ADDRESS BY
H.E. Mr. Abdulaziz KAMILOV
Minister of Foreign Affairs
General Debate of the 57th session of the United Nations General Assembly
New York, 19 September 2002
Distinguished Mr. President,Your Excellencies,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
At the outset, allow me to congratulate Mr. Jan Kavan on his election as President
for the current session of the General Assembly. I would also like to express
appreciation to Mr. Hang Seung-soo for an excellent organization of the work
of previous session of the General Assembly.
A year ago the world confronted the acts of terror, unprecedented in scale
and barbarity. We all remember the September 11th events and mourn the lives
lost.
The events of the last autumn, first of all, show that the security threats
take new dangerous forms. The phenomenon of terrorism has become more complex.
At the current stage the world has contended with organized international terrorism.
The UN devotes much attention to the fight against international terrorism. We welcome the UN Security Council Resolution 1373, which stipulates the establishment of the Counter-Terrorism Committee to coordinate and increase the efficiency of the international community's efforts to fight this most dangerous threats of the XXI century. 1 would like to recall in this regard that
Uzbekistan strongly urged establishment of a such committee within the UN back
in 1999.
Uzbekistan is one of the few countries that are parties to all 12 conventions
on combating terrorism. We sincerely hope that the appeal by the Secretary-General
Kofi Annan to the UN member states to join and ratify these documents will be
followed and put into practice.
Uzbekistan supports the international counter-terrorism coalition as a matter
of principle and stands ready to make its contribution to enhance global and
regional stability.
Distinguished delegates,
The September 11th events made the world face up to the situation in Afghanistan
and opened the eyes of the international community to the fact that terrorism
has no borders and that only through join efforts we can defeat this perilous
challenge to the humanity. In a strict and, I would say, categorical way the
September 11th events reminded everybody that 20 years of war turned Afghanistan
into breeding ground and hotbed of international terrorism that threatens not
only the neighboring countries and nations, but entire humanity.
We are gratified by the positive developments in that country, we welcome the
convening of the Loya Jirga, and the transitional government led by President
Hamid Karzai.
Despite the successful completion of the military phase of the counter terrorist
operation, today there could be no room for complacency.
Firstly. Huge amount of weapons accumulated during the long years of war still
remain in the possession of militant groups. Moreover, in this context, there
could be no justification for the attempts of certain states to supply ever
more weapons to this long-suffering land.
To ensure stability and prevent military confrontation it is important to resolve
a problem related to reduction and collection of huge mass of weapons accumulated
in Afghanistan. Clearing the Afghan territory from weapon arsenals belonging
to criminal groups will also reinforce the activities of the UN and regional
institutions to thwart the illicit arms trade.
Secondly. The post-war dislocation, economic disaster, as well as the lack
of resources to rebuild Afghanistan may become a catalyst for social unrest
that could be used by certain militant forces inside and beyond Afghanistan
to spiral up a new round of military confrontation.
Thirdly. On the territory of Afghanistan there are still different groups,
the remnants of Taliban, still capable of conducting subversive actions and
guerrilla warfare. Confrontation remains among various warlords-leaders of different
ethnic groups.
Fourthly. The situation on drug trafficking remains almost unchanged. Afghanistan
is still the world's main supplier of opium and heroin. According to many international
experts, the removal of the Taliban regime does not mean yet the elimination
of the criminal narcotics business in Afghanistan. Today the whole world is
seriously concerned about this problem. There is a need for adequate measures
and assistance by the entire international community, as well as the Afghan
authority's support of efforts against narco aggression.
Drug trafficking has recently been transformed into a global phenomenon. We
have to deal with massive and ever increasing penetration of narcotics mafia
into different spheres of the political, social and economic life. We have to
deal with one of the most perilous threats to humankind - narco aggression.
The number of narcotic addicts runs into hundreds of millions. Proliferation
of drug addiction undermines both the health of living generations and gene
pool of nations. It brings degradation and extinction. Populations in both the
developing world and highly developed countries are equally exposed to this
threat.
Making great efforts to fight drugs production, abuse and trafficking, the
Republic of Uzbekistan fully supports the measures undertaken by the United
Nations and international community to confront these threats.
I would like underline that it is much easier and more effective to fight drugs
trafficking where it is launched. Therefore, we have to block huge flow of the
Afghan drugs directly at the boundaries of the Central Asian states, rather
than `hunt' for bits and pieces, small grams and kilograms, in Europe and other
developed countries.
In this regard, it is deemed advisable to shift from numerous counter narcotics
program of small efficiency to the concrete solution of this acute problem by
allocating the UN-controlled resources and means to nip the narcotics trafficking
in the bud, i.e. on the spot.
Mr. President,
Today the attention of the entire international community is riveted to the
issue of Iraq. In this regard we support the statement of the United States
President George Bush delivered from this very rostrum.
The measures towards resolution of the current situation proposed by the President
of the United States deserve a thorough consideration and may be taken as a
basis for the elaboration of the UN Security Council's position.
Mr. President,
Uzbekistan attaches great significance to the strengthening of the global process
of non-proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. Our country has already
received credits for its activity in this field. Strategy of Uzbekistan in ensuring
security is based on the country's participation in the UN-led process of disarmament,
arms control and reduction.
Uzbekistan fully supports the principle of indivisibility of security and in
this context, being an initiator of the Nuclear- Weapon-Free Zone in Central
Asia, acknowledges the responsibility for strengthening the nuclear nonproliferation
regime and takes active part in elaboration process of international instruments
in this field.
Uzbekistan proposes to sign the practically finalized and agreed draft of the
document on Nuclear-Weapon-Free Zone in Central Asia in Semipalatinsk, the former
site for hundreds of nuclear tests, in the presence of the UN Secretary General
Kofi Annan during his upcoming visit to the Central Asian Region.
Distinguished Mr. President, Ladies and Gentlemen,
The Republic of Uzbekistan supports proposals made by the SecretaryGeneral
Kofi Annan on the United Nations reforms. This is necessary for an appropriate
adaptation of this Organization to the dynamic changes in the international
arena. Uzbekistan considers the UN Security Council reforms to be a part and
parcel of the entire UN system evolution.
The current structure of the Security Council reflects the realities of the
past era. The world has changed since then. We believe that Japan and Germany
have the legitimate rights for the permanent membership in the Security Council.
All necessary grounds for this are available in this regard.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
In conclusion, I would like to recall that it has been 10 years since Uzbekistan
became the UN member. Yet it is very gratifying to see the UN family expanding.
We congratulate Switzerland and the Democratic Republic of East Timor on their
decision to become the fully-fledged parties to the multilateral co-operation
and dialogue. It should mean that the idea of peace and noble principles of
the global security system are the order of the day.
Thank you for attention.