Greece, 2002

The challenges we

face at the beginning of the twenty-first century are

immense. We are facing terrible poverty; crises and

wars; millions of refugees; the hideous face of

terrorism; trafficking in human beings, arms and drugs;

and regions decimated by disease as we continue to

destroy the earth's ecological balance.

There are no simple answers to these problems.

But there is a place where we all can meet to find

solutions: the United Nations. The world needs a strong

United Nations.

I have just quoted my Swiss colleague, first of all

to celebrate his country's and East Timor's entry into

the United Nations, and secondly because I fully agree

with his statement.

In the words of Kofi Annan:

“The more a country makes use of

multilateral institutions — thereby respecting

shared values, and accepting the obligations and

restraints inherent in those values — the more

others will trust and respect it, and the stronger

its chance to exercise true leadership”. (See

A/57/PV.2)

I know the personal commitment of my dear

friend Jan Kavan, the President, to this principle. Our

two countries have worked closely in a common effort

to promote peace, the rule of law and shared values in

South-eastern Europe.

Today we can be proud that we also contributed

in changing this region. It is no longer “CNN-able”, as

our colleague from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Mr.

Lagumdjia, said yesterday.

Yet this has not been an easy process.

Take my country, Greece. In the previous century,

we went through two world wars, two Balkan wars and

a major war with Turkey, which resulted in millions of

refugees and in painful population exchanges. We

suffered under civil war, famine and dictatorship. We

witnessed the forced division of Cyprus through

military invasion and occupation by Turkey, and the

recent wars in the disintegrating former Yugoslavia in

our backyard. Not far from us, conflict continues. We

stand ready to support all efforts to ensure that Israel

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may be secure and that the Palestinians may have a

State they can call their own.

It is no wonder that today we cherish the peace

we have achieved. It is no wonder that we cherish the

fact that Greece today has its most stable democracy in

modern history, that we are among the more prosperous

countries in the world, and that we will soon be hosting

one of the most demanding events humankind has

created, the Olympics. This to us is a responsibility.

We have learned our lessons. We are where we

are today only because of our people's steadfast

commitment to work for the shared values of

democracy, peace, justice, and human rights.

It is no wonder that Greece has become a

champion of the enlargement of the European Union,

because the European Union is a community of values,

and being a community of values is the biggest peace

project of our region. We have a responsibility to our

neighbours, from Turkey to Bosnia and Herzegovina,

to see them, sooner or later, part of this wider European

family — creating a new vision where all can share the

values of peace and democracy and be citizens of the

European Union.

We have learned that at the heart of these

conflicts are human beings, as the Danish Prime

Minister, Mr. Rasmussen, has said. We have learned

that democracy and human rights are fundamental to

the life and dignity of all human beings.

Whenever our global principles are violated, it is

usually in societies and places where extremism and

lack of democracy exist. I believe that democracy will

isolate the phenomena that we have seen in recent

years, such as that of 11 September.

We in Greece have also known terrorism. We

have suffered at the hands of a small terrorist

organization called November 17. Since June, Greek

security forces have brought all the key members of

November 17 to justice. This formidable achievement

was supported by assistance from allied intelligence

agencies, to which we are indebted for their support.

This experience is just one more example of how close

international cooperation can accomplish common

goals and protect our common values. It is also a

tribute to our long-lasting democratic institutions.

In the European Union, we are building not only

a community of nations but a community of values.

The Greek presidency of the European Union, which

begins in January 2003, will promote the values of

democracy and peace in every element of its agenda.

We want to focus our efforts on reinforcing the trans-

Atlantic relationship. We believe that the United States

and the European Union share the same democratic

values. We must stand united in our efforts to promote

peace within a multilateral framework.

We also will pay tribute to the cultural diversity

that is at the heart of the European project, with a focus

on reinvigorating democratic governance by renewing

our efforts to build social inclusiveness and civil

participation across borders, working with our new

neighbours, from the Baltic region to the

Mediterranean, from the Atlantic to the Caucasus, a

new neighbourhood of peace, cooperation and

democracy.

In this community of values, I should like to talk

about a case in point. A few years ago, the notion of

rapprochement between Greece and Turkey was

unthinkable. Now, with a common European vision,

our Governments are creating a framework to solve

existing problems, and citizen's diplomacy is building

a bridge of peace between our nations. Athens and

Ankara have concluded a number of agreements in

areas ranging from energy to tourism, from education

to landmines, designed to ease tension and strengthen

our common interests. While fundamental differences

remain on certain issues, in a short space of time, we

have come a long way — and we surely can go further.

I welcome my discussion and meeting with the new

Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr. Gürel, and his

willingness to continue on this path of rapprochement

and peace.

Yet our shared values are being sorely tested on

the issue of Cyprus. There is now a compelling

deadline for a resolution to the continuing division of

the island. Negotiations for the accession of the

Republic of Cyprus to the European Union will be

finalized in December. We hope that a free, united

Cyprus will join a free, united Europe. Unification will

undoubtedly bring greater security and prosperity to

both the Greek and Turkish Cypriot communities on

the island. But if a political settlement is not reached,

the internationally recognized Republic of Cyprus will

join alone. Let us therefore work to break down the

walls that keep future European Union citizens apart.

With the exception of Turkey, the whole world

shares a vision for Cyprus as a federal State with a

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single international personality and a single citizenship,

no foreign troops on its soil, and equal rights and

security guarantees for both the Greek and Turkish

Cypriot communities. The vast majority of the Cypriot

population agrees that the two communities can and

should live together, united by shared values, while

preserving their individual cultural identities.

We must respect United Nations resolutions on

Cyprus. They must be honoured, as my Maltese

colleague just repeated.

Cyprus is also a critical factor for the stability

and security of South-eastern Europe and the Middle

East. A solution to this problem, therefore, will widen

the area of stability and peace throughout the region.

Not much farther away, the situation in Iraq is a

challenge for us all. It challenges our respect for

international law and our respect for international

organizations. Greece vows to act in the way it sees fit

to safeguard these valued principles.

In dealing with Iraq, our actions must be guided

by evidence of a threat to global security, and must be

embedded in respect for the well-being of the Iraqi

people. We must exhaust all available diplomatic

means to ensure that Iraq complies with existing

United Nations resolutions, immediately accepts the

unconditional return of United Nations weapons

inspectors and destroys all weapons of mass

destruction. This will free the people of Iraq from the

economic sanctions, which are depriving them of their

basic needs.

We welcome the statement by President Bush. By

taking the issue of Iraq back to the Security Council, he

has both challenged the Council and empowered it to

move forward more effectively and more credibly.

Democracy is a value that should not be taken for

granted. It must be reinforced to meet new challenges

in a globalizing world. In this spirit, Greece launched,

in Johannesburg, the first-ever online global poll on

sustainable development and the environment.

Electronic democracy offers tremendous potential for

bridging the digital divide that separates many peoples

and individuals, for strengthening civil participation

and for enhancing global democratic legitimacy and

transparency. We suggest that the United Nations

establish a new global forum — an electronic

Demos — where citizens could articulate their views,

mobilize around the issues that concern them and shape

political decision-making, both nationally and

internationally.

Greece will make good on its commitment to

sustainable development by taking concrete actions and

identifying specific targets.

This year, many countries celebrated the

establishment of an institution that was founded on the

premise that good global governance must be built on

sound global principles. The International Criminal

Court represents a commitment by our community of

nations that no crime against humanity will go

unpunished. Creating a watertight system of global

justice which requires all countries to uphold common

rules, principles and rights will be an important step

towards building a real community of global values.

Finally, I would like to say that those values lie at

the heart of the Olympic Truce, which was endorsed by

the Millennium Summit and the Millennium

Declaration. It is global peace initiative which was just

recently endorsed by the former President of South

Africa, Nelson Mandela. When he signed the Olympic

Truce in June, President Mandela said:

“The Olympic Games represent one of the

most evocative moments of celebration of our

unity as human beings in pursuit of noble ideas.

Among those ideas is the quest for global peace.”

We uphold the values of democracy, human

rights, peace and sustainable development; they can

enrich us all. They can inspire us and challenge us.

They are values that can inspire change in one person,

in one community or in a large nation. They are values

that can change the life of not just one person, but the

world as a whole. These are the values upon which we

must build our future and the future of our children.