'WHETHER WE LIKE IT OR NOT, WE LIVE IN ONE WORLD, AND THUS WE HAVE TO SHAPE OUR COMMON FUTURE TOGETHER'

18 October 1996

Press Release
SG/2028

'WHETHER WE LIKE IT OR NOT, WE LIVE IN ONE WORLD, AND THUS WE HAVE TO SHAPE OUR COMMON FUTURE TOGETHER'

19961018 Says German Foreigh Minister, Klaus Kinkel, At Dinner in Honour of Secretary-General Boutros-Ghali, in Lübeck

Following is the text of the statement delivered by the Foreign Minister of Germany, Klaus Kinkel, at a dinner in honour of Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali held in the Seaman's Guild House, in Lübeck, Germany, on 17 October:

I am pleased to welcome you to this festive dinner, held in a very special setting. Let me begin by expressing my gratitude to the organizers of this symposium, Professor Feddersen, Dr. Dräger and Frau Pissula from the Dräger Foundation. This "Malenter Symposium" has become a tradition, an internationally-known event, as was proved once more this afternoon. For this, we are above all indebted to you, Mr. Secretary-General, and I would again like to warmly welcome you in our midst.

This historic medieval building, the "Seaman's Guild House", with its oaken floorboards, was for centuries a tavern where skippers and merchants met to eat and drink. The city of Lübeck, the "Queen of the Hanseatic League", had far-flung international trading links, especially with central and eastern Europe. A cosmopolitan outlook, promoting international cooperation, while retaining strong links with home -- this was not only the philosophy of the Hanseatic Leaguers but also an excellent guideline for mutual understanding and international politics as a whole.

Whether we like it or not, we live in one world, and thus we have to shape our common future together. But people will only accept this fact if they are allowed to retain their identity, culture and roots in the process. We must strike a reasonable balance.

Mr. Secretary-General, during one of your press conferences in Bonn you once joked that the expulsion of Adam and Eve from paradise was the start of a long transitional period for mankind. This "transitional period" is currently

proceeding at a particularly swift pace. Its most important characteristic, globalization, is the focus of this conference. We all know that there are no national answers to this process and the challenges it brings forth. But how do the people of our countries, East and West, perceive these changes? Many feel insecure, are afraid of losing their jobs, fearful of crime and drugs. People in the reform countries are faced with a double upheaval. On the one hand, their former economic and social system has collapsed, and on the other they must confront the totally new challenges of our time. This is an enormous burden, but also a huge opportunity, since those who start afresh and take the right decisions right away in the light of new demands are usually in a better position than those who feel they can rest on their laurels.

The wheel of change keeps turning, and no one can stop it or even turn it back. We can only win if we keep spinning the wheel and make change our friend.

What does this mean for international organizations? Here at the Malenter Symposium we have representatives of around 20 such organizations and institutions. All of you know how sceptically the man in the street now views these institutions and international politics in general. He asks himself: What do they do for me? Do all these conferences mean anything? It is true that sometimes we politicians feel like Sisyphus, but we should not be discouraged by this, since there is no alternative to seeking to solve the problems of our time together, and at the political level that means cooperating in existing multilateral forums.

The United Nations is and will remain the global guarantor for the safeguarding of peace, respect for human rights, economic development and the protection of life-giving resources. Who, if not the United Nations, the world's conscience, is to keep watch to prevent murder and torture, to ensure that refugees have the basic necessities of life and that our children are protected and cared for? And it must be said that in spite of all their scepticism, people expect, and hope for, more and more from international organizations.

Here, too, a reasonable balance must be struck. As you have rightly demanded again and again, Mr. Secretary-General, the United Nations must not be overburdened. The subsidiarity principle must be brought to bear at the level of international politics, too. The regional organizations must assume more responsibility in addressing regional issues. This applies to the growing commitment of the Organization of African Unity (OAU) in Africa just as much as to the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) here in Europe.

For many years civil rights campaigners, such as Vaclav Havel, regarded the Conference for Security and Cooperation in Europe (CSCE) as the key point of reference in their fight for freedom. Today, the OSCE is gradually taking

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on new tasks. It was largely successful in monitoring the elections in Bosnia, a highly difficult mission. This organization's effectiveness must be further increased at the Lisbon OSCE summit at the beginning of December.

Today, people in central and eastern Europe look first of all towards the European Union and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), and yes, I am aware that you look to us Germans in particular, to help you. We know that as a result of our past and the gift of reunification, we bear a special responsibility and duty to pursue European unity. Thomas Mann, this great city's greatest son, gave us this maxim, "We do not want a German Europe but rather a European Germany". This will continue to be our beacon! Let me take this opportunity to repeat that we will not unduly delay enlargement of the European Union. Accession negotiations will begin six months after the end of the Intergovernmental Conference.

The decision to extend NATO has also been taken, and that on "who" and "when" will not be long in coming. But we must also think ahead -- the opening of NATO and the European Union must not create new European divisions. Europe cannot and will not unite while turning its back on Russia. I am sure we will succeed in finding a security order for Europe which takes due account of the legitimate interests of Russia and Ukraine on the one hand and of Poland, Hungary, Czech Republic and the Baltic States on the other.

Ladies and gentlemen, each of your organizations has its own qualities and responsibilities. It is important, in this connection, that the individual organizations interlock; only then does their variety make sense. People relying on the help of these institutions cannot understand their bickering over competence and their navel-gazing. This is why I placed my speech to the fifty-first session of the General Assembly in New York under this motto: "The one world requires us to act as one."

Mr. Secretary-General, your speech this afternoon gave us courage, but also food for thought. We must not shy away from our joint responsibility for the future of mankind since we are all in the same boat. We, the Member States and every individual citizen, are the United Nations! Only if we remember that fact will we keep our planet in a viable condition for our children and grandchildren. With this in mind I wish the symposium further interesting discussions and positive results tomorrow, and all of us a pleasant evening.

Mr. Secretary-General, we have worked together very well and we will continue to do so. We respect your work highly. You can rely on us as we can rely on you whatever happens.

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