SECRETARY-GENERAL LAUDS CANADA'S ROLE IN PROMOTION OF PEACE, DEVELOPMENT
Press Release
SG/SM/5818/Rev.1*
SECRETARY-GENERAL LAUDS CANADA'S ROLE IN PROMOTION OF PEACE, DEVELOPMENT
19951122 Following is the text of Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali's statement on arrival in Ottawa yesterday, 21 November:I am delighted to be back in Canada. I am a frequent visitor to your country. So there can be no doubt about how much I enjoy coming here.
But this visit is also testimony to Canada's key role in the promotion of peace, development, democracy and human rights in the world. Canada's role in the international community is indeed exemplary.
We live in a world of unprecedented complexity. We face great challenges. The end of the cold-war era did not bring the hoped-for era of peace and prosperity. As the United Nations celebrates its fiftieth anniversary, we are only too aware that enormous efforts will be required if we are to carry out the commitments contained in the Charter.
As Secretary-General of the United Nations, I am deeply aware of my responsibilities, and I assume them fully. But I also wish to share with you how much the encouragement I receive from the women and men of Canada, how much their dynamism, their generosity, their solidarity, assist me and cheer me on as I pursue my work.
And thus, as I arrive in your country, I should like above all to extend my friendship to the entire population, to salute Canada and to thank its leaders for their efforts on behalf of the noble ideals of the Charter of the United Nations.
* *** *
* Revised to incorporate English translation from the French in last two paragraphs.