Moldova

At the outset, I would like to say that I feel very honoured and privileged to participate for the first time in the work of the General Assembly and to represent the Republic of Moldova at this rostrum. On behalf of the Moldovan delegation, I wish to congratulate you, Mr. President, on your well deserved election. I am confident that your vast experience and diplomatic skills will help the Assembly at the current session to fulfil its important tasks. I join other speakers in expressing our gratitude to your predecessor, Mr. Julian Robert Hunte, for the dedicated and effective manner in which he guided the work of the previous session. This has indeed been a difficult year for the Organization, with serious crises occurring in various parts of the world. Increasingly, the international community is faced with conflicts within States, the painful manifestations of which have been seen in conflicts in the Middle East, Africa, the North Caucasus and elsewhere. We are all preoccupied by the implications and consequences of the crisis in Iraq. The Republic of Moldova considers that the United Nations should be engaged in a more consistent way in helping that country to stabilize its internal situation and to embark on the path towards recovery, development and democracy. Earlier, in Spain and Turkey and, most recently, in the Russian Federation, we have seen how terrorism — the scourge of the twenty-first century — indiscriminately strikes the innocent, including children. We strongly believe that terrorist acts must be considered crimes against humanity. The Republic of Moldova strongly condemns all terrorist acts, for which there can be no excuse or justification. We pay homage to the victims of that violence. Precisely due to the challenges faced, the Republic of Moldova fully supports the ongoing reform process of the United Nations system. A key aspect of that process is the reform of the Security Council. Too often, that principal organ has been accused of failures in the maintenance of international peace and security. It is therefore essential to make it more efficient in the discharge of its primary responsibility. In our view, the efficiency of the Security Council can be achieved by improving its representativeness, legitimacy, transparency and accountability and by restricting the right of veto to issues of substance, as provided for by the United Nations Charter. The Republic of Moldova shares the view that the reform of the United Nations system will be successful only if the reform of the Security Council is followed by the reform of the General Assembly and the Economic and Social Council. We support the momentum created for revitalizing the Assembly and strengthening the coordinating functions of the Economic and Social Council in the social and economic fields. Effective coordination among the three main bodies is essential if we want to address comprehensively the urgent problems of today’s world. In the new circumstances, the United Nations should continue to improve its capacity in the field of peacekeeping, which is an important instrument for the maintenance of international peace and security. We support actions aimed at enhancing the United Nations rapid deployment capabilities through its standby arrangements. I would like to mention that Moldova has committed itself to contribute troops to the United Nations Standby Arrangements System through yesterday’s signing at the Department of Peacekeeping Operations of a formal document in that regard. The Republic of Moldova is already present in United Nations peacekeeping efforts, with military observers and staff officers in United Nations missions in Liberia and Côte d’Ivoire. We are determined to continue to support United Nations activities in this area. It is crucial to further strengthen the United Nations anti-terrorist legal framework. The Republic of Moldova fully supports the current efforts to conclude a convention for the suppression of acts of nuclear terrorism and a comprehensive international convention on international terrorism. I would like to commend the Secretary-General for his many initiatives to make the Organization more effective. The creation of the High-level Panel on Threats, Challenges and Change is another important step in that direction. Like other Member States, the Republic of Moldova looks forward to concrete recommendations from the Panel on how to tackle 13 contemporary threats, including new ones such as intra-State conflicts, terrorism and separatism. We cannot realistically expect to win the war against international terrorism as long as regional and internal conflicts remain unsolved and their root causes not properly addressed. Recently, terrorism has increasingly been merging with separatism. Many terrorists and international criminals have found a safe haven in the regions affected by internal conflicts and secessionist tendencies. In this context, I would like to add my voice to those who have repeatedly warned in recent years of the danger posed by aggressive separatism. Separatism provides fertile ground for various extremist forces and terrorist groups. It has become one of the main sources of internal conflicts and regional instability. To ignore it would have tragic consequences for numerous countries of a multi-ethnic composition. Regretfully, separatism continues to be the main obstacle to consolidating the independence and statehood of the Republic of Moldova. Over the years, the Republic of Moldova has systematically informed the relevant international organizations of the danger that the political conflict in its eastern region poses to regional and international peace and security. The settlement of the conflict has become the country’s absolute priority. The initiatives put forward by the Republic of Moldova in recent years reflect the determination and political will of Moldovan authorities to resolve this political conflict peacefully, on the basis of respect for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the country. In particular, I would like to underline the initiative of the President of the Republic of Moldova, Mr. Vladimir Voronin, on the establishment of the Joint Constitutional Commission charged with drafting a new constitution. Despite the constructive approach by Moldovan authorities in their dialogue with the self-appointed Transdniestrian leaders and other participants in the multilateral framework of negotiations, developments have demonstrated the inefficiency of these negotiations. It has also become obvious that the separatist leaders do not sincerely wish for the country’s reintegration. In this regard, I should mention, among other things, the recent closure of Moldovan schools that use Latin script, the inhumane treatment of children and ethnic discrimination. This region remains an area rife with the illegal manufacture and traffick of arms. Given the porousness of the Transdniestrian section of the Moldovan- Ukrainian border, there are no guarantees that the illegally manufactured or trafficked armaments will not reach other conflicts zones in the future. We are also deeply concerned about the human rights situation in the area controlled by separatist forces. The separatist regime has systematically violated most human rights, including the right of association, the right to a fair trial, freedom from torture, freedom of movement and, especially, the right to education. All of these human rights violations hinder the democratization process within the region. At the same time, we have encountered a biased attitude on the part of the involved parties, reflected in the support for smuggling and in the obvious violations of existing bilateral and international agreements. We deem it necessary to modify the components of the peacekeeping mechanism and to replace it with a new one under an international mandate. Considering that the interests of regional stability and security require an objective and impartial approach, it is necessary to ensure full respect for international law and democratic standards. More importantly, any geopolitical and geo-economic interest in maintaining the status-quo needs to be abandoned. Strict implementation of the decisions taken at the 1999 Istanbul Summit of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe would harmoniously fit such an approach. Also, as has already been mentioned during the current debate, we must exclude the practice of applying double standards when dealing with internal conflicts and the means for their settlement. The reintegration of the country and consolidation of democratic values within its entire territory are essential conditions for the European integration of the Republic of Moldova. It is in this context that the President of the Republic of Moldova has launched an initiative on a stability and security pact for Moldova. This document is aimed at ensuring consensus among the parties concerned, in order to guarantee the development of an independent, sovereign and integral Moldovan State. We believe that holding an international conference on this issue should be the next step in initiating the debate on the measures to follow. This situation demonstrates the international character of the problem, as well as the inefficiency of existing regional settlement mechanisms. 14 Today, the main challenges for the United Nations in the economic, social and related fields stem from world trends, such as globalization and increasing ecological interdependence, and from persistent factors such as widespread poverty and severe social inequalities between and within States. They should be addressed by a strengthened global partnership between industrialized countries, developing countries, countries with transitional economies and intergovernmental institutions. The Millennium Development Goals remain the most significant objectives agreed to by the international community, as they cover the areas of major concern for the peoples of the world. It is therefore of utmost importance to achieve the Goals, as well as other specific developmental targets set subsequently by several major United Nations conferences in the economic and social fields. In this context, we welcome the decision of the General Assembly, adopted at its last session, to hold in September 2005 a high-level meeting that will undertake a comprehensive review of the progress made in the implementation of the Millennium Declaration, including the Millennium Development Goals, as well as a review of the integrated and coordinated implementation of the outcomes of the major United Nations conferences and summits. This review is necessary, given the overall slow pace of implementation. We share the concerns expressed in this respect by many States, in particular by the countries sponsoring the world leaders’ New York Declaration on the Action against Hunger and Poverty, which was adopted on 20 September. Like them, we believe that if resolute and urgent action is not taken, the Millennium Development Goals will not be reached by 2015 in some regions of the world. We should not forget, in this context, about the grave social and economic problems that affect crisis- stricken countries and countries with special needs, in particular landlocked countries. Creating an enabling environment for sustainable development is a challenge for them and, therefore, they should be further assisted by the United Nations system and the donor community. I would like to reiterate, in conclusion, my country’s commitment to the Organization and its willingness to cooperate with other Member States in order to achieve the noble goals and principles enshrined in the United Nations Charter.