On behalf of
the President of the Republic of Angola, His Excellency
Mr. José Eduardo dos Santos, whom I have the honour to
represent before the Assembly, allow me to congratulate
Ambassador John William Ashe on his election to the
presidency of the General Assembly at its sixty-eighth
session and to assure him of my country’s support in
the fulfilment of that important and noble mission.
I would also like to express our gratitude to His
Excellency Mr. Vuk Jeremi. for the effective manner
in which he conducted the work of the previous session,
and we salute Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon for his
continued dedication to the cause of our Organization.
This session of the General Assembly is taking
place in a complex international climate, one where the
intervention of the international community is needed
to provide lasting solutions to conflicts that constitute
serious threats to international peace and security.
The prevalence of armed conflicts and their impact
on populations, terrorism, organized crime and drug
trafficking, maritime piracy, environmental crimes
and looting of resources, as well as extreme poverty,
deprivation and hunger are issues that require priority
attention from our Organization. Angola reiterates
the importance of the role of the United Nations as a
driving force behind global efforts to maintain peace,
stability and economic and social development, and
it is therefore important to strengthen its capacity for
conflict prevention and crisis management.
My country will continue to contribute actively
in peacekeeping efforts, assuming responsibilities
at the international level, in particular with regard to
Africa, as well as in the regional framework and the
economic and political groups it is a part of, including
the Southern African Development Community, the
Economic Community of Central African States, the
Community of Portuguese-speaking Countries, the
International Conference on the Great Lakes Region
and the Gulf of Guinea Commission.
In that context, the Peace, Security and Cooperation
Framework for the Democratic Republic of the Congo
and the Region, signed in February in Addis Ababa, is
both the most appropriate mechanism for the peaceful
resolution of the conflict in the eastern Democratic
Republic of the Congo and the best guarantee for
regional stability and for safeguarding the peace,
security, sovereignty and territorial integrity of the
Democratic Republic of the Congo. We reiterate our
call to the signatories to respect their commitments, and
we condemn the threats that negative forces continue to
pose to civilian populations, particularly in the city of
Goma and its surrounding area.
In the context of global efforts to maintain
international peace and security, we reiterate the
importance of revitalizing the United Nations system,
particularly through reform of the Security Council,
which should adapt to the realities of today’s world by
increasing the number of its permanent members so as
to fairly represent every region.
We express our deep concern about the escalation
of violence in Egypt and add our voice to the call to the
transitional authorities to act with moderation. We urge
the African Union and the international community to
continue to work towards a solution to the crisis in that
country.
The conflict in Syria poses a risk to international
peace and security, and the violence is seriously
worsening the humanitarian situation in the region.
We call on the international community to act urgently
in order to arrive at a peaceful solution to the conflict
through the mediation of the United Nations and the
Arab League, and we urge respect for the human rights
of civilians.
The Israeli-Palestine conflict is one of the oldest on
our planet and one that still confounds the international
community. Angola supports the mediation efforts
undertaken by United States Secretary of State John
Kerry, and hopes for the resumption of dialogue and
the conclusion of an agreement between Palestine and
Israel that can convert the deadlock into lasting peace
and the establishment of an independent Palestinian
State within the 1967 borders, living side by side with
the State of Israel in security.
We note with concern the poor progress being
made in resolving the question of Western Sahara,
and we urge the parties to continue negotiations under
the auspices of the United Nations, so that the people
of Western Sahara can exercise their right to self-
determination.
Angola welcomes the normalization of the legal
and constitutional framework of various African
countries that, after tumultuous periods of instability,
have successfully held free and fair elections and are
now making strides towards building democratic
States, establishing the rule of law and promoting
economic and social development. In that connection,
we welcome the democratic election of President
Ibrahim Keita in Mali and express our solidarity with
the process of reconciliation and reconstruction of the
country. We also congratulate those countries that have
shown positive developments and that despite unstable
situations are working to implement agreements aimed
at resolving crises and normalizing their constitutional
frameworks. They include Guinea-Bissau, Madagascar,
Somalia, the Sudan and South Sudan. We call for the
entire international community to support the efforts
those countries are making to achieve peace and
stability.
Six years after the onset of the international
financial crisis, with its grave repercussions for the
world economy, many countries are experiencing serious
difficulties in financing programmes for economic
growth and mobilizing resources for development
aimed at improving living conditions and meeting the
Millennium Development Goals. That situation is even
more problematic for developing countries, particularly
in Africa, where armed conflict and poverty frequently
coincide.
In that context, the Angolan Government believes
that it is essential that we consider “The post-2015
development agenda: setting the stage”, the theme of
this session of the General Assembly, in the hope that
it will contribute effectively to the economic and social
development of developing countries. The Angolan
Government is of the view that during this session the
Assembly should consider holding regional meetings
based on the report of the High-level Panel on the Post-
2015 Development Agenda, A New Global Partnership:
Eradicate Poverty and Transform Economies through
Sustainable Development, in which various leaders
could define their positions on the post-2015 agenda
from a regional perspective, and which could be
followed by another meeting at the global level. In that
regard, the Government of Angola reiterates its support
for initiatives aimed at liberalizing international trade
so as to promote fair and balanced competition, and
we hope that the ninth World Trade Organization
Ministerial Conference, scheduled to take place in Bali
in December, will lead to the best results.
Environmental challenges persist. By renewing the
commitments to sustainable development contained
in Agenda 21, the United Nations Conference on
Sustainable Development provided a sound basis
for policy-making at the national and international
levels and for ensuring the social, economic and
environmental welfare of our peoples. To that end, we
reiterate that it is essential to take appropriate measures
to strengthen international support for actions in support
of sustainable development, as well as to increase
the financial resources of the United Nations budget
through contributions so as to enable the Organization
to fulfil its mandate efficiently and make sustainable
development a reality.
On another topic, the embargo against Cuba violates
the rules of international law and has for decades been
a major impediment to the development of that country
and to the improvement of the living conditions of the
Cuban people. Angola reiterates its position of principle
that, in accordance with the relevant resolutions of the
United Nations, the embargo should be brought to an
end.
Angola reiterates its belief in mutual respect
and mutual benefit, good neighbourliness and the
strengthening of regional economic integration. Angola
will continue to respect all international commitments
and treaties to which it is a party. We respect and
implement the principles of the Charter of the United
Nations and the Constitutional Act of the African Union,
and we establish relations based on the principles of
self-determination, the peaceful settlement of disputes
and respect for human rights.
Currently, Angola is experiencing a period of
consolidation in its democratic institutions and the
rule of law. There has also been a dynamic process
of reconstruction and development marked by the
consolidation of macroeconomic stability through the
implementation of a national policy and strategy for the
promotion of economic diversification contained in our
economic and social development plan for the period
2013-2017.
By agreeing to join the programme of countries
eligible to graduate from the least developed country
category, Angola reaffirms its priority to implement a
programme of diversification of its domestic production
aimed at achieving balanced growth in various sectors,
expanding employment opportunities and decreasing
its dependence on imports of consumer products and its
high dependence on oil sector exports.
Despite progress made in the past decade and the
fact that the Angolan economy is on the right path, much
remains to be done in order to fulfil the Millennium
Development Goals. Aware of that challenge, the
Government continues to develop programmes aimed
at reducing social inequality, while pursuing the fight
against hunger and poverty as two crucial elements
for building a prosperous society and attaining social
justice. Furthermore, rehabilitating and upgrading the
main productive and social infrastructure, including
the reconstruction of roads and railways, electricity and
water supply and distribution systems, and sanitation
and telecommunication networks, continue to be a
challenge for the Government in its quest to improve
the well-being of the population and attain sustainable
development in Angola.
I would like to conclude by referring to an issue
of particular importance for the Government of my
country. The Republic of Angola is a candidate for
non-permanent-member status in the Security Council,
with elections to be held at the sixty-ninth session of
the General Assembly. We hope we can count on the
support of all the States that make up the Assembly.
I will finish by expressing my country’s
unconditional support for the initiatives of the United
Nations aimed at building a better world for all, based
on justice and freedom, free from all threats that
endanger international peace and security.