Cyprus, 1992

The memory of the cold war is fading rapidly

in people's minds. Yet, the efforts for adaptation to a world not structured

by the East-West divide have not yet been undertaken. As the images of

violence, famine and destruction flicker on our television sets the urge that

something must be done quickly seizes the consciousness and imagination of

people everywhere.

The world community turns to the United Nations the only universal

forum at its disposal full of expectations that it will succeed in putting

an end to the violence, the senseless destruction of human life and economic

resources which, at this very moment, are plunging millions of people in every

part of the world into despair.

The end of the cold war confrontation opened the way for increased

cooperation. The triumph of democracy and the cooperation of the major Powers

created possibilities for the resolution of conflicts which had originated in,

or were maintained by, the earlier East-West confrontation. The universal

aspiration for a world of peace, liberated from the bondage of insecurity, was

thus quite rightly roused.

During this post-cold-war period we have witnessed positive developments

in many regional problems, particularly Cambodia, Southern Africa, Central

America and elsewhere. At the same time, an effort has been undertaken to

find lasting peace in the Middle East through the convening of a peace

conference. We welcome this positive and important development in the hope

that it will lead to a comprehensive solution, safeguarding the legitimate

rights of the Palestinian people while, at the same time, ensuring the

implementation of Security Council resolutions 242 (1967) and 338 (1973). For

it is our position that all United Nations resolutions must be implemented,

whichever country they concern, be it Iraq, Cyprus or former Yugoslavia.

Furthermore we welcome the developments in South Africa that should lead

to the end of the abhorrent regime of apartheid, in the hope that never again

will any human beings on the face of this Earth be forced to live in

conditions of racial, ethnic, religious or other separation from their fellow

human beings.

The fact that today we welcome 20 new Members in this universal

Organization is sufficient evidence of the tremendous forces at work following

the end of the East-West divide. Welcoming each and every one of these

countries, and all of them as a whole, I express our desire to work and

cooperate with them to uphold the principles of the Charter of the United

Nations, in the interest of peace, security and the well-being of all.

The conditions are favourable for the United Nations, as the process for

a much stronger and effective Organization matures and gains momentum.

However, the challenges that the Organization and its Members are called upon

to meet are also crucial, for, as the old order crumbled, unparalleled forces

of destruction were also unleashed.

The aspirations of humanity for a better world meet with disappointment

in every part of the world. The proliferation of conflicts, due to a variety

of reasons, is the other face of Janus. Along with the conflicts come the

long lines of refugees, the dead, the starving children, looking desperately

to each one of us.

Eighteen years after Cyprus suffered the devastating effects of "ethnic

cleansing" following the Turkish invasion of 1974, we are again witnessing the

restaging of similar tragedies in other parts of the world. In 1974, Turkey,

a strong neighbour of small Cyprus, invaded and occupied 37 per cent of the

territory of the Republic. One third of the Greek Cypriots were evicted from

their ancestral homes and properties in order to create "ethnically clean

areas". Being weak and defenseless, we turned to the United Nations. It is

to the United Nations that a great part of humanity is at this very moment

also turning for help.

The demands are greater now and they are tending to increase. The fact

that the world Organization is free of the fetters imposed by the adversarial

relations of the super-Powers in the cold war era enhances its possibilities.

The burden, however, will be unbearable if the process towards a more

effective United Nations, with the necessary resources and increased

capabilities not only in the field of peace-keeping, but particularly in the

fields of peace-making and conflict prevention, as analysed in the Secretary-

General's Agenda for Peace - is not quickly realized.

Cyprus can again be brought up as a case-study and example.

Following the invasion in 1974, the United Nations system was mobilised'

The Security Council and the General Assembly adopted resolutions demanding

respect for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Cyprus and an

immediate end to foreign military intervention and called urgently for a

cease-fire. The United Nations Peace-keeping Force in Cyprus (UNFICYP)

supervised the cease-fire and assured the peace-keeping operation. It has

fulfilled this role as well as other humanitarian functions admirably. And we

are grateful to all the men who served in UNFICYP for their contribution. But

18 years later, the Cyprus problem is still not solved and as a consequence

UNFICYP is confronted with serious financial problems.

If even a small number of the peace-keeping operations the United Nations

is now undertaking have the duration of UNFICYP, given their scale and scope,

very soon the Organization will not be able to cope with the financial and

other burdens.

The Cyprus example is, I believe, sufficient evidence that an intense

peace-making effort must be pursued in parallel with every peace-keeping

operation. For the cost can be limited not by simply eliminating the role,

but by opening the way for just and viable solutions.

In the case of Cyprus, despite the lack of results because of the

negative attitude of the Turkish side during the long negotiations aimed at

finding a solution, the Secretary-General, Mr. Boutros Boutros-Ghali,

correctly seized the moment and pursued an intense, renewed effort to this

end. The Security Council, already actively involved in the process, put its

weight behind those efforts and engaged itself in an unprecedented way.

We took our share of responsibility and engaged in those talks in the

spirit of good will and conciliation. For we want to put an end to the

forcible division of our country and the resulting suffering of so many,

particularly of the families of the missing persons. In brief, we want to see

an end to the status quo, characterized by the Security Council as not

acceptable.

Unfortunately, the Turkish side remained intransigent on its aims of

perpetuating the division of Cyprus into two "ethnically clean" regions, in

utter violation of human rights and basic rules of international law. Even

today we hear voices from Turkey speaking against federation, claiming that

since two different communities live on Cyprus the island should be

partitioned. Just imagine how the world would look if this principle were

applied universally.

As the Secretary-General underlined in an interview a few days ago, the

new danger that will appear in the world in the next 10 years is more

fragmentation. Rather than 100 or 200 countries, said the Secretary-General,

there may be at the end of the century 400 countries. By way of example he

went on to say that in Africa there are 5,000 tribes, and if each tribe

claimed the right to self-determination we would end up with many small States

of 50,000 to 100,000 people each. We can all imagine the effects that this

would have on the hopes of humanity for sustainable development. That is why

what happens in Cyprus and the solution of the Cyprus problem based on United

Nations resolutions must be of concern to the international community.

The report of the Secretary-General on Cyprus (S/24472) clearly shows why

no progress was made in the July and August talks. Furthermore, the "Set of

ideas" and the map which are annexed to the report have been endorsed by the

Security Council in resolution 774 (1992) as the basis for reaching a

solution. We should like, in this context, to express our appreciation and

thanks to the Secretary-General and the Security Council for all their support

and involvement in our case.

The resolution also calls for resumption of the talks on 26 October. As

always, we intend to cooperate fully with the Secretary-General and negotiate

with good will. We sincerely hope that the Turkish side, despite its so-far

negative public statements, will at long last cooperate.

If, despite the efforts of the Secretary-General, our good will and the

involvement of the Security Council, the talks in October become a repetition

of the unpleasant exercise we experienced this summer, we are confident that

the Security Council and the Assembly will assure the conditions for progress.

For it would be tragic further to delay, or even frustrate, the effort

for a solution in Cyprus. The people of Cyprus, Turkish Cypriots and Greek

Cypriots alike, want to put the past behind them and advance towards a better

future. The reunification of Cyprus will open a new era of prosperity and

progress to the benefit of all Cypriots in particular, of Turkish Cypriots

and our region. I am certain that the solution of the Cyprus problem is the

only way, and a necessary condition, for the economic and social development

of all Cypriots. In this competitive world of ours, only if Turkish Cypriots

and Greek Cypriots are united and join forces will they be able to win the

place they deserve in the world.

The Secretary-General's "Agenda for Peace" introduces peace-building and

preventive diplomacy as concepts of the utmost importance. The conceptual

framework of the "Agenda" is indeed remarkable in its ramifications and the

linkages it establishes between peace and security, international law,

democracy, human rights and sustainable development.

Cyprus, which accepted the compulsory jurisdiction of the International

Court of Justice, welcomes and supports the Secretary-General's proposals in

the field of international law, as set out in the report.

Our long-term efforts should be aimed at creating such conditions as will

make the possibility of war unthinkable, even between nations that have a

history of enmity. In order to achieve such a result on a global basis the

United Nations must adapt itself swiftly to the changing conditions. A better

balance and coordination between the various bodies that form the Organization

and the specialized agencies are needed. A more effective and more democratic

United Nations is an essential component of a stable and democratic world

order. Furthermore, as the Secretary-General pointedly underlines in his

report to the General Assembly, we must render our Organization

"capable of dealing comprehensively with the economic, social,

environmental and political dimensions of human development." (A/47/1.

para. 9)

The General Assembly, representing all the Members of the United Nations,

has a major role to play in the realization of this major objective. And I am

certain that under the able leadership of our President, my good friend the

Foreign Minister of Bulgaria, Mr. Ganev, it will rise to these challenges. I

also take this opportunity to pay tribute, Mr. President, to your predecessor,

Mr. Samir Shihabi of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, for the skilful manner in

which he steered the work of the forty-sixth session.

Prominent among the challenges we have to meet is the protection of human

rights in all their dimensions, civil and political as well as social,

economic and cultural. The progress achieved in this field during recent

years, encouraging though it is, should not mislead us. Much progress still

needs to be achieved. That is why we look forward to the World Conference on

Human Rights, which will present us with a great opportunity not only to

assess the progress achieved so far, but also, and mainly, to define the means

for rendering our collective action for the protection of human rights more

effective.

The issue of human rights is crucial, for it relates not only to

peace-making and peace-building, but also to preventive diplomacy. The first

victims of galloping nationalism and micronationalism everywhere, as we can

clearly see, are the human rights of citizens. We in Cyprus, unfortunately,

have bitter experience of this fact.

Tolerance and respect for the beliefs and particularities of others

within societies and peaceful relations among nations are the conditions

for the prevalence of the rule of law and thus of human rights. And as

peace is no longer the end product of mutual fear, it will be maintained

only through the prevalence of mutual understanding, communication and

confidence. In this respect, the process of disarmament has a key

function to play.

In spite of the progress we all welcome, and in particular the

agreement reached within the Conference on Disarmament on a draft

convention for the elimination of chemical weapons, disarmament is still

of the utmost priority in our quest for general stability. The positive

developments in the field of nuclear weapons constitute an asset that has

to be safeguarded. However, the risk of intense arms races between

regional Powers is more than a threat: it is a reality.

It is only through eliminating the roots of insecurity, which makes

the acquisition of arms a vital need for States, and through creating the

institutional framework that will enhance the feeling of security and

thereby diminish to the maximum the need for self-help in case of

aggression, that real progress can be achieved.

We know how painful it is to spend precious resources on arms and we

hurt when we have to pay a few million dollars just to buy a new tank.

But what other choice are we left with when on a small island like Cyprus

the Turkish army outnumbers us in this field by a ratio of 7 to 1,

constantly threatening our physical existence? Time and again we have

proposed the demilitarization of Cyprus, together with the withdrawal of

the Turkish forces from Cyprus. We are committed to using the resources

thus saved for development purposes - most of them directed to projects

that will have an immediate effect on the standard of living of the

Turkish Cypriots. Thus, the peace-building process will be further

strengthened and the people of Cyprus as a whole will benefit.

Human rights and democracy will amount to little if social misery,

starvation and underdevelopment are the lot of the great majority of the

population of this planet. The fragile flower of democracy cannot bloom

on the arid soil of poverty. What sense can the right to vote have if one

is condemned to remain hungry, roofless and without the very basic

necessities?

As the Jakarta Declaration, adopted during the tenth non-aligned

summit only some weeks ago, clearly states:

"A shift of forces in international relations towards strengthening

multilateral cooperation for development has become indispensable."

The division between rich and poor, developed and developing, should

not be allowed to become a new source of instability and tension that

would undermine the foundations of international society. It is an

illusion to think that any country, however rich or great, can survive

isolated, surrounded by an archipelago of poverty.

If we want peace and social stability we must address the issues of

growth and sustainable development in their human and social dimensions.

Indebtedness, mainly due to the collapse of commodity prices and the

subsequent transfer of resources from poor to rich countries, continues to

hurt the developing world. Barriers to trade raise formidable obstacles

to the efforts of developing countries to reach the markets of the highly

industrialized North and limit their possibilities for growth while having

an adverse effect on the export prices of their products. That is why we

are anxious about the delay in concluding the Uruguay Round of

Multilateral Trade Negotiations and express the hope that the target for

completing the negotiations - that is, the end of 1992 will be achieved

this time. Developing nations' access to technology is still very

restricted and this adds to the already existing inequalities that hamper

growth on a global level.

Technology is not an end in itself. The transfer of technologies

from developed to developing countries is a pre-condition for sustainable

development on a global scale. The problem is also directly linked to

that of the flow of financial resources for productive investment in

developing countries. What is at stake here is not only the solidarity

that developed countries should demonstrate. It is also a rational

response that will guarantee their own ability to continue to progress in

a world which progresses as a whole.

It is now widely acknowledged that in our quest for development in

the past we regarded environment solely as a commodity ripe for

exploitation. Now we have come to realize that it is man who belongs to

the environment and not the environment to man. It is therefore necessary

to define a new synthesis between environment and development. The Rio

Conference was a major step in that direction. The world summit gave the

correct message; it shaped the international will and marked a new

beginning. Concrete and effective measures must follow. The Rio

Declaration must not remain a dead letter. We have to translate into

action its provisions, which should guide us in every policy decision.

The 1990s is a decade of dramatic changes. The contradictory forces

and undercurrents that shape the outcome of events must be shaped and

guided towards the creation of a peaceful and democratic world order. The

United Nations is the soul itself, the consciousness of humanity as a

collective entity. As such, it demonstrates a flexibility and a capacity

for adaptation which are admirable. People of worth, dedicated men and

women, work in every part of the world fulfilling impossible missions. We

thank them all.

We have reached a moment when, as Member States, we must assume

further responsibilities and, faithful to the principles of the Charter of

this Organization, work in unison in helping the United Nations to achieve

its objectives. Humanity has conquered mighty and formidable peaks. We

cannot turn back. We are committed to shaping and channelling the hopes

and aspirations of mankind for a more free, democratic and tolerant world,

with a better quality of life for all.