At the outset, it is my pleasure to sincerely congratulate Mr. Abdulla Shahid on his election as President of the General Assembly at its seventy-sixth session and to wish him every success. I would also like to pay tribute to his predecessor, Mr. Volkan Bozkir, for effectively managing our work at the previous session and for all the constructive initiatives adopted under his commendable presidency.
I must also reiterate my sincere appreciation to the Secretary-General, Mr. Antonio Guterres, and congratulate him again on his reappointment and his leadership in preparing and managing the Secretariat’s work in all areas, in particular peace, security and sustainable development, as well as the protection and promotion of human rights.
The current session is being held at a time when our world faces numerous challenges that cast a shadow over all aspects of human life. There can be no doubt that the most important existential challenge we face today is the coronavirus disease (COVID-9) pandemic, whose rapid spread and lethal nature have affected millions of people worldwide and transcended all geographical borders without distinction among rich or poor countries.
That situation confirms more than ever before the urgent need to strengthen international cooperation and solidarity and to activate the mechanisms of multilateral action in a more efficient way with a view to jointly tackling the pandemic and laying the foundation of a new post-COVID-19 world that leads to justice and fairness and ensures the equal participation of all States Members of the United Nations without distinction.
The theme of this session, “Building resilience through hope”, reflects the necessary elements to promote the essential multilateral actions in order to transcend this stage in the history of humankind. In that context, despite the great challenges it poses, the pandemic has also provided us with a historic opportunity to correct the mistakes of the past and learn lessons that will allow us to move forward in building a prosperous future for all humankind.
To that end, it is incumbent upon us to proceed with the comprehensive reform process of the United Nations system in order to improve its performance and strengthen its ability to fulfil the responsibilities entrusted to it under the Charter of the United Nations, with a focus on revitalizing the central role of the General Assembly and reforming the Security Council in order to guarantee greater transparency and equitable geographical representation and put an end to the historical injustice endured by the entire African continent.
The exceptional and dangerous situation that the international community faces today amid the COVID-19 pandemic must not lead us to forget the political and security crises, the hotbeds of tension and
the development challenges that afflict many regions of the world, especially in Africa and the Middle East.
Algeria, as a model country in achieving peace and cooperation, has been following with great interest the recent developments in sisterly countries. We underscore our strong support for seeking peaceful political solutions to conflicts and crises that are free of any kind of foreign interference. That validity and the importance of that approach has been consistently confirmed on the ground.
My country has been keen to engage in many regional and international efforts to address the root causes of conflicts and disputes and restore stability in their regional and international contexts by upholding the values of dialogue, negotiation and national reconciliation. Algeria will continue to defend the just causes of those peoples who struggle to reclaim their legitimate fundamental rights, including the inalienable right to self-determination, in particular in Palestine and Western Sahara.
In that context, Algeria expresses its deep concern at the obstruction of the prospects for a just and lasting solution to the Palestinian question, as well as at the Israeli occupation’s continued repressive practices against our brethren, the Palestinian people, and its total denial of the peace process and United Nations resolutions. Algeria reiterates our call on the international community, especially the Security Council, to assume its historic and legal responsibilities to compel the occupying Power to end its occupation of all Palestinian territories and enable the Palestinian people to establish their independent State, with Al-Quds Al-Sharif as its capital.
Algeria also reiterates its adherence and commitment to the Arab Peace Initiative, which aims to consolidate the two-State solution and liberate all occupied Arab lands, including the Syrian Golan.
With the same determination, Algeria reiterates its position in support of the right of the Sahrawi people to self-determination and calls on the United Nations to assume all its legal responsibilities towards the Sahrawi people and to guarantee their inalienable rights.
The holding of a free and fair referendum to enable the proud Sahrawi people to decide their fate and determine their political future by themselves cannot forever be held hostage by the intransigence of an occupying State, which has repeatedly failed to fulfil its international obligations, especially those clear and explicit ones that emanate from the settlement plan drawn up by the United Nations in partnership with the Organization of African Unity, as well as those arising from all other relevant resolutions of the Security Council and the General Assembly.
International legitimacy has been declared through Security Council resolutions, as it was through the International Court of Justice four decades ago, in issuing its advisory opinion confirming the genuine nature of the conflict in Western Sahara as a matter of decolonization that can be resolved only through the application of the principle of self-determination.
It is on the basis of the same principle that Algeria, as a neighbouring country and observer of the political process led by the United Nations, has always sought to be a source of peace, security and stability for our neighbours. We consider that the right of the Sahrawi people to self-determination is inevitable, firmly established and not subject to statutory limitations. In that context, Algeria supports the decision taken by the summit of the African Union Peace and Security Council to launch direct negotiations between the Kingdom of Morocco and the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic, since both States share membership in the African Union, with all the duties and obligations of that shared membership vis-a-vis the principles and objectives of the African Union.
Under the leadership of the President of the Republic, Mr. Abdelmadjid Tebboune, and by virtue of our glorious history of struggle, our position and our Arab, African, Islamic and Mediterranean affiliation, Algeria remains faithful to the objectives and principles of the Movement of Non-Aligned Countries; we remain committed to the firm values and principles of the United Nations; and in all our endeavours, we remain committed to dialogue as the basis for resolving all crises and disputes. Algeria continues to oppose unilateral coercive measures, such as those imposed on developing countries as a means of exerting political and economic pressure outside the norms of international law.
Algeria’s approach to resolving disputes and conflicts is reflected in its positive contributions, in particular in sisterly Libya, where we support the national dialogue process among our Libyan brothers under the auspices of the United Nations. We seek to revitalize the mechanism that unites Libya’s
neighbouring countries, which held its last ministerial meeting in Algeria, in order to contribute to achieving the desired stability in Libya through the holding of general elections in accordance with the road map arising from the process of Libyan political dialogue.
We do so in order to uphold security and safety in Libya and its neighbouring countries, which are directly affected by whatever happens in that brotherly country. Algeria is prepared to facilitate more and contribute directly to support dialogue and peaceful settlement in sisterly Libya. Algeria is prepared to continue its efforts and support our Libyan brothers, while enabling them to benefit from the Algerian experience in the area of national reconciliation. That commitment has been reaffirmed many times by President Tebboune.
With regard to the situation in Mali, Algeria remains committed to continue its central role in leading the Implementation Monitoring Committee of the Agreement for Peace and Reconciliation in Mali, which emanated from the Algiers process. We express our satisfaction at the positive developments in that context, despite the many challenges and difficulties arising from the geographical spread of terrorist threats, which undermines the security and stability of sisterly Mali and its neighbouring countries in the Sahel and Sahara regions.
Algeria remains commitment to working hand in hand with our Malian brothers to achieve all the goals and principles of the Algiers Agreement on Peace and Reconciliation in Mali and looks forward to holding presidential elections and the achievement of the goals of the transitional period. In that regard, we reiterate our call on the international community to support our Malian brothers and help make that process a success by fulfilling its commitments in the area of economic and social development.
The situation in those two countries has a direct and reciprocal negative effect on stability in the Sahel and Sahara regions as a result of the exacerbation of the terrorist threats there and all the grave repercussions thereof. In the light of that situation, President Tebboune, in his capacity as coordinator of the fight against terrorism and violent extremism in Africa, recently proposed an initiative to the current presidency of the African Union that aims to activate joint action measures to strengthen the struggle of the African Union against the scourge of terrorism.
In the same constructive spirit, Algeria continues its efforts to put an end to disagreements and promote strategic partnerships among African and Arab groups. We also stress the need to be committed to African unity and to avoid all factors that disrupt or negatively affect that unity, which remains a prerequisite to achieving the various strategic goals that the countries and the peoples of the African continent strive to realize by implementing Agenda 2063.
In that regard, Algeria responded to our brothers’ request in Ethiopia, Egypt and the Sudan to establish a political climate that would enable those sisterly countries to overcome their differences and prioritize cooperation, good-neighbourly relations and common interests. That is Algeria’s contribution to making the African mediation a success.
Since the adoption of the Sustainable Development Goals, Algeria has made great progress towards achieving them and is ranked first among African and Arab countries on the 2019 Sustainable Development Index for the implementation of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals.
With respect to environmental issues, Algeria remains concerned about the worsening of problems in various relevant environmental contexts, in particular the phenomenon of desertification, which has affected my country for decades, the continuing escalation of climate disasters, such as floods, droughts and scarce rainfall and their negative economic and social repercussions, as well as other damage caused by environmental disasters and climate change, in particular the alarming levels of biodiversity loss. Despite its limited capabilities, Algeria has spared no effort in tackling the various challenges posed by those climate and natural developments. Environmental issues have become an important part of the public policies pursued today by the State at various levels and in various sectors.
At the same time, my country continues to make steady progress in consolidating democracy in the new Algeria, based firmly on the rule of law and social justice, following fundamental constitutional amendments and legislative elections, while preparing itself for the forthcoming and important local elections.
The process of democratic change is embodied in the Government action plan, which was adopted a few days ago and includes five key points — strengthening the rule of law and ensuring good governance; modernizing
the justice system; promoting freedoms, dialogue and consultation; establishing a free and responsible civil society, including the freedom of assembly, the freedom to hold peaceful demonstrations and the freedom of the press; and fighting corruption and modernizing public administration and employment. All those political reforms reflect the will of the people and the State of Algeria to enhance human rights in the broadest sense throughout our country.
With regard to the economic sphere, the Government seeks to strengthen the foundations of economic recovery, modernize the banking and financial system, reform the public trade sector and the governance of public institutions and improve the business environment in order to make it more attractive to investors and more conducive to the development of institutions and entrepreneurship.
The existential challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic have demonstrated the inevitable common fate of all humankind and stressed the joint work of the international community to ensure a better future for everyone. That is why humankind today has a precious opportunity that it must seize — not to change the past but to ensure an effective move towards a new era in which all humankind may live a dignified life free of fear and need.