General Assembly Session 54 meeting 1

The President

In accordance with the procedure followed in the past, I should now like to invite the General Assembly to consider the positive recommendations for admission to membership in the United Nations of the Republic of Kiribati, the Republic of Nauru and the Kingdom of Tonga.

The Security Council has recommended the admission of the Republic of Kiribati in document A/53/1004, the admission of the Republic of Nauru in document A/53/1005 and the admission of the Kingdom of Tonga in document A/53/1029.

The draft resolutions concerning the admission of these three new Members are contained in documents A/54/L.1, A/54/L.2 and A/54/L.3, respectively.

In addition to the countries listed in draft resolution A/54/L.1, the following countries have become sponsors: Algeria, Andorra, Austria, Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Canada, Colombia, Croatia, Cyprus, Iceland, Jamaica, Kuwait, Monaco, the Netherlands, Palau, Peru, Qatar, Uruguay and Viet Nam.

We shall first consider draft resolution A/54/L.1, on the admission of the Republic of Kiribati to membership in the United Nations.

May I take it that the General Assembly accepts the recommendation of the Security Council and adopts draft resolution A/54/L.1 by acclamation?

The President

I therefore declare the Republic of Kiribati admitted to membership in the United Nations.

I request the Chief of Protocol to escort the delegation of the Republic of Kiribati to its place in the General Assembly Hall.

The President

We shall next consider draft resolution A/54/L.2, on the admission of the Republic of Nauru to membership in the United Nations.

In connection with draft resolution A/54/L.2, in addition to the countries listed in that document, the following countries have become sponsors: Algeria, Andorra, Austria, Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Canada, Colombia, Croatia, Cyprus, Iceland, Jamaica, Kuwait, Monaco, the Netherlands, Palau, Peru, Qatar, Spain, Uruguay and Viet Nam.

May I take it that the General Assembly accepts the recommendation of the Security Council and adopts draft resolution A/54/L.2 by acclamation?

The President

I therefore declare the Republic of Nauru admitted to membership in the United Nations.

I request the Chief of Protocol to escort the delegation of the Republic of Nauru to its place in the General Assembly Hall.

The President

We shall next consider draft resolution A/54/L.3, on the admission of the Kingdom of Tonga to membership in the United Nations.

In connection with draft resolution A/54/L.3, in addition to the countries listed in that document, the following countries have become sponsors: Algeria, Andorra, Austria, Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Canada, Colombia, Croatia, Cyprus, Iceland, Jamaica, Kuwait, Monaco, the Netherlands, Palau, Peru, Qatar, Spain, Uruguay and Viet Nam.

May I take it that the General Assembly accepts the recommendation of the Security Council and adopts draft resolution A/54/L.3 by acclamation?

The President

I therefore declare the Kingdom of Tonga admitted to membership in the United Nations.

I request the Chief of Protocol to escort the delegation of the Kingdom of Tonga to its place in the General Assembly Hall.

The President

It is my pleasure on this historic occasion to welcome, on behalf of the General Assembly, the Republic of Kiribati, the Republic of Nauru and the Kingdom of Tonga as full Members of the United Nations. I congratulate the Republic of Kiribati, the Republic of Nauru and the Kingdom of Tonga, and I congratulate the United Nations on the admission of its 186th, 187th and 188th Member States.

I am confident that these newly admitted Member States will contribute to the General Assembly and to the United Nations efforts in addressing the issues in international relations that lie ahead.

I wish the Government and the people of these new Member States peace, prosperity, happiness and every success for the future. I wish to assure the Republic of Kiribati, the Republic of Nauru and the Kingdom of Tonga of the full support of the United Nations as they take their rightful place in the international community as free, independent, sovereign and peace-loving States.

I now call on the representative of Botswana, who will speak on behalf of the Group of African States.

Mr. Legwaila (Botswana)

On behalf of your brothers and sisters of the African Group, Sir, let me say how delighted and proud we are to see you in the Chair as President of the General Assembly at its fifty-fourth session. Our fifty-three leaders, Presidents, Kings and Foreign Ministers, will in full measure celebrate your election during the forthcoming general debate. All I can do on this occasion is to promise you, as Chairman of the African Group in New York for this month, that our Group will not be found wanting in its endeavour to cooperate with you as you prepare our Assembly for the next millennium.

I consider it a great privilege for me, in my capacity as Chairman of the Group of African States for the month, to welcome in our midst the sisterly States of the Republic of Kiribati, the Republic of Nauru and the Kingdom of Tonga. Their admission to the United Nations is a happy development. Their attainment of independence in the twilight of the twentieth century and on the eve of the twenty-first is a historic occasion, as it enables the United Nations, in its untiring campaign for universal national independence and freedom, to close the terrible chapter on colonialism and imperialism.

We welcome these three countries and pledge our support and cooperation, so that together in solidarity we can work towards the realization of the noble objectives of the United Nations. Many African nations in the United Nations also are small in size, but being small does not necessarily mean we have no influence in this Organization. Our influence lies in both our numbers and in the quality of our contribution to the activities of the United Nations.

Let me end by inviting the three new Members, on behalf of the Permanent Representative of Singapore, my friend Ambassador Mahbubani -- whom I have not consulted on this -- to join the Forum of Small States (FOSS) for their own security. The United Nations jungle is not always safe for us, the small ones. In FOSS they will find security, companionship and mutual admiration.

The President

I now call on the Permanent Representative of Turkey, who will make a statement on behalf of the Asian States.

Mr. Vural (Turkey)

On behalf of the Group of Asian States and on my own behalf, I would like, Sir, to extend our warm congratulations on your election as President of the General Assembly. We have every reason to believe that with your able leadership and wide-ranging experience, the General Assembly will address the challenges confronting the international community in the most effective manner. Your election is also testimony to the courageous struggle and victory of Africa in taking its rightful place in the world. On this occasion, again on behalf of the Asian Group, I would like to express our heartfelt thanks and appreciation for the excellent leadership displayed by your predecessor, Mr. Didier Opertti, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Uruguay.

I have the honour to warmly welcome, on behalf of the Asian Group, as well as on my own behalf and that of Turkey, the Republic of Kiribati, the Republic of Nauru and the Kingdom of Tonga as the new Members of our family -- the family of nations that make up the United Nations.

We extend our sincere congratulations to these three States of the Pacific region as they join the club. I am confident that the culture of diversity that symbolizes this Organization will be enriched by their contributions. Similarly, these three island States will also reap the benefits of the spirit of international cooperation and collaboration that the United Nations stands for.

It is a particularly encouraging sign that one of the main pillars on which the Organization rests is being further strengthened at a time when we are approaching a new millennium. The principle of universality has indeed been enhanced over the years since the Organization was founded. It is a source of much satisfaction that this Hall, as of today, will have designated seats for 188 Member States.

We celebrate the very timely admission of Kiribati, Nauru and Tonga as new Members prior to a very important upcoming event, namely, the special session of the General Assembly for the review and appraisal of the implementation of the Programme of Action for the Sustainable Development of Small Island Developing States. This special session, along with the valuable input to be provided by our new Members, will afford us the opportunity to review policies aimed at the attainment of the shared aspiration of their economic and social development as well as the protection of the environment.

We wish the Governments and peoples of Kiribati, Nauru and Tonga peace and prosperity and every success as they take their place and assume their responsibilities as Members of the family of nations, in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations. I wish to assure them that they may count on the support and cooperation of the members of the Asian Group as we together pursue our common objectives to promote the ideals of peace, freedom, justice and economic and social development for all.

The President

I now call on the representative of Bosnia and Herzegovina, who will make a statement on behalf of the Eastern European States.

Ms. Topic´ (Bosnia and Herzegovina)

It is my privilege and honour to address the fifty-fourth session of the General Assembly on behalf of the Eastern European Group of States.

At the outset, I would like to congratulate you, Sir, on your election as the President of the fifty-fourth session of the General Assembly. Our gratitude goes to the outgoing President, Mr. Didier Opertti.

On behalf of the Eastern European Group of States, I have the great honour to congratulate the Republic of Kiribati, the Republic of Nauru and the Kingdom of Tonga on their admission to the United Nations membership. I have the pleasure to welcome the General Assembly resolutions by which we in the General Assembly admitted the three new Members to the United Nations. Today they affirm our adherence to the United Nations Charter, which states, inter alia:

"We the peoples of the United Nations, determined (...) to reaffirm faith in fundamental human rights, in the dignity and worth of the human person, in the equal rights of men and women and of nations large and small (...) have resolved to combine our efforts to accomplish these aims".

Those visionary words were written in 1945. Today the United Nations family has not only grown but become wealthier with the addition of three new Members. The United Nations will enter the new millennium enlarged. We the peoples of the United Nations are thus becoming a greater force to promote peace, prosperity and justice, to foster development, to defend human rights, and to respond to all of the other global challenges of the twenty-first century.

The United Nations is expected to provide the vision and leadership in global economic and social development efforts.

With its diverse membership sharing similar experiences of transition, the Group of Eastern European States understands the need to address the social challenges raised by globalization. With the admission of three new Member States, all three of them small island developing States, we are aware that their special circumstances and characteristics will have to be duly taken into account. Considering that the fragile environment of small island developing States is particularly vulnerable to global climate change, to sea-level rise and to natural disasters, the global partnership formed at the Earth Summit -- the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development, held in Rio de Janeiro in June 1992 -- was only a starting point, but a starting point on the basis of which countries have agreed to work together for sustainable development: development that has the capacity to meet specific needs without jeopardizing the welfare of future generations by undermining their environmental values.

Small island developing States, such as the Republic of Kiribati, the Republic of Nauru and the Kingdom of Tonga, mostly project images of a dreamland. But increasingly, their azure waters, coral reefs, lagoons and rainforests are being endangered. Small island societies are faced with the challenge of striving to raise living standards for their growing populations and struggling to survive in a complex global economic environment. In doing so, small island States have pressure placed upon their fragile ecosystems, which are among their most valuable assets.

Admission to United Nations membership of the Republic of Kiribati, the Republic of Nauru and the Kingdom of Tonga will, we hope, open the path of opportunity to those countries and their peoples, so that they may enjoy the benefits and not merely the costs of globalization.

The Group of Eastern European States hopes that, in our joint efforts, all of us will be able to translate those considerations into reality in order to create a better world for all nations, large and small.

The President

I call on the representative of Paraguay, who will speak on behalf of the Group of Latin American and Caribbean States.

Mr. Pappalardo (Paraguay)

The delegation of Paraguay, speaking on behalf of the Group of Latin American and Caribbean States, warmly welcomes the President of the General Assembly at its fifty-fourth session, His Excellency Mr. Theo-Ben Gurirab, Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Namibia, and wishes him every success in his work. The Group reaffirms its readiness to cooperate with him in his delicate and difficult undertakings.

On behalf of the Group, my delegation wishes also to congratulate the outgoing President, His Excellency Mr. Didier Opertti, Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Eastern Republic of Uruguay, on the excellent manner in which he guided the work of the General Assembly at its fifty-third session. We wish him every success for the future.

It is an honour for the delegation of Paraguay to address the Assembly on behalf of the countries members of the Group of Latin American and Caribbean States as we open a new session of the General Assembly, and as we approach the new millennium. This is a particularly worthy moment, as we are marking an event of great importance: the admission to the Organization of three new Members. The Group extends the warmest of welcomes to the Republic of Kiribati, the Republic of Nauru and the Kingdom of Tonga, three new Member States belonging to the Asia and Pacific region, a region that will now be better represented in the United Nations system.

On behalf of the Group of Latin American and Caribbean States, I state our readiness to cooperate with them in tackling the tasks that will face us in the future. It is important to reaffirm that now, with the admission of these three new Members, the Organization is growing stronger and more universal, with 188 States Members as contrasted with the original 51 at the time of the Organization's creation. Since that time, much has happened, and the world is no longer the same. It is important to underscore the need for the Organization to be able to respond effectively to the challenges posed by the new pattern of world affairs.

The President

I call on the representative of Iceland, who will speak on behalf of the Group of Western European and other States.

Mr. Ingólfsson (Iceland)

Allow me to congratulate you on your election, Mr. President, and to pledge to you the full support of the Group of Western European and other States.

I am honoured and privileged to take the floor on behalf of that group to congratulate and welcome as new States Members of the United Nations the Republic of Kiribati, the Republic of Nauru and the Kingdom of Tonga. I would like to pay my special respects to the representatives of those States who are present here on this historic day for their respective countries.

The United Nations is a truly unique Organization of sovereign States based on the principles of mutual respect and the equality of all Members, regardless of their geographical dimensions or their population. Each new Member State brings to this forum its own characteristics, history and culture, which enrich this forum of the family of nations.

The three new Member States are all small island developing States, and their peoples have through the centuries faced great challenges in coping with the elements of nature. Today they shoulder their obligations as full Members of the United Nations to contribute to the maintenance and promotion of the principles of the Charter. We have no doubt that the new Members will participate actively and will strengthen the South Pacific perspective in the work of our Organization and at the same time will provide for a more secure and prosperous future for their peoples.

We, the members of the Group of Western European and other States, look forward to developing a close working relationship and friendship with the representatives of the Republic of Kiribati, the Republic of Nauru and the Kingdom of Tonga.

The President

I call on the representative of the United States, the host country.

Mr. Burleigh (United States)

On behalf of the host country, I want to congratulate you, Sir, on your election as President of the General Assembly, and to wish you well as you embark on your new responsibilities. To the outgoing President, Mr. Didier Opertti, we convey a warm vote of thanks and deep appreciation for a job well done. To both of you go our thanks for your willingness to make the personal sacrifices required to meet the high demands of the presidency.

In my capacity as representative of the host country, I would like to extend warm congratulations to the Republic of Kiribati, the Republic of Nauru and the Kingdom of Tonga as they become Members of the United Nations on this historic day.

Adoption by the General Assembly of resolutions admitting these States to the United Nations recognizes their sovereignty, their independence and their readiness to take their place in the community of nations.

We look forward to working with the representatives of the Republic of Kiribati, the Republic of Nauru and the Kingdom of Tonga, who I trust will bring a fresh perspective to the work of this Organization. Tonga has already played a constructive role, contributing troops for regional peacekeeping in Bougainville, while Kiribati and Nauru have also been supportive of regional security and peacekeeping efforts. Their participation in the United Nations will benefit all Members as we work to advance the goals of a peaceful and prosperous international community.

Once again, on behalf of the United States as host country, I would like to convey to Presidents Tito and Harris and to King Taufa'ahau Tupou IV; to their delegations here with us today; and to all the people of Kiribati, Nauru and Tonga our most heartfelt welcome to the United Nations.

The President

I call on the representative of the Federated States of Micronesia, who will speak on behalf of the members of the South Pacific Forum.

Mr. Sigrah (Micronesia)

The delegation of the Federated States of Micronesia has the very high honour to address this body today in its capacity as the Chair of the 16 member States of the Pacific Island countries known as the South Pacific Forum. Most particularly, I speak here on behalf of the 10 Forum members that are also Member States of the United Nations: Australia; the Republic of the Fiji Islands; the Republic of the Marshall Islands; New Zealand; Palau; Papua New Guinea; Solomon Islands; Samoa; Vanuatu and my own country, the Federated States of Micronesia.

First of all, Sir, for the South Pacific Forum and for my own country, I wish to refer to the great sense of anticipation brought forth by your election to guide this fifty-fourth session of the General Assembly. Your experience and leadership have made you a most appropriate choice to provide the critical leadership that will enable this Assembly to deal effectively with so many issues facing this Organization at the dawn of a new millennium. You have our congratulations and our best wishes.

At the opening of this fifty-fourth session, we are witnessing history as it unfolds. Today, three more countries have been admitted to membership in this great Organization. All three countries are members of the South Pacific Forum. Thus, along with our Pacific colleagues of the Forum, we join the other previous speakers in extending our congratulations to our sister countries -- the Republic of Kiribati, the Republic of Nauru and the Kingdom of Tonga -- as they successfully take this long-awaited step together in joining as Members of this Organization. We rejoice and share with them the sense of joy and fulfilment which pervade this historic day.

I wish to put on record the sincere appreciation of the South Pacific Forum countries for the decisions taken by the Security Council to recommend the admission of the Republic of Kiribati, the Republic of Nauru and the Kingdom of Tonga.

I would, of course, be remiss if I did not extend our utmost heartfelt appreciation to each of the many Members of this Organization that joined as co-sponsors of the three resolutions. The support of all Members of this Organization for admitting the three countries, we hope, will serve as an inspiration and encourage still others, both within our Pacific region and elsewhere, to become Members and bring the goal of universality closer to ultimate attainment.

The admission to membership of the three Pacific Island countries in this body is a further indication of the importance that our region places in the United Nations. We join the United Nations attracted by the noble ideals that this body embraces: peace and prosperity for all. The inclusion of three additional Members from the Pacific region is no small matter in that regard. For small island States like Kiribati, Nauru and Tonga, as with most members of the South Pacific Forum, joining the United Nations is indeed a great sacrifice of scarce resources. Yet we have decided that we can no longer be mere bystanders. The smallness of our Pacific Islands and our remoteness and isolation have not insulated us from the impacts of decisions made elsewhere in the world. We must participate with the rest of the international community in the processes of finding solutions. Thus, we join this Organization driven in part by the realization of our common wish to constructively contribute in whatever little ways we can to the work of this body.

I wish once more to refer to our joy and humility at being permitted to speak on this occasion. My delegation and those of the South Pacific Forum do not lightly undertake the responsibilities of membership in this Organization. Though we are small, we earnestly hope that the voice of our small countries will earn respect in years to come.

The President

I call on the representative of Israel.

Mr. Jacob (Israel)

As this is the first time my delegation takes the floor, I wish to congratulate you, Sir, on your election. We are certain that you will fulfil your obligations with distinction. We would also like to take this opportunity to congratulate your predecessor, Mr. Didier Opertti, for the exemplary manner in which he conducted his duties.

Israel warmly welcomes the admission of the Republic of Kiribati, the Republic of Nauru and the Kingdom of Tonga to the United Nations. With the day of our own entry into the United Nations still fresh in our minds, we in Israel share in the celebration of this momentous occasion. Today's event shows that the family of nations appreciates the unique contributions these young nations will bring to the international community.

The French continental Jewish philosopher Emmanuel Levinas has stated that one's entity becomes truly complete at the moment it engages itself with the Other. As participants in the decisions and dilemmas of the international community, these newborn States have reached this historic milestone.

Having ourselves joined the family of nations only recently, and after centuries of yearning, we in Israel feel a special solidarity with this occasion. Indeed, our ties to the nations of the Pacific are deep, solid and long-standing. We wish the peoples of the Republic of Kiribati, the Republic of Nauru and the Kingdom of Tonga the best of success and prosperity, and look forward to their full and active participation in the work of the United Nations.

The President

We have heard the last speaker in the debate on this item.