Volume XXXV     Number 1 1998     Department of Public Information

As Assembly Adopts Reform Proposals,
Member States Agree UN Financial Problems Need to Be Addressed, Make Suggestions

The urgency of reforming the United Nations and, in particular, the importance of adopting the comprehensive reform package presented by Secretary-General Kofi Annan highlighted the general debate at the General Assembly’s fifty-second session. During these two weeks, speakers from 176 countries presented their Governments’ views on a wide range of issues. In the course of 24 plenary meetings, 18 Heads of State or Government addressed the Assembly—six more than the previous year. Statements were made by one Crown Prince, 14 Prime Ministers, 16 Deputy Prime Ministers and Foreign Ministers, 111 Ministers for Foreign Affairs, and 16 other heads of delegation. The importance of the United Nations reform was underlined by the fact that, for the first time in history, the Secretary-General addressed the Assembly at the outset of the general debate. In stressing the urgency of advancing the United Nations reform in order to resolve the Organization’s financial crisis, Mr. Annan called for the current session to be remembered as “the reform General Assembly”. Although a number of speakers did suggest that certain reform proposals required further consideration, the Secretary-General’s reform efforts obtained strong political support, with virtually all Member States welcoming his strategic leadership and calling for the endorsement of the reform package in principle. The deepening financial crisis of the Organization gave the deliberations on the future role of the United Nations a new seriousness and a sense of urgency. Andorra proposed to pay an additional 10 per cent of its annual assessment to the revolving fund, on the condition that debtor countries paid their past dues in full. Japan advocated investing the savings of the United Nations reforms to be accrued for reforms in the development programmes. However, although many Member States felt that the financial problems urgently needed to be addressed, there was no consensus over the ways in which the crisis could best be resolved. Much attention was also devoted to the reform of the Security Council. Virtually all Member States felt that an expansion of the Council, in terms of both permanent and non-permanent membership, was urgently needed to strengthen its equitable representative character to reflect the new global and regional realities in a changing world. India, supported by Mauritius and Bhutan, stated that it was willing to accept the responsibilities of a permanent seat. Italy proposed that, in a longer-term perspective, a permanent seat should go to the European Union. Jordan favoured a permanent seat for the Arab group. Indonesia proposed that two permanent seats, instead of only one, should be reserved for the developing countries of Asia. Guinea-Bissau and Benin stressed that Africa had the right to not only two permanent seats, but also two additional non-permanent seats. In his concluding remarks at the end of the general debate, Assembly President Hennadiy Udovenko of Ukraine characterized the deliberations as “vivid testimony to the universal character of our Organization”, which showed Member States engaged in an “eloquent, vigorous, focused and thought-provoking discussion on issues of global significance”. “The Organization depends to a decisive extent on what we are saying or doing”, he said. “It is in our hands to agree on what kind of United Nations we wish to have in the future.” Peace and Security Conflict prevention was another issue that Member States wanted to see highlighted in the years ahead. Political discussions on the continued need for peacekeeping operations under the United Nations umbrella revealed an increased emphasis on the role of preventive action in dealing with violent conflicts. A number of countries called for an increase in the rapid-reaction capability of the United Nations. Gabon suggested the installation of an early warning mechanism for Central Africa. Canada pledged $1 million for conflict prevention: half of it would go to the new United Nations trust fund for preventive action, and the second half would be spent on the establishment in Bosnia and Herzegovina of a non-governmental organization foundation to help develop a civic society along the lines of multi-ethnic cooperation. Disarmament Many representatives recognized that important progress had been achieved in the field of disarmament, and mentioned recent developments and treaties, such as the one banning anti-personnel mines, the Non-Proliferation Treaty, the Chemical Weapons Convention, and the Comprehensive Test-Ban Treaty. A number of Developing Countries stressed that nuclear disarmament questions should be kept on the agenda of the international community. Norway pledged to contribute $100 million for mine clearance and assistance to mine victims over a five-year period. Canada stated that it would destroy its remaining stocks of anti-personnel mine before the signature of the treaty, and Korea extended its moratorium on the export of landmines for an indefinite period. The Environment Environmental issues were also of major concern. The United Kingdom and Germany announced they had set targets to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases by 20 and 25 per cent. Solomon Islands pledged to enact legislation that would enable it to meet its obligations under the Framework Convention on Climate Change. And the Marshall Islands suggested that studies be undertaken that could assist populations that were suffering from the effects of atomic radiation. Social and Economic Issues Also, the global dimensions of the instability of financial markets and the growth of the arms trade and organized crime, especially drug trafficking and terrorism, were often mentioned as urgent cases that highlighted problems resulting from unchecked forces of globalization. In this context, a number of speakers stressed the preventive and policy-setting role of the United Nations and the Bretton Woods institutions. Human Rights Detailed attention was given to human rights. While their observance was universally recognized as a key goal for all United Nations Member States, some delegations also stressed that cultural differences entailed different approaches to various human rights issues. Public Administration The principles of good governance and democratization should be further promoted, many speakers felt. Observing that corruption undermined economic growth, most delegates noted that the United Nations needed to strengthen assistance in these fields in order to improve the prospects for sustainable development, as well as international peace. Quote — UNquote: Thoughts, Expressions, Ideas The general debate performs many important functions and one of the key ones among them, I think, is that of an accurate barometer of world opinion, especially as it pertains to the United Nations. —General Assembly President Hennadiy Udovenko Indeed, let this be the Reform General Assembly. Let it be remembered as a time when all of us joined forces and seized opportunities created by the new era to revitalize our United Nations—this unique and universal instrument for concerted action in pursuit of the betterment of humankind. —United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan Our preoccupation should be the fight against the arms trade that sustains organized crime and drug trafficking. This is the real and grave problem perpetuating a major source of instability that has, unfortunately, also affected our region severely. —Luiz Felipe Lampreia, Minister of External Relations of Brazil The forces of global integration are a great tide, inexorably wearing away the established order of things. New global environmental challenges require us to find ways to work together without damaging legitimate aspirations for progress. —William Jefferson Clinton, President of the United States We need an international economic environment that is buttressed by economic justice. —Sitiveni Ligamamanda Rabuka, Prime Minister of the Republic of Fiji We are convinced that South-South cooperation provides a sound basis for promoting economic growth and increasing technical capacities for acceleration of development in the developing countries. —Jakaya Mrisho Kikwete, Minister for Foreign Affairs of the United Republic of Tanzania, also speaking on behalf of the Group of 77 We must admit that the United Nations has not always been able adequately to respond to a number of the problems it has faced. This makes it necessary further to improve its structure and internal organization and to increase the effectiveness of its work. —Leonid D. Kuchma, President of Ukraine We need an Organization that fulfils its mandate to preserve peace and international security more rapidly and effectively by building better capacities for action in the fields of preventive diplomacy, peacekeeping and peacemaking and by having more effective capacities for action in the areas of recovery and reconstruction after a conflict. —Jacques Poos, Deputy Prime Minister of Luxembourg, speaking on behalf of the European Union Japan’s assessment is about to reach that of the United States. … Japan strongly hopes that the financial reform of the United Nations will proceed together with reforms in other areas as a whole in a balanced manner, and that agreement on an equitable scale of assessments can be achieved. —Keizo Obuchi, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Japan Central to the Security Council reform process is the question of the veto. … Permanent membership without the veto represents merely a symbolic gesture to new permanent members which would serve to perpetuate an unjust and discriminatory practice and accord them an inferior status. —Alfred Nzo, Minister for Foreign Affairs of South Africa Today, North and South constitute two complementary domains in a single global arena. Equilibrium and stability of the future world order depend, in a large measure, on the South’s contribution to the shaping of the norms governing future international relations. —Dr. Kamal Kharrazi, Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Islamic Republic of Iran Democracy with extreme poverty is not the model we seek. It must be accompanied by other elements which are essential to a life of dignity: well-being, justice, involvement and a full understanding of the human being as both the root and the fruit of all our efforts. —Carlos Roberto Reina Idiáquez, President of Honduras The independence of United Nations agents—the Secretary-General first among them—is the guarantee of the quality of their service and of the trust which the international community places in them. —Crown Prince Albert of the Principality of Monaco We urge all Governments to respect the wishes of their peoples by signing the international treaty for the total ban of anti-personnel landmines by the end of the year. We will continue to appeal to the international community to ensure that all the provisions of the treaty regarding the destruction of stockpiled and laid anti-personnel mines are fully implemented. —Leonardo Santos Simao, Minister for Foreign Affairs and Cooperation of Mozambique The realization of human rights is a common ideal of mankind. … We maintain that the universality of human rights should be respected; yet their realization must be integrated with conditions of each country. … To enable our people to lead a freer, happier and more democratic life, we are focussing above all on the development of our economy. —Qian Qichen, Vice-Premier of China The United Nations, while adapting, must remain the preferred instrument for taking action in the interests of peace. At the time, the United Nations is really the only organization that can try to bring order to an international society that is becoming fragmented and globalized at the same time. —Herbert Védrine, Minister for Foreign Affairs of France The United Nations must be strengthened and reformed to build security through disarmament. Disarmament, non-proliferation and arms control are central features of any policy aimed at preventing conflict, promoting peace and fostering economic and social development. —Mrs. Lena Hjelm-Wallén, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Sweden We inhabit a modern world in which we must accept change as the normal condition of life. Communication around the world is becoming faster. The distance between our countries is becoming shorter. … The United Nations must modernize. It must be able to confront the new global changes that all its Members face. —Robin Cook, Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs of the United Kingdom Regional conflicts continue to be one of the major sources of instability on the global level; they should not be allowed to continue into the twenty-first century. … There are many multinational States in the world today, and we support the initiatives designed to prevent their forcible disintegration. —Yevgeny Primakov, Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation In an interdependent world, the currency crisis in South-East Asia warrants the prompt action of the multilateral financial institutions, such as the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, and the developed countries, which should assist the affected economies of East Asia in overcoming the effects of this excessive manipulation and in preventing its recurrence. —Dato’ Seri Abdullah bin Haji Ahmad Badawi, Minister for Foreign Affairs for Malaysia Africa and the third world in general are suffering from various ills, principal among which are ignorance, poverty, bad political leadership, coups d’état and foreign intervention. We urge the United Nations resolutely to attack the five scourges I have just named, which still infect Africa and are the source of all the conflicts on our continent. —Anastase Gasana, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Rwanda If the security problem is a major obstacle to peace, confidence-building and peacemaking are the best means to achieve individual and regional security in the Middle East. There is no peace without security and no security without peace. —Fayez Tarawneh, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Jordan There are no social security systems to protect the dispossessed, to cushion their fall and rehabilitate them so that they can live a productive life. For this reason, the potential for violence and discontent on our continent is growing larger and more dangerous. —General Hugo Banzer Suárez, Constitutional President of Bolivia None of the endeavours aimed at modernizing the Organization by providing relevant answers to global issues will have any guarantee of success if the United Nations proves unable to contribute to the solution of those crisis situations that pose a threat to international peace and that generate humanitarian problems. —Milan Kucan, President of Slovenia We are a long way from testing the feasibility of the many ideas that have been advanced to find new and additional ways of financing multilateralism … Why, then, are some States unwilling to entertain any meaningful discussion of their introduction? Is it that they are afraid of losing control of the United Nations? Or are they not serious about their proclaimed adherence to the concept of the interdependence of States? —Clement Rohee, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Guyana Comments