Albania, 1992

It is an honour

and a particular pleasure for me, on behalf of the Albanian delegation and the

Albanian people, to extend my heartfelt congratulations to you, Sir, upon your

election as President of the General Assembly at its forty-seventh session.

It is a tribute to your personal accomplishments, an honour to your country,

and an expression of the qualitatively new role that countries in transition

are playing in the international arena. I believe that the current session,

under your presidency, will successfully attain its goals, which are the goals

of the international community at large. I should like to assure you of the

support of the Albanian delegation in the Assembly's work during this session.

I take this opportunity to convey my thanks and express my highest

consideration to your predecessor, Mr. Samir S. Shihabi, for the admirable way

in which he presided over the General Assembly at its forty-sixth session.

Allow me also to extend my greetings to Mr. Boutros Boutros-Ghali, the

Secretary-General of the United Nations, for his commendable role at the head

of the world Organization, for his contribution to the strengthening of the

spirit of cooperation, and especially for his personal contribution to solving

various problems in different hotbeds of tension in the world of today.

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My special greetings go also to the 20 newly admitted Members of the

Organization, which are going to play their part in upholding the common

values of the new society that is taking shape. Their accession to membership

of this world body has enriched the universal character of the United

Nations. The Republic of Albania has strongly supported their membership,

believing that it will further promote the peace process and strengthen the

democratic way of development.

Since the last session of the General Assembly we have witnessed a

number of significant events which followed the cold war and which will have

an effect on the future of mankind. The fundamental values of the

post-cold-war era are being established. Confrontation between the blocs,

and the attendant political tension, has been supplanted by the universal

values of democracy and equality in international relations, which are

interdependent in terms of the economic and social development and security of

every country. This has been confirmed. Today, the aspirations of the

peoples towards self-determination and their striving to establish their

national identity, which had been marred under communism, as well as their

thirst for democracy and equality, have become the driving forces of the

situations we are faced with today. Nationalism is not a product of

democracy. Nationalism is the affirmation of national identity which, only

afterwards, will work towards integration.

The blows dealt by the countries of Central and Eastern Europe to the

paralytic system of some years ago are today translating euphoria into onerous

efforts to overcome a very difficult period of trial and transition. The year

that has passed has strengthened the tendency towards political union and has

witnessed the victory of the basic principles of respect for human rights,

democracy, the rule of law and the move towards the market economy system.

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The contribution of the United Nations and in particular of the Security

Council to these ends since the last session of the General Assembly has been

remarkable. In seeking to add a human dimension to the delicate balances to

be struck, the United Nations is shouldering historic responsibilities. The

political vector of its activities is aimed precisely at promoting those

principles and thus at creating a common political psychology of thought and

action. Unity in diversity that is, the realization of one's national

interests in the overall equation of world development is undoubtedly the

foundation and the raison d'etre of the Organization; it is the very

embodiment of the predominance of peaceful reasoning over passionate action

and the preservation of the very delicate balance between the two.

The resolutions of the Security Council, especially the one imposing

sanctions against Serbia and Montenegro; the Middle East peace talks that are

increasing the chances of finding a solution; the talks on resolving the

conflict between the communities in Cyprus, as well as other activities, all

reaffirm the universality of the Organization and the overall impact of its

unique and inalienable role, which is the universal yardstick in measuring

compliance with implementation of the principles of international law and

tacit norms of world civilization.

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In this context, Albania welcomes the recent contribution of the

Secretary-General in the form of his report entitled "An Agenda for Peace" as

a comprehensive approach to the challenges of the world of today and of the

Organization.

This session of the General Assembly gives Albania the opportunity to

proclaim from this rostrum the remarkable victory scored by the democratic

anti-communist forces in my country in the general parliamentary elections of

22 May 1992 and in the local elections of 26 July. Those events finally

determined the course upon which Albania has embarked and which it is

persistently pursuing. Those events laid the foundations, in Albania, of the

rule of law which is becoming institutionalized. They marked the beginning of

our first epoch of non-communist, democratic governments, the first of which

is implementing a very profound reform as the only course towards the overall

transformation and development of the political, economic, social and other

fields, at the level of the individual and of society as a whole.

My Government's main goal is to establish the legal framework needed to

facilitate that reform in order to harmonize the integration of the Albanian

economy with the world economy, in order to eradicate the disastrous

consequences of isolation and to overcome the economic collapse which the

Government inherited from many years of totalitarianism.

That, however, is not all the Government inherited. It also inherited

active human resources inclined to change, human beings full of potential who

are endeavouring to follow the models of the new system, people who, for no

fault of their own, lack experience. These are the people who are working to

shape the new Albanian society, and to do so they have turned to international

political life to find remedies against impatience. In this context, the

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involvement of various United Nations agencies such as the United Nations

Development Programme (UNDP), the World Health Organization (WHO), the United

Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), the World Bank and the International

Monetary Fund (IMF), already active in the country, is a valuable contribution

to democracy in Albania. I would single out in particular the remarkable

contribution of the IMF in working out the programme of economic reform that

is being implemented.

Albania is faced with a very challenging economic crisis resulting from

the total failure of the centralized economy which it inherited and from the

inevitable difficulties of transition itself. At present, Albania is living

on the emergency humanitarian aid offered by the European Community and the

Italian Government on the one hand, and on the modest contribution of the

growing private sector on the other. The Albanian economy, in this initial

phase of recovery, badly needs financial support, substantial investments and

raw materials to invigorate industry and employ the large work force, one of

the youngest in Europe. Everything cannot of course be done overnight; hence

the difficulties of transition. Understanding, support and assistance on the

part of the international community are the sole guarantees of improvement of

the situation in Albania and of the success of the reform.

In that process, Albania is trying to develop its economy against a

background of environmental safety. We are fully aware of the possible

consequences of neglect, and equally aware of what we have inherited as a

result of underdevelopment in this regard. We look forward to benefiting from

the relevant experience which the United Nations has to offer. In this

context, we welcome the outcome of the United Nations Conference on

Environment and Development held earlier this year in Rio.

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Under those conditions, Albanian foreign policy has also acquired a new

dimension and orientation. Concrete proof of its new orientation is the

establishment of diplomatic relations with a number of countries such as

Estonia, Lithuania, Saudi Arabia, Slovenia, Croatia, the United Arab Emirates,

Paraguay and Qatar; the active participation of Albanian delegations in

various activities such as the Black Sea initiative and the Conference on

Security and Cooperation in Europe (CSCE). In the course of this year, the

Republic of Albania has joined the International Fund for Agricultural

Development and has adhered to the 1951 Convention and the 1967 Protocol on

the status of refugees.

The situation in my country is unfolding against a very tense and

perilous background in the Balkans. In some parts of the region,

unfortunately, the practices being carried out go against the general

political orientation and acceptable norms of behaviour of a civilized

society. All-out war has been going on in the former Yugoslavia for more than

a year now. The persistent efforts of the international community have been

stubbornly flouted by malicious proponents of Serbian nationalism in its

unprecedented affront to civilization and the norms of common democratic

life. For more than a year now, a number of international organizations have

been directly seized of that crisis, which is ravaging more human lives by the

day. The United Nations, the CSCE and the European Community, among others,

have been forced to consider stern measures to counter that uncivilized

challenge. The war, however, is still going on.

Albania, a neighbouring country in that region, is suffering the

consequences of regional insecurity. Moreover, my country, situated as it is

beside that region, is living under the constant threat and real danger of a

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spill-over of the conflict into Kosovo. That threat is even greater if we

take into account the continuing repression of the third group of peoples of

the former Yugoslavia, the anti-constitutional amendments there, the laws

governing special circumstances, and the complete and total paralysis of

institutional life. The danger becomes alarming if we take into account the

cruel refusal by the Belgrade authorities to allow the exercise of

institutional power by the Albanians of Kosovo, who are peacefully and

democratically organized, in conformity with all the norms of international

law.

Kosovo is one of the most delicate issues of the Yugoslav crisis. The

conflict there is a highly political one, a conflict deriving from the

impossibility of coexistence with the occupier. It is a conflict between the

peaceful exercise of the principle of self-determination and blatant

hegemonistic refusal to allow that exercise. Consequently, the situation

remains explosive. That is also the conclusion of a number of missions of the

European Community and the CSCE which have visited Kosovo. The international

community, fully aware and desirous of avoiding violence, is seized of the

situation.

The Albanian delegation, however, cannot but notice that preventive

diplomacy has not as yet yielded the desired results. The legitimate leaders

of Kosovo, on their part, although determined to pursue the road of

unconditional political dialogue to which the CSCE Helsinki summit gave its

blessing, and which was refused by the authorities in Belgrade, are finding it

more and more difficult to keep the agitation of their people under control.

The sacred principles of the United Nations Charter, the Helsinki Final

Act and other fundamental documents of world political life apply equally to

the Albanian people of Kosovo. Principles cannot be selectively applicable.

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The Albanian side has, for a long time now, voiced its concern and called on

the international community to concert its efforts towards finding a just and

lasting solution that would be acceptable to the parties involved.

The Yugoslav crisis is a complex one. As such, it has been considered by

a number of international bodies. The London Conference, the most recent

initiative, has set itself the task of finding an overall solution. Albania

appreciates and endorses the praiseworthy contribution rendered by the United

Nations in trying to solve the crisis over the last year, especially now, as

Co-Chairman of that Conference, which we believe will be able to ensure the

political commitment of all parties.

Albania is participating in that Conference in order to make its

contribution to its proceedings, particularly as regards the question of

Kosovo. And in those endeavours, it will continue to advocate the finding of

an acceptable solution. In our view, the Yugoslav crisis is the crisis of

peoples who cannot live under Serbian hegemony any longer; it is not a

constitutional crisis or a crisis among republics only. Accordingly, a

solution will entail broader direct participation. It will entail the full

participation of the legitimately mandated representatives of Kosovo when

their future is being discussed. It will entail international mediation.

That is the only way to control the various factions which are seeking to

obstruct the way to peace. The Republic of Albania trusts that the United

Nations, with its valuable contribution, will ensure the triumph of reason

over passions, and will adopt the measures necessary to enforce the

implementation of its decisions and to stand forcefully against the policy of

fait accompli.

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The social model to come embodies the loftiest standards of respect for

the human being. The new world order, based on security, understanding and

cooperation, is the guarantee that current structures will be strengthened and

further developed. All of us must contribute to strengthening this edifice.

The United Nations will continue to provide us with a framework in which

peoples can count on good will and mutuality.