At
the outset, I would like to address to Mr. Ali
Abdussalam Treki my warmest congratulations on his
election as President of the General Assembly at its
sixty-fourth session. I wish him every success in
meeting this challenge.
My country is proud of its historic commitment to
tolerance, fostering rapprochement and confidence-
building in international debates. Romania has always
demonstrated its resolve to enhance multilateralism, be
it by bringing parties in conflict together, overcoming
artificial boundaries or promoting cooperation between
developed and developing countries.
I take this opportunity to pay tribute to an
important event for Central and Eastern Europe, which
we are commemorating this year. It has been 20 years
since the autumn of change that reshaped Europe and
opened the way to historic opportunities for the former
Eastern bloc. Two decades have passed since the fall of
the iron curtain, and we now recognize that the power
for change that democracy represents is one of the
most potent European values. It remains the hope of
millions of young people throughout the world who
defend freedom of expression, multi-party systems,
respect for diversity and freedom of the press. We must
never forget our history. After two decades of
democratic change, we must never forget where we
started. That is what now strengthens the values that
are shared throughout Europe and that allow us better
to understand democracy’s transformational sweep
throughout the world.
We now face the most important challenges
humanity has ever faced. The negative impact of
climate change has only been exacerbated by the global
financial and economic crisis, the food crisis, the rise
in energy prices and pandemics. The world is
experiencing increasingly tense situations that make
our efforts to meet the challenges of the new century
even more sensitive. We have now to address terrorism,
the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction,
prolonged conflicts, failed States, food and energy
insecurity, migration, poverty and the violation of
human rights.
I hope that, in the face of not just of one but of
many challenges, Member States will make this
situation an opportunity for visionary change. Through
the implementation of solutions to the economic and
financial crisis and responses to the negative effects of
climate change, we can aspire to create greener
economies and jobs, societies more responsible in their
use of energy, improved infrastructure, and financial
instruments strong enough to support such a transition.
(spoke in English)
I would like to refer to a key topic on the United
Nations agenda: climate change. I do not intend to
reiterate all its negative effects or the danger it poses to
the very existence of humankind. Members are well
aware of all of them, and we have been speaking about
them extensively over this past week. However, I do
want to stress the principles that underpin Romania’s
approach to this issue and that we would like to invite
Members to consider as well.
Nature is part of our daily life. If we respect
nature, we can take long-term benefits from it, making
us better prepared to design and build our future.
Respect is essential. We are all affected by climate
change. There is no boundary to protect a certain
country or a certain area. It is not as if something
happening in the Pacific is not also the business of
somebody living in a developed European capital. That
means that we all have a common responsibility
towards others. We must be aware that everything we
do and any decision we take has an impact on others.
That is why it is so important to base our decisions on
such values as human respect, solidarity and
responsibility.
41 09-52592
We commend the Secretary-General for his
dedication and commitment in dealing with this issue.
By bringing us together as world leaders seeking
consensus on what is to be done about climate change,
he has rallied us to work towards the Conference in
Copenhagen. We expect an ambitious agreement to be
reached in Copenhagen.
Another challenge that affects us all is that of the
global financial and economic crisis. Again, solutions
must be to the benefit of all. We need to join forces
rapidly to resume economic growth and development,
reform financial instruments and preserve international
stability. The world financial system no longer meets
the needs and realities of our time. The institutions
monitoring that system have to be reformed. We need
to create an early prevention and early warning
mechanism, and the United Nations should be
entrusted with more resources and prerogatives as the
main coordinator for the delivery of global public
goods. Our task will be to ensure discipline and
predictability within the system, while preserving the
freedom of the market as the main engine of economic
growth. We welcome in this respect the commitments
undertaken at the summit of the Group of Eight to
discourage protectionism and ensure the conclusion of
the Doha negotiations by 2010.
We need a twenty-first century multilateralism
that is both innovative and pragmatic. Romania is
devoted to that cause and seeks to expand its
cooperation with the United Nations in ever more
creative and pragmatic ways. To illustrate Romania’s
interests and its more concrete contributions to the
United Nations system, I am proud to point to just two
major projects that came to fruition this year. The
opening of the first emergency transit centre for
refugees in Timisoara, the first such body in the world,
was the result of excellent cooperation with the United
Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and the
International Organization for Migration. The second
project is the signing, here in New York, of a
memorandum of understanding between the
Government of Romania and the United Nations
regarding the training of United Nations close
protection personnel within the Centre for Excellence
of the Romanian Protection and Guard Service, to be
opened soon in Bucharest.
In all our endeavours to identify a stronger
multilateral approach to guaranteeing a safer and more
sustainable system, we should all consider at least four
essential elements. The first is managing the current
economic crisis so as to secure sustainable
development and growth. The second is staying
focused on the demanding and interconnected issues of
climate change, poverty, food security, health, energy,
migration and the lack of democracy in some parts of
the world, while maintaining international peace,
security and stability. The third element concerns the
consolidation of international law. The fourth concerns
strengthening and increasing the efficiency of
international institutions.
The United Nations and its bodies must be at the
centre of this renewed multilateralism with what the
Organization does best — promoting development and
security while advancing democracy, human rights, the
rule of law and social development. At the Millennium
Summit, we all pledged to boost the role of this unique
and indispensable Organization. Indeed, in recent
years, the United Nations has undergone a wide-
ranging process of realignment and reform. However, it
is also very evident that reform of some of the most
important United Nations bodies is still slow and
inconsistent. I hope that, in the months and years to
come we will see more progress in this respect.
Romania continues to share the view that the
overarching goal of reforming the Security Council
should be to achieve a more effective, transparent and
representative body, and will join in any effort to that
end. Since the intergovernmental negotiations in
February, the reform process has shifted into a higher
gear, allowing us to pursue the mandate set forth at the
2005 World Summit.
Another significant decision contained in the
2005 Outcome Document (resolution 60/1) concerns a
crucial issue: the responsibility to protect. A few
months ago, the General Assembly held a very
constructive debate on how to implement this concept.
The responsibility to protect is one of the most
important conceptual evolutions for the United
Nations. This path should be thoroughly explored by
Member States, as it holds tremendous preventive
potential.
Solutions to the challenges of the twenty-first
century should also make more use of efficient regional
mechanisms. I am referring to organizations such as
the African Union, the Association of Southeast Asian
Nations, the Gulf Cooperation Council, the
Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe,
09-52592 42
and NATO, which are either cooperative bodies or ones
directed towards regional integration.
The potential of smaller, knowledgeable groups
of States to address the problems of a region is high. If
supported, such regional groups can more easily muster
political will and the capacity to act. This is
particularly true in situations related to peace and
security, where swift and decisive action is often
required.
While serving its mandate in the Security Council
in 2005, Romania promoted the Council’s resolution
1631 (2005), which sought to strengthen cooperation
between the United Nations and regional organizations
in maintaining peace and security. Since then, a lot has
been done in this respect, but the potential for action
under Chapter VIII of the United Nations Charter is
still to be fully unleashed.
Unfortunately, there are still crises around the
globe that cannot be resolved by regional means alone.
We continue to face protracted regional security
challenges, such as those in the Middle East and
various parts of Africa, as well as the South Caucasus
and the Black Sea region. Reconstruction efforts in
Afghanistan are turning out to be more complex and
difficult than we all initially thought. Such situations
require our undivided attention and comprehensive
efforts.
My country is investing a great deal in the
stability and security of the world. More than
1,500 Romanian troops serve in United Nations-
mandated and -authorized missions in all areas of the
globe, from Kosovo to Afghanistan, from Bosnia and
Herzegovina to the Sudan. In recent years, Romania
has been honoured to be able to participate, along with
its allies and partners, in the stabilization and
reconstruction of Iraq. At the end of June, Romanian
troops concluded their mission there, leaving Iraq with
the satisfaction of an accomplished mandate. The Iraqi
security framework has improved significantly. The
same could be done in Afghanistan. By keeping its
commitment steady and deepening it when needed, it
will be possible for the international community to
succeed in consolidating a sovereign Afghan nation.
Among the perils that threaten us most, terrorism
and the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction
remain of major concern. Nuclear proliferation is of
particular concern, given the increasing accessibility of
technology capable of large-scale destruction. In this
context, we urge those Member States that are
considering nuclear programmes to fully heed the
concerns of the world community and to abide strictly
by international norms and regulations.
Lately, there have been encouraging signs in the
realm of nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation.
We highly appreciate the recent agreement of the
Presidents of the United States and the Russian
Federation for nuclear arsenal cuts, confirming the
commitments undertaken by those two States. As there
have also been positive indications from the United
States with respect to its ratification of the
Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty, the
international community can now feel confident that
the biggest nuclear Powers are determined to advance
the nuclear disarmament process.
(spoke in French)
It has been said that violence begets violence, but
to ignore or not take into account the basic principles
of human rights would be to do the same. In the same
way, intolerance fuels further intolerance. We can
debate historical themes, but we cannot deny history
altogether. The tragedies, crimes against humanity and
genocides are sins of the past, but they should also be
lessons for the present and the future.
We have already demonstrated our willingness
and capacity to accept our past in a critical way.
Romania reiterates its commitment to combating
extremism, xenophobia and all forms of racism and
discrimination. At the same time, my country actively
promotes diversity and multiculturalism, as well as
intercultural and interreligious dialogue in the
framework of the International Organization of la
Francophonie and the Alliance of Civilizations.
Unfortunately, democracy is too often a slippery
term in the diplomatic framework of the United
Nations. But we cannot have a stable world and meet
the challenges that face us without promoting certain
values — freedom, democracy, the rule of law and
respect for human rights — that have been of proven
benefit to humanity. We must continue to help the men,
women and children of the world to choose their future
freely, enjoy decent employment and trust the authority
of law and justice.
Democracy and the rule of law constitute the
immune system of human society. Just as it is
impossible to fight off disease when the immune
43 09-52592
system is weak, poverty spreads in a degraded
environment. Whether it is a matter of creating equality
in the areas of gender and health, achieving education
for all or ensuring a clean environment, it is not merely
a matter of funding, it is just as much about
establishing the basic principles of human rights and
democracy.
I should like to conclude by expressing my
conviction that there is no challenge too great for our
countries as long as we remain united. No threat is too
powerful to destroy us if we succeed in mobilizing our
wisdom and our capabilities.