It is a privilege and an
honour to address this distinguished audience on behalf
of Bulgaria, particularly as my country is celebrating
the centennial anniversary of the proclamation of its
independence. Throughout those 100 years, Bulgaria
asserted and safeguarded its independence, often
through active participation in international
organizations, including the United Nations. Having
recently become a member of the European Union
(EU), my country is now even more committed to the
universal and regulatory role of the United Nations in
today’s globalized world. We align ourselves with the
statement made by President Sarkozy of the French
Republic on behalf of the EU (5th meeting).
Permit me to congratulate you, Sir, on your
election to the presidency of the General Assembly at
its sixty-third session. We wish you every success in
the months ahead and pledge our full support for your
endeavours. Our deep gratitude goes to His Excellency
Mr. Srgjan Kerim for his able guidance of the
Assembly at its previous session.
Given the growing urgency of food security, the
topic that we are discussing today is of crucial
importance. We fully support the United Nations-led
efforts, reflected in the Rome Declaration, to ensure a
timely response to a problem that may have grave
consequences for the livelihoods of millions of people.
Food security is a cross-cutting issue that should
be considered against the background of other
interrelated global challenges, such as climate change
and energy security. These also demand an immediate
response based on the common but differentiated
responsibilities and capabilities of various countries.
The United Nations should continue to provide a
unique forum for the elaboration of the effective
multilateral approach needed.
Next spring, Bulgaria intends to host a summit
entitled “Gas for Europe: New Transregional
Partnerships and Projects”. It is important to bring
together heads of State and Government from all
interested countries in South-Eastern Europe, the Black
Sea/Caspian Sea region, Central Asia, the EU and the
United States in order to encourage political dialogue
at the highest level and to enhance transregional
cooperation with a view to achieving a balance among
energy and other strategic interests.
Effective multilateralism requires an intensive
partnership between the United Nations and regional
organizations. On the basis of the European Union-United
Nations Joint Declaration on Cooperation in Crisis
Management, the EU and the United Nations have
engaged in partnerships that have already delivered
results in many areas related to peacemaking and
peacebuilding. A good and pragmatic relationship
between the United Nations and NATO in the Western
Balkans, Afghanistan and Africa is also of crucial
importance.
Various forms of regional, subregional and
transborder cooperation may serve as building blocks
for a comprehensive collective security system. Peace
and stability are well rooted when local communities
and immediate neighbours live in harmony. That
philosophy guided the recent Bulgarian chairmanship
of the South-East European Cooperation Process.
Regional cooperation in South-East Europe has
recently gained momentum. South-East Europe is in
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the process of changing from an area recovering from
war to a thriving and dynamic region. Over the past 12
months, a whole new architecture of interaction has
come into being, connecting the countries of the region
to the rest of Europe and the international community.
In line with the concept of regional ownership, the
pivotal role has now been assumed by the new
Regional Cooperation Council.
Democracy, security and cooperation still have a
way to go in the Black Sea region. More coherent
efforts are needed for an ultimate settlement of the
protracted conflicts there. Frozen conflicts should not
be neglected, because they tend to reignite tension time
and again. The recent armed hostilities in South
Ossetia and in other parts of Georgia have provided
ample evidence to that effect. Bulgaria gave its full
support to the peacemaking mission of the French EU
presidency and remains actively involved in the
preparation of the EU Monitoring Mission. We are
convinced that the sovereignty and territorial integrity
of Georgia should be upheld and that the military
contingents should be withdrawn to their positions
prior to the conflict in order to allow effective
monitoring by the EU and the Organization for
Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) of the
implementation of the six-point plan.
Bulgaria contributes fully to the Eastern
Dimension of the European Neighbourhood Policy,
which should address the needs and priorities of all
partners in the region. We see opportunities for
launching projects in important sectors such as
transport, trade, energy, the environment and border
security. The EU’s Black Sea Synergy initiative is a
pragmatic way to intertwine various regional
initiatives, thus multiplying their effect.
As prevention and development are inextricably
linked, the Bulgarian Government and the country
office of the United Nations Development Programme
(UNDP) in Bulgaria are currently exploring the
potential for a Bulgaria/UNDP regional hub for the
Western Balkans and the Black Sea area to share
accumulated know-how, training and research.
We condemn terrorism unequivocally and reject
terrorist ideology in all its forms and manifestations.
The first review of the United Nations Global Counter-
Terrorism Strategy held recently proved that the United
Nations should continue to play a central role in
mobilizing the international community to counter
terrorism and all related phenomena, such as
radicalization and extremism.
In countering terrorism, it is essential to conduct
that struggle within the requirements of international
law and to overcome prejudices and stereotype
perceptions in a world of great diversity. Bulgaria’s
long history of tolerance has been based on the
common understanding that cultural diversity is a great
asset in our society. It is in that spirit that Bulgaria
actively participates in the United Nations Alliance of
Civilizations and supports other like-minded
initiatives.
This year, we mark the sixtieth anniversary of
United Nations peacekeeping operations. As we pay
tribute to the six decades of promoting peace and
protecting the vulnerable, we should also realize that
there is still much to be done. The United Nations is
facing a serious challenge due to the complex and
multidimensional character of a growing number of
peace operations and missions.
Bulgaria continues to make its contribution to the
international peacekeeping efforts in the western
Balkans, Afghanistan, Iraq and Africa. Our task today
is not only to keep the peace; we must also make
certain that peace is irreversible and sustainable. The
Peacebuilding Commission, an early achievement of
the reform process, has now become functional and has
achieved some practical results in Burundi and Sierra
Leone.
Global celebrations of the sixtieth anniversary of
the Universal Declaration of Human Rights this year
have reaffirmed the critical importance of universal
adherence to international human rights standards, the
realization of which should make the world better for
us all, free of poverty, intolerance and discrimination.
Despite the progress achieved, we should never relent
in our efforts. The Human Rights Council, with its
institution-building process successfully accomplished,
should engage in constructive, all-inclusive work
aimed at promoting and guaranteeing all human rights
for all.
Stable peace and security can be achieved only
through development. Therefore, there is an urgent
need to accelerate the implementation of the
internationally agreed development goals, including
the Millennium Development Goals. We are convinced
that the responsibility for the timely achievement of
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those Goals lies with both developed and developing
countries.
Solidarity with those in need, and in particular
with the developing countries, is an important and
irrevocable principle of Bulgarian foreign policy. We
are taking our first steps in building a new donor
capacity and shall strive to achieve the targeted levels
of official development assistance as part of the
European Union development cooperation policy.
In order to perform its role in the world
efficiently, the United Nations must follow persistently
the course of reforms initiated at the 2005 World
Summit. We welcome the progress achieved during the
sixty-second session of the General Assembly towards
improving the working modalities of the main United
Nations bodies. Bulgaria expects that the remaining
tasks on the United Nations reform agenda will be
pursued vigorously and without delay during the
current session.
In that regard, we welcome the efforts of the
Secretary-General and his determination expressed in
his opening statement. It is in our common interest to
ensure that this sixty-third session of the General
Assembly achieve tangible results. That is what the
peoples of our countries, the people of the world, are
expecting of us.