Jordan, 1997

It gives me great pleasure to begin my statement by

congratulating you, Mr. President, and the Government and

people of your friendly country on your election as

President of the fifty-second session of the General

Assembly. I am quite confident that you will conduct the

proceedings of this session efficiently and competently,

given your renowned skill and experience in both

diplomatic and international affairs.

I would also like to express our utmost appreciation

and gratitude to your predecessor, Mr. Razali Ismail, for his

successful and distinguished management of the affairs of

the fifty-first session which has just ended.

It is also my pleasure heartily to congratulate the

Secretary-General, Mr. Kofi Annan, on his election to the

office of Secretary-General of the United Nations at the

beginning of this year. I wish him success and wish our

Organization progress and prosperity under his leadership.

Since the start of the peace process in the Middle

East, Jordan has carefully upheld the purposes and terms

of reference of this process, which began in Madrid in

1991 with the participation of all the concerned parties.

Since recovering its territory and water under the peace

treaty signed with Israel in October 1994, Jordan has

maintained its pivotal role in the process and continued its

efforts with the other parties to achieve the desired goals

of establishing a just, comprehensive and lasting peace

which will be accepted, preserved and protected by future

generations. We fully believe that the durability of peace

is closely tied to the need for it to be just and

comprehensive. We understand comprehensiveness in its

broadest sense, namely, all parties to the conflict without

exception must be involved and all aspects of the conflict

must be dealt with, whether its inherent causes or those

which have evolved and been aggravated over the years

and during the various phases of the conflict.

Jordan has always emphasized its adherence to

Security Council resolutions, particularly resolutions 242

(1967), 338 (1973) and 425 (1978), as the basic terms of

reference for the peace process, in addition to the

principle of handing back occupied Arab territory in

return for peace. Based on this and on relevant United

Nations resolutions, legitimacy and justice, we call for the

resumption of negotiations on the Syrian-Israeli track and

the Lebanese-Israeli track. We have also made and

continue to make our best efforts to achieve the

implementation of the transitional phase agreements and

go on to the final status negotiations on the Palestinian

track. We do this out of our firm conviction that the

peace process will not attain comprehensiveness nor

justice unless the Israelis and Palestinians arrive at a just

solution for the question of Palestine, including the right

of self-determination for the Palestinian people and the

establishment of their independent State on their national

territory.

Jerusalem, the city of peace, which is the seat of the

Holy Places of the three heavenly religions, and to which

the hearts of believers the world over turn, deserves our

utmost attention, with a view to reaching a satisfactory

solution that ensures to all freedom of access to the Holy

Places, preserves the holy character of the city and keeps

it as a symbol of peace among peoples across the world.

We affirm that East Jerusalem is an occupied Palestinian

Arab city to which Security Council resolution 242 (1967)

applies, as it applies to all occupied Arab territories.

If the security problem is a major obstacle to peace,

confidence-building and peacemaking are the best means

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to achieve individual and regional security as well as

stability in the Middle East. There is no peace without

security and no security without peace.

Accordingly, we would like from this international

rostrum to call upon Israel — the State with which we have

concluded a peace treaty — to do everything possible to

build and consolidate confidence with the peoples of the

region in general and the Palestinian people in particular. A

first step toward that would be to abandon, in its dealing

with security matters, the language of force, the language

of siege and restrictions on the livelihood of the Palestinian

people. At the same time, Israel must abide by the Fourth

Geneva Convention by abandoning the settlement policy

and the policy of creating a new fait accompli on

Palestinian territory, including its attempts to change the

demographic structure and the religious, historical and

cultural character of the occupied territories, including

Jerusalem. We also call upon Israel to implement the

agreements concluded with the Palestinian side in letter and

spirit as soon as possible, for delay and siege will create a

state of despair in which it becomes impossible to control

extremism and prevent it from wreaking havoc on security

and stability. Extremism undoubtedly finds in these policies

a fertile ground for the achievement of its anti-peace

objectives.

On the other hand, in order to build confidence with

the Governments and peoples of the region, Israel has to

abandon the production and development of weapons of

mass destruction, particularly nuclear weapons. All the

Middle East States, except Israel, have become parties to

the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons

(NPT). The whole world recognizes that the current

situation in the region is indeed a unique situation

unparalleled in other regions of the world. A single State

has a monopoly of nuclear capabilities, while the other

States of the region are bound by treaties and international

law.

Because the presence of nuclear weapons is a major

obstacle preventing the peace process from reaching its

goals, the ideal solution for this problem would be to

remove this obstacle by establishing in the Middle East a

zone free from all weapons of mass destruction.

In this context, permit me to announce the decision of

the Government of Jordan to accede to the Convention on

the Prohibition of the Development, Production, Stockpiling

and Use of Chemical Weapons and on Their Destruction.

This decision was motivated by Jordan’s belief that

weapons, including all weapons of mass destruction, do not

establish security nor restore stability to the Middle East

region or to any region in the world unless there is full

confidence among its Governments and peoples.

The Iraqis no longer see any ray of hope of ending

their continuous suffering caused by the embargo that has

been imposed on them for the last seven years. Iraqis

have suffered enough and tasted enough bitter pain. It is

high time that our international Organization moved to

alleviate their suffering and dress their wounds, so that

they may recover their livelihood and contribute anew to

the development and prosperity of the region.

In issuing this serious and sincere call for the lifting

of the embargo imposed on the people of Iraq, we would

like to reaffirm that it is necessary to preserve Iraq’s

sovereignty and territorial integrity. We also call upon the

Iraqi Government fully to implement all Security Council

resolutions and to do its best to reach a solution for the

problem of Kuwaiti prisoners and missing persons, to

pave the way for the reestablishment of normal and

friendly relations among the States of the region on the

basis of mutual respect for the sovereignty and territorial

integrity of all States.

Just as the Iraqi people are suffering from the

blockade, so are the Libyan people. Since the sanctions

were imposed on Libya, the Libyan people have been

suffering from a ban on flights. We therefore call for a

peaceful settlement of the problem arising from the

Lockerbie tragedy within a framework of international

law and legitimacy.

We call upon Iran to enter into serious negotiations

with the sisterly United Arab Emirates in order to reach

a peaceful solution, ensuring the return of the three

occupied islands, Abu Musa and the Greater and the

Lesser Tunb, to the United Arab Emirates, which would

effectively contribute to the establishment of peace,

security and stability in the Gulf region.

Since war began in the former Yugoslavia, Jordan

has joined its voice to those of all the States that called

for an end to the suffering of the people of the nascent

Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina, suffering that

shocked the conscience of the whole world and moved

the international community, which had held high hopes

following the conclusion of the Dayton Peace Agreement.

We now reaffirm that peace, security and stability in

Bosnia — and, indeed, throughout the Balkans — depend

largely on the full and honest implementation of that

Agreement. A strong international commitment is also

7

essential for making the peace process an irreversible

reality. The international community must do what is

incumbent upon it in this regard, including providing

effective assistance for reconstruction in Bosnia and

Herzegovina and ensuring the effective management of

public enterprises as provided in the Dayton Agreement.

This would have an important impact on the preservation of

Bosnia’s unity, sovereignty and territorial integrity.

The problem of Palestinian refugees, the resolution of

which has been left to the final status negotiations, is one

of the most intricate problems faced by the Middle East

region. However, the international community, regrettably,

does not accord this problem the attention that it deserves.

The financial crisis which grips the United Nations Relief

and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East

(UNRWA) has been escalating year after year without a

solution being found. UNRWA has been forced this year to

announce austerity measures entailing a large reduction in

services offered to the Palestinian refugees, including the

immediate cessation of the scholarships funded from the

regular budget; the elimination of all medical compensation

and referral to hospitals during the last two months of this

year; the freezing of emergency cash assistance and shelter

rehabilitation from the regular budget; a freeze on the

creation of new posts, international as well as local; the

suspension of recruitment of international staff; the

suspension of appointments to local posts, with the

exception of those considered essential for the continuation

of operations; and a plan to consider collecting fees from

students in UNRWA’s areas of operation.

Although all those measures have been put on hold

following pledges by certain donor countries during their

meeting with UNRWA and host countries, held recently in

Amman, to increase their voluntary contributions by an

amount sufficient to cover this year’s deficit, which

amounts to $20 million, the danger of cutting services

remains as long as no final solution has been found, taking

into consideration the need to meet the requirements of

natural population growth among refugees and inflation

rates.

Since the beginning of the refugee tragedy more than

five decades ago, Jordan has borne the heaviest burden of

all the host countries. The number of refugees in Jordan is

1.5 million, 20 per cent of whom live in refugee camps

serviced by UNRWA and the rest of whom are scattered

throughout Jordanian cities and villages. Out of its sense of

humanitarian responsibility, the Government of Jordan has

provided all services needed by the refugees, including

infrastructure, education, health and welfare services and

financial support, in addition to public security and civil

defence services. Thus, Jordan, despite its scarce

resources and limited means, spends approximately $340

million annually on services provided to refugees, an

amount almost equal to UNRWA’s total budget. That is

not all. The Government of Jordan has also developed

this year a strategic plan, a so-called social security

package designed to develop infrastructure for refugee

camps and disadvantaged areas, to provide sustainable

development and to reduce poverty. The total share of

refugee camps in this plan comes to nearly $240 million,

which will be allocated to the rehabilitation of water

systems, solid waste treatment, sewerage systems, water

purification plants, road and electricity projects and the

provision of essential public services.

While Jordan affirms that improving the standards of

living for the Palestinian refugees does not diminish their

political right to return and compensation, as provided for

in General Assembly resolution 194 (III) of 1948, it

reaffirms that the support of UNRWA is a collective

responsibility of the international community. It also

stresses the legal, political and humanitarian dimensions

of the refugee question and considers that any failure to

discharge the humanitarian responsibility for this question

would negatively reflect on political responsibility.

My country therefore affirms from this rostrum the

need to take serious and sincere action and to make every

effort to continue the services provided by UNRWA to

Palestinian refugees until a lasting, just and

comprehensive solution to their problem is reached. We

also call for the abandonment of any attempts to abolish

UNRWA, suspend its operations, reduce the services it

provides to refugees or turn its mandates and

responsibilities over to any other agency, for that would

have a negative impact on the political and legal

dimensions of the refugee question. It would also have a

negative impact on the peace process and stability in the

region.

We call for compliance with the letter and spirit of

General Assembly resolution 194 (III) of 1948 on the

question of refugees, as well as with Security Council

resolution 237 (1967), which calls for facilitation of the

return of displaced persons. We call upon donor countries

to fulfil their commitments to UNRWA and increase their

contributions to an extent commensurate with the natural

increase in the numbers of refugees. We also call upon

the international community in general, and potential

donors in particular, to give due attention to this matter.

8

The refugee problem reminds us of international

humanitarian law in general and the need for its full

application in particular. This subject has always been one

of interest to Jordan. Since 1981, Jordan has been

submitting a draft resolution to the Third Committee

entitled, “A new international humanitarian order”, which

calls for respect for the full application of international

humanitarian law. My Government has also amended

Jordanian laws to give priority and immense importance to

the application of this law. I would recall here the appeal

by His Royal Highness the Crown Prince of Jordan to work

hard with the international community to bring into

existence a new international humanitarian order.

The report of the Secretary-General entitled,

“Renewing the United Nations: A Programme for Reform”,

which he submitted last July, constitutes a good basis for

the reform process and a studied plan for the future,

embodying a serious and real desire for change for the

better.

The report reviews the main strategic functions of the

Organization and provides for each of them specific

proposals charting the way and making Member States real

partners in achieving an Organization better prepared to

deal with humanitarian and political crises; based on greater

efficiency; qualified to play a more vital role in the areas

specified by the Charter; and made imperative by the

changing security, economic, social and political

circumstances of this world. Jordan calls for opening

membership of the United Nations to all peace-loving

States, in accordance with Article 4 (1) of the Charter, in

order to achieve the universality of the Charter.

The Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, while fully

appreciating the good efforts of the Secretary-General in

preparing his plan, stresses the fact that the purpose of

reform is not confined to cutting costs or dealing with

unwieldiness. It goes far beyond that to reactivate the role

of the Organization to discharge its responsibilities and

carry out its functions with a high degree of efficiency,

transparency and credibility. We agree with the Secretary-

General that reform is not an isolated event, but a

continuing process that does not stop at the implementation

of the proposals contained in the report. It extends to

encompassing the general direction in which the

Organization will evolve as a result of the implementation

of the proposals.

The coming century will witness deeper and quicker

global changes. The United Nations must be prepared to

deal with these changes in the five major areas

corresponding to the main mandates of the United

Nations: peace and security, economic and social affairs,

development cooperation, humanitarian affairs and human

rights.

In the area of international peace and security, we

find that the multiplicity and diversity of armed conflicts

in the post-cold-war era have made the Security Council

a hub of international efforts to establish peace and

security throughout the world. This makes it very

important to restructure and reform the Council. The

Security Council, established after the Second World War,

does not reflect the balance of power prevalent in today’s

world. It has become necessary to review its structure and

rules of procedure. The Working Group on the

restructuring and reform of the Security Council has made

tireless efforts over the past few years to achieve this

purpose.

There are many useful and feasible concepts that

have appeared in the context of reform. What has been

lacking so far is the collective political will to translate

these concepts into reality. In this regard, Jordan feels that

any new restructuring of the Security Council must take

into account the representation of the developing countries

throughout the globe. We feel that the Arab Group, in

view of its major and effective role, is entitled to a

permanent seat on the Security Council.

There is no doubt that the United Nations

peacekeeping operations will continue to be one of the

most important activities of the Organization in enhancing

international peace and security. Driven by its belief in

this noble aim, Jordan has, on the direction of its

Hashemite leadership, participated for many years in these

activities to the extent that, at one point, its contribution

ranked second among all the troop-contributing countries.

I must, however, point to the financial difficulties

faced by some troop-contributing States, including Jordan,

as a result of the financial crisis gripping the

Organization, because reimbursements have not been

made in a timely manner. I appeal from this rostrum to

all Member States to pay their assessed contributions to

the Organization without condition, in full and on time.

Moreover, Jordan has participated in the United

Nations stand-by arrangements. It was the first country to

sign a memorandum of understanding with the United

Nations under this system. It also participated effectively

in crystallizing the idea of establishing a rapidly

deployable mission headquarters to contribute to

9

enhancing the Organization’s ability to respond rapidly to

crises as they occur.

As for disarmament and arms control, the progress

witnessed by the world during the past few years is really

encouraging. The Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of

Nuclear Weapons has been extended indefinitely and is now

approaching universality. Last year, the Comprehensive

Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty was concluded, in addition to

other significant achievements in the reduction of the

nuclear-weapon arsenals of the United States and the

Russian Federation. All eyes are now set on the Conference

on Disarmament in the hopes of seeing it crown its

achievements with a treaty banning the production of

fissionable materials used in the manufacture of nuclear

weapons and another providing full security assurances to

non-nuclear-weapon States against the use or threat of use

of nuclear weapons.

Since development in the economic and social fields

is one of the primary objectives of the United Nations,

serious attention must be directed towards reform of United

Nations organs functioning in these two spheres, foremost

among them the Economic and Social Council. This reform

should enhance international cooperation in setting forth

effective national policies aimed at advancing growth in all

Member States with no exceptions.

The most important characteristics of the world

economy, as we stand on the threshold of the twenty-first

century, are two: first is the global transition to market

economy, and second is the rapid technical development of

communication and information technology, making

knowledge the most important factor of production. The

new world economy is also characterized by intense

competitiveness, speed, the intensive use of information and

increasing globalization.

We must, however, consider how we can find the

means to avoid the negative effects of globalization,

represented by the marginalization of some developing

countries, because of their declining exports and an increase

in their external indebtedness, and of social groups in these

countries as a result of the inequitable distribution of

income. Globalization is not concerned with the problems

of distribution, but with being a prime mover of economic

growth in general.

In view of this situation, the industrialized countries

are called upon to increase their official development

assistance to the developing world, to find comprehensive

solutions to the problem of external indebtedness, to

integrate the developing countries into the world’s free-

trade system and to improve these countries’ terms of

trade.

Jordan, as a developing country, has suffered

economic problems since the end of the 1980s, which

were aggravated by the Gulf crisis and the Gulf War early

in this decade. By pursuing structural adjustment policies,

however, with the assistance of the International Monetary

Fund, Jordan was able to achieve very good results that

exceeded expectations. The budget deficit was

substantially reduced, as was the size of external debt. All

macroeconomic indicators have improved.

Substantial progress has been achieved in the area of

privatization and the reform of internal financial

regulations and the banking sector, which gave the private

sector a chance to participate effectively. Jordan has gone

ahead on the way to development. It has initialled a

partnership agreement with Europe and is now taking the

preparatory measures needed to join the World Trade

Organization (WTO). To that end, we are doing our best

to adjust our economy and prepare it for full integration

in the global free-trade system.

In association with our Arab brethren and other

countries in the Middle East, we are making tremendous

efforts to widen the area of cooperation, trade and

investment in the region. We have succeeded in attracting

substantial investments in the stock exchange and other

industrial and tourist projects. The Government of Jordan

is working hard to remove the remaining restrictions

which limited the inflow of regional and global

investments, including lifting all restrictions on foreign

currencies.

The world recognizes the historical responsibility

that we assume towards future generations to preserve a

sound global environment, in compliance with the

principles adopted by the Earth Summit. In spite of its

scarce resources, Jordan is committed to applying the Rio

principles and is working hard to make its contribution as

a partner with other countries of the world in sustainable

development.

Although we are committed, as a developing

country, to doing what is required of us by virtue of this

partnership, we, along with other developing countries,

have noticed regression and procrastination by developed

countries in discharging their obligations under this

partnership. We have also felt that the nineteenth special

session of the General Assembly was held to consecrate

10

this regression in the discharge of obligations, rather than

to enhance them and to cooperate in carrying out those not

yet implemented.

In conclusion, if the establishment of peace, security

and stability in this world is one of the noble purposes of

our international Organization, we must provide the solid

ground for that, which is to reduce poverty, control

diseases, illiteracy and unemployment and work towards the

creation of a clean environment and sustainable

development for future generations.