Statement by
H.E. Dr. Kamal Kharrazi, In the name of Allah, the Compassionate, the Merciful Mr. President, Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen, I would like to express my cordial felicitations to you for presiding over this important Session of the General Assembly. I wish also to express my congratulations to other members of the Bureau for their election. Less than 60 years ago our
founding fathers established the United Nations with the aspiration
to promote peace and security through cooperation and to make our world
a better place to live. The creation of this organization was in fact
the manifestation of the determination of the international community
to prevent the scourge of war, which inflicted tremendous loss and damages
upon humankind. The United Nations was also designed
to promote the economic, social and human development and assist Member
States to eradicate injustice and poverty. The As a neighboring state, - Calling on the occupying powers to allow the immediate transfer of the Iraqi sovereignty to the Iraqi people and withdraw their troops, - Welcoming and supporting the establishment of the Iraqi Governing Council and the Council of Ministers, - Calling for granting a central and clear-cut role to the United Nations in the restoration of the Iraqi sovereignty and constitutional process, Promoting unity and greater respect for stability and security among various ethnic and religious groups in Iraq, - Encouraging and supporting the swift setting in motion of a constitutional and institution building process with a view to establishing a democratic and fully representative government by and for the people of Iraq, -
Promoting respect for national unity, independence and territorial integrity
of -
Providing relief emergency assistance to the people of Pending the
restoration of sovereignty and authority to the people of I shall not fail to reiterate
my message of condolences to the Secretary-General and the UN community
as a whole for the loss of a brave servant of the nations, Mr. Sergio
de Mello and other UN personnel in the terrorist bombing of the UN Headquarters
in Mr. President, The
violence against and the killing of innocent Palestinian people by the
Israeli army has become an everyday event and the prospect for a viable
peace is increasingly diminishing. The Palestinian people are living
under brutal occupation and suppression with no prospect for relief,
let alone peace and prosperity. The policy of the The
recent decision of the Israeli regime to expel President Arafat from
his homeland has outraged the international community, in general, and
the Muslim world, in particular. I am confident that the free and civilized
world continues to reject and condemn such move by I wish to seize
this opportunity to express satisfaction of the people and the government
of the Islamic Republic of Iran for the steady improvement of the situation
in We have a great
stake in the return of full normalcy and stability to Mr. President, Terrorism is a global phenomenon which requires a global response. Fighting terrorism requires a multi-faceted approach that goes well beyond just a law and order focus and addresses its underlying causes. A unilateral and one-dimensional approach, based merely on the use of force may neutralize some threats and bring some psychological comfort in terms of revenge in response to terrorist acts, but few would regard that as a serious resolve to uproot international terrorism. Any attempt to link terrorism to a specific religion or culture is prejudicial, politically motivated and thus unacceptable. No religion authorizes the believers to kill innocent people for achieving any objective whatsoever. The Islamic Republic
of Iran condemns terrorism in all its forms and manifestations. Mr. President, Weapons of mass destruction are amongst the most potent threats to peace and security at the regional and global levels. CWC, BWC and the NPT are the results of our collective wisdom to respond to this threat through elimination in the first two cases and non-proliferation in the third. We believe we should do much more. We should do more to make these basic international instruments universal. We should also do more to strengthen verifiability of their implementations. And finally, we should all work collectively, as mandated by the ICJ, to move towards total elimination of nuclear weapons. By adhering to all these three legal instruments, as an original party, my country has manifested its determination towards total eradication of weapons of mass destruction from the globe. Our commitment to international regimes on weapons of mass destructions does not merely lie in our contractual obligations but, more importantly, in our religious convictions and historical experience. No country like mine in recent decades may feel so fresh the tragic scars of being victims of such weapons particularly within a complacent international milieu. We are convinced that pursuit of nuclear and other weapons of mass destruction not only cannot provide deterrence or enhance one's security and influence, but will only increase vulnerability. Thus, I can state categorically that for all these reasons, weapons of mass destruction have no place in the defensive strategy of my country. We believe the only option is to work actively towards global and regional banning of these weapons and have thus spared no effort in this regard. However, the efforts to ban or strengthen the ban on the weapons of mass destruction should not provide any excuse for denying the rights of States to develop technology for peaceful purposes. The political pressure against the Islamic Republic of Iran to set aside its inalienable rights to develop peaceful nuclear technology is unfortunately mounting in circumstances that some Nuclear Weapon States are testing and developing advanced tactical nuclear weapons program and Israel, in defiance of international calls to adhere to the NPT, is continuing with impunity its clandestine development of sophisticated nuclear weapons and its delivery systems. The NPT Review and Extension Conferences have all called for the suspension and freezing of the tactical weapons program and the Israeli nuclear program which is the real threats to international peace and security. They are both considered to be in contravention with the letter and spirit of the NonProliferation Treaty. Mr. President, In facing the global challenges, no possibility other than mutual cooperation through the United Nations will be conducive to lasting and effective solutions. The democratic process advocated at all levels within the international community needs to be also reflected within the UN system. The General Assembly should play a more active role in global affairs. A more representative and democratic Security Council would mean a more efficient United Nations - the kind of organization we should all want and work for. Thank You Mr. President. |