I wish to begin by congratulating
you, Mr. Kerim, on your assumption of the post of
President of the General Assembly at its sixty-second
session. Your wise and energetic leadership will reflect
the abilities of the people of your country and of our
region as a whole. I also wish to congratulate and
extend my best wishes to the Secretary-General,
Mr. Ban Ki-moon, and to pledge him my full support.
It is evident that the Secretary-General recognizes the
multitude of challenges the world is facing today. Only
two days ago, I took part in the high-level meeting on
climate change here at the United Nations. That
meeting was organized by the Secretary-General to
highlight the urgent need for decisions that will prevent
long-term negative consequences. Now we must all
work together towards achieving a satisfactory
outcome to the Bali Conference, which is to be held at
the end of this year.
I welcome the fact that the Security Council was
able to adopt the groundbreaking resolution 1769
(2007), which authorized the deployment of the Hybrid
Operation in Darfur. It is now imperative that the
resolution be translated into reality. We all recognize
the difficulties involved. It is also imperative to
continue the political process. Only a negotiated
solution has the potential to bring sustainable peace to
that long-suffering region.
To a great extent, the stability and prosperity of
Iraq depend on support from its region. We therefore
welcome the fact that the Security Council could unite
to adopt resolution 1770 (2007). That resolution gives
a renewed and strengthened mandate to the United
Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq. With the launch of
the International Compact with Iraq, last May, the
world community now possesses an effective
instrument for rendering further assistance to the areas
in Iraq where it is most needed. The Compact has
already been used to achieve positive results. We
encourage the Government of Iraq to continue to take
steps towards promoting economic reform and
achieving peace and stability for its people.
Just a couple of weeks ago, I visited Afghanistan.
I had a chance to meet with President Karzai,
representatives of the Afghan Government, Latvian
troops and civilian experts. The message from all those
meetings was clear. Providing assistance through the
International Security Assistance Force is just one side
of the coin; the other entails contributing to building a
solid foundation for the country’s sustainable
development.
Latvia is present in Afghanistan as part of both
the international military and the civilian rebuilding
effort. Latvia’s Government is contributing financially
to the reconstruction of infrastructure in Afghanistan.
However, it is my strong conviction that the key to
success in Afghanistan is cooperation cooperation
among countries and international organizations. To
succeed, the European Union, the United Nations,
NATO and others must adopt a comprehensive, long-
term approach to development assistance for the
country.
In the Middle East, the past year has brought no
significant breakthrough. Yet, we continue to place our
trust in the work of the Quartet, which supports the
efforts of responsible regional States in helping to calm
the situation. It is a crucial tool to promote a
negotiated, comprehensive, just and lasting peace in
the Middle East, in line with the relevant resolutions of
the Security Council. I am sure that the Quartet’s
newly appointed Special Envoy will use his great
experience and make sincere efforts to fulfil his
challenging mandate.
The international community is currently also
seized of the matter regarding the final status of
Kosovo. The Secretary-General has endorsed the
Comprehensive Proposal of his Special Envoy Martti
Ahtisaari. The Proposal currently remains the only
viable diplomatic solution on the table. The active
involvement of the European Union is important to
achieve a lasting solution. We urge both parties to
show flexibility and commitment to a peaceful
negotiated outcome. We sincerely hope that the
ongoing talks under the auspices of the Contact Group
troika will result in success.
In my previous capacity as a surgeon, I
performed many operations. But I also closely
followed the recovery process of every one of my
patients. I ensured that they got the necessary post-
operative treatment and encouraged them to maintain
healthy habits. In that phase I had to rely heavily on
the work of my able and dedicated team. Likewise, it is
not enough for the Security Council to prescribe
peacekeeping operations, crucial as they are for
international peace and security. The whole United
Nations system is necessary for the long-term recovery
of conflict zones.
In that regard, I would like to pay special tribute
to the peacekeepers and to the United Nations staff
working in difficult conditions on the ground. It is our
duty in our capitals, and here at United Nations
Headquarters, to support their efforts, each Member
State according to its capacity. At the same time, we
expect high standards in peacekeeping forces.
For many decades, Latvia suffered extensively
from foreign occupation. Now that we have regained
our freedom, we hope to prevent the suffering of
others. We wish to promote the healing process. The
international community must bring to justice those
who have committed war crimes and massive
violations of human rights. Latvia commends the work
of the International Criminal Court. We have placed
our hopes in the Peacebuilding Commission that it
will be an effective tool for consolidating long-term
peace.
Even where military conflict is not a factor,
human security in many parts of the world is
undermined by poverty, hunger and disease. The 2007
Millennium Development Goals Report gave us some
good news. However, it warned us that the Goals will
not be achieved by the year 2015 certainly not in
sub-Saharan Africa unless our efforts are scaled up.
Latvia therefore supports the call to review progress
towards the Millennium Development Goals and
accelerate action.
Latvia is a candidate in the 2010 elections for the
Economic and Social Council. We have know-how to
share, and we also have empathy for the pain that
reforms may cause. As an emerging donor, we have
undertaken commitments in the area of overseas
development assistance. We believe that our recent
intensive and successful experience in development
will be an asset to the work of the Council.
Latvia has a strong commitment to
multilateralism and the values embodied in the Charter
of the United Nations. We want to see an Organization
that embodies effectiveness, efficiency and authority. It
is regrettable that the reform process launched at the
2005 World Summit has been slow and uneven. We
recognize the forces that make the reform so difficult,
but we must not give in to fatigue and frustration.
Management reform is vital. I already mentioned the
dire necessity for a comprehensive approach among the
different international players on the ground. Likewise,
there is a great need for system-wide coherence of the
various United Nations funds and programmes. The
provision of aid should be targeted and efficient. Our
focus should be on those in need. We look forward to
assessing the results of the “One UN” pilot
programme, which is now under way in eight volunteer
countries.
The beginnings of the new Human Rights
Council were a cause for concern. Still, we are
confident that after making important decisions on
institution-building earlier this year, Member States
will take full advantage of the Human Rights Council.
We have to live up to our task to further promote and
protect human rights. The Council now has the tools,
but it will be up to Member States to use those tools. It
will be up to Member States to advance the credibility
of the United Nations as an Organization able and
willing to protect and promote human rights.
Latvia has always placed the promotion of human
rights among its top priorities. In the light of that
commitment, we have decided to aim for membership
in the Human Rights Council in the 2014 elections.
No reform will be more difficult or more
significant than that of the Security Council. The
Security Council has had many achievements.
However, we share the widespread belief that the
composition and the working methods of the Council
need to be brought up to date. We have stated many
times our reasons for supporting the model of reform
being promoted by the G4 nations, namely, Brazil,
Germany, India, and Japan. We consider it to be the
best of the models currently available. We welcome the
prospect of intergovernmental negotiations beginning
in the current session and hope that they will produce
early positive results.
The United Nations is as important as ever, being
the only truly universal forum for global dialogue. We
must not forget that it is also the only truly universal
forum for decision-making and action. But above all,
we must emphasize that this is the forum where all
States, big and small, have a voice. This is also a forum
where all States have a responsibility to contribute.
Latvia looks forward to a fruitful sixty-second
session of the General Assembly.