Mongolia

I wish to extend to you, Sir, my delegation’s warmest congratulations on your election as President of the General Assembly at its fifty-ninth session. I am confident that, under your stewardship, this session will successfully accomplish its mission. The outgoing year has been a challenging time as the international community has grappled with a host of formidable challenges, including terrorist attacks, the threat of proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, violent internal conflicts, the surge of infectious diseases and natural disasters, in addition to persisting poverty and hunger and humanitarian emergencies. Moreover, the war in Iraq and its aftermath have had a lasting impact on the fabric of international affairs in the Middle East and the world over. The bitter divisions that it engendered over how to ensure our collective security against terror and the threat of proliferation of weapons of mass destruction have posed a challenge and a test for the United Nations. It is gratifying to see that, in these difficult times, the world Organization has been able to regain its validity as the indispensable common house of the entire human family. To make the United Nations a more effective instrument for pursuing all the priorities identified in the Millennium Declaration, world leaders pledged their resolve to undertake a set of bold measures to reform the world Organization so as to enable it to adequately address the manifold challenges ahead. The task of reforming the United Nations will undoubtedly require truly innovative approaches and the unfaltering commitment of Member States. In that respect, my delegation eagerly awaits the report of the High-level Panel on Threats, Challenges and Change, and ensuing recommendations by the Secretary-General to be submitted to the General Assembly later this year. 31 In the meantime, my delegation highly commends the hard work and tireless efforts of Mr. Julian Hunte, President of the General Assembly at its fifty-eighth session. Resolutions 58/126 and 58/316, adopted under his skilful leadership, have proved to be by far the most far-reaching actions in recent years. Significant as they are, we should nevertheless aim higher and work with vigour to further reaffirm the central position of the General Assembly as the chief deliberative, policy- making and representative organ of the United Nations and to enable it to play that role more effectively. On Security Council reform, I wish to join previous speakers in reiterating that its composition has long ceased to reflect current geopolitical realities. Mongolia reaffirms its support for a just and equitable enlargement of the Security Council by increasing the number of permanent and non-permanent seats, while ensuring the representation of developing and developed countries. In that regard, my Government supports the legitimate aspirations of such countries as Japan, Germany and India that are willing and able to shoulder greater responsibility in pursuit of international peace, security and development. Permanent seats, in our view, should also be allocated to Latin America and Africa. We do not, however, seek enlargement for its own sake — the expanded Security Council must be fully equipped to effectively react to the crises and conflicts of the new millennium. It is also our view that the veto power ought to be thoroughly reviewed, and efforts should be exerted to make the Council more democratic by enhancing its accountability and the transparency of its work. There appears to be a broad consensus emerging that next year’s high-level meeting to review the implementation of the Millennium Development Goals and the celebrations for the sixtieth anniversary of the United Nations will galvanize us into making bold plans for the future — plans that will enable the family of nations to attain the ambitious, but achievable, goals set by the Millennium Declaration through a genuine display of solidarity, shared responsibility and effective partnership. In his address to the Assembly last week the Secretary-General eloquently underscored the need to uphold the rule of law on both the international and domestic levels. Mongolia firmly believes that the rule of law and multilateralism are the fundamental principles of international relations in the twenty-first century. We must not falter or fail in pursuing them. The value of international law — the only viable framework of rules to govern the behaviour and interaction among States — must never be rated on its performance in the short term or for its ability to achieve near-sighted goals, nor should the value of dialogue and collective decision-making be called into question. Violation of those principles, even with the best of intentions, is dangerous. Let us remember that the road to hell is paved with good intentions. Such actions would only bring about unforeseen and unintended effects that in the long term could be extremely harmful to established international mechanisms and processes and endanger the existing world order. That simple truth applies to every aspect of international life from the war on terror and the maintenance of peace and security to the management of international trade and environmental protection. Indeed, any unlawful act, once committed, will certainly have far greater repercussions than imagined at the outset — repercussions that will ultimately undermine its original objectives. The persistent instability of some regions of the world and the people who suffer from internal armed conflicts represent the failure of world leaders to enforce the commitment they undertook in the Millennium Declaration to “spare no effort to free our peoples from the scourge of war, whether within or between States”. The violence and hatred that spread across the Darfur region of Sudan is one such tragic example. In the Middle East, Mongolia notes with sadness the lack of progress on the path towards the peaceful resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. We urge both sides to exercise utmost restraint, and support the efforts of the Quartet to ensure the implementation of the road map. Mongolia is also concerned with the security situation in Iraq. The end of occupation and the formal restoration of Iraqi sovereignty on 28 June 2004 were laudable achievements, yet the persisting climate of violence and insecurity threatens to undermine the efforts of the international community to bring peace, security and stability to that country. Mongolia wholeheartedly supports the political process based on Security Council resolutions 1483 (2003) and 1546 (2004), and the actions undertaken by the interim Government to convene a national conference, create an interim council and hold elections early next year. 32 In Afghanistan, the approaching presidential and parliamentary elections are important milestones for a new, democratic State. The registration of more than 10 million voters, a significant portion of whom are women, clearly demonstrates the strong determination of the Afghan people to rebuild their country. Continued engagement of the international community remains crucial in maintaining peace and stability in Afghanistan and promoting the Bonn process. The Korean nuclear crisis, and the resulting tensions on the Korean peninsula, cast dark clouds over all of North-East Asia. As a North-East Asian nation that rejects nuclear arms, Mongolia stands for a nuclear-weapon-free Korean peninsula and sees it as an important condition for the reconciliation of both Koreas and, therefore, for the peace and stability of the region. The continuation of the six-party talks towards a negotiated solution is of vital importance for the maintenance of peace and stability both on the Korean peninsula and in the region as a whole. Indeed, strengthening international peace and security by supporting practical disarmament measures in every possible way has been one of the main priorities of Mongolia’s foreign policy. The International Campaign to Ban Landmines and efforts to curb the illicit trade in small arms and light weapons have an immediate bearing on human security and social and economic development around the world. As an ardent advocate of the disarmament of weapons of mass destruction, and, in particular, nuclear disarmament, Mongolia believes that the full and effective implementation of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons by both the nuclear and the non-nuclear weapon States will play a pivotal role in promoting international peace and nuclear security. In that context, Mongolia welcomes Security Council resolution 1540 (2004), adopted unanimously under Chapter VII of the Charter of the United Nations, as a meaningful step towards curbing the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. However, we also believe that another significant step needs to be made towards nuclear disarmament: the early entry into force and universalization on a priority basis of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty. The establishment of new and consolidation of existing nuclear-weapon-free zones should remain high on the international agenda. My Government will continue its efforts towards institutionalizing its nuclear-weapon-free status at the international level. Mongolia’s internationally recognized and legally binding nuclear-weapon-free status could further contribute towards ensuring peace and stability in the region of North-East Asia and beyond. The global war on terror remains high on the agenda of the international community. The 11 September attacks heralded the start of an unprecedented global campaign that united countries, large and small, in their resolve to stand together to combat terrorism. And yet, despite the efforts of the international community, terrorism — like the Hydra of Lerna — seems to grow a new head for each one it loses. The current year has been no exception to that sad pattern and civilians continue to be the target of attacks: in Iraq, both Iraqi and foreign nationals have been targeted; in Madrid, an attack was perpetrated against a commuter train; and, in the Russian Federation, there have been a string of attacks, the latest being the school massacre in Beslan, where children fell victim to an unprecedented atrocity. Those events have highlighted once again the need for an effective international anti-terrorist campaign. The United Nations plays a central role in the fight against terror, coordinating the actions of its Member States and providing them with technical and legislative support. Mongolia supports the efforts of the Counter-Terrorism Committee aimed at its revitalization, and is looking forward to seeing the Counter-Terrorism Executive Directorate in operation. We also attach importance to the speedy finalization of draft international conventions on terrorism and nuclear terrorism currently in progress. No matter how pressing the fight is against terror, it should not overshadow other issues that impact the daily lives of millions of people — from extreme poverty and hunger, to environmental degradation and HIV/AIDS, to health and education. The growing development disparity between rich and poor countries; increasing poverty and unemployment in the developing world, particularly in the least developed countries; the burden of debt and trade inequalities are of growing concern to us. We feel that development itself is an effective remedy for the root cause of those social ills, and thus attach particular importance to the implementation, at the national, regional and international levels, of the goals agreed to at the 33 Millennium Summit and in Monterrey, Johannesburg and Rome. In this context, my delegation welcomes the New York Declaration on the Action Against Hunger and Poverty adopted on 20 September this year at the highest political level, which is aimed at fostering our common fight to overcome poverty and increase financing for development. Mongolia welcomes the adoption by the World Trade Organization (WTO) members of the negotiating framework for the Doha trade round last July. This is of particular importance since the Doha Development Agenda provides significant opportunities for economic development and fair trade. We continue to favour special and differentiated treatment for developing countries, especially those with small and vulnerable economies whose populations are largely dependent for their livelihoods on being granted full market access and low import tariffs by the major trading partners. One year from now, world leaders will meet here at the summit level to review progress in the implementation of the Millennium Development Goals. In preparation for this important event, Mongolia has produced its first national report on the implementation of the Goals. In recent years, the world has witnessed the emergence of a new global commitment to democracy and good governance. A little over a year ago, Mongolia hosted the Fifth International Conference of New or Restored Democracies, which had the principal theme of democracy, good governance and civil society. Mongolia is now actively engaged in ensuring an effective follow-up to the conference both nationally and internationally. In this respect, my delegation wishes to commend the proposal by the President of the United States aimed at establishing a democracy fund at the United Nations to help countries to lay the foundations of democracy by instituting the rule of law, the independence of the judiciary, a free press, a multiparty system and trade unions. This fund would help support our endeavours to strengthen democracy and good governance and to develop an effective partnership with civil society in the implementation of the Millennium Development Goals. This year, Mongolians have participated in their fourth parliamentary election. During the election, the two main political parties in our country, the Motherland-Democracy Coalition and the Mongolian People’s Revolutionary Party, won almost an equal number of seats in the Parliament. The two political parties have agreed to form a coalition Government on the basis of consensus-building, thereby demonstrating that democratic principles and values have firmly taken root in Mongolian soil. I have no doubt that the new coalition Government will wish to strengthen democracy and good governance, ensure sustained economic growth, reduce poverty and unemployment, and pursue a foreign policy that is open, multifaceted and proactive.