SPECIAL COMMITTEE ON CHARTER CONCLUDES GENERAL DEBATE

Press Release
L/2953

SPECIAL COMMITTEE ON CHARTER CONCLUDES GENERAL DEBATE

Members Hear Statements by Iraq, Bulgaria

The inability of the Special Committee on the Charter of the United Nations and on the Strengthening of the Role of the Organization to reach practical conclusions that could enhance the work of the Organization was not due to the inefficiency of the Committee but to the actions of some of its members, the representative of Iraq said this afternoon.

As the Committee concluded its general debate, it also heard a statement from the representative of Bulgaria who addressed the impact of sanctions on third States. As a result of strict implementation of sanctions against the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, Libya and Iraq, he said, Bulgaria’s direct losses amounted to more than $10 billion.

Also this afternoon, the Committee adopted its programme of work for the session.

The Committee will meet again in plenary at a date to be announced.

Statements

ABDUL MUNIM AL-KADHE (Iraq) said the role of the Special Committee had increased in importance due to the violations of the Charter by certain States, under flimsy pretexts which had no foundation in international law. The Committee’s inability to reach practical conclusions that could enhance the work of the Organization was not due to its inefficiency but to the actions of some of its members.

He favoured focusing on certain items before the Committee, in particular those related to the question of sanctions. He supported the working paper put forth by the Russian Federation in that regard. His delegation would contribute to the discussion of that topic when it came before the Committee.

Regarding the agenda item on the maintenance of international peace and security, he said he supported all the ideas submitted by the delegation of Cuba in 1998. He hoped those ideas would be discussed by the Special Committee.

VLADIMIR SOTIROV (Bulgaria) said his country attached particular importance to proper implementation of Article 50 of the Charter. Bulgaria was among the countries most affected by sanctions against the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia,

Committee on Charter - 2 - Press Release L/2953 233rd Meeting (PM) 10 April 2000

Libya and Iraq. As a result of strict implementation of those sanctions, Bulgaria’s direct losses amounted to more than $10 billion. The application of sanction regimes should be accompanied by concerted efforts to mitigate their adverse effects on third States and to assist those States promptly and effectively. He recalled United Nations resolutions which pointed out that international financial institutions and other international organizations, including regional organizations, had a vital role to play in addressing the special economic problems of third States.

The report of the ad hoc expert group meeting was a significant contribution to efforts to identify concrete measures for addressing the effects on third States, he continued. The elaboration of a general conceptual framework for impact analysis deserved particular attention. Procedures for the identification and proper categorization of various effects of sanctions, the review of methods applicable in estimating incurred losses and costs, and subsequently the design of feasible and practical measures of relief and international assistance merited careful examination. Appropriate attention should also be given to funding procedures similar to those adopted for peacekeeping operations.

Financial assistance needed to be supplemented by such non-financial measures as special trade preferences, tariff adjustments, quota allocations and special commodity purchase agreements. He looked forward to a thorough examination and evaluation of the valuable recommendations and main findings of the ad hoc expert group meeting. An in-depth study of those conclusions would benefit from the views of States and international organizations.

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