NationStates Jolt Archive


63rd annual debate of the United Nations General Assembly

Ariddia
24-09-2008, 17:08
The United Nations 2008 General Assembly debate began yesterday. All 192 members are sending their head of State, head of government, Foreign Affairs minister or another top official to address the GA.

You can watch videos and/or read transcripts of all speeches here (http://www.un.org/ga/63/generaldebate/). The UN website also provides summaries, and I'll quote the ones that seem most notable.

Obviously notable speeches include those of the United States, France, the United Kingdom, China and Russia (the five permanent members of the Security Council). In addition, President Sarkozy of France is speaking as current President of the European Union.

On Day 1, there were also speeches by (among others) Tanzania (currently exercising the presidency of the African Union), Serbia, Iran, Lebanon, Georgia and Bolivia, all countries that are involved, or have recently been involved, in notable events.

Today there are speeches by (among others) Afghanistan, Israel, China and Cuba.

If you're interested in the perspectives of more "obscure" countries, take your pick of, for example, Suriname, Cape Verde or Mongolia.

Summaries of some notable speeches:

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United Nations
H.E. Mr. Ban Ki-moon, Secretary-General


Statement Summary
Opening the sixty-third session’s general debate, United Nations Secretary-General BAN KI-MOON assessed the state of the world and presented his vision for the coming year, recognizing perils and challenges in the context of today’s realities: global financial, energy and food crises; the collapse of trade talks; new outbreaks of war; and the clear threat from climate change.

The world also faced a different crisis: the challenge of global leadership. “We are on the eve of a great transition. Our world has changed more than we may realize,” he declared, citing new centres of leadership in Asia, Latin America and across the newly developed world.

[...] While global growth had raised billions of people out of poverty, today’s poor had never felt poverty so sharply, he said. With the wide embrace of international law and justice, some still lived in nations where human rights were abused. While most lived in peace and security, there was still deepening violence in nations that could least afford it: Afghanistan, Somalia and Iraq, among them.

[...] Indeed, the United Nations was a champion of the most vulnerable, and had been involved in nations including Haiti and Myanmar. However, he also had called for more strenuous action in Somalia. “We at the United Nations are duty-bound to do what compassion and human decency demand of us,” he said.

With that, he said that even though it had faded from the headlines, the global food crisis had not gone away. Rice, the food staple that fed half the world, had more than doubled in price in a single year, from $330 a ton to $730. The Task Force on the Global Food Crisis had set forth solutions, one of which aimed to create a “green revolution” in Africa. But there was a lack of new resources, and the global community had not matched words with deeds.

Peace and security were under threat in all quarters, he said, noting that in Sierra Leone and Timor Leste, United Nations peacekeeping missions were working to help the people maintain their peace and rebuild their countries. On preventive diplomacy, the results were clear. In Georgia, the United Nations could help to diffuse tension related to the recent conflict, and in Côte d’Ivoire, it would help organize elections. At the same time, in Darfur, deployment timelines were difficult to meet, and crucial personnel was not in place. He stressed the danger of acting as if the United Nations could settle all problems of our time without the full support of States. Without resources, mandates were meaningless.

[...] Other problems called for a “firm hand” on a global scale, including the fight against malaria and AIDS, terrorism and non-proliferation. On the Six-Party talks on the Korean peninsula, he urged that agreements be implemented. He also urged Iran to fully cooperate with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

On climate change, he noted that last year in Bali, Indonesia, world leaders had agreed on a road map that would follow the Kyoto Protocol. States now needed a common idea of a new global climate change accord, he said, urging all nations to deploy their “persuasive powers” to make progress on that existential question. [...]



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President of the 63rd Session of the General Assembly
H.E. Mr. Miguel d'Escoto Brockmann


Statement Summary
MIGUEL D’ESCOTO BROCKMANN (Nicaragua), acknowledging the large scale and interrelated crises facing the world today, called for Member States to seize the opportunity to work together collectively and cooperatively -- not by making speeches and statements of good intentions, but through concrete action based on the “golden rule” that guided humankind’s behaviour.

The United Nations’ illustrious history clearly reflected its many laudable actions. However, the fulfillment of its primary purpose -- eliminating war, achieving disarmament and ensuring international security –- had clearly failed. The pressing and man-made problems of climate change, efforts to privatize water, the build-up of arms, terrorism, human trafficking, the situation of Palestine, humanitarian aid, gender inequality, children in especially difficult circumstances such as armed conflict, as well as the fact that half the world are living in hunger and poverty,[b] could be directly linked to the [b]lack of democracy in the United Nations.

Noting that decisions with the most serious consequences did not go through the General Assembly, and that the wishes and resolutions of 95 per cent of the Organization's Members were viewed as “recommendations”, he expressed his belief that unless this changed, significant progress towards the targets established in the Millennium Declaration would be impeded. [...]



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United States of America
H.E. Mr. George W. Bush, President


GEORGE W. BUSH, President of the United States, recalled that 63 years ago, world leaders had gathered in San Francisco to complete the United Nations Charter, and agree on a historic pledge to restore the faith and fundamental human rights of the world’s peoples. That noble pledge had endured trying hours, and still guided work today.

At the same time, such ideals were being challenged by the global movement of terrorism, by those who showed contempt for all who respect life, he said. Terrorists rejected the Bible, the Koran, the Torah, and any standard of any conscience of morality. They impaired the justice and human rights that had given birth to the United Nations. Sovereign States had a responsibility to solve problems before they crossed borders; an obligation to respect rights and respond to their people’s needs.

Multilateral organizations also had responsibilities, he continued. While there had been successes and setbacks, a clear lesson had emerged: the United Nations and other multilateral organizations were needed more urgently than ever. To be successful, the United Nations must be resolute. States must cooperate more closely to keep terrorist attacks from happening, and “actively challenge the actions of tyranny and despair”.

[...] The Assembly must present an alternative that advanced the vision of freedom and the highest ideals. Doing so would serve security interests. When citizens chose their leaders, they were less likely to look to radical ideologies.

[...] He called on States to “stand united” for people in such areas as Lebanon, the Palestinian Territories and Georgia, where the Russian invasion was a violation of the United Nations Charter.

[...] Describing his country’s launch of the Millennium Challenge Account, he urged adopting a model of partnership, not paternalism, and highlighted work to combat HIV/AIDS, notably in sub-Saharan Africa. Among the most powerful “engines of prosperity” were trade and investment, and many countries had conducted Free Trade Agreements. It would be most effective to tear down barriers at the global level, and reach a successful Doha agreement as soon as possible.

[...] The world needed a confident United Nations. Among other things, he called for corruption to be corrected, the Human Rights Council to be immediately reviewed, stronger efforts to help the people of “ Burma”, who lived under repression, and the Security Council to ensure that the Sudan addressed violence in Darfur.



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France
H.E. Mr. Nicolas Sarkozy, President


NICOLAS SARKOZY, President of France, speaking on behalf of the European Union, said that in the midst of so many difficulties, the global community had a political and moral responsibility. States must remember that they were gathered here today because, following one of the most terrible tragedies humankind had endured, men of goodwill had been determined to ensure that no one could say that when faced with misfortune, “there is nothing we can do”.

“We have a duty to act, not to endure”, he said, adding that the world was beginning to gauge the tragic consequences of having waited too long. The international community could wait no longer to achieve peace, end tragedy in Darfur, and fight terrorism. To avert the food crisis and prepare for the post-oil world, fight global warming and allow everyone access to water and energy, he said: “We can wait no longer.”

The twenty-first century could not be governed with twentieth century institutions, he said, stressing that enlarging the Security Council and the Group of Eight were not just matters of fairness, but also the “necessary condition” for acting responsibly. He specifically called for an enlarged G-8 that might include China, India, Mexico, South Africa and Brazil. “We must not endure this world, we must build it. Let us learn to manage the most acute crises together that no one can resolve alone.”

Turning to the world financial situation, he called for the leaders of countries directly concerned to meet before year’s end to examine the lessons of the most serious global financial crisis since the 1930s. It was necessary to rebuild together a “regulated capitalism” in which whole sections of financial activity were not left to the judgement of market operators, and in which banks did their jobs, which was to finance economic development rather than engage in speculation.

[...] But Europe was also telling Russia with the same sincerity that it could not compromise on the principle of State sovereignty and independence, their territorial integrity, or respect for international law.

Turning to Iran, he said Europe respected that country’s right to nuclear energy, but it would not accept a nuclear-armed Iran that would endanger the peace and stability of an entire region. It would not tolerate Iran calling for the destruction of the State of Israel.

He said Europe would continue to stand by Afghanistan’s side, but would not permit a Taliban allied with Al-Qaida to again take a people hostage and turn an entire country into a terrorist base. Europe was committed to the co-development of Africa, and believed Africa had a place among the permanent members of the Security Council, he added. [...]



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Serbia
H.E. Mr. Boris Tadić, President


BORIS TADIC, President of Serbia, stressed the need to reconfirm the conviction of United Nations founders that international law, based on the equality of States, must supplant the use of force to settle international differences. He noted the importance of respecting the territorial integrity of sovereign States, linking it to the danger inherent in “the unilateral, illegal and illegitimate declaration of independence by the ethnic Albanian authorities of our southern province of Kosovo and Metohija, […] after walking away from the negotiating table”. Those authorities, he said, had believed that abandoning negotiations would lead to independence by the imposition of a deadline for negotiations from without, calling that deadline an impediment to serious talks as it removed any incentive to negotiate in good faith.

He said that action set a dangerous precedent, and called the very nature of the international system into question, noting that “there are dozens of Kosovos throughout the world, just waiting for secession to be legitimized”. Further, he stated that: “Many existing conflicts could escalate, frozen conflicts […] reignite, and new ones be instigated.” He rejected the claim that Kosovo was a unique case, and said that no one had the right to declare exceptions to international law, especially in defiance of the Security Council’s position. Despite political turmoil, he said, Serbia had opted for a peaceful and diplomatic approach to the issue, as a result of which, he noted, a vast majority of Member States had not recognized Kosovo.

[...] He expressed support for the European Union’s commitment to institution-building in Kosovo, and welcomed Europe’s deepening engagement with Serbia. It was vital, he said, that Europe’s mandate be approved by the Security Council. He noted that Serbia’s central strategic priority was accession to the European Union, not only for reasons of geography, heritage and economic prosperity, but also because of commonly held values. He also noted Serbia’s commitment to full cooperation with the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, to restoring and deepening friendships that Yugoslavia had made across the globe during the post-World War II period, and to contributing to a more equitable global community and advancing the democratization of international relations, economic and social development and human rights.
Ariddia
24-09-2008, 17:37
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United Republic of Tanzania
H.E. Mr. Jakaya Mrisho Kikwete, President


JAKAYA MRISHO KIKWETE, President of the United Republic of Tanzania and Chairman of the African Union, highlighted Africa’s recent strides in political stability and peace, and the “blossoming” of economies in many nations on the continent. He noted the continent’s “embrace” of democracy, good governance, rule of law and respect for human rights, evidenced by democratic elections in “a good number” of African countries in the past two years. Apart from the situations in Kenya and Zimbabwe, there are fewer conflicts on the continent today, Africans themselves, through the African Union and their regional economic organizations, had been proactive in monitoring elections and resolving conflicts. “ Africa has become of age”, Mr. Kikwete said, with “the old principle of non-interference in internal affairs” being replaced by “non-indifference.”

However, weaknesses still remained in the African Union’s capacity for early warning, conflict prevention and resolution. He called upon the United Nations, the European Union, and other nations and world institutions to continue their support of the African Union and regional mechanisms, as well as peacekeeping operations, and recognized their generous support thus far.

Though the humanitarian crisis in Darfur persisted, he noted that “there may be some encouraging signs of improvement”, and urged deployment of the entire contingent of African Union-United Nations Hybrid Operation in Darfur (UNAMID) forces, resumption and conclusion of peace talks between rebels and the Government of the Sudan, unencumbered humanitarian operations and dispensation of justice. In recent discussions with Sudanese Government officials as well as UNAMID officials, he had come to an understanding on the way forward, and hoped that progress could be made. He reiterated the African Union’s belief that the indictment of Sudanese President Al-Bashir would complicate UNAMID’s deployment and the management of the humanitarian crisis in Darfur. Deferring the indictment should not be seen as condoning impunity, but as “the most expedient thing to do now” in order to first focus on the immediate matters of saving lives and easing the suffering of the people in Darfur.

Regarding Somalia, the United Nations had been increasingly called on to take over peacekeeping responsibilities from the African Union at the earliest possible time, before the African Union mission was overwhelmed. He pledged more proactive commitment to work with the United Nations and regional leaders in seeking lasting peace and security in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, particularly in the eastern region, where fighting continues between Government and rebel forces.

Zimbabwe had just last week achieved a “landmark breakthrough” with the signing of an agreement which ended the standoff between political factions, and formulated plans to establish an inclusive Government. He congratulated President Robert Mugabe, Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai and Deputy Minister Arthur Mutambara, as well as Thabo Mbeki, President of South Africa, for their statesmanship.

On the current food and oil situation reaching “crisis proportions”, sub-Saharan Africa had been cited as the region affected most, being home to the majority of least developed countries where, in the past year, food import bills had increased by over 40 per cent and oil prices increased over 100 per cent since 2005. The United Nations and the international financial institutions should act urgently to reverse the deepening crisis of global financial markets, which, along with the food and oil crises, threatened to erode “the humble gains” made in implementing the Millennium Development Goals and sustaining macroeconomic stability in Africa. Here, he appealed to Member States to stand by their commitments to assist the development needs of Africa.

On the issue of United Nations reform, he noted that Africa was the only continent without a permanent seat on the Security Council, and demanded African Union members received two permanent seats on the Council with veto power, as well as an additional two non-permanent seats. The United Republic of Tanzania, as one of eight pilot countries in the United Nations “delivering as one”, had shown the possibility of fulfilling this reform initiative, and encouraged advancement of the United Nations system-wide coherence.



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Iran (Islamic Republic of)
H.E. Mr. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, President


MAHMOUD AHMADINEJAD, President of Iran, noted that the root of the world’s problems with peace and morality lay in one’s particular worldview as well as issues of freedom, obeisance to God and justice.

He then noted that the world was being deceived by hegemonic world and bullying Powers that attacked Iraq under the false pretext of uncovering weapons of mass destruction and overthrowing a dictator. These Powers had insisted on imposing colonial agreements on Iraq by keeping them under Chapter VII of the Charter. While this was going on, he said that Palestine had suffered 60 years of carnage and invasion by Zionists, even as United Nations resolutions that have addressed the plight of the Palestinian people had been relegated to the archives, unnoticed.

He pointed out that, in Afghanistan, the production of narcotics had multiplied since the presence of NATO forces along with myriad problems including terrorism. He said the people of Afghanistan were the victims of the willingness of NATO member States to dominate the regions surrounding India, China and South Asia, and the Security Council could not do anything about it because some NATO members were also a part of the Council.

Efforts were being made to re-establish colonial relationships in Africa by starting civil wars in large countries like the Sudan, he said. If there was national resistance, the leaders were put under pressure by legal mechanisms created by the very same Powers. He explained that, in Latin America, people found their security, national interests and cultures to be seriously endangered by the menacing shadow of alien, domineering Governments, and even by the embassies of some empires.

He said those bullying Powers had also sought to put hurdles before Iran’s peaceful nuclear programme despite being regulated by international standards. Those same Powers were producing new generations of lethal nuclear arms and possessed stockpiles of nuclear weapons that no international organization was monitoring, and the tragedies of Hiroshima and Nagasaki had been perpetrated by one of them.

He said the time had come for IAEA to present a clear report to the international community on its monitoring of the disarmament of these nuclear Powers and their nuclear activities, and for a disarmament committee to be established by independent States to monitor the disarmament of these nuclear Powers.

He said a deceitful minority was dominating the financial and political decision-making centres of the United States and some countries of the European Union. The Iranian people and the overwhelming majority of peoples and Governments were against the deeds and perspectives of the world-domineering Powers, he said.



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Lebanon
H.E. General Michel Sleiman, President


MICHEL SLEIMAN, President of Lebanon, said that, through its follow-up on the situation in Lebanon, the United Nations had contributed to laying the foundations, guidelines and building principles for addressing the crises and challenges that had confronted his country’s stability and prosperity for decades. Expressing his support for the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), he pledged support for providing safety and security to those troops in the face of terrorist attacks.

Noting that Lebanon was a country that believed in the value of humanity and civilization, he said that, despite crises, aggression and wars that had affected it, the country had maintained a democratic system through periodic elections. [...]

In that regard, Lebanon was committed to achieving peace in the Middle East and to the Arab Peace Initiative adopted at the 2002 Beirut Summit. He emphasized the inalienable right of the Palestinian people to establish an independent State, with Jerusalem as their capital, and called on the international community to provide the necessary financial resources to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA). Lebanon, however, absolutely rejected any resettlement of Palestinian refugees on its territory.

On Africa, he expressed Lebanon’s affinity with French-speaking African countries, and pledged support for the document issued at the High-Level Meeting on Africa’s Development Needs. He noted that financing should grow for programmes that combat poverty, disease and illiteracy, as a means to preserve human dignity and prevent further armed conflicts.



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Georgia
H.E. Mr. Mikheil Saakashvili, President


MIKHEIL SAAKASHVILI, President of Georgia, said that sometimes the most extreme tests of the United Nations’ lofty ideals arose in small, even obscure places, such as his own country, which, with fewer than 5 million people, had last month been “invaded” by its neighbour. However, despite Georgia’s small size, the legal, moral, political and security implications raised by that invasion could not be larger in their consequence, as those issues lay at the very heart of the Organization’s founding Charter.

He said the invasion of his country not only violated its internationally recognized borders, but the subsequent recognition of the so-called “independence” of its two regions of South Ossetia and Abkhazia challenged its territorial integrity, while the ethnic cleansing of hundreds of thousands of its people did violence to the very idea of human rights. Asserting that developments in Georgia presented the General Assembly with a “general challenge”, the Georgian leader asked if, in the face of such a challenge, the Assembly would stand up for its founding principles, or allow those principles to be crushed under what he called the “treads of invading tanks”.

[...] Continuing, he said he believed Georgia had been attacked because it was a successful democracy in his part of the world, and as such, his Government’s second initiative of openness involved making its democracy even more robust. To that end, he announced four categories of expanded democratic initiatives: strengthening the checks and balances of Georgia’s democratic institutions; provision of additional resources and protections to foster greater political pluralism; strengthening of the rule of law by introducing enhanced due process trials by jury and lifetime judicial appointments; and expanding and deepening the protection of private property.

He thanked the international community’s response to his country’s reconstruction needs, adding that reconstruction would also ensure that Europe continued to benefit from true energy security that came from diversification, and pledged: “And everything we do will be done peacefully.”
Ariddia
24-09-2008, 17:47
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Bolivia
H.E. Mr. Evo Morales Ayma, President


EVO MORALES, President of Bolivia, said the General Assembly was meeting at a time of rebellion -– against misery, poverty and against the effects of climate change and privatization policies -- throughout the world. It was those privatization policies that had caused the current financial crisis. In Bolivia, there had been uprisings of indigenous peoples and farmers questioning economic systems, such as those of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF), which had privatized basic resources. Nationalizing oil and gas had profoundly changed Bolivia’s economy for the better and drastically increased profits from the industry. Those profits had allowed the national economy to improve and natural resources to be recovered, which had also led to democratic changes.

Although the changes in Bolivia had made him popular, with 60 per cent of Bolivians pledging their support to his presidency in an August referendum, he said some conservative parties in favour of imperialism intended to weaken the country and bring down his presidency. In fact, after 15 August, small conservative groups had begun to organize civil and municipal coups against the Government. However, thanks to the Conference of the Bolivian People, that civil coup was being defeated. Because the United States had not condemned those right wing groups, who were setting fire to oil and gas pipelines, he had expelled the United States Ambassador to his country, who he called “a lynchpin” in those activities, from Bolivia.

Noting that, in 2005, Bolivia had begun to dismantle its military forces, he said the United States still consistently tried to control certain members of the Bolivian military. Although the United States had created, in some countries, a special force to fight terrorism, in many cases, those forces were created to put an end to leaders opposed to capitalism. “When you work for equality and social justice, you are persecuted and conspired against by certain groups, not concerned about equality,” he said. That was nothing new for Bolivians.

That was the historical fight of Bolivians –- the fight between rich and poor, and socialism and capitalism. There were uprisings against a capitalist economic model around the world and if no one understood that capitalism was destroying the planet, then major problems would go unresolved. “So much is being said about climate change and if we continue the way we were, we will all be responsible for destroying the planet, and therefore, humanity,” he said, adding that it was not enough to raise problems with addressing solutions.

Although historic fights between people had been for territory, which was being repeated in Bolivia, he said indigenous peoples realized how they could live in harmony with Mother Earth. He declared water and energy as human rights, which should be treated as public services. Foreign investors should be business partners, not owners of local resources. Social movements were mobilizing themselves to search for peace, and were asking for new standards to be adopted to bring about equality for all Bolivians. Only the conscience of his peoples would defeat imperialism and create peace.


Available soon: Afghanistan, Israel, China, Cuba.
Yootopia
24-09-2008, 21:09
"Opening the sixty-third session’s general debate, United Nations Secretary-General BAN KI-MOON assessed the state of the world and presented his vision for the coming year, recognizing perils and challenges in the context of today’s realities: global financial, energy and food crises; the collapse of trade talks; new outbreaks of war; and the clear threat from climate change."

Man I don't think I've ever seen that in a UN General Assembly before... oh no... wait...