The topic of this general debate,
“Delivering on and implementing a transformative post-
2015 development agenda”, most fittingly depicts our
common priority before the Organization’s seventieth
anniversary next autumn. We are about to set the stage
for strategic decisions and concrete actions that should
deliver comprehensive and transformational changes at
the global and national levels.
Wars and armed conflicts, natural diseases,
pandemic diseases, lingering poverty and many other
existing or potential threats to human lives and human
rights keep on emerging. If we do not react adamantly
and swiftly to tackle those perils early enough in their
emerging phases, we run the risk that they will increase
exponentially and beyond our control. More than ever
before, we must face the fact that security, development
and human rights are interdependent and mutually
reinforcing. They demand to be at the very heart of the
post-2015 agenda.
At this time, we are also witnessing a type of
dangerous discord that spreads a fear of the worst
possible outcome — the same kind of fear that preceded
the birth of the Organization. The Charter of the United
Nations provides us with so much wisdom; its words
came with the experience of the scourge of war and
misery. What we need at this point is to reinvigorate
the same level of determination we had almost seven
decades ago and to do everything we can to avoid
regression.
Croatia is deeply concerned about the situation
in Ukraine. There is none but a peaceful solution
to the conflict. The suffering of so many people is
unfortunately all too familiar. Croatia echoes the call
to stop the violence and to reach a political solution.
Croatia strongly supports the principles of international
law concerning the sovereignty and territorial integrity
of Ukraine.
Similarly, we share the grave concern over the
terrorism and violence spreading around the world,
most notably in the Middle East and Africa. The
sheer magnitude of destruction, the loss of lives and
unspeakable atrocities, most notably those committed
by the Islamic State in Iraq and the Sham, can be
overshadowed only by the growing threat that they
will not stop soon or at any border, and that they will
continue to grow and devour everything our civilization
stands for. A zero-tolerance policy towards terrorism
and a joint global effort are needed to prevent that from
happening. Croatia supports all ongoing efforts to form
a coalition against the so-called Islamic State. We stand
ready to make a contribution to Iraqi and Iraqi Kurdish
forces.
Also, although it is a difficult task, achieving
a stable and sustainable peace agreement between
Israelis and Palestinians is an imperative. We hope that
honest and serious efforts will be resumed to negotiate
a comprehensive and sustainable peace agreement that
will establish the grounds for a two-State solution,
living in peace and security, mutually recognizing
and respecting each other, and gradually transforming
the entire Middle East into a region of peace and
cooperation.
The situation in the world brings the need for
the non-proliferation of weapons of mass destruction
to the centre of our attention. In that regard, the
2015 Review Conference of the Parties to the Treaty
on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons will
be of particular importance, and Croatia hopes that
the Treaty will be reinforced and strengthened as an
outcome of the Conference. Croatia also commends
the unprecedented international effort aimed at the
destruction of the chemical weapons of the Syrian
Arab Republic. The Organization for the Prohibition
of Chemical Weapons-United Nations Joint Mission’s
successful work demonstrates the indispensable role of
the United Nations.
It is truly unnerving to be confronted with the
problems and crises that I have mentioned, while our
very best effort is needed to overcome obstacles such as
climate change, natural disasters and the scarcity and
degradation of resources, especially food and drinking
water. The crises are interlinked. Therefore, we need an
interlinked and integrated response to them. Again, no
serious thought can be given to sustainable development
without ensuring peace and security.
Some conflicts could have been foreseen, prevented
and even averted if the international community had
acted in a timely and decisive way. While, indeed, the
primary responsibility lies with the sovereign State
itself, regional and global organizations have the tools,
and therefore also the obligation, to assist those States.
One effective method in that regard is peacebuilding,
where we help post-conflict societies to stand on
their own. There is a vast pool of global experience in
peacebuilding that could be applied, including that of
my own country. We therefore hope that the upcoming
review of the United Nations peacebuilding architecture
will consolidate the existing knowledge and experience
and bring fresh ideas as to how to improve the overall
peacebuilding process.
A special role in maintaining peace and advancing
development lies with women. In particular, we see
the role of women in achieving successful conflict
resolution and the sustainable development of post-
conflict societies. We strongly advocate women’s
economic empowerment for peacebuilding and
development. That is why we are organizing a high-
level meeting at United Nations Headquarters on the
gender dimension of sustainable development within
the context of post-conflict recovery on 26 September.
This week, we started discussing climate
change — the pressing issue of today. Croatia is as
vulnerable as any other country. The devastating and
unprecedented floods that we are witnessing now
are proof of that. Yesterday, we all renewed our vow
to boldly and ambitiously tackle that global issue,
which is clearly of great importance. Croatia hopes
that the upcoming Lima and Paris conferences will
lead us to a global agreement in key areas, including
climate financing and the reduction of greenhouse gas
emissions. That remains one of the main pillars of the
transformative post-2015 development agenda.
Bearing in mind the need for progress, we have
committed ourselves to implementing the Millennium
Development Goals. That is our unfinished business.
The implementation and evaluation of the Millennium
Development Goals have made us all conscious of the
fact that such a vital process needs to be continued.
Croatia is pleased that, in that regard, we have been
building the truly transformative and people-centred
framework of the sustainable development goals
(SDGs). Those goals represent the central investment in
our common future. We must put the maximum effort
into making the SDGs a reality and into supporting their
continuous implementation at all levels. Those goals
represent an opportunity for long-term development
that humankind cannot afford to miss. In that vein, we
have supported the importance of good governance and
the rule of law as the enablers and an inseparable part
of sustainable development. Everyone has a role to play:
national Governments, international organizations, the
private sector, civil society, academia, the media and
the various other stakeholders.
A key principle that matters to my country is
equality among all human beings, regardless of their
beliefs, race, gender, national origin, ethnicity, religion,
disability, sexual orientation or other status. Croatia
fully supports the pivotal role of the United Nations
and its human rights mechanisms, in particular the
Human Rights Council, on the two tracks, namely, to
further develop and strengthen the protection of human
rights and to effectively respond in a timely way to
the challenges of the gross violation and systematic
abuse of human rights worldwide. We firmly believe
that sustainable development goes hand in hand
with democracy, which should be approached in a
holistic manner. That said, a number of international
mechanisms ensure stable democracies and sustainable
development by eliminating double standards,
insecurity and impunity. We therefore add our voice to
the calls for universal adherence to the Rome Statute
and the universal jurisdiction of the International
Criminal Court.
As I have already mentioned, we have recently
witnessed all kinds of natural disasters. Such situations
demand swift and prompt national and international
actions, first and foremost, to mitigate the immediate
threat, as the same time as taking care of victims and
delivering humanitarian aid. The outbreak of epidemic
diseases also has a similar effect. A recent example is
the Ebola epidemic in some West African nations. It
denotes a matter for solidarity and understanding and
demands the world’s immediate and comprehensive
response to the multifaceted medical, social, economic
and security crisis.
Croatia will continue to provide assistance to
the most vulnerable people, especially considering
that we have rich expertise in the area of capacity-
building programmes in a humanitarian crisis, in
raising awareness of the dangers of landmines and
other unexploded ordnance of war and in providing
psychosocial support to victims of violence. In addition,
let me point out that Croatia was dedicated and active
in delivering humanitarian aid to the flooded regions
of its neighbouring countries of Serbia and Bosnia and
Herzegovina this spring, while we ourselves also faced
grave floods and their consequences in Croatia. We
all need more solidarity at the regional and the global
levels.
One of the most important goals of my presidency
has been and continues to be the promotion of dialogue
and cooperation instead of conflict as a means of
achieving security and stability for Croatia, as well as
every other country in the world. I am proud to say that
Croatia has come a long way in that respect.
With the World Summit in 2005, we started
reforming the United Nations system. Despite all
the progress made, we have not managed to achieve
concrete results with regard to the reform of the
Security Council. Moreover, we would like to see the
Council more engaged in preventing crises and its
ongoing dedication to its Charter duties rather than
to any particular interest. In order to maintain the
Council’s authority, relevance and indispensability in
maintaining global peace and security, its reform needs
to be comprehensive and without further delay.
On numerous occasions, Croatia has stated its
position on Security Council reform. In our view, the
enlargement should happen in both the permanent
and the non-permanent categories of membership,
including one additional non-permanent seat for the
Eastern European States. The enlargement is closely
linked to the reform of the working methods of the
Security Council, including the question of the use
of the veto power. Croatia welcomes and supports the
initiative to establish a code of conduct with regard to
the suspension of the use of the veto in cases relating to
a mass crime.
On another note, we strongly believe that the
consolidation of the European space will be possible
only through the further stabilization and security
of South-Eastern Europe. We look forward to the
day when all countries of the region will finally be
admitted to the European Union. Croatia has been and
will continue to be an advocate for a continuous and
strong focus on South-Eastern Europe. The countries
of the region are finding an increasing number of ways
to cooperate together and to lay the foundation for the
joint development of sustainable peace and stability,
be it with regard to the recent devastating floods or to
dealing with a difficult past, while achieving truth and
justice on the issues of missing persons or of setting the
stage for major infrastructure and transport projects.
In conclusion, allow me to address an issue that
I personally believe can be one of the best remedies
for achieving social improvement, economic advance
and, consequently, political stability — education.
That is why I strongly support the Secretary-General’s
Global Education First Initiative. Knowledge and
education are major driving forces of societies and one
of the most important preconditions for success and
sustainable development. Disparities in knowledge and
its distribution, access and application have become
major factors in determining the overall success of a
nation and the level of its development. It is the best
guarantee that the world’s development and stability
will go hand in hand and that global peace and security
with thus become stronger than ever.