Hungary

Allow me first to congratulate the President most sincerely on his election to the presidency of the fifty—fourth session of the General Assembly. I take this opportunity to assure him of the full support of the Hungarian delegation in the exercise of his responsibilities as the head of our Assembly. Humanity has reached the threshold of the twenty—first century. Therefore, no Member State can remain indifferent to the way in which we discharge our tasks at this session, held as the twentieth century ends. One of the most urgent tasks of States and international organizations at the turn of the century is to end the ever—growing disparities between the various regions of the world. In this regard, special attention 27 should be paid to the African continent, which is fraught with various crises and conflicts. The persistence of poverty, still one of our major challenges, is exacerbated by the process of globalization. Inequality is a major source of the emergence and proliferation of all kinds of extremism and of intolerance, with its concomitant violence, which threaten the very foundations of contemporary civilization. At the dawn of this new century, we are called upon to exploit further the advantages of globalization, a salient feature of our era, while being aware of the attendant risks. All of us in the international community must become aware of the paramount importance of dealing adequately with global problems, such as the growing gap between the levels of economic development; environmental degradation; the dangers posed by organized crime; uncontrolled migration; disease and so on. In this context, we must take note of the relationship between globalization and regional integration. Integration can adjust itself to the process of globalization, draw the lessons of the process's inevitable consequences, absorb its related risks and assist the struggle against transboundary scourges, thereby becoming the engine of the universal system of economic cooperation. Most conflicts today are not between States, but within States, essentially as major ethnic or religious confrontations that too often lead to humanitarian crises of unprecedented dimensions. Entire ethnic groups and communities and national and linguistic minorities are falling victim to “ethnic cleansing”. Dictatorial regimes do not hesitate to resort to nationalist extremism and xenophobia, and to unspeakable violence, exterminating hundreds of thousands of people, terrorizing others in their ancestral lands and expelling millions of people from their homes. We cannot remain indifferent to such acts. A great debate is therefore going on in the international arena, as demonstrated in this very Hall, about how the world should react to tragic situations involving massive and flagrant violations of human rights at a time when, for all kinds of reasons, our world Organization finds itself paralysed. We are convinced that, given the terrible upheavals we are witnessing throughout the world, the international community cannot fail to respond effectively to this major present-day challenge. The traditional concept of the principle of national sovereignty is undergoing a progressive evolution in inter- State relations and within multilateral organizations. Because of developments in the area of international law, national sovereignty is becoming less acceptable as a justification for Governments in cases of serious violations within their countries of universally recognized international legal standards. As the Secretary-General rightly said, in our era of globalization the collective interest represents national interests. Fortunately, today the principles of good governance are prevailing and flourishing in an ever-growing number of countries. In the immediate vicinity of my country, a regime based on extreme nationalism has sparked four wars in the last decade. The international community, albeit after hesitation and delay, took the necessary measures. In the case of Kosovo, it did so with great resolve and consistency. In the wake of the action undertaken to defend universally recognized values, and thanks to the presence of international military forces and the United Nations mission, a fragile peace reigns today in that martyred region, and considerable, increasingly effective efforts are being deployed there with a view to establish peace and stability. In the light of the events of the past decade in this part of Europe, let us state clearly and unambiguously that it would be pointless to expect democratization in the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia if things remain unchanged in Belgrade. However, a new Serbia, emerging from tragedy and destruction, free of the burdens of the past, would no doubt be able to rely on the understanding and effective assistance of the international community. In this context, we would underscore the importance of the implementation of the judgments of the International Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia. The Stability Pact, devised with a view to responding to the needs of the countries of South-Eastern Europe, will play a primary role in the rehabilitation and development of the region. It will also contribute to promoting respect for democratic standards and human rights by proposing, inter alia, institutional arrangements aimed at improving relations between majority and minority communities within the region. The international community is again being put to the test in the case of East Timor. Hungary shares the profound concerns of all nations in the wake of recent events, which represent a brutal violation of the right of the people of that country to self-determination. The atrocities committed against the civilian population of East Timor represent a serious blow to human rights. Those responsible for these acts will be brought to justice. 28 We welcome the decision of the Security Council authorizing the deployment to East Timor of a multinational force to restore peace and security on the island as well as the enactment of all necessary measures for the implementation of that force's mandate. The tragic events in Kosovo and East Timor only confirm the universality of human rights and the importance of a timely resolution of conflict by appropriate means. They also demonstrate the value of harmonious cooperation between the United Nations, regional organizations and particular groups of States, a cooperation that is becoming increasingly important in dealing with the diverse and varied conflicts that are erupting — and, unfortunately, will continue to erupt — throughout the world. Hungary is prepared, with its own means, to take part in this great enterprise of safeguarding and restoring international peace and security. Among the phenomena that threaten peace and security throughout the world, the question of the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction will require sustained attention in future. Regional conflicts having nuclear ramifications only aggravate the destabilizing effect of certain crisis areas. Against this backdrop, the pillars of the global non- proliferation system — such as the Treaty on the Non- Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, whose Review Conference will be one of the major events on next year's diplomatic calendar, or the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test- Ban Treaty (CTBT) — take on additional significance. We regret that the CTBT has not yet been able to exert its favourable influence on the process of nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation. We would like here to underscore the responsibility of the 44 States whose ratification is needed for this key instrument to enter into force. My country, as one of the States in question, has already ratified the Treaty and thereby discharged its obligations. The international conference to be convened next October in Vienna is likely to play an important role in speeding up the process leading to the entry into force of this instrument. We would be gratified if those States that have not yet acceded to the Treaty participated in that conference and decided, in the near future, to sign and ratify the Treaty. We would underscore also the need to commence, as soon as possible, negotiations on a fissile material cut-off treaty. The entry into force of the Ottawa Convention on anti-personnel mines could contribute tangibly to resolving the humanitarian, economic and social problems stemming from the massive and irresponsible use of these mines. In that connection, we note with satisfaction the outcome of the Maputo meeting. Hungary was one of the first countries to join the Ottawa process and recently completed the destruction of its stocks of anti-personnel mines. We hope that other countries in the region will follow our example, as this could contribute to the elimination of all of these lethal devices in the crisis area along our southern border. We would also note the importance of speeding up negotiations to conclude a verification protocol annexed to the Biological Weapons Convention. We believe that these negotiations could be completed sometime between now and next summer. As Chairman of the ad hoc Group mandated to draft a verification protocol, Hungary is prepared to contribute to any political initiative that could promote its implementation. I cannot fail to mention the establishment of an International Criminal Court — a deeply significant undertaking. In our view, the Court is an indispensable institution if we are to take action against crimes against humanity and war crimes. The Court will not only bring to justice people who have been accused of serious crimes, but will also act as a deterrent, thereby contributing to the maintenance of regional and international peace and security. We hope that the number of signatures and ratifications of the Rome Statute will continue to grow and that disputed questions relating to the universal acceptance of the Court will be resolved as soon as possible. Acts of terrorism in recent weeks sadly remind us of the great challenge involved in combating this phenomenon. They underscore the importance of making new efforts and the imperative need for concerted international action in this area. We hope that at this session of the General Assembly we will be able to go beyond the universal introduction and complete implementation of international agreements relating to terrorism that are already in force, and move forward the work of finalizing international agreements relating to nuclear terrorism and the prevention of financing for terrorism. The authority and prestige of the United Nations depend to a large extent on the capacity of its Member States to reform the Organization. In the light of the experience of recent years, it is very clear that reform is a long-term process and will be probably consist of various interconnected stages. The achievements thus far, though insufficient in themselves, are valuable elements 29 that must be built upon if we are to go further along this long road leading to the transformation and revitalization of the world Organization, including the reform of the Security Council. What is certain is that if we are to succeed, all Member States, without exception, will have to get to work with a greater sense of commitment. We expect the millennium summit, to be held next year, to give the necessary impetus to the dynamic continuation of United Nations reform. As has been repeated on many occasions, our paramount task today is to make this unique Organization, the United Nations, capable of preserving the values of our civilization in a twenty-first century that promises to be turbulent. At the dawn of the year 2000, which also marks the thousandth anniversary of the foundation of our State, it is up to all of us — Governments, the business world and civil society — to make our planet a decent and habitable place for future generations.