It is our
pleasure, Mr. President, to congratulate you and your
friendly country, the Republic of Uganda, on your
election to the presidency of the General Assembly
at its sixty-ninth session. We are confident that your
vast experience in diplomacy will steer the work of
this session to a successful outcome. I would also like
to assure you of the cooperation of the delegation of
the Sultanate of Oman in working with you towards
achieving the cherished goals and objectives of the
current session, at the forefront of which is enhancing
international peace and security.
We would also like to take this opportunity to
express our thanks and appreciation to your predecessor,
Mr. John William Ashe of Antigua and Barbuda, for the
excellent manner in which he conducted the work of the
previous session. We would also like to reiterate our
confidence in Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon for his
tireless efforts to enhance the role of the United Nations
and improve its working methods so that it can respond
in the best possible way to the hopes and aspirations of
Member States.
The Middle East is going through a difficult
phase as it grapples with several crises due to a lack
of international consensus. We believe that the overall
situation in the Middle East requires a unified position
to solve the crises, the most immediate of which is the
Palestinian question, which no doubt lies at the core of
regional conflicts. We note that while the Palestinians
have consistently shown willingness to enter into
a genuine partnership in peace with Israel, based on
the concept of two States living side by side in peace,
Israel has not demonstrated responsible cooperation
as it continues to resort to military force as a tool to
maintain its security.
Security and stability cannot be achieved through
the use of excessive force and the insistence on inflicting
heavy loss of life, injuries and destruction on the largest
possible scale. The path to achieving the security and
stability that underpins economic and social recovery
can be realized only through the peaceful partnership
of the Palestinians and Israelis. We now believe that
there is a chance to achieve that objective, following
the ceasefire agreement reached between the two sides,
Palestinian and Israeli, in the Gaza Strip. We stress the
importance of the two sides sticking to the agreement
in words and in actions and avoiding violations under
any justification or pretext. In that respect, we call upon
Palestinians and Israelis alike to resume negotiations in
order to reach a just and comprehensive settlement that
would provide peace and security for Israel and that
responds to the hopes and aspirations of the Palestinian
people to regain their inalienable rights.
The continuation of violence in the brotherly
Syrian Arab Republic and its serious implications for
regional and international peace and security require
us to redouble our efforts to encourage the Syrian
Government and the National Coalition of Syrian
Revolutionary and Opposition Forces to return to the
negotiating table, based on the Geneva communiqué.
The two parties should approach negotiations in a
positive manner by focusing on areas of consensus and
avoiding negative aspects and positions with the aim
of saving the Syrian people and sparing them further
suffering and tragedies.
While we applaud the role of humanitarian relief
organizations and agencies in helping the Syrian
people overcome their prolonged ordeal, we also call
for intensified efforts to facilitate access by relief
agencies to all areas inside and outside Syria to provide
the necessary humanitarian assistance to the affected
people. In that respect, we look forward in confidence
to the efforts of the United Nations Special Envoy for
Syria, Mr. Staffan de Mistura, to encourage Syrian and
international stakeholders to reconvene the Geneva
conference. We believe that the current situation is
more conducive than ever to this effort.
My country appreciates the efforts of the President
of Yemen, Abd Rabbuh Mansour Hadi, to achieve
security and stability there. We welcome the agreement
of peace and partnership signed by President Hadi
and the political powers in Yemen, and we call upon
all political partners, particularly Ansar Allah, to
comply with its provisions. We call on all political
entities in Yemen to renounce violence and uphold
the outcome of the National Dialogue Conference as
the best available road map for resolving the current
crisis. We hope that the Yemeni presidency will take
the remaining important steps in the Comprehensive
National Dialogue, most notably the referendum on
a new constitution that would secure the rights and
interests of all Yemenis.
The Sultanate of Oman is firm in its principled
position regarding the condemnation of terrorism in all
its forms and manifestations, regardless of motives and
justifications. In that context, we condemn the terrorist
acts perpetrated by the so-called Islamic State in Iraq
and the Levant (ISIL). We support the recommendations
of the Jeddah and Paris conferences, and the steps
the international community is taking to extend Iraqi
authority over all ISIL-controlled areas. We emphasize
the importance for the international community to
stand united in freeing the Middle East from all forms
of violence, extremism and terrorism. We also welcome
Security Council resolution 2178 (2014) on the threats
to international peace and security posed by terrorist
acts.
There are a number of ways to prevent violence and
extremism. These include the consolidation of good
governance and sustainable development, which would
allow all sectors of society — especially young people,
who constitute two thirds of the populations of Arab
countries — to work, innovate and actively participate
in the decisions affecting their daily life. On this basis,
the Sultanate of Oman has established a complete and
interlinked system encompassing the principles of
good governance, including councils and institutions
to protect society and young people and ensure their
participation in the development process.
In that regard, my country has established the
Council of Oman, composed of two chambers, the
Shura Consultative Council and the State Council. It
has also created municipal councils, whose members
are popularly elected, to oversee local issues that
affect the lives of the people in the economic, social,
educational and other fields, based on the principles of
good governance and sustainable development.
The Sultanate of Oman has also come a long
way in its national development. It has established an
independent judiciary, which has become a key element
of the development and modernization process. It
has also established the Public Prosecution Office,
which stands at the apex of the independent judicial
system in the Sultanate, as well as the State Audit
Institution, whose role is to provide a secure and proper
administration to ensure better management of public
properties.
It has also redoubled its efforts to fight corruption
and organized crime. In that respect, and in the context
of its efforts to protect the country and its citizens, the
Sultanate has acceded to the United Nations Convention
against Corruption, the United Nations Convention
against Transnational Organized Crime and the
three protocols thereto. This system of institutions is
based on effective public participation in the policies
adopted and implemented by the Government in order
to enhance good governance in the framework of a
modern civic State, based on institutions, in order to
achieve security, stability and sustainable development.
Regarding regional peace and security, my country
supports the call for an international conference to
establish a Middle East zone free of nuclear weapons and
weapons of mass destruction, in line with the resolution
adopted at the 1995 Review and Extension Conference
of the Parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of
Nuclear Weapons. My country calls upon States parties
to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear
Weapons, especially the depository States, to take the
necessary measures to achieve this goal in order to
spare the region the dangers of tension, and to avoid
confrontation.
In closing, we would like emphasize that the
Sultanate of Oman has come a long way towards
achieving the Millennium Development Goals in
all fields and within the specific timelines set by the
United Nations.