YouSaid · the spoken record

Juppé

THE RECORD WRITES THIS SPEAKER AS JUPPÉ

lines on the record: 65
first: 1993-09-24
most recent: 1994-09-24
sittings or episodes: 2
sources: un-general-debate

Every line below is reproduced as it was said and linked to the record it came from. Nothing here is summarised or generated. Directory · Search · Corrections

“They must not be limited to what seems possible; they must be to make possible what is obviously necessary. It is in this spirit that France will continue actively to play its role within the United Nations.”
1994-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 49 (1994)
“That is the reason for the commitment of our soldiers in Bosnia and, sadly, the sacrifice of several dozen of them. There is nothing pre-ordained about failure to get involved, or inertia. There is a strong will at the heart of our Organization. Therefore France appeals to all Member States to mark the fiftieth anniversary with a genuine renewal of commitment. Voices are being raised today urging our Organization to show greater realism in defining the missions that it has to carry out. In appealing to Member States to mobilize, France wishes to reaffirm its unwavering conviction that, in the face of the challenges to the international community, realism consists not in being less ambitious but in ensuring that we have the means fully to achieve our ambitions.”
1994-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 49 (1994)
“In this spirit, we appeal to Presidents Izetbegovic, Tudjman and Milosevic, who have all accepted the peace plan for Bosnia, to resume the direct dialogue necessary for a comprehensive settlement. Otherwise, the international community must be prepared to propose the terms of a comprehensive, just and lasting settlement, taking into account the legitimate interests of the various communities that made up the former Yugoslavia and must enjoy equal rights. Bringing to trial those responsible for war crimes is a moral imperative to which France is committed. We must above all make the people in the former Yugoslavia understand that there are prospects for the future other than endless violence and vengeance. That is France’s message.”
1994-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 49 (1994)
“The African countries that chose to share with us the risks involved in the operation in Rwanda; the United States, which is working in Haiti to effect the implementation of Security Council resolution 940 (1994); the States whose soldiers stand with ours in the United Nations Protection Force: it is thanks to them that there remains a chance for peace in the former Yugoslavia, delayed only by the stubbornness of the Bosnian Serb leaders. France expects that the greatest of firmness will be used in dealing with these most recent warmongers. But the change in position of the other parties, and in particular the authorities in Belgrade, makes it incumbent upon us to continue to seek a negotiated settlement.”
1994-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 49 (1994)
“How many weeks did we have to wait last year for the military arrangements provided for under Security Council resolution 824 (1993) on safe areas in Bosnia were finally in place? We all remember that, during the Rwandan crisis, the decision taken by the Security Council in mid- May to strengthen the United Nations Assistance Mission for Rwanda had yet to be implemented two months later. Rather than dwelling on these disappointments, however, France wishes to pay tribute to all those States that have shown, by their commitment and sense of international solidarity, that the United Nations can prove that it is effective.”
1994-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 49 (1994)
“And without the commitment of States there cannot be any solution to international instability. France has made considerable efforts to help resolve crises that have threatened the international order over the past few years. It has been the first and is now the second largest troop contributor to the United Nations. It has well-known experience in the three areas of preventive diplomacy, peace-keeping and humanitarian action. Obviously, France does not wish to lecture anyone, but its own commitment does permit it to say that the readiness of 16 States does not meet the demands made today upon our Organization. Need we cite all the circumstances in which the non- participation or temporizing of States has compromised action mandated by the Security Council?”
1994-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 49 (1994)
“We can understand why some Member States are requesting that the scale of contributions be adjusted in order better to reflect real abilities to pay. France hopes that at the present session the General Assembly will address the revision of this scale in accordance with the principle of fairness and in a spirit of consensus. But fairness also requires swifter and more substantial reimbursement to States that provide the troops necessary to peace-keeping operations and are therefore the primary victims of late payments. The situation in which some in fact pay twice while others do not pay at all must come to an end. France therefore asks once again that a working group be established and mandated to propose all the measures that can encourage tardy States to pay their arrears.”
1994-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 49 (1994)
“Its efficacy depends above all on the degree of commitment each of us brings to it. Without the commitment of States there can be no solution to the financial crisis of the United Nations. Each of us is aware of the gravity of our Organization’s financial situation. Each of us also knows that this critical situation is not the result solely of the sum total of expenditures. The real source of our crisis is well known: it is the negligence of States which do not pay their contributions or do not pay them in full. Of course, we welcome the fact that one of the main contributor countries has decided to pay a substantial part of its arrears, thereby bringing temporary relief to the Organization’s financial situation.”
1994-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 49 (1994)
“We believe that this is the appropriate response to the demand for transparency made by many delegations. On the other hand, the Council’s authority and thus its efficacy also depend on its representativeness. We therefore favour the enlargement of the Council to include new permanent and non-permanent members. France confirms its support for the desires of Germany and Japan to accede to permanent membership. It also considers that the representatives of the developing world should in no case find themselves marginalized by any future reform. The United Nations exists and acts only through the will of its Member States. Though that is obvious it bears repeating. Any failure of our Organization is in fact the failure of those same States - that is, as my colleague from the United Kingdom stated earlier today, our own failure.”
1994-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 49 (1994)
“This question has already been the focus of in-depth discussions that have clarified the positions at issue. For its part, France has no panacea to offer, but it believes that the solution must answer the dual imperative of efficacy and representativeness. On the one hand, if the Security Council is to function efficiently, given its tasks and the circumstances in which it intervenes, its capacity to take important decisions quickly must clearly be maintained. But the Council must also allow for full public debate in reaching its decisions. Hence, we are in favour of the Council’s holding official meetings - without of course giving up its informal consultations - to hear Members of the Organization and talk with them before taking positions on the important questions before it.”
1994-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 49 (1994)
“First, sessions of the Fifth Committee must be held more closely together in order to ensure better control over our finances, particularly with regard to peace-keeping operations. Secondly, there must be more frequent missions of the Assembly to deal with certain crisis situations, as was done in the cases of Haiti and South Africa. The financial reform of the United Nations, which has been discussed for several years now, must be set in motion. Following the work of the high-level Working Group established last year to consider the question of enlarging the Security Council, France proposes that a group, led by the President of the General Assembly, be set up this year to make proposals that could lead to the financial reform of our Organization. Thirdly, we must work to achieve the enlargement of the Security Council.”
1994-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 49 (1994)
“With regard to management, last year’s establishment of the post of Inspector General marked an important step forward. We expect further progress to be made this year with the establishment of a committee on budgetary discipline, as I proposed last year from this very rostrum. Lastly, as our Prime Minister has 15 suggested, France proposes that someone be appointed on a permanent basis to the Secretary-General’s Office who would deal with the question of the non-proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. Our Assembly is the most universal of international institutions. Its prestige and authority must therefore be strengthened. To that end, France is making three proposals.”
1994-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 49 (1994)
“This is true, too, of peace-keeping missions. Recent experience has shown the need to make military forces available to the Secretary-General on very short notice in the implementation of Security Council resolutions. To that end, France wishes to develop a network of stand-by forces. On the initiative of the President of the Republic, we have offered to make a standing unit of several thousand men available to the United Nations. It is also essential for the Secretary-General to be able to control the evolution of peace-keeping missions. To that end, France recommends systematic recourse to the designation of a special representative. The Secretary-General must be able to rely on the assistance of prominent and particularly competent persons.”
1994-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 49 (1994)
“The signing a few weeks ago of an act that completes the monumental work done by the United Nations on the law of the sea is also a historic event. If our Organization is to be able to carry out the many difficult tasks which I have just described, we must constantly work to reform it and adjust the means available to it - in the first place, by strengthening the means available to the Secretary-General. On behalf of France, I should like to pay a tribute here to the Secretary-General - and this is not a mere formality. We have the good fortune to have at the helm of our Organization a man who, thanks to his ceaseless efforts over the past two years, has made progress possible in all areas: preventive diplomacy, crisis management, development, the running of the institution. We must therefore give him the means to continue his work.”
1994-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 49 (1994)
“The establishment of the International Tribunal for war crimes committed in the former Yugoslavia is a significant event. Until very recently there had been some scepticism about this initiative. Today, thanks to the resolve of the Tribunal’s judges and prosecutor, it is in place and beginning to examine actual cases being submitted to it. France supports these efforts and hopes that comparable crimes of genocide that may have been committed in Rwanda will also lead to the establishment of an international legal body. The juridical work of the United Nations extends to other areas as well. It is designed to address matters of international trade with a view to making it both freer and fairer. In this regard, I have already expressed our satisfaction at the establishment of the World Trade Organization.”
1994-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 49 (1994)
“Lastly, France would like to stress the underlying principle of international law: the universality of human rights, a principle which may not be challenged in the name of any religious, cultural or national specificities. I am all the more ready to say that because France is itself keen on preserving its identity and intent on defending it. However different people may be, they share the same rights. The very existence of our Organization rests on this principle. France has consistently urged the acceleration of progress in the field of human rights, by seeking recognition that certain principles must be applied to States’ actions. I welcome the steps taken by the High Commissioner for Human Rights since his designation and express the hope that the resources made available to him will be commensurate with his mission.”
1994-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 49 (1994)
“France intervenes regularly on the ground alongside United Nations agencies, and we should like to pay a tribute to the outstanding work done by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, the World Food Programme and UNICEF, working under tragically difficult circumstances. We were able to appreciate in full measure their usefulness as the Rwandan crisis unfolded. We have had confirmation that the United Nations alone is able to coordinate such difficult operations. Naturally, there is need for further progress: in shortening the Organization’s reaction time, and in better allocating tasks among agencies. But the reform that began three years ago with the establishment of the Department for Humanitarian Affairs is beginning to bear fruit. We are indeed on the right track.”
1994-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 49 (1994)
“France therefore proposes that the next 14 annual meeting of the Council in Geneva should be an opportunity for the ministers of Member States personally to undertake a complete examination of the policies followed by these various institutions with regard to development, and especially to study specific ways by which they might work together better. The Secretary-General’s efforts for renewal and clarification through the "Agenda for Development" naturally form part of this global approach. The European Union, for its part, has presented recommendations in its aide-mémoire that it believes would enhance that draft. France intends to take an active part in General Assembly discussions on this subject. The role of our Organization is no less critical where humanitarian action is involved.”
1994-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 49 (1994)
“It has the necessary legitimacy and authority, inasmuch as all the main institutions concerned, including what are known as the Bretton Woods institutions, are part and parcel of the United Nations system. We therefore consider it necessary to strengthen the links that unite all these separate bodies. In particular, we should ensure that the policies of adjustment carried out under World Bank or International Monetary Fund auspices take due account of the social requirements of development. France is committed to doing so in working with its partners, and has recently agreed to a substantial effort to help the franc zone countries overcome the short-term effects of the devaluation of the CFA franc. The Economic and Social Council should be the place for ensuring coherence and consistency within these organizations.”
1994-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 49 (1994)
“The work pursued under the auspices of the United Nations and its agencies has helped to call attention to the interdependence of the economic, demographic, cultural and social ramifications of the development question. That is why the main theme conferences devoted to the environment, to population, to social development and to the status of women are now once again the instruments to be used to mobilize for development. Given this perspective, France will organize in Paris before the end of this year the signing of the Convention on the struggle against desertification, as well as the Aids Summit. The United Nations alone is capable of ensuring that all these efforts be pursued consistently.”
1994-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 49 (1994)
“In this same vein, France reaffirms its support for the decision taken by the General Assembly last year to begin negotiations on a comprehensive nuclear-test-ban treaty that would be internationally and effectively verifiable. Over recent years, crisis prevention and crisis management have absorbed the greater part of our efforts. We have thus imperceptibly strayed somewhat from what was a major chapter in the history of the United Nations: the North-South dialogue, the major conferences on trade and development. France thus proposes that the United Nations restore development and the struggle to achieve it to their central place in its work. It is not a question of repeating what was done in past decades. Our approach to development has changed.”
1994-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 49 (1994)
“Given this perspective, France ascribes especial importance to the speedy ratification of the Convention banning chemical weapons - the first multilateral disarmament treaty - and thereby its entry into force in 1995. France hopes to see our Organization make progress towards strengthening the Convention banning biological weapons and to see new efforts made to ban anti-personnel mines. I was particularly pleased to hear President Clinton endorse this very concept in his recent statement to the Assembly. Finally, the requirement for non-proliferation, which North Korea’s attitude compels us to take especially seriously, must lead, at the 1995 Conference, to the unconditional and indefinite renewal of the non-proliferation Treaty.”
1994-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 49 (1994)
“But, and we are very keenly aware of this, this concerns serious, exceptional measures whose purpose must be precisely defined to bring pressure to bear on a Government to change its attitude. That is the objective in such instances. France therefore proposes that in future, when a resolution imposing sanctions upon a Member State is to be voted upon, three conditions must be met. These are, that all other diplomatic avenues have been explored without success; that the Council resolution state explicitly what actions the targeted State should take in order for the sanctions to be lifted; and that the maintenance of the sanctions should be subject to regular review in good faith. In the realm of disarmament, our Organization is once again the sole forum where international commitments may be entered into.”
1994-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 49 (1994)
“But when conflicts become exacerbated, when a crisis calls for a mandatory solution, the Charter requires us to turn to the Security Council, the sole authority having power to decide on enforcement measures or on the use of force other than for legitimate self-defence. The justification for such measures may come only from the will of the international community, and that is why the Security Council, in our view, must exert its authority and control at all stages of operations it may decide upon: conception and approval of the mandate, the major phases of implementation and the monitoring of implementation. The adoption of a system of mandatory sanctions against States that breach international legality is also a prerogative of the Security Council.”
1994-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 49 (1994)
“It is up to the United Nations and to that Organization alone to ensure international equilibrium since, in the last resort, it alone has the power to decide on enforcement measures or on the use of force. Regional organizations do contribute to peace and international stability. They may indeed fulfil missions in preventive diplomacy, but they must then be inspired by the principles enshrined in the United Nations. As regards peace-keeping, Chapter VIII of our Charter expressly provides that the United Nations may, in certain circumstances, employ the means at the disposal of the regional organizations.”
1994-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 49 (1994)
“We have, on the initiative of Egypt, already made a contribution to the coming into being of the Mediterranean Forum, which recently held its first meeting in Alexandria. We will make this one of the main goals of the French presidency of the European Union in the first semester of the coming year. Everywhere, then, the progress being made in processes leading to integration and the establishment of regional frameworks for cooperation reflects positive trends. These organizations, however, have neither the right nor the capability to do everything. It is the United Nations that is and must remain the sole forum for 13 organizing peace and solidarity throughout the world.”
1994-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 49 (1994)
“Thus, perhaps, there may be such a group in the Middle East as well, where progress in the peace process allows us to envision the development of intensive regional cooperation. The organization of all kinds of ties among the countries concerned will help to establish peace in the region, as will the search for solutions to the political problems that are still pending. France can therefore only repeat that we hope to see the boycotts finally ended. Our financial support for the peace process, as well as our active participation in the multilateral negotiations, including participation in such ultra-sensitive areas as regional security, reflect this very same conviction. Above and beyond that, France would like to see Europe organize a forum for cooperation involving all the Mediterranean States.”
1994-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 49 (1994)
“We are ready to help set up a military mechanism to enable the OAU to intervene more quickly, under United Nations control, in the framework of peace-keeping operations. In South-East Asia, the countries of the Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN) are working to strengthen their economic ties and to establish confidence- building measures to reinforce the stability of the region. France, which through the European Union was present at ASEAN’s regional forum on security, held recently in Bangkok, takes a special interest in the beneficial effects this process should have on the countries of the Indo- Chinese peninsula. On the American continent, the entry into force of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) adds to the dynamism of existing regional organizations, old and new.”
1994-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 49 (1994)
“This is a major success that will benefit all its member countries by putting an end to unilateral practices and guaranteeing fair and free trade. Europe is thus assuming its international responsibilities. It is actively supporting the peace processes in the Middle East, in southern Africa and elsewhere. It has long been involved in the struggle to achieve development, particularly through the Lomé Conventions. It provides substantial financing everywhere - the most in the world - for peoples mired in humanitarian crises. Its actions prove that a genuine regional power can benefit the entire international community. New regional groups of solidarity are gradually taking shape in all parts of the world. In Africa, France supports the principle of an OAU mechanism for preventing, handling and settling conflicts.”
1994-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 49 (1994)
“The European Union, the Western European Union (WEU), the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe (CSCE) are all coooperating in the efforts towards this end. Furthermore, it explains France’s initiative, taken up in turn by the European Union, to establish a stability pact. This is an ambitious exercise in preventive diplomacy, aimed at resolving issues of relations between neighbours and of minority groups, where such issues persist in the European theatre. Today Europe is a world power, as it demonstrated during the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) negotiations, at which its efforts led, notably, to the establishment of a World Trade Organization (WTO).”
1994-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 49 (1994)
“It has done more than just do away with the age-old rivalries that had led to two world wars. In the western part of the European continent, economic integration and political cooperation have attained a level that is unmatched in the world. Since the iron curtain ceased to exist, we have been primarily concerned with expanding to all parts of Europe the zone of peace and prosperity resulting from that process. This explains our desire to speed up the integration of the Central and Eastern European democracies into the European Union. It also accounts for our efforts to organize a partnership with Russia and the States of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS).”
1994-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 49 (1994)
“During the darkest years of the Second World War, General De Gaulle spoke of the need to establish a world order that could guarantee the security of all, to make rational use of all the world’s riches and to bring together all the people on the face of the Earth. The time has come for us to rediscover the ideal that inspired the 12 generation of the founders and to ask ourselves with clarity what means are necessary to implement it. Almost everywhere in the world we are seeing the positive movement of nation-States into groups. France has made the building up of Europe one of the pillars of its foreign policy. How could it not, then, encourage the formation of new areas of solidarity? The experience of building Europe, which began 40 years ago, is a case in point.”
1994-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 49 (1994)
“In Rwanda, on the other hand, an unprecedented tragedy has set the international community’s responsibility squarely before it. The Assembly is familiar with the efforts made by France to respond to that tragedy and with the support it managed to find, primarily among the African States. The operation that was carried out enabled us to shelter more than 3 million Rwandans from the fighting. None the less, we have found it necessary once again to say the word "genocide", which, almost 50 years after the birth of the United Nations, amounts to saying that the worst is still possible.”
1994-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 49 (1994)
“France is especially pleased, Mr. President, to see the General Assembly meeting under your authority. At the end of a year marked by the passing of an extraordinary statesman, President Houphouët-Boigny, your election has given the international community another occasion to stop and think about the situation in the African continent, which in recent months has brought us both hope and tragedy. In South Africa, a decisive evolutionary process took concrete form this year in the first elections there with universal suffrage. We can now express our joy at seeing that country take its rightful place in the concert of nations. The choice of the South African people, inspired by outstanding men to whom France wishes again to pay a tribute, provides an example for all those who aspire to democracy, reconciliation and peace and gives them hope.”
1994-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 49 (1994)
“Let us remain clear-sighted. This period could be merely a brief interlude. If we were to hesitate, would it be long before peoples succumbed to their basest inclinations, cast off the rules of international law or put themselves - in the best of cases - under the sole protection of regional, competing and potentially hostile solidarities? We do not have unlimited time. It is therefore our duty to undertake without delay the reforms required to strengthen our Organization and to realize its new objectives. I should like to assure the Assembly that in the pursuit of these twin goals, the United Nations can count on France’s firm resolve.”
1993-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 48 (1993)
“They affect underdevelopment as much as they do the excesses of the consumer society, and our traditional responses are proving to be inadequate or ineffective. We need new ideas in this area. The Secretary-General should have broad power to take initiatives and make proposals in this matter. France therefore suggests the formation of a group of prominent figures chosen for their intellectual and scientific abilities and moral influence to assist him in this vital task at the end of our century. Forty-eighth session - 29 September l993 27 Setting forth such ambitions for the United Nations might have made the sceptics smile a few years ago. With the end of the cold war the international community has a historic opportunity: no longer to dismiss problems but perhaps to solve them; no longer to limit conflicts but perhaps to settle them.”
1993-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 48 (1993)
“But the need for full-scale international mobilization is becoming particularly acute in the case of AIDS in view of the havoc of all kinds caused by the spread of this malady. I earnestly hope that, as we approach the second decade of this struggle, the coherence of United Nations action, and that of its specialized agencies and of all States and interested organizations, will be equal to this new challenge. In this context, France proposes the convening of a conference next year to bring together the main contributor countries in the war against this scourge in order to improve coordination of their efforts and give them a new impetus. In most cases, these phenomena are not new. However, the challenge they pose to our societies, in the North and in the South, is of unprecedented seriousness.”
1993-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 48 (1993)
“The Organization must address these problems with the same energy it expends in the search for peace and the promotion of development. Several important dates lie ahead of us. Let us apply without delay the recommendations unanimously adopted at the Vienna Conference on Human Rights, particularly the creation of a post of high commissioner for human rights. Let us prepare for the conferences in Cairo and Beijing and the social development summit in Copenhagen with all the necessary determination, so as to reinforce the cooperation required in addressing demographic problems, the promotion of women’s rights and the demands for social development. Great epidemics have always been a threat to the world’s nations.”
1993-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 48 (1993)
“France has not forgotten the depth of the crisis in sub-Saharan Africa, with which it has so many ties. It believes it is 26 General Assembly - Forty-eighth session essential that the basic achievements of cooperation between the European Community and the African, Caribbean and Pacific countries, should be maintained, especially with regard to trade. Lastly, our third ambition for the United Nations concerns the vast issue of societal questions, linked naturally to the requirements of development but distinct from it. The protection of human rights, the preservation of the environment, aid to refugees, the struggle against full-scale epidemics, organized crime and drug trafficking all have a worldwide dimension.”
1993-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 48 (1993)
“France, as is known, has consistently spoken for the interests of the developing countries, particularly the least developed, in discussion with its industrialized partners. It has tirelessly pleaded - sometimes as a voice crying in the wilderness - for a substantial increase in the level of official development assistance in order to permit these countries to enjoy trade advantages without reciprocity, to ease their debt burden and stabilize raw-material prices. Our resolve in this matter will not weaken: how can we accept, for example, a situation in which every year the African countries pay the World Bank more than they receive from it? Nor can we accept the persistence, and sometimes the worsening, of the most glaring situations of distress.”
1993-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 48 (1993)
“It reaffirms in particular its desire to see the Non-Proliferation Treaty prolonged indefinitely and unconditionally. It continues to believe that it is only the Security Council that can decide on sanctions against irresponsible behaviour. This would be the case if North Korea were to fail to respect its commitments to the International Atomic Energy Agency. What guarantees can be given for collective security and peace if nothing is done to try to resolve the economic and social disparities that are so often the source of conflict? We know that there can be no lasting peace without lasting economic development. That is why the "Agenda for Peace" unquestionably requires also an "agenda for development".”
1993-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 48 (1993)
“But a new priority is becoming evident: the struggle against the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. To attain this goal, we must be extremely vigilant in the threefold domain of nuclear weapons, chemical weapons and ballistic technologies. In this light, France welcomes the signing in Paris by nearly 150 States of the Convention banning chemical weapons, the first real multilateral disarmament pact of general scope, and calls on the States which have not yet ratified this Convention to do so. It supports the efforts being made by several groups of countries to institute systems of control of missile technology, nuclear exports and the sale of so-called sensitive products. France asks, finally, that the non-proliferation regimes be strengthened.”
1993-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 48 (1993)
“In this spirit, the United Kingdom and France are ready to submit to the Secretary-General proposals for compiling a list of prominent individuals who could intervene promptly at his request, in liaison with appropriate regional organizations, and provide them with equipment - specifically in the communications field - necessary for carrying out their mission completely. It is through concrete initiatives of this sort, which may seem modest at first, that preventive diplomacy will gradually assume its rightful place in the maintenance of peace. The effort made in relation to disarmament in the past few years, finally, should continue. Considerable progress has already been made with the reduction of stockpiles from the cold-war era.”
1993-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 48 (1993)
“France, which has already offered, in a statement made by the President of the French Republic, to make available to the Secretary-General a 1,000-strong contingent for peacekeeping operations at 48 hours’ notice, will take part in this effort. These measures will have another advantage. They will add an extra degree of effectiveness to preventive diplomacy, which has to be central to the ambitions we have for the Organization. This policy requires us to develop and put in place mechanisms for crisis alert, evaluation and prevention. Several ideas were put forward in the "Agenda for Peace" - they included use of fact-finding missions and the effective deployment of United Nations forces - and have already been applied to certain difficult situations in Africa, Central Asia and the Balkans.”
1993-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 48 (1993)
“And how many weeks for the ground reinforcements that had been announced to reach Sarajevo? We cannot but note that the current procedures do not meet the criteria for rapid reaction and flexible use which are called for in this area. France does not, however, believe that the Organization should have its own force. On the other hand, it has participated in discussions organized by the Secretariat-General on the concept of stand-by units. These discussions have resulted in original proposals for "tailormade" forces for the United Nations. In this way, the Organization could have at its disposal support, transport and communications capabilities which it currently lacks for carrying out military actions speedily.”
1993-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 48 (1993)
“Next, we should systematically consider the question of the timetable of operations. As a matter of principle, time-frames should be explicitly assigned to each operation in the actual resolution that institutes it. It is also important to know when to terminate operations that go on and on, needlessly dipping into the means of the Organization and its Member States. France fully supports the Secretary-General’s efforts on this score. Lastly, we must expand the capacity of the Organization to react. The time that elapses between our decision to create a force and the implementation of that decision is far too long. How many weeks did we have to Forty-eighth session - 29 September l993 25 wait before the air power authorized by resolution 836 (1993) on Bosnia was eventually deployed?”
1993-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 48 (1993)
“Purely military considerations should never thwart - or even obscure - political ends. Naturally, regional or defence organizations may make useful contributions in terms of expertise, personnel or matériel. But the use of force presupposes that the guardian of the law - that is, the Security Council - exercises its authority in the name of the international community. This it cannot relinquish. That is why France insisted that the Secretary-General’s Special Representative to the former Yugoslavia should have authority over all operations under international mandate. It is important, it seems to me, that we should maintain this requirement at all times. By the same token, France insists that the political ends of the operation in Somalia should not be lost sight of.”
1993-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 48 (1993)
“The present instability in several parts of the world compels the United Nations to intervene more and more frequently in order to check the spread of conflicts and allow a negotiated solution to be sought. France, for its part, has wished to participate fully in this effort and is today in the front rank of States participating in peace-keeping operations. This commitment obviously does not confer any privilege on us. But our experience enables us to cast a lucid eye over the operations in which we have participated and encourages us to reaffirm certain principles and to propose certain common-sense measures that might help increase the future effectiveness of our action. First, greater political control is needed over operations that have become increasingly complex.”
1993-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 48 (1993)
“They require a collective effort on the part of Member States. But France is convinced that we can no longer be satisfied, as in previous years, with marginal adjustments. The very ability of the United Nations to carry out its mandate is at stake. France, as you will have realized, is ambitious for the United Nations. With the support of renovated institutions and reorganized financing, the United Nations will be able to meet the great responsibilities incumbent on it: to preserve peace and collective security, to promote development and to address global problems whose international scale removes them from the individual action of States. Peace is of course the first of our responsibilities.”
1993-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 48 (1993)
“The establishment of a mechanism for a true general inspection will, as I have said, make it possible to rationalize the functioning and costs of the United Nations. France will support all initiatives to supplement the existing procedures of internal assessment, which have already shown their limitations despite the judicious reorganization recently introduced by the Secretary-General. Lastly, we must adopt an exemplary budget for the 1994-1995 period. We must not hesitate to reduce expenditures for obsolete activities. We will also have to provide sufficient funding for the new mandates entrusted to the Organization. If, from that, it is necessary to consider a reasonable increase in the ordinary budget, France, which has never espoused a dogmatic idea of zero growth, will readily accept this. These are concrete measures.”
1993-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 48 (1993)