Lithuania, 1993

Allow me to congratulate

Mr. Insanally on his election as President of the forty-eighth

session of the General Assembly and to wish him much

success in heading this august body.

It is a great honour to speak in this historic Hall, in

which, as nowhere else, all the victories and concerns of the

world, all its problems and opportunities, are concentrated.

The voice of Lithuania, which had been muffled for half a

century, can now be heard loud and clear throughout the

world. Lithuania, with a long tradition of statehood dating

back to the thirteenth century, regained its independence

through the determination of our people, certain fundamental

changes in the world and international support.

Our State is consolidating democracy. It respects

human and minority rights, and strives to ensure social

progress and an improved standard of living founded on free

market principles. By participating in the activities of the

United Nations and other international organizations, we

hope to contribute to a better world.

We have an opportunity to voice our concerns and to

obtain support not only at the United Nations, but also at the

Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe (CSCE),

the Council of Europe, the North Atlantic Cooperation

Council and other international organizations. In

establishing friendly relations with other countries, Lithuania

has felt the supportive and increasing influence of

international organizations in the process of democratization

and in the creation of a free market economy. We trust that

the following international Conferences sponsored by the

United Nations - the International Conference on Population

and Development, the World Summit for Social

Development and the Fourth World Conference on Women

- will help us find lasting solutions to these concerns.

Since parliamentary elections held last autumn the

Government in Lithuania has changed. Our chosen course

in foreign policy, however, in the tradition of democratic

States, has not altered. Our foreign policy priorities remain

close cooperation with the other Baltic States of Latvia and

Estonia, as well as with the countries of northern Europe,

and full integration into Europe’s political, economic,

security and cultural sphere.

Lithuania is seeking in particular friendly and mutually

beneficial relations with neighbouring Russia, Poland and

Belarus. Lithuania supports President Boris Yeltsin’s efforts

to stabilize the political situation in his country and to

maintain the course of reform. We are essentially in full

agreement with the position of other democratic States

regarding recent events in Russia.

Like its other neighbours, Lithuania is seeking its place

on the new map of Europe, and we hope for closer

cooperation between the countries of the Baltic Sea region.

An important aspect of such cooperation, and of Lithuania’s

relations with Russia, is our relationship with the

Kaliningrad region. The gradual demilitarization of that

region, the development of a free trade zone there and the

increased influence that international organizations,

especially the European Community, have on its future are

in Lithuania’s best interest and, we believe, in the interests

of other States in the area.

In the long term, the shores of the Baltic Sea should be

free of armaments. Measures should be taken now to

increase trust and security. Our chosen path - a gradual

coming together of the nations and States of the Baltic

region and good relations between neighbours - should lead

us to the European Community and contribute to the

consolidation of security on the old continent.

14 General Assembly - Forty-eighth session

The shortest road from Paris, Berlin and Warsaw to

Moscow and St. Petersburg leads through Lithuania. For

many centuries, however, the vehicles of war of attacking or

retreating armies rolled across these crossroads, bringing

with them many misfortunes and tragedies. Today, however,

we hope that convoys of goods will roll across our territory.

We believe, and are working to ensure, that our complex

geopolitical situation in a new Europe - a Europe no longer

torn apart by antagonistic ideologies - should become a

source of new opportunities, benefits and prosperity. We are

inspired by the example of countries such as Denmark,

Switzerland, Austria and others, which have successfully

taken advantage of similar situations and the opportunities

offered by a more unified Europe.

Having restored its independence, Lithuania has once

again become a participant in the processes of a more

unified Europe. Lithuania is receptive to cooperation with

the West and the East, and sees future opportunities in such

cooperation.

Despite the great distances that separate us, relations

with the United States have been, and will continue to be,

especially significant for Lithuania. We are grateful to the

United States for resolutely adhering to the policy of

non-recognition of the illegal incorporation of Lithuania into

the Soviet Union. A sizeable emigré community, which

found refuge in the new world, links our two countries. We

value close United States cooperation with Europe, including

that with the structures of the CSCE and the North Atlantic

Treaty Organization, and we sincerely wish every success for

efforts to stabilize the situation in a changing world and to

encourage the progress of post-Communist countries toward

democracy and a free market.

We turn to the United Nations, asking it to safeguard

the interests of small States. The future of a more integrated

world lies in democracy and in the individuality of free

nations. The international community should be prepared to

defend, with force if necessary, the sovereignty of small -

even the smallest - nations. During his recent visit to

Lithuania, Pope John Paul II stressed that

"the interests of large States should never force small

States to become satellites of a foreign Power".

In spite of the conflicts that now plague the world, it is

fortunate that some good news also reaches this house in

New York. We welcome the peace processes in the Middle

East and the positive trends in South Africa, Cambodia,

Haiti and El Salvador.

On 31 August, in compliance with General Assembly

resolution 47/21 of 1992, the last remaining units of the

Russian army were withdrawn from Lithuania. I should like

to take this opportunity to thank representatives from all the

countries, large and small, that supported our legitimate goal.

I should also like to sincerely thank the United Nations and

Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali, who monitored the

fulfilment of the obligation to withdraw that army, and who,

during the most critical moments, sent his envoy,

Ambassador Tommy Koh, to Vilnius, and Mr. Stoyan

Ganev, President of the forty-seventh session of the General

Assembly, who visited Lithuania and the other Baltic States

in July to discuss the army’s withdrawal. We were glad

when, having made it just in time for the ceremony marking

the departure of the last Russian troops, Ambassador Koh

said:

"My work in Lithuania is done, although some work is

waiting for me in the other Baltic States."

When a large State withdraws its army from a small

one without issuing any ultimatums or setting conditions,

this signals a new era for the world in which, thanks to

international efforts in accordance with the principles of the

United Nations Charter, even the most sensitive problems

can be solved peacefully. Despite several disagreements that

arose at the last minute, calm and balanced diplomacy

allowed Lithuania and Russia to reach agreement on this

fundamental question.

On more than one occasion I had the pleasure of

speaking openly and sincerely with President Boris Yeltsin

of the Russian Federation. A fresh page is being turned in

the relations between our two countries. Of course, the issue

of compensation for damage inflicted during the years of

occupation is still on the agenda for negotiations between

Lithuania and Russia.

The Russian army still remains in Estonia and Latvia.

We believe that with the help of the United Nations this

international problem will be resolved successfully and, at

the same time, the stability of the region will be bolstered.

Until people become fully aware of the possibilities that

democracy and freedom provide these ideas will remain just

that - ideas. After an initial wave of euphoria, disillusion

may follow. One can already notice this in some post-

communist countries. This causes me, as President of

Lithuania, great concern. I do not think that the world

community can afford to remain indifferent to this problem.

Forty-eighth session - 28 September l993 15

A democratic and civic State, based on the rule of law,

in which people are not segregated according to their

nationality or religious and political beliefs, is being

established in Lithuania. There is no tension in our country

between Lithuanians and ethnic minorities. We are

reforming and stabilizing the Lithuanian economy; we are

searching for ways to provide at least minimal social welfare

guarantees; as much as possible we are trying to clear the

way for private initiative. We cannot, however, change our

economy overnight. The Lithuanian people are patient and

industrious, working hard for their well-being and future.

However, disillusion with democracy and the free market

would be disastrous.

Therefore I wish to speak very frankly to this body:

even though we feel the concern and support of the world

community, that is not enough. It appears that even the

most authoritative international organizations lack the

coordinated action and initiative for truly effective

assistance. We occasionally feel isolationist tendencies on

the part of the most industrialized nations; having attained a

high standard of living, they attempt to dissociate themselves

from the countries of Eastern and Central Europe. This

greatly complicates the future of these countries as they

attempt to solve by themselves the difficult economic,

political, psychological, cultural and historical problems that

they have inherited from the recent past. In most

post-communist countries there still prevails a nostalgia for

the past, when authoritarian government guaranteed people

their minimum needs, albeit at the expense of their freedom.

Without timely and joint efforts, this nostalgia for a

pseudo-socialistic past could cause the development of

certain countries to follow a course that would be

unacceptable to all of us.

For several years now, both in Europe and North

America, the idea of a new "Marshall Plan" has been in the

air, but it has in no way materialized. Yet investments in

the countries of Central and Eastern Europe - and I have in

mind not only financial investments - would really be

investments in all of our futures. Greater and more effective

assistance for the democratic forces in post-communist States

would help decisively to rid the world of the remnants of

totalitarianism and dictatorship that have so tormented

mankind in the twentieth century.

With the dissolution of two hostile blocs, the world has

become a safer place. However, that does not solve all the

security problems that mankind now faces. Indeed, the

number of such problems has increased. There is now a

greater possibility of localized conflicts: they have flared up

in precisely those places where dictatorships that suppressed

nations have fallen. Such horrendous practices as "ethnic

cleansing" must be severely condemned. The model of an

absolutely closed nation-State is no longer a viable one for

the solution of separate national problems.

The Lithuanian people respect the struggle of nations

for their freedom, but they condemn atrocities which occur

under the guise of a noble cause. The tragedy of what was

formerly Yugoslavia is truly horrible. We approve of the

means that the United Nations uses to uphold peace and

security, but too often resolution of the structure of a State

and border issues are left to warring countries to decide by

force of arms. In the future the United Nations should

pursue even more actively preventive diplomacy to stop

conflicts before they erupt. Every illegal and violent act

requires a response, not appeasement.

The Secretary-General’s "An Agenda for Peace" is a

welcome plan that provides a solid foundation. What should

the new role of the United Nations be in an ever-changing

world? As I see it, in future the Organization must not only

be a guarantor of security, but also an instigator of economic

development and a global defender of human and ethnic

minority rights. At the Vienna Conference on Human

Rights, we spoke out in favour of establishing the post of

high commissioner for human rights. At this time, ideas

about the sovereignty of States, the self-determination of

nations, national security and the maintenance and

enforcement of peace are changing rapidly. The individual

problems of individual States are becoming global in scope,

especially in the areas of environmental protection, refugees,

narcotics and organized crime. For precisely that reason,

cooperation among neighbouring States is growing in

importance.

Regional interaction is broadening and the role of

international organizations is being extended. We approve

of regional structures and arrangements that help to

guarantee peace and stability in their respective regions.

However, their activities should be linked with United

Nations supervision, so that large and powerful nations do

not transform such regional structures into instruments of

domination. I am referring to failed States. They need

international assistance that would not force upon them the

protectorate of another State or provide conditions for

assimilating them into some sort of sphere of influence, but

would respect and protect their sovereignty and

independence. Small countries have a right to rely on a firm

guarantee of security. The United Nations could and should

become that guarantee. In the long-term future, as

democracy and cooperation become firmly established

16 General Assembly - Forty-eighth session

throughout our planet, the United Nations would perhaps

assume certain functions of a world government.

I reiterate my support for Lithuania’s proposal, which

was outlined here at the United Nations exactly one year

ago, that new permanent members could be added to the

Security Council. For the United Nations to achieve its

objective, it is important to continue and even expand the

system reforms that are now being put into effect to increase

cost-efficiency. We welcome the initiatives by several

countries, among them the United States, to establish more

dependable internal and external inspection machinery. The

suggested creation of an office of inspector-general could

help to assure Member States that the mandates that we have

provided for various programmes are put to the most

effective use possible.

I should like to state clearly that the current financial

crisis of the United Nations is of great concern to Lithuania.

We are not indifferent to it. Lithuania is firmly resolved to

fulfil its obligations to the Organization and it has

demonstrated its readiness to do so. Lithuania could support

the activities of the Organization even more strongly if for

three years now we had not been forced repeatedly to

discuss the difficult problem of assessments with regard to

the United Nations budget. Our delegation, along with other

countries that have found themselves in a similar situation,

has on more than one occasion suggested ways in which this

problem could be solved. I wish to emphasize that the

position of Lithuania remains unchanged. The scale of

assessments must be determined on the basis of statistical

data provided by each State, in accordance with its capacity

to pay and, most important, abiding by the principle that the

same methodology for calculating assessments must be

applied to all States equally. In seeking to ensure these

principles and finally to resolve this problem, we are

prepared to exchange ideas with, and we hope for the

cooperation of, all delegations.

I reiterate my support for Lithuania’s proposal, made

here at the United Nations exactly a year ago, that new

permanent members could be added to the Security Council.

Lithuania not only supports peace-keeping efforts, but would

like eventually to become a contributor to military and

civilian operations.

When Lithuania became a member of the Council of

Europe I suggested a meeting of all the Heads of State of

post-communist countries. This would not be an attempt to

create some sort of new bloc or to console each other about

our economic hardships. Such a conference, under the

auspices of the Council of Europe or perhaps some other

organization, could provide an opportunity to discuss in a

down-to-earth way how to recover more quickly from the

maladies of national egoism and ethnocentricity that may be

unavoidable in young States and fragile democracies. All of

us in post-communist countries should, as quickly as

possible, learn how to cooperate among ourselves and with

the rest of the world and strive to be better full-fledged

members of our planet’s democratic community. Other

countries have learned the art of cooperation over decades.

We have not had that much time. It is very important that

we succeed through a joint effort in making this period as

brief as possible.

We welcome the initiative by some Members of the

United Nations to establish a forum for new and restored

democracies. It is our sincere hope that this movement,

begun in the Philippines, will help bring developing

countries and countries in transition closer together, so that

they may reach common approaches down the path to

democracy and a free market.

The spirit of the approaching twenty-first century

already fills this Hall. At the turn of the third millennium

mankind is faced with critical global problems that threaten

its very existence: ecological, social and spiritual problems

and the nuclear threat, which has not yet been abolished.

National and regional problems seem to pale in comparison,

but I do not think that that is really the case. Every step

towards progress, even if taken in a small country or with

regard to improved relations between two States, diminishes

the possibility of global conflict, and vice versa. I should

therefore like to believe that the withdrawal of the Russian

military from Lithuania was an achievement for more than

just two countries. The entire world became somewhat

better, somewhat more just, and the threat that hung over it

was abated.

I think that there will be more and more such successes.

The United Nations system contributes, and will continue to

contribute, significantly to their attainment.