Finland, 1992

I wish to begin by congratulating my

colleague Mr. Stoyan Ganev on his election to the high office of President of

the General Assembly. He can rest assured that the delegation of Finland will

render him its full support in his challenging task.

On behalf of my Government I wish also to extend a warm welcome to the 13

new Members amongst us. Their participation in the work of the United Nations

will further strengthen the Organization.

Since the beginning of this year the United Nations has had a new

Secretary-General. Faced with many difficult challenges,

Mr. Boutros Boutros-Ghali has already shown, in word and in deed, that he is

firmly in charge. We wish him all success in his work.

The United Nations Charter was drafted under dramatic circumstances

during the final stages of the Second World War. After two world wars, the

United Nations was given the responsibility for maintaining peace and security

for future generations. Now, decades later, the Organization also faces a

multitude of other major challenges: those of development, protection of the

environment and promotion of democracy and human rights. Courageous and

visionary leadership is now called for to create a new United Nations for a

new international era.

The Security Council demonstrated such leadership at its historic summit

meeting held in January. After decades of cold war, the summit set new

priorities for the United Nations in the promotion of peace and security

worldwide, and provided guidelines for a more active United Nations

involvement in the maintenance of peace.

In response to the initiative taken by the Security Council summit the

Secretary-General has submitted an excellent report under the title "An Agenda

for Peace". In it he has innovatively addressed the question of how the full

potential of the United Nations can be most effectively used in the service of

peace and international security. The report is a comprehensive effort by the

Secretary-General to relate preventive diplomacy, peace-making and

peace-keeping, as well as peace-building, to the changing political and

security requirements of the world today.

I am especially pleased to note that the Secretary-General's thinking and

many of his recommendations are well in line with what Finland, often together

with the other Nordic countries, has itself long advocated.

As expressed so clearly in the Secretary-General's report, it is not

sufficient that the United Nations should succeed in putting an end to

conflicts. The best way to deal with conflicts is to prevent them. This is a

complicated but vital task, where the capacity of the United Nations should be

considerably strengthened.

Different methods could come into question, depending on the specific

circumstances of each case. But the necessary basis for any prevention is

continuous information-gathering and monitoring exercised both by the

Secretary-General and by the Security Council. Early deployment of monitors

or peace-keepers should be considered whenever necessary for effective

prevention.

May I add that we are also grateful to the Secretary-General for the

innovative treatment of post-conflict, comprehensive peace-building in his

report.

When the capacity of the United Nations to keep peace and prevent

conflicts has been stretched to its limit, it is natural that other

means should be taken under consideration. Here regional organizations and

agencies can play a significant role. The Secretary-General's repeated calls

for closer cooperation and coordination between the United Nations and

regional organizations are well-founded.

At its Helsinki Summit in July, the Conference on Security and

Cooperation in Europe (CSCE) responded constructively. CSCE has strengthened

its capacity for conflict management and peace-keeping.

We also support the Secretary-General's idea of periodic consultations

between the United Nations and regional arrangements on confidence-building

measures.

The tragic situation in former Yugoslavia shows clearly how a complex

problem requires an innovative approach. Under the joint leadership of the

United Nations and the European Community, the Conference, with its six

working groups, is seeking solutions to the multitude of political, ethnic,

humanitarian and other problems in the territory of the former Yugoslavia.

CSCE is also actively engaged in supporting the settlement of the conflict.

In this context, let me say that Finland supports the Security Council

recommendation to the General Assembly that the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia

should apply for membership in the United Nations and should not participate

in the work of the General Assembly in the meantime.

While regional organizations should play a greater role in dealing with

threats to security in their respective regions, the United Nations, through

its Security Council, retains, of course, its unique and primary role and

special instruments in maintaining international peace and security.

The Secretary-General reminds us of the most potent instrument available

to the Security Council, Article 42 of the Charter. We agree with him that

the last-resort option of taking military action is essential to the

credibility of the United Nations as a guarantor of international security.

While not underestimating the problems involved, we believe that the Security

Council and all Members of the Organization should seriously consider the

proposals of the Secretary-General concerning peace-enforcement units, as well

as the negotiation of agreements in accordance with Article 43 of the Charter.

Proliferation of all weapons of mass destruction constitutes a major

threat to international peace and security. International norms of

non-proliferation should be strengthened through universal and credible

adherence to them.

Finland welcomes the recently concluded chemical-weapons convention. It

is a vital and long-awaited part of the international non-proliferation regime

and should attract as many original signatories as possible. Finland, for its

part, will be among the first States to sign and ratify the convention.

Unrestrained accumulation of conventional arms can lead to regional

instability. It is therefore essential that especially the major

arms-exporting countries should exercise restraint individually and

collectively. It is also necessary that all relevant transfers should be

fully reported to the United Nations Register of Conventional Arms.

The Security Council summit represented a firm recommitment to the

purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations. The

Secretary-General, for his part, has seized the momentum and turned this new

commitment into a programme for concrete action. In the promotion of peace

and security, this is indeed the beginning of a new era in the history of the

United Nations.

On the same positive note, I should like to turn to another summit, the

Earth Summit, held at Rio de Janeiro. Alongside the task of maintaining peace

and security, a new equally courageous and visionary leadership is called for

on sustainable development. At Rio a remarkable number of Heads of State and

Government responded to that call and drew guidelines for world-wide

sustainable development. Although our expectations could not all be

fulfilled, the Earth Summit showed that the United Nations and the

international community can achieve remarkable results when minds meet.

Yet Rio was only the beginning of a long process towards sustainable

development. In that process, a fundamental change is needed first and

foremost in attitudes a change in our own life-styles. And we need a strong

political will to direct that change. A sustainable future can be brought

about only by putting the treaties agreed upon at Rio into force and by

translating the principles of the Declaration and Agenda 21 into action. In

this the Commission on Sustainable Development will have an essential role to

play.

The conventions signed at Rio are just an initial core for a

comprehensive legal framework, which should guide mankind in the right

direction. What we do need is a full set of internationally binding

agreements which redirects production and consumption patterns in each and

every country. We also need effective conventions covering natural

resources. Here instruments on desertification and sustainable forestry are

the most urgent ones.

The future of mankind requires sustainable development, management and

conservation of forests of all types of forests everywhere. Forests have

both an important national dimension and an important global dimension.

Forests are a valuable national resource which must be utilized for the

benefit of the local population. Sustainable forestry is also economically

beneficial. While the sovereignty of nations over their forest resources

should be respected, that sovereignty should not be misused.

Finland, for its part, is prepared to participate actively in launching

the negotiations on the global forest convention on the basis of the forest

principles agreed upon at Rio. Here we have to build a better understanding

of the need for such an international instrument. We also have to build

mutual confidence founded on the unique role of forests in the global

ecosystem.

To implement what was agreed at Rio is a tall order for any country, and

particularly for developing countries. Many of them will need the assistance

of the international community and the United Nations. New and additional

resources required by developing countries must be provided in a timely

manner. That is a heavy task for the donor community, as it has to shoulder

the responsibility of also assisting the new democracies in transition.

The results of the Earth Summit do indeed underline the unique and

indispensable role of the United Nations in promoting development. They will

have a crucial impact on the entire economic and social sector of the United

Nations and on the work of the Economic and Social Council. Development

deserves the same priority and attention as peace and security.

Development is not only economic and social progress; it is also

promotion of democracy and human rights. No longer do questions of violations

of human rights belong exclusively to the sovereign domain of States. On the

contrary, respect for human rights and democracy is an integral part of

international relations. It is therefore one of the main responsibilities of

the United Nations to see to it that they are respected world wide.

The Economic and Social Council is the principal organ of the United

Nations for development. It is important and urgently necessary that the

Economic and Social Council be strengthened so that it can gain the true

leadership role for sustainable development and promotion of human rights and

democracy.

The demands put on the United Nations today are unprecedented. New

challenges have to be met and financed. Finland shares the

Secretary-General's concerns regarding the Organization's ability to function

in the present financial crisis. We are therefore willing to consider

constructively any of his proposals. Finland is particularly anxious to see

the General Assembly take the first step recommended by the Secretary-General:

the establishment of a peace-keeping reserve fund to meet the initial expenses

of peace-keeping operations pending receipt of assessed contributions. The

Nordic countries have long advocated this step. With the recent expansion of

operations, the need for such a fund is acute.

It is not in keeping with the honour, interests or legal obligations of

the Member States for the United Nations to exist in "its present mendicancy",

to use the words of the Secretary-General. For members of any club, paying

dues is <» duty, not an option. While exceptional measures may be needed to

guarantee the uninterrupted functioning of the United Nations in the present

crisis, the overall funding of the Organization must be built on the

collective responsibility of the entire membership. We have a common interest

to invest in improved security and development towards a more prosperous and

democratic world.

The United Nations Charter remains fully valid today as regards the

maintenance of international peace and security and, by and large, also as

regards the promotion of international cooperation in the economic, social,

and human rights sectors. In facing the new challenges, especially in the

promotion of sustainable development and democracy, the primary issue is how

we can best build on the Charter and even amend it, where necessary.

As it approaches the end of the second millennium, humanity is faced with

formidable challenges. Meeting them will not be easy; I have no illusions

about that. Yet the United Nations now has a. better chance than ever to use

its full potential and show leadership for the sake of a better future.