Qatar

I extend my congratulations to Mr. Theo-Ben Gurirab, on his election as President of the General Assembly at its fifty- fourth session. I wish him success in guiding the work of the Assembly. It gives me great pleasure to extend my thanks to his predecessor, Mr. Didier Opertti, for his effective work as President of the Assembly at its previous session. I wish him similar success in his future endeavours. Allow me on this occasion to congratulate the three new Members on their admission to the United Nations. 4 Allow me also, on behalf of my Government, to express appreciation to the Secretary-General, for his tireless work and laudable efforts in the midst of an international situation that can be described — at best — as difficult and complicated. Of course the international situation is truly difficult and complicated. It is no coincidence that as we meet in this forum to discuss the affairs and state of the world today — at this, the last session of the century, the beginning of a new century, a new age that we once hoped would be different from the old — we find ourselves obliged to discuss the same problems and the same disputes that we have been facing for over half a century. Is this not truly deplorable and even outrageous? Does not this reality constitute categorical evidence that all of us — States, peoples and regional and international organizations — have failed to learn enough from the lessons of the past, that we have not benefited from our past experiences enough and that we have not sought as much as we should have, to overcome our past limitations and shortcomings? What do we see when we look at our world today? We see bloody conflicts that we have not yet been able to stop and chronic crises that still await solutions that would end the spiral of violence and suffering. Moreover, we find that the world remains reluctant or even unable to address problems and crises that are far removed, in terms of content, from the course of daily politics but whose effects and ramifications are no less dangerous than the topical crises and conflicts that threaten our existence. We must ask ourselves: What have we done, as we stand on the threshold of the third millennium, to prepare ourselves to meet the challenges of poverty, misery, unemployment, illiteracy, disease, the spread of epidemics and the exploitation of children? What have we done to prepare ourselves to cope with the dangers of organized crime, international terrorism and drug trafficking? Have we really understood the threat of the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and the possibility that they may be used at any time and anywhere? What of the real dangers besetting our planet as a result of environmental degradation, climate change, the scarcity of water resources, the shortage of raw materials, the deteriorating phenomena of drought and desertification and the increasing frequency of natural disasters? Have we at least begun to draft guidelines and comprehensive universal plans to confront these global threats, which do not differentiate between nationalities, races, colours or creeds and which most certainly recognize no political, geographical, economic and social borders among nations and peoples? Simply put, have we, as States, Governments and international organizations, begun adjusting our priorities so as to place the goals of development, progress, education, health, high living standards and decent life for our peoples ahead of the aims of conflict, disputes and vengeance, no matter how historical, profound or sensitive? I cannot answer yes to any of these questions. There is nothing in this statement to criticize anyone or detract from their resolve or intentions. It is a sad universal reality that requires our cooperation and joint efforts if we truly hope to prepare ourselves for the future and its tasks and changes. To that end, I see no better or more comprehensive framework for this mission than this international Organization, which we believe to be the qualified and appropriate institution for defining the future of our world. All of us, regardless of our interests and our narrow, topical political calculations, must provide the United Nations and its agencies with all the means necessary for it to play such an important role. We are convinced that this can be achieved only with universal will, for in the final analysis, the United Nations is the sum total of its Member States. We are also convinced of the need to reform the United Nations and to enhance the effectiveness and efficiency of its bodies and agencies. Similarly, it is incumbent upon us, the States Members of the Organization, to assume our political responsibility and respect our moral and financial commitments to it. Furthermore, in this context, we support the idea of expanding the Security Council to make it more democratic and representative of the international community in the modern world. We also support the idea of expanding the permanent membership of the Council so as to ensure greater universal representation on it. The same applies to restricting the use of the veto by the permanent members and to regulating the capacity to use this right under agreed and specific terms and conditions. It is perhaps not exaggerated optimism or expectation on my part when I say that we consider this to be an essential and vital step towards consecrating the sound concept of globalization, as we see it and as it must be in the twenty-first century. We believe that globalization must be a comprehensive mechanism in the 5 service of the general welfare of all nations and peoples. If its benefits are confined to certain States and societies, to the exclusion of others, it will fail to achieve its objectives. On this basis, we believe that globalization should be the means by which we promote cooperation, interaction and openness among the peoples and societies of the world. We can thus steer globalization away from the pitfalls of narrow exploitation and short-term profit and towards a universal scope whose benefits and returns reach everyone. It is here that we feel that a new and extremely vital role will emerge for the United Nations in the twenty-first century — a role in which the Organization will assume leadership of the trend towards globalization and consecrate it, especially in the fields of cooperation, cultural and educational exchanges, social and economic development, the defence of human rights, strengthening peace and stability and consolidating the bases of cultural openness among nations and peoples. We will thus have taken the first essential steps towards the establishment of the new international order that we thought we had achieved at the end the cold war and the age of international polarization, which lasted 50 years after the end of the Second World War. The new international order to which we aspired did not materialize. Unfortunately, and in spite of the many initiatives and indications that had once seemed encouraging, the world instead soon fell into a new spiral of disagreements, disputes and regional, bilateral and internal conflicts. These seemed to be the direct results of the political vacuum left in the wake of the cold war. At the same time, new conflicts and disputes have joined the series of historically chronic crises that have plagued our world for decades and for which no effective solutions have been found. We may discuss the future and a new world in which we seek to achieve the aspirations of all peoples to prosperity, progress and stability, but the priority of spending on arms and military purposes still prevails over all others, especially in the developing and poor regions of the world, where the need for resources for social and economic growth and development is paramount. In the meantime, economic conditions in these regions continue to deteriorate, social crises are exacerbated and living standards are plummeting ever faster. Naturally, these are not the only problems. In the midst of such a vicious circle, the political crises facing these societies are intensified in turn and soon evolve into significant threats, not only to their security and internal fabric, but also to their neighbours. Particularly disturbing is the fact that this phenomenon has spread and expanded into several regions of the world. In this regard, and on behalf of my country, Qatar, I cannot but express satisfaction at the results of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) operation in the Balkans. In the same context, my Government has followed with concern the events that have unfolded in East Timor in recent weeks. Qatar hopes for the success of the international efforts currently under way to restore peace and security. At the same time, we stress the hope that the Republic of Indonesia will transcend this difficult ordeal and reclaim its prominent position in South-East Asia and in the ranks of the international community as a whole. While some recent developments have provided relatively reassuring indications of the possibility of settling regional and internal conflicts, given the resolve and the international will to do so, we find it necessary to recall here that we would have preferred that such international endeavours had taken place in a pre-emptive context that would have prevented the crises and the ensuing tragedies and suffering, instead of subsequent efforts aimed at salvaging whatever remained to be salvaged. We express this concern and call for further international efforts to settle crises and to put an end to wars and conflicts because we in the State of Qatar profoundly believe in the right of peoples to live in freedom and peace. We also believe in the need to establish international relations on the basis of friendship, cooperation, mutual respect, common interests and good- neighbourliness. Proceeding from this, my country stands firmly and unambiguously in support of the settlement of differences and disputes in the Gulf region by peaceful means and through dialogue, negotiations, or international arbitration in order to consolidate security and stability in the region. We also wish to place on record my Government's satisfaction at some of the positive developments and encouraging signs that we have noticed during the past months regarding the settlement of a number of questions that have long been a source of concern in our region. We welcome the progress made in settling the Lockerbie matter and congratulate our Libyan brothers on that, hoping that this file will be closed and this matter concluded as soon as possible and in a way that will ensure the rights and interests of all parties. 6 Notwithstanding the positive indications and trends, which we welcome and hope will be strengthened, the general regional situation is still, to our great regret, far removed from the comprehensive peace, the lasting stability and the modes of cooperation, development and progress that we seek and desire for our region. The Iraqi crisis and its continuous repercussions on security and stability in the Gulf and the Middle East, and the cruel suffering of the fraternal Iraqi people, are all elements that cause great concern and prompt us to do our utmost in order to put an end to this crisis. We believe it is high time that we overcame the Iraqi crisis and found effective solutions to it so that the sanctions imposed against Iraq can be lifted and the cruel suffering of its peoples can be terminated. We have always resorted to diplomatic solutions, in accordance with international resolutions, in order to ensure the preservation of the territorial integrity and national unity of Iraq and to spare it and the entire region further dangers and agony. There naturally remains the essential question, which in our view has been the main source of tension and crises in our region for more than half a century, and that is the question of Palestine and the Arab-Israeli conflict. I must say that we in the State of Qatar, together with our Arab brothers, have committed ourselves to peace as a permanent strategic option, a commitment which still stands. However, the peace process has regrettably failed to attain its envisaged results. Rather, this process has suffered setbacks over the past years, the responsibility for which, in our view, lies with the former Israeli Government, which opted to retreat from its commitments and pursued policies that prevented any progress in the peace process and in negotiations on its various tracks. We welcome the changes that have taken place in the Israeli Government as a result of the recent general elections and in light of the formation of the new Government under the leadership of Mr. Ehud Barak and his stated intention to pursue peace more earnestly. However, we feel that such gestures must be coupled with concrete steps that would demonstrate good faith on the Israeli side and sincere readiness to meet its obligations by implementing the agreements concluded on all tracks during the previous stages of the negotiations, and to seek a resumption of the negotiations on the Syrian and Lebanese tracks as soon as possible, on the basis of the resolutions of international legitimacy and the principle of land for peace. Perhaps it suffices here to recall the recent affirmation by His Highness, Sheik Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Thani, the Emir of the State of Qatar, in explaining my country's firm position on this matter. In our view, there can be no solution to this conflict nor peace in the Middle East except through a permanent, just and comprehensive settlement, based on the established principles that form the foundations of the peace process. This means the implementation of Security Council resolutions 242 (1967), 338 (1973) and 425 (1978); full Israeli withdrawal from the occupied Syrian Golan Heights to the border of 4 June 1967 and from southern Lebanon and its western Bekaa valley, to the internationally recognized borders, and the regaining by the Palestinian people of their legitimate national and political rights, foremost among which is their natural right to self-determination and to the establishment of their independent State, with Jerusalem as its capital: the city of peace, the land of tolerance and the cradle of divine revelations, where religions have always coexisted in harmony and concord. We must express concern over the continued presence of weapons of mass destruction in the region, especially nuclear weapons that are available exclusively to one side, the Israeli side. In our view, this constitutes a strategic imbalance and a threat to peace and security. Therefore, we believe in the need for the complete elimination of weapons of mass destruction from our region, as an integral and complementary part of the peace process. We also call on Israel to accede to the international treaties providing for the limitation and non- proliferation of such weapons. Peace, in our view, cannot be one-sided, nor can its benefits accrue exclusively on one side. Therefore, we sincerely look forward to the day when a balanced, just, comprehensive and genuine peace reigns in our region. Then we can speak of such advantages and benefits of peace as security, cooperation, stability, prosperity and progress for all the States and peoples in our region without exception. We look forward to that day because we truly yearn to see a new Middle East, which enters the new millennium in a climate of peace, security and democracy; a climate in which we all respect pluralism of opinions, diversity of approaches and the right of peoples and States to self-determination, to better living standards and to living in freedom, prosperity and dignity, in conformity with their lofty beliefs and values. This is one of the basic human rights we cherish. Our belief stems foremost from our profound belief in God Almighty and in His divine revelations with which He blessed all mankind. 7 This process of working for a better future and for our peoples imbues us with the utmost hope that we will be able to achieve the objective of building a new world worthy of our young generations which will inhabit it in the third millennium. As we are about to draw the curtain on an old century and welcome the dawn of a new one, we must pledge to our children that we will do our utmost so that their world will be a better world, more capable and better equipped to respond to their ambitions and aspirations.