Spain, 2001

First of

all, I would like to congratulate Mr. Han Seung-soo on

his election as President of this fifty-sixth session of

the General Assembly of the United Nations. Likewise,

I would like to congratulate the Organization itself and

its Secretary-General, Mr. Kofi Annan, on having been

awarded this year's Nobel Peace Prize. Mr. Annan's

re-election guarantees the continuous leadership of

someone who has enormously contributed to

strengthening the prestige of the United Nations and its

role in the world.

I also wish to emphasize my full support for the

statement made in this Hall by the Minister for Foreign

32

Affairs of Belgium on behalf of the presidency of the

European Union.

The horror of the terrorist attacks of 11

September shocked the world. We were all attacked on

that day all of us who defend freedom, tolerance and

respect for the dignity of human beings. Spain knows

well the cruelty of terrorism and the grief that it can

cause. Therefore, Spain, its Government and its

citizens are in complete solidarity with the American

people, the families of the victims and this city of New

York, which is also our city the city of the United

Nations.

Once again, I wish to express my solidarity and

my condolences to the families of the victims of

today's tragedy.

After 11 September, we cannot continue acting in

the same way. There has been change in the political

paradigm the coordinates that have guided us until

now. The paradigm has changed, and now the political

culture must also change. Terrorism cannot continue to

be regarded as an inevitable evil for our peoples, but

rather as a mortal enemy of them all. There can be

neither excuses nor pretexts: this is the time to

demonstrate the political will of each and every one of

us to take effective measures for international

cooperation against terrorism measures which Spain

has been promoting for years to take a qualitative

leap forward.

Since 11 September, an important international

consensus has emerged on the need to confront

terrorism. This shows that terrorism has nothing to do

with the differences between North and South or East

and West, much less with a supposed conflict between

civilizations. Many Islamic countries are among its

main victims. It does have to do, however, with the

difference between those who commit these kinds of

acts or give them their support, and those who consider

them to be atrocities and violations of the most

elementary principles of human coexistence, which are

common to all the great civilizations.

The United Nations has risen to the occasion. Its

action has been quick and effective, demonstrating that

the Organization is indispensable at the dawning of the

new millennium. Resolution 1368 (2001) made it

possible for a coalition of wills, of which Spain is a

part, to emerge in order to respond to the attacks.

Resolution 1373 (2001) expresses the determination of

the international community to maintain concerted

action for as long as necessary against terrorism:

against terrorism without adjectives, against the

terrorists themselves, and also against those who lend

them any type of support, active or passive.

Progress has also been made in the negotiation of

a general convention against international terrorism,

overcoming some of the obstacles that had blocked the

negotiations for years. Now that we are close to

reaching an agreement, we must make an effort to

eliminate the problems that are still pending. The goal

must be to draw up an operative and effective

instrument against terrorism that cannot be paralysed

by interminable discussions of a political rather than a

legal nature. The subject is of pivotal importance, and

the very credibility of the United Nations is at stake.

We have a historical opportunity before us; it would be

a shame if we were to squander it.

To their cynicism and disdain for elementary

human values, terrorists often add a shameless

opportunism in order to manipulate particular

situations to their advantage. These situations

undoubtedly require a solution on account of their

intrinsic nature, on their own merits, without any

relation to terrorist claims. We must all work together

to find that solution.

These situations involve structural problems such

as poverty and the marginalization in which many

millions of people live all over the world. They also

have to do with regional conflicts, such as that in the

Middle East, where there is an urgent need to stop the

blind cycle of violence and return to the negotiating

table. If the political will exists, negotiations are

possible. Madrid, Oslo and the advances made at Camp

David and Taba prove this. There is no alternative to

the peace process and, at the end of the road, the State

of Israel and the Palestinian State will coexist

peacefully within secure borders.

Terrorist attacks against innocent civilians cause

alarm among our peoples, but they are not the only

cause for uncertainty at the beginning of the new

millennium.

When the political and ideological confrontations

that had defined the second half of the twentieth

century were largely overcome, other types of conflicts

emerged with force. These tend to be not international,

but rather internal, conflicts and are therefore difficult

to address with the instruments of traditional

33

diplomacy. Some of them have given rise to serious

humanitarian crises that have afflicted our peoples.

At a time when we have decoded the human

genome and the advances of biotechnology pose new

dilemmas, millions of people continue to live in

conditions of extreme poverty, with less than a dollar

per day to cover all their needs.

As we witness the interconnection of economies

worldwide and can send information instantly to any

corner of the Earth, we see how globalization

distributes its benefits unequally, making more visible

and intolerable the breach between rich and poor, the

powerful and the weak, the haves and the have-nots.

These situations give rise to uncertainty, but they

also give rise to a demand for solutions. Our peoples

turn to us Governments and international

organizations and they ask us to act, especially the

United Nations. Its global vision, its universal

composition and its vocation to defend the interests of

all humanity give it a unique legitimacy in the eyes of

our citizens.

In order not to disappoint these expectations, the

United Nations must face the challenge of its

modernization, following the path charted by the

Millennium Summit.

My country has also undergone a significant

process of modernization in recent years, which has

enabled it to become fully incorporated into

international life. Spain has been able to break away

from the inertia of the past and seek new solutions to

its new problems. It has done so without renouncing its

identity as a bridge between different cultures and

regions of the world. That is the perspective from

which my country backs the process of reform and

modernization. It will continue to do so from the

presidency of the European Union, which it will hold

during the first half of next year.

The phenomenon of globalization is responsible

for much of the current uncertainty facing the

processes of change. The United Nations, which thinks

globally, is the natural forum for managing

globalization.

In addition to the fight against terrorism, effective

instruments must be developed to combat drugs and

transnational organized crime. This year, progress must

be made in the preparation of a convention against

corruption.

The International Criminal Court is one of the

key instruments of international relations that we will

need in the new millennium. Spain has been involved

from the start in the fight against the culture of

impunity with regard to the most heinous crimes. It

now seems more necessary than ever for the Court to

start to act. The different legal systems of the world

must be duly represented in the court, because

globalization does not mean homogenization. No

country must be marginalized from this historic

process; all must be able to contribute to the Court

their own views regarding international criminal

justice.

Arms control, disarmament and non-proliferation

require greater attention from the international

community. Progress in the destruction and prohibition

of anti-personnel mines as a result of the Ottawa

Convention and the results of the Programme of Action

of the United Nations Conference on the Illicit Trade in

Small Arms and Light Weapons in All Its Aspects are

encouraging.

The need to protect the environment is real, and

the solutions cannot be postponed. The Kyoto Protocol

offers some answers to this problem. Those who do not

accept Kyoto will have to propose a better solution. In

the meantime, its ratification will be the only practical

measure taken in this field. That is why we welcome

the agreement reached in Marrakech, which we believe

to be a step in the right direction.

New conflicts require new solutions. We must

deal with all the stages of a particular conflict through

a comprehensive approach that includes efforts to

prevent the causes, to keep the peace when crisis

erupts, to consolidate that peace and, afterwards, to

begin economic and institutional reconstruction. This

idea has inspired the efforts being made by my country,

in cooperation with the Russian Federation, in the

demining project in southern Lebanon. It also

motivates efforts, in which Spain is an active

participant, to strengthen African capabilities to

prevent and settle conflicts. For that reason, Spain was

very pleased to welcome the birth of the African Union

at the Lusaka Summit, as well as the New African

Initiative that was adopted there.

This approach must also be applied to

international action in support of the Afghan people,

whose situation is particularly dire. We must urgently

help them to meet their basic humanitarian needs,

34

especially given the approach of winter. This

international action, to which Spain is contributing,

must also include clear support for the economic and

institutional reconstruction of the country. The future

of Afghanistan is something that only the Afghan

people can decide. Nevertheless, the international

community must support them so that they can

establish a stable Government and maintain normal

relations with their neighbours and the rest of the

world. In this task, the United Nations must play a

fundamental role.

The new diplomatic instruments that are required

must accord special attention to humanitarian affairs.

The need to protect the rights of refugees and internally

displaced persons, access to humanitarian assistance

for affected populations and the situation of children in

armed conflicts, in addition to the security problem of

United Nations and associated personnel all these

issues require effective solutions. If some States fail to

meet their responsibilities in this area, it will be

necessary to draw attention to their attitude repeatedly,

until it changes.

Peacekeeping is an essential instrument in this

comprehensive approach to dealing with conflict. The

General Assembly must take concrete steps to

implement the recommendations of the Brahimi report

on peacekeeping operations by increasing the size of

the Department of Peacekeeping Operations in the

Secretariat, improving the participation of the troop-

contributing countries in the decision-making process

and strengthening civil police operations, in which

Spain has played an active role.

None of this will be enough if peacekeeping

operations do not receive clear and adequate mandates,

backed with the firm political support of the Security

Council. If mandates are not clear and adequate, it will

not be possible to send United Nations units to places

in which they may have to use force. No country is

prepared to risk the lives of its soldiers to defend

empty words.

This brings us to the need to conclude the process

of reforming the Security Council. We need a more

representative, democratic, effective and transparent

Security Council. Spain, which is a candidate for

non-permanent membership of the Security Council in

the elections to be held during the fifty-seventh session

of the General Assembly, will strive, if elected, to

increase the quantity and improve the quality of the

consultations with non-member States, especially with

those most affected by the issues being debated by the

Council.

Human rights and fundamental freedoms civil

and political, as well as economic and social are the

birthright of all humanity and not just of a particular

group of States. Their violation today provokes

condemnation in a way that it did not in the past. We

must continue to strengthen such points of agreement,

incorporating the concerns of all.

It is therefore important that the Durban

Conference was able to adopt a final document. Spain,

like the rest of the European Union, upheld to the end

its commitment to the objectives of the Conference. We

must take advantage of the agreement reached at

Durban to continue to make progress in this field.

Along the same lines, my country will organize, in the

next few days in Madrid, in cooperation with the Office

of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human

Rights, an international consultative conference on

student education in relation to freedom of religion or

beliefs, tolerance and non-discrimination.

I cannot fail to refer to the question of Gibraltar.

As has already been communicated to the Secretary-

General, the United Kingdom and Spain agreed, on 26

July in London, to relaunch their talks within the

framework of the Brussels Declaration, issuing to this

end a communiquÈ in which they underlined their

political will to overcome all of their differences over

Gibraltar and to conclude these talks promptly and

successfully for the benefit of all the parties involved.

Furthermore, they invited the Chief Minister of

Gibraltar to participate in ministerial meetings within

the framework of this process.

The problem of development is central to the

activities of the Organization. The Millennium

Declaration constitutes the basic framework for these

activities and must be implemented in its entirety. At

this session, the General Assembly must set in motion

an effective monitoring mechanism for the Declaration.

Spain is also working to define new fields for

development cooperation. For example, Spain is a

pioneer in the development of microcredits, which

constitute a particularly suitable instrument for the

development of the less advanced countries. This year,

Spain organized in Las Palmas a high-level meeting on

tourism and development in less developed countries

with a view to placing its extensive experience in this

35

field at the service of tourism development in such

countries, some of which, such as the small island

States, have comparative advantages in this field from

which they could benefit.

Next April, Spain will also organize the Second

World Assembly on Ageing, thus responding to the

need to pay special attention to vulnerable

populations those most likely to suffer the highest

rates of poverty. The eradication of poverty is the

primary objective of both the Millennium Declaration

and Spain's policy for cooperation in development.

If there is one group of people who are vulnerable

by definition, it is people who are ill. The special

session of General Assembly on AIDS and other

infectious diseases highlighted the urgency of halting

their spread. Spain will make a major contribution to

the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and

Malaria, which has been created for this purpose.

The United Nations will not be able to

accomplish all of these tasks if it does not have the

necessary resources to do so. The budget for the

coming two-year period will be discussed during this

Assembly's session. The effort to impose budgetary

discipline must continue, but rigid positions that

prevent the Organization from facing up to its

responsibilities must be avoided.

Evading responsibility is something that the

United Nations cannot afford to do, especially today.

Unique legitimacy imposes a unique responsibility. The

United Nations will be judged in this new millennium

by its effectiveness in addressing the new problems

confronting it, by its ability to transform uncertainties

into solutions, insecurity into confidence and fear into

hope.

In conclusion, I would like to make one further

comment. In his statement, the Minister for Foreign

Affairs and Cooperation of the Kingdom of Morocco

referred to the Spanish cities of Ceuta and Melilla and

to other Spanish territories. In the context of the

relations of friendship and good-neighbourliness that

exist between Spain and Morocco, I wish to stress that

the cities of Ceuta and Melilla, and the adjacent

islands, are an integral part of the territory of Spain and

that their citizens are represented in the Spanish

parliament in the same capacity and under the same

terms as the rest of their compatriots.