Every year we come
together in this great Hall of the United Nations, to
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reaffirm our commitment to multilateralism. Nations
big and small, rich and poor, gather from the four
corners of the world here at the United Nations, driven
by the conviction that, if we work together, we will
find solutions to the challenges of today and tomorrow.
As these challenges grow and become more
interconnected, so grows our conviction that only
through cooperation and dialogue can we resolve them.
This is the fundamental belief with which, for 55 years,
the Bulgarian delegation, like many others, has come
to the United Nations.
Like every day, today will be unique, because our
actions on this day will forge our tomorrows. We can
spend our time dwelling on the past, or we can invest
our time in the future that we will all face together.
Today, our world faces a complicated web of
challenges, but also of opportunities. We face the
challenge of addressing global climate change by
creating opportunities for sustainable development. We
face the challenge of reducing the conflicts and
opportunities that come from providing sufficient clean
water to millions of people. We face the challenge of
developing an ethical market economy and the
countless opportunities that will emerge from reducing
the poverty gap. We face the challenge of reducing
ethnic conflicts, terrorism and the spread of weapons of
mass destruction and the opportunities that come from
good governance, democracy and freedom. We may
also, perhaps, address the most paramount challenge of
our time: to prove wrong all those who believe that the
world is heading towards an irreversible clash of
civilizations — because none of the global challenges
that we face today can be understood, tackled or
addressed without respect for different opinions,
without dialogue between faiths and without adherence
to the global values enshrined in the Charter of the
United Nations. On behalf of the Government of Bulgaria, I
congratulate Mr. Deiss on the assumption of the
presidency of this Assembly at this sixty-fifth session.
Our appreciation also goes to Mr. Ali Treki for his
leadership during the previous session, and to Mr. Ban
Ki-moon for his efforts to strengthen and promote the
United Nations.
Let me begin by welcoming the results of the
High-level Plenary Meeting of the General Assembly
on the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).
Regardless of the fact that efforts to achieve the MDGs
have not stayed on course, their attainment is still
within our reach. Reaffirming the principle of
solidarity between those who have and those who need
is of the essence. My country faces challenges imposed
by the global economic and financial crisis. We have,
however, committed ourselves to develop our own
donor capacity, and so we shall. We shall do so,
because Bulgaria — like a number of countries that
have joined the European Union (EU) since the fall of
the Berlin Wall — understands that the solidarity that
was extended to us now needs to be extended by us to
those less fortunate. To be effective, we shall work in
close coordination with our partners, avoid duplication
and aim at addressing the root causes — not the
symptoms — of today’s problems. Otherwise, we will
not be building a better tomorrow. In this effort the role
of the United Nations will always remain vitally
important, particularly in helping to mitigate the
development impact of the crisis on the less developed
and most vulnerable countries.
As dangerous as the current global crisis is, it
also gives us a chance to green our economies,
particularly by putting them on a sustainable and
low-carbon path. This year, 2010, has been proclaimed
as the International Year of Biodiversity. Economic
growth and the preservation of the environment must
go hand-in-hand across the globe. Today there can be
no excuses — neither in developed countries, nor in
developing countries — because any excuse that we
find today will cost us more tomorrow. That is why
Bulgaria believes that the United Nations must be
given the tools to respond adequately to the increasing
challenges of environmental protection.
Today, much more so than in the past, we see
increased demand and pressure on international
humanitarian efforts. The devastating earthquake in
Haiti last year killed hundreds of thousands and left a
staggering 20 per cent of the population homeless.
Haiti’s call was, however, heeded throughout the globe.
Allow me to praise the work of the United Nations and
its agencies in responding quickly, but also pay tribute
to all of the countries, non governmental organizations
and individuals who came quickly to Haiti’s assistance.
The Bulgarian Government and people were quick to
respond by providing financial and in kind assistance,
including educational opportunities to young Haitians
whose universities had been destroyed.
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This year we have to help in the struggle of the
20 million people in Pakistan who have been affected
by the terrible floods that have wrecked lives, ruined
crops and destroyed economic opportunities. The
Secretary-General and the United Nations were swift to
react and deserve praise for their efforts, as does the
rapid reaction of the European Union, the United
States, India and other partners around the world.
Allow me to use this forum to call on all to strengthen
their efforts in assisting the people of Pakistan.
However, I also call on Governments across the globe
to help in removing barriers, so as to assist the
Pakistani economy in its recovery. Helping today and
creating opportunities tomorrow — that should be our
goal in a country that is vital to global stability and
security. In this, let me assure you that Bulgaria will
also shoulder its share of the needed solidarity. Already
the Government and the Bulgarian Red Cross have
launched a nation-wide campaign to raise funds and
contribute to the rebuilding efforts in Pakistan.
No matter how successful we are in our
development and humanitarian efforts, the benefits
cannot fully be borne in an insecure and unstable
environment. Allow me to briefly look closer to home
— the Balkans and the Eastern Mediterranean. The
European Union was created to make war impossible in
a continent that has seen at least a century of conflicts.
In Europe, however, we have unfinished business.
Europe will not be whole and complete until our
neighbours in the Balkans join our Union. It falls on
us — those who joined the European Union late, not by
their own choice, but because of the ideological
divisions of the cold war — to say it loud and clear: to
make war impossible in the Balkans we must see all
countries that have emerged from the former
Yugoslavia become part of the European Union. This is
our historic mission. It is our destiny.
Bulgaria, which has struggled with its own
transition and accession to the European Union, knows
the benefits and the challenges best. That is why today
I am proud to stand here and commend the General
Assembly for unanimously adopting resolution 64/298,
approving the joint EU Serbia compromise text on the
advisory opinion of the International Court of Justice
on the declaration of independence by Kosovo.
Bulgaria supported it wholeheartedly, because we
firmly believe that dialogue between Belgrade and
Pristina is key, both to the stability of the region and to
the European perspective of our neighbours. It will be
a difficult process, charged with emotion and scarred
by history, but it will be a process that can today lay
the foundations of a better tomorrow for all. It is a
process that the Bulgarian Government is not just
willing, but eager to support, and will lend all
necessary assistance to the efforts of the High
Representative of the European Union for Foreign
Affairs and Security.
In Bosnia and Herzegovina the international
community faces many challenges, but the struggle
between the fears of yesterday and the opportunities of
tomorrow can be resolved today by the people of
Bosnia themselves. Bulgaria will, more actively than
ever, contribute to this reconciliation, because we
believe that our role in South-Eastern Europe and
beyond is to bring people together, not divide them; to
seek solutions, not to watch from the sidelines.
We must constantly reaffirm our commitment to
bring our neighbours in the Western Balkans into the
European Union when they meet the criteria for
membership. But our neighbours also must reaffirm
their own commitment to undertaking often very
difficult reforms and strengthening regional
cooperation and good-neighbourly relations.
There are cynics who say that the world cannot
live together, that for peace to exist we must build
walls of separation between peoples, religions and
ethnic communities; cynics who say that civilizations
must clash. I come from a country that is in a turbulent
part of the world, yet we have managed to prove that
people of different religions — Christians, Muslims
and Jews, and of different ethnicities — Bulgarians,
Turks and Armenians, can live together.
Bulgaria has seen stellar moments in its history,
for example, when civil society rose during the Second
World War and refused to allow its Jewish population
to be sent to concentration camps, or when it integrated
its Turkish population after the end of communism.
But, it has also seen its dark moments — when it failed
to save the Jewish populations of occupied Northern
Greece and Vardar Macedonia, or when the Communist
regime expelled a large part of our Muslim citizens to
Turkey. Our history has taught us to be able to
distinguish between good and bad. Our history proves
that the cynics are wrong, that people can live together
in peace.
That is why Bulgaria cannot remain uninterested
in the Middle East. We believe that, just as the Jewish
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people have a homeland in the State of Israel, so the
Palestinian people have the right to an independent
State of Palestine that lives in peace with its
neighbours. During the past months we have all
witnessed the efforts of the United States
Administration to restart the direct negotiations
between the Israelis and Palestinians. Many of us have
made passionate speeches on the need and urgency of
peace. Today, the Palestinian and Israeli leaders face
the historic challenge of looking to tomorrow and not
being tied down by yesterday. The Middle East cannot
afford a failed peace process. The world cannot afford
a peace process that does not have a comprehensive
end goal in sight.
Today we must all recognize that hard decisions
are called for and lend our full support to President
Abbas and Prime Minister Netanyahu to help them
walk the hard road to peace. Obstacles should be
overcome and preconditions should be removed. If the
leaders of Palestine believe that settlement policy is an
obstacle to peace, the leaders of Israel must refrain
from such activities in order to give peace a chance. If
the leaders of Israel believe that no preconditions to a
final settlement should be put in place, then the
Palestinian leaders must refrain from such actions in
order to give peace a chance.
The choice today is not between peace
negotiations and economic development, because peace
and prosperity go hand in hand. No one should feel
singled out or left behind, because the enemies of
peace are many — those who feel that walls are safer
than bridges and those who feel that religions cannot
coexist. You can take away a man’s life, but you
ultimately cannot take away his faith or dignity.
This is why I call on all Members of the United
Nations to stand firmly behind the efforts of the Israeli
and Palestinian leaders to achieve peace. In doing this,
we must recognize the legitimate concerns of both
sides — Israel’s security and the viability of a
Palestinian State.
In this effort we should not forget the 1.5 million
people who live in Gaza — Palestinians who have the
right to a better life, just like the children of Sderot
have the right to go to school without the threat of
rockets. We have an obligation to help open up access
to Gaza without compromising the security of Israel.
History has proven that isolation and deprivation breed
radicalism, and it is in the interest of peace that more
opportunities be created.
Today the world faces other grave security
challenges that will shape our tomorrow. We must
reconfirm our commitment to halting the spread of
nuclear weapons. This mission is above politics,
diplomacy, national ambitions and personal egos. It is
our universal obligation and a joint commitment that
we undertook 40 years ago. Bulgaria believes that
every nation must put a strengthened Treaty on the
Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) at the
centre of its national diplomacy. The uncovering of
clandestine nuclear networks has brought the spectre of
non State actors equipped with weapons of mass
destruction closer. We must not allow this to happen.
All nations must recognize that the nuclear non
proliferation regime is undermined if violators are
allowed to act with impunity. We consider all States
parties, including the Democratic People’s Republic of
Korea, to be bound by their NPT obligations.
Leaving the NPT cannot be without
consequences. Justified concerns, however, remain also
about the nuclear programme of the Islamic Republic
of Iran. We call on Iran to deploy the necessary
confidence-building measures to provide for greater
transparency on its nuclear activities. Bulgaria believes
that it is important to find a diplomatic solution. The
recent efforts by Turkey and Brazil illustrate that there
is will in the international community for dialogue.
Therefore, a swift return to the negotiation table and
full compliance with United Nations Security Council
resolutions, as well as International Atomic Energy
Agency (IAEA) standards and safeguards is a must.
International terrorism is one of the most serious
contemporary threats to global peace and security. It
cannot be justified by any political, philosophical,
ideological, racial or ethnic considerations, nor by any
ideology. The end goal of terrorism is to hinder our
efforts to guarantee human rights, basic freedoms and
democracy. Within the framework of the European
Union, Bulgaria has endorsed the implementation of
the United Nations Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy.
I appeal for a prompt finalization of the negotiations to
reach a comprehensive convention on counter-
terrorism.
An old nefarious practice has re-emerged on the
high seas — piracy. Bulgaria has been directly affected
by the escalating activities and audacity of the pirates
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in the Gulf of Aden and off the coast of Somalia. The
fight against piracy leaves much to be desired,
however. We need a firm international legal framework
for the trial, detention and imprisonment of persons
suspected of having committed acts of piracy. We need
coordinated actions on the high seas to protect our
shipping. Perhaps most of all, we need to address the
root causes of piracy — poverty, isolation and lack of
opportunity.
In Afghanistan, we face a threat that demands the
continued military and civilian commitment on the part
of the international community, which hinges on two
important factors. Firstly, the ability of the Afghan
Government to pave the way for reconciliation, tackle
corruption and deliver services to its people and the
renewed commitment of the international community
and regional neighbours to strengthen the Afghan
National Security Forces, while maintaining the
pressure on radicals and insurgents and limiting their
scope of action.
In these tasks the coordinated efforts of all, but
foremost of the United Nations, NATO and the
European Union, are vital. I would like to strongly
support the work of the United Nations Assistance
Mission in Afghanistan and the Special Representative
of the Secretary-General, Staffan de Mistura, in
Afghanistan. Their efforts should be appreciated and
fully supported by the international community. I want
to also pay tribute to the brave men and women of all
International Security Assistance Force (ISAF)
contributing nations, including the roughly 600
Bulgarian troops, who risk their lives to bring security
to the people of Afghanistan.
Bulgaria’s commitment to the future of
Afghanistan is unfaltering, because we understand that
it is our joint obligation to bring security to that
tortured country, whose people deserve to be able to
enjoy the freedoms and opportunities that many of us
have. Bulgaria has increased its input to ISAF,
including through more training units, which will work
to build the capacity of the Afghan security forces. We
continue to support the European Union Police Mission
in Afghanistan, which, jointly with NATO’s Training
Mission, plays an important role. We support the
Afghan Government’s peace and reintegration
programme, in which the key role should be played by
the Afghan State. Our commitment to Afghanistan is
based on our firm belief that, if we succeed today, we
will all live safer tomorrow.
A comprehensive security system can rest only on
a robust partnership between the United Nations and
regional organizations. This is why Bulgaria believes
that the partnership between the European Union and
the United Nations is a strategic one. As the EU High
Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy,
Catherine Ashton, put it, “Our commitment to the
multilateral system of global governance through the
UN and other bodies is clear” and we work “with
conviction and clarity on the major challenges that face
us, be they climate change, poverty, conflict or
terrorism”.
The transformation of the EU into a legal subject
of international relations after the entry into force of
the Treaty of Lisbon has to be adequately reflected in a
resolution of the General Assembly regarding the
representation of the EU at the United Nations.
In closing, let me briefly touch on the reform of
the United Nations. Bulgaria is convinced that if we
are to effectively tackle the challenges of tomorrow, we
must continuously adapt and improve the United
Nations system. Therefore it is imperative that we
continue the course of reforms initiated by the 2005
World Summit.
We believe that the reform of the Security
Council is part of a comprehensive agenda for change
at the United Nations. Bulgaria declares itself in favour
of an enlargement of the Security Council capable of
generating the largest possible consensus. In that
context, Bulgaria has endorsed the enlargement of the
Council in its two categories — permanent and non
permanent members.
I started by reiterating our firm commitment to
multilateralism. The agenda of the United Nations is
broad and diverse, and I have attempted, on behalf of
the Government of Bulgaria, to briefly touch on just
some of the issues that ought to be discussed in this
forum.
Our commitment to multilateralism can be
equalled only by our unfaltering belief that dialogue
and diplomacy can achieve more than can
confrontation and war. More than half a century ago,
the United Nations came together and enshrined those
principles as the cornerstones of international law.
Since then, with varying degrees of success, we have
attempted to live by them. It is time for us to realize
that the global challenges of tomorrow can be tackled
only by collective action today. Nothing is impossible,
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but only if we work together, discuss, disagree and
agree, but share a goal — a peaceful and prosperous
world that is safe for all.