Mr. President,
let me first express my gratitude to your predecessor,
Her Excellency Sheikha Haya Rashed Al-Khalifa, for
her leadership of the General Assembly. To you, Sir, on
behalf of Slovenia, I assure full support for your
leadership. We also look forward to cooperating with
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.
An important part of the sixty-second session of
the General Assembly will coincide with a period of
increased international responsibility for Slovenia. We
will do our best to make good use of this opportunity
and to benefit not only Europe, but the international
community as a whole. The United Nations will be at
the heart of our efforts. This Organization still
represents humankind in its best light.
The discussions this week have proved that the
global community has identified the challenges brought
about by the human impact on the environment. The
will to find solutions under United Nations auspices
was clearly expressed. The sheer dimension and
complexity of the issue require that this Organization
have primacy.
Today, environmental changes are occurring all
over the world. Slovenia pins great hopes on a regional
approach in the search for solutions. At the global
level, we support the principle of common, but
different, responsibilities. A common approach is
necessary because of the considerable impact of
climate change, including on global security and
stability.
Country-specific solutions should allow space for
realizing development potential. Slovenia is very
serious about its commitments within the European
framework. The European Union has showed the will
and ability to take initiative. We hope that such
examples will set the dominant tone of the overall
discussion through the new framework for the period
after 2012.
Slovenia welcomes the progress made so far in
the United Nations reform process and will continue to
work towards the more responsive, effective and
representative United Nations.
The role of the United Nations in maintaining
peace and security is indispensable. This year, more
than 10 per cent of the members of the Slovenian
armed forces participated in missions abroad under the
mandate of the Security Council. The majority of them
helped to strengthen peace and stability in South-
Eastern Europe, and also in Afghanistan, Lebanon and
Iraq.
In the last decade and a half, the international
community has dedicated considerable human and
financial resources to the region of the Balkans. The
contribution is great; therefore the dividends of peace
for the whole region should not be wasted at the end of
the stabilization process. We need to pursue solutions
to secure these dividends; then they should be further
invested in the common European project.
The international community must, within the
framework of the United Nations, complete the
establishment of mechanisms aimed at meeting the
challenges of the twenty-first century. Finalizing a
comprehensive United Nations convention on
international terrorism must continue to be a key
priority. Another challenge remains concrete
application of the concept of the responsibility to
protect.
Even the most determined efforts to achieve
global security have little chance for lasting success
under conditions of inequality. Therefore, achieving the
Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) is of
paramount importance. Creating equal opportunities
for the disadvantaged and demonstrating solidarity
with them are sustainable investments in peace. It is
only when both developed and developing countries
choose to make such investments that the benefits of
the world’s current economic growth will be more
fairly distributed.
Slovenia was very pleased to become a member
of the Human Rights Council. The trust that has been
placed in us will be honoured through our active and
open efforts to achieve the implementation of human
rights standards. We will continue to support the policy
of global abolition of the death penalty.
Slovenia attaches great importance to the concept
of human security, which is in accordance with the
pillars of the United Nations: development, security
and human rights. We accord special attention to
children: the youngest victims of violence, poverty and
deadly pandemics are also the most powerless.
Therefore, it remains true that a man never stands so
tall as when he kneels to help a child.
In that respect, Slovenia takes particular pride in
its full cooperation with the non-governmental sector.
The Together Foundation, which is concerned with the
psychosocial well-being of children in societies
affected by armed conflict, and the Slovenian
International Trust Fund for Demining and Mine
Victims Assistance in Bosnia and Herzegovina were
founded as a result of Slovenia’s initiatives aimed at
the wider region.
Slovenia actively participates in initiatives on
intercultural dialogue, devoting special attention to the
Mediterranean area. We hope to see the early
establishment of a Euro-Mediterranean university,
which would be a Slovenian contribution to raising
awareness about the need for peaceful coexistence
among those with different cultures and world views.
Franklin Delano Roosevelt, one of the chief
architects of the United Nations, predicted at the time
of the establishment of the Organization that change
would be a regular feature of its development. Indeed,
the United Nations continues to be built today. The
great hopes of humanity depend on our joint efforts,
which will never be completed. Therefore, it is my
hope that the sixty-second session of the General
Assembly will be crowned with success.