In these tumultuous
times marked by manifold crises, we are more than
ever in need of a global Organization that all Members
make use of and support. We need the United Nations.
The comprehensive, universal system of the United
Nations forms the heart of the global system of crisis
prevention and mitigation. Now more than ever,
Germany pledges its active and extensive support to
this world Organization.
This past year taught us bitter lessons, and today
it seems clearer than ever: we must secure the
sustainability of the economic recovery. That applies
not only to the financial sector, but also, and in
particular, to the most vulnerable in the world — the
poorest of the poor in the developing countries — as
well as to our environment and the world’s climate.
The consultations on a charter for sustainable
economic activity point in the right direction. The
United Nations should be actively involved in that
process. We must turn the crisis into an opportunity for
development and a truly green recovery.
The aftermath of the financial crisis is
jeopardizing our progress on the path towards
achieving the Millennium Development Goals.
Therefore, we must do our utmost to avoid any
setbacks in that regard. Donor States must continue
their efforts for development, all the more so in times
of crisis. Germany has continually increased its official
development assistance contributions in recent years.
In 2008, my country was the second-largest donor of
official development assistance. We will also
significantly increase our contributions to the
multilateral development banks.
All of this underscores one thing: Germany, as
one of the world’s largest economies, stands by its
global responsibility. But developing countries must
also live up to their responsibilities. Responsible
governance, respect for human rights, environmental
protection, the fight against epidemics, the
strengthening of the rights of women — those are the
challenges that each country has the responsibility to
meet.
Climate change is the pre-eminent challenge of
the twenty-first century. It threatens our well-being,
our security and our economic development. It will
lead to uncontrollable risks and dramatic damage, if we
do not take resolute action — not in some distant
future, but right now.
I can assure the Assembly: Germany will
continue to be a leader in climate protection. But we
will be successful only if we act together. We need an
inclusive process in which those countries directly
affected by climate change, such as the small island
States, can also play a part. The United Nations is the
only reliable framework for this. I would like to thank
the Secretary-General for his very timely initiative in
convening a United Nations summit last week
addressing this key issue.
Disarmament and arms control can help create
better conditions for global cooperation and increase
security and stability. We warmly welcome the new
dynamic in the area of nuclear disarmament. The call
for a nuclear-weapon-free world enjoys widespread
support, including that of Germany. We must seize this
opportunity for progress in all areas of disarmament.
Germany has underlined that sub-strategic nuclear
weapons must also be incorporated into the continuing
process of disarmament. Our clear commitment to
ridding the world of all nuclear weapons is the best
way to strengthen the international non-proliferation
regime.
We need a new international consensus at the
2010 Review Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on
the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT), the
launching of negotiations in Geneva on a fissile
material cut-off treaty and the entry into force of the
Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty. In order to
avoid a conflict of objectives between
non-proliferation and peaceful uses, Germany supports
multilateral solutions to nuclear-fuel supply and has
put forward its own proposal on that issue.
The international community must not relent in
its commitment to banning all weapons of mass
destruction. A model in that respect is the Chemical
Weapons Convention, which outlaws a whole category
of weapons of mass destruction. Its implementing
organization needs strong and dynamic leadership.
Germany has always had a particular commitment to
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the Chemical Weapons Convention, and we stand ready
to accept greater responsibility in that organization.
We view the ongoing nuclear programme in Iran
with great concern. The belated admittance by Iran
concerning the construction of a second enrichment
plant underlines the fact that our concerns are more
than justified. Even before this latest event, the report
by International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)
Director-General El Baradei emphasized the urgency of
the matter. Unfortunately, the Iranian Government still
refuses to cooperate fully with the IAEA and to remove
serious doubts concerning the peaceful character of its
nuclear programme. We urge Iran to grant an IAEA
verification team access to the newly disclosed site
without delay.
We sincerely hope that Iran will use the
opportunity of the upcoming talks between it and the
E3+3 — the United Kingdom, France and Germany,
plus the United States, the Russian Federation and
China — to demonstrate its willingness to engage in
honest and speedy negotiations. If Iran’s leaders
continue to stall, the international community will have
no other choice but to take additional measures to
emphasize the seriousness of our common concern.
Iran has a long and great history. It witnessed the
origins of civilization. It can become an anchor of
stability in its region — a respected member of the
international community. But that involves, in addition
to a diplomatic resolution of questions regarding its
nuclear programme, a responsible foreign policy
towards its neighbours. The key to this is the
recognition of Israel’s right to exist.
Since the escalation of violence in the Gaza Strip
at the beginning of the year, we have seen some
encouraging signs of a return to the peace process. The
resumption of negotiations aimed at the two-State
solution is still possible. Germany strongly supports
President Obama’s intensive commitment and regional
approach. Together with the partners of the European
Union, we are prepared to support efforts towards
peace through concrete contributions. What we now
need, however, are courageous gestures of goodwill on
all sides to create the conditions for serious talks.
The successful holding of elections in June was
an important milestone towards the continuing
stabilization of Lebanon. What is now important is that
a new Government soon be formed. The successful
United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL)
mission remains a crucial contribution to securing the
ceasefire between Lebanon and Israel, and thus to the
stabilization of the region. By again assuming
command of the UNIFIL Maritime Task Force on
1 September, we further strengthened our commitment
to UNIFIL.
For Afghanistan, 2009 is a pivotal year. The
presidential elections — the first elections in decades
that were free and organized by the Afghans
themselves — determined who will control the fate of
the country over the next five years. They were an
impressive sign of the resolve of the people of
Afghanistan to take part in the political process.
Against the backdrop of the difficult security
situation, the further build-up of Afghan security forces
assumes even greater importance. We will, therefore,
continue to increase the number of German police
instructors in Afghanistan, we will support the further
build-up of the European Union Police Mission, and
we will help to advance the training of the Afghan
army within the framework of the International
Security Assistance Force.
Despite all the criticism, there are also
encouraging accomplishments, especially in the field
of economic growth and in the reconstruction of the
country’s infrastructure. The basic prerequisites for
Afghanistan’s sustainable development are good
governance, a resolute fight against corruption and an
improvement in State services. These are essential if
the population is to once again nurture hope for the
future. As one of the largest troop-contributing nations
and one of the main bilateral donors, Germany will
continue to play an instrumental role in the
reconstruction of the country.
Following the presidential elections, we are now
entering a new phase of cooperation between the
international community and Afghanistan. For that
reason, Germany, together with the United Kingdom
and France, has taken the initiative to hold an
international conference that will set out concrete,
realistic and measurable goals for the future political
and economic development of Afghanistan. To that
end, the Afghanistan Compact, which will expire in
2010, should be further developed.
In 2010, we will celebrate the fiftieth anniversary
of the independence of no fewer than 17 African
States — a fitting moment to also look to the future.
Despite the global economic crisis, the overall outlook
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for Africa and its people is positive. We must succeed
in utilizing the continent’s enormous potential in terms
of people, creativity and resources. It remains our
challenge to support the development of that potential
while, at the same time, respecting African ownership.
African ownership should by no means be
equated with a withdrawal from our neighbouring
continent. On the contrary, it means that we should
cultivate relations with the States of Africa in a spirit
of partnership — a partnership in which each side
introduces its ideas, and in which we work together to
master the challenges we face, whether locally or
globally.
One major common challenge remains the
containment of violence and the protection of people in
conflict areas. Germany will continue its extensive
engagement in Africa, be it in the area of development
cooperation, peace and security, business and
technology, the environmental and energy sector or
educational and scientific cooperation. This also
applies to cooperation with the African Union, which
has been expanding increasingly in recent years.
United Nations peacekeeping missions are a
central pillar of the international security architecture.
Reform of United Nations peacekeeping is an urgent
issue, and Germany is ready to actively contribute to
such reform.
It is absolutely essential that the cooperation
between the United Nations and regional organizations
be further intensified. The European Union has just
shown that, with its peacekeeping missions in
Africa — those in the Democratic Republic of the
Congo and Chad, to name just two examples — it is a
reliable partner of the United Nations when it comes to
crisis management.
We are facing a multitude of global challenges.
Today, no country is strong enough to tackle those
challenges on its own. We need a universal forum for
joint global action. That is why we need a strong
United Nations that is capable of taking effective
action.
A long chain of high-level meetings — from the
2005 High-level Event to the Secretary-General’s
Summit on Climate Change last week — has
emphasized how urgent it is to adapt the United
Nations to the challenges of today’s world, for threats
have become global. Our responses, however, are still
not always global, and that is true for the United
Nations as well.
Reforms must start with simple questions. Does a
particular body effectively fulfil its tasks? Does its
composition reflect the world of today? Where that is
not the case, reform must have a clear objective: to
make the United Nations more effective, more credible
and more assertive.
However, we must not limit reforms to the United
Nations. If we want to deal effectively with the current
crisis and effectively prevent future crises, we must
also reform the international financial institutions.
Isolated reforms of individual institutions will not get
us anywhere. Reform of the financial institutions and
of the United Nations must intermesh as a broader
reform of global governance — a reform that, more
than six decades after the founding of today’s world
order, is long overdue. Germany, incidentally, is
advocating at a high level the improved representation
of newly industrialized and developing countries as
part of the reform of the international financial
institutions. This is our understanding of global
governance: fair participation for everybody.
In 2000 and 2005, heads of State and Government
called for reform of the Security Council. They did so
out of the realization that we can meet the threats of
today only if the Council reflects the world of today.
One thing is clear: if the Security Council does not
reform itself, there is a risk that other bodies will
attempt to take its place. Such a rivalry would be
detrimental to us all. Let us therefore attempt, at this
sixty-fourth session of the General Assembly, to bring
about concrete results.
Germany has been and remains willing to take
responsibility. That includes assuming a permanent
seat on a reformed Security Council. We also underline
this readiness to take responsibility with our candidacy
for a non-permanent seat on the Council for the period
2011-2012. Through our work in the Security Council,
we want to contribute to the success of the United
Nations, just as we are already contributing to
worldwide United Nations missions, to development
funds, humanitarian aid and the United Nations
Environment Programme. Now and in the future, we
will work to find common interests, to overcome
divisions and to strengthen a global partnership of
responsibility.