Portugal, 2011

I am taking

the floor for the first time, and I would like to reiterate

our thanks to the President for his dynamism and stress

the importance of the role of his country, Qatar, in

international diplomacy. I would also like to thank

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and warmly

congratulate him on his new mandate. He can rest

assured of Portugal’s full and continued support.

Recognizing the presence in our midst of the

representatives of the Republic of South Sudan, I want

to express our best wishes to the authorities of that new

State in building a peaceful and prosperous future.

Allow me also to reiterate our warmest

congratulations to the delegation of the Libyan

National Transitional Council. The Libyan people have

displayed exemplary courage and tenacity in defending

their freedom and right to democratically chart their

own destiny without fear. The new Libya can continue

to count on Portugal.

Ten years have passed since the terrorist attacks

of 11 September 2001. I want to pay tribute, here in

New York, to the people and authorities of the United

States, and to praise their courage and determination in

facing and overcoming this tragedy. Upholding our

spirit of solidarity, we remain fully engaged in fighting

the scourge of terrorism and in reaching an agreement

on a United Nations global counter-terrorism treaty as

soon as possible.

57 11-51360

Camões, the Portuguese poet of the sixteenth-

century maritime discoveries, said that “the world is

made of change, assuming always new qualities”.

Identifying the world of change and its new qualities is

an ongoing challenge that we have to face and respond

to. We live in a historic time of change and multiple

and intertwined challenges, qualities and opportunities.

In our ever-changing world, we now face a

massive challenge that requires an urgent collective

answer: the relaunching of growth and employment.

The economic and financial crisis, which started in the

last decade, underscores the reality of interdependence

at the global level. Overcoming this crisis in a

sustainable and structured way is a challenge that we

must meet collectively.

To that end, we must correct macroeconomic

inequalities, strengthen monetary security and

rebalance world trade. Economic growth is a multiplier

for employment at the national and regional levels, and

depends for the most part on economic coordination on

a global scale. Governments, international

organizations, the private sector and social partners

ought to cooperate in a wide-ranging effort to restore

the confidence of our citizens and companies.

Prosperity is more than ever an objective that, if jointly

shared, can be reached by us all.

In the context of the preparations of the report of

the Secretary-General on global economic governance

to be submitted to the General Assembly, Portugal has

advocated greater coordination and complementarity

between the United Nations, the Group of 20 and

relevant regional groupings. We have done so because

we believe it indispensable to promote the involvement

of emerging economies, the private sector and civil

society and to enhance their respective roles in global

economic governance.

The European Union is preparing the foundations

of its economic Government, which is part of the

European integration process. The economic pillar of

the economic and monetary union is also making good

progress. That is good news not only for Europe, but

also for the rest of the world. Portugal is committed to

this endeavour and to meeting the obligations

undertaken in its economic adjustment programme.

The Portuguese Government and people are

making unprecedented efforts to meet their

commitments to the International Monetary Fund and

the European Union. As has been widely recognized,

we are moving quickly and resolutely to consolidate

our public debt and to implement structural reforms

designed to modernize the economy and promote

economic growth and employment. We view the crisis

as an opportunity to adapt our economic model and to

strengthen the Portuguese economy.

Last year we asked the General Assembly to

show its trust in us with regard to our election to the

Security Council. This year I want to express our

gratitude for the confidence placed in my country, and

to reiterate Portugal’s firm commitment and attachment

to the values and objectives of the United Nations, as

well as to the principles that motivated our candidacy.

We consider the institutional complementarity between

the General Assembly and the Security Council to be

of the utmost importance, and we believe that the

Council should be more effective and more

representative. In the context of United Nations reform,

we need change; we need to see Brazil and India given

permanent seats on the Council, and Africa should also

be included in this enlargement.

In this ever-changing world, the indispensable

role of the United Nations is reflected in the tireless

and courageous work of thousands of its staff members

and collaborators. Men and women in military and

police uniforms play a fundamental role in peace

operations to protect civilians, prevent the escalation of

conflict and create the necessary space and time for

political negotiations to bear fruit.

The Portuguese are deeply proud of participating

in this common effort. Our presence in the field

represents one of our main contributions to the

functioning of an effective multilateralism. Portuguese

Blue Helmets are deployed in Timor-Leste and

Lebanon, and make up one of the largest European

contingents in United Nations peacekeeping

operations. They are highly professional military and

police officers who make their country and the United

Nations proud.

The year 2011 started not with winter but with

spring. The world, as the poet would say, has found a

new quality, an opportunity for change created by the

courage of the Arab peoples who have come together to

make their voices heard loud and clear, defending,

sometimes at the cost of their own lives, the universal

values and aspirations that embody our community of

nations. Democracy and human rights are not relative

11-51360 58

values dependent on geography, ethnicity, faith or

economic development.

Libya is opening a new chapter in its history — a

new era of change and reconstruction. The meeting

held here earlier this week confirmed the commitment

of the international community, led by the United

Nations, to supporting the new authorities as they lay

the groundwork for a democratic, stable, united and

prosperous Libya. This was the welcome spirit that

inspired the Security Council’s unanimous adoption of

resolution 2009 (2011), establishing the United Nations

Support Mission in Libya. We are determined, both in

the Council and in the Committee established pursuant

to resolution 1970 (2011) concerning the Libyan Arab

Jamahiriya, which we chair, to continue contributing to

the successful transition in Libya.

We would also like to see success in the Middle

East peace process. Sixty years have passed and there

is no time left for advances and retreats, the status quo,

or unilateral actions that are prejudicial to negotiations.

The recipes, principles, concrete formulas and road

maps are all well known. We do not have to reinvent

the wheel. Peace may be difficult, but it is within the

reach of Palestine, which already embodies all the

characteristics of a State, to which the European Union

has greatly contributed. Peace in this time of change is

also within Israel’s reach in the framework of a stable

relationship and, above all else, security.

The recognition of a new State naturally falls to

the responsibility of each State Member of this

Organization. Portugal has backed the concept that the

European Union, through its High Representative, in

the context of the Quartet and in coordination with

other members of the European Union in the Security

Council, has a constructive and decisive role to play in

this process, which is at a crossroads. Europe can speak

with one voice to build bridges and facilitate

compromise. It should be clear that, just as the creation

of a Palestinian State is a promise that must be

honoured, so, too, the security of Israel must be firmly

guaranteed by the international community.

The President of the Palestinian Authority

decided to present to the Security Council a request for

Palestine’s admission to the United Nations as a State.

This step must be the result and logical outcome of

negotiations. We therefore understand the request to be

an expression of interest that will be fulfilled with the

signing of a peace agreement ending one of the longest

conflicts of our era.

Until then, we are open to supporting an

enhanced status for Palestine in the United Nations.

This would be an important step towards the creation

of a new State, and represent an additional commitment

by the Palestinians to the negotiation process,

reinforcing the confidence needed for a definitive and

global peace agreement to be reached. Portugal has a

unique sensibility in its dialogue with the Middle East.

We will use that sensibility and our close relationships

to assist in finding the only result that is of interest to

us all: peace.

The groundbreaking transformation we are

witnessing in the Arab world has created new

opportunities, first for the peoples of the region, but

also for countries such as Portugal that have a deep and

historic affinity with the southern shore of the

Mediterranean and the Gulf region. We are building a

common future that involves a new European

neighbourhood policy and a renewed union for the

Mediterranean. Our ambition is for a new economic

and commercial relationship, with reinforced

exchanges in the social field and a new democratic

solidarity, shared in a spirit of mutual respect and

advantage.

Portugal went through its democratic transition in

1974. We know how important the support and

encouragement of external partners were to us. We are

ready and available to share that experience now as a

sign of our support and solidarity. An important

element of that experience was the contribution and

full participation, on an equal footing, of Portuguese

women to the post-revolutionary political process.

We should remain united in our support for the

transition processes and reforms under way in the

Middle East and North Africa, and respond in a

coordinated manner to the needs identified by our

partners. I naturally think of Egypt and Tunisia, which

are preparing to undertake free and democratic

elections. I am confident that these two countries will

know how to meet expectations.

We note with profound regret, however, that

many innocent people in the region are paying too high

a price for their legitimate aspirations. The

disintegration of the situation in Syria is unacceptable

and unsustainable. We welcome the action taken by the

Human Rights Council, but we believe that the

59 11-51360

Security Council should also take a position in this

regard. And we urge the Syrian Government to end the

violence and the repression of the legitimate

democratic aspirations of its people.

The democratic transition under way in the

Middle East only makes the impasse on the Iranian

nuclear issue more evident. It is imperative that Tehran

understand that it is time to change and to cooperate

and that this is in its best interests.

In the face of current global challenges, we need

a strong and efficient United Nations that is able to

cooperate closely with other regional and international

organizations, whose scope of action has deepened and

broadened over recent years. Such cooperation can be

deepened with the European Union, which only

recently gained a new legitimacy in the United Nations

with the adoption of resolution 65/276, which we

welcome. But such cooperation should also be

developed with other organizations, such as the African

Union, the League of Arab States and the Community

of Portuguese-speaking Countries. That community of

eight nations on four continents, united by a language

spoken by more than 240 million people and counting,

has a strong vocation to strengthen multilateralism in

the service of peace, security and democracy.

I would also like to commend the efforts of the

Alliance of Civilizations, a United Nations initiative

that, under the leadership of a former Portuguese Head

of State, Jorge Sampaio, has contributed greatly to

improving relations among societies and communities

of different backgrounds and to promoting a culture of

dialogue, tolerance and mutual understanding at the

global level.

The United Nations is us all of us. We all have

the responsibility and duty to preserve global peace

and security and to defend human rights in accordance

with the Charter. The promotion and protection of

human rights, as I have already mentioned, is one of

the priorities of Portugal’s foreign policy, in line with

the other values expressed in the United Nations

Charter. We take an active position in this field,

denouncing situations where civil and political rights

are being violated and recognizing the social

aspirations of the neediest and most vulnerable

populations of our planet, as reflected in our initiatives

on economic, social and cultural rights.

I would also like to emphasize the importance we

attach to the promotion and protection of the rights of

the child, as well as the human rights of women,

including their participation in political decision-

making. That position is the outgrowth of a broad

consensus about and great interest in human rights in

our country. It is no coincidence that the United

Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and two

other important United Nations human rights

officials — the Special Representative of the

Secretary-General for Violence against Children and

the Special Rapporteur on the human right to safe

drinking water and sanitation, both of them women —

are Portuguese.

It is in that spirit that we decided to present our

candidature for the Human Rights Council for the

biennium 2015-2017. We participated actively in the

creation of that organ, of which we have not yet been a

member. We are convinced that our participation in that

body would serve as a bulwark in the defence of our

shared principles.

Allow me to conclude by reiterating and

emphasizing Portugal’s commitment to international

law and to the peaceful resolution of conflicts, values

that guide our actions in and out of the Security

Council, the other organs of the United Nations,

international organizations and our bilateral relations.