YouSaid · the spoken record

Papaconstantinou

THE RECORD WRITES THIS SPEAKER AS PAPACONSTANTINOU

lines on the record
61
first
1992-09-24
most recent
1993-09-24
sittings or episodes
2
sources
un-general-debate

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  1. “The perception of selectivity in the application of the principles of the Charter must be avoided if the moral authority of the United Nations is to be maintained. This is particularly urgent now that the enforcement capability of the Organization is being enhanced and put to use. Enforcement without moral authority is coercion and tyranny. Smaller nations need to be reassured that no Power will succeed in usurping the moral authority of the United Nations and using it for the advancement of its own interests. It is the fervent hope of the Greek Government that the current turbulent situation will prove to be only a brief transition and will soon be replaced by a spirit of international cooperation and solidarity.”

    1992-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 47 (1992)

  2. “I take this opportunity to express our appreciation to the Secretary-General for a document of vision, lucidity and challenging ideas. We in the Greek Government have studied it with great interest and are looking forward to participating in the fruitful debates that are bound to follow in the various bodies of our Organization. We are pleased that the Secretary-General sees the concepts of preventive diplomacy, peacemaking and peace-keeping in their proper perspective within the larger concept of peace and security that goes beyond the military sphere and encompasses social and economic factors, primary among which is the enjoyment of human rights and fundamental freedoms. We are also encouraged that the Secretary-General has not failed to emphasize the importance of democracy not only within nations but also among the family of nations.”

    1992-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 47 (1992)

  3. “But the first in this series of actions was taken last January and directly concerned international peace and security. The Greek Government welcomed the convening of the Security Council at the summit level to reaffirm the world community's devotion to the principle of collective security and to the settlement of disputes in accordance with the principles of the United Nations Charter, and to consider anew the means by which collective security can be upheld through the Organization. Greece has also welcomed the document entitled "An Agenda for Peace", on preventive diplomacy, peacemaking and peace-keeping, issued by the Secretary-General in response to a request made by the members of the Security Council at their January summit meeting.”

    1992-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 47 (1992)

  4. “In this respect, the nations and the peoples of the world are fortunate in that, with the cold war behind us, the paralysis that had for a long time plagued our Organization has now disappeared. The United Nations is now indeed showing signs that it is willing to live up to the expectations placed in it. A series of actions is being undertaken to deal with the major problems confronting humanity now. In this context, earlier this year, the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development, the largest summit ever held, met at Rio de Janeiro. Next year we will see the Second World Conference on Human Rights. In 1994, population and development will be dealt with. In 1995, the World Conference on Women will take place. Finally, a world summit for social development has been proposed.”

    1992-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 47 (1992)

  5. “In some cases, that civil strife seems to be on the brink of spilling over and becoming a threat to regional and international peace and security. To make matters worse, the weak economies of many developing countries remain in the grip of a deepening crisis, while growing poverty, and in certain cases even hunger, is becoming a menace to recent gains in democracy. And the environment continues to deteriorate at an alarming pace. Faced with such a situation, the world community has to react collectively. And as it is the United Nations that embodies the collegiality of the world community, it is incumbent upon it to devise ways and means to help humanity deal with the situation.”

    1992-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 47 (1992)

  6. “And, I must say, the evidence available is not as encouraging as our expectations were. In fact, we have witnessed developments that threaten the fragile positive trends we had begun to see. We have seen peoples that gained their freedom and independence taking the path of nationalism. Signs abound that we are entering a dangerous and unpredictable world situation, where conflicts, extreme nationalism and tensions of a new nature are erupting, and where the clash of interests could take the place of the ideological confrontations of which we have had bitter experience in the past. In spite of the comfort of being safe at last from the threat of nuclear annihilation since the recent enormous strides in disarmament, in some areas the world seems to be moving into a state of uncontrolled proliferation of conventional arms and civil strife.”

    1992-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 47 (1992)

  7. “We Greeks felt happy and, allow me to say, proud a year ago, as we saw democracy and its twin principle, freedom, gaining ground throughout the world and consolidating its presence in countries where totalitarianism had long held sway. In welcoming new members to the community of free nations, the Greek Government expressed the hope that the post-cold-war world would be based on the principles of democracy and freedom, on respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms, and on the rule of law. That hope was expressed a year ago. Can we now, a year later, ascertain the extent to which it has been met? Admittedly, a year's time is too short to allow a conclusive judgement, but the events of the last 12 months offer some evidence of the direction in which the world is moving.”

    1992-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 47 (1992)

  8. “Allow me to note that the "yes" vote in the Greek Parliament was overwhelming 286 positive votes out of a total of 300 deputies voting - and is indicative of the extraordinary degree of unanimity of the Greek people concerning the position of our country for a united Europe. I have the honour to stand before this Assembly as the representative of a nation that is now completing a year-long celebration marking 2,500 years since our ancestors first invented a form of government called in Greek demokratia. which in rough translation means "rule by the people": democracy, which was destined to become one of the most outstanding contributions of Greece to the collective heritage of mankind and a cornerstone of world civilization.”

    1992-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 47 (1992)

  9. “Earlier this week the Foreign Minister of the United Kingdom, in his capacity as President of the Council of the European Community, delivered a statement on behalf of its 12 Member States. My Government fully subscribes to the contents of that statement. Greece is firmly committed to, and fully supports, the process of European integration. We believe that the economic and political union we agreed on when we adopted the Maastricht Treaty last year will strengthen progress and enhance prosperity not only on the European continent, but also in all the countries the Community is trading with. Greece was among the first European countries to ratify the Maastricht Treaty, and we are happy that the French people as well ratified the Treaty at the referendum of last Sunday.”

    1992-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 47 (1992)

  10. “We are absolutely certain that he will continue his work with the same dynamism and diplomatic dexterity, for the benefit of both the international community and this Organization, which has grown since the General Assembly last met a year ago. Let me also join other representatives in welcoming the new Members that have been admitted to the United Nations as independent States, namely Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, San Marino, Slovenia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. The admission of these new Members is a renewed expression of the desire of our Organization to welcome in its midst all those States that undertake the commitment to adhere to the purposes and principles set out in the United Nations Charter.”

    1992-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 47 (1992)

  11. “Allow me, first of all, to extend to you. Sir, the warmest congratulations of the Greek Government on your election to the presidency. Your personal qualities and diplomatic skill augur well for progress on the work of this session. Moreover, we are especially pleased to salute in your person the representative of a neighbouring country with which Greece maintains long-standing relations of close friendship. I also wish to pay tribute to your predecessor. Ambassador Shihabi, for the effective manner in which he discharged his functions as President of the Assembly last year. Allow me also to point out how impressed the Greek Government is by the way the Secretary-General of our Organization, Mr. Boutros Boutros-Ghali, has been discharging his duties since he took office at the beginning of the year.”

    1992-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 47 (1992)