The
Assembly will understand that I am speaking today
with particular emotion, because one of my compatriots
has just been the subject of a cowardly assassination in
Algeria by a terrorist group linked to Daesh. His name
was Hervé Gourdel. He was a man full of enthusiasm
who loved mountains and thought that he would be able
to pursue his passion by going to the Djurdjura area in
Algeria. He was captured, and he was decapitated. That
is what terrorism does. And it does not do that only to
France. Several days ago it was American and British
individuals subjected to the same barbarity.
That group — Daesh — does not strike only those
who think differently from themselves; they also strike
Muslims, they strike civilian populations, and they
strike minorities. They rape, they kill. That is why
the battle that the international community must wage
against terrorism knows no borders. The same flag must
be carried, that of the United Nations, that of the values
for which this Organization was founded — human
dignity, freedom, the vision we must have of a world of
tomorrow, a world of justice.
France is fully engaged in this battle. That was
the case in Africa when it was called to Mali, where,
fortunately, it was joined by many African and European
countries and now by the United Nations. France has
been engaged whenever there is a risk. But today it is
in Iraq and Syria where that threat exists. But it does
not concern that region alone, because the Daesh group
has decided not only to conquer territory, imagining
that it will found a State; it threatens the entire world
by provoking attacks, organizing kidnappings and
recruiting fighters from around the world to train them
and show them the barbarity of which the group is
capable, so they may reproduce that horrific terrorist
movement in our own countries.
It is because this threat exists not only for the
region but for the world that France responded to the
Iraqi authorities’ appeal to provide them first with
military aid through the delivery of weapons this past
August and also with aerial support to keep the Daesh
group from being able to continue its advance. We want
to weaken it. We want to quash it.
But we also know that as long as there is no
settlement of the Syrian crisis, all our efforts risk being
undermined. So the challenge is not only to act against
Daesh, but also to achieve a political solution. We in
France support the democratic Syrian opposition. We
consider it the sole legitimate representative of the
Syrian people. In that case, too, we will not back down;
we will not compromise because of threats. The Bashar
Al-Assad regime deserves to be condemned because
they are complicit in what has been going on for the
past three years in Syria — 200,000 deaths and so
many displaced persons.
This is a sad time for France, with the death — the
murder — of one of our citizens, but France will never
give in to blackmail, pressure or barbarous acts. On the
contrary, France knows what is expected of it. France
knows that it upholds values, France knows it has a role
to play and will never abandon that role, and that the
fight against terrorism will be continued and expanded
as much as necessary within respect for the rule of law
and the sovereignty of States, for we make no mistake
when we act. We will always act with respect for the
principles of the United Nations.
I also wanted to talk to about other things, but
it must be understood that a great question is being
asked of my country and also of the Assembly. When
faced with barbarism, with terrorism, will we remain
spectators, or will we be actors together in what should
be a just international order? The question, if we do
not respond to it, or if we respond too weakly, then
terrorists will continue their business of recruitment
and indoctrination. It is not weakness that will be the
response to terrorism; it is force — the force of law,
the force of the United Nations. At a certain point also,
it will be the force of military action when it becomes
necessary.
I also wanted to talk about other regions of the
world that are facing threats that also affect our own
security. I want to talk to the Assembly about the Ebola
epidemic, because I know just how much it is affecting
our African friends. But again, let us look beyond those
who are affected. Who can imagine that the epidemic
will remain confined to just a few countries if we do
not intervene? It is also a global threat. Again, the
response must be a global. Therefore, France, Europe
and the world must provide to the countries affected by
the epidemic the necessary medical care, indispensable
protection and economic assistance that is expected.
Because again, if there is the slightest weakness, the
slightest failure to show solidarity, all of our countries
will be affected.
I have also come here before the General Assembly
to speak about what is happening in Europe and next to
Europe, to speak about what occurred in Ukraine and
the failures there to uphold principles of international
law. But what is at stake today, even in Europe, is peace
and ensuring that the ceasefire that was agreed can be
transformed into a lasting solution to the conflict.
No continent has been spared from any threat.
Everything is fragile, everything is precarious,
everything is vulnerable. We have to have the same
awareness of the risks, the dangers and the perils that
we had right after the Second World War. We must not
think that all we have to do is remember; we have to
think of the future, of the world we want. The world
that we want is the final subject I wish to address here.
The world that we want has to be one of profound
change. The present disorder also threatens not only
our generation but naturally those that will follow
us. It threatens our very security, as there are more
displaced persons resulting from climate imbalance
than from wars, which are sadly so intense and deadly
on our planet. France has lived up to its responsibilities
in that area too. We decided to organize the climate
conference in December 2015. I am pleased that thanks
to Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, there was a summit
here that mobilized awareness, States, financial
institutions, businesses and civil society. Many events
took place. We have to succeed at the Paris conference,
not because it will take place in Paris, but because it is
the world’s appointment with itself.
There are periods in history when we have the
power to decide, and decide not just for ourselves but
for humankind. This is one of those moments. Therefore
in Paris, we have to do everything can be done to reach
a comprehensive, binding agreement that differentiates
according to levels of development, everything so that
there can be that Green Climate Fund, to which France
has contributed $1 billion for the coming years. I hope
that other countries follow our example, because we
need that Green Fund to allow less developed countries
to grow and to succeed in their energy transition at the
same time.
This is a sad moment that I am living today on
behalf of France, that the French are experiencing, but
it is also a moment of awakening and responsibility. For
the world, for the planet, we must fight terrorism, we
must act in favour of peace, we must reduce inequalities,
we must also do our duty for future generations. We
must ensure that the Paris conference is successful
for the sake of the climate. We must make certain that
the United Nations can remain faithful to the mandate
given to it after a war — a terrible war. We are still
facing challenges, but we are certain to meet them if we
are united and come together to claim victory.