South Korea, 2009

First of all, let me extend

my sincere congratulations to the President, Mr. Ali

Treki, on his assumption of the presidency of the

General Assembly at its sixty-fourth session. I am

confident that under his able leadership, meaningful

progress will be made during this session. I also wish

to express my appreciation and support to Secretary-

General Ban Ki-moon for his tireless efforts in

reforming the United Nations.

I would first like to recall the special historic ties

between the Republic of Korea and the United Nations.

The contemporary history of the Republic of Korea

began with the United Nations. Under the auspices of

the United Nations, we held our first democratic

elections in 1948, and with the approval of the United

Nations we became the only legitimate Government on

the Korean Peninsula.

Indeed, the Republic of Korea is a country that

has been championed by the United Nations. Men from

16 United Nations Member States came to our support

when the Korean War broke out in 1950, only two

years after the founding of the Republic. Fallen heroes

of the Korean War from 11 countries are buried in the

only United Nations cemetery in the world, located in

Busan, the second largest city in Korea. To this day, the

cemetery serves as a place for the Korean people to

commemorate their noble sacrifices.

At the time of the Korean War, Korea was among

the least developed countries in the world, with a per

capita income of less than $50. But to everyone’s

surprise, Korea was able to achieve both

industrialization and democratization in a single

generation. Korea has transformed itself from an aid-

recipient country to a donor country.

While this achievement is the fruit of the Korean

people’s toils and tears, the invaluable support of the

United Nations has been a great source of strength. For

this reason, Korea observed United Nations Day even

before becoming a Member State in 1991. Building on

such achievements, Korea is now embarking on a path

of actively contributing to the international community.

That is the goal that a global Korea aims to achieve.

We wish to share our past development

experiences in order to help developing countries lift

themselves out of famine and poverty. While financial

support to developing countries is important, it is even

more important to find the right development model to

fit each country.

Today, the unprecedented financial crisis is

compounding the difficulties of developing countries.

As a member of the G-20 Troika , Korea is making the

utmost effort to strengthen the free trade system which

powers global economic growth, while also ensuring

that the voices of developing countries are heard.

The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) set

forth by the United Nations must be realized.

Development cooperation and humanitarian assistance

need to increase, especially for the developing

countries most severely affected by the economic

crisis. Korea will fulfil its pledge to triple the volume

of its 2008 official development assistance (ODA) by

2015. And in 2011, we will be hosting the Fourth High-

level Forum on Aid Effectiveness in Seoul. By

ensuring its success, we will enhance aid effectiveness

for the achievement of the MDGs by 2015 and

contribute to strengthening the global partnership for a

more comprehensive and effective development

cooperation.

Today, young Korean volunteers, under the name

of World Friends Korea, are doing volunteer work

throughout the world to put into practice the spirit of

love and giving. Currently, more than 3,000 volunteers

have been dispatched to some 40 countries, and we will

continue to send more volunteers, focusing on sharing

our areas of strength in information technology,

medicine and agricultural technologies as well as our

experience in governance development.

Among other efforts, Korea is also actively

engaging in promoting international peace and security

43 09-52179

and preventing terrorism through its participation in

peacekeeping operations. Currently, Koreans are

serving in 13 missions around the world. Since last

March, we have also been taking part in multinational

efforts to protect commercial vessels of all flags from

acts of piracy in the waters off the coast of Somalia.

Korea will faithfully fulfil its responsibilities as

expected by the international community, including in

the areas of preventing conflicts, countering terrorism

and responding to natural disasters.

Responding to climate change has become an

indispensable and urgent item on the agenda for all of

humanity. Climate change poses a common challenge

to all humankind and thus requires the concerted

efforts of developed and developing countries as well

as newly industrialized countries. For this reason, all

countries need to take part and be prepared in

addressing this challenge.

Korea greatly appreciates the role of the United

Nations in placing climate change high on the agenda

as an urgent priority and in galvanizing global efforts

to address this critical issue. At the Copenhagen

Conference, to be held in December 2009, the

international community is expected to deliver a very

important decision with great implications for the

future. At this very place yesterday, we reaffirmed our

commitment to making the Copenhagen Conference a

success.

Korea, while not included in annex I of the

United Nations Framework Convention on Climate

Change (UNFCCC), plans to make a voluntary

announcement before the end of this year stating its

midterm emissions-reduction target for 2020. Korea

has proposed the establishment of a registry of

nationally appropriate mitigation actions at the

secretariat of the UNFCCC, with a view to inviting

developing countries to voluntarily participate in

mitigation actions and to providing the international

support that they need. We hope that our proposals and

efforts will contribute positively to the attainment of

successful outcomes at Copenhagen.

To respond proactively to climate change, Korea

has adopted low carbon green growth as a guiding

vision for our nation and a strategy for further

development. We are currently working to enact a

framework law on green growth and establish a five-

year plan for green growth. Thereby, we will not only

transform our economic and industrial structures, but

also change our very lifestyles to become more future-

oriented. Under this plan, Korea will invest about 2 per

cent of its gross domestic product in the field of green

growth every year over the next five years. This is

twice the level recommended by the United Nations.

The underlying objective of the low carbon green

growth strategy is to promote sustainable development

by putting in place a positive cycle in which the

environment revives the economy and the economy

preserves the environment. This strategy is the most

effective way to address global climate change and to

overcome the economic crisis at the same time. By

pursuing a green growth policy that makes assertive

fiscal investments in areas of green growth, Korea is

preparing for the future, while also responding to the

immediate economic crisis.

The development of green technologies and

international cooperation are key factors in ensuring

success in responding to climate change. At the

expanded Group of Eight Summit last August, Korea

was designated as a leader in transformational

technology, including the area of smart grid

technology. Korea will strengthen global partnership

for cooperation on green technology and share the

ensuing benefits of this partnership with the rest of the

world.

While fossil energy is replaceable, water is not.

Water is the most important resource in our lives.

Accordingly, I wish to urge the President of the

General Assembly, world leaders and the Secretary-

General to take a special interest in the issues

concerning water, since it is also a crucial factor in

achieving the MDGs.

Today, close to half of the world’s population

face water-related problems, and most of the climate

change-related natural disasters, including floods,

drought and rising sea levels, are water-related

disasters. In the course of launching the East Asia

Climate Partnership, the Korean Government reviewed

water-related issues in Asia. We have come to the

conclusion that the provision of clean water and the

development of policies and infrastructure for

inundation and disaster prevention are the most

pressing issues at hand.

Korea possesses cutting-edge desalination

technology and has been improving its integrated water

resource management system. The restoration of

Cheong Gae Cheon in Seoul, which had been a

09-52179 44

concrete-covered dry stream for several decades, has

provided more than 10 million residents with a

pleasant recreation site and a clean stream. This was an

environmentally friendly greening project that helped

the city to overcome the heat island phenomenon, not

to mention rendering it more attractive at the same

time.

Such experiences and achievements have led us

to launch a four major rivers restoration project,

involving the four rivers that traverse our country from

north to south and from east to west. This project not

only provides a fundamental solution for securing

water and controlling flooding, but also enables us to

revive the ecosystem of these rivers.

The time has come for the international

community to establish a system of governance that

addresses water-related issues effectively. I am aware

that some 20 United Nations agencies have been

working in earnest on water issues. Issues concerning

water are complex, as they have a bearing on a wide

range of areas. To establish a more effective system of

international cooperation on water, I would like to

propose a specialized integrated water management

cooperation initiative.

Global peace and security form the cornerstone

for maintaining the stability and prosperity of all

mankind. Today, global peace is threatened by the

proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and their

means of delivery. To respond to these challenges,

strong determination and cooperation among all

countries are essential in strengthening the

international non-proliferation regime, including the

Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons.

Last October, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon put

forward a five-point proposal for nuclear disarmament.

And, in his speech in Prague in April, United States

President Barack Obama set out his vision for a world

free of nuclear weapons. Through sufficient

discussions, we anticipate that these initiatives, which

embody the hopes and desires of humanity, will

enhance a common understanding on nuclear

disarmament and non-proliferation.

In particular, a nuclear weapons-free Korean

Peninsula must be realized in order to attain peace in

North-East Asia and beyond. Denuclearization is a

prerequisite to laying a path towards genuine

reconciliation and unification in the Korean peninsula,

which is the only remaining divided region in the

world.

The Republic of Korea will play an active part in

the concerted international efforts to dismantle the

nuclear programmes of the Democratic People’s

Republic of Korea. We urge the Democratic People’s

Republic of Korea to join in these efforts and to return

to the Six-Party Talks forthwith and without

precondition.

The 1992 Joint Declaration on the

Denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, to which

both Koreas committed themselves, must be observed.

On that basis, the Republic of Korea will increase

dialogue and exchanges with the Democratic People’s

Republic of Korea, and strengthen cooperation with the

international community towards that country’s

development. I have proposed a grand bargain that

would involve dismantling the core components of the

Democratic People’s Republic of Korea’s nuclear

programme and the concomitant provision of security

assurances and intensified economic support within the

framework of the Six-Party Talks. We are currently

engaged in consultations with the concerned parties. I

want to make it clear that now is the time for the

Democratic People’s Republic of Korea to make the

decision to achieve genuine peace on the Korean

peninsula, and for its own sake as well.

We are confronted with diverse and complex

challenges that can be met only through international

cooperation. In meeting the expectations of the

international community, we hope that a renewed and

strengthened United Nations will assume a greater role.

To that end, it is important now more than ever for the

United Nations to demonstrate efficient and effective

management. We hope that the United Nations reform

initiatives in the various areas will yield concrete

results.

As a responsible State Member of the United

Nations, Korea will continue to render its close

cooperation so that the Organization can play a lead

role in bringing progress to all humankind and the

international community at large. Korea seeks to be a

friend to the world that is considerate of others and

contributes to global society.