Fifty-seventh General Assembly

Plenary

6^th Meeting (AM)

AS GENERAL ASSEMBLY DEBATE CONTINUES, PRESIDENT OF DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO

PROPOSES UN GLOBAL CONFERENCE ON GREAT LAKES REGION OF AFRICA

United Kingdom Calls For Return of Inspectors to Iraq;

Germany Urges Comprehensive Solution for Middle East Problem

As the general debate of the fifty-seventh session of the General Assembly continued this morning, the leaders of two African nations who praised the United Nations conflict prevention and peace-building initiatives in their homeland were joined by a host of high government ministers from other nations who urged that the Organization’s authority be strengthened, its resolutions executed and its universal ideals respected.

Joseph Kabila, President of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, said his Government had relied on relevant Security Council resolutions to draw up two recent agreements to complement efforts to implement the Lusaka accords.  Those initiatives -- the Pretoria Agreement, with Rwanda and the Luanda Agreement, with Uganda –- addressed the total withdrawal of Interhamwe forces and Ugandan troops from his country.  Even though there had been little evidence that those accords were being implemented on the ground thus far, yesterday, Rwanda had restated its intention to abide by its obligations -- perhaps a sign of progress to come. Uganda had shown similar signs of cooperation. 

He said despite the particularly difficult socio-economic situation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, there had been significant progress in some areas.  He highlighted, among other things, the increased cooperation with international financial institutions, and the fact that national reconstruction was under way.  But if fighting persisted, the Government’s efforts to achieve full recovery might be canceled out.  To that end, he proposed that the United Nations organize a global conference on peace, reconciliation and development in the Great Lakes region.  His nation believed deeply in the universal values of the United Nations, and he urged the Organization to use all its tools to silence weapons and make peace a genuine right within everyone’s reach.

Saluting the efforts of the United Nations in the fight against terrorism and the struggle to bring peace to the world, Levy Mwanawasa, President of Zambia, said the cooperative efforts of the African Union and the international community had yielded positive signs in Angola, Burundi, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and other conflict areas in Africa.  He went on to acknowledge the efforts made by Africa to refine its partnerships with the rest of the world, as embodied by the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD).

Jack Straw, Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs of the United Kingdom, said all who believed in the values of the United Nations must make up their minds about how to deal with Iraq, for the authority of that great Organization was at stake.  No country had deceived the world as systematically as Iraq had –- and no country presented as fundamental a challenge to the United Nations.  “We have spent 57 years building this Organization beyond shop talk”, he said, “and we cannot let that be undone”.

For two decades Saddam Hussein had mocked the United Nations, and his regime had defied and frustrated every attempt to enforce the international rule of law.  It had fought wars of aggression against two neighbours and launched missile attacks against five countries in the region.  He urged the international community to be resolute in the face of Iraq’s defiance in order to secure the will of the United Nations.  Iraq must be required to re-admit inspectors with unfettered access.  “We must be clear to Iraq and to ourselves about the consequences which would flow from its failure to meet its obligations.”

Joschka Fischer, Deputy Chancellor and Minister for Foreign Affairs of Germany, agreed that the United Nations needed to maintain and intensify the pressure on Iraq to comply with binding Security Council resolutions.  While it needed to be made obvious to Iraq that the re-admission of the weapons inspectors was the only means of preventing a great tragedy for itself and the region, he urged that the automatic recourse to a military solution be avoided.  Perhaps a comprehensive peace solution would do more to establish regional stability and a Middle East in which Iraq would be isolated, thus generating political pressure for change.

But Cuba's Minister for Foreign Affairs said a new war against Iraq already seemed inevitable.  The buzzword was “pre-emptive war”, which was in open violation of the spirit and letter of the United Nations Charter.  Cuba opposed a new military action against Iraq.  The international community was increasingly concerned about the announcement of a new war on the basis of unconfirmed allegations and disregard for the obvious reality that Iraq could not pose a danger to the United States.  If the United States unleashed a new war against Iraq, the world would bear witness to the emergence of a century of unilateralism and the forced retirement of the United Nations.

The Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs of Tonga, Prince Ulukalala Lavaka Ata, addressed the Assembly.

Also participating in today’s debate were the Ministers for Foreign Affairs of Kazakhstan, Romania, Oman, Finland, Papua New Guinea and Yemen.

The General Assembly will meet again this afternoon at 3 p.m. to continue its general debate.

Assembly Background

The fifty-seventh session of the United Nations General Assembly met this morning to continue its general debate.

Statements

JOSEPH KABILA, President of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, said the anniversary of the tragic events of 11 September was the perfect time to urge all world governments to do the utmost to combat the scourge of terrorism.  For its part, the Democratic Republic of the Congo had taken significant steps to ensure that it had the legislation in place to keep its people free from terrorism. 

Faced with obstruction of the implementation of the Lusaka accords, his Government, relying on relevant Security Council resolutions, had entered into the Pretoria Agreement with Rwanda and had signed the Luanda agreement with Uganda.  He said those agreements addressed the total withdrawal of Interhamwe forces and Ugandan troops from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, respectively. 

He said it had been over a month since both those agreements had been signed and there was little evidence that they were being implemented on the ground.  Still, yesterday, the Government of Rwanda had restated its intention to abide by its obligations, so perhaps this was a sign of progress to come.  Uganda had shown similar signs of cooperation.  Implementation of those agreements would significantly enhance and solidify his country’s efforts to create an economically and socially enabling environment and elaborate a comprehensive peace agreement -- the objective was the prompt holding of free democratic and transparent elections.  Arrangements for signing such an inclusive agreement could get under way shortly.

He next drew the Assembly’s attention to the “disturbing” humanitarian crisis in the eastern portion of his country, particularly the vicious fighting in Kisangani, Bunia and Kivu, where the rape and plundering of the country’s precious natural resources was continuing unchecked.  He appealed urgently to the international community to put an end to the tragedies occurring in that region and to ensure that the perpetrators of those crimes were brought to justice.  Almost constant fighting had exacerbated the bleak picture of the Democratic Republic of the Congo over the past four years, which had depleted the Government of over half its resources.

In spite of the particularly difficult socio-economic situation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, there had been significant progress in some areas.  He highlighted the facts that the country’s currency had been stabilized; cooperation had resumed with international financial institutions; and national reconstruction was under way, with the key aim of rehabilitating social infrastructures.  At the same time, if fighting persisted, the Government’s efforts to achieve full recovery might be canceled out.  To put an end to that tragic situation, he urgently appealed to the international community to become more deeply involved in finding solutions that could bring peace to the country and the entire Great Lakes region.

To that end, he suggested that the United Nations organize an international conference on peace, reconciliation and development in the Great Lakes region.  He also suggested heightened and more tangible involvement of the international community in Africa, as it seemed that world leaders had forgotten the important role the continent had played in establishing many other nations and regions around the globe.  He also urged he implementation of the large number of Security Council resolutions, which had to date, remained merely “dead letters”.  More involvement of global actors was needed to ensure the preservation of the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s natural resources and fragile ecosystems.  His country believed deeply in the universal values of the United Nations, and he urged the Organization to use all its mechanisms to silence weapons and make peace a genuine right within the grasp of all.

LEVY P. MWANAWASA, President of Zambia, saluted the efforts of the United Nations in the fight against terrorism and the struggle to bring peace to the world, and said the African Union and the international community needed to work as partners in conflict prevention and peace-building.  Zambia was ready to do its part in creating a culture of respect for the rule of law and human rights, social and economic development and the promotion of peace and security in Africa.

He noted that since the death of former rebel leader of the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA) Jonas Savimbi last year, the opportunity for further implementation of the Lusaka Protocol had been made possible.  Full implementation of that agreement was necessary for the reintegration of Angola in the southern African economy and the promotion of regional peace and stability.  Other gratifying developments included the measures undertaken by the Security Council to strengthen the United Nations Observer Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (MONUC), and the significant reduction in the number of foreign troops still in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.  He urged the international community to continue to provide material and financial help for the voluntary repatriation of the many refugees displaced by those conflicts.

Turning to the subject of development, he acknowledged the efforts made by Africa to refine its partnerships with the rest of the world, as embodied by the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD).  He also noted the positive attention given by the G-8 countries to the request that 50 per cent of their projected foreign aid increases be earmarked for Africa and the American initiative to refine the Africa Growth and Opportunity Act.  The past year had seen practical and positive developments in African trade liberalization initiatives.

On health, he expressed concern about the impact of the HIV/AIDS pandemic, as well as a recent series of outbreaks of diseases like malaria, tuberculosis, and diarrhoea.  Having taking the decision to acquire affordable anti-retroviral drugs, Zambia was grateful for its partners who had provided resources for that initiative.

On the food shortage in Africa, he said that, although Zambia was grateful for the assistance provided to it, his Government had learned that some food aid products offered to Zambia included genetically modified organisms.  While Zambia was determined to procure food for its rural population, the Government had opted for the procurement of only non-genetically modified food products.  Requesting the understanding of the international community on that point, he said that it was not the intention of the Government to sacrifice the lives of the Zambian people by taking that position.

Prince ULUKALALA LAVAKA ATA, Prime Minister of Tonga, said his Government continued to formulate measures in compliance with Security Council resolution 1373 (2001).  Those measures had both national and regional dimensions as a number of workshops had been held in the Pacific during the year to ensure and assist Pacific island countries in formulating viable counter-terrorism measures.  Several key Government agencies, including Civil Aviation, Immigration, Police, Finance and Customs had already adopted relevant measures, including financial and rapid security reaction steps.

He said that Tonga, as a developing ocean State, was encouraged by the commitments in the Johannesburg Plan of Implementation on fish stocks and fishing practices.  Implementing those commitments required responsibility and good faith from all parties to ensure that States like his obtained their fair share of the ocean’s vast and bountiful resources.  He was pleased at the entry into force of the United Nations Fish Stocks Agreement and urged other Member States to join that important agreement.  The Convention on the Conservation and Management of Highly Migratory Fish Stocks in the Western and Central Pacific Ocean testified to the commitment to conserve and sustainably manage that critically important resource.

His region had further endorsed a first-ever regional oceans policy that elaborated some guiding principles that should serve as a template for countries like Tonga to consider developing national ocean policies, he said.  Tonga also continued to support the development of an appropriate environmental vulnerability index for small island developing States and commended the continuing work of the South Pacific Applied Geoscience Commission in that regard.  Tonga also welcomed the commitment of certain Annex I countries during the Johannesburg Summit to ratify the Kyoto Protocol.  Also important to Tonga was bridging the digital divide and taking full advantage of the digital revolution. 

KASSYMZHOMART K. TOKAEV, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Kazakhstan, said the events last year had changed the world and prompted everybody to think hard about its supporting foundations.  The community of nations faced a pressing task -- to create a new architecture of global security based on a multipolar world and to set up effective mechanisms to overcome the antagonisms of modern economic and political development.  The role, therefore, of the United Nations had become significantly greater.  The grounds for the use of force against Member States should be irrefutable evidence, as corroborated by international institutions, of their illegal actions to disrupt world order and undermine global and regional security.

It was becoming more evident that terrorists must be prevented from getting hold of weapons of mass destruction, he continued.  As one of the few States in the world that had voluntarily relinquished its nuclear heritage, Kazakhstan believed that a prerequisite for an atmosphere of trust was the early entry into force of the Comprehensive Nuclear Test-Ban Treaty.  His country was also interested in the signing, as soon as possible, of a treaty creating a nuclear weapons free zone in Central Asia.  The excessive accumulation of and illegal trafficking in small arms was no less important.  It was impossible to ignore the fact that 55 per cent of the known small arms stocks were now already in private hands.  His country offered to host, in 2003, an international conference on the subject.

After stating that Kazakhstan intended to take an active part in the international aid programme for Afghanistan, he said that long-suffering country, unfortunately, continued to be a main source of the proliferation of drugs that were being transported through the territories of Central Asia and sold on the world market, first of all in Europe.  Drug trafficking constituted a financial basis for terrorism, and it was essential to get at the root cause.  Otherwise curbing international terrorism would turn into an indefinite process that would exhaust the financial and political resources of the international community.

The lack of consensus among the five Caspian States on the legal status of that unique water basin seriously hampered the chances of turning the Caspian Sea into a zone of peace and genuine cooperation, he said.  The issues of unrestricted navigation, protection of biodiversity and the environment, as well as demilitarization remained very much on the agenda.  Describing a recent agreement with Russia on the delimitation of the seabed as a breakthrough, he said the documents gave a "green light" to foreign investments and would allow his country to join the group of leading world producers of hydrocarbons.

JACK STRAW, Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs of the United Kingdom, said that in an imperfect world, people needed the United Nations more than ever before.  And while the Organization had not resolved all conflicts by peaceful means, its remarkable achievement had been to make the fine language of its Charter a force for good beyond the power of words.  By that, the United Nations had raised the bar against the illegitimate use of violence, by States and now by terrorists.  The Organization had saved lives by the millions and saved millions more from fear, poverty and tyranny.  “We cannot let the United Nations unique authority, leading the international community, be undermined by those who have no respect for it”, he said.

He went on to say that alongside the traditional threats to global peace and security, the United Nations and the world community faced the rising challenges of failing States, terrorism and weapons of mass destruction.  The world saw in Afghanistan the graphic dangers of State failure, where order had broken down, law had been undermined and anarchy had taken over.  So if global actors were serious about the concept of an “international community”, then the Members of the United Nations must accept the responsibility to help prevent failing States and to restore order where States had already collapsed.  The tools were there, he added, as the world community had effectively built on the Millennium Development Goals at Monterrey and Johannesburg.  For its part, by 2006 the United Kingdom would have doubled its development assistance.

People could not be freed from poverty unless they were also free from fear, he continued.  Security was not an option, it was a necessity.  He urged the international community to increase its involvement in the Middle East peace process to secure the outcome of two States living side by side in harmony.  It should also work to ensure that both India and Pakistan acted with restraint and sought to resolve that long-running conflict.  He cited the situation in Sierra Leone, which two years ago had been under the control of rebels and had been practically overtaken by hunger and disease.  But now, thanks to United Nations and United Kingdom intervention to end that decade-long civil war, people were returning home and rebuilding their shattered lives.  He went on to say that along with those threats, the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction posed the greatest threat to global security.  Nowhere was the case for universal support for enforcement of United Nations law stronger than in the field of such weapons.

He said the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT), the Chemical Weapons Convention, and the Biological Weapons Convention comprised some of the world’s most significant international law.  For the past three decades, those instruments had ensured that –- with one infamous exception -- no States had resorted to the world’s worst weapons.  That exception was Iraq.  For two decades Saddam Hussein’s regime had defied and frustrated every attempt to enforce the international rule of law.  It had been the only country condemned by the United Nations for breaching the Geneva convention on chemical weapons.  It had fought wars of aggression against two neighbours and had launched missile attacks against five countries in the region.  Iraq had used poison gas against its own people.  Saddam Hussein had persistently mocked the United Nations.

No country had deceived the world as systematically as Iraq had, and no country presented as fundamental a challenge to the United Nations.  He said every society and community must have rules, and every member of that society must abide by those rules or the very idea of community broke down.  So those who believed in an active international community could not stand by and do nothing while Iraq defied the United Nations.  All who believed in the United Nations must make up their minds about how to deal with Iraq, for the authority of that great Organization was at stake.  “We have spent 57 years building this Organization beyond shop talk”, he said, “and we cannot let that be undone”.  It was time to make a difficult choice to ensure the world was a safer place.  He urged the international community to be resolute in the face of Iraq’s defiance in order to secure the will of the United Nations.  Iraq must be required to re-admit inspectors with unfettered access.  “We must be clear to Iraq and to ourselves about the consequences which would flow from its failure to meet its obligations.”

MIRCEA GEOANA, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Romania, said the terrorist threat called for more vigilance in controlling the use and proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, as well as conventional weapons such as landmines and small arms which could fall into the wrong hands.  He called on Iraq to comply with existing Security Council resolutions and to allow the immediate and unconditional return of United Nations inspectors.  A strong Council response to Iraq's long-term defiance was called for because of the threat to global security from weapons of mass destruction.  The temptation to apply those principles to other, localized conflicts should be resisted, especially when mechanisms existed for dialogue and peaceful resolution. 

The experiences of the last decade demonstrated that it was time to move away from ad hoc solutions for short-term problems towards an integrated and long-term approach to nation-building.  The international response, he said, must be based on an efficient division of labour between the appropriate organizations, with a common mandate and a clear chain of command.  International support should remain in place until security was durable, and rehabilitation and local empowerment had become a reality.  Afghanistan was a test for the changing pattern of international cooperation.  Efforts to aid Afghanistan should not stop at its borders.  Stability for that country and the region could only be assured through a broader vision for the development of the whole of Central Asia.  Stating that there had to be a link between Europe and Central Asia, he said a first step must be to end the "frozen conflicts" in Eastern Europe and the Caucasus.

Saying that the international community must deliver on the commitments and promises made at major United Nations conferences, he welcomed President Bush's announcement that the United States would rejoin the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).  The graduation of Central European countries from transition economies to membership in the European Union was proof that democracy with a functioning market economy and an open society did work.  His country and others had been fortunate to have the European Union financial support and know-how that was vital to maintaining momentum and public acceptance of painful reform programmes. 

JOSCHKA FISCHER, Deputy Chancellor and Minister for Foreign Affairs of Germany, who announced Germany’s intention to seek a non-permanent seat on the Security Council, endorsed the statement made by the Danish representative on behalf of the European Union.  Expressing solidarity with the American people, he said it would not be possible to negotiate with terrorists like Osama bin Laden, who wanted only to kill as many people as possible.  However, the fight against terrorism would also require that the economic and social causes of terrorism be addressed.  Terrorism, he noted, was as much a detriment to international peace and security as were civil war and regional conflicts.  Thus, the creation of a global cooperative security regime should be the central task of the twenty-first century. 

Saddam Hussein was a brutal dictator, perpetuating a rule detrimental to the Iraqi people and the entire region, he said.  The United Nations needed to maintain and intensify the pressure on Iraq to comply with binding Security Council resolutions.  Welcoming President Bush’s turn towards the Security Council, he urged that everything possible should be done to find a diplomatic solution.  While it needed to be made obvious to Iraq that the readmission of the weapons inspectors was the only means of preventing a great tragedy for itself and the region, he urged that the automatic recourse to a military solution be avoided.  Perhaps a comprehensive peace solution would do more to establish regional stability, and a Middle East in which Iraq would be isolated, thus generating political pressure for change.

Achieving by 2005 the vision of two recognized and independent States -- Israel and Palestine -- espoused by President Bush, required that the international community pull together.  Along with its European Union partners, Germany was ready to contribute considerably to that process, he said.  The initiative needed should include Lebanon and Syria, he said, noting the progress represented by Saudi Arabia’s willingness to recognize officially the State of Israel.  Turning to Afghanistan, he said since the collapse of Al Qaeda and the destruction of the Taliban, the Afghan people had their first chance in years to lead lives of human dignity based on self-determination.  Their courage would only grow as the international community made good on its pledges for reconstruction.

Shaping global security, he said, meant shaping a new global economic order that treated fairly both developed and developing countries.  The distribution of resources needed to be fairer.  Also, the international community should not close it eyes to Africa’s need for comprehensive food assistance.  However, in Zimbabwe –- formerly the breadbasket of Africa -- the problem stemmed from the wholly irresponsible policy of a Government determined to hang onto power and certain that the humanitarian principles of others would save its people from starvation. 

He also urged a renewed focus on climate and environment and human rights.  Finally, the International Criminal Court, whose work was to begin as soon as possible, should not be weakened from the outset.

FELIPE PEREZ ROQUE, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Cuba, said that following the ruthless crime committed on 11 September 2001, the stage was set for the creation of a genuine international alliance under the auspices and leadership of the United Nations.  Nearly all countries, beyond ideological, political, cultural and religious differences, had expressed their willingness to cooperate actively in that enadeavour of unmistakable common interest.  But, another vision had prevailed.  It was stated by one country that whoever did not support the war against terrorism would be on the side of terrorism.  One country on the Security Council had reserved the right to launch future attacks on its own against other nations.

He said that a unilateral war was then unleashed.  The death toll was still unknown, and the most tangible consequence was probably the striking blow to the credibility of the United Nations and to multilateralism as a means to cope with the complex challenges ahead.  Cuba had been a victim of terrorist acts for more than four decades; had signed and ratified the 12 international conventions to combat terrorism; and had adopted a national law against that scourge.  Cuba had not developed nuclear weapons, nor had it had any intention to do so; but it had not joined the NPT since that was an insufficient and discriminatory instrument allowing for the creation of a “club” of nuclear Powers without any concrete disarmament-oriented commitments, he said. 

Cuba would ratify the Treaty for the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons in Latin America and the Caribbean (Treaty of Tlatelolco), he announced, despite the fact that the only nuclear Power in the Americas pursued a policy of hostility towards Cuba.  Turning to the situation in the Middle East, he asked why the world had not seen the same zeal, with which the war in Afghanistan had been unleashed, to seek a just and lasting solution to peace in the Middle East.  That question and others should be answered by those who carried in this hall the responsibility for what was currently happening in the occupied Palestinian and Arab territories. 

A new war against Iraq already seemed inevitable, he said.  The buzzword was “pre-emptive war”, which was in open violation of the spirit and letter of the United Nations Charter.  Cuba opposed a new military action against Iraq.  The international community was increasingly concerned about the announcement of a new war on the basis of unconfirmed allegations and disregard for the obvious reality that Iraq could not pose a danger to the United States.  If the United States unleashed a new war against Iraq, the world would bear witness to the emergence of a century of unilateralism and the forced retirement of the United Nations.

YOUSEF BIN ALAWI BIN ABDULLAH, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Oman, reaffirmed his country’s solidarity with the United States in the wake of the terrorist attacks of 11 September 2001.  The Middle East was passing through a “perturbed” stage of tension due to the serious regression of the peace process, particularly on the Israeli-Palestinian track.  The deviation of the Israeli Government from the fair principles and foundations on which the peace process had been built during the 1991 Madrid Conference, as well as the desires of successive Israeli Governments since 1996 to impose peace through excessive force, were a far cry from the spirit and letter of the “land for peace” formula. 

He said that situation had further escalated Palestinian resistance by “all factions and forms” in the face of Israeli occupation.  His Government condemned any terrorist act, whatever its motivation, including all acts of violence against innocent civilians, whether on the Palestinian or Israeli side.  Events had proved that the use of force against the Palestinian people would not lead to a fair solution to end the violence and establish security, as the Israeli Government alleged, nor would that end the legal Palestinian resistance against Israeli occupation.  The end of such resistance depended upon the end of the occupation. 

All Arab countries continuously affirmed the achievement of peace based on principles of international law and justice, as a strategic choice, and had exerted great efforts in that regard, he said.  The latest was the Arab peace initiative unanimously adopted during the Beruit Summit in March.  In the context of Security Council resolution 1397 on setting the path for a recognized Palestinian State, he called on the international community and Council members to shoulder their responsibilities in making the Israeli Government respect and implement relevant international resolutions and respond seriously to Arab and international efforts.  He supported Syria’s call to regain its territory of the occupied Golan Heights and its request for an Israeli withdrawal to the line of 4 June 1967.

The humanitarian situation in Iraq remained tragic due to the ongoing economic sanctions of August 1990, he said.  The Council should review its international sanction policy and consider events on the ground.  The Council must put an end to the human suffering in Iraq.  In that regard, he called for the continuation of dialogue between Iraq and the United Nations aimed at fulfilling Iraq’s remaining international commitments; The United Nations Monitoring, Verification and Inspection Commission (UNMOVIC) should start its work from the point where the United Nations Special Commission (UNSCOM) had left off in 1998.  Also, the Council should put in place a clear and focused mechanism, specifying to Iraq what needed to be accomplished by the Iraqi Government to end the tragic suffering and arrive at the final lifting of economic sanctions in full. 

ERKKI TUOMIOJA, Foreign Minister of Finland, said that at some stage, the international community would reach the limits of what could be done through military force and police action to stop terrorism.  Even where the use of military force was clearly necessary and justified, as it was against Al Qaeda and the Taliban, it was never a sufficient answer.  In Afghanistan, the world was faced with the need to use a full range of civilian crisis management capabilities as well as the need for a long-term commitment to reconstruction and the development of a stable and drug-free economy to establish democracy and respect for human rights.  Afghanistan was only one of many places in today's world where such a commitment from the international community was needed.

Although the International Criminal Court was not primarily created to deal with terrorism, its importance had grown, not diminished, after 11 September, he said.  The Court was a long-standing goal of Finland and the European Union, and it must not be undermined nor should it become an issue of international dispute.

Terrorism was only one of the many new threats to security that was no longer linked to the threat of traditional war between nation States.  It was not only that military power had become partly impotent to deliver security, but it was also evident, he said, that the threats could not be contained through isolation or unilateral acts.  "Human lives are equally valuable all over the world … Actions need true commitment to multilateralism, which must exceed national interests and unilateralism.  Multilateralism cannot be exercised a la carte whenever convenient.  Global interest require global action", he said.

While Finland had supported the Palestinian administration's efforts at reform, he said the Palestinians must be given a clear commitment and timetable for the creation of an independent and viable State.  The Palestinian administration had to be given the resources and conditions that would allow it to fulfil the international community's demands.  Without progress in the Middle East peace process, any military action in the region could have dangerous and unforeseen consequences.  It was imperative that efforts to get Iraq to abide unconditionally with Council resolutions remain the responsibility of the United Nations.

RABBIE L. NAMALIU, Minister for Foreign Affairs and Immigration of Papua New Guinea, said his Government intended to develop and strengthen its core relations in the Asia-Pacific region.  It intended to consolidate its relation with close neighbours and give more emphasis to promotion of trade and economic cooperation, investment, education and training.  The challenge was to forge new global partnerships for change -- partnerships where both developed and developing countries joined together.  The partnerships should also include international financial institutions, the private sector, non-governmental organizations and civil society.

He expressed his country's appreciation to the United Nations and neighbouring governments for their help in resolving the internal conflict in Bougainville, adding that the arms disposal programme was progressing well.  Decolonization, one of the greatest achievements of the United Nations, would not be complete until the remaining 16 Non-Self-Governing Territories had exercised their right to self-determination.  Small size, remoteness or population should not be allowed to limit the exercise of that right.

He called for a review of the sharing of earnings from the tapping of natural resources in the Pacific island region, stating that statistics showed that in the year 2000, the value of fisheries in the Central and Western Pacific was in excess of $2.5 billion, yet the Pacific countries earned a meagre $66 million in licensing fees.  Pacific Island Forum leaders continued to be seriously concerned over the shipment of radioactive materials through the region and called on the States engaging in shipments to accept responsibility and liability for compensation for any damage.

ABUBAKR AL-QIRBI, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Yemen, reflected on the costs of international terrorism and suggested the need to convene an international conference on terrorism.  Deploring the violence and terrorism leveled by Israel against the Palestinian people, he said Israel had aborted every peace initiative for the region, and it threatened the region’s security with unprecedented fanaticism.  The international community needed to apply pressure on Israel to withdraw behind the 1967 borders, in accordance with relevant Security Council resolutions.  The Arab peace initiative constituted an integrated framework for peace, he said, but it could not be realized without Israel’s withdrawal and support of the re-establishment of Palestinian security structures.  The Palestinian people alone had the right to choose their leaders.  The American vision for peace needed to be transformed into a timely programme that laid down guidelines and prevented Israel from circumventing them.  Also, Israel needed to get rid of its nuclear arsenal and open its nuclear facilities for inspection.

Turning to Iraq, he said the sanctions -– which hurt innocent civilians -- needed to be lifted and the use of force rejected, so long as Iraq abided by international resolutions.  The disastrous consequences, which would arise if force was used, took precedence over bringing back the weapons inspectors.  Also urging that the sanctions imposed on Libya, the Sudan and Cuba be lifted, he said the international community needed to show respect for sovereignty and individual government systems.

Reform of the Security Council should foster the role of the Organization and work to achieve more participation, equitable geographic distribution and representation for the developing world.  It was important to encourage a dialogue among civilizations and between rich and poor countries.  Richer States needed to

help poor countries confront the issues of poverty and disease, in compliance with the goals espoused by the Millennium Declaration.  The spectre of a clash of civilizations needed to be removed.  Finally, for all States to be fully integrated into the international economy, there needed to be more aid for building developing economies through structural reforms and technology, the establishment of free trade zones and debt cancellation.  Yemen intended to apply for membership in the World Trade Organization (WTO).

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