Mexico

My delegation welcomes the election of the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Namibia, Mr. Theo-Ben Gurirab, to the presidency of the General Assembly at its fifty-fourth session. Mexico knows him as an experienced diplomat whose contribution will guarantee that our work strengthens the ability of the United Nations to face the challenges of the next century. In welcoming his election, we pay tribute to the constructive role Namibia plays on the international stage. My delegation would also like to place on record its appreciation to the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Uruguay, Mr. Didier Opertti, for his outstanding guidance of the fifty-third session. I wish also to express the satisfaction of Mexico at the admission of the Republic of Kiribati, the Republic of Nauru and the Kingdom of Tonga to membership of the Organization. Their presence among us strengthens universality, the very essence of the United Nations. My delegation is participating in this session with the will to negotiate and the desire to cooperate that have always characterized Mexico's foreign policy. We are convinced that the proposals we make and results we achieve will contribute to designing the international order of the twenty-first century; we shall be an active participant in the debate. Now more than ever it seem essential that we review the system we devised at San Francisco in the light of our experiences over the past 54 years and of the progress achieved in the field of international law. In that review we must ensure that the interests of all Member States are taken into account in line with the Charter principle of the sovereign equality of States. Mexico is proud of its multilateral outlook. My country has always seen the United Nations as the ideal forum to propose, negotiate and agree on solutions and common strategies that will enable us to face our collective challenges. We Mexicans are convinced that it is imperative to spare no effort to make our Organization the primary forum for generating comprehensive policies, policies that guarantee lasting peace and security, and the development and welfare of all peoples on earth. As it does every year, the General Assembly has a broad and complex agenda before it at this session. I wish therefore to focus my statement on three topics that I consider to be of paramount importance for the future of the Organization and of the community of nations: world peace and security; international cooperation in the field of natural disasters; and the financial architecture of the new century. The Preamble and Article 1 of the Charter state that fundamental aims of the peoples of the United Nations are to live together in peace and to solve their disputes without resorting to the use of force. The attainment of those aims is our only guarantee if we yearn for a stable and secure international community that reveres friendly relations and goodwill among all peoples and all nations. We note with growing concern that, far from disappearing, conflicts have multiplied and their nature has changed as a consequence of the reshuffling of forces in the international arena. Today, these ever-proliferating confrontations are to a great extent internal ones, presenting formidable challenges to an Organization conceived to resolve disputes between States. We still lack clear-cut mandates and a defined consensus on how to address this new state of affairs. This often divides us, not on the ultimate goal — peace — but on the means to achieve it. Given the absence of a new political contract that enjoys the support of all Members of the United Nations, Mexico will continue firmly to maintain that the search for solutions to conflicts, whether they be internal or international, must be in conformity with the letter and the spirit of the San Francisco Charter. Its principles cannot be subjected to interpretations varying with circumstances or to unilateral whims. We cannot allow the authority or the legitimacy of the Organization to be damaged. We cannot accept actions that openly contradict the intentions of the founders and that weaken the rights of the community of States. Mexico has always maintained that the use of force, even when motivated by the loftiest humanitarian impulses, is no solution; to the contrary, it generates further instability, uncertainty and violence. But my country has shown restraint when the Security Council has acted in strict compliance with Chapter VII of the Charter. Even so, the Mexican Government reiterates the value of the peaceful settlement of disputes and firmly rejects the existence of an alleged right to intervene, particularly when it is proclaimed outside the framework of international law. 31 This is one of the most pressing challenges that we must face as we move towards the new millennium. Essentially, we are striving to give the United Nations the political underpinning that will enable it to face new threats to peace and security in line with the thinking that inspired the authors of the San Francisco Charter. If we fail, we run the risk of eroding international negotiating tools and of doing precisely what we want to avoid: weakening the Organization. For these reasons, my delegation invites all Member States to begin an exercise in collective thinking that will enable us to solve the dilemma of humanitarian crises caused by internal conflicts on the one hand and of the capability of the United Nations to respond on the other. This must be an exercise in deep thinking that will lead us to lasting solutions, which will both preserve peace and protect the lives and human rights of those involved in conflicts. Allow me now to turn to another topic that I deem central to the future of the United Nations: international cooperation in the event of natural disaster. In view of the regrettable recurrence of natural disasters, it is urgent to think about a creative and effective international division of labour so that responses by countries, regions and organizations do not constitute isolated efforts or temporary relief. They should instead constitute a comprehensive strategy that will contribute to lasting stability. We have all witnessed the sad consequences of natural catastrophes. Recent experiences highlight the urgent need for an effective machinery to address more rapidly and more fully the needs of affected populations. These experiences show also that at the very outset of the tragedy it is essential to mobilize broader support efforts to contribute to full recovery in the shortest possible time. At the regional level, the countries of Latin America and the Caribbean have taken important steps that serve as an example of the proposed new division of labour to deal with natural disasters. In the declaration on technical cooperation for the prevention and relief of natural disasters adopted at the summit meeting of the Permanent Mechanism for Political Consultation and Concertation (Rio Group), held in Mexico City in May, we undertook the commitment “to promote permanent measures of technical cooperation on every phase of natural disasters”. This marks significant progress in the field of international cooperation. It aims not only to repair the damage but also to include preventive measures, and is designed to ensure assistance not only at the time of crisis but also during the reconstruction period. Likewise, during their summit, held in June 1999 at Rio de Janeiro, heads of State or Government of Latin America and the Caribbean and of the European Union decided to launch an important programme of cooperation in the sphere of environmental and natural disasters. Its goal is to help improve the capacity of the most vulnerable nations of both regions so we can prevent and deal with disasters. To that end, they agreed to establish an appropriate system of international assistance at all phases from prevention and early warning to emergency assistance and mitigation, without neglecting rehabilitation and reconstruction. My delegation is convinced that these experiences deserve to be considered by this Assembly so that their merits may be assessed and disseminated throughout the world. The United Nations must play a central role in making this strategy international. It is urgent to have national listings of civil defence organizations with updated inventories of available resources to help in disasters, and handbooks to guide us in the effective management of international cooperation. In other words, the Organization must respond in terms of who will provide international cooperation when natural disasters strike, what they will provide, and how they will provide it. Lastly, I would like to refer to the financial architecture of the new century. A year ago, in this same forum, I voiced the concern of Mexico about the harmful effects that financial crises have on our societies. At that time, I proposed that the Member States, coordinated by the Secretary-General, should undertake to reflect on how to improve our early-warning capacity in order to prevent and confront in a timely fashion the occurrence and proliferation of financial crises. This initiative found support in resolution 53/172, entitled “The financial crisis and its impact on growth and development, especially in the developing countries”. Subsequently, we proposed to the Secretary-General the undertaking of an effort at the regional level in Latin America and the Caribbean as part of a broader endeavour that will have to involve other areas, including developed countries and the international financial agencies. Earlier this month, in close collaboration with the Economic Commission for Latin America and the 32 Caribbean, we held a meeting in Mexico City under the heading “Towards a stable and predictable international financial system linked to social development.” High-level Government officials of the countries of our region participated, as well as specialists and prominent officials of multilateral institutions working in financial and social fields. At that meeting, we undertook an in-depth analysis of the international financial architecture and its connection to the social development of our peoples. We also reaffirmed our conviction that it is urgent and necessary to define a new world financial scheme that includes a social dimension. The conclusions of that regional meeting have been conveyed to the Secretary-General, and I would like refer to just a few of them. First, we participants expressed our concern over the fact that once the most visible effects of the crisis are overcome, we observe a dangerous attitude of complacency. The countries of the region are convinced that a renewed effort is required in order to strengthen the global financial system, and we reaffirmed our commitment to actively participate in this task. Secondly, we emphasized the need to have a stable, transparent, predictable, organized and secure international financial system. To this end, we, the various participants must accept and fulfil our respective responsibilities. The international financial agencies must redesign their policies in order to respond to the great challenges created by financial markets. They must develop early-warning mechanisms and expand their resources to help economies in trouble in a timely and appropriate way. For their part, countries must commit themselves to following macroeconomic policies that lead to growth and social justice. They must recognize, in order to remedy the problem, the part played in the crisis by the absence of adequate supervision and regulation of national banking systems. A solid banking system is essential to protect a country from speculative movements of capital. Thirdly, we recognized the devastating impact that financial crises have on the social situation and the prospects for development of our countries. In this respect, we expressed the need to advance towards a financial architecture that reconciles the economy with society and international finance with sustained social development. We reaffirmed in this sense our absolute conviction that sustained growth is the most effective way to reduce inequality and poverty. Fourthly, we agreed that the ultimate goal of the international development banks must be precisely human development. We deemed it fundamental for those institutions to give high priority to financial support for the formation of basic networks of social protection in times of crisis, without losing sight of the broader objectives of growth and development. Fifthly, we agreed that the United Nations must play a central role in promoting integrated social development through forging an international consensus that helps support and rebuild the global financial architecture. It is encouraging to learn that in the year 2001 the United Nations will sponsor a high-level meeting on financing development. That will be an ideal opportunity to address comprehensively the problem of social and human development, including its financial aspect. Thus, we will follow up on the conclusions and recommendations coming out of the meeting in Mexico, and on those from other meetings and forums, in order to include all actors in the design of the financial architecture for the twenty-first century. We will be attentive to efforts in this direction on the part of Secretary-General. The United Nations must strengthen its position and its mandate as the principal forum of debate and for seeking consensual solutions that guide the work of the international community in the face of problems and situations that affect us all. It is essential to continue the task of establishing a more democratic and transparent Organization that fully reflects the interests and objectives of its Members and that is a forum that truly represents all of them. I am sure that all of us want a United Nations where fairness and justice reign. Looking towards the Millennium Assembly, we must continue to foster cooperation and closeness among nations in order to strengthen peace and security, push disarmament ahead, promote development and the struggle against poverty and ensure full respect for international law. If we are really being overtaken by events in the global arena, we must strengthen our frame of action. If it is necessary to reform our Organization to guarantee its effective performance, let us do so. But let us do so collectively, with respect for the juridical principle of the equality of States. Let us not allow this forum to lose its prestige or its influence. Mexico will not retreat from its commitment to the letter and the spirit of the San 33 Francisco Charter. To the contrary, it will participate actively in the effort to guarantee the vitality of the United Nations in order to build a better world, both for ourselves and for future generations. This is the aim of the proposals I have made on behalf of the Government that I have the honour to represent.