Security
Assistance Force in Afghanistan. We are prepared to
explore other forms of support where we are not
directly involved.
 It was very unfortunate that last year’s Summit
was not able to find common language on disarmament
and non-proliferation. The uncontrolled spread of the
illicit trafficking in conventional weapons, their use
against civilian populations and the deadly existence of
landmines all serve to continue to fuel conflict, human
suffering and insecurity around the world. My country
supports all efforts — as well as several
programmes — aimed at bringing the arms trade and
the use of arms under strong controls. But there is an
even greater threat: the possible proliferation of
weapons of mass destruction.
 We welcome the fact that the Security Council is
increasingly engaged in those matters. Council
resolution 1540 (2004) was a major step forward. It
was recently followed up by strong messages addressed
to the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea and Iran.
Both those countries should fully comply with the
nuclear non-proliferation regimes and abandon any
ambitions going beyond the peaceful use of nuclear
power.
 There is no freedom or security where masses of
people are plagued by poverty, hunger and unhealthy
living conditions. The Government of the Czech
Republic therefore attaches great importance to
development cooperation and to achieving the
Millennium Development Goals (MDG). Following the
economic transformation of the 1990s, we have
steadily increased our development aid every year. For
example, in 2005 Czech development assistance
increased by 16 per cent in real terms — reaching a

3 06-53952

level of 0.11 per cent of our gross national income.
That likely makes us the leading country providing
development assistance among new EU members. Our
humanitarian aid grew even more sharply and we are
determined to continue that trend. My country also
supports other measures that could provide additional
assistance — a fair solution to the debt problem for
poor countries, limiting agricultural subsidies and
creating more open conditions for trade. In that, we
associate ourselves with the goal of a global
partnership for development.
 Development assistance is more effective in an
environment of stable and predictable conditions, the
rule of law, democratic structures, a successful fight
against corruption and respect for human rights — not
to mention that those qualities attract donors as they
are inherently worth supporting and cultivating. The
attention paid to those issues by the United Nations has
grown significantly over the last decade, resulting,
inter alia, in the establishment of the United Nations
Democracy Fund last year. My country was one of the
first contributors to the Fund. We are thus on the right
track, and I feel that we should go even further along
that road.
 It was also decided at the United Nations Summit
last year — as part of the overall United Nations
reform — to transform and upgrade the Commission on
Human Rights, which became the Human Rights
Council. We have to work hard with others in Geneva,
to make it a beam of hope for millions of people living
under oppression and deprived of their rights in
different parts of the world.
 However, the transformation of the United
Nations human rights machinery will be a failure,
unless the new body is stronger and more effective
than the old one, unless it succeeds in enhancing its
special procedures and country-oriented activities,
unless it finds the ways and means to respond where it
is needed, and unless it secures full international
cooperation in enforcing elementary standards of
fundamental human rights.
 Regimes that behave contrary to all democratic
principles, use their power against their own citizens,
imprison their opponents arbitrarily and violate
elementary standards of the Universal Declaration of
Human Rights must be confronted with an efficient
system. It is one of the sad ironies of our time that
Aung San Suu Kyi remains under house arrest in
Myanmar, 15 years after being awarded the Nobel
Peace Prize.
 We cannot remain silent when members of
peaceful democratic opposition in Cuba, who are
calling for national dialogue and reconciliation, are
still jailed and harassed as alleged enemies of the State.
We also have to raise our voice of solidarity when a
presidential candidate of democratic forces in the
recent presidential elections in Belarus, Aleksandr
Kozulin, is sentenced to a term in prison for alleged
incitement to disorder.
 Over several years, “reform” was one of the most
frequent and often misused words in our United
Nations vocabulary. But, even skeptics must admit that
the United Nations in 2006 is profoundly different
from the United Nations 10 year ago. While some
reform projects were put aside, a number of others
were carried out. Some projects — most notably the
long overdue reform of the Security Council —
continue, however, to wait for the green light.
 This year’s highlight is management reform and
the reform of the United Nations development
machinery in the interest of system-wide coherence. If
we succeed in those areas, the United Nations could
become stronger, leaner, less bureaucratic and more
operational. Let us hope, that the changes will be
backed by the adoption of a new and fairer scale of
assessments, by adequate budget and payment
discipline, and last but not least, by progress in
implementing the Capital Master Plan.
 In conclusion, let me assure you, Madam
President, that my country is ready to fulfil, in a timely
and orderly manner, all its obligations as a Member of
the United Nations, including our increased share of
the overall budget and our contributions to the
peacekeeping operations. We acknowledge and honour
our share of responsibility. More than that — we
continue to increase our volume of humanitarian aid
and to engage ourselves in assisting peace and security
in a number of areas around the world. I believe that
qualifies my country as a strong candidate for an
elected seat on the United Nations Security Council for
the term 2008-2009.


It is a
great honour for me, as Prime Minister of Canada, to

21 06-52988

speak to the Assembly today about the important issues
confronting us as Members of the United Nations.
(spoke in English)
 The United Nations was born from a combination
of the essential needs of nations for stability and
security and the higher ideals to which we should all
aspire — freedom, democracy, human rights and the
rule of law.
(spoke in French)
 Our responsibilities in this Organization are as
varied as they are important, and I cannot mention
them all, nor do each the justice they deserve.
(spoke in English)
 Nor can Canada be effective by diffusing our
efforts across all of these matters. We must focus our
considerable, but limited, resources where we can
make a real difference. So let me turn to one particular
and key area where global interests and higher purpose
come directly together: the United Nations Assistance
Mission in Afghanistan.
 The United Nations recognized shortly after the
attacks of 11 September 2001 that the Taliban regime,
by its promotion of terrorism, was a threat to
international peace and security.
(spoke in French)
 Kofi Annan, our Secretary-General, whom we
thank for his 10 years of loyal service, summed up in a
few words the reason why we must combat terrorism.
Terrorism, he said:
 “is a direct attack on the core values the United
Nations stands for: the rule of law; the protection
of civilians; mutual respect between people of
different faiths and cultures; and peaceful
resolution of conflicts.”
(spoke in English)
 That is why we in the United Nations have the
responsibility to defeat terrorism. That is why, with
unity and determination, the United Nations undertook
its responsibility and its role in Afghanistan. And that
is why Canada, which lost 24 of its own citizens on
9/11, answered the call.
 And there we are. The United Nations Assistance
Mission in Afghanistan is the United Nations single
largest political mission. It is also, by far, Canada’s
biggest and most important overseas mission. So the
United Nations mission is Canada’s mission.
 No fewer than 19 United Nations agencies are in
Afghanistan. They are working tirelessly to help the
Afghan people and their national Government shake
off the perpetrators of terrorism and build a democratic
and secure society.
 At the same time, approximately 20,000 troops
from 37 countries — roughly 2,500 Canadians
included — are contributing to military efforts to help
stabilize Afghanistan and eliminate the remnants of the
Taliban regime. And we want to do that once and for
all.
(spoke in French)
 All our actions in Afghanistan — civilian and
military — are being taken in accordance with the
mandate of the Security Council. In short, we all stand
together with the democratically elected Government
of Afghanistan under the banner of the Organization
that represents our collective will. In Afghanistan the
United Nations mission is Canada’s mission.
(spoke in English)
 Let us be realistic. The challenges facing
Afghanistan are enormous. There will be no quick
fixes. Moreover, success cannot be assured by military
means alone. This we all recognize. For success also
requires a strong and unwavering civilian contribution:
educators, engineers, elections advisers, direct and
technical aid. The list is lengthy, but the contributions
are essential.
 That is why Canada is engaged in work like the
rebuilding of girls’ schools, ripped down and destroyed
by the Taliban in their frenzy of hate.
(spoke in French)
 That is why last spring we increased our
development assistance, raising Canada’s total
contribution to nearly $1 billion over 10 years, to assist
the people of Afghanistan.
(spoke in English)
 These two actions — rebuilding a shattered
society and providing a stable security environment —
go hand in glove. And we are making progress — of
that there is no doubt: 5 million refugees repatriated;
over 5 million children enrolled in primary schools;

06-52988 22

10 million Afghans registered to vote in successive
democratic elections.
 More than one quarter of the seats in
Afghanistan’s legislature are now held by women —
remarkable in a nation where a few short years ago
girls could not attend school and women had no human
rights of any kind.
 The success of this Mission, in providing both
security and development, is vital to the safety,
livelihood and very future of the Afghan people, but it
is also vital to the health and future of this
Organization.
(spoke in French)
 Let us recall that the democratically elected
Government of Afghanistan, led by President Karzai,
requested the assistance of the United Nations and its
Member States in the struggle against terror,
intimidation, violence and oppression.
(spoke in English)
 We have responded. But we have not made
Afghanistan’s progress irreversible — not yet.
Canadian defence personnel, diplomats and
development officers are on the front lines of the fight
for the future of Afghanistan. Canadians feel
tremendous pride in the leadership role they have
assumed, and we share equal grief for the casualties
they have taken. We are therefore acutely aware that
the United Nations job in Afghanistan is not yet done.
We have no illusions about the difficulties that still lie
before us. Difficulties do not daunt us. But lack of
common purpose and will in this body would.
 After all, if we fail the Afghan people, we will be
failing ourselves. For this is the United Nations
strongest Mission and therefore our greatest test. Our
collective will and credibility are being judged. We
cannot afford to fail. We will succeed.
(spoke in French)
 The United Nations is also facing other
challenges — in Haiti, for example. Canada has played
an important role there, dispatching troops, police and
development officers to support United Nations
activities aimed at restoring stability and establishing
democracy. And we are offering the country
$100 million in economic development assistance.
However, we must act together to ensure that our
multinational force paves the way for stability and
progress, and empowers the Government of Haiti to
help its citizens, the poorest in the western hemisphere.
(spoke in English)
 Darfur, too, is a significant challenge, as
multinational security efforts are transferred from the
African Union to the United Nations. It is also a test of
the principle that this body endorsed last year — the
responsibility to protect. The United Nations has
authorized a mission there, with a robust mandate. But
will the Government of Sudan accept it?
 In the Middle East, Canada has joined the
international community in the reconstruction of
Lebanon. But will the United Nations Interim Force in
Lebanon ensure security on Israel’s northern border
and lead to progress in the Middle East peace process?
 Nuclear proliferation threatens us all. Are we
prepared to ensure that Security Council decisions will
be implemented fully? Will we act to halt activities that
have no reasonable purpose other than the acquisition
of nuclear weapons?
 These are some of the tests the whole world must
face. And there are other challenges internal to this
Organization.
 Will the new Human Rights Council become a
forum where human rights are genuinely put above
political maneuvering? Or will it emulate the fate of its
failed predecessor organization? I must say that the
early signals suggest that too little has changed and
that the page has not yet been turned.
 And what will be done to make progress on
United Nations management reform?
(spoke in French)
 Earlier this year Canada’s new Government was
given a mandate to make our national Government
more accountable and more responsible, to ensure that
taxpayers get full value for their money and to pursue a
clear, focused agenda that produces tangible results.
The United Nations should accept nothing less.
(spoke in English)
 This Organization must become more
accountable and more effective. Management reform
must continue, and at an accelerated pace. The
taxpayers of Member nations, Canadians among them,
make significant financial contributions to this
Organization. They have the right to expect stronger,

23 06-52988

more independent oversight mechanisms, more robust
accountability for how funds are spent, and human
resources practices that are based on merit.
(spoke in French)
 I have just described the tests by which this
Organization will be judged. Canada wants this to be a
positive judgment. We were there when the United
Nations was founded. Like the other countries, we
were motivated by a pressing need to establish a new
international consensus in a world devastated by war.
And, like the others, we were motivated by our own
pragmatic interests and noble aspirations for all of
humanity. More than 60 years later the formula
remains the same.
(spoke in English)
 The challenge has always been the same: to bring
nations together to build a better world by forging
consensus on common purposes and by finding the
political will to translate these into action.
 When these goals have been achieved, Canada
has always been with the Organization — through the
war against fascism, the cold war, dozens of United
Nations-sponsored peacekeeping missions, and more
recent multinational military engagements in the
Balkans and the Persian Gulf.
 Today Afghanistan leads the list of challenges
that we face collectively — peacebuilding in a nation
where there is not yet peace, where progress requires a
wide range of capabilities undertaken by a wide array
of our Member States.
 My earnest hope is that we will say with pride to
future generations of leaders: We, the United Nations,
took up that responsibility in Afghanistan, rose to the
challenge and met it firmly, collectively, successfully.
In this endeavour, as with the others I have outlined,
Canada will be there with the Organization at every
step along the way.


I wish to join
others in congratulating you, Madam, on your election
as President of the General Assembly at its sixty-first
session. Please be assured of my country’s support and
cooperation throughout your tenure.
 The Marshall Islands commends all members of
the General Assembly for their efforts, contributions
and cooperation throughout the sixtieth session aimed
at achieving many of our common aspirations.
Although we have achieved a good measure of success,
there is still much work ahead. We must work together
and pool our resources, our talents and our skills for
the betterment of all the citizens of the world. It is in
this regard that I urge the wealthier and more
developed Member States to increase their generosity

06-53952 18

with official development assistance so as to address
issues of human misery.
 As one of the smallest States Members of the
United Nations, the Marshall Islands hopes that the
sixty-first session of the General Assembly will do
more to protect and secure our people from threats to
their livelihood and existence.
 The Marshall Islands is committed to various
international and regional plans and agreements,
including the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs),
the Mauritius Strategy for the further Implementation
of the Programme of Action for the Sustainable
Development of Small Island Developing States, the
Pacific Plan and, more recently, the Micronesian
Challenge initiative, which sets ambitious targets for
marine and terrestrial conservation areas throughout
the Micronesian region.
 We emphasize the need for the full and effective
implementation of the commitments, programmes and
targets adopted, particularly those of the International
Meeting to Review the Implementation of the
Programme of Action for the Sustainable Development
of Small Island Developing States, and for the
mobilization of the necessary resources from all
sources for the effective implementation of the
Mauritius Strategy.
 Given that the livelihood of our people depends
heavily on the oceans, we again join our Pacific
neighbours in requesting that our ocean resources be
managed and protected from exploitation. Because our
nation’s single most important productive sector is
fisheries, which provide us with our key export, the
state of the world’s oceans and fish stocks and the way
in which those vital resources are being exploited
remain concerns of the utmost importance.
 As a party to the 1982 United Nations
Convention on the Law of the Sea and the 1995 United
Nations Fish Stocks Agreement, we recognize the
importance of the entry into force of the Convention on
the Conservation and Management of Highly
Migratory Fish Stocks in the Western and Central
Pacific Ocean and the subsequent conservation and
management measures adopted thus far by the recently
established Western and Central Pacific Fisheries
Commission.
 While we acknowledge the implications and
adverse impact of illegal, unreported and unregulated
fishing in the region, including the consequences of
over-fishing for national and regional resources, we are
continuing to develop and explore ways and means of
conducting and enforcing conservation and
management measures, as well as of developing our
domestic fisheries. We seek a moratorium on bottom
trawling until there are clear indications that it has no
effects on ocean biodiversity.
 It is our hope that regional efforts — such as
those being undertaken by the small islands developing
States — to spread the knowledge of conservation and
the sustainable use of biodiversity will be strengthened
and enhanced by international assistance.
 At the national level, I wish to share with
Member States the progress that we have made in
terms of Government leadership and national
development. Our national and local government
leaders met early last month to review our progress in
achieving our long term National Development Plan.
This provided a chance for both the national
Government and local governments to renew their
commitments to work together to bring about a better
Marshall Islands. It also paved the way for
Government officials to discuss issues of critical
concern that continue to obstruct our development
opportunities in the areas of education, health and the
environment, among others.
 Another important issue also being discussed on
the home front is that of the nuclear-weapons tests that
were conducted in the Marshall Islands. Our people
have made a disproportionate sacrifices in helping the
world understand the power of the nuclear bomb. We
have paid with our own lives, our health and the well-
being of our land and waters, which are so sacred to us.
Since the Marshall Islands became independent, in
1986, we have undertaken efforts to better understand
the impact of the activities that took place on our
islands during the cold war. We are finding that the
effects of the 67 atmospheric weapon tests conducted
in our country were much worse and much more
widespread than previously understood, although we
still have a great deal more to learn.
 As a small country with limited resources, we are
of course focusing our efforts on addressing the
nuclear legacy. We call on the United Nations and its
agencies and on Member States that share similar
experiences and have expertise in the restoration of
environments contaminated with radiation and in

19 06-53952

addressing health needs linked to radiation exposure to
assist and support the Marshall Islands Changed
Circumstances Petition, which was submitted to the
United States Congress in 2000. As knowledgeable and
responsible leaders of the world community, the United
Nations has the capacity to positively influence the
well-being of the citizens of the Marshall Islands, who
were under the care of the Trusteeship Council when
the United States nuclear testing programme was in
progress — from 1946 to 1958 following the Second
World War.
 Marshall Islands reiterates its firm commitment
to the Treaty on the Non-proliferation of Nuclear
Weapons (NPT) and its objectives of preventing the
spread of nuclear weapons and weapons technology,
fostering the peaceful uses of nuclear energy and
furthering the goal of achieving general and complete
disarmament. We urge those countries that have not
already done so to become a party to the NPT, and
those countries that are party to the NPT to fully
cooperate with the International Atomic Energy
Agency and fulfil their obligations under the Treaty.
 Marshall Islands and French Polynesia know all
too well that colonial Powers are willing to use
territories other than their own to conduct dangerous
nuclear weapons testing. In that regard, we call on the
United Nations to continue to press for the
decolonization of all nations in the Pacific region.
 We also call on the United Nations to admit the
23 million citizens of Taiwan to the United Nations
family. Taiwan, which shares the Organization’s view
on the principles of universality and self-
determination, has been enjoying a democratic
Government of its own for over half a century. The fact
that Taiwan has been denied membership into the
United Nations again and again questions the
legitimacy of the Organization. On behalf of my
country, I therefore urge this body to welcome Taiwan
into its membership.
 Marshall Islands wishes to reiterate its support
for the reform, restructuring and expansion of the
Security Council. In particular, we emphasize the
inclusion of Japan as a permanent member of the
Council, and fully endorse Japan’s proposal on the
methodology to be used in the preparation of the
United Nations scale of assessments for the period
2007 to 2009. We are convinced that the entire
membership of the United Nations would benefit
greatly from Japan’s permanent membership and its
proposed scale of assessments structure.
 In the regional arena, last year Marshall Islands
joined two of its neighbours in requesting that the
United Nations step up its presence in the northern
Pacific to pursue various development agendas, not
only in our country but also in the Pacific region as a
whole. I am pleased to inform the Assembly today that
three United Nations agencies — the United Nations
Development Programme, the United Nations
Population Fund and UNICEF — have agreed to
establish offices in various countries in the region,
including the Marshall Islands.
 Moreover, our Government has been working
extensively with others in the region to implement the
Pacific Plan, endorsed at the Pacific Islands Forum
leaders’ meeting held in Papua New Guinea in October
2005. I wish to join my colleagues in thanking our
development partners for their assistance in making the
Plan viable. Marshall Islands remains confident that
the Pacific Plan will provide a useful framework for
continued regional and international cooperation.
 Internationally, the Marshall Islands joins other
Pacific countries in reiterating our interests and asking
the international community to recognize the
vulnerability of small island developing States. They
need the continued support of developed countries to
build up their capacity to manage vulnerability,
strengthen food security and build resilience to
economic, social and environmental change. We appeal
to the international community to support and enhance
existing and new capacity-building efforts of, and
among, small island developing States. We need the
assistance of the international community to establish
mechanisms to enable small island developing States to
cope with, and adjust to, globalization and trade
liberalization.
 Marshall Islands consists predominantly of low-
lying atolls that are an average of two metres above sea
level. Our small atolls and islands are dwarfed by our
surrounding exclusive economic zone, which consists
of approximately 2 million square kilometres of ocean.
While we rely on our ocean as a means of sustenance
and survival, the sea becomes our biggest concern
during increasingly severe weather conditions. We are
fearful of sea-level rise, which is threatening the very
existence of our islands.

06-53952 20

 We therefore wish to reaffirm our grave concern
regarding the vulnerability of small island developing
States to the impacts of climate change, as well as the
need for urgent action at the international level by the
major emitters of carbon dioxide among developed and
developing industrial countries to halt and reverse
those devastating climate change impacts.
 I wish to take this opportunity to thank President
Jan Eliasson for his excellent management of the
General Assembly presidency over the past year. I also
wish to congratulate him on his appointment as his
country’s Minister for Foreign Affairs. The General
Assembly accomplished a great deal under his able
leadership and I would like to commend him on his
achievements. I wish him well in his new post.
 The people of the Republic of the Marshall
Islands join me in wishing Secretary-General
Kofi Annan and Mrs. Nane Annan well in their future
endeavours. I wish to convey our sincere appreciation
for their gesture of friendship and goodwill during his
tenure as Secretary-General of the United Nations.
 In closing, I would like to assure the Assembly
that my country will continue to work with the United
Nations to meet our common challenges. Sixty-one
years on, General Assembly members must move
deliberately and decisively to overcome the dangers
that lie ahead. We must meet our responsibilities to our
respective countries and to each other as members of
the General Assembly to ensure that we arrive at a
better future.


Madam President, I would like at the outset to extend
my sincere congratulations to you and the brother
country of the Kingdom of Bahrain on your election as
the first Arab woman in the history of the United
Nations to preside over the General Assembly. I wish
you every success in your tasks during this session and
in realizing our aspirations, and achieving practical and
valuable results regarding items on the agenda.
 I would like to avail myself of this occasion to
express my warm thanks to your predecessor, Mr. Jan
Eliasson, for his brilliant presidency of last year’s
session.
 Allow me also to seize this opportunity to
reiterate Morocco’s appreciation of Mr. Kofi Annan for
the noble tasks he has been undertaking and for his
tireless efforts throughout his term to consolidate our
Organization’s international position and to revitalize
its role in the maintenance of international peace and
security. We equally appreciate his unfailing support
for regional and international development activities to
ensure the promotion of the United Nations
mechanisms and structures and thus reinforce their
effectiveness.
 The Kingdom of Morocco welcomes the
accession of the Republic of Montenegro to
membership of the United Nations and we assure it of
our constructive and continuous cooperation.
 This year’s session coincides with the 50th
anniversary of Morocco’s joining the United Nations.
They have been 50 years of clear and concrete
commitment to the purposes and principles of our
Organization aimed at fostering peace and security
worldwide and at consolidating development for the
benefit of all peoples and States, mainly in developing
countries.
 Joining the United Nations was one of the first
sovereign decisions Morocco made in the wake of
gaining its independence. It expressed the Kingdom’s
firm belief in the efficacy of multilateral action as one
of the most viable means of managing chronic crises
and as an appropriate tool to face growing international
challenges. It also reflects Morocco’s unfailing
commitment to the values of active solidarity and
fruitful cooperation, as expressed in a speech given by
the late King Mohammed V on 6 November 1956,
when he stated that
 “Morocco’s attachment to the principles
underpinning the United Nations reflects its
commitment to supporting freedom and peace
throughout the world and to establishing
international relations on the basis of arbitration
and concord, with no recourse whatsoever to
violence or force, and relying on cooperation and
solidarity rather than on animosity and
discrimination”.
 Since joining the United Nations, the Kingdom of
Morocco has endeavoured to contribute significantly to
helping our Organization attain its status as a central
actor in the establishment of international peace and
security, as well as in organizing and promoting
international relations to create a world order built on
cooperation, justice and international legality. The
Kingdom has always been an advocate of the principles
of international law, United Nations resolutions and
multilateral actions emanating from constructive
dialogue and ongoing consultations as the most viable
way to settle international conflicts and crises
peacefully.

06-53323 46

 Throughout that period, the Kingdom has
contributed to numerous United Nations peacekeeping
operations in demonstration of its commitment to
international peace and of its deeply rooted belief in
the importance of collective security and of the role of
the United Nations in that field. Today, our country is
contributing to five peacekeeping operations in Africa,
the Caribbean and Europe. That has earned Morocco
the thirteenth position among countries contributing to
peacekeeping operations internationally, the second at
the Arab level and the sixth at the African level.
 In addition, the Kingdom of Morocco has
launched a process aimed at establishing active
solidarity among members of the international
community through constructive and fruitful
partnerships between North and South, on the one
hand, and the reinforcement of South-South
cooperation as a strategic priority, on the other, in
order to achieve sustainable and balanced development
for the benefit of all.
 The Kingdom of Morocco has further
endeavoured to implement the recommendations
adopted at important United Nations meetings and
conferences on development issues, including the
Millennium Development Goals, which are in full
harmony with our national development strategy. In
that regard, the National Initiative for Human
Development, launched by His Majesty King
Mohammed VI on 18 May 2005, testifies to Morocco’s
willingness to lay the foundations for a development
model that embodies Morocco’s political choices and is
helping to establish a modern and democratic society.
Modernization, democratization and economic
development, as well as sustained human development
indicators, are interdependent in the quest for equitable
opportunities, the dissemination of knowledge and the
provision of basic social services.
 Our development initiative places a special
emphasis on the empowerment of the Moroccan citizen
as the focus of comprehensive development, in line
with the Secretary-General’s report of 2005, entitled
“In larger freedom: towards development, security and
human rights for all”.
 In that context, and in a spirit guided by universal
principles aimed at creating the necessary harmony
between Morocco’s international commitments and its
national priorities, a workshop on the promotion of
human rights was convened in Morocco. The workshop
was marked by the issuance of specific
recommendations upon the end of the mandate of our
equity and reconciliation commission, in a critical and
transparent evaluation of a specific period of
Morocco’s past with a sense of responsibility and a
constructive vision of its future.
 Since its inception, the United Nations has
contributed to the settlement of many international
disputes and the establishment of peace and security in
many regions. However, the Middle East and Africa
still suffer from many conflicts, wars and economic
and social crises that thwart peoples’ natural
aspirations to security, stability and development.
 In that regard, and having welcomed the Israeli
withdrawal from Gaza as a first step towards the
establishment of a Palestinian State in accordance with
the road map, Morocco hopes that the current dire
situation, which has led to even more killing and
destruction, will rapidly come to an end. Following the
failure of various international and regional efforts to
resume the peace process and settle the Arab-Israeli
conflict, the Kingdom of Morocco reiterates its call on
the international community, and the Security Council
in particular, to assume their responsibilities in the
search for a comprehensive and lasting solution to the
conflict, in accordance with the terms of reference of
the peace process, relevant United Nations resolutions
and international legality, as well as the principle of
land for peace.
 Concerning the military aggression against
brotherly Lebanon and the resultant loss of civilian life
and destruction of infrastructure and service facilities,
Morocco welcomed Security Council resolution 1701
(2006) and expresses its hope that all concerned parties
will cooperate in providing the appropriate political
conditions for a lasting settlement on the basis of the
Taif agreement and the relevant resolutions of the
Security Council. Morocco also calls upon the
international community to provide more cooperation
and solidarity in the reconstruction of Lebanon and to
support the success of efforts to achieve peace and
tranquillity for our brother Lebanese.
 As for the situation in the brotherly country of
Iraq, Morocco acknowledges the outcome of the
political process, in which all Iraqi parties and
influential political actors took part. However,
Morocco is still hoping for an end to the ongoing
violence, which continues to bring suffering to

47 06-53323

innocent Iraqi civilians. We hope that our Iraqi brothers
can agree, as soon as possible, on the time and venue
for a conference on Iraqi national accord, which could
help establish a basis for the completion of institutional
reforms thereby ensuring the sovereignty, territorial
integrity, security and stability of a unified and safe
Iraq.
 The Kingdom of Morocco, whose head of State,
His Majesty King Mohammed VI, chairs the Al-Quds
Committee of the Organization of the Islamic
Conference, reaffirms its commitment to work together
with all parties towards a just and comprehensive
peace in the Middle East. The achievement of that
objective will depend on the Israeli withdrawal from
all the occupied Arab territories and the establishment
of a Palestinian State, with Al-Quds Al-Sharif as its
capital, living side by side in peace and security with
the State of Israel.
 Morocco firmly believes in dialogue and
negotiations as a means of settling regional and
international disputes. It also considers that resorting to
force, whatever the reason or motives, will not yield
viable solutions or lead to a just, lasting and
comprehensive peace in the Middle East. On the
contrary, it will only exacerbate and prolong the status
quo.
 Morocco is equally convinced that peace in the
region can be achieved only if the United Nations
creates the right environment and works to eradicate
the causes of tension and escalation and coordinates
regional and international efforts aimed at reviving the
peace process on all tracks, with a view to ultimately
achieving security and lasting peace. In that way, the
peoples of the region would be able to move towards a
more promising future in which generations to come
can cooperate and live together in harmony.
 The African continent is facing a number of
serious threats and major challenges. It is currently
beset by many crises and conflicts that have proved
difficult to resolve. Indeed, half of the armed conflicts
in the world over the past decade have taken place in
Africa, which also hosts half of the world’s refugees.
The continent is also confronted by numerous
economic and social problems, including poverty,
hunger, desertification and infectious diseases, which
threaten the daily lives of millions of people.
 This critical situation, which should by no means
be considered inevitable, making Africa a priority for
the United Nations and for international development
programmes and agendas. However, programmes and
initiatives must be better harmonized and coordinated
if they are to create conditions conducive to sustainable
development in Africa. To that end, we must consider
creating an international mechanism that includes
experts in the fields of security and development to
supervise the implementation of the range of
international programmes and initiatives concerning
Africa.
 For its part, the Kingdom of Morocco will
continue to support all development efforts in Africa.
His Majesty King Mohammed VI, a champion of peace
and development whose enlightened and far-sighted
vision is based on a full and deep understanding of the
concerns of the continent, has introduced many
initiatives and visited many African countries with the
aim of strengthening the bonds of brotherhood,
cooperation and solidarity among African peoples.
 In this regard, Morocco calls for the holding next
year of a high-level dialogue on Africa and
development with a view to further intensifying the
development debate and consultation and establishing
mechanisms to guarantee the implementation of all
international initiatives aimed at making full use of the
continent’s huge economic and human potential in the
service of its development.
 In his first address to the General Assembly, His
Majesty the late King Mohammed V declared that the
Kingdom of Morocco had chosen negotiation as the
basis for its international relations, with a view to
reaching mutual agreements, freely arrived at, and
providing for peace, unity and solidarity among
nations. In keeping with that broad vision, the
Kingdom of Morocco has renewed its commitment to
cooperate with the Secretary-General and his Personal
Envoy in order to find a lasting, negotiated and
mutually acceptable political solution to the dispute
over the Moroccan Sahara.
 In this respect, and in response to the call of the
Security Council to break the current deadlock and
make progress towards a political, consensus-based
and final solution to the dispute, Morocco will present
an autonomy plan that would enable the inhabitants of
the region to manage their local affairs within the
framework of the national sovereignty and territorial
integrity of the Kingdom of Morocco.

06-53323 48

 To that end, nationwide consultations were
launched in November 2005 with all political actors
and local representatives of the region, within the
framework of the Royal Consultative Council for
Saharan Affairs, whose membership has been renewed,
structure modernized and mandate strengthened. This
process has been carried out on the basis of
participation and transparency aimed at encouraging
the adherence of all parties to the notion of autonomy.
This experience is unique in the Arab North African
region.
 More than ever, the world needs a more efficient
United Nations that can translate into reality the
aspirations and expectations of all the peoples of the
world, uphold the principles of international legality
and foster the spirit of multilateralism through
innovative mechanisms, value-added components and
new ideas that can yield positive results.
 As it has done over the past 50 years, the
Kingdom of Morocco will contribute to strengthening
the principles of the Organization and enhancing its
work in the service of peace, development and accord
among all peoples of the world.


In 2006, several important anniversaries coincide and
provide a background for our debate. For the United
Nations, 2006 represents a new opportunity to assess
progress since the adoption six years ago of the
package of commitments generally known as the
Millennium Development Goals, which received
renewed impetus during the 2005 World Summit. The
outcome of that summit provides the main theme of our
debate during this Assembly, as well as the guidelines
for the reform of our Organization. For this great city,
the site of the Headquarters of our Organization, 2006
marks the fifth anniversary of the tragic events of
11 September 2001, which altered history forever. For
Guatemala, 2006 marks the tenth anniversary of the
signing of the Peace Accords that put an end to a
bloody internal conflict lasting over four decades. For
our Secretary-General, it marks the end of his 10-year
term, which has had a highly positive result: a result
that I want to acknowledge and for which I would like
to thank him.
 I will move on to address some of these
substantial issues. But before doing so, I would like to
state our appreciation of Mr. Jan Eliasson’s
stewardship and exceptional leadership of the previous
session of this Assembly. At the same time, we
welcome your election, Madam President, and have no
doubt that you will bring us to a safe port.
 I should like to allude very briefly to four
matters: compliance with the Guatemalan Peace
Accords, a process in which the United Nations
participated very closely; follow-up of the 2005 World
Summit, especially Millennium Goal 8, namely, to
foster a global partnership for development; our views
on certain aspects of United Nations reform; and our
views on certain positive developments that affect
international relations.
 The brief time allotted to me does not allow me
to go into detail, but it is undeniable that we have
advanced substantially in the direction of giving
concrete expression to the vision contained in the
Peace Accords. More to the point, if we contrast
today’s Guatemala to that of 1996, we now have a
society that is more plural, tolerant, deliberative and
participative than in the past. Our representative
democracy is taking root, after three free and
transparent elections. The army is truly subordinated to

06-52885 2

the civil Government. Important progress has been
achieved in strengthening a multi-ethnic and
multilingual society. The State is committed to
respecting of civil, political and human rights and to
promoting greater participation of women in our
society. Significant efforts have been in strengthening
the administration of justice and consolidating the rule
of law. The proportion of public expenditure assigned
to the provision of social services has increased
significantly in the past few years. We have assisted the
victims of the conflict through a programme of
reparation payments. We promote the National Front
against Hunger as a priority of my Government.
Likewise, we recently adopted a policy on rural
development, which was prepared and will be
implemented with the participation of entrepreneurs,
peasants and trade unions.
 At the same time, we recognize that much
remains to be done. Human rights violations persist,
often linked to an increase in crime, including
organized crime. It is for this reason that we invited the
United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights
to open an office in Guatemala and to join us in
strengthening our own capacity to defend and protect
vulnerable groups. We have also invited the United
Nations to support an initiative to establish a
commission to investigate illicit and clandestine
groups. Furthermore, we have promoted domestic
legislation to combat the scourge of crime, including
the recently promulgated law against organized crime.
 The commitments contained in the Peace Accords
entail serious budgetary implications. To address them,
we recently sent to Congress, and Congress approved,
an act to combat tax evasion. At the same time, we
have forged a broad consensus on an agreed tax
package that ensures the financing of future
development through improvements in the allocation
and administration of public expenditures and the
collection of taxes.
 My Government assigns priority to the
recognition of the identity and rights of indigenous
peoples. In this regard, we trust that the General
Assembly will soon adopt the Draft Declaration on the
Rights of Indigenous Peoples, which saw light in the
Human Rights Council and which will contribute to
achieving the Millennium Development Goals.
 In summary, our Government Plan has embraced
the Peace Accords and is committed nationally to
complying with them. In 2005, a Framework Act on the
Peace Accords was passed in order to strengthen the
institutional aspects of the peace process. One of our
goals is to achieve socio-economic development that is
participatory and responds to the needs of the entire
population.
 This leads me to the second item, namely, the
Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). Indeed, a
major part of our Government programme is entirely
consistent with those goals, especially with regard to
combating poverty and hunger and achieving universal
primary education. Our policies, which emphasize rural
development, take an approach that favours the poorest
strata of our society. The efforts undertaken have been
based mostly on domestic resources — Government
and civil society — but we have also received support
from the international community in the context of a
genuine partnership.
 The international community’s respect for our
priorities has grown, and it has increasingly adapted its
methods to our budgetary procedures. From our
country’s point of view, significant progress has been
achieved since the International Conference on
Financing for Development was held in 2002. We have
also noted a reversal, over the past four years, in the
earlier trend towards declining official development
assistance (ODA). It is hoped that the new trend of
increasing ODA will persist and accelerate, especially
in favour of the least developed countries.
 In contrast to the relatively encouraging picture
in the area of financing for development, it is a source
of great concern that the negotiations of the Doha
Development Round have been suspended. That is a
serious setback for the global economy and especially
for the chances of developing countries to improve
their participation in international trade.
 If the potential of the Development Round is not
salvaged, which must include the dismantling of
agricultural subsidies as well as other restrictive
practices of trade in agricultural products that persist
among the main developed economies, it will be
difficult to continue referring to a global partnership
for development as posited by the Millennium
Development Goals. In that regard, it is urgently
necessary to renew the negotiations of the Doha Round
under the aegis of the World Trade Organization. On
that subject, we also support the strengthening of
South-South cooperation in all areas.

3 06-52885

 Moving on now to the third part of my remarks,
we believe that the reforms undertaken at the United
Nations since 2000, and in particular since the 2005
Summit, have been significant and headed in the right
direction. We identify with the new Human Rights
Council, of which we are a member, and support the
fulfilment of its role in promoting and protecting
human rights at the global level.
 We also understand the considerable potential of
the new Peacebuilding Commission to contribute to the
joint work of the Security Council and the Economic
and Social Council for the benefit of countries now in
post-conflict situations. We promote the revitalization
and strengthening of the General Assembly as the only
universal body with enough legitimacy to debate and
adopt policies, as prescribed by the Charter and as
agreed in the Millennium Declaration and at the 2005
Summit.
 We reiterate our strong support for the Economic
and Social Council as a meeting place to foster
sustainable development. We especially applaud the
decision to convene a high-level meeting on
development cooperation every two years. We add our
voices to all the others urging an end to the stalemate
in the discussions on Security Council reform. The
parameters of that debate are well known. For our part,
we have historically favoured a moderate expansion in
the number of non-permanent members, but more
recently, we have signalled that we could support any
formula that would be capable of bringing about a
consensus, including the expansion of members in both
categories. We also support a more representative,
transparent and effective Council.
 We are candidates for a non-permanent seat on
the Council for the biennium 2007-2008, because we
believe that our experience as a country that made the
transition from conflict to peace and democracy
provides us with insights that would contribute to the
work of the Council. In addition, we are one of the few
original signatories of the Charter that have not yet had
the opportunity to serve in the work of that body. If
elected to the Security Council, we commit ourselves
to carrying out our responsibilities in a professional,
responsible and dignified manner — in the
representation of our region — and also to promote
from within the reform of that crucial forum for
assuring peace and stability in the world.
 My country’s foreign policy is in accordance with
our national interests based on improved participation
by Guatemala in the globalized world, as well as the
strengthening of multilateralism and regional
integration. We have promoted a deeper integration
with our immediate neighbours in Central America,
and important progress in the establishment of a
customs union has been achieved. We, the five Central
American countries, have also agreed on a free trade
agreement with the United States of America, and in
2007, will begin negotiations on an association
agreement with the European Union.
 Moreover, my Government has endeavoured to
deepen its bilateral relations with Belize, while at the
same time seeking to find a definitive, just, equitable
and honourable solution to the territorial dispute
between our countries. Thus, on 7 September 2005, we
signed, under the auspices of the Organization of
American States, an Agreement on a Framework for
Negotiations and Confidence-Building Measures,
which covers a wide range of subjects and will bring us
closer. One of the tangible results of that effort has
been a free trade agreement signed just a few months
ago.
 Guatemala participated actively in the High-level
Dialogue on International Migration and Development
held in this same Hall less than a week ago. In that
context, we emphasize that attention to the situation of
Guatemalan migrants is another priority of my
Government. An essential element of the public policy
on that subject is full respect for the human rights of all
migrants, an element which will only be fulfilled when
all States become parties to the International
Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All
Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families.
 My Government is working with the recipient
countries, in particular with the United States of
America, to promote comprehensive migration reform
that would include mechanisms to manage the supply
of workers in the countries of origin and the demand
for workers in the recipient countries. That would help
regularize the situation of emigrants, whose
contribution to the well-being of their communities is
substantial, and would make it possible to overcome
the great vulnerability of our population.
 We feel solidarity with other countries that have
endured under conflict situations. This is why we have
taken part in an increasing number of United Nations

06-52885 4

peacekeeping operations. We are proud of our
presence, along with many other Latin American
countries, in our neighbour Haiti, and we celebrate the
democratically elected Government of President René
Préval. We also have troops in the Democratic
Republic of the Congo and military observers in six
other countries in the African continent.
 We deplore the violence that has affected several
countries in the Middle East, in particular Lebanon. We
call for a solution that will allow Israel and a sovereign
Palestinian State to live in peace within safe borders in
the wider context of a region that finds its own destiny
in harmony and progress.
 Given the importance of coordination among
States of the region, Guatemala organized, from 11 to
13 September 2006, the first regional security meeting
of Central America and the Dominican Republic, with
the goal of achieving a consensus among the countries
of the Central American group, as well as Mexico,
Colombia, Belize and the Dominican Republic, to
develop a comprehensive strategy and to counteract the
main threats to the area, a consensus to unify the
security policies and procedures already agreed and
contained in multilateral regional and international
agreements, treaties and conventions, as well as those
adopted at summit meetings. We hope we can continue
to count on the support of the international community
and of the United Nations to organize three more
meetings to complete the development of that strategy.
 It is important to emphasize that Guatemala is
organizing, jointly with Transparency International, the
12th International Anti-Corruption Conference, from
15 to 18 November this year. The theme for the
conference will be “Towards a fairer world: Why is
corruption still blocking the way?” This effort reflects
my Government’s firm commitment to fight the
scourge of corruption that has corroded our institutions
for many years and has prevented our citizens from
making the transition to a more just country. On that
note, you are all welcome, and we are eager to share
our challenges, progress and difficulties in this
common struggle.
 Under your leadership, Madam President, at this
session the General Assembly will have to address
issues of great importance for humanity and for our
Organization. Guatemala pledges to participate actively
in the debates planned for this year. From this moment
on, we offer you our full cooperation for the success of
your presidency.


On behalf of
the General Assembly, I have the honour to welcome to
the United Nations His Excellency Mr. Omer Hassan
Al-Bashir, President of the Republic of the Sudan, and
to invite him to address the Assembly.
 President Al-Bashir (spoke in Arabic): It gives
me great pleasure, Madam, to extend my warmest
congratulations to you on your election as President of
the General Assembly at its sixty-first session. There is
no doubt that your election is an honour for us, because
of the excellent relations between our two sisterly
countries. I am fully confident that you will lead our
deliberations to a successful conclusion. I would like
also to commend your predecessor, Mr. Jan Eliasson,
for the efficient way in which he guided the work of
the previous session. I seize this opportunity,
furthermore, to express our appreciation for the
endeavours of the United Nations Secretariat in the
past period.
 The Members of the United Nations are about to
select a new Secretary-General. We hope that they will
choose a new Secretary-General who will undertake his
duties in a neutral, objective and transparent manner,
so that our Organization can achieve the purposes to
which we all aspire, serving the international
community in achieving peace, stability and global
prosperity.
 I take this opportunity to welcome the Republic
of Montenegro to membership of this Organization.
 This session has special importance for my
country. It occurs on the fiftieth anniversary of the
Sudan joining the United Nations after it gained its
independence in the mid-twentieth century. The five
decades that have passed since then have strengthened
the aspirations of our country and our people for an
effective and fair United Nations, as well as our
conviction that the independence and political freedom
achieved by our country, as well as our hopes for a
bright, prosperous and developed future, could be
destroyed by the challenges of the present phase,
including the double standards, the dangers of
hegemony and the use of international forums to
achieve political, economic or strategic objectives.
 The Government and the people of the Sudan
eagerly seek peace, which has become our strategic
objective. Because of our sincere will and strong
desire, peace has become a living reality. In January
2005 we witnessed the signing of the Comprehensive
Peace Agreement. That Agreement did merely address
the causes of the dispute between the south and the
north, but offered fair solutions to all the problems
faced by our country. It established political rules for a
system that recognizes citizenship as a basis for rights
and duties, and that recognizes diversity and considers
it to be a source of strength and unity. The system is

06-52737 44

based on power-sharing, democratic principles, the rule
of law, good governance and respect for human rights
and freedoms.
 In the economic area, that Agreement establishes
rules for wealth-sharing in accordance with criteria of
fairness, brotherhood and equality between the central
Government and the provinces of the south and the
north. The Agreement is based on sound principles and
standards of justice and thus establishes the correct
rules for a comprehensive peace, which should prevail
throughout the country.
 The implementation of the Agreement has
progressed at the national level. A Government of
National Unity has been formed, as was a Government
of South Sudan. Legislative bodies have also been
established, as well as the National Constitutional
Review Commission, the National Judicial Services
Commission and the National Petroleum Commission.
All options were presented to the President, who
selected the best among them. At the moment, serious
efforts continue to complete work on the other
commissions realistically, objectively and with good
intentions. We have also begun, in cooperation with the
United Nations, to prepare for the return of refugees
and displaced persons, some of whom have already
returned.
 We were convinced that peace would not fully
succeed unless it also prevailed among our people in
Darfur. I am pleased to convey to the Assembly that in
May we were able to sign the Darfur Peace Agreement,
in Abuja. That had been a principal objective since the
conflict in that region began. We express our deep
gratitude and appreciation to all those who contributed
to bringing about that great achievement, prominent
among them the African Union, which has contributed
troops since the beginning of the crisis and has
sponsored the negotiations on the issue. We also thank
sisterly Nigeria, which has hosted the negotiations, and
the other partners who have worked to bring the
divergent views closer together and have spared no
effort in pushing the parties towards an agreement. The
great role undertaken by the African Union in Darfur is
proof of what regional organizations can do to settle
disputes in their regions.
 That pioneering experiment should impel the
Security Council to encourage all such organizations
and genuinely and objectively support them in the
maintenance of regional peace and security, in
accordance with the United Nations Charter and
without their efforts being aborted or their roles
pre-empted by certain hegemonic parties that have
their own illegal agendas.
 We have begun steps to implement the
Agreement, through ongoing consultations with the
African Union and the Sudanese parties that are
signatories to the Agreement, in particular concerning
security arrangements, the sharing of power and wealth
and the return of displaced persons, in addition to
preparing for the Darfur-Darfur dialogue.
 We have buttressed the implementation effort —
which is being carried out according to a timetable —
by appointing Mr. Minni Arko Minawi, leader of the
Sudan Liberation Movement, as senior assistant to the
President and Chairman of the Transitional Darfur
Regional Authority. the Authority will be responsible
for enforcing the provisions of the Agreement. Those
steps will take us to the final phase: completion of all
the mechanisms necessary to implement the
Agreement.
 Here we reaffirm the Government of National
Unity’s commitment to the Agreement in letter and in
spirit. I take the opportunity to sincerely invite all the
parties that have not yet signed the Agreement or
joined the peace process to do so, in order to
consolidate national efforts towards attaining stability.
 If the armed factions continue to refuse to join
the peace efforts, and persist in violence against and
intimidation of citizens, they must be isolated and
prevented from acting, in accordance with the Abuja
Peace Agreement, which also stipulates that efforts by
all signatories to the Agreement should be encouraged,
in order to accelerate full implementation in letter and
in spirit. The international community would thus be
enabled to assist us in strengthening our capacity to
bring about rehabilitation and reconstruction.
 We hope and expect that the international
community will fulfil its commitments concerning the
cancellation of all of our foreign debt to States or to
financial institutions, and will lift all restrictions and
economic and trade sanctions that had been imposed by
some international parties. These are impeding our
reconstruction and development efforts. We will thus
be able to shoulder the burden of reconstruction,
increase the rate of growth and provide a life of dignity
for our people.

45 06-52737

 It is regrettable that some influential international
parties, rather than fulfilling their pledges and
commitments and respecting the provisions of the
Abuja Peace Agreement, continue instead to undermine
those efforts through unfair and unjustifiable pressures
and partiality, and through the negative signals that
they send to non-signatories of the Abuja Agreement.
This has culminated in the exploitation of the Security
council, which has adopted resolutions that serve those
parties’ interests and strategies, such as Council
resolution 1706 (2006) which seeks to undermine
national and regional endeavours to implement the
Abuja Agreement, as that resolution contradicts the
Agreement in letter and in spirit. Indeed, it would place
our country under the trusteeship of those influential
parties. That makes it imperative to continue our
efforts to implement the Abuja Agreement and to
mobilize the resources and funding necessary to
achieve a sustainable peace in Darfur, so that our
country and our region can enjoy the fruits of that
peace.
Mr. Jenie (Indonesia), Vice-President, took the
Chair.
 Our country refuses all forms of dictates and all
attempts to humiliate it and usurp its national will. It
wholly rejects any attempts to re-colonize us in a new,
sly manner. Thus we reject all attempts to impose new
international forces in Darfur without taking into
account Darfur’s special circumstances and without
consultations with the Government of Sudan. The
subject has become, in itself, a goal in the service of
some internal political objectives of some parties.
 World leaders who met here last September to
follow up the results of the Millennium Summit
adopted a document that calls for reform of the United
Nations, the promotion of international peace and
security, respect for human rights, adoption of
collective measures to combat poverty and bringing
about development and, in particular as regards issues
pertaining to funding development based on the
Monterrey Consensus.
 What has been agreed to with regard to
promoting the role of the United Nations calls upon us
to work collectively with the necessary political will,
particularly on the part of the permanent members of
the Security Council. That should enable the
Organization to carry out its work in a truly democratic
manner.
 In this context, we call for agreement on reform
of the Security Council and updating its working
methods. The Council’s present composition does not
achieve this; it is an impediment to what we are
seeking — real democracy in the management of
international relations. What makes the call for reform
more imperative is the eruption of conflicts that
threaten peace and security without the Council
making any effective move to contain them. A good
case in point are the tragic developments in the Middle
East. The Council watched helplessly while those
developments occurred. This emphasizes the point that
structural and institutional reform of the Security
Council has become more imperative today than ever
before.
 In this context, my delegation reaffirms its
commitment to the African position as stipulated in the
Ezulwini document, a position that was reiterated at the
African summits held in Serte, Khartoum and Banjul.
 The follow-up to the outcome of the Millennium
Summit has shown clearly that what has been achieved
has not met our expectations, particularly in regard to
the African continent, which is bleeding to death under
its debt burden and is facing an incompatible, non-
conducive economic and trade environment. The
problems of hunger, poverty and disease in Africa have
reached very serious dimensions and constitute a great
threat to the international community. They will
continue to haunt us unless efforts by the international
community are consolidated in order to accelerate
fairer development in developing countries,
particularly in the least developed ones. It will be
impossible to reach the Millennium Development Goal
of reducing poverty by half by the year 2015. The
correct path towards achieving the MDGs requires that
we emphasize the importance of total debt
cancellation, as debts are a great impediment to
bringing about those goals, particularly in Africa and in
the least developed countries.
 We attach great importance to the fact that
developed countries should fulfil their commitments
concerning financing for development and
implementing the Brussels Programme of Action for
the Least Developed Countries. They should work to
reform financing institutions, which will promote
transparency and lead to larger representation for
developing countries in such institutions. They should
increase technical and financial assistance so that an
investment environment for the private sector can be

06-52737 46

created, suitable infrastructures can be brought about,
the environment can be protected and corruption can be
combated.
 The imposition of unilateral coercive economic
measures on developing countries constitutes an
impediment to freedom of commerce and investment.
Funding issues and the transfer of technology are still
main components of sustainable development. Here we
would like to emphasize the provision of assistance to
the least developed countries in social services,
education, health care, and for combating diseases such
as AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria, which kill millions
of people every year.
 We seize this opportunity to reaffirm once again
our commitment to what we agreed on in the
Millennium Declaration and to reaching the Goals
contained therein for a better life for humanity as a
whole, with full emphasis on the right of developing
countries to determine their own development
priorities without restrictions or prior conditions that
would hinder their development efforts. We would like
to highlight also the importance of guaranteeing that
the proposed new financing mechanisms will not
negatively impact investment flows.
 The Sudan has made great efforts towards
achieving those Goals and has achieved noticeable
progress, particularly in reducing the poverty rate and
expanding public education, despite the unjust embargo
and the longstanding conflict in the south of the
country.
 My country has expressed its condemnation of
terrorism in all its forms and manifestations and has
called for the adoption of an international strategy to
combat it. In this context, we believe that the definition
of terrorism distinguishes it clearly from the just
struggle by people to preserve their legitimate right to
defend their freedom and the right to self-
determination. That must be the main pillar on which
the international community should fully agree. The
Sudan believes in the international campaign to combat
the phenomenon of terrorism, in accordance with the
United Nations Charter, principles of international law
and the inviolability of the sovereignty of States.
 The question of Palestine is a story that embodies
the suffering of a people that has been deprived of its
political and economic rights. The Israeli occupation
continues to be a heavy burden on the legitimate
Palestinian dreams to bring about freedom and
development. The international community must force
Israel to fulfil the obligations it has undertaken,
including the road map, halting construction of the
separation wall, and heeding the Advisory Opinion of
the International Court of Justice issued in July 2004.
This was adopted by the General Assembly at its tenth
emergency session, enabling the Palestinian people to
exercise its right to self-determination and to establish
an independent State, with Al-Quds Al-Sharif as its
capital.
 We renew our full support to the Palestinian
people and its elected institutions. We call on the
international community to respect the choices made
by the Palestinian people and to shoulder its
responsibilities vis-à-vis the Palestinian
Government — which has come about through free and
fair elections — to lift the embargo imposed against it
and to support it. We call upon the international
community to pressure Israel to halt its ongoing
aggression against the Gaza Strip and release the
abducted Palestinian ministers and parliamentarians.
 The Israeli aggression against Lebanon last
August, which targeted innocent civilians — women
and children — has shaken the world’s conscience.
This is a flagrant violation of international
humanitarian law and agreements. We would like to
express our full solidarity with the people and the
Government of Lebanon and with the resistance. We
commend their steadfastness in the face of this flagrant
aggression, and we hold Israel responsible for the
destruction and the sabotage of brotherly Lebanon. We
call for the establishment of an international
commission to investigate the war crimes perpetrated
by Israel, and we call also on international, regional
and volunteer organizations to intensify their
emergency efforts to provide assistance to the victims.
 We have always been convinced that the volatility
of the situation in the Middle East and the ongoing
tensions are due to the Israeli occupation, and that a
comprehensive settlement of the Arab-Israeli conflict
and the advent of peace in the region cannot be
achieved unless Israel withdraws completely from all
the territories occupied since 1967, including the
occupied Syrian Golan and the Shab’a farms.
 We wish to emphasize in that context the
importance of making the Middle East a zone free of
weapons of mass destruction, with no exceptions, in

47 06-52737

order to bring about security and stability, which would
benefit all the peoples of the region.
 We reiterate our support for Iraq and its territorial
integrity. We believe that its sovereignty should extend
to all its territory, and we call on all segments of Iraqi
society to engage in dialogue with a view to resolving
their problems. We welcome the initiative of the
League of Arab States to hold a national reconciliation
conference, and we support all sincere efforts aimed at
bringing stability to brotherly Iraq, so that it can
resume its rightful place in the regional context.
 In Somalia, there have been recent positive
developments in the reconciliation process led by the
Sudan, in coordination with the Arab League, which
have led to the Somali Transitional Federal
Government signing an agreement with the Islamic
Courts Union and a reconciliation statement in
Khartoum in June 2006. There is no doubt that this will
promote the reconciliation efforts currently led at the
regional level by the Intergovernmental Authority on
Development (IGAD). We hope that our brothers in
Somalia will continue the dialogue and promote
reconciliation efforts in order to bring about stability
and security, so that sisterly Somalia can transcend this
very difficult phase.
 We are fully convinced that Africa is rich in
human resources and cultural heritage and that it has
the material and human means to ensure a bright future
for itself. However, Africa faces many complex
challenges, such as the achievement of stability and
development.
 Unless all of Africa works in a united and
concerted manner, it will not be possible to realize our
aspirations. We in Africa, more than anyone else, are
responsible for translating those aspirations into reality.
We are prepared to work, in an effective partnership
with others, to do so. That will benefit our African
peoples and contribute to stability at the international
level, as envisaged by the New Partnership for Africa’s
Development initiative.
 The Great Lakes region is emerging from a
lengthy and deadly conflict, which has given way to a
phase in which democracy is taking root. The
International Conference for the Great Lakes Region,
which is still in the preparatory stages and is aimed at
defining conditions and criteria conducive to ongoing
regional cooperation among the States of the region,
will hold its second summit next December in Nairobi
to adopt a treaty on security and stability in the region.
The process is facilitated by the United Nations, the
African Union and some of our partners and is tangible
proof of the genuine political will of the countries of
the region. It is a unique initiative to build peace in the
region.
 I should like from this rostrum to call on the
international community to step up the pace in the
provision of the financial and political support
necessary to push this treaty forward and ensure its
adoption for the Great Lakes region. We call for
support for the implementation of that treaty, so that
the peoples of the region will cease being victimized
by disputes, humanitarian disasters or insecurity and be
able to realize their aspirations to peace, stability and
development.


It
gives me pleasure at the outset to congratulate you,
Madam President, on your election to the presidency of
the General Assembly at its sixty-first session. I wish
you every success in your endeavours. I should also
like to thank your predecessor, Mr. Jan Eliasson, for
his efforts during the Assembly’s sixtieth session. Our
thanks also go to Mr. Kofi Annan, who has been
working to strengthen the role of the United Nations.
 During the September 2005 Summit, the
international community reaffirmed its commitment to
the global partnership for development in order to
achieve internationally agreed development objectives.
The United Nations system remains one of the most
important pillars of international support for that
partnership. I wish to recall here that the State of Qatar
has always been a supportive partner in development
efforts, particularly in combating poverty, because all
that has positive results for stability and international
peace and security.
 In 2001 Qatar hosted the Fourth Ministerial
Conference of the World Trade Organization, which
culminated in the Doha Ministerial Declaration. It also
hosted the South Summit in 2005, in which His
Highness Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Thani, Emir of
the State of Qatar, launched his initiative to establish
the South’s Fund for Development and Humanitarian
Assistance. Moreover, His Highness reaffirmed Qatar’s
commitment to meet the internationally agreed official
development assistance target relative to its gross
national product. His Highness also offered to host the
first Review Conference of the International
Conference on Financing for Development. I am
pleased to note that the State of Qatar will be hosting
the Sixth International Conference of New or Restored
Democracies, scheduled for 30 October to 1 November
this year.
 I should also like to recall here that Qatar has
extended emergency and disaster relief assistance and
made many contributions to the various United Nations
funds and programmes.
 We must work to strengthen the role of the United
Nations and revitalize and support its institutions so
that they can carry out the tasks entrusted to them in
different parts of the world. However, if the
Organization is to discharge its role in full, its Charter
must be adhered to and respected. Furthermore, an
agreement must be reached on a new formula to reform
the Security Council and update its working methods.
The General Assembly must be allowed to play its role
in the maintenance of international peace and security
alongside the Security Council.
 We were shocked and astonished at the
disproportionate Israeli response against fraternal
Lebanon, which killed hundreds of innocent civilians,
totally decimated its infrastructure and left scores of
Lebanese towns and villages in ruins. It has also
displaced one quarter of Lebanon’s population, which
is indeed a full-scale war crime.
 The Arab-Israeli conflict and the Palestinian
question must be accorded top priority, for which a
comprehensive, permanent and just solution is urgently
needed. The Palestinian question is an example of
suffering visited upon a people whose legitimate rights
were denied, a question that has been on the agendas of

27 06-52879

the Security Council and the General Assembly for
more than 50 years. Therefore the international
community must review its position towards a
fundamental issue that it has left unresolved for more
than half a century, thus compounding the tragedy of
the Palestinian people.
 Compelling Israel to implement United Nations
resolutions is a collective duty that we must all fulfil so
that international legitimacy will not be branded as
selective. The Palestinian people must be enabled to
exercise their right to self-determination and to
establish their independent State with Jerusalem as its
capital.
 A comprehensive, peaceful settlement of the
Arab-Israeli conflict should also be achieved, on the
basis of Israel’s withdrawal from all the territories it
occupied in 1967, including the Syrian Golan and the
Lebanese Sheba’a farms. We also stress that the
guarantee of permanent peace, security and stability in
the region lies in making the Middle East a zone free
from all weapons of mass destruction without any
exceptions.
 The difficult situation in fraternal Iraq requires
our cooperation in order to help it overcome this
untenable situation and its repercussions. We have
continuously reaffirmed our commitment to the unity
and sovereignty of Iraq, to the rights of Iraqis to live in
dignity and freedom and to rebuild their country, and
for Iraq to regain its well-deserved place in the region
and among the family of nations.
 We want to pay tribute to the Government of the
Sudan, which after tireless efforts has succeeded in
establishing peace in the south of the country. It
continues its sincere efforts to achieve security and
stability in different parts of the country. We fully
support those efforts and look forward to more support
from the international community to fraternal Sudan in
order to preserve its unity and territorial integrity.
 We also support ongoing efforts by the League of
Arab States to achieve national reconciliation in
fraternal Somalia and to restore the rule of law in that
country. We call upon the international community to
support those efforts so that stability and security can
be restored to Somalia.
 We reaffirm the important role of the United
Nations and the need to enhance it so that it can put
international relations on a solid foundation of
understanding and common interests. We also stress the
importance of resolving conflicts and disputes by
peaceful means and of cooperation among all nations
to end violence and combat terrorism. We must avoid
squandering our resources and wasting our energies on
wars and conflicts. Instead, we should channel them
towards development and progress. We look forward to
a new world governed by the principles of justice,
equality, freedom, democracy and peaceful coexistence
among its peoples, nations and civilizations.