CONTINUING CONSIDERATION OF REPORT OF SECRETARY-GENERAL, ASSEMBLY SPEAKERS MAINTAIN FOCUS ON PEACE OPERATIONS, SANCTIONS, HUMANITARIAN INTERVENTION

Press Release
GA/9782

CONTINUING CONSIDERATION OF REPORT OF SECRETARY-GENERAL, ASSEMBLY SPEAKERS MAINTAIN FOCUS ON PEACE OPERATIONS, SANCTIONS, HUMANITARIAN INTERVENTION

The Security Council had used an elastic concept of security to stretch its mandate well beyond what the Charter gave it, said the representative of India this afternoon, as the General Assembly continued its consideration of the Secretary-General's report on the work of the Organization.

While it was argued that peacekeepers and peace-builders were "inseparable partners", too often the mandate of a peacekeeping operation had been confused with that of a post-conflict peace-building mission. Blurring these distinctions led to unrealistic expectations and unachievable mandates, he said.

The representative of Italy said that a growing number of peacekeeping operations pointed to the critical need for a broader, more integrated vision of the three distinct stages of the maintenance of international peace and security: conflict prevention, peacekeeping, and post-conflict peace-building. If lasting peace was to be achieved, those three moments were inseparable.

The withdrawal of gratis personnel had no doubt stripped the Department of Peacekeeping Operations of much-needed human resources, said the representative of Nepal. However, that must not be an excuse for every failure of United Nations operations.

The representative of Egypt emphasized the importance of assessing the effectiveness of sanctions and that effect at the regional and national levels. Sanctions should be an exceptional measure, only to be resorted to in extreme situations and after all peaceful means of settlement of a conflict had been tried. There was a need to reexamine the whole concept of sanctions, he said.

The United Nations should help eliminate the negative effects of sanctions, and the Security Council should impose only sanctions that were "targeted" and "smart", said the representative of the Philippines. There was a need to apply restrictions to the instrument of sanctions, said the representative of Tunisia. The use of sanctions often proved to be harmful, as the experience of Iraq over the past 10 years illustrated.

The representative of Cuba noted that the "dilemma of intervention" was once again part of the Secretary-General's report. We could not aspire to have the United Nations make a contribution to a safer world, he said, if the legitimacy of new interventionism was presented under humanitarian pretexts.

General Assembly Plenary - 2 - Press Release GA/9782 30th Meeting (PM) 27 September 2000

The new concept of "humanitarian intervention" was a grave challenge to the supreme principle of respect for sovereignty in international relations, said the representative of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea. Humanitarian intervention would distort relations so that the strong wielded their power against the weak. In his country's view, there was no justification whatsoever for humanitarian intervention.

The representatives of the following countries also took the floor during the afternoon meeting: The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Nepal, Chile, Libya, Cameroon, Bahrain, Slovenia, Belgium and Israel.

The Assembly will reconvene at 10 a.m., Thursday, 28 September, to continue its consideration of the Secretary-General's report on the work of the Organization, as well as the report of the General Committee on action taken at its third meeting.

Assembly Work Programme

The Assembly met this afternoon to continue consideration of the report of the Secretary-General on the work of the Organization. For further details, see Press Release GA/9781 of 27 September.

Statements

AHMED ABOULGHEIT (Egypt) said the Secretary-General had devoted the last part of his report to the situation in Africa. He welcomed the increasing concern for Africa, but believed that the gap between what the international community intended to do, in order to settle the conflicts, and the actual steps taken remained very large. He looked forward to the deployment of the United Nations peacekeeping mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea to assist in paving the way for a peace agreement. He also looked forward to seeing the international community recover its initiative to establish peace in Somalia, since a decisive phase had been reached.

The recommendations in the Brahimi Report concerning peacekeeping operations were important, and implementation would have long ranging effects, he said. The Member States contributing to peacekeeping operations considered the reform of that particular side of the United Nations very important. The Organization should carry out peacekeeping operations rather than arrangements not relevant to them. Figures indicated that the AIDS pandemic, particularly in Africa already had a serious social dimension. The pandemic had serious consequences for the future of a society. Therefore, Egypt was very interested in convening a special session of the General Assembly to discuss the problem, and invited all delegations to display a spirit of cooperation and hold that session as soon as possible.

He stressed the importance of assessment of the effectiveness of sanctions and their effect at the regional and national level. Sanctions should be an exceptional measure, only to be resorted to in extreme situations and after all peaceful means of settlement of a conflict had been tried. Egypt had often called attention to the negative side effects of sanctions, both for the people of the States against whom sanctions were directed, and for third parties whose interest were closely linked to targeted States. There was a need to reexamine the concept of sanctions. FELIPE MABILANGAN (Philippines) said that his country was concerned over the adverse impact of sanctions on innocent civilian populations. The United Nations should help eliminate these negative effects, and the Security Council should only impose sanctions that were ‘targeted’ and ‘smart’. The United Nations should be relentless in the promotion of human rights around the world, but United Nations Charter principles on the sovereign equality of all its member States should continue to be upheld. Any armed intervention, no matter how justifiable, must be carried out only with the authority of the Security Council, if international order was to be maintained.

The success of the forthcoming Third United Nations Conference on Least Developed Countries must be ensured by convening an additional meeting of the Preparatory Committee, he said. Globalization could not be allowed to continue without giving developing countries a chance to catch up. The negative effects of the phenomenon must be mitigated, whilst at the same time creating new opportunities for developing countries to contribute to the new global economy. The Philippines hoped that developed countries would eliminate artificial and creative barriers to trade -- the new walls that were separating one world from the other.

The declaration and further actions agreed upon at the Special Session to review progress in the commitments made in Beijing and Copenhagen to empower women were a testimony to the international community's determination to achieve social development and improve the status of women, he said. The Philippines welcomed the attention given in the Secretary-General's report to the problem of trafficking in human beings, particularly women and girls, as a priority area that must be addressed. He would be introducing an updated resolution which would incorporate commitments made in the Special Session of the “Beijing + 5” Review.

KIM CHANG GUK (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) said that, at the threshold of the new century, the first and foremost task facing the United Nations was to establish just international relations based on the principles of respect for the sovereignty of Member States and non-interference in other's internal affairs. However, the new concept of “humanitarian intervention”, emerging soon after the strike on Yugoslavia last year, was a grave challenge to the supreme principle of respect of sovereignty in international relations. Humanitarian intervention was based on the notion of “power is almighty”. In his country's view, there was no justification whatsoever for humanitarian intervention that infringed on sovereignty.

On another important matter, the United Nations must take practical steps to enable all countries to benefit equally from globalization. Despite the series of discussions on globalization, there was no common understanding about the concept. Only a few countries, particularly the developed countries, had benefited from it, while overall the economic and social situations of the developing countries deteriorated. The globalization process was based on international relations favourable only for the developed countries, whereas poverty was aggravated in the developing countries. For globalization to serve all countries, new international economic relations for both developed and developing countries must be established.

He stressed the need for the General Assembly, as the major deliberative organ of the United Nations, to play a central role in deciding all matters brought to its attention. The Assembly was the most representative, democratic and authoritative organ of the Organization. Unfortunately, the General Assembly was not able to carry out its mandates under the Charter and continued to be marginalized in the decision-making process, which meant that crucial issues were being decided upon in other organs with limited membership. United Nations resolutions concerning economic and social development must be fully implemented, specifically those calling for: democratization of the decision-making process of international financial institutions; the expansion of development assistance; and the alleviation of the debt burden of developing countries.

NASTE CALOVSKI (The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia) said that for some time delegations had been preoccupied with the need to strengthen the role of the General Assembly, whose potential was not fully utilized. The General Assembly could not discharge its duty as a chief deliberative policy-making and representative organ under the present arrangement. It needed to function all year round, which would make many sub-organs redundant. That would be of great importance for the participation in the work of the United Nations of the majority of Member States, which could not afford huge missions in New York, and could not effectively participate in so many sub-organs or ad hoc working bodies.

The Secretary-General had emphasized the importance and usefulness of prevention. His own country had a very positive experience of prevention, having been host to the first United Nations preventive peace force. However, the Security Council failed to establish similar preventive forces for other regions in spite of the obvious necessity. The establishment of preventive peace missions should be the main preoccupation of the Security Council. The reputation of the United Nations would be negatively affected if the Security Council continued to take action only after the eruption of conflicts.

The Balkans were mentioned in various chapters of the Secretary-General’s Report, he said. The general situation in the region was improving. The main generator for the improvement was the “Europeanization” of the region -- the drive to integrate the region into the Euro-structure as fully and as soon as possible. Of particular importance were the implementation of the Pact of Stability for South-Eastern Europe and the success of the United Nations Missions in Kosovo. To reach a satisfactory situation, the involvement of the international community was a necessity.

MURARI RAJ SHARMA (Nepal) said there was no doubt that a change of a millennium was significant, although it was incidental to many of the calendars that various societies observed. Yet, every opportunity must be seized that could be of service to humanity. It was a cause of exuberance that 147 heads of State and Government met at the Millennium Summit. Under the leadership of Secretary- General Kofi Annan, the United Nations had become a forward-looking organization, willing to take proactive steps and to reach out, as necessary. Much remained to be done. The world had not become more peaceful, nor had it prospered in spreading the benefits of globalization and the information revolution to everyone around the globe.

On questions of peace and security, he appreciated the Secretary-General’s efforts to bring on board regional organizations. One had to make sure, however, that there was no conflict of interest and that the Organization did not remain a mere spectator when actions were taken on its behalf. A preventive step, based on analytical information collected from different sources and independently verified, would bring greater value for United Nations’ money. The withdrawal of gratis personnel had no doubt stripped the Department of Peacekeeping Operations of much needed human resources, but that must not be an excuse for every failure of United Nations operations, and a way must be found to remedy the situation in a manner acceptable to all.

The United Nations had done much to improve its efficiency and pare down its costs, he said. But there was more that could be done to cut corners, to remove waste and to spruce up its performance. Staff retrenchment alone, though essential where redundancy existed, would not suffice. The system must be overhauled and politically-motivated recruitment and promotion must be stopped. It must be made more results-oriented and merit-based, yet representative and effective. It must reform its financial rules and regulations, and equip itself with the latest management techniques and technologies. He appreciated efforts to reach out to the private sector and civil society but counselled: “trust but verify”.

JUAN GABRIEL VALDES (Chile) said that a fundamental subject of the Secretary-General’s report was that of global governance. The goals of development had not yet been met and there was much disappointment among developing countries. Indeed, Organizations such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank were facing protest from civil society. People were beginning to question the value of a civilization that prized profit over social need. Globalization could be beneficial, but it also could -- and was -- widening the gap for those left out of modernity.

The international community must not overlook the economic work of the Organization, in particular the specialized agencies, he said. His country wondered whether it was effectively carrying out its mandate to promote development. The Organization must decide how it could play a role in the great economic decisions that determined the environment, such as the reform of the IMF and external debt relief. A United Nations with authority in economic affairs would help obtain the objectives of sustainable development. The question of sustainable development, moreover, was of great importance to Chile. The subject had lost visibility. It must be revitalized.

The work of United Nations in human rights was vital, he said. Chile believed in the need to strengthen and reinforce the work of the United Nations, in particular through the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights. The intrinsic dignity of all inhabitants of the planet should be protected as a whole. With regard to the advancement of women, it had been hard to bring about recognition of the seriousness of the situation. Even after the Fourth World Conference on Women, a large number of commitments were still pending. Many situations remained in which women were at a disadvantage. Overcoming that was the basis of the human rights work the international community should carry out.

SERGIO VENTO (Italy) said the experience of a growing number of peacekeeping operations pointed to the critical need for a broader, more integrated vision of the three distinct stages of the maintenance of international peace and security: conflict prevention, peacekeeping and post-conflict peace-building. If lasting peace was to be achieved, those three moments were inseparable. Financial considerations were one very large reason why the United Nations needed a better definition of priorities. The Organization should therefore devote greater political capital, as well as human and financial resources, to conflict prevention and to supporting countries with unstable social, civil and economic structures.

Another lesson to be learned from episodes in the recent past was the need for better use of the structures already at the United Nations disposal. A streamlined and more effective management of peace operations would demand a greater and more qualified commitment on every issue addressed. Both the authority of the General Assembly and the involvement of the Security Council were needed. Action by the United Nations alone was not enough; a new sense of responsibility was required from each and every Member State, in cooperation with regional organizations. It was only natural that the primary responsibility of the Security Council should extend beyond the moment of decision on individual peacekeeping missions and include direct support for the same, he said.

Stronger ties were needed between the policy and decision-making process, entrusted primarily to the Security Council, and human and financial resource support for single missions, often provided by non-members of the Security Council. Moreover, troop-contributing countries must be given a greater say in operations where they were fielding their personnel. The Brahimi Report's recommendations in that regard deserved a prominent place in the discussions of the General Assembly.

GUMA AMER (Libya) said the Secretary-General’s report clarified once again the efforts made by the United Nations in facing the challenges of this world, especially in the area of peace. He joined the Secretary-General in his concern that the past year had witnessed an eruption of new conflicts and the continuation of existing ones. Despite that, he was satisfied that the objective of peace was the most important of the United Nations goals. He commended the Organization for assistance given to Africa, but Africa needed more support.

He said Africa recognized the fact that it had to face the challenges of development. But African countries could not succeed in eradicating poverty, their most important challenge, because they had to deal with the foreign debt burden. Africa also needed an international effort to deal with malaria and AIDS. His country sought to foster serious programmes to combat AIDS, and hoped that medicine to combat that disease would be available at affordable prices. Despite the fact that the international community had expressed its intention to help Africa, concrete actions were needed, rather than statements.

Addressing the negative impact of sanctions on civilians and neighbouring states, he said sanctions were often imposed as a means of revenge, as was the case in Libya. Financial losses due to the embargo ran to the millions of dollars. Because of America’s intransigence, the Security Council could not lift its sanctions against Libya, despite the fact that there was a legal principle that said a defendant was innocent until proven guilty. His country had complied fully with the resolution of the Security Council concerning the incident on the basis of which sanctions had been imposed. He commended the Secretary-General for his reforms in the human-resources sector, and hoped those efforts would continue to lead to an equitable distribution of jobs and complete transparency when such jobs were announced.

MARTIN BELING-EBOUTOU (Cameroon) said that the persistence of areas of tension in the world, particularly Africa, required the urgent adoption of measures, and resources, to carry out effective peacekeeping operations. His country supported the Brahimi Report. If implemented, it would give the United Nations real capacity for action. United Nations forces must be given clear mandates and sufficient means to protect civilian populations. Cooperation between the United Nations and regional organizations should be developed and encouraged. He welcomed the consistent support provided by the United Nations to the efforts of Central African countries to acquire a subregional conflict management system. Cameroon hoped that the international community would also continue to provide support.

There was also an urgent need to emphasize conflict prevention and deal with the root causes of conflict, he said. The proliferation of and traffic in light weapons were grave subjects of concern. They made violence worse and undermined the security, stability and development of the countries concerned. A plan of action should be implemented to combat this serious problem. Cameroon favored a more resolute commitment on the part of the United Nations to create a culture of peace. Another cause of conflict was poverty. Combating poverty should be first among United Nations priorities, and required a just and equitable solution to the problem of indebtedness. Decisive steps still must be made to restore development prospects for a large number of countries.

The AIDS virus and its startling progress were threatening the annihilation of whole societies. Today, AIDS was killing four times as many people in Africa than all the conflicts that were taking place there. Cameroon was appealing for a special session of the General Assembly to be devoted to the HIV/AIDS epidemic. Globalization also appeared to be a major challenge for the future. The current gap between rich and poor was striking. Globalization should benefit all peoples. It was essential to see reform of the international financial architectural, and the International Monetary Fund IMF and World Bank should adapt their programmes for developing countries.

JASSIM MOHAMMED BUALLAY (Bahrain) expressed appreciation for the Secretary- General’s efforts to manage the work of the Organization and for his actions based on the resolutions of the General Assembly, the Security Council and the Economic and Social Council. Collective security could no longer be narrowly defined as the absence of armed conflict. The vast displacement of civilian populations, for instance, had led to vast crises. International terrorism was threatening the security and stability of many states. There was a concern regarding continuing nuclear armament in the world. The Arab Gulf region was one of the threatened areas of the world, and he therefore called for efforts to get rid of those weapons.

Regarding humanitarian emergencies, he said the relevant organs of the United Nations needed the mandates to adopt necessary measures to deal with those emergencies. There was also a need for better coordination of relief efforts. There were two challenges facing development, namely guaranteeing effective participation of all states in the world trade regime, and finding ways to promote social and economic goals. He believed the General Assembly and its specialized organs should find acceptable and practical solutions to the problems that hampered development.

Peacekeeping operations were suffering through an acute crisis, for both political and material reasons. He called for preventive diplomacy, but realized it was not possible in all cases because of the critical financial situation of the United Nations. Where was the financing necessary for implementation of the recommendations of the Brahimi Report? he asked.

KAMALESH SHARMA (India) said that there was no need to quibble over words: over the last year, the Security Council had used an elastic concept of security to stretch its mandate well beyond what the Charter gave to it. That was a development with which the majority of the membership of the United Nations was deeply uncomfortable, and the Secretariat must not promote that minority view. Economic and social problems could constitute a threat to peace and security only if they were allowed to fester, and bodies like the Security Council could not address them. He agreed with the Secretary-General that peacekeeping was a vital area of United Nations work. The surge in United Nations peacekeeping over the last year showed how much it was needed, and the problems that beset it must be corrected.

While it was argued that peacekeepers and peace-builders were "inseparable partners", and the only ready exit for peacekeeping forces was sustainable peace, too often the mandate of a peacekeeping operation had been confused with that of a post-conflict peace-building mission. Blurring those distinctions led to unrealistic expectations and unachievable mandates, he said. Peacekeeping was not an end in itself but a means to an end, and should not be seen as a substitute for the task of nation building. As the Secretary-General himself had always emphasized, there could be no lasting peace without economic growth and social development. It would, therefore, be both unacceptable and self-defeating if resources were diverted from development to peacekeeping, whether by the international community or within the Secretariat.

He pointed out that the Council could not claim to act on behalf of the general membership in the present circumstances. The lack of adequate representation of developing countries in the Council severely impaired its functioning and cast a shadow on the legitimacy of its decisions, which affected mainly developing countries. The United Nations and the Secretary-General had placed increased emphasis on good governance. There had been some regression. In his report, the Secretary-General referred to instances of military or authoritarian takeovers, however he remained silent on other cases. It was hoped that the Secretary-General would use his moral authority to build international opinion against military juntas that had overthrown democratically elected governments, and do nothing, within the United Nations, which would either give them any respectability or a reason to believe that the international community had condoned their actions.

SAID BEN MUSTAPHA (Tunisia) said the question of peacekeeping operations was of prime importance for his country. The Brahimi Report contained important recommendations which should attract the attention of all Member States. His country shared the experts’ opinion of the need to strengthen United Nations action in peacekeeping. That should include strengthening the capacities of the Secretariat, the upgrading of discussions between the Security Council and troop contributing States and improvement of the deployment conditions of those operations. At the same time, he stressed the need for the Organization to ensure that any reform did not trample on the sovereignty of States or on their political independence, which were the foundation of international relations.

The sheer number of humanitarian emergencies was turning into a major challenge for the international community, he continued. The Secretary-General had stressed the need for increased action in conflict prevention. A global and integrated strategy must be developed to ensure that there was a durable commitment to combating armed conflict and to creating better political, economic, social and cultural conditions. The international community had the means for such a strategy, but it should also possess the will. An effective strategy must take into account the causes of conflict, which often lay in poor economic conditions. Real involvement would substantially contribute to conflict prevention.

Another important concern for Tunisia, he said, was the question of sanctions. The experience of the past decade had shown the international community the need to apply restrictions to the tool of sanctions. The use of sanctions often proved to be harmful, as Iraq’s experiences over the past 10 years illustrated. The international community must take into account certain criteria. For example, sanctions should be a last resort and their duration must be limited. There must also be a continuous evaluation of their repercussions.

ERNEST PETRI (Slovenia) discussed the dilemma of intervention, which had to be addressed if the United Nations was to act effectively to prevent mass crimes and to be an efficient guardian of international peace and security. Member States in general, and the permanent members of the Security Council in particular, should act in accordance with the Charter and their shared responsibility for peace and security. Shying away from the issue of intervention would mean acceptance of either the passivity of the United Nations or the dangerous risk that there would be interventions bypassing the Organization. Moreover, fear of failure, such as the humanitarian interventions in Rwanda and Srebrenica, should not delay the international community from preparing the grounds for an adequate preventive action. The United Nations was the most appropriate forum for elaborating on humanitarian intervention, based on a modern interpretation of the Charter and in line with international relations and norms.

The adoption of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court by a large majority of States clearly demonstrated their will to put an end to impunity for crimes against humanity. Similarly, the establishment of the International Criminal Court was an historic step because, for the first time in history, there was a mechanism to ensure that those responsible for the crime of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes, wherever committed, would not go unpunished. The National Assembly of the Republic of Slovenia was to ratify the Rome Statute in the year 2000.

Regarding the phenomenon of globalization, recent events in Prague, as well as those earlier in Seattle, proved that it was worthy of being placed among the top issues in the Secretary-General's report. Globalization was inevitable, probably unstoppable, but many felt marginalized by it, and powerless. It was necessary to maximize its potential to improve people's lives worldwide, and on the other hand, to prevent or alleviate its negative effects. "Globalization should not translate to an unbridled quest by private corporations for the cheapest labour and highest returns, with no regard for social welfare and environment."

RAFAEL DAUSA CESPEDES (Cuba) said the dilemma of intervention was once again part of the Secretary-General’s report. We could not aspire to have the United Nations make a contribution to a safer world if the legitimacy of new interventionism was presented under humanitarian pretexts. Some states increasingly ignored and even sought to have the principles of the Charter disappear. The current international order, which was unjust and inequitable, could not be replaced by an even more primitive one. The concept of conflict prevention was important. Preventive diplomacy was less costly but required a constant effort, one of a low profile in the media. The only long-term effective prevention was in dealing with the causes of conflict, particularly with problems relating to social and economic development. It was no coincidence that more than half of the 45 poorest countries of the world had been the scene of armed conflicts during the last decade.

During that same decade, the Security Council had frequently and increasingly used sanctions. Their use did not correspond, however, with the elimination or even reduction of the number of conflicts. Sanctions should be an extreme recourse, not a punitive one. It was not surprising that, since the Council was a body where the developing countries were underrepresented, the 15 sanctions imposed by the Council were against countries of the developing world. It was particularly illustrative that 70 per cent of the sanctions were concentrated against African countries, he said.

The section on human rights did not address issues of importance to his country. A minority group of countries had been opposing decisions in the field of human rights. With one exception, all the resolutions adopted by the Commission on Human Rights since 1990 named underdeveloped countries as violators and were proposed by developed countries. For the first time since the cold war period, military expenditures had increased in 1999, reaching a level of $780,000 million. How much could be achieved, he asked, if only a small part of that money was used to promote development?

ANDRE ADAM (Belgium) said that the Brahimi Report on peace operations had received broad support by Member States. The importance of its recommendations would have a cost, which would have to be shouldered in an equitable manner. Globalization was also a major concern for the international community. He was compelled to note, as many other representatives had, that the opportunities were shared in a most unequal manner.

He commended the initiatives of the Secretary-General with a view to entering into partnership with civil society and the private sector, and welcomed the progress that had been made in the last year. The year 2000 would be remembered as the date when the United Nations came to grips with Africa, in much part due to the Secretary-General’s report on the Causes of Conflict in Africa of 1998, and the efforts of several Member States to that end. The international community must ensure, however, that Africa was not left behind the rest of the world by the tide of globalization.

He said that the United Nations had shown that the human being was at the centre of development, and the Global Summit for Social Development and Beijing + 5 Conference had reaffirmed that. Of particular importance were women’s rights and the scourge of HIV/AIDS, which had proved to be an economic disaster for many countries, and a factor of profound destabilization. Of further importance for Belgium in the realm of human rights were the difficulties encountered by humanitarian personnel, and in particular, problems of access and security. The assassination of three United Nations agents in West Timor had shocked the world, and the list of victims was growing year after year. They must be protected and their aggressors severely punished.

YEHUDA LANCRY (Israel) said the AIDS pandemic had reversed years of development efforts and placed an unbearable burden upon States. Israel supported the timely adoption of a practical and decisive international plan of action to confront that challenge. With regard to United Nations peacekeeping operations, it was clear that effective and predictable financial support was crucial to the success of any peace mission. The initiative to modify the scale of assessments so as to share the financial burdens of those operations more equitably was welcomed. Israel informed the Assembly of its decision to forego the 80 per cent reduction previously enjoyed, and to pay its full assessment to the United Nations peacekeeping budget.

The Secretary-General's report had indeed demonstrated the wide-ranging and comprehensive role played by the Organization. Yet, from Israel's perspective, the significance that this Millennium year had represented for its relationship with the United Nations went well beyond the pages of the report. Two events in particular had signaled to Israel, its citizens and its supporters worldwide, that the United Nations might indeed have the capacity to relate to Israel as a nation like any other. Firstly, this year marked Israel's temporary acceptance into the Western European and Other States Group. The second event was the unprecedented coordination that existed between the United Nations and Israel with regard to the pullout of Israeli forces from Southern Lebanon.

Israel hoped that this transitional period in Southern Lebanon would open a new chapter of peace and security along the border, and of mutual trust between the people of Israel and the people of Lebanon. Now that Israel had withdrawn its forces, and the United Nations had confirmed its full compliance with Resolution 425, he called once again upon the other parties to fulfill their remaining obligations under the resolution so that peace and security might come, at last, to the area.

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