Russia

Traditionally, the General Assembly sums up the results of the ending political year. This requires serious and joint consideration. It is essential to identify agreed solutions for today’s global problems based on the collective analysis of current international affairs. It appears that no one is challenging that security and prosperity are inseparable in an increasingly globalized world. Our approach should be similarly comprehensive, taking into account the inseparable link between the issues of peace and development, which has been amply proven by our recent experience. The expanding range of conflicts in international politics through the exacerbation of regional crises, the increasing threat of terrorism, the risk of the spread of weapons of mass destruction and stagnation on disarmament jeopardize international stability, divert resources from constructive uses and undermines the potential for sustainable worldwide economic growth. And it is such growth that is our common fundamental goal. Poverty and economic backwardness expand the breeding ground for extremism. On the other hand, developments over the past year provide convincing proof that an essentially new geopolitical situation has been developing in the world, one that is defined primarily by emerging multipolarity. We need to agree on what inferences we can draw from this. In his Munich speech in February, President Vladimir Putin of the Russian Federation called for an open and sincere dialogue that would enable us to work out a common understanding of the current historical epoch and of the modus operandi it obliges our nations to adopt. The international landscape is changing, due to newly emerging centres of global growth. Today, nobody can cope with global challenges single- handedly. Neither diktat nor bipolar dominance can fulfil the task of world governance. What is needed is collective leadership by major States; this should be representative both geographically and in terms of civilizations. The basis for such an informal mechanism can be provided only by the United Nations with its unique legitimacy. Multilateral diplomacy based on international law has come to the fore. Like any society of free people, a world of free nations needs universal regulatory principles to ensure predictability and confidence in international affairs. The way to achieve this goal lies through strengthening the United Nations system by further adapting it to modern global realities. Decisions here should be based on the broadest possible consensus among Member States and on the universal intergovernmental nature of the United Nations. It is from that perspective that we view the reform initiatives proposed by Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. It will be in our common interest to make more active use of United Nations peacekeeping capabilities. These could be improved by more effective use of a body such as the Military Staff Committee. The initiative put forward by the President of Russia in 2000 to enhance the work of the Military Staff Committee remains relevant. Naturally, a renewed Committee should operate with the participation of all members of the Security Council, as provided for in the United Nations Charter. Much remains to be done also in improving the interaction of the United Nations with regional organizations that have proven their ability to effectively participate in resolving security and development issues. A positive interrelationship between the principles of multilateralism and regionalism is obviously very important. At present, more than 50 per cent of international trade is carried out under regional trade agreements. Global trade regulation mechanisms cannot be effective without regional integration, which is key to the economic well-being of all the regions of the world. Russia is actively signing and using regional trade agreements to achieve mutual liberalization of trade. Russia intends to use its current chairmanship of the Eurasian Economic Community to give a more practical focus to the organization, which since 2003 has had observer status in the General Assembly. Russia, along with other sponsors, will submit to the General Assembly a draft resolution on cooperation between the United Nations and the Eurasian Economic Community, aimed at providing a more systemic basis and facilitating the timely realization of the Millennium Development Goals. We also hope that United Nations Member States would honour the Eurasian Development Bank the status of observer in the General Assembly. We shall actively promote the attainment of these objectives, including in the framework of the process to reinvigorate the Commonwealth of Independent States and build up strategic offensive capabilities. The international community’s efforts should remain focused on reaching the Millennium Development Goals. We are concerned that today, seven years since the Millennium Summit, many developing countries, especially the least developed countries, are still significantly behind schedule in achieving the Millennium Development Goals. Particular attention should be paid to the specific needs of the African continent. Russia fully shares the principles of global partnership in the interest of development, as approved at the Monterrey International Conference on Financing for Development and intends to increase its input to our common efforts in that area. We shall consistently strengthen our position as a donor country in accordance with the approach to Russian participation in international development assistance approved by President Putin in June 2007. We are confident that concrete steps to ensure sustainable socio-economic development in all regions are a sure remedy against threats to peace and security. There is a pressing need to use any means available to strengthen the leading role of the United Nations in fighting terrorism. Here, the Organization’s activities should be based on a comprehensive framework, including the United Nations Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy adopted last year as resolution 60/288, and on a comprehensive convention on international terrorism. The Collective Security Treaty Organization is contributing to these efforts and has established useful interaction with the United Nations. Our efforts to resolve regional conflicts and urgent social and economic problems should form part of our counter-terrorism efforts. Iraq has become a source of destabilization for the whole region. Ensuring security, not to mention economic development, in that country requires a new strategy focused on reaching genuine national reconciliation with the participation of all of Iraq’s neighbours and with the support of the international community. We call upon the Secretary-General to take an active role in this issue, given the additional power the United Nations can wield towards an Iraqi settlement. The participants in recent multilateral meetings on Iraq have upheld that approach, and we support the decision endorsed at those meetings. The indivisibility of security is to be seen clearly in the Middle East. Early solution of the Palestine problem based on the two-State concept and the achievement of a comprehensive Middle East settlement underpinned by the international legal platform developed by the United Nations are next on the agenda. We are convinced that this goal could be advanced by holding a representative international conference preceded by thorough preparation. We consider the United States initiative to convene in November a multiparty meeting on a Middle East settlement as a step in that direction. We appreciate the preliminary considerations voiced by the United States side regarding the agenda and composition of that event. We reaffirm the importance of involving the Quartet of international mediators and the Arab League in the preparations. Settlement of the Kosovo problem is only possible within the framework of international and law based on negotiations. Unilateral steps will not lead to a lasting peace and will create the risk of destabilization in the Balkans and other regions. Complex problems require an integrated approach. This is particularly true for the situation around Iran. The goal of nuclear non-proliferation is an absolute priority. At the same time, we should not ignore the task of engaging Iran in constructive efforts to resolve regional and international issues. Urgent steps are needed to strengthen the non-proliferation regime while providing all States with legitimate access to the benefits of the peaceful uses of nuclear energy. The joint initiative of the Presidents of Russia and the United States, put forward at their Kennebunkport meeting, is aimed at starting joint practical work in this field. We are confident that today peace should be based on willingness to cooperate, especially on matters directly affecting strategic stability. In this context, we cannot neglect the unilateral plans in the area of missile defence. President Putin has proposed a constructive alternative: collaborative work with the participation of Russia, the United States and Europe, and subsequently with that of other countries. Such work could lead to a genuinely global strategic alliance encompassing the entire Euro-Atlantic region, which would allow us to move forward in establishing an open system of collective security. Our proposals are under discussion, and we hope that the collective approach will prevail. The principle of the indivisibility of security should form the basis for resolving the situation around the Treaty on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe. Russia stands ready to engage in that process, and proposals are well known. We expect that these proposals will be seriously discussed during the upcoming consultations. The possibility of deploying weapons in outer space poses a serious threat. The magnitude of that threat is determined by the global coverage of the deployment, which can endanger all States without exception. We consistently oppose the deployment in space of weapons of any type, and we call upon the international community to conclude an agreement to that effect. Another outstanding global issue is the effective prevention of climate change, which requires agreed and scientifically based solutions that are realistic and balanced and that do not undercut countries’ right to development. Russia has always stood for a constructive dialogue with a view to giving a genuinely universal character to the international climate protection regime. We hope that the important meetings that took place this week in New York and Washington will facilitate thorough preparations for a successful launch in December in Bali of negotiations on joint post-2012 efforts. The spiritual and moral foundations of human solidarity are of increasingly vital importance. The spiritual values of all world religions demand that we achieve intercivilizational accord and fight manifestations of xenophobia and racism, as well as the resurgence of neo-Nazi trends. Those are the tasks to be tackled within the framework of the Alliance of Civilizations, which we support. The World Summit of Religious Leaders held in Moscow last year added a new dimension to this endeavour. We propose to build upon the results of the Summit and to think about establishing, under United Nations auspices, a special forum a kind of consultative council of religions for exchanges of views among representatives of major world faiths. Russia will spare no effort to strengthen multilateral cooperation within the framework of the United Nations. I am convinced that with a continued commitment to the principles of the United Nations Charter, we can make progress in the creation of an effective system of collective security, as was the will of the founding fathers of the world Organization.