Portugal, 2012

I congratulate

Mr. Vuk Jeremić on his election as President of the

General Assembly at its sixty-seventh session. His

election represents one more important step in an

already illustrious career, as well as a historic moment

for Serbia, one that recognizes its courageous efforts

to overcome a difficult recent past and to proceed with

determination towards European integration.

Allow me also to express a word of recognition

to Ambassador Nassir Abdulaziz Al-Nasser for his

successful leadership of the Assembly in a particularly

demanding year. We also offer praise and support to

our Secretary-General for his commendable work, in

particular for his efforts made to promote peace in a

time of great challenges.

As Portugal is three months away from the

conclusion of our mandate in the Security Council,

to which we were elected by a significant majority of

the Member States present in this Hall, we consider

it appropriate to present an assessment to the General

Assembly. We fulfilled our mandate with both rigour

and transparency, always seeking to strengthen the

credibility and efficiency of the principal organ

entrusted with the protection of international peace

and security. We were guided by the same principles

that have always oriented our foreign policy and which

have merited the trust of the Assembly, namely, the

defence of the primacy of international law, the search

for effective multilateralism and the central role of the

United Nations in the international architecture.

With equal coherence and firm resolve we have

defended the promotion of human rights, the role of

women, the protection of civilians, the strengthening

of action defending children against violence and the

protection of children in the context of armed conflict.

Sustainable development, the fight against poverty,

food security and the particularly devastating effects

of climate change on small island developing States,

which threaten their very existence, remain, for

Portugal, fundamental pillars for our action within the

United Nations.

With equal perseverance, we have sought to

strengthen the role of the Security Council in the fight

against new challenges to international peace and

security, such as organized crime; the proliferation of

illicit trafficking, terrorism and pandemics; the Council’s

capacity to prevent conflicts and to bring mediation

into play; and its efforts to improve coordination with

regional and subregional organizations. We have played

an active role, and continue to do so, in the collective

efforts to overcome crises, such as those that emerged

in Côte d’Ivoire, Libya and Yemen, or the current

challenges in Syria, Guinea-Bissau and Mali.

Our actions have always been driven by openness

to dialogue and a constructive and balanced attitude,

embodying our vocation to build bridges and generate

consensus without abdicating our values and principles.

We hope to have lived up to the high expectations and

trust placed in us.

As Chair of the Informal Working Group on

Documentation and Other Procedural Questions, we

sought to improve the internal working methods of

the Council and its communication with the General

Assembly, with a view to making it more effective and

open and more in harmony with our times. We will

present a report to the Assembly on the work undertaken

on that issue.

It is important, however, to recognize that the

credibility of the Security Council is also underpinned

by a need for its composition to reflect the current

geopolitical reality, one that is quite different from the

dynamic that was in place in 1945. It is increasingly

difficult for us, as it is for many others, to see that the

increasing role of Brazil and India in the international

scene has not yet been acknowledged with permanent

seats on the Security Council, or that Africa is the only

continent without a permanent seat on the Council.

The Security Council continues to confront

serious obstacles. The number of victims in Syria

is exponentially increasing day by day. We remain

impotent witnesses before a true humanitarian

catastrophe and a generalized systematic violation of

the most basic rights of the Syrian people. In addition,

the catastrophe could have been avoided had the Syrian

Government not chosen military force and brutal

repression in response to the legitimate protests by its

people, which systematically excluded any possibility

of a politically negotiated outcome to the crisis. However, there is no alternative to a political

solution, one that supports the legitimate aspirations of

the Syrian people and allows for a democratic transition

driven by the Syrians themselves, one in which they see

their wishes reflected. Increased militarization of the

conflict will undoubtedly lead to even more suffering for

the civilian population, threaten the territorial integrity

of Syria and increase the risks of destabilization for its

neighbours and indeed for the region as a whole.

The appointment of Mr. Lakhdar Brahimi, a

diplomat whom we greatly respect, as the Joint Special

Representative of the United Nations and the League of

Arab States for Syria should be seen as a new opportunity

for the parties to revisit their options, cease the violence

and seriously engage in a process of political transition.

For the Joint Special Representative’s mission to be a

success, the Security Council will finally have to exert

joint, continued and effective pressure on all parties

and most certainly on the Syrian authorities, who bear

primary responsibility for the current situation.

The impasse in finding a lasting solution to the

Israeli-Arab conflict is also of great concern and an

increasingly urgent issue in the light of the recent

developments in the Middle East and North Africa

and the fight of the people of those regions for liberty,

democracy and dignity. There will be no lasting peace,

no stability and no security in the Middle East without

a solution to the question of Palestine.

We understand and share Israel’s legitimate

security aspirations. Yet we also understand and share

the frustration of the Palestinian people, for whom

an independent Palestinian State is not simply an

inalienable right, but also a straightforward question of

justice. Only a comprehensive deal that is negotiated

directly by the parties on the basis of United Nations

resolutions and internationally recognized parameters

and which solves the pending questions and is dedicated

to the two-State solution of Israel and Palestine living

side by side in peace will meet both the security

concerns laid down by Israel and the aspirations of

the Palestinian people for independence, liberty and

dignity. We appeal to the Israelis and Palestinians to

quickly restart direct negotiations.

Another regional issue still at an impasse and of

serious concern in the Middle East is the question of

a nuclear Iran. We regret the absence of any positive

developments on the issue despite the significant

diplomatic efforts under way and the application of mechanisms of international pressure. The onus of the

situation is on Tehran.

In Africa, we are faced with a grave situation in

the Sahel, particularly in Mali, which threatens the

whole region and could spread throughout Western

Africa, putting both stability and development at risk

in a number of countries. As a result of a tapestry of

historical, economic and social influences, we are

witnessing an exponential growth in terrorism, with

increasing links to organized transnational crime,

drugs and other sorts of illicit trafficking. In that regard,

the international community should be more active.

Accordingly, we support the outcome of the recent

High-level Meeting on the Sahel, which contributed to

the creation of an integrated international strategy for

the region.

It is against that grave regional background that

the crisis in Guinea-Bissau is unfolding. The military

coup of 12 April interrupted a democratic electoral

process, violating the principles defended by the

United Nations, as was clearly recognized in Security

Council resolution 2048 (2012). It is imperative that the

constitutional order in Guinea-Bissau be restored. That

requires the appointment of an inclusive Government

that includes the African Party for the Independence

of Guinea and Cape Verde, which is the party holding

the majority in the National Assembly; permission for

the legitimate leaders to return without restrictions on

their civil and political rights; and the organization of

free and credible elections. Any and all solutions to the

present crisis will have to respect international legality

and the constitutional order of Guinea-Bissau, and must

be translated into an internal, inclusive, and credible

political process capable of creating national stability.

To that end, coordinated action by the international

community — the United Nations, the African Union,

the Economic Community of West African States, the

Community of Portuguese-speaking Countries (CPLP)

and the European Union — is essential. Portugal is

fully engaged and available to work with all interested

parties in the process.

It is inconceivable that, in the twenty-first century,

democratically elected African leaders are pushed aside

by force and are made to live outside their countries. It is

up to all of us to defend the principles of the Charter and

to apply, without any ambiguities, the principle of zero

tolerance in such situations. In that context, I note the

increasingly relevant role of the African Union, which has been working in close coordination with the United

Nations for the promotion and protection of peace and

security on the African continent. I also take advantage

of this opportunity to congratulate Mrs. Dlamini-Zuma

on her election as President of the Commission of the

African Union. That also represents a milestone in the

strengthening of the role of women in Africa, which we

also welcome with great satisfaction.

Allow me also to refer to a successful case and a

good example, Timor-Leste. It is a successful example

thanks, first of all, to the Timorese themselves, but also

owing to the efficient support of the United Nations.

The United Nations Integrated Mission in Timor-

Leste will conclude its mandate at the end of the year.

It will do so with the sense of having accomplished

its purpose, thanks to the maturity shown by the

Timorese people over recent years, as exemplified in

the successful presidential and legislative elections

held just a few months ago. A new cycle of cooperation

between the international community and Timor-Leste

is now opening in line with the priorities defined by

that country’s Government.

In that context, Portugal will continue to support

Timor-Leste on its path to economic and social

development, including the strengthening of its

institutions and democratic values, as well as the rule

of law and the promotion of the human rights of the

Timorese people. Timor-Leste, like Guinea-Bissau, is a

member State of the CPLP, along with Angola, Brazil,

Cape Verde, Mozambique, and Sao Tome and Principe.

Within the CPLP we share a common language and

history, but we have also developed shared efforts

towards the defence of universal values, through active

multilateralism within the framework of the United

Nations and the regional organizations to which we

belong.

The significance of the Portuguese language as

a language of global communication, business and

culture, with about 250 million speakers, should be

taken advantage of by the international community. For

that reason, we will continue to work together to have

Portuguese recognized as an official language of the

United Nations.

I referred at the beginning of my statement to

Portugal’s commitment to multilateralism as the most

effective means for finding common solutions to the

global challenges that we face. I specifically noted

our efforts in the defence of human rights and in the promotion of sustainable development. In that context,

we support the outcomes achieved at the United

Nations Conference on Sustainable Development, in

part thanks to the notable efforts of Secretary-General

Ban Ki-moon and the Brazilian Government.

We continue to defend the universal, indivisible

and interdependent rights of all human beings, be

they political, economic, social or cultural. We have

a solid commitment to humanitarian law and to the

excellent work of the Office of the United Nations High

Commissioner for Refugees. In that context, with the

commitment to defend and promote human rights and

with the same sense of responsibility with which we

undertook our current mandate in the Security Council,

Portugal has announced its candidacy for the Human

Rights Council for the years 2015 to 2017. We hope to

be able to merit, once again, the trust of the Assembly

and to serve, for the first time, in that body.

The changes in today’s world call for the promotion

of a culture of dialogue on a global scale based on

tolerance and the respect for human dignity. The

United Nations should remain in the vanguard of those

efforts, namely through initiatives such as the Alliance

of Civilizations. I would like to congratulate the High

Representative of the Alliance of Civilizations for

his leadership and work in the defence of peace and

of a better understanding among peoples. Indeed, the

dialogue among different cultures, civilizations and

religions is at the very heart of the work of the United

Nations.

In conclusion, today, as in the past, the United

Nations has to reflect on what it is and what we

collectively want it to be. It should translate the

indispensable convergence of the common will of

States into actions that contribute to a better world.

Its central objective should be the maintenance of

international peace and security and greater prosperity

for all. Portugal stands steadfast in its commitment to

those efforts.