YouSaid · the spoken record

President Yeltsin

lines on the record
15
first
1992-01-31
most recent
1992-01-31
sittings or episodes
1
sources
un-security-council

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  1. “This was vividly demonstrated by the developments in the Gulf, when our joint efforts resulted in the just punishment of the aggressor, and by the defeat of the coup in Moscow last August. Difficult work lies ahead for us all to consolidate the positive trends in the evolution of today's world and to make them irreversible. It is only on this basis that we can ensure a decent and prosperous life for our nations and every individual. Russia is prepared to do all it can to achieve this goal. In conclusion, permit me to wish Mr. Boutros-Ghali every success in his important post of Secretary-General of the United Nations.”

    1992-01-31 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.3046 (1992) · source

  2. “We should do away with those structures which yield no practical benefits to Member States. We are ready to present our proposals for reform of the United Nations. It is a historical irony that the Russian Federation, a State with centuries-long experience in foreign policy and diplomacy, has only just appeared on the political map of the world. I am confident that the world community will find in Russia, as an equal participant in international relations and as a permanent member of the Security Council, a firm and steadfast champion of freedom, democracy and humanism. Last year's events have confirmed that the nations of the world have now come of age and are capable of adopting responsible and meaningful decisions.”

    1992-01-31 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.3046 (1992) · source

  3. “I believe that we need a special rapid-response mechanism, as mentioned by President Mitterrand of France, to ensure peace and Stability. Upon decision of the Security Council it could be expeditiously activated in areas of crisis, We are prepared to play a practical role in United Nations peace-keeping operations and contribute to their logistical support. My country firmly supports steps to consolidate the rule of law throughout the world. It is necessary to enhance the prestige of the International Court of Justice as an effective instrument for the peaceful settlement of international disputes. On the whole, I think it is high time we considered serious reform of the t United Nations. The world has changed and certain areas of United Nations activities have lost their relevance.”

    1992-01-31 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.3046 (1992) · source

  4. “The current climate in the activities of this body is conducive to cooperative and constructive work. For us, the peace-making experience of the United Nations is particularly valuable. , The new Russian diplomacy will contribute in every possible way to the final settlement of conflicts in various regions of the world that have been unblocked with the assistance of the United Nations. We are ready to become more fully engaged in these efforts. We will make use of the effective role of the United Nations and the Security Council and take part in the search for lasting solutions to the Yugoslav and Afghan problems and for a normalization of the situation in the Near and Middle East, in Cambodia and in other regions.”

    1992-01-31 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.3046 (1992) · source

  5. “A few days ago the 10 remaining political prisoners were pardoned by a decree of the President of the Russian Federation. There are no longer any prisoners of conscience in free Russia. A special role in establishing a new international climate in the world belongs to the United Nations. This Organization has stood the test of time and managed, even in the ice age of confrontation, to preserve the nascent norms of civilized international cohabitation contained in its Charter. We welcome the United Nations increased efforts to strengthen global and regional stability and to build a new democratic world order based on the equality of all States, big or small. Russia is prepared to continue partnership between the 'permanent members of the Security Council.”

    1992-01-31 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.3046 (1992) · source

  6. “The Security Council is called upon to underscore the civilized world's collective responsibility for the protection of human rights and freedoms. In the near future Russia intends to adopt legislation that will reflect the highest international standards in the field of the protection of human freedom, honour and dignity. This applies above all to ensuring personal security, to the Criminal Code and the Corrective Labour Code, to protection of Russian citizens abroad, to alternative military service and to other issues. . We are prepared to accede to the international instruments on migration and to join in the efforts of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. I believe that the experience of the world community in these areas will be useful for Russia and other States of the Commonwealth.”

    1992-01-31 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.3046 (1992) · source

  7. “The participating States of the Commonwealth share the view that nuclear weapons are an integral part of the strategic forces of the Commonwealth under a single command and unified control, Today talks are under way about the future of the armed forces of the former Union. The main task is to carry out the transformation of them in a civilized manner and on a clearly defined legal basis. Our top priority is to guarantee all human rights and freedoms in their entirety, including political and civil rights and decent socio-economic and | environmental living standards. I believe that these questions are not an internal matter of States, but rather their obligations under the United Nations Charter, international covenants and conventions. We want to see this approach become a universal norm.”

    1992-01-31 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.3046 (1992) · source

  8. “I hope that this is something that our partners in the Commonwealth of Independent States also hold dear. We support their early admission to the United Nations and believe that this will have a beneficial impact on the evolution of the Commonwealth itself, The Commonwealth has been formed by the participating States on the basis of full equality and of their own free will. It rests on natural human ties among tens of millions of people. Russia is fully aware of its responsibility for making the Commonwealth of Independent States an important factor of stability in the world. This applies above all to nuclear forces.”

    1992-01-31 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.3046 (1992) · source

  9. “It could be based on a reorientation of the United States Strategic Defense Initiative, to make use of high technologies developed in Russia's defence complex, "We are ready to participate actively in building and putting in place a pan-European collective security system - in particular during the Vienna talks and the upcoming post-Helsinki-II talks on security and cooperation in Europe. Russia regards the United States and the West not as mere partners but rather as allies. This is a basic prerequisite for, I would say, a revolution in peaceful cooperation between progressive nations. We reject any subordination of foreign policy to pure ideology or ideological doctrines. Our principles are clear and simple: primacy of democracy, human rights and freedoms, legal and moral standards.”

    1992-01-31 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.3046 (1992) · source

  10. “The problem of experts engaged in the development and production of such weapons, including nuclear physicists, has lately become a top priority. No country has the right to use its talents for political gains, at the expense of international security. Russia is fully aware of its own responsibility and is taking steps to make provision for the social security of such experts. At the same time, we support the idea of establishing international centres which could coordinate appropriate research and support the most promising areas of work. I think the time has come to consider creating a global defence system for the world community.”

    1992-01-31 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.3046 (1992) · source

  11. “I am convinced that together we are capable of making the principle of minimum defence sufficiency a fundamental law of the existence of contemporary States. Today there are real opportunities for implementing deep cuts in strategic offensive arms and tactical nuclear weapons; resolutely moving towards significant limitations on nuclear testing and even towards its complete cessation; making anti-ballistic-missile defences less complicated and costly and eliminating anti-satellite systems; considerably reducing conventional armaments and armed forces; ensuring practical implementation of international agreements on the prohibition of chemical and bacteriological weapons; and enhancing the reliability of barriers to the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.”

    1992-01-31 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.3046 (1992) · source

  12. “It is no secret that a most profound abyss has separated the two States that until recently were referred to as the super-Powers. This abyss must be bridged. That is the wish of our nations and the commitment of the Presidents of the United States of America and the Russian Federation. The new political situation in the world makes it possible not only to advance new, original ideas but also to make even the most ambitious of them practicable. Our proposals have been outlined in our messages to the Secretary-General of the United Nations, Mr. Boutros Boutros-Ghali, and the President of the United States, Mr. George Bush. Russia believes that the time has come to reduce considerably the presence of means of destruction on our planet.”

    1992-01-31 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.3046 (1992) · source

  13. “whether or not these reforms are successful. I am also grateful to the people of Russia for their courage and steadfastness. They should take a great deal of credit for the fact that the world community is moving ever farther away from the totalitarian past. Democracy is one of the major achievements of human civilization. All times and all countries have known people who have risen up selflessly in its defence. The people of Russia defended democracy at the walls of our Moscow White House. Now we must accomplish the most difficult task - that is, the creation of legal, political and socio-economic guarantees to make democratic changes irreversible. All of us our weighed down by a tremendous burden of mutual mistrust.”

    1992-01-31 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.3046 (1992) · source

  14. “The process of profound change is already under way in various spheres of life, and above all in the economic sphere. It is a problem that concerns not just individual nations or States, but the whole of mankind. After all, it is an economy mutilated by ideological diktat and built in defiance of all common sense that forms the principal material base of totalitarianism. A profound awareness of this causal relationship has led the Russian leadership to embark upon a most difficult course of economic reform, We have taken that risk in a country where an all-out war was waged against economic interests for many decades. I am grateful to the world community for its support of our efforts and for understanding that the future not only of the people of Russia but of the entire planet largely depends on.”

    1992-01-31 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.3046 (1992) · source

  15. “This summit meeting of the Security Council, the first of its kind on the political Olympus of the contemporary world, is a historic and unprecedented event. The end of the twentieth century is a time of great promise and new anxieties. The age-old search for truth and the attempt to discern what the future has in store for humanity seem to be getting a kind of second wind. Perhaps for the first time ever there is now a real chance to put an end to despotism and to dismantle the totalitarian order, whatever shape it may take. I trust that after all the unthinkable tragedies and tremendous losses it has suffered, mankind will reject this legacy; it will not allow the twenty-first century to bring new suffering and privation to our children and grandchildren.”

    1992-01-31 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.3046 (1992) · source