United Arab Emirates, 1993

On behalf of the delegation of

the United Arab Emirates, it gives me great pleasure to

extend to you our sincere congratulations on your election as

President of the forty-eighth session of the General

Assembly. We are fully confident that your vast experience

in the area of international relations will enhance the

Organization’s role and promote its goals.

I also wish to express our appreciation of the tireless

efforts undertaken by your predecessor, Mr. Stoyan Ganev,

in his judicious and capable management of the previous

session.

It also gives me great pleasure to extend our sincere

thanks to Mr. Boutros Boutros-Ghali, the Secretary-General

of the United Nations, for his dedication to the important

responsibilities with which he has been entrusted and to

commend his efforts aimed at enhancing the Organization’s

role in addressing the issues that concern the international

community and in devising peaceful and just solutions to the

problems of development and peace as well as the issues

involved in maintaining regional and international security.

I should like also to welcome the countries that have

acceded recently to the membership of the Organization and

to wish them success and prosperity. There is no doubt that

their presence among us accentuates further the universality

of the United Nations and will contribute positively to the

realization of our common goals and interests in consonance

with the Charter.

On this occasion, I should like, on behalf of the people

and Government of the United Arab Emirates, to extend our

sincere condolences and profound sympathy to the people

and Government of friendly India over the tragic loss of

thousands of lives as a result of the recent earthquake.

This forty-eighth session of the General Assembly is

convened against the backdrop of new political realities that

have wrought dramatic changes in both regional and

international relations. The most notable changes have been

the diminished threat of nuclear war and an end to the

problems that had plagued the international community since

the creation of the United Nations as a result of the era of

bipolarity and competition over spheres of influence.

Although these changes have had a positive effect, the

international arena has witnessed several new regional

conflicts that have been generated by ethnic bigotry,

14 General Assembly - Forty-eighth session

religious fanaticism, expansionist tendencies and the spread

of the phenomenon of terrorism, which is still sweeping over

some parts of the world and which continues to pose a threat

to peace and security at the regional and international levels.

Given the existence of such a situation, it is incumbent on

the international community as a whole to address these

problems and to find effective solutions thereto in the

interests of stability, development and abiding peace and in

order to lay the foundations of the new world order to which

all the countries of the world aspire so that they may be able

to face up to the many major challenges that have come to

confront humanity as a whole.

The role and responsibilities of the United Nations and

especially those of the Security Council have expanded,

since the end of the cold war, particularly in the areas of

development and the maintenance of international peace and

security. There is no doubt that the adoption by the General

Assembly of the "Agenda for Peace" and other measures

aimed at restructuring and revitalizing the Organization in

the areas of economic and social development constitute a

constructive, positive step towards the shouldering by the

international community of its immense responsibilities in

this regard. This will enhance the credibility of the United

Nations and increase its ability to become a truly effective

multi-purpose instrument in dealing with existing

international issues.

We believe that within the new context of international

relations, the restructuring and reform of the United Nations

should embrace the Security Council as the organ

responsible for the maintenance of international peace and

security. In restructuring the Council, the principle of

equitable geographical representation of all regional groups

should be taken into consideration so that it may reflect the

changes and transformations that have taken place in the

international political arena. Those changes and

transformations call for a new approach in addressing the

issues of peace, security and development at the international

level. Such an approach should stem from a sound

understanding of the realities of an interdependent world so

that it may enable the international community to find

solutions that would go to the roots of old and new problems

alike.

In this regard, we wish to stress that the issues of

peacemaking and peace-keeping at both the regional and

international levels in the context of preventive diplomacy

should be addressed in a manner that takes into

consideration the historical, geographical, political, social

and cultural characteristics of each and every State. In so

doing, the international community should keep in view the

importance of coordination and cooperation between the

United Nations and regional organizations, in the search for

peaceful and commonly agreed solutions for existing

conflicts and disputes, on the basis of international legality

and the Charter of the United Nations.

The recent events in the Gulf in the wake of the

liberation of the sister State of Kuwait have produced a new

political reality which reinforced the belief in the importance

of settling disputes by negotiation and other peaceful means

as prescribed by the Charter of the United Nations and the

principles of international law, in the interests of building

mutual trust and consolidating peace and security, as well as

promoting stability, coexistence and good-neighbourliness

between the States of the region.

Given our adherence to these principles in our relations

with other States both regionally and internationally, the

United Arab Emirates has declared its readiness and sincere

desire to conduct a direct dialogue with the Islamic Republic

of Iran with regard to Iran’s occupation in 1971 of the three

islands of Greater Tunb, Lesser Tunb and Abu Musa, which

belong to the United Arab Emirates. From this rostrum,

where many peace calls have been made, we appeal once

again to the Islamic Republic of Iran to respond positively

to our call for dialogue and to start negotiating an end to this

occupation and to return the three islands to the sovereignty

of the United Arab Emirates.

The United Arab Emirates works jointly with other

States members of the Gulf Cooperation Council, within a

framework of cooperation and solidarity in defining its

policies and its regional and international relations on the

basis of existing geographic, political and economic realities,

and in a manner that is consistent with its national interests

and its Arab and Muslim identity. In their recent Summit

meeting held in Abu Dhabi in December 1992, the leaders

of the Gulf Cooperation Council affirmed the importance of

resorting to dialogue and negotiation as a principal

instrumentality for settling disputes between States by

peaceful means, in consonance with the tenets of Islamic

Sharia as well as the commitment of the Gulf Cooperation

Council to the Charter of the United Nations and to the

norms and principles of international law.

Mrs. Osode (Liberia), Vice-President, took the Chair.

The Gulf Cooperation Council also affirms the

importance of respecting the sovereignty and territorial

integrity of States, and non-interference in their internal

affairs. We believe that every State is entitled to choose its

own political system and to exercise sovereignty over its

Forty-eighth session - 4 October 1993 15

natural resources in line with its development objectives and

environmental policies. We reject the use of force, or the

threat of the use of force as a means of settling disputes.

We hold that resorting to peaceful means in the settlement

of disputes would enable the States involved to harness their

resources in the interests of social and economic

development.

The Iraqi regime still pursues a policy of

procrastination with regard to the implementation of all

relevant Security Council resolutions. In view of this, the

international community must oblige that regime to

implement those resolutions to respect the political system,

sovereignty and territorial integrity of the State of Kuwait

and to refrain from reiterating its expansionist aims.

Security Council resolution 833 (1993) relating to the

demarcation of boundaries between Kuwait and Iraq,

guarantees the inviolability of the international boundaries

separating the two countries in accordance with Chapter VII

of the Charter. The resolution is a positive step and a

fundamental international contribution towards achieving

regional and international peace and stability.

We also urge the international community to pressure

the Iraqi regime to abide by international humanitarian law

and release immediately all Kuwaiti and non-Kuwaiti

prisoners of war and detainees. An end should be put to this

human tragedy which violates the basic norms of

international humanitarian law.

At the same time, we should like to emphasize that it

is imperative to maintain the unity and territorial integrity of

Iraq and declare that the suffering and hardships endured by

the Iraqi people are the responsibility of the Iraqi regime

because of its refusal to implement fully all relevant Security

Council resolutions.

The positive international developments resulting from

the end of bipolarity and the collapse of military alliances

were bound to produce their effects in our Arab region.

Today, dialogue and cooperation between the big Powers,

and the peaceful settlement of regional disputes, have

replaced the confrontations of bipolarity.

The United Arab Emirates welcomed the convening of

the Madrid Peace Conference and the holding of bilateral

negotiations. It also welcomed the multilateral negotiations

in which it participated. Likewise, it welcomed the

declaration of principles concluded between the Palestine

Liberation Organization (PLO) and Israel as a positive

beginning and a first step towards a just, comprehensive and

durable settlement of the Arab-Israeli conflict and the

Question of Palestine, on the basis of international legality

as reflected in the relevant United Nations resolutions, most

notably Security Council resolutions 242 (1967) and

338 (1973), as well as the "land for peace" principle. Such

a settlement should enable the Palestinian people to exercise

their national inalienable rights, including the right of

self-determination, and bring about a total Israeli withdrawal

from the occupied Arab territories, including the Holy City

of Jerusalem and the Syrian Golan.

We support the sustained efforts undertaken by the

Lebanese Government to extend its national sovereignty over

all the Lebanese national soil. In this regard, we call for the

full implementation of Security Council resolution 425

(1978). This will contribute to the consolidation of peace

and stability and to the creation of the conditions necessary

for the social and economic development of the States and

peoples of the region.

My country is extremely concerned over the

deterioration of the security situation in the sister State of

Somalia, which has resulted in many injuries and fatalities.

We support the efforts undertaken by the United Nations and

regional organizations aimed at alleviating the suffering of

the people of Somalia and creating a secure environment

conducive to the continuation of aid and humanitarian relief

programmes and the rebuilding of national infrastructures,

particularly those relating to social and economic

development.

In view of the strong historical ties between our people

and the people of Somalia, the United Arab Emirates has

extended humanitarian and financial assistance to that

country, in addition to its participation in United Nations

peace-keeping forces. We sincerely hope that all Somali

factions, taking into account the interests of the people of

Somalia, will cooperate, unite and reconcile in order to

facilitate the United Nations mission in Somalia and resume

negotiations and dialogue for the sake of achieving stability,

peace and security in that country.

The people and Government of the United Arab

Emirates have followed with deep sorrow the tragedy that

has beset the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina for well

over 18 months. My country has also condemned the acts

of killing, displacement, ethnic cleansing, genocide and rape

perpetrated by Bosnian Serbs and Bosnian Croats who are

supported by the regular army of Serbia and Montenegro.

The victims of such atrocities have been largely the Bosnian

Muslims. My country supports the Security Council and

General Assembly resolutions relating to the trial and

16 General Assembly - Forty-eighth session

punishment of the perpetrators of war crimes in Bosnia and

Herzegovina. The implementation of these resolutions will

go a long way towards demonstrating that the international

community honours its obligations and that the United

Nations lives up to the Charter and principles of international

law.

The partition plan recently proposed in the Geneva talks

for the settlement of the dispute in Bosnia and Herzegovina

lacks fairness and justice because it legitimizes aggression

and "ethnic cleansing" and rewards the aggressors by

allowing them to annex the territories they have conquered

by force. In the face of this tragic situation, the international

community bears the historical and moral responsibility of

defending a State Member of the United Nations and

preserving its independence, sovereignty, territorial integrity

and enabling it to exercise its legitimate right of

self-defence.

The progress recently achieved in the recent

negotiations between the political parties of South Africa,

which culminated in a decision to form the Transitional

Executive Council, represents a positive step towards

establishing an interim Government and finalizing the

arrangements for the elections to be held early next year.

This progress may also be a significant step towards the

formulation of a permanent constitution, which would lead

to the establishment of a democratic and a united State free

of racial discrimination.

One of the great challenges that still face the

international community is the proliferation of weapons of

mass destruction, particularly nuclear weapons. This poses

a grave threat to international peace and security; hence, it

is the responsibility of the international community to

encourage the adoption of confidence-building measures on

the regional and international levels to create a secure

international environment. We believe that the nuclear

Non-Proliferation Treaty is the key to strengthening all

international efforts and regional initiatives aimed at

preventing the spread of weapons of mass destruction and

removing the dangers that continue to threaten both regional

and international peace and security.

In this regard, we welcome the positive steps recently

taken in the field of disarmament, including the Convention

on the Prohibition of the Development, Production,

Stockpiling and Use of Chemical Weapons and on Their

Destruction, which was signed by the United Arab Emirates,

as well as by a majority of the States of the world. We

should also like to reaffirm the importance of establishing

zones free of nuclear weapons and other weapons of mass

destruction, including the Middle East.

Despite the progress achieved in the case of certain

international political and social problems, we are yet to

witness any noticeable improvement in the international

economic environment. The gap between North and South

is getting increasingly wider, and living conditions in many

developing countries are constantly deteriorating under the

heavy burden of foreign debt, the continuing decline in the

price of commodities, and the terms of trade as well as the

negative impact of protectionist policies on those countries’

balances of payments. Given this situation, it has become

the collective responsibility of the international community

to restructure the existing international economic relations in

a manner that would ensure effective cooperation in

promoting economic development in many countries,

especially in the developing world, and thereby to improve

their living conditions.

Economic cooperation has expanded to new horizons,

especially in the areas of development and environment.

That was underscored by the forty-seventh session of the

General Assembly through the creation of the high-level

Commission on Sustainable Development. This indicated

that the international community is well aware of the nature

of existing international problems and the importance of

regional and international cooperation in achieving the goals

of peace and development.

The member States of the Gulf Cooperation Council

(GCC) have played an active role in the field of regional and

international economic cooperation through the constructive

and practical positions they have adopted and through their

contributions and assistance to the developmental efforts of

many third world countries. This stance stems from the

Gulf Cooperation Council countries’ belief in the principles

of economic cooperation between States, and especially with

the sisterly Arab and Islamic States. When measured against

the gross national product, the percentage of aid extended by

the GCC countries to developing countries is greater than

that provided by the developed countries, even though the

economies of the GCC countries are based primarily on oil,

a depletable resource. These contributions have been made

despite the need of all our countries to devote all their

energies to the process of rebuilding and maintaining their

social and economic infrastructures that have been adversely

affected by the wars and disputes of the last two decades.

The spirit of tolerance and commitment to human

values and to the principles and purposes of the United

Nations Charter should guide us on the road to the better

Forty-eighth session - 4 October 1993 17

future that we all aspire after - a future that looks more

attainable than ever before, in view of the regional and

international changes that have taken place over the past few

years. All States, big and small, developed and developing,

must seize this historic opportunity to build on the

momentum of change in order that peaceful dialogue may

prevail, consolidating the foundations of regional and

international peace and security and peaceful coexistence.