YouSaid · the spoken record

Ivan Antonovich

lines on the record: 48
first: 1997-09-24
most recent: 1998-09-24
sittings or episodes: 2
sources: un-general-debate

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“Belarus, like other CIS States, is painstakingly striving to overcome the tremendous difficulties that emerged in the country after the breakup of the Soviet Union. Now that we are in a period of transition, my country would be justified in expecting encouragement, solidarity and support from the international community. We would appreciate such support from all countries and from every people of the world. The Republic of Belarus is committed to the conscientious fulfilment of all its international obligations under the United Nations Charter in their integrity, and we wish success to the family of nations in this work.”
1998-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 53 (1998)
“We hope for a broadening of the United Nations programme activities related to solving the problems faced by the Republic of Belarus and other countries with economies in transition. Our people live in a non-violent environment and work very hard to overcome current economic difficulties and achieve substantial output in the State-owned and private sectors. In that context, in 1997 gross domestic product increased by 10 per cent and industrial output by 17 per cent, and the production of consumer goods also rose. This all came about as a result of the efforts made by the Belorussian people, as well as through the promotion of subregional integration and cooperation with other countries.”
1998-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 53 (1998)
“At the same time, we share the position of other Member States that there is an ever pressing need to observe the United Nations Charter and declarations based thereon concerning non-interference in the internal affairs of States and the protection of their independence and sovereignty. The same is true of the principles of international law referring to friendly relations and cooperation between States. I would like to pay special tribute to the positive experience Belarus has gained in cooperating with United Nations bodies. We greatly appreciate the role and importance of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in our country regarding human resources development, strengthening the potential of State management, restructuring industries and creating civil society.”
1998-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 53 (1998)
“The National Assembly held parliamentary hearings devoted to human rights. It should be noted here that the hearings were broadcast live on Belorussian radio in their entirety. Other undertakings are envisaged, including preparations to introduce the institution of Ombudsman in Belarus. All these efforts are aimed, to cite the United Nations Charter, at promoting “social progress and better standards of life in larger freedom”. The representatives of Belarus will give a detailed account of these matters during the discussion of relevant issues on the agenda.”
1998-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 53 (1998)
“We are convinced that the establishment of a nuclear-weapon-free space in Europe would constructively contribute to the shaping of a new European security architecture aspired to by all the OSCE Member States. The fiftieth anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights is widely celebrated this year throughout the world. The provisions of the Declaration and other international instruments on human rights, to which Belarus is a dutiful party, are reflected in the Constitution and other legislation of my country and are strictly implemented at the State level, proceeding from the indivisibility and interdependency of civil rights and obligations. Much has been done in Belarus to highlight the United Nations efforts to promote and protect human rights. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights was reprinted and widely circulated.”
1998-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 53 (1998)
“I should also mention the 1996 Stockholm Declaration of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) Parliamentary Assembly, which contains a reference to the decision of the 1995 NPT Review and Extension Conference that “the establishment of additional nuclear-weapon-free zones by the time of the Review Conference in the year 2000 would be welcome.” (NPT/Conf.1995/32, Part I, Decision 2, para. 6) With due regard to that, we cannot accept the argument that it is premature to discuss and implement the initiative to create a nuclear-weapon-free space in 32 Central and Eastern Europe at this juncture, and that it might only be addressed in the distant future. Inspired by new partnerships, we cannot possibly let the existing de facto nuclear-weapon-free status of Central and Eastern Europe evaporate.”
1998-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 53 (1998)
“I would like to refer in particular to the statement of the NATO ministerial meeting on 10 December 1996, confirmed by the NATO heads of State or Government in the Founding Act on Mutual Relations, Cooperation and Security between the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and the Russian Federation of 27 May 1997, which maintains that “the NATO States have no intention, plan or reason to deploy nuclear weapons on the territory of the new members.” We believe that that statement by NATO deserves approval by a General Assembly resolution.”
1998-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 53 (1998)
“The reduction of nuclear stockpiles currently under way in the United States and Russia is to be complemented by similar efforts by other holders of nuclear weapons, so as to jointly facilitate the complete disbanding of nuclear and other means of mass destruction. It is the ultimate objective. To attain it, a number of specific prerequisites must be created.”
1998-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 53 (1998)
“The emergence of new nuclear-capable countries also affected the situation with regard to the existing nuclear-weapon-free zones, whose members have yet to win the acknowledgement of their nuclear-weapon- free status by the nuclear States. Moreover, there are no guarantees that other “threshold” States will not express in the future their intention to join the “nuclear club”. We urge those Member States which have not yet done so to accede to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) and the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT). We would also welcome progress in the respective activities of the Conference on Disarmament and the United Nations Disarmament Commission. In view of the above, a more constructive approach to the issue of disarmament and arms limitation, inter alia, in the nuclear field, is called for.”
1998-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 53 (1998)
“At first, it seemed that there was a will to legally consolidate a newly emerging international security system and to promote disarmament, non-proliferation and the non- use of nuclear weapons. Those aspirations, however, have yet to be realized. According to the United Nations Disarmament Commission, nuclear-weapon-free zones at present cover more than half of the Earth?s surface, with an aggregate membership of 144 countries. Yet there is still resistance to the creation of new nuclear-weapon-free zones, in the southern hemisphere as well as the northern hemisphere. Therefore, the Belarus initiative of retaining a nuclear- weapon-free status quo in Central and Eastern Europe is also stalled.”
1998-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 53 (1998)
“It is common knowledge that Belarus took an unprecedented step in post-world-war history by voluntarily and unconditionally renouncing the nuclear arsenal in its possession. Ukraine and Kazakhstan undertook similar measures, but at a later stage. These initiatives received unanimous high international appreciation, as confirmed by relevant United Nations resolutions, and were also endorsed by North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) member States, which explicitly welcomed the step. The latter specifically voiced, through NATO?s Secretary-General, its support of the goal shared by Belarus to “establish a common security system that would meet the interests of all States”.”
1998-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 53 (1998)
“Furthermore, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs has organized two international special donor meetings to raise funds for the implementation of this programme, estimated at $74 million. Yet the results of those meetings appear modest so far and demonstrate a disappointing deficit of international solidarity with the affected countries in solving their problems. Given the global dimensions and implications of the disaster, I would like to take this opportunity to again call on the donor countries, international organizations and non- governmental organizations to consider every possibility of their participation in financing the implementation of the programme.”
1998-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 53 (1998)
“31 Ecological interdependence has not yet become a matter of common awareness, as evidenced, in particular, by the attitude to efforts to mitigate the after-effects of the Chernobyl disaster. Belarus, which absorbed 70 per cent of all the radioactive Chernobyl fallout, spends one fifth of its budget annually to eliminate the consequences of the Chernobyl catastrophe. We are grateful for all international assistance, particularly in the rehabilitation of children. At the same time, the United Nations has prepared the inter- agency programme of international assistance to areas affected by the Chernobyl disaster, in order to revive international interaction for Chernobyl programmes and make it more purposeful and effective.”
1998-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 53 (1998)
“Paradoxically, despite the ever growing industrial and economic output in the world, the number of people living below the poverty line is not diminishing. More and more people are becoming refugees or displaced persons. Humanism, justice, fairness and respect for human rights have not become universal. Terrorism, organized crime and illegal drug trafficking have not been overcome, and even tend to grow. We share the Secretary-General?s view that the forces of globalization “pose extraordinary opportunities, as well as enormous challenges”. (A/53/1, para. 229) The recent financial crisis in many parts of the world is one of the latest and clearest manifestations of that.”
1998-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 53 (1998)
“It is difficult for the Government and people of the Republic of Belarus to comprehend why in certain quarters the idea of a military attack on the sovereign State of Yugoslavia is being publicly discussed just because the latter decided to solve its domestic problems, though really complicated, in its own way and would not rubber-stamp recipes enforced from outside. It is also time that Yugoslavia?s full membership of the United Nations be resumed. The mere threat of the use of force could seriously disrupt peace and stability in Europe, revive old fears and animosities and generate more distrust. The very serious problems that humanity faces today can be solved by reason and joint actions, rather than by force.”
1998-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 53 (1998)
“In these tremendously difficult circumstances the United Nations is continuing to fulfil its responsibility with dignity. Yet there is ample room for further improvement. We consider that the principles of the peaceful settlement of disputes and non-interference in internal affairs should be strictly observed while bringing about reconciliation in regional and domestic conflicts. Any enforcement measures should only be applied following the adoption of a Security Council resolution. Accordingly, the use of force by individual States or regional organizations at their own discretion should not be permissible. One of the objectives stipulated in the United Nations Charter, in the preamble, is “to ensure, by the acceptance of principles and the institution of methods, that armed force shall not be used, save in the common interest”.”
1998-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 53 (1998)
“Together with other East European States, in particular members of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), Belarus has been an active initial proponent of the demand to allocate an additional non-permanent seat to that group in the expanded Security Council. People all over the world and the international community as a whole can no longer tolerate the killing of human beings in inter-State and intra-State armed conflicts. During the years after the Second World War thousands upon thousands, if not millions of people, have been killed. Nevertheless, hostilities continue in different regions of the globe. Conflicts in Africa, the Middle East and the Balkans stay unresolved; still unsettled are situations in Cyprus and other regions.”
1998-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 53 (1998)
“Reforms should mean the synergy of the best United Nations achievements in all areas of its activities, which have been developed for more than half a century. We believe in the ability of the Secretary-General and his staff to lead our Organization exactly in the required direction. On its part, the Republic of Belarus will do its utmost to contribute in all ways possible to the enhancement of the efficiency of the United Nations and its specialized agencies, and will seek generally acceptable agreements on all the issues of the global agenda. Strengthening the United Nations system and reforming the Security Council on the basis of just and balanced representation of the regional groups would be most instrumental in this respect.”
1998-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 53 (1998)
“Most global problems are persistent, hard to resolve and resist old approaches. We should seek new solutions and reach agreements to do away with the problems in unconventional, innovative ways. I believe that the proposed reform of the United Nations will give us a good opportunity to achieve this. Our attitude to the reform was defined in the letter of the President of the Republic of Belarus, His Excellency Mr. Alyaksandr Lukashenka, to the Secretary-General. We must ensure that reforming the activities of the United Nations does not disrupt the attainment of its goals and the implementation of its principles or derogate the interests of Member States and regional groups. Reforms should not mean disorganization.”
1998-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 53 (1998)
““The Republic of Belarus pledges itself to make its territory a neutral, nuclear-weapon-free State.” 30 Thus the Constitution of the Republic of Belarus is consistent with all our obligations under the United Nations Charter and other instruments of international law to which Belarus is a party. The United Nations is to define far-reaching goals and guidelines for international cooperation into the twenty-first century. Everybody wants to be better off, to have the opportunity to work and live in peace and freedom. There is a need for the United Nations to elaborate an effective legislative, economic, social and political framework to give humankind an opportunity to realize these legitimate aspirations in an environment much more favourable than the one we have had in the century that draws to its close.”
1998-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 53 (1998)
“United Nations activities should reflect more adequately those sweeping changes of the second half of the twentieth century, many of which shattered the world. The Government of the Republic of Belarus has been persistent and consistent in its efforts to promote peace, friendship, good-neighbourly relations and mutually beneficial cooperation. This policy is enshrined in the Constitution of the Republic of Belarus, chapter 18 of which, in particular, declares: “In its foreign policy the Republic of Belarus proceeds from the principles of the equality of States, non-use of force or the threat to use force, inviolability of frontiers, peaceful settlement of disputes, non-interference in internal affairs of States and other universally acknowledged principles and standards of international law.”
1998-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 53 (1998)
“Today, on the very threshold of the third millennium, it becomes clear for the majority of Member States that the time has come to take comprehensive measures for everyone to turn the determination of the peoples of the United Nations, declared in its Charter, into reality “to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war ... to practice tolerance and live together in peace with one another as good neighbours”. In fact, that was the ultimate goal behind all the diverse activities of the United Nations in the years after its Charter came into force in 1945. The world goes through non-stop change. Today the global environment in which Member States cooperate to achieve the goals of the Charter is different from that of half a century ago.”
1998-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 53 (1998)
“Please accept our sincere congratulations, Sir, on the occasion of your election to preside over the fifty-third session, as well as our wishes for success in realizing the goals and principles of the United Nations. We welcome all the efforts of the Secretary-General, Mr. Kofi Annan, for the benefit of the Organization and its Member States, and sincerely wish him further success on his way, which is strewn not with roses alone. With appropriate respect and great appreciation for the activities of the President of the General Assembly at its fifty-second session, Mr. Hennadiy Udovenko of Ukraine, we wish him important achievements in his activities as a Member of Parliament in his native country.”
1998-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 53 (1998)
“With all those shades blending into a positive optimistic colour, the future of humanity is more secure today than it was yesterday, and certainly a lot more secure than it was before yesterday.”
1997-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 52 (1997)
“During the limited time afforded to us, it is not possible to cover the whole range of problems which confront the United Nations and which involve special actions and responsibilities of Member States. I have outlined only those which the Government of Belarus considers of the first priority to be addressed in order to secure the normal functioning of the United Nations. I would like to close my statement on a note of cautious optimism. There are many indicators that the United Nations is advancing in the right direction, and the participation of Member States in the United Nations programmes of settling major global issues is a shade better today than it was yesterday.”
1997-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 52 (1997)
“I would take up this issue, not to emphasize the need to avoid payments, but to invite the international community to distinguish between the cases when payment is not made due to objective difficulties and when it results from the absence of will on the part of some Member States to contribute in accordance with the principle of the capacity to pay, or is an attempt to exert pressure on the United Nations and the policy it implements. There must be a common quest for special solutions to further revise the scale of assessments, to reconstruct debt in cases where economic conditions of this or that Member State do not allow for the regular payment to be made in time.”
1997-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 52 (1997)
“No matter what objective financial or other economic difficulties Belarus is experiencing, we seek to fulfil our financial obligations before the United Nations. This year, the Government of Belarus has allotted the first instalment to gradually liquidate our arrears to the regular United Nations budget, and before the year is over we plan to contribute another $5 million. However, we hope more careful consideration can be 10 given to reaching a fair solution in the settlement of the issue related to the payment by Belarus of its arrears in financial contributions to the United Nations regular budget and financing the United Nations peacekeeping operations.”
1997-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 52 (1997)
“Now we are practically the only country of the Commonwealth of Independent States that had a stable economic growth of about 16 per cent during the first half of this year; we have arrested the decrease in volumes of industrial production and we are a country free from religious, ethnic or civil strife. Of course, there are many difficulties still ahead of us. But as long as a consensus of the people is secured on major development programmes and aims, the institutes of government and democracy are stable, and international cooperation proceeds within acceptable international norms. There is hope that we shall accomplish the goals set before us. Difficult as it might be, we have made quite a few positive steps to assure the United Nations that we are seriously focused on strengthening our participation in this international body.”
1997-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 52 (1997)
“While I would certainly acknowledge that some of the international community’s concern has been justified, I would like very much to say that the Republic of Belarus is a sovereign State that develops its own policy with due regard for the opportunities — economic, social, moral and psychological — of its citizens, within the limits of international patterns of behaviour and with respect for human rights and personal freedoms. It has been an uneasy path, but so far the Republic of Belarus has avoided the pitfalls in economic and political areas, and with the due assistance of the international community expects to attain certain standards compatible with the developed countries of the world.”
1997-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 52 (1997)
“I should like to emphasize that the Chernobyl-related activities of the United Nations as well as the international assistance in mitigating the consequences of that nuclear catastrophe are highly appreciated by the people of Belarus. Yet the assistance is needed right now — today — though we will need it in the future as well. That is a tragic reality the Republic of Belarus is living through. As members are aware, sometimes and in some areas Belarus has been the object of criticism because of the slowness of reform and democratic transformations. Concern has been expressed regarding certain internal developments in the Republic of Belarus.”
1997-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 52 (1997)
“I sincerely believe that the sustainable development programme launched by the United Nations will encourage the participation of other multilateral organizations in its implementation, in particular, the World Trade Organization, which could advance reforms in countries whose economies are in transition by accepting them as full members. We fervently hope that the Agenda for Development, as a long-term policy of the United Nations, will not only provide reliable mechanisms to deal with international catastrophes, such as the Chernobyl accident and others, but will also help establish a system to prevent such catastrophes and eliminate their consequences in all parts of the world.”
1997-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 52 (1997)
“We appreciate the great assistance rendered to us by the United Nations Development Programme, the United Nations Secretariat and the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe, which helped us to hold our conference on sustainable development in Minsk in April 1997, which was attended by representatives of 30 countries and more than 30 international organizations. That conference was an important landmark on the path to working out an international strategy for sustainable development and outlined many of the important issues that are now faced by countries in a period of transition.”
1997-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 52 (1997)
“But I would also reiterate that no matter the tepid response, only the creation of regions entirely free from nuclear weapons and the nuclear threat will facilitate each important step along the road to the eventual comprehensive renouncement of nuclear weapons. Apart from general support for the reform programmes of the United Nations, I should like to emphasize the particularly positive approach of Belarus to the idea and the philosophy of sustainable development. Pursuant to the decisions and recommendations adopted by the Rio 1992 Earth Summit, the Government of the Republic of Belarus worked out a national strategy for sustainable development, whose outline was presented to the General Assembly’s special session last June.”
1997-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 52 (1997)
“I should like to remind the Assembly that Belarus was one of the first Commonwealth of Independent States countries, after the breakup of the Soviet Union, to withdraw nuclear weapons from its territory. Belarus aims to achieve further progress in the field of disarmament, in particular by banning chemical, bacteriological and other toxic weapons, by putting an end to research into new weapons 9 of mass destruction, and by preventing an arms race in space. Awareness of these aims means a more secure future for our children. The Belarusian position on disarmament issues is firm and logically predictable. Apart from our refusal to station nuclear weapons on our soil, we have suggested creating a nuclear-free zone in the centre of Europe. I must admit that so far the response to this initiative has been tepid, at best.”
1997-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 52 (1997)
“Unfortunately, conflicts, including military clashes, are still a reality of humanity’s everyday existence. We call upon the Security Council to be more prudent in handling these conflicts, to be more diligent in seeking peaceful means to regulate them, avoiding at all costs economic destruction as well as the political and moral damage that comes with attempts to apply sanctions. I should like to seize this opportunity to confirm the willingness of the Government of the Republic of Belarus to host the Minsk international Conference on conflict settlement in Nagorny Karabakh. As members know, Belarus has always been among those nations which have spoken and acted strongly to make effective measures undertaken by the United Nations in the field of disarmament.”
1997-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 52 (1997)
“It is our opinion that the continuation of the Arab-Israeli dialogue, which will live up to the agreements previously reached, is a must to stop terrorism in this region, to put an end to the non-stop bloodletting of innocent people and to establish a firm and lasting peace. The same can also be said of the Balkans, which is now one of the hottest spots in the European region. We are convinced that lasting peace in the former Yugoslavia is possible only under conditions where violence is renounced and where the parties involved settle their conflicts in a peaceful manner. The Republic of Belarus invites the General Assembly to enable the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, as a founding Member, to resume its participation in the work of the General Assembly and other bodies of the United Nations.”
1997-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 52 (1997)
“Should this conference take place in 1999, it would be an important opportunity to discuss the complex problems of peaceful cooperation between Member States and to find and elaborate means to constructively handle major issues of contention and also to strengthen the legal foundations of international actions for peace. I should like to state that the Republic of Belarus, as one of the founding Members of the United Nations, has always spoken strongly in favour of the peaceful regulation of military conflicts in different regions of the globe and of elaborating new and efficient measures to prevent the emergence of new crisis situations. That is why we share the approach of many who have spoken here, when they expressed concern about the development of the situation in the Middle East.”
1997-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 52 (1997)
“We would also like to state that with this evolution of NATO and a thorough analysis of existing world and regional security systems and treaties, further emphasis should be attached to well-established regional organizations such as the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) and to their closer cooperation with the United Nations and its specialized agencies. As to the OSCE, we feel certain that it has already accumulated profound experience and skills in tackling many important security issues and is able to make a major contribution to strengthening peace and security on the continent. Therefore, the Republic of Belarus readily supports the initiatives of Russia and the Netherlands concerning a number of special events to commemorate the one hundredth anniversary of the First Peace Conference.”
1997-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 52 (1997)
“We took due note of several meetings of NATO member States regarding the transformation of the North Atlantic Cooperation Council into the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council, as well as the transformation of the major military aims of NATO itself. Taking into account current realities, we would like to reiterate our position against NATO’s expansion as a military organization, but also to add to it that we are in favour of its development into a universal European organization for peace and security. It is with this intention that we have entered into negotiations with NATO and presented a programme for Belarusian participation in the Partnership for Peace. We sincerely hope that by developing a more constructive approach we will reach a mutual understanding, which could be reinforced by some mutual obligations.”
1997-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 52 (1997)
“Each State has, of course, ample right independently to select the most efficient means of protecting its own national interests, including the right to participate in regional security organizations. For the last two years Belarus has displayed a firm stance against the expansion of the North Atlantic Treaty 8 Organization (NATO) as a military bloc. I hope for understanding on the part of the international community in this respect. In the event that we had on our western borders not the friendly sovereign Polish State we have now but a military organization, it would certainly push us to seriously analyse and reconsider our national security considerations. However, recently we have noticed developments inside the NATO structure itself.”
1997-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 52 (1997)
“The Republic of Belarus is convinced that allocation of one more non-permanent seat on the Security Council to the Group of Eastern European States — whose membership has more than doubled in recent years — is in full compliance with the provisions of Article 23 of the United Nations Charter, which sets forth the principle of equitable geographical distribution. Among all the new realities that are being brought into the mosaic of international relations, efficient mechanisms for global and regional security still seem paramount. Belarus considers its national security to be inalienably connected and identified with the collective security system of the European continent.”
1997-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 52 (1997)
“When we speak of reform in the United Nations, we have in mind first and foremost an effective distribution of United Nations resources, the streamlining of the Organization’s administrative and organizational structures, and budgetary and structural reform of the United Nations Secretariat, as well as personnel adjustments to meet the challenges of the modern world. When addressing United Nations reform, we place special emphasis on the reform of the Security Council, which is one of the principal United Nations bodies, responsible for the maintenance of international peace and security. Extremely critical in this respect is, of course, the principle of balanced representation of all regional groups of United Nations Member States on the reformed Security Council.”
1997-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 52 (1997)
““The Republic of Belarus is in favour of a pragmatic, comprehensive approach to United Nations reform which would provide for the strengthening, on the basis of the opportunities available, of the United Nations potential in peacekeeping, humanitarian and informational fields.” In our opinion, these measures are very important and represent an up-to-date response to the need to settle the issues coming before the United Nations during this complex historical period as we approach the end of the millennium. These issues need to be solved in order to enhance the functional efficiency of the family of the United Nations.”
1997-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 52 (1997)
“In this respect, I would like to quote from a letter dated 5 September 1997 sent by the President of the Republic of Belarus, Mr. Lukashenka, to the Secretary-General: “These reforms are a timely and meaningful response to the objectives facing the United Nations during this complex period at the turning point of the millennia, including problems which ought to be solved with the purpose of enhancing the effectiveness of the United Nations system.”
1997-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 52 (1997)
“Solving these problems is becoming the overriding ambition and the main goal and hope of the United Nations, as well as of mankind as a whole. Right now, the United Nations has started displaying its capacity to adapt its structure and policies to the demands of the future. The orientation of the United Nations towards the future is the overriding goal that was established for it during its fiftieth anniversary celebrations. The change of leadership and the measures that are now being undertaken in this direction give sufficient grounds for optimism. We declare our support for these goals and actions. With a sense of trust and the intention to contribute, we take note of the actions of the new Secretary-General, Mr. Annan, in regard to reform within the United Nations.”
1997-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 52 (1997)
“Entering the twenty-first century, with its new international order, does not mean that we renounce the experience of the last 52 years in the development of the family of nations under one common programme, as set out for us by the founding fathers of the United Nations and outlined in its Charter. On the contrary, it means adjusting these lofty aims to the new realities of a multifaceted world and also making the Organization — no matter how different its separate parts are — the mainstream of human development, where the economic well-being of people brings to an end age-old ills such as starvation and epidemic diseases, as well as huge environmental threats, and which helps to achieve multilateral understanding between those participating in this development.”
1997-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 52 (1997)
“Every day, international life and international relations acquire ever more multidimensional and ever deeper significance, with new meanings and trends in development that can no longer be constrained within the 7 criteria and standards of the twentieth century. We live at a time oriented towards the future. A fin de siècle mentality is not just a nostalgic feeling for the century passing away, but also embraces a deep concern for the years ahead. The destiny of mankind, however contradictory and diverse, and the interests of nations and States may become more amenable to one common denominator, are increasingly concerned with the well-being of humanity, and display numerous convergent features which make it possible now to discuss the opportunity for a new international order.”
1997-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 52 (1997)
“It gives me particular pleasure to congratulate you, Sir, the distinguished representative of Ukraine, on your election to the responsible post of President of the fifty-second of the General Assembly of the United Nations. I am convinced that your rich and profound experience in diplomatic relations, together with your personal qualities, will facilitate the constructive work of this General Assembly session and make it an outstanding international event. The delegation of the Republic of Belarus is ready to contribute to your endeavours in any way required. I would also like to use this opportunity to say a word of gratitude to your predecessor, Mr. Razali Ismail, for his competent and efficient presidency during the fifty-first session of the General Assembly.”
1997-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 52 (1997)