Spain

I would like first of all to express to Ambassador Razali my cordial congratulations on his election as President of the General Assembly. I am firmly convinced that his qualities will enable us to solve successfully the central questions of particular relevance included in our agenda. Permit me as well in these opening comments to extend my fraternal gratitude to Mr. Diogo Freitas do Amaral of Portugal for his rigorous and able leadership during the fiftieth session of the General Assembly. I would also like to express my respect to the Secretary-General, Mr. Boutros Boutros- Ghali, whose efforts at the head of the Secretariat in this particularly difficult moment Spain considers very positive and worthy of our support. The Spanish delegation fully subscribes to the statement made a few days ago by the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs of Ireland on behalf of the European Union, in which he set out the common goals and priorities of Europe for the present session of the General Assembly. I would now like to refer in detail to various issues of particular interest to my country. First of all, however, I wish to reaffirm the strong commitment of Spain and its new Government to the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations. On 26 June 1945 at San Francisco, at a time when mankind still had not recovered from the horrors of the Second World War, the representatives of the peoples of the United Nations expressed their firm resolve to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war. They also reaffirmed their faith in fundamental human rights; in the dignity and worth of the human person; and in the equal rights of men and nations, both large and small. Fifty-one years later, when the necessary conditions for a new international order based on cooperation and solidarity among nations have finally been met, the commitments made in San Francisco take on renewed standing. The United Nations, in fact, constitutes at present the best instrument at mankind’s disposal to face and solve — jointly, on the basis of dialogue and solidarity among Member States — the global challenges confronting mankind at the end of the millennium. We must make sure that our political commitment to the Organization is manifested in actions, not only by making available the necessary financial resources, but also through the active search for consensus solutions for the reform of the United Nations within the various working groups of the General Assembly. Our Organization, which was designed to respond to both global challenges and to the needs of its Member States, will not be able to play its double role in the coming century unless it can count on a sound, solid and stable financial basis. Convinced of this need, Spain, the ninth- largest contributor to the budget of the Organization, pays promptly and in full its assessed contributions. When we celebrated the fiftieth anniversary of the United Nations with the renewed commitment of all the Member States to the principles of the Charter, we all concurred on the need to adapt the Organization to the new international situation by enhancing its efficiency through an in-depth reform which will revitalize and strengthen it. Obviously, carrying out this task means the 9 continuation and the deepening of the necessary rationalization and savings measures already undertaken by the Secretariat. In this respect, the approval at the last session of the General Assembly of the programme budget for the biennium 1996-1997, has given Spain satisfaction. We are aware today more than ever before, of the interrelated nature of the problems confronting the international community and of impossibility for Member States of solving them individually. This is why there is no doubt that it is within the framework of the United Nations where we must bring together efforts in order to face in solidarity the many crises which menace the world. The international community certainly cannot remain impassive before the magnitude of problems such as the ones faced by the African continent. This year we have witnessed terrifying massacres — such as those in Liberia — and the displacement of people in the Great Lakes region, particularly in Burundi where we continue to witness a terrible and tragic spectacle. Africa is not, however, a continent entirely and inevitably abandoned to hopelessness. There are countries in which the tenacious efforts of their leaders and the courage of their peoples allow them to embrace hope. The return to the rule of law, the establishment of solid democracies and respect for human rights are the way to establish the foundations of a sustained and sustainable development which will ensure the welfare of all Africans. The Government of Spain has followed with great attention the developments in the Middle East — focused in the peace process between Arabs and Israelis — in which the question of Palestine continues to be the central point. We are following with great concern the serious events that have taken place in recent days in Jerusalem, the West Bank and Gaza, and we wish to reiterate our call to the parties involved to abstain from all acts of provocation and violence that could lead to a new escalation of tension which could jeopardize the peace process. Furthermore, the Israeli elections held in May and the establishment of the new Government became the basic points of reference for the assessment of this complex issue and for the analysis of its future prospects. After a brief period of uncertainty, the Israeli Government has clearly stated its intention to honour fully the contents of the agreements concluded in Oslo and Washington in the spirit of the principles of Madrid. Such a positive statement of intentions would have to be followed immediately by concrete and tangible progress, which would strengthen the credibility of the peace process as the only valid alternative to attain peaceful coexistence in the region. There are still many problems to be solved. On the one hand, it is of course necessary to preserve and strengthen the safety of civilians from the blind and ruthless violence of terrorism; on the other, the closure of the Palestinian territories, the delay in redeployment of the Israeli Army in Hebron and the policy of settlements represent serious obstacles for progress in the peace process. On the basis of the Florence Declaration issued by the European Union, I avail myself of this opportunity firmly to reiterate the commitment of Spain to the Middle East peace process as the only way to solve this question. In this respect, my Government will continue to work actively, at the national level and within the European Union, to promote the cause of peace and understanding among the peoples of the region. On a broader level, I wish to express my satisfaction at the initial achievements of the Euro-Mediterranean dialogue. The Spanish Government’s priority objective is to contribute to the balanced and harmonious development of the three dimensions of this process: political, economic and human. To this end, it will be necessary to maintain and enhance the “spirit of Barcelona” shown by all countries participating in the Ministerial Conference that my country had the honour of hosting last November. In connection with the question of Western Sahara, I must express the concern of the Spanish Government at the suspension of the voter-identification operation and the blocking of the settlement plan. In this respect, I wish to recall before this Assembly Spain’s principled position, according to which the question of Western Sahara will be solved permanently only through the exercise of the right of self-determination by the people of Western Sahara in a free referendum with international guarantees. The recent elections in Bosnia and Herzegovina have ended a cycle in the process of implementation of the Dayton Agreement that was marked by an inevitable predominance of military over civilian aspects. Peace has become a reality in Bosnia and Herzegovina and the absence of confrontation is tangible evidence of the success of the multinational military operation. However, along with this success has been an absence of the 10 necessary reconciliation between the parties and the restoration of mutual confidence. Since the onset of the conflict, Spain has contributed to its solution with a substantial military presence in the United Nations Protection Force, subsequently renewed in the multinational, Implementation Force. My Government intends to continue supporting stability and reconciliation in the region as well as the United Nations efforts along those lines. The consolidation of democratic Governments, growing respect for human rights and economic and social progress are a tangible reality in and a stimulus for the future of Latin America, a continent to which Spain is linked by solid historical ties of mutual friendship and confidence. We are particularly gratified by the positive developments in Central America, where the consolidated advances of democracy and the increasing stability of peace demonstrate that efforts to promote the rule of law, good governance and respect for human rights are finally having tangible effects on the lives of the people. I wish to underline, from this rostrum, Spain’s commitment to peacekeeping operations. My Government firmly intends to continue contributing to these operations. I wish to pay my warmest and most sincere tribute to the men and women involved in all these operations for their altruistic and selfless work in conditions of extreme difficulty and high risk, which sometimes has meant sacrificing their lives in the interest of peace. The United Nations peacekeeping operations have become a cornerstone of the activity of our Organization. I wish to highlight here the important momentum given by the Secretary-General in his “An Agenda for Peace” to the development and deepening of new concepts of preventive diplomacy, peacemaking and peacekeeping. The role of the United Nations in the decolonization process, particularly in the definition of its general principles, to which Spain adheres unequivocally, has been fundamental. The current membership of this General Assembly clearly demonstrates that the process has been one of the great achievements of our time. In fact, the main phase of decolonization ended some time ago. However, anachronistic colonial situations persist that ought not to be forgotten. One of the priority objectives of the Spanish Government is the decolonization of Gibraltar. Through its resolutions, this General Assembly pointed the way to a decolonization process which, based on the principle of territorial integrity, should be carried out through bilateral negotiations between the United Kingdom, the Colony’s administrative Power and Spain, the State in whose territory the Colony is located. The Spanish Government will carry out with the greatest flexibility, but also the greatest firmness, the future bilateral negotiations with the United Kingdom on the basis of the Brussels Declaration of November 1984, with the clear aim of moving forward in the process to culminate in the restoration of Spain’s full territorial integrity, generously safeguarding the interests of the Colony’s population and convinced of the urgent need to bring an end to the anachronism of the existence of a colony of one European Union member State in the territory of another friendly and allied member State. Spain is pleased to have fulfilled its aspiration of becoming a full member of the Conference on Disarmament. In this capacity, we will continue to support the enlargement of the Conference to include other candidates still hoping to join. We are pleased that the General Assembly adopted by an overwhelming majority the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT), which I have had the honour to sign on behalf of my country. Spain will participate in the network of seismological centres set up for the international verification of compliance with the Treaty and will support the early start-up of the Treaty organization. Universal adherence to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons continues to be a priority objective, along with the other initiatives in the field of nuclear disarmament. Spain, one of the first signatories to ratify the Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production, Stockpiling and Use of Chemical Weapons and on Their Destruction, is also pleased that the figure of 65 ratifications necessary for its entry into force is about to be reached. We trust that all the signatory States that have yet to do so will deposit their instruments of ratification as soon as possible. My country is carrying out the necessary procedures to ratify the new Protocol IV on blinding laser weapons and we are making every effort to put an end to the tragic effects of anti-personnel mines. I referred at the beginning of my statement to the need, which I know is shared, to proceed with the reform, revitalization and strengthening of the United Nations. We must make our Organization the centre for harmonizing efforts to promote respect for international law, world peace and equality for all, streamlining the mechanisms of the Charter and removing the political and logistical obstacles that all too often hinder its work. As part of the institutional reform, the process of expanding and reforming the Security Council stands out. It is well known that Spain supports a moderate increase in the membership of the Council as the result of a considered negotiating process and with the final aim of enhancing the legitimacy of its actions. On the other hand, “An Agenda for Development” must be a key element in this reform process and the culmination of the series of major conferences focusing on the integral development of the individual that have been held in recent years. In the general context of this common task of reforming the United Nations, I should like in particular to refer to the new measures, adopted by this Assembly in resolution 50/227, on restructuring and revitalization in the economic, social and other fields. These measures reaffirm the unequivocal will of all countries significantly to improve the work of the Economic and Social Council as the central mechanism for coordinating and supervising United Nations activities in the economic and social fields. As an example of Spain’s commitment to the development activities of the Organization, I should like to recall that, in the past year, my country has concluded a host of bilateral agreements with various bodies of the United Nations system for the funding of specific projects for developing countries. The Rio Summit was a milestone in the history of the fight against environmental deterioration and established the basis for a concept of sustainable development that does not compromise the welfare of future generations. However, the health of our planet is far from being as good as it ought to be. We must take advantage of the forthcoming special session of this Assembly to give new impetus to the joint efforts being made to protect the environment, the true common heritage of humankind. The Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action adopted at the World Conference on Human Rights defined the promotion and protection of human rights as a priority objective of the international community. Spain fully subscribes to this principle. The promotion and protection of human rights are in themselves ineluctable necessities, and the survival of many, many human beings depends on their effective implementation. Sustainable development for all is not feasible without institutions that help in the realization of human rights. In this regard, the High Commissioner for Human Rights should have more resources at hand to continue his laudable work on restructuring the Centre for Human Rights. On the other hand, defending human rights is particularly important where the weakest people, those most needing protection and self-defence, are involved. In this context, Spain believes that we should capitalize on the stimulus of the World Congress on the Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children held recently in Stockholm, to promote through this Organization the most rigorous and comprehensive protection of minors. In the final phase of the League of Nations, an attempt was made, unfortunately without success, to implement the trilogy of arbitration-security-disarmament. The Government of Spain is convinced that the prohibition of the use and threat of use of force must be accompanied by a general provision in international law making recourse to jurisdictional channels mandatory for the settlement of disputes. It was for this reason that, in a unilateral declaration of 15 October 1990, our Government, the Government of Spain, recognized as compulsory, ipso facto and without special agreement, the jurisdiction of the International Court of Justice, as provided for in the Statute of the Court. It is true that the United Nations cannot solve all the problems of humankind. But our Organization can look back with the certainty that its role, in the past and in the present, has not been and is not insignificant and that, for many regions of our planet, the present and the future would be different, harsher and more forlorn without the United Nations. For this reason, I could not conclude without reiterating the firmest and most rigorous commitment of Spain to the United Nations.