Slovakia, 1993

I wish to convey my

congratulations to Ambassador Insanally on his election as

President of the General Assembly at its forty-eighth session.

I wish him luck and success in his high office.

Let me also thank the President of the previous General

Assembly session, Mr. Stoyan Ganev, for his effective

guidance of its deliberations.

I would also like to express my profound appreciation

to His Excellency Mr. Boutros Boutros-Ghali, Secretary-

General of the United Nations, for all his dynamic work in

leading this organization.

A year has passed since I last had the honour to address

the Assembly. As the last Minister of Foreign Affairs of the

common State of Czechs and Slovaks, I asked

representatives at the forty-seventh session for their

understanding and support for the process of transformation

taking place at that time in the Czech and Slovak Federal

Republic, and I reiterated the desire of the new successor

States to be admitted to the international community of

sovereign States on an equal basis.

In addition to its membership in the United Nations, the

Slovak Republic today is a member of 53 international

organizations, including United Nations specialized agencies,

the Council of Europe and the Conference on Security and

10 General Assembly - Forty-eighth session

Cooperation in Europe (CSCE). We declared our interest in

the fastest possible integration, together with other countries

of the Visegrad Four, in such effective Euro-Atlantic

political, security and economic organizations as the

European Community, the North Atlantic Treaty

Organization (NATO) and the Western European Union.

Slovakia is building its statehood on civic principles

based on respect for individual rights. The objective of the

Slovak Republic as a multi-ethnic State is to create a

functioning system of ethnic coexistence and guarantees of

equal rights and opportunities for all.

The President returned to the Chair.

The tragedies of Bosnia and Herzegovina and of

Georgia alert us to inconsiderate and irresponsible attempts

to gain political capital from nationalistic sentiments. We

are against steps, regardless of their motivation, that would

ultimately lead to the creation of ethnically pure territories

and States and that would question or endanger the peaceful

coexistence of populations of different ethnic origins. We

apply the existing international norms regulating such

peaceful coexistence and we favour their further elaboration.

We support the idea of adopting a generally binding

document on the rights of persons belonging to national,

ethnic and other minorities in the United Nations, the CSCE

and the Council of Europe. We are convinced that such a

document must equally respect the territorial integrity of

States and the principle of inviolability of existing borders.

Our economic policy aims to build a balanced and

prosperous economy based on market principles. Thus far

the reform measures have not brought the expected

economic revival. The economic difficulties are aggravated

by various internal and external factors, among others the

conversion of the armaments industry. The 1990 decision on

a far-reaching conversion led to the reduction of Slovakia’s

military production to an unprecedented 9 per cent of the

1989 level. This political decision to close a whole major

branch of Slovak industry without the necessary preparation

for a real conversion, though highly moral, did not take into

account its economic and social consequences.

If we are to attain the necessary economic growth, we

need access to the markets of developed nations, something

which is increasingly complicated - all the more so because

of the economic recession. We are convinced that

protectionism is not a solution. We hope that negotiations

on the further liberalization of world trade will be successful,

in particular the negotiations of the current Uruguay Round

of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade.

We also feel encouraged by clear expressions of a

political will to reform and remove export controls inherited

from the cold war period that now unfairly burden legitimate

commerce and unduly restrain growth and opportunities, as

recently stated by President Clinton before this body.

Incidentally, on this very day, Slovak representatives

are signing an association agreement between the Slovak

Republic and the European Community in Luxembourg.

The association agreement, which we consider the first step

in our efforts to gain full membership in the Community,

also reflects the general direction of our foreign policy. It

encourages further positive development in our country, and

we believe that it will help us resolve some of the

aforementioned economic problems.

The international community is daily confronted with

such tragedies as that in Bosnia and Herzegovina or

Tajikistan, with countries at the crossroads, such as Russia

today, but happily also with encouraging developments, such

as those in the Middle East and in South Africa.

It is only natural that the United Nations adapt itself to

the increased tasks in its mission as the guardian of

international peace and security. To manage the ever-

increasing load of responsibilities more effectively, it is

necessary to pay attention to early warning and preventive

action at an early stage. Equally demanding our attention

today is the phase of post-conflict peace-building and

restoration as a basis for preventing the renewal of conflicts.

Regarding the peace-keeping operations of the United

Nations, common experience urges us to require

improvements in their planning and execution. Every

operation should have clearly defined political objectives, an

unambiguous mandate, and an understanding of its possible

and feasible scope and duration and of available means and

support. When the Security Council sets up a new

operation, it should define and ensure security and safety

conditions and guarantees under which the operation is to be

deployed. We support the idea of a universally binding legal

instrument on the safety of peace-keeping operations

personnel. Troop-contributing countries should also have the

possibility, through some regular mechanism, of being

constantly informed and consulted prior to and during the

whole operation.

Another means of enhancing the effectiveness of

peace-keeping is increased cooperation between the United

Nations and regional arrangements, such as the Conference

on Security and Cooperation in Europe. In the Euro-Atlantic

area, we should also seek involvement in peace-keeping of

Forty-eighth session - 4 October l993 11

such organizations as the North Atlantic Treaty Organization

(NATO) or the Western European Union. All these

organizations should be mandated in every specific case by

the Security Council.

Slovakia is among the countries that have been most

severely afflicted by the sanctions against the Federal

Republic of Yugoslavia. We shall provide data on these

losses shortly. We believe that the effort to secure effective

economic assistance should not be limited to moral appeals

to States and institutions. The economic situation of the

countries depending on the Danube as their main waterway

has been ever more aggravated by arbitrary acts of blockade

and other violations of the respective United Nations

resolutions and international conventions. We are convinced

that such acts require a clear and resolute response.

The decision of the Geneva Conference on

Disarmament on a mandate for a comprehensive nuclear-test-

ban treaty is a major move in itself. It also sends a signal

to the whole non-proliferation regime. We support the

universal and indefinite extension of the non-proliferation

Treaty. We also hope that the question of the nuclear

arsenal of the former Soviet Union will be satisfactorily and

speedily resolved in the spirit of non-proliferation.

Slovakia welcomes the establishment of the United

Nations Register of Conventional Arms, which we consider

to be a first decisive step leading to increased global

transparency and constraints in conventional weapons. We

are ready to support moves towards enhanced transparency,

as well as more detailed information on military holdings

and procurement through national production, made under

the banner of the United Nations, the Conference on

Disarmament or the Conference on Security and Cooperation

in Europe.

Wishing to ensure full continuity with the activities of

Czechoslovakia - an original member of the Conference on

Disarmament - and enjoying the support of the Eastern

European regional group, the Slovak Republic applied for

membership in the Conference on Disarmament. A window

of opportunity for Slovakia to become a member was opened

by the proposal to gradually enlarge the membership of the

Conference. Those on the proposed list of 23 new members

should in our opinion be admitted as soon as possible.

The World Conference on Human Rights reaffirmed the

universality of and respect for human rights and the need for

their universal application. It also, appropriately, drew our

attention to the vital interdependency of human rights and

sustainable development, and their bearing on international

peace and stability. We are prepared to support steps

towards implementation of its recommendations. Slovakia

therefore encourages the establishment of a post of United

Nations high commissioner for human rights.

Recent developments in many areas of the world where

civilian populations are increasingly the targets in

predominantly non-international conflicts impel us to demand

that States and parties to conflicts strictly observe and

enforce the rules and principles of international humanitarian

law. We support efforts to bring those who are alleged to

have committed war crimes to justice, inter alia through the

establishment of an international criminal court.

International humanitarian agencies and organizations,

whose activities we highly esteem and support, can attest to

another deplorable feature of today’s world: the misuse and

even the rejection of humanitarian assistance for political

reasons. Those conducting humanitarian operations are

working under increasingly unsafe conditions. The

international community should demand respect for human

rights and humanitarian norms by the States and parties to

conflicts. Neither should we completely ignore the fact that

sanctions which are rightfully applied against those who

have breached international peace and security have a direct

bearing on the fate and even the lives of innocent civilians.

In a true humanitarian spirit, we should at least try to

address this aspect of sanctions as well.

Furthermore, questions related to large-scale migration,

refugees and displaced persons require our urgent attention.

The international community should set forth appropriate

rules and standards regulating large-scale population

movements and seeking solutions for their root causes and

consequences.

We also feel responsible for the most vulnerable

segments of the world population - the women, the children,

the disabled and the aged. We are ready to take part in the

international community’s efforts to seek means for

addressing their needs and concerns.

The Slovak Republic is greatly interested in reinforcing

the role of the United Nations and enhancing its

effectiveness and capacity for action. We wish to join the

ranks of those States that support the implementation of the

reform process of the United Nations in order to transform

it into a more effective and economical organization. Its

organizational structure should respond more adequately to

current global realities.

12 General Assembly - Forty-eighth session

Slovakia is prepared to deliberate on proposals made by

other members of the world community, including the

proposal to restructure the Security Council, which should

maintain its representativity and at the same time its

transparent character. We are of the opinion that countries

such as Germany and Japan should be invited to assume the

responsibilities of permanent members of the Security

Council. At the same time, the Slovak Republic observes

that the number of States able to contribute - owing to their

growing economic influence and role in world affairs - to

the objectives of the United Nations is increasing. Any

decision on the composition of the Security Council should

be the result of a democratic discussion. An expansion of

the Security Council must not jeopardize its effectiveness

and operational capability.

The General Assembly itself, in our opinion, should

also play a more important role within the United Nations

system. The reform of the Economic and Social Council

should continue, with a view to avoiding duplication between

the Council and General Assembly agendas. Cost reductions

can also be made in the activities of the United Nations

Secretariat. When this issue is considered, it should be

borne in mind that the Secretariat executes its tasks in

response to the requirements of the Member States.

The reform of the United Nations should be carried out

in the context of the financial situation of the Organization.

We consider the change in the financing principles

underlying the United Nations regular budget and the budget

of peace-keeping operations to be one of the most significant

aspects of this restructuring. The Member States should

meet their financial obligations to the United Nations fully

and in due time. We believe, however, that the rules for

determining the contributions of Member States to the

United Nations budget should be made more flexible in

order to accommodate changes in the economies of

individual Member States. The present economic reality,

rather than history, should become the main and decisive

criterion.

Let me conclude by wishing the General Assembly

every success in the demanding work that is ahead of it at

this session.