Moldova, 1997

Allow me at the outset to congratulate the

President wholeheartedly on his election to the presidency

of the fifty-second session of the General Assembly of the

United Nations. I am especially pleased at the election of

a distinguished representative of Ukraine, a country which

is a neighbour and friend of the Republic of Moldova, to

this important post. After declaring their independence six

years ago, the Republic of Moldova and Ukraine worked to

create prosperous and democratic societies. I am convinced

that the President, with his great skills and with the support

of all the Member States, will be able to discharge with

distinction this lofty mission which has been entrusted to

him during this crucial period for the United Nations.

I would also like to express my appreciation for the

contribution made by Mr. Razali Ismail in his capacity as

President during the previous session. I wish also to express

our gratitude to the Secretary-General, Mr. Kofi Annan, for

his efforts to reform this global Organization.

It is my honour and privilege to address the General

Assembly for the first time, and I would like to convey a

message of friendship and solidarity from the people of the

Republic of Moldova.

My country, which is very much devoted to the ideals

of the Charter of the United Nations, strongly supports the

reform process of the United Nations. That is why we have

taken note with interest of the reform programme proposed

by the Secretary-General. This package of proposals is

designed to achieve a reform in order to deal better with

the challenges of the coming millennium. We have

welcomed such initiatives and we support them.

It is clear that the reform of the United Nations can

move forward only if the financial crisis of the

Organization is settled. There is no doubt that Member

States must fulfil their financial obligations on time and in

full. At the same time, it is indeed necessary to reform the

system for the payment of contributions in order to achieve

a fair assessment, one that better takes into account the

principle of capacity to pay of each country. For our part,

we will spare no effort to honour our financial obligations.

The Republic of Moldova fully supports the efforts of

the United Nations to maintain international peace and

security. In the five years since our country was admitted

to membership in the United Nations, we have co-

sponsored several resolutions in this important field of

activity.

In the field of disarmament, last year the delegation

of the Republic of Moldova likewise voted in favour of

the adoption of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban

Treaty. Consequently, I am pleased to report that on 24

September I signed this important Treaty on the complete

ban on nuclear testing. We are convinced that the

implementation of this Treaty can enhance international

security.

The Republic of Moldova also supports the efforts

of the international community to limit the use of and

ultimately to eliminate certain conventional weapons

which have injurious and indiscriminate effects, including

anti-personnel landmines. We are ready to contribute to

the efforts being made to obtain these objectives.

The positive developments which have characterized

the activity of the Organization in recent years have

brought about certain concepts and the diversification of

mechanisms for action in the field of international peace

and security. Some of these mechanisms could be

implemented soon. Perhaps I need not stress here the

usefulness and benefits of the United Nations standby

forces, which all Member States welcome. Yet, I wish to

emphasize that the Republic of Moldova would like to

contribute to this system and that last year our

Government expressed its readiness to take part in the

United Nations standby forces. That is why my country

intends to provide to the United Nations Secretariat as

soon as possible information concerning contingents and

equipment which are available for this purpose.

Moreover, the Republic of Moldova is considering

the possibility of taking part in United Nations

peacekeeping operations. We believe that our country has

already accumulated a certain amount of experience in

this field through its participation in a variety of

international manoeuvres.

Militant separatism has become one of the main

threats to international peace and security after the cold

war period. Totalitarian regimes have engendered ethnic

conflicts and frictions in certain countries of Central and

Eastern Europe. Some conflicts are rooted in age-old

animosities. Others, as is the case in the conflict involving

the Republic of Moldova which broke out five years ago,

are inspired by and supported from the outside, in order

to recreate a form of by-gone domination.

This is the reason why I would like to emphasize the

fact that the recent separatist trends which have appeared

in the newly independent States who are Members of the

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United Nations have nothing in common with the legitimate

aspiration of peoples to achieve self-determination. In our

view, attempts to construe the right to self-determination as

the right of an ethnic or national community to establish its

own government and to splinter off are real dangers to

international and regional security. Moreover, the right to

self-determination is treated in the Charter of the United

Nations as a principle which cannot serve to justify the

violation of the principle of the independence and territorial

integrity of a State. Nevertheless, it is imperative to define

this principle of self-determination more precisely in order

to avoid any subjective interpretations.

It is quite clear that the stability of small and large

States hinges on a number of factors, such as the rule of

law, respect for human rights, democracy and economic

development. Our Government is therefore striving to

establish an equitable social system based on the respect for

the dignity of the human person. And yet, the process of

economic reform, with all its inherent problems, is retarding

the achievement of these objectives.

The high social costs of transition are felt throughout

society. Despite all of these difficulties, we are nevertheless

determined to continue the process of economic reform. We

rely on the support of developed countries, the United

Nations and other international agencies and organizations

during this decisive moment in the reform of our country.

I take this opportunity to express the gratitude of the people

and Government of my country to those States and

international institutions which have supported the

strengthening of democracy and market-economy

mechanisms in our Republic. Furthermore, I note with

satisfaction that my country has made progress in building

its civil society and in establishing democratic institutions.

Nevertheless, it is a paradox that under such

favourable conditions we have not succeeded in achieving

a final settlement of the conflict which broke out in the

summer of 1992. Yet, the authorities of the Republic of

Moldova endeavour to find pragmatic solutions in order to

maintain the integrity of the country.

Following negotiations with the leaders of the

separatist region, and with the mediation of the Russian

Federation, Ukraine and the mission of the Organization for

Security and Cooperation in Europe, an agreement was

reached between the parties involved with regard to the

general principles of the settlement of the dispute. A

memorandum was likewise signed on the normalization of

relations between the authorities of the Republic of

Moldova and the Transdnestrian region.

At the same time, the Presidents of Ukraine and the

Russian Federation and the Chairman-in-Office of the

Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe

(OSCE) signed a joint Declaration emphasizing the

importance of the parties' commitment in the

memorandum to conduct their relations in the context of

the existing borders of the country by granting special

status to the eastern region of the Republic of Moldova.

In view of the provisions of the memorandum, an ad

hoc commission was established to negotiate the legal

status of the Transdniester region. To our regret,

negotiations in the Commission are deadlocked because

of the intransigent and highly politicized position taken by

the Transdniester side. Therefore, no mutually acceptable

solution has been found on the key elements for resolving

the dispute, namely, the legal definition of the status of

Transdniester and the powers of the parties during the

transitional period. In opposing the provisions of the

accord, the Transdniester side insists on a settlement

which runs counter to the Constitution of the Republic of

Moldova and is prejudicial to the principle of sovereignty

over the territory of the country. Despite the commitments

they assumed by signing the memorandum, the separatist

leaders have, exceeding their power, enacted certain

unconstitutional laws establishing a so-called customs

border in Transdniester and a “commission for the

delimitation of the State border in the region”. In

addition, a series of unlawful acts have been committed

in the area controlled by the peacekeeping forces.

I must therefore emphasize that it is vital to ensure

more active mediation by the Russian Federation, Ukraine

and the OSCE mission, as well as stronger action by the

international community, led by the United Nations. I

should like to say the conflict in Transdniester could

destabilize the political and military situation, and

threatens subregional and regional peace and security. We

know that the separatist regime in Transdniester is

supported by a powerful paramilitary force having the

most modern weapons, obtained from the equipment

available to forces of the Russian Federation illegally

stationed on our territory. At the same time, the leaders

of those opposed to constitutional authority are trying to

obtain weapons belonging to the Russian military forces,

while opposing the complete withdrawal of the troops of

the Russian Federation and their weapons. It must

therefore be pointed out that disarming and breaking up

the Transdniester paramilitary groups is as important as

the withdrawal of Russian troops.

Both those processes must be monitored by

international observers. We have reached the conclusion

that an immediate and effective solution to this conflict

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requires more active involvement by international bodies as

well as the countries of the region and even the major

Powers. We are awaiting such involvement, for our recent

experience demonstrates that all attempts made by the

authorities of the Republic of Moldova to settle the conflict

in the Transdniester region through dialogue and

negotiations have failed. The interests of the separatist

leaders are subordinate to other interests, entirely political,

going beyond our national context.

There is a danger that the conflict will continue

indefinitely. We believe that the problem of the eastern

region of the Republic of Moldova could already have been

resolved by peaceful means and in a civilized fashion if the

separatist regime did not receive strong support from

outside. More often than not such support has been given

deliberately, for reasons of geopolitical interests, but

sometimes the separatists in the eastern region of the

Republic of Moldova have received unintentional, indirect

support through the unlawful trade activities of companies

and firms in developed countries. We hope that the

Governments of countries where certain undertakings are

giving political and technical support to the separatist

regime in Transdniester will put an end to such activity.

These actions can no longer be tolerated for they constitute

ipso facto direct interference in the internal affairs of the

Republic of Moldova.

The illegal stationing of military contingents of the

Russian Federation on the territory of my country

continues. The deadline set by the 1994 Moldovan-Russian

Agreement on the withdrawal of Russian troops from the

territory is 21 October 1997. The fact that for three years

the State Duma, unlike our Parliament, has failed to ratify

the Agreement cannot be excused or explained. We have

been assured on several occasions, at the highest level, that

the question of the withdrawal of troops will be settled, and

it is regrettable that this problem remains unresolved.

We understand, of course, that the failure to ratify the

1994 Accord by the State Duma entails legal complications

for the Russian Government. However, we believe that the

time has come to find a solution to the question of troop

withdrawal. In accordance with the principles of

international law, no foreign army can be stationed on the

territory of another State without its free consent. In

addition, international organizations, particularly the OSCE,

strongly support the unconditional, immediate, orderly and

complete withdrawal of Russian troops from the territory of

the Republic of Moldova. Finally, Russia's admission to the

Council of Europe as a fully fledged member, was

conditional on the timely withdrawal of its troops from the

territory of the Republic of Moldova.

We believe that the political forces in the State

Duma opposing troop withdrawal will also be sensitive to

the legal commitments of the Russian Federation. We

hope that the removal of armaments and the withdrawal

of troops from the territory of the Republic of Moldova

will be speeded up and completed as soon as possible.

This course would certainly serve the interests of both

countries and would properly reflect the high level

reached in the development of relations between the

Republic of Moldova and the Russian Federation.

In conclusion, I express the fervent hope that the

work of the fifty-second session of the General Assembly

will take place in a climate of solidarity, with a realistic

and constructive approach to the complex problems facing

the world at the end of this century. My delegation, like

those of other Member States, is ready to make its

contribution to achieve the purposes of the United

Nations.