Morocco, 2001

At

the outset, I wish to congratulate Mr. Han Seung-soo,

on behalf of the Kingdom of Morocco, on his election

to preside over the General Assembly at its fifty-sixth

session and to offer him our full support as he carries

out his important task. I also take this opportunity to

thank and congratulate his predecessor, Mr. Harri

Holkeri, on the effective and decisive manner in which

he conducted the work of the General Assembly at its

fifty-fifth session.

I also pay tribute to our Secretary-General,

Mr. Kofi Annan, for all his efforts in serving the

Organization and the international community as a

whole and I congratulate him sincerely on his re-

election to his post and on receiving the Nobel Peace

Prize for 2001.

We have all been struck and shaken by the

heinous terrorist acts that took place on 11 September

in the United States. They were an attack upon

thousands of innocent lives and a clear violation of all

the religious, humanitarian and cultural values that we

hold dear. Whatever our attitude towards and

evaluation of those events may be, international

relations have taken a different turn and a fateful

outlook since that day. Those events were epic in their

resonance and the extent of their repercussions is not

yet clear. One thing is clear, however: we will have to

face new challenges and new constraints. Morocco

reaffirms its full condemnation of these actions and

calls on all countries to mobilize their efforts to

eradicate terrorism at its very roots. Terrorism

represents a threat not merely to international peace

and security, but to the human race as a whole.

We believe that the United Nations is the most

appropriate institution for investigating the deepest

causes of terrorism, not least because of the resolutions

of the Security Council and the General Assembly

establishing a unified and comprehensive set of

guidelines on this wide-ranging subject. That is why

we call on all competent bodies to do everything

possible to fulfil their responsibilities for combating or

preventing terrorism. Morocco is a multi-ethnic State

founded on tolerance, equality and respect for

international law. It will contribute fully to the fight

against the scourge of terrorism and its dangers.

It is absolutely clear that the question of the

Middle East is one of the most serious regional

conflicts that the world has experienced in the past 50

years. Recently, we have seen a dangerous escalation in

the conflict that has taken hundreds of lives, including

those of many women and children, and undermined

the infrastructure and services of the occupied

territories of Palestine. Morocco has therefore

condemned the attacks and called for a lifting of the

siege of Palestinian towns and villages, where homes,

schools and fields have been bulldozed. The forced

colonization of Palestinian areas occupied since 1967

must come to an end. We must break the vicious cycle

of violence and reprisals, and return to the negotiating

table on the basis of the conclusions of the Mitchell

report and signed agreements between Israel and the

Palestinians.

Morocco feels that peace between the Arabs and

Israelis will have to entail an Israeli withdrawal from

all the land occupied since 1967 in Palestine and the

Syrian Golan Heights and that part of the territory of

Lebanon that remains under Israeli occupation. This

must take place on the basis of full compliance with

international law, in particular Security Council

resolutions 242 (1967) and 338 (1973) and the

decisions of the Madrid Conference, which called for

an exchange of land for peace. In this context, we

heard with satisfaction the statement made by President

Bush concerning the establishment of a Palestinian

State and the expression of the will of the United States

Administration to resume its active role in reviving the

peace process in order to achieve a just, lasting,

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comprehensive and genuine peace for all the peoples

and States of the region.

Morocco takes this opportunity to reiterate its

concern over the suffering of the brotherly people of

Iraq and the deterioration of the humanitarian situation

in that country. These are direct results of the economic

sanctions that have been imposed on that nation for the

past 10 years and more. Morocco hopes that the talks

under way between the United Nations and the

Government of Iraq will help towards the lifting of the

sanctions and put an end to the despair, pain and

suffering of the Iraqi people.

Morocco welcomes all the efforts to be made by

the United Nations and the Iraqi Government in the

dialogue, which will be held in confidence and

frankness, to find a just solution to the problem of

detainees and people missing since the Gulf War.

Morocco supports both the independence and

sovereignty of Kuwait and the sovereignty and

territorial integrity of Iraq itself.

The settlement of armed conflicts is also of

crucial importance to Africa, which, unfortunately, is

still being plagued by bloody but entirely contrived

confrontations. What is happening in Africa requires

our Organization to adopt a new and pragmatic

approach enabling us to maintain and strengthen peace

in Africa on the basis of respect for ceasefires and the

encouragement of dialogue between the parties, and

confidence-building. We need to provide for preventive

action, as stated by the Secretary-General at the

opening of this session of the General Assembly. We

need early warning mechanisms for areas of tension. If

we have such mechanisms, then we will be able to deal

with the deep causes of conflict, like injustice, poverty,

epidemics and refugees.

Morocco, which is eager to support peace and

security in Africa, welcomes all efforts undertaken in

this area by the United Nations and international and

regional organizations. Morocco, as always, has

responded this year to the United Nations request for

troops from the Moroccan Royal Armed Forces to

participate in the international peacekeeping operations

in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

The Kingdom of Morocco is determined to

expedite the process of constructing the Arab Mahgreb

Union as a strong and balanced regional organization

that will lead to permanent stability in the region and

strengthen economic, social and cultural institutions. It

would also enter into fruitful partnership with other

regional organizations, including the European Union.

Morocco remains convinced that such a Union is

inevitable and most useful.

The efforts to establish a Mahgreb organization,

however, depend upon finding an enduring, just and

final solution to the problem of the Sahara. The conflict

there is a stumbling block preventing the fulfilment of

the hopes of the peoples of the Mahgreb for good

relations, complementarity, stability, prosperity and

peace. It is these hopes that have guided us since

independence, especially since the historic conference

in Tangiers in 1958. Although some claim otherwise,

the settlement plan did not come to a halt because of

the huge number of challenges following the

identification process, but because of the huge

difficulties mentioned by the Secretary-General himself

in his last three reports to the Security Council.

Finally and again contrary to the claims of

some the Security Council, in resolution 1359

(2001), requested the four parties concerned in the

Sahara conflict to begin negotiations on the basis of the

framework agreement tabled by the Secretary-General

in the Security Council and known as the Baker plan.

In fact, the initiative of the Secretary-General,

enshrined in the draft framework agreement, is aimed

at a negotiated settlement of the conflict. As the

Secretary-General himself put it, this is a last chance to

reach a speedy and final settlement in the Sahara

conflict. Morocco accepted the draft framework

agreement as a basis for negotiation, and is ready to

continue cooperating with the Security Council, the

Secretary-General and his personal representative,

Mr. James Baker, in order to achieve a just, peaceful

and final settlement of the Sahara issue.

In keeping with international law and the Charter,

Morocco invites all other parties to provide the same

positive response to the appeal contained in Security

Council resolution 1359 (2001) to start negotiations in

order to achieve a political solution of this totally

contrived conflict.

The fact that Spain continues to occupy two

Moroccan cities, Ceuta and Melilla, and the islands off

the coast of Morocco that are near them, is a pure

anachronism and totally out of line with the values and

principles upheld by the international community.

Morocco, which would like to see a European-

Mediterranean community and dialogue between the

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two shores of the Mediterranean, considers that a good

relationship based on cooperation and good

neighbourliness with Spain is one of our basic strategic

goals. However, if we are to achieve that goal, Spain

will have to show an understanding of and good faith

towards Morocco's rightful claims on Ceuta and

Melilla and the islands off the coast of Morocco, so

that Moroccan sovereignty over this territory can be

exercised, with full guarantees for the economic, social

and cultural rights of the Spanish residents of these two

cities. There have been similar precedents, in places

like Hong Kong and Macao. Thus, we can refer to such

previous settlements that will be in the interests of both

Morocco and Spain.

Changes in the world economy make it essential

for Mediterranean countries to give their economic

relationships a strong impetus based on new concepts

and approaches. That is why Morocco has tabled very

ambitious projects with some of the other countries in

the eastern and southern Mediterranean regions.

There is the initiative of His Majesty King

Mohammed VI, known as the Agadir declaration of

8 May 2001, which provides for the enlargement of the

free-trade zone that now exists on the basis of

agreements between Morocco, Egypt, Jordan and

Tunisia. The ideas for this free-trade area to be

enlarged with the involvement of other Arab

Mediterranean States form a solid basis for the States

on the south and east coasts of the Mediterranean to

integrate in a framework of partnership and

cooperation, as under the Barcelona Declaration,

involving countries on the north shore of the

Mediterranean and the European Union in general.

International peace and security do not depend

only on responses to political challenges. They also

depend on social and economic problems. We

specifically cite problems of the environment and lack

of natural resources, where there are so many

challenges facing our planet, not least of which is

access to water and drinking water at a reasonable

price. My country had the honour of contributing to

this cause at the seventh Conference of the Parties to

the Climate Change Convention, which took place in

Marrakech between 29 October and 9 November 2001.

This Conference resulted in positive steps on the way

towards an international conference on sustainable

development to be held in Johannesburg next year.

With regard to the social issues that are of

concern to international organizations, the Kingdom of

Morocco considers that the United Nations should

increase its efforts to benefit children, because they are

the future of the human race. The Kingdom of

Morocco, upon the recommendation and leadership of

its sovereign, His Majesty Mohammed VI and their

Royal Highnesses Prince Moulay Rachid and Princess

Lalla Meriem, has spared no effort at the regional and

international levels to ensure the success of the Global

Movement for Children. Morocco has in this regard

organized three important conferences on children this

year aimed at mobilizing all possible resources

regional, Arab and African in order to make sure

that children enjoy their rights to health, education and

justice. Based on such convictions, Morocco is

determined to effectively contribute to the success of

the special session on children to be held next year.

For the second time in 10 years, our Organization

has received the Nobel Peace Prize, which is both an

honour and a burden. An honour for its success in

preventing wars and in settling disputes peacefully; and

a burden because it leads to rethinking the role of the

Organization so it can become an effective tool in

responding to the new challenges and so it can fulfil its

goals of building a world in which peace and security

prevail and in which all peoples of the world can

harvest the fruits of technological and scientific

advances. Let us therefore rise to the level of such

challenges and engage in a true partnership and solid

visionary outlook so we can achieve these noble

objectives.