Hungary, 1999

Allow

me first to congratulate the President most sincerely on

his election to the presidency of the fifty—fourth session

of the General Assembly. I take this opportunity to assure

him of the full support of the Hungarian delegation in the

exercise of his responsibilities as the head of our

Assembly.

Humanity has reached the threshold of the

twenty—first century. Therefore, no Member State can

remain indifferent to the way in which we discharge our

tasks at this session, held as the twentieth century ends.

One of the most urgent tasks of States and

international organizations at the turn of the century is to

end the ever—growing disparities between the various

regions of the world. In this regard, special attention

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should be paid to the African continent, which is fraught

with various crises and conflicts.

The persistence of poverty, still one of our major

challenges, is exacerbated by the process of globalization.

Inequality is a major source of the emergence and

proliferation of all kinds of extremism and of intolerance,

with its concomitant violence, which threaten the very

foundations of contemporary civilization.

At the dawn of this new century, we are called upon

to exploit further the advantages of globalization, a salient

feature of our era, while being aware of the attendant risks.

All of us in the international community must become

aware of the paramount importance of dealing adequately

with global problems, such as the growing gap between the

levels of economic development; environmental

degradation; the dangers posed by organized crime;

uncontrolled migration; disease and so on.

In this context, we must take note of the relationship

between globalization and regional integration. Integration

can adjust itself to the process of globalization, draw the

lessons of the process's inevitable consequences, absorb its

related risks and assist the struggle against transboundary

scourges, thereby becoming the engine of the universal

system of economic cooperation.

Most conflicts today are not between States, but within

States, essentially as major ethnic or religious

confrontations that too often lead to humanitarian crises of

unprecedented dimensions. Entire ethnic groups and

communities and national and linguistic minorities are

falling victim to “ethnic cleansing”. Dictatorial regimes do

not hesitate to resort to nationalist extremism and

xenophobia, and to unspeakable violence, exterminating

hundreds of thousands of people, terrorizing others in their

ancestral lands and expelling millions of people from their

homes. We cannot remain indifferent to such acts.

A great debate is therefore going on in the

international arena, as demonstrated in this very Hall, about

how the world should react to tragic situations involving

massive and flagrant violations of human rights at a time

when, for all kinds of reasons, our world Organization finds

itself paralysed. We are convinced that, given the terrible

upheavals we are witnessing throughout the world, the

international community cannot fail to respond effectively

to this major present-day challenge.

The traditional concept of the principle of national

sovereignty is undergoing a progressive evolution in inter-

State relations and within multilateral organizations.

Because of developments in the area of international law,

national sovereignty is becoming less acceptable as a

justification for Governments in cases of serious

violations within their countries of universally recognized

international legal standards. As the Secretary-General

rightly said, in our era of globalization the collective

interest represents national interests. Fortunately, today

the principles of good governance are prevailing and

flourishing in an ever-growing number of countries.

In the immediate vicinity of my country, a regime

based on extreme nationalism has sparked four wars in

the last decade. The international community, albeit after

hesitation and delay, took the necessary measures. In the

case of Kosovo, it did so with great resolve and

consistency. In the wake of the action undertaken to

defend universally recognized values, and thanks to the

presence of international military forces and the United

Nations mission, a fragile peace reigns today in that

martyred region, and considerable, increasingly effective

efforts are being deployed there with a view to establish

peace and stability.

In the light of the events of the past decade in this

part of Europe, let us state clearly and unambiguously

that it would be pointless to expect democratization in the

Federal Republic of Yugoslavia if things remain

unchanged in Belgrade. However, a new Serbia, emerging

from tragedy and destruction, free of the burdens of the

past, would no doubt be able to rely on the understanding

and effective assistance of the international community.

In this context, we would underscore the importance of

the implementation of the judgments of the International

Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia. The Stability Pact,

devised with a view to responding to the needs of the

countries of South-Eastern Europe, will play a primary

role in the rehabilitation and development of the region.

It will also contribute to promoting respect for democratic

standards and human rights by proposing, inter alia,

institutional arrangements aimed at improving relations

between majority and minority communities within the

region.

The international community is again being put to

the test in the case of East Timor. Hungary shares the

profound concerns of all nations in the wake of recent

events, which represent a brutal violation of the right of

the people of that country to self-determination. The

atrocities committed against the civilian population of

East Timor represent a serious blow to human rights.

Those responsible for these acts will be brought to justice.

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We welcome the decision of the Security Council

authorizing the deployment to East Timor of a multinational

force to restore peace and security on the island as well as

the enactment of all necessary measures for the

implementation of that force's mandate.

The tragic events in Kosovo and East Timor only

confirm the universality of human rights and the importance

of a timely resolution of conflict by appropriate means.

They also demonstrate the value of harmonious cooperation

between the United Nations, regional organizations and

particular groups of States, a cooperation that is becoming

increasingly important in dealing with the diverse and

varied conflicts that are erupting — and, unfortunately, will

continue to erupt — throughout the world. Hungary is

prepared, with its own means, to take part in this great

enterprise of safeguarding and restoring international peace

and security.

Among the phenomena that threaten peace and

security throughout the world, the question of the

proliferation of weapons of mass destruction will require

sustained attention in future. Regional conflicts having

nuclear ramifications only aggravate the destabilizing effect

of certain crisis areas.

Against this backdrop, the pillars of the global non-

proliferation system — such as the Treaty on the Non-

Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, whose Review

Conference will be one of the major events on next year's

diplomatic calendar, or the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-

Ban Treaty (CTBT) — take on additional significance. We

regret that the CTBT has not yet been able to exert its

favourable influence on the process of nuclear disarmament

and non-proliferation. We would like here to underscore the

responsibility of the 44 States whose ratification is needed

for this key instrument to enter into force. My country, as

one of the States in question, has already ratified the Treaty

and thereby discharged its obligations. The international

conference to be convened next October in Vienna is likely

to play an important role in speeding up the process leading

to the entry into force of this instrument. We would be

gratified if those States that have not yet acceded to the

Treaty participated in that conference and decided, in the

near future, to sign and ratify the Treaty.

We would underscore also the need to commence, as

soon as possible, negotiations on a fissile material cut-off

treaty. The entry into force of the Ottawa Convention on

anti-personnel mines could contribute tangibly to resolving

the humanitarian, economic and social problems stemming

from the massive and irresponsible use of these mines. In

that connection, we note with satisfaction the outcome of

the Maputo meeting. Hungary was one of the first

countries to join the Ottawa process and recently

completed the destruction of its stocks of anti-personnel

mines. We hope that other countries in the region will

follow our example, as this could contribute to the

elimination of all of these lethal devices in the crisis area

along our southern border.

We would also note the importance of speeding up

negotiations to conclude a verification protocol annexed

to the Biological Weapons Convention. We believe that

these negotiations could be completed sometime between

now and next summer. As Chairman of the ad hoc Group

mandated to draft a verification protocol, Hungary is

prepared to contribute to any political initiative that could

promote its implementation.

I cannot fail to mention the establishment of an

International Criminal Court — a deeply significant

undertaking. In our view, the Court is an indispensable

institution if we are to take action against crimes against

humanity and war crimes. The Court will not only bring

to justice people who have been accused of serious

crimes, but will also act as a deterrent, thereby

contributing to the maintenance of regional and

international peace and security. We hope that the number

of signatures and ratifications of the Rome Statute will

continue to grow and that disputed questions relating to

the universal acceptance of the Court will be resolved as

soon as possible.

Acts of terrorism in recent weeks sadly remind us of

the great challenge involved in combating this

phenomenon. They underscore the importance of making

new efforts and the imperative need for concerted

international action in this area. We hope that at this

session of the General Assembly we will be able to go

beyond the universal introduction and complete

implementation of international agreements relating to

terrorism that are already in force, and move forward the

work of finalizing international agreements relating to

nuclear terrorism and the prevention of financing for

terrorism.

The authority and prestige of the United Nations

depend to a large extent on the capacity of its Member

States to reform the Organization. In the light of the

experience of recent years, it is very clear that reform is

a long-term process and will be probably consist of

various interconnected stages. The achievements thus far,

though insufficient in themselves, are valuable elements

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that must be built upon if we are to go further along this

long road leading to the transformation and revitalization of

the world Organization, including the reform of the Security

Council. What is certain is that if we are to succeed, all

Member States, without exception, will have to get to work

with a greater sense of commitment. We expect the

millennium summit, to be held next year, to give the

necessary impetus to the dynamic continuation of United

Nations reform.

As has been repeated on many occasions, our

paramount task today is to make this unique Organization,

the United Nations, capable of preserving the values of our

civilization in a twenty-first century that promises to be

turbulent. At the dawn of the year 2000, which also marks

the thousandth anniversary of the foundation of our State,

it is up to all of us — Governments, the business world and

civil society — to make our planet a decent and habitable

place for future generations.