Hungary, 1998

Allow me to join previous speakers in

congratulating Mr. Opertti on his election to the presidency

of the General Assembly at its fifty-third session. There is

no doubt that his experience and wisdom will be very

useful in effectively guiding our work. I should also like to

pay tribute to his predecessor, Mr. Hennadiy Udovenko of

Ukraine, for his valuable contribution to the work of this

Organization and its reform process.

After the euphoria following the end of the cold war,

a period of frustration and disillusionment set in. It has

therefore not always been easy to remain optimistic while

experiencing everyday realities. Indeed, the profound

changes that shook the world left it poorly prepared to deal

with old or new challenges.

Recently, events that have shaken the world?s security

environment and the international economic environment

have reminded us of the complexities of the post-bipolar

period by highlighting the multiple and often detrimental

effects of the inexorable process of globalization that is

taking place in all parts of the world. If we are to be in a

position to stem the damaging effects of this process, we

must strengthen multilateralism and expand international

cooperation so as to be able to resolve the various

problems, often unprecedented in nature, that face

humankind at the threshold of the twenty-first century.

In this undertaking, the United Nations will be

neither a world government nor a passive spectator. It

will continue to be a unique Organization with special

responsibilities for the maintenance of international peace

and security. It will continue to be a global negotiating

forum whose purpose is to set consensus-based standards

and rules in the most diverse spheres of human activity in

order to help us adapt to the demands of a new age.

Today?s world is marked by disquieting

developments: bloody conflicts, terrorist acts, organized

crime, the resurgence of ethnic hatred, attempts to

circumvent or undermine non-proliferation regimes,

human rights violations causing flows of refugees,

problems associated with narcotic drugs, a worrisome gap

between the levels of economic and social development

of the various parts of the world, environmental

degradation, population questions and many other issues

and dilemmas that are truly global in nature. Despite the

setbacks that it will probably encounter in the future

fulfilment of its mission, the world Organization will

continue to be the centre of worldwide mobilization of

efforts to prepare the peoples of the United Nations to

tackle the challenges that lie before them.

In order to ensure the success of this operation, we

must all make serious and sustained efforts to give new

impetus to the United Nations reform process and to

maintain its dynamism. The difficulties encountered along

the way should not discourage us from the quest to

identify what is possible and feasible, while keeping in

mind and striving to achieve what is desirable.

From this rostrum, we wish to reaffirm our

commitment to promoting the revitalization of our

Organization and the reform of the Security Council. As

far as expanding the membership of the Council is

concerned, our position has not changed. We continue to

advocate expanding the Council in both categories,

permanent and non-permanent, and the inclusion of

Germany and Japan, among others, in the category of

permanent members. On the subject of United Nations

reform, I should like to add that organizational and

structural measures must go hand in hand with efforts to

establish financial stability for the Organization if they are

to be effective.

Domestically the historic transition that has taken

place in Hungary over the last decade has been a complex

20

and difficult experience for the country?s population. After

living through this arduous period and in the light of the

promising developments in the country, our country today

needs to be reassured about its future. Our people wish to

see moral and social renewal in the country and to benefit

from it. Externally, the new Hungarian Government

continues to base its policy on the same principles that its

predecessors followed starting in 1990, when a democratic

regime was established in Hungary. It is inspired by the

national interests of the country and the values that it shares

with its partners on both sides of the Atlantic. It intends to

remain a factor for stability and security in the Central

European region. Along with its future allies in the North

Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and in the European

Union, it stands ready to contribute to the endeavours of the

community of nations to ensure respect for international

obligations and, where necessary, to take effective measures

to resist actions that are in defiance of its legitimate will.

Our efforts, which are aimed at having Hungary join

the Euro-Atlantic consolidating structures, are motivated by

our desire for security and economic prosperity, as well as

by the emotional desire to see a historic reunion with the

rest of Europe after a long, imposed separation. These

aspirations are fully in keeping with the purposes and

principles of the United Nations. Not only do they not

conflict with them, but they complement and enrich in a

very positive way our present activities in the world

Organization. They will serve to strengthen our specific

participation in various United Nations activities.

Obviously, becoming a member of these consolidating

structures will not change Hungary?s place on the world

map. It will not be transported to some other planet. It will

remain an integral part of our world, sharing with other

nations great and small, rich and poor, the bright as well as

the gloomier aspects of globalization.

Problems such as international crime and terrorism, the

proliferation of weapons, drug-trafficking and questions

associated with migration or environmental pollution — all

these phenomena affect my country as they do others, and

call for national, regional and international action. They

may jeopardize the institutional structures of democracy and

paralyse social and economic stability in a particular

country and beyond its borders. The resurgence that we

have seen in acts of terrorism should also bolster the

international community?s determination to establish

international cooperation on the largest possible scale so as

to combat this evil by the most efficient means. The centre

of these operations should be the United Nations, which

will give these endeavours coherence and real universality.

Hungary attaches great importance to developing and

expanding regional and subregional cooperation with its

neighbours. It has a vital interest in seeing stability and

democracy flourish among its neighbours. It considers the

various forms of regional and subregional cooperation to

be invaluable and indispensable tools for achieving these

objectives. It is ready to participate actively in this regard.

It should be noted that one of the driving forces for

the implementation by the countries of the region of

positive measures for socio-economic progress is precisely

their shared wish to join the structures of Euro-Atlantic

integration. Hungary has often spoken out in favour of

these aspirations and will continue to support them.

In this regard, we feel that respect for the rule of

law and institutional guarantees of the full enjoyment of

human rights, including those of national minorities, are

not simply key prerequisites to membership of these

integration structures. They are also an indispensable and

vital factor for the establishment of social peace within

countries themselves.

In speaking of the eastern part of our continent, I

would emphasize that, on the one hand, it is impossible

to transform the region, with its turbulent history of age-

old coexistence between various ethnic communities, into

a zone of tranquillity and prosperity, and inconceivable to

consider healing the deep wounds inflicted by aggressive

nationalism without taking into account the legitimate

aspirations of national minorities and their desire to

remain intact as communities and keepers of a specific

national heritage, in accordance with the standards

adopted by the competent international organizations and

the practice of the democratic States. On the other hand,

we resolutely oppose the policy of “ethnic cleansing”,

forced separation and the creation of new kinds of ethnic

or religious segregation in Europe at the dawn of a new

century.

Hungary is deeply concerned by the deteriorating

situation in Kosovo. It shares the view that, without a

determined international commitment, this conflict is

likely to spread, with unfathomable consequences for the

region and Europe as a whole. We therefore support the

efforts aimed at stopping this conflict as quickly as

possible by peaceful and political means. We believe that

Security Council resolution 1199 (1998) can serve to pave

the way for this. Hungary hopes that substantive

negotiations between the parties can begin without delay

and that they will lead to a lasting settlement granting

broad autonomy to Kosovo while preserving the territorial

21

integrity of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. In this

respect, Hungary stresses the primary responsibility borne

by the Yugoslav authorities in the quest for peace and a

democratic solution.

The Balkans have suffered too much for the

international community to permit an escalation of violence,

a return to terror and impunity for human rights violations.

My country is prepared, to the extent of its abilities, to

contribute to the international community?s action to restore

long-term stability and the rule of law in the region.

We have also followed with special attention the

developments in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Our primary

objective is the full implementation of the Dayton

Agreement. However, we must accept the fact that,

following years of bloodshed, savagery and intolerance, the

process envisaged in the Agreement could be more

precarious and protracted than we believed and that the

ethnocentric and exclusionary attitudes there may prove to

be more entrenched than we had thought. Having said this,

we are participating actively in the international effort to

assist that country in getting back on its feet and to ensure

that the terrible years of aggression and horrendous war

never return.

This year, we celebrate the fiftieth anniversary of the

Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Although the

commemoration of the birth of that fundamental document

is a fine occasion for festivities, it is also important that

new measures be taken to implement the universal

standards embodied in the Declaration so that the United

Nations may, in all places and at all times, not only offer

a ray of hope, but be an effective instrument in the service

establishment of United Nations machinery for the

international protection of human rights and fundamental

freedoms is one of the international community?s great

achievements, emanating directly from the Universal

Declaration. In this context, we welcome the existence of

the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for

Human Rights and the establishment, after much hard work,

of the International Criminal Court.

Grave and large-scale human rights abuses continue to

be committed throughout the world. We have witnessed

assaults on the freedom of individuals and communities,

and crude and more subtle discriminatory practices,

including those based on national or religious origin. This

prompts us to ask the fundamental question as to whether

the international community did all it needed to do in good

time to prevent these events and used all the means

available to it. I am afraid that the answer to these

questions is “no”.

Linking peace to justice and reconciling political

expediency and moral considerations have always been

extremely difficult challenges. Nevertheless, if peace is to

last and take firm root, it must be sustained and bolstered

by democracy, the rule of law and a responsible and

transparent system of government. That is why we

support the introduction of the human rights dimension

into all United Nations spheres of activity, including

peacekeeping operations. That is why we insist that those

accused of war crimes and crimes against humanity in the

various conflicts, from the Great Lakes to the former

Yugoslavia, must be brought to justice. The measures

taken in this regard deserve the support of all the

Members of our Organization.

We cannot allow our attention to be distracted from

the grave ongoing situations in many regions of our

world, where political upheaval, financial crisis and

natural disaster render human existence extremely

precarious and arduous. The United Nations cannot turn

its back on these pressing problems. We welcome the

attention rightly accorded to Africa by the Organization

and to the search for solutions to its difficulties. Our

world is shrinking every day. Therefore, a heightened

awareness of worldwide concerns and human solidarity is

vital. For what is at stake today is the future of our

civilization and the quality of life of future generations on

Earth. We must not miss the opportunity offered by the

end of the century to decide how to improve the lot of the

human race. The United Nations is the best place to

tackle, without delay, the crucial questions facing

mankind.