PRESS CONFERENCE ON EUROPEAN UNION'S ASSESSMENT OF FIFTY-THIRD SESSION

Press Briefing

PRESS CONFERENCE ON EUROPEAN UNION'S ASSESSMENT OF FIFTY-THIRD SESSION

The United Nations needed a sound and predictable financial basis to carry out the many mandates given to it by the just-ended fifty-third session of the General Assembly, Ernst Sucharipa, Permanent Representative of Austria, said at a Headquarters press conference this morning.

Speaking on behalf of the European Union Presidency, held by Austria for the second half of this year, Mr. Sucharipa said the joint financial contribution of the European Union Member States to the United Nations budget amounted to more than 36 per cent, with the figure for the peacekeeping budget being even higher. Their contributions to worldwide development assistance also amounted to about 60 per cent of official development assistance, and about 50 per cent of all humanitarian assistance. The European Union would like that example to be followed by other major countries, he said.

Mr. Sucharipa said the European Union had been happy to see the Fifth Committee (Administrative and Budgetary) adopt a budget outline for the biennium 2000-2001 based on a compromise figure it had proposed -- $2,545 million. The European Union had shown leadership in the Committee, and in a larger context, in the reform exercise. It was happy that results had been achieved, with very few exceptions, in all the major general items of interest to it.

He highlighted some other issues, particularly human rights, which was one of the key elements of the foreign policy of European Union member States. Those States had initiated a number of resolutions in the Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) on the human rights situations in some specific countries. They had also worked hard to see the Human Rights Defenders Declaration adopted by the General Assembly just prior to 10 December, the fiftieth anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The Declaration was an instrument which had been under-reported in the United States media, and which had wide implications. It committed all countries to defend the rights of individuals who fought for human rights worldwide.

Of the other issues on which progress had been made, Mr. Sucharipa said the major one was the adoption by consensus in the General Assembly of the resolution setting in motion preparations for the functioning of an International Criminal Court. He recalled that a large majority -- but not a consensus -- had voted for the adoption of the Court's Statute at the Rome Conference on the establishment of the Court. The European Union had made a major contribution during negotiations on the draft resolution.

On economic and social development issues, he said the Union had been able to achieve a good response from the General Assembly to the three-yearly challenge to obtain a resolution on triennial policy review covering

European Union Press Conference - 2 - 22 December 1998

operational as well as development assistance activities. The resolution was well balanced with a major input from the Union. Equally important was the resolution, prepared by the African Group and the European Union, on the follow-up to the Secretary-General's report on Africa.

He said agreement had also been achieved on an issue which would be extremely important in the years to come -- financing for development. A new negotiating process had been set out. It was important to the Union that for the first time, it had been able to present a single candidate -- the Minister for Development Cooperation of Denmark -- for the post of Administrator of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) to succeed James Gustave Speth, who would be leaving by next summer. Their candidature had been well received by African, Latin American and the Caribbean and East European countries, but the final decision rested with the Secretary-General, he noted.

Another issue of interest to the European Union was the follow-up to the General Assembly special session on the world drug problem held last June. With the help of the Executive Director of the United Nations International Drug Control Programme, Pino Arlacchi, an appropriate programme was to be developed, shifting the attention of the international community to the preventive aspects of the anti-drug effort. They had further pursued the project of an international convention against organized crime. They were also involved in work on instruments to combat drug trafficking, trafficking in women and children, illicit trafficking in firearms and smuggling of immigrants.

The Union had further pursued an old initiative seeking a substantive resolution on the United Nations system's contribution to the issue of mine action, he said. For the first time, they had managed to have a strong resolution adopted on the security and protection of humanitarian personnel.

He observed that some felt that the fifty-third session had been devoid of major excitement, but he did not believe that such excitement was necessary. The General Assembly was at its best when it worked without unnecessary excitement and produced forward-looking responses in a step-by- step fashion. The human rights questions and the preparations for the functioning of the International Criminal Court were examples pointing in that direction, he said.

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