I would like to
add my voice to those of previous speakers in
congratulating you, Sir, on the occasion of your
election to the noble post of President of the General
Assembly. I am confident that you will carry forward
the able legacy left by your predecessor, Mrs. Haya
Rashed Al-Khalifa. Our warm tribute also goes to the
Secretary-General, Mr. Ban Ki-moon, as he strives to
reinvigorate our Organization.
We all have the great belief that in the twenty-
first century the United Nations will be a more
effective Organization. The continued relevance of this
Organization will, to a large extent, depend on our
ability to attune it to our concerns and make it
responsive to our needs.
The United Nations must continue to serve the
interests of all its Members States, regardless of
whether they are big or small. Our approach to
problems that transcend national boundaries should be
based on a global consensus, while maintaining the key
role of the United Nations in the cooperative
management of these problems. We need to advance
further and harmonize diverging views on the reform
of the Security Council. The Council should be
transformed into a democratic and respectful organ,
reflecting its universal character, corresponding to
present-day realities, and taking into consideration the
need for balanced geographic representation in its
membership.
The reform package should strengthen the
General Assembly as the policy-making organ of the
United Nations. It is only through reinforcement of the
Assembly’s role and mandate that we can successfully
tackle some of the most pressing issues facing
humanity, not least the process of globalization.
This year, 2007, marks the fifteenth anniversary
of Azerbaijan’s membership in the United Nations. I
will use this apt occasion both for reflecting on our
experience and for looking ahead. The development of
our region is inextricably linked to energy security
issues. We in Azerbaijan have been working for more
than 10 years on our energy security. When we started
our energy projects, the development of oil and gas
fields and construction of pipelines, we could not
imagine that our energy resources would be so crucial
in supporting the causes of free competition and free
market. But it so happens that we are right on time and
ready to provide an important contribution to global
energy security.
Our firm dedication to the policy of economic,
political and social reform allowed us to improve our
economic performance significantly. Last year, we had
a 34 per cent growth in gross domestic product (GDP),
and more than 35 per cent this year. In four years, the
State budget increased more than fourfold. We
managed to decrease unemployment and poverty
significantly. A 36.8 per cent increase in the
population’s income and savings in financial
institutions is a direct indication of the improvement in
livelihood.
Investments continue to play a catalytic role in
the overall development of the country. In 2007, the
level of investments from all financial sources has
reached a growth of 10.6 per cent. Most important, as
compared to previous years, the share of domestic
investments currently accounts for a significant
increase of 50.8 per cent, and a large part of it goes to
the non-oil sector. These are very important steps
towards achieving our goal of a diversified economy.
We believe that the sustainability of growth and
development in Azerbaijan not only is ensured by the
availability of natural resources but also attests to the
commitment and capacity of the Government to protect
the rights of investors and to implement its
commitments under various contracts in the
multibillion range.
Transparency and efficiency in oil revenue
management constitutes an important part of the
Government’s efforts to improve public service and
accountability. Thus, it gives me great pleasure to
inform delegates that the State Oil Fund of Azerbaijan,
which leads the implementation of the Extractive
Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) in Azerbaijan,
won the prestigious 2007 United Nations Public
Service Award in the category of improving
transparency, accountability and responsiveness in the
public service. We believe that this success shows the
efficiency of our Initiative, and we invite United
Nations Member States to discuss the achievements
made under the EITI. We plan to introduce a draft
resolution on this subject during the current session.
Using our geographical location and unique
transportation possibilities, we are pioneering projects
on bridging Europe and Asia. Countries to the east of
the Caspian Sea have expressed a vivid interest in these
projects, and the role of Azerbaijan in regional affairs
has become more important and has been transformed
into a stabilization factor.
By dint of its political and historical background,
Azerbaijan became home to various cultures and
religions. Building on this rich experience, during its
chairmanship of the Organization of the Islamic
Conference Ministerial Council, our country provided
substantial input to enhancing dialogue and broadening
mutual understanding among nations, cultures and
religions. We believe that by spreading knowledge
about Islam and its values, cultural dialogue between
the civilizations will contribute to mutual
understanding and trust. In this regard, the framework
of the Alliance of Civilizations provides a good
opportunity for joint action and partnership.
Azerbaijan currently holds the rotating
chairmanship of the GUAM (Georgia, Ukraine,
Azerbaijan and Moldova) group. Our priority is to
espouse GUAM geopolitical and geo-economic
advantages, utilize its role as a natural corridor
bridging Europe and Asia and promote the
development of civil societies and the economic
cooperation of GUAM Member States.
At the same time, GUAM serves as an effective
instrument to increase the international community’s
awareness about risks and challenges that its Member
States have been facing. In this regard, I would like
refer to agenda item 16 of the current session relating
to the protracted conflicts in the territories of
Azerbaijan, Georgia and Moldova. These conflicts
have almost the same origin, similarly-developed
scenario and dangerous outcome. They all started from
the manifestation of aggressive separatism, were
accompanied by ethnic cleansing against civilians and
resulted in the violation of the sovereignty and
territorial integrity of these States.
GUAM is firmly convinced that the settlement of
these protracted conflicts must be based on territorial
integrity within their internationally recognized
borders. Together with GUAM colleagues, Azerbaijan
will defend this fundamental principle of international
law, initiate formal discussions in the General
Assembly and mobilize support of the United Nations
Member States.
The Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorny Karabakh
conflict remains the most serious challenge to the
security of our region. As a result of the conflict, we
are still facing the continued occupation by Armenia of
a significant part, almost 20 per cent, of the
internationally recognized territories of Azerbaijan. We
are hosting approximately one million refugees and
internally displaced persons, who were notoriously
ethnically cleansed and brutally expelled from their
homes of origin in Armenia and in the occupied
territories of Azerbaijan.
Azerbaijan’s position on conflict settlement is
fully based on the norms and principles of international
law, plus four relevant resolutions of the United
Nations Security Council that provide for the
restoration of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of
Azerbaijan and the establishment of vast opportunities
for the Azerbaijani and Armenian communities of the
Nagorny Karabakh region of Azerbaijan.
Negotiations on conflict resolution, which since
1992 have been carried out within the framework of
the OSCE Minsk Group, have so far not yielded any
results. The more time passes, the more difficult it is
for us to observe from our side of the line of contact
the attempts of the current Armenian leadership to
consolidate the results of the occupation of our
territories, their attempts to destroy everything
associated with the Azerbaijani legacy in these
territories and to carry out illegal activities thereon.
The United Nations shall not tolerate such action. From
this high podium, I would like to address the Armenian
nation in order that they recognize that their policy of
breaching peace and stability in the region has very
dangerous, counter-productive and disastrous
implications for the long-term perspective of
development, above all, for Armenia. I am confident
that Azerbaijan will restore its sovereignty and
territorial integrity. It is only a question of time.
Finally, on this issue, I would like to express our
gratitude to Member States for their unequivocal
support extended in September 2006 to General
Assembly resolution 60/285, entitled “The situation in
the occupied territories of Azerbaijan”. Although
Armenia dissociated itself from the resolution after
joining the consensus on it, we still believe that
establishing the proper conditions for the
environmental operation may become a significant
confidence-building measure.
As a member of the Human Rights Council,
Azerbaijan attaches great importance to the efficient
functioning of the Council. It is our common task and
responsibility to ensure that this institution lives up to
the expectations vested in it and becomes a truly
objective, vigorous and credible universal human rights
body. We are looking forward to finalizing the
institution-building of the Council so that it becomes
fully operational and devotes attention to the issues
directly within its mandate.
In the course of the last two years, the United
Nations has continued to represent a unique platform
for international standard-setting in the field of human
rights by adopting two major documents — namely, the
International Convention for the Protection of All
Persons from Enforced Disappearance and the
Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
Undoubtedly, adoption of those important instruments
represents a significant step forward in a long
historical process. Already a signatory to the first
Convention, Azerbaijan is currently considering
signing the latter.