Statement
by
H.E.
Mr. Rashid Abdullah Al-Noaimi,
Former Minister of Foreign Affairs of The United Arab Emirates,
in the General Debate of the 53rd Session
of the General Assembly of the U.N.
September 23, 1998
In
The Name of God, The Most Merciful, The Most Compassionate
Mr.
President,
I
have the honor to extend to you on behalf of the delegation of the United
Arab Emirates our congratulations on your election to the Presidency of the
Fifty-Third session of the General Assembly. We are confident that
your wise leadership and your vast diplomatic experience in international
affairs will contribute to strengthening the role of the Organization on the
world contemporary scene.
I
would also like to pay tribute to your predecessor, Gnady Yudovenko for the
distinguished manner in which he directed the work of the previous session.
We would also like to express our deep appreciation to Secretary-General
Kofi Annan for his efforts and endeavours on behalf of maintaining peace,
security and stability in the world.
Mr.
President,
As
we stand at the threshold of a new millennium, the international community
is witnessing radical changes in international relations, the implications
of which have been reflected on the lives of peoples. The various aspects of
openness and globalization embodied in some of those changes have not been
comprehensive in their positive aspects, but have resulted in widely
divergent levels of economic and social development between States and
promoted the emergence of new patterns of problems that require radical
common international solutions to contain, and deal with them
Mr.
President,
There
is now an increased awareness in the world of the inevitability of renewing
and developing the United Nations as the essential international tool for
dealing with the current world problems and achieving balance and
transparency and justice in international relations. Consequently, we
support the positions of the Movement of the Non-Aligned States and the
Group of 77 regarding these vital issues, particularly the questions related
to the General Assembly, the Economic and Social Council and reform of the
Security Council and enlarging its membership. We also call for
strengthening coordination, cooperation and dialogue between the United
Nations and the regional organizations in order to mobilize and complement
the joint international efforts to deal with the many issues on our agenda
Mr.
President,
Political events in the world, and particularly in the Arab Gulf region, have proved that radical solutions for regional disputes can only be achieved through peaceful means and methods based on the principles of the Charter of the United Nations and international law. Proceeding from this belief and true to those principles, the United Arab Emirates has adopted a wise policy in its quest for a peaceful solution to the question of the occupation, by the Islarnic Republic of Iran, of its three islands - Greater Tunb, Lesser Tunb and Abu Moussa, which form an integral part of our national sovereignty and territorial integrity.
The
continued consolidation by Iran of its illegal occupation of those islands
and imposition of a policy of fait accompli through numerous military and
civilian actions designed to change their historical, demographic and legal
characteristics are a source incompatible with good neighbourly relations,
peaceful coexistence and confidence building, but they are also contrary to
the Charters of both the United Nations and the Organization of the Islamic
Conference and contradict the approaches adopted by the members of Gulf
Cooperation Council which call for the settlement of existing disputes by
peaceful means, in order to achieve permanent security and stability in the
region and strengthen the relations and common interests between the States
Members of the Gulf Cooperation Council and Iran.
Accordingly,
we are once again, and through this forum, calling upon the Government of
friendly Iran to demonstrate a serious political will and accept our
genuinely peaceful initiative, supported by all the fraternal and friendly
States, either to engage with us in a dialogue and enter into bilateral
negotiations that would address the legal and historical background of this
question, not just its formalities, or accept resort to the International
Court of Justice in order to reach a just and permanent settlement that
would ensure the termination of the Iranian occupation of our three islands.
Again we reaffirm that our call for solving this dispute peacefully is
predicated on the nature of our historical relations with Iran and proceeds
from our commitment to the essential principles governing international
relations and in the interest of preserving peace, security and stability in
our region and throughout the world.
Mr.
President,
The
United Arab Emirates, while renewing its support for all the peaceful
efforts and endeavours exerted by the Secretary-General of the United
Nations for the resumption of the activities of the Special Commission in
Iraq, in order to avoid any further escalation or renewed tensions in the
region, and taking into account the importance of preserving the sovereignty
and territorial integrity of Iraq and of non-interference in its
international affairs, considers it necessary to continue upgrading the
food-for-oil programme and improving its operation in order to meet the
humanitarian needs and requirements of the fraternal Iraqi people. At the
same time, we also urge the Iraqi Government to complete its implementation
of all the relevant resolutions of the Security Council, in particular those
relating to the release of the prisoners of war and detainees, citizens of
sisterly Kuwait and other countries, and the restitution of Kuwaity property
so as to ensure the lifting of the sanctions imposed on Iraq and enable it
to resume its normal role at the regional and international level.
Mr.
President,
The
Middle East peace process is in a dangerous stalemate on all its tracks as a
result of the adoption by the Israeli Government of a policy of gradual
recanting on all the obligations and undertakings it has assumed under this
process. The most dangerous of such actions is that Government's decision to
proceed with implementing its plans for building more Jewish settlements in
the occupied Palestinian and other Arab territories, particularly in the
city of Jerusalem and the Syrian Golan, and its daily perpetration of the
most heinous inhuman crimes against the Palestinian and other Arab peoples,
which flagrantly violate the basic principles on which that process and the
fourth Geneva Convention of 1949 are based.
Awareness
of the danger inherent in the continuation of these illegal Israeli
violations necessitates effective action on the part of the international
community, in particular, the co-Sponsors of the peace process and the
European Union to bring additional pressure to bear on Israel to force it to
comply with its legal obligations and to demand that it resume the
negotiations, without preconditions, on the different tracks of the peace
process on the basis of Security Council resolutions 242 and 338 and the
principle of land for peace. We also express our unceasing support and
backing to the Palestinian people in their quest for self-determination and
in their legitimate aspiration for establishing their independent State on
their national soil, with Jerusalem as its capital. Similarly, we support
the position of the Government of Lebanon demanding that Israel implement
fully resolution 425 which calls on Israel to end its military occupation of
the South of Lebanon and its western Beqaa valley without condition.
Mr.
President,
The
establishment of a zone free of all kinds of weapons of mass destruction in
the Middle East and Arab Gulf regions is a requirement that complements the
peace process and represents a major factor in the security and stability of
those regions. Accordingly, it behooves the international community to
demand that the Government of Israel accede to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation
Treaty and subject its nuclear installations to the control and safeguards
regime of the International Atomic Energy Agency. Achievements at the
international level in the area of world disarmament have not, so far, been
global in their coverage, especially since we are still witnessing an arms
race in nuclear testing and other proscribed weapons. Such a race will
not lead to the settlement of existing differences between States, but
rather to an imbalance in regional security, as is the case between India
and Pakistan and in other regions. Therefore, we urge both friendly
countries to exercise self-restraint, renounce the use of force and resume
discussions and negotiations with a view to reducing tensions and solving
their present disputes peacefully in a manner that would serve the interest
of security and stability in that region. We also call upon the nuclear
weapons States, and those in possession of such kinds of dangerous weapons,
to reconsider their policies in this regard, refraining from using
double-standards and promote the adoption of equal measure for confidence
building between States. Serious steps must, consequently, be taken by the
international community towards redressing this defect in such a manner that
would contribute to the creation of a world free of tension and the threat
of use of such prohibited weapons and their damaging effects on humanity.
Mr.
President,
While
we appreciate the efforts of the United Nations Peacekeeping Forces, in
cooperation with the regional organizations, in dealing with, and
containing, conflicts and civil and regional wars in certain parts of the
world, we are still concerned about the failure to contain a number of
crises in some other scattered parts, such as Afghanistan, Somalia, the
Great Lakes district, Angola and other hotbeds of tension. Recent examples
are the situations between Ethiopia and Eritria and between Iran and
Afghanistan, as well as in Kosovo where the human rights of Muslims are
flagrantly violated by the Yugoslav Serb forces, an act which we strongly
condemn as contradicting the norms and principles of international
legitimacy. Hence, we feel that the United Nations, and the Security Council
in particular, must assume their responsibilities in putting an end to the
continuation of such conflicts and violations and should promote the
participation of regional organizations in finding the appropriate peaceful
solutions to those problems. We also call upon the parties concerned to
cooperate in these efforts by demonstrating the necessary political will to
settle their disputes by peaceful means.
Mr.
President,
The
United Arab Emirates strongly condemns the terrorist acts that were carried
out recently in some African countries and resulted in heavy losses in lives
and property. It is from a standpoint of moral and humanitarian
responsibility that the international community should intensify its efforts
to protect civilians and their rights and to confront the phenomenon of
terrorism, whichever its source or form may be. However, combating this
dangerous phenomenon should not be carried out on a unilateral basis and
through indiscriminate military revenge which destroys lives and property,
but through joint international action within the framework of the United
Nations in order to ensure the elimination of all the root causes and
manifestations of terrorism and thus preserve the security and stability of
societies and the territorial integrity of States.
Mr.
President,
The
world economic and financial environment continues to face numerous
challenges which have varying implications on development. Despite the
liberalization of trade, the open markets and the globalization of the
economy which have characterized international
relations, developing countries, representing the majority of
the population of this planet, are still facing a legion of problems arising
out of declining humanitarian and development assistance and the
exacerbation of unemployment, illiteracy and poverty, in addition to debts
and their service, which have become a heavy burden on many of those
countries, particularly the least developed amongst them. As a result their
development problems have increased and contributed to the creation of a
state of instability and social disintegration.
The
recent and current economic and financial crises in Southeast Asia and other
regions represent, not only challenges to sustainable development, but also
indications of the clear imbalances in the world monetary, economic and
trade systems. Therefore, we are calling for developing global economic and
financial strategies to deal with the real causes of this phenomenon in
order to achieve stability in the world financial and trade systems. There
is also a need for reform of the international development and financial
institutions to enable them to adjust to the changing economic situation in
the world and effectively contribute to addressing many of those
problems. This will also require starting a comprehensive and
objective North-South dialogue which should realize the common interests and
goals of both the developing and developed countries.
Mr.
President,
In
conclusion, I would like to extend to this session of the Assembly my wishes
for success in its work hoping that it will adopt positive resolutions that
address our concerns set out in its agenda, for the good and welfare of
mankind and the security and stability of our States.
Thank
you and peace and the blessings of God be upon you.