UNdemocracy - General Assembly Session 62 meeting 6

Date	26 September 2007
Started	09:00
Ended	13:25

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A-62-PV.6 2007-09-26 09:00 26 September 2007 [[26 September]] [[2007]] /

The President: Mr. Kerim (The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia)

The meeting was called to order at 9.20 a.m.

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Address by His Excellency Mr. Valdis Zatlers, President of the Republic of Latvia

The President

The Assembly will now hear an address by the President of the Republic of Latvia.

Mr. Valdis Zatlers, President of the Republic of Latvia, was escorted into the General Assembly Hall.

The President

On behalf of the General Assembly, I have the honour to welcome to the United Nations His Excellency Mr. Valdis Zatlers, President of the Republic of Latvia, and to invite him to address the Assembly.

Mr. Zatlers (Latvia)

I wish to begin by congratulating you, Mr. Kerim, on your assumption of the post of President of the General Assembly at its sixty-second session. Your wise and energetic leadership will reflect the abilities of the people of your country and of our region as a whole. I also wish to congratulate and extend my best wishes to the Secretary-General, Mr. Ban Ki-moon, and to pledge him my full support. It is evident that the Secretary-General recognizes the multitude of challenges the world is facing today. Only two days ago, I took part in the high-level meeting on climate change here at the United Nations. That meeting was organized by the Secretary-General to highlight the urgent need for decisions that will prevent long-term negative consequences. Now we must all work together towards achieving a satisfactory outcome to the Bali Conference, which is to be held at the end of this year.

I welcome the fact that the Security Council was able to adopt the groundbreaking resolution 1769 (2007), which authorized the deployment of the Hybrid Operation in Darfur. It is now imperative that the resolution be translated into reality. We all recognize the difficulties involved. It is also imperative to continue the political process. Only a negotiated solution has the potential to bring sustainable peace to that long-suffering region.

To a great extent, the stability and prosperity of Iraq depend on support from its region. We therefore welcome the fact that the Security Council could unite to adopt resolution 1770 (2007). That resolution gives a renewed and strengthened mandate to the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq. With the launch of the International Compact with Iraq, last May, the world community now possesses an effective instrument for rendering further assistance to the areas in Iraq where it is most needed. The Compact has already been used to achieve positive results. We encourage the Government of Iraq to continue to take steps towards promoting economic reform and achieving peace and stability for its people.

Just a couple of weeks ago, I visited Afghanistan. I had a chance to meet with President Karzai, representatives of the Afghan Government, Latvian troops and civilian experts. The message from all those meetings was clear. Providing assistance through the International Security Assistance Force is just one side of the coin; the other entails contributing to building a solid foundation for the country's sustainable development.

Latvia is present in Afghanistan as part of both the international military and the civilian rebuilding effort. Latvia's Government is contributing financially to the reconstruction of infrastructure in Afghanistan. However, it is my strong conviction that the key to success in Afghanistan is cooperation -- cooperation among countries and international organizations. To succeed, the European Union, the United Nations, NATO and others must adopt a comprehensive, long-term approach to development assistance for the country.

In the Middle East, the past year has brought no significant breakthrough. Yet, we continue to place our trust in the work of the Quartet, which supports the efforts of responsible regional States in helping to calm the situation. It is a crucial tool to promote a negotiated, comprehensive, just and lasting peace in the Middle East, in line with the relevant resolutions of the Security Council. I am sure that the Quartet's newly appointed Special Envoy will use his great experience and make sincere efforts to fulfil his challenging mandate.

The international community is currently also seized of the matter regarding the final status of Kosovo. The Secretary-General has endorsed the Comprehensive Proposal of his Special Envoy Martti Ahtisaari. The Proposal currently remains the only viable diplomatic solution on the table. The active involvement of the European Union is important to achieve a lasting solution. We urge both parties to show flexibility and commitment to a peaceful negotiated outcome. We sincerely hope that the ongoing talks under the auspices of the Contact Group troika will result in success.

In my previous capacity as a surgeon, I performed many operations. But I also closely followed the recovery process of every one of my patients. I ensured that they got the necessary post-operative treatment and encouraged them to maintain healthy habits. In that phase I had to rely heavily on the work of my able and dedicated team. Likewise, it is not enough for the Security Council to prescribe peacekeeping operations, crucial as they are for international peace and security. The whole United Nations system is necessary for the long-term recovery of conflict zones.

In that regard, I would like to pay special tribute to the peacekeepers and to the United Nations staff working in difficult conditions on the ground. It is our duty in our capitals, and here at United Nations Headquarters, to support their efforts, each Member State according to its capacity. At the same time, we expect high standards in peacekeeping forces.

For many decades, Latvia suffered extensively from foreign occupation. Now that we have regained our freedom, we hope to prevent the suffering of others. We wish to promote the healing process. The international community must bring to justice those who have committed war crimes and massive violations of human rights. Latvia commends the work of the International Criminal Court. We have placed our hopes in the Peacebuilding Commission -- that it will be an effective tool for consolidating long-term peace.

Even where military conflict is not a factor, human security in many parts of the world is undermined by poverty, hunger and disease. The 2007 Millennium Development Goals Report gave us some good news. However, it warned us that the Goals will not be achieved by the year 2015 -- certainly not in sub-Saharan Africa -- unless our efforts are scaled up. Latvia therefore supports the call to review progress towards the Millennium Development Goals and accelerate action.

Latvia is a candidate in the 2010 elections for the Economic and Social Council. We have know-how to share, and we also have empathy for the pain that reforms may cause. As an emerging donor, we have undertaken commitments in the area of overseas development assistance. We believe that our recent intensive and successful experience in development will be an asset to the work of the Council.

Latvia has a strong commitment to multilateralism and the values embodied in the Charter of the United Nations. We want to see an Organization that embodies effectiveness, efficiency and authority. It is regrettable that the reform process launched at the 2005 World Summit has been slow and uneven. We recognize the forces that make the reform so difficult, but we must not give in to fatigue and frustration. Management reform is vital. I already mentioned the dire necessity for a comprehensive approach among the different international players on the ground. Likewise, there is a great need for system-wide coherence of the various United Nations funds and programmes. The provision of aid should be targeted and efficient. Our focus should be on those in need. We look forward to assessing the results of the "One UN" pilot programme, which is now under way in eight volunteer countries.

The beginnings of the new Human Rights Council were a cause for concern. Still, we are confident that after making important decisions on institution-building earlier this year, Member States will take full advantage of the Human Rights Council. We have to live up to our task to further promote and protect human rights. The Council now has the tools, but it will be up to Member States to use those tools. It will be up to Member States to advance the credibility of the United Nations as an Organization able and willing to protect and promote human rights.

Latvia has always placed the promotion of human rights among its top priorities. In the light of that commitment, we have decided to aim for membership in the Human Rights Council in the 2014 elections.

No reform will be more difficult or more significant than that of the Security Council. The Security Council has had many achievements. However, we share the widespread belief that the composition and the working methods of the Council need to be brought up to date. We have stated many times our reasons for supporting the model of reform being promoted by the G4 nations, namely, Brazil, Germany, India, and Japan. We consider it to be the best of the models currently available. We welcome the prospect of intergovernmental negotiations beginning in the current session and hope that they will produce early positive results.

The United Nations is as important as ever, being the only truly universal forum for global dialogue. We must not forget that it is also the only truly universal forum for decision-making and action. But above all, we must emphasize that this is the forum where all States, big and small, have a voice. This is also a forum where all States have a responsibility to contribute.

Latvia looks forward to a fruitful sixty-second session of the General Assembly.

The President

On behalf of the General Assembly, I wish to thank the President of the Republic of Latvia for the statement he has just made.

Mr. Valdis Zatlers, President of the Republic of Latvia, was escorted from the General Assembly Hall.

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Address by Mrs. Micheline Calmy-Rey, President of the Swiss Confederation

The President

The Assembly will now hear an address by the President of the Swiss Confederation.

Mrs. Micheline Calmy-Rey, President of the Swiss Confederation, was escorted into the General Assembly Hall.

The President

On behalf of the General Assembly, I have the honour to welcome to the United Nations Her Excellency Mrs. Micheline Calmy-Rey, President of the Swiss Confederation, and to invite her to address the Assembly.

President Calmy-Rey (Switzerland)

At the outset, Sir, I should like to congratulate you on your election as President of the General Assembly, and to assure you of my country's full support during the sixty-second session.

All of us here share the hope for a more peaceful and harmonious world. At a time when civilian populations are the targets of suicide attacks and sophisticated weapons, when children are forced to become soldiers, and climate change poses a threat to the survival of our planet, how are we meeting our responsibilities? Where does the responsibility lie when millions of men and women are suffering from malnutrition and their most basic needs are not being met, when injustice is everywhere, and when the environment is being destroyed? How can we overcome those scourges assailing human beings throughout the world? How can we translate our responsibilities into action?

In attempting to answer those questions, we have to acknowledge two facts. The first is that respect for human rights, the rule of law and good governance are the prerequisites both to achieving lasting peace and security and to protecting the environment. We know now that systematic violations of human rights and flagrant deficiencies in the rule of law are often the source of conflicts. The second concerns the nature of conflicts. On the ground, battle lines are being blurred. State forces are confronting non-State armed groups. Warlords, terrorists and criminal gangs dictate the rules. Civilians rather than soldiers are the primary targets.

It is no longer possible to limit security policy to the traditional State framework. The focus now must be first and foremost on the security of the individual. Accordingly, Governments and non-State armed groups alike are called on to respect certain basic rules common to all.

If we are to achieve results, confrontation must give way to dialogue and efforts to find solutions. Negotiation, dialogue and diplomacy are the tools for achieving success. We must overcome the barriers that exist between different sectors and disciplines in the field of international relations. We must develop alliances based on shared values. That approach should enable us to find solutions by cutting across regional, ideological and cultural boundaries. The recent past has shown what can be achieved. The International Criminal Court, the Human Rights Council and the Anti-personnel Landmines Convention were all the result of broad-based coalitions of countries in all regions of the world.

However, dialogue alone will not be enough. Experience has shown that, without concrete objectives, debates between players with very different views of the world can sometimes serve to accentuate differences. In contrast, efforts to devise and implement actions that are concrete and practical make for cohabitation between different communities. It is for that reason that Switzerland supports such initiatives as the Alliance of Civilizations, along with the implementation plan proposed by the secretariat of the Alliance.

Coherent overall solutions to the crises that are currently affecting the international order cannot be implemented unless we take into account the interests of all the communities concerned. Switzerland does all it can to promote dialogue with all parties. That is particularly the case in Lebanon, where we are offering the political forces a forum in which to seek a way out of the current political crisis in the interest of long-term stability.

Recent developments in the occupied Palestinian territories have reminded us once again, with tragic intensity, of the need to respect those principles. In that regard as well, the involvement of all parties is necessary if there is to be a lasting solution.

The same can be said for the situation in Darfur. My country hopes that resolution 1769 (2007), which for the first time envisages close cooperation between the United Nations and the African Union, will provide the inhabitants of that region with an opportunity to live in peace and to achieve reconciliation after so many years of suffering.

The situation in Myanmar is alarming. Switzerland calls on the Government of Myanmar to renounce all forms of violence against demonstrators and civilians. Switzerland favours dialogue among all the parties concerned, under the aegis of the Special Adviser of the Secretary-General.

Lastly, there can be no peace or security without international justice. Switzerland supports in particular the work of the International Criminal Court. Its permanent nature and the possibility of the Security Council referring situations to the Court -- as it did in the case of Darfur -- gives that institution a preventive effect. For that effect to be achieved, the Court must have the full support of the international community, which must ensure that all States cooperate fully with the Court.

Human security policy also applies to environmental threats. The actions of humankind have changed the climate of the planet. Those changes are taking place on a global scale and are resulting in rising temperatures, radical changes in precipitation patterns, rising sea levels and a disruption to the balance of nature. Taken as a whole, those phenomena pose a major threat to millions of people and the places where people live, their cultures and their living conditions. The risks to security, health and development are discussed in the Fourth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.

Today environmental problems are a threat to security. At the political level, they require that we act responsibly as human beings. They also require the forming of alliances to protect our natural resources. Although we have established institutions and international mechanisms to combat underdevelopment and promote peace and respect for human rights, we have not done enough with regard to the environment. It is true that we have a series of international conventions and national programmes and legislation. But environmental governance is fragmented and lacks clear objectives. We therefore need to join together to identify and implement commitments in order to better manage resources and efforts and to protect the biosphere. We also need to mobilize the United Nations system in order to respond to climate change effectively and coherently.

Switzerland therefore hopes that we will set ambitious goals for ourselves in the second phase of the Kyoto Protocol. We are ready to make a substantial contribution to that collective effort, in which the entire international community must join. Switzerland believes that, in order to have legitimacy, any future international regime to address climate change will require the participation of all countries. In our view, the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Changes and the Kyoto Protocol provide the most appropriate starting points for all deliberations and negotiations on climate change.

Addressing the economic, social and environmental aspects of development based on respect for human rights is both a challenge and a goal for all of us as we seek to build a world that is both freer and more secure. The international community has adopted many development goals in recent decades. However, additional efforts must still be made to ensure greater coherence in the operational system of the United Nations. With its funds, programmes and specialized agencies, the system has at its disposal an excellent network through which to ensure its presence on the ground. It also has great moral and technical legitimacy and substantial operational capacity.

Unfortunately the system remains fragmented and its transaction costs are very high -- costs which are to a great extent borne by beneficiary countries themselves. Major adjustments -- some of which are described in the report entitled "Delivering as One" -- need to be carried out promptly in the field so that United Nations operational bodies can meet the needs of partner countries more effectively. Negotiations on the triennial comprehensive policy review of operational activities for development of the United Nations system, which are due to begin in a few weeks, will provide the appropriate framework to determine what measures are needed -- especially on the basis of the experiences of pilot countries that are applying the concept of "One United Nations".

We stand today at the midpoint of the timetable for achieving the Millennium Development Goals. Although there is no denying that progress has been made at various levels, there is still much to be done. All of us -- Governments, multilateral institutions, non-governmental organizations and the private sector -- must combine our efforts across a wide front that encompasses the national, regional and international spheres. Given the upcoming high-level dialogue on financing for development, I shall limit myself merely to recalling that all of us have a common interest in improving the efficiency and the impact of development assistance and in increasing the volume of resources made available for it through official channels. We already know that results in this area can only be achieved through very considerable joint efforts by all partners concerned.

The Organization has begun a process of reform in order to better respond to global challenges. So as to strengthen the credibility and efficiency of the efforts of the United Nations, we must demonstrate our determination to fully carry out those reforms. There was real progress in the past year, including the beginning of the work of the Peacebuilding Commission and the Human Rights Council. That illustrates the ability of the United Nations to carry out ambitious reforms in order to respond to the challenges of the twenty-first century.

Switzerland is advocating for an overall improvement in the working methods of the Security Council. My country will continue its efforts to improve transparency in sanctions committees and to ensure that the addition and removal of names of persons and entities on sanctions lists are in conformity with the principles of the rule of law and human rights.

Efficient management and a better targeted use of available resources continue to pose a serious challenge for the Organization. Switzerland welcomes the determination of the Secretary-General to make the efficiency of the United Nations system one of his priorities. Given the progress made this year, but especially because of the challenges that remain, Switzerland believes that it is essential to continue the process of reform already under way. My country will therefore continue to support the efforts of Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon aimed at strengthening the United Nations and making the Organization more efficient.

If we want to move ahead, if we are determined to overcome the varied and interdependent challenges facing the globalized world of today, and if we want to free individual human beings from fear and want, we must focus on concrete objectives. To that end, let us resolve to work tirelessly to overcome our differences in the interest of the nations and peoples we represent.

The President

On behalf of the General Assembly, I wish to thank the President of the Swiss Confederation for the statement she has just made.

Mrs. Micheline Calmy-Rey, President of the Swiss Confederation, was escorted from the General Assembly Hall.