Afghanistan, 1995

On the eve of the

fiftieth anniversary of the United Nations, the

representatives of the world’s nations are gathered here

with hearts full of hope for a better future, as well as for

the cause of the peace and prosperity of mankind, in an

atmosphere of great enthusiasm and animation.

The Afghan nation, in spite of the immense

difficulties it has encountered, shares that optimism with

many of the nations represented here, as well as

confidence in its ability to overcome those challenges.

War and conflict always bring with them miseries

and devastation. The last 17 years have taught our

children only to differentiate the various sounds of guns,

rockets, tanks and mortars, rather than teaching them

literacy or providing them with basic nutrition, security

and peace of mind.

We turn to this world family, as an institution

dedicated to the cause of humanity, the self-determination

of nations, human rights and democracy, to pronounce

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itself opposed to the forces aiming to create a bloodbath in

an already devastated Afghanistan.

When I return to my homeland — the home of 1.7

million martyr graves, tens of millions of unexploded land-

mines, 2 million disabled people, hundreds of thousands of

orphans and widows — I am expected to be carrying

answers as to why this world, which claims to be

committed to human rights and justice, has remained a

spectator of the sufferings of Afghans, brought about by

foreign interference. Why, in spite of the complete peace,

security and tranquillity prevailing in the capital for many

months past, have the United Nations offices unjustifiably

abandoned us by remaining outside?

Our people find it astonishing that in an era of such

developed mass communication, which leaves no distance

between different corners of the globe, the apparently

insurmountable difficulties — in particular, the actual

causes of the continuing imposed war — are not

understood. I am confident that there are people who

clearly see the factors contributing to the continuation of

the conflict. There are forces that insist on seeing our

political system subordinated to their political and economic

designs and policies. This is the actual source of the

conflict.

The crisis in Afghanistan is often perceived as a

subject of academic studies. Some call this a civil war in a

society that they consider “fragmented”. Others look at it as

the scene of a contest, a struggle for power. Yet others try

to find the roots of the conflict in the ethnic and tribal

composition of the country. The truth is far more clear:

whatever it is, it is not a civil war; nor is it a tribal or

ethnic conflict; it is an imposed war.

We have learned from history that our existence

depends on our unity. We, like many other nations, want to

live in peace and security, as well as benefit from economic

development, welfare and democracy, which will be

available only in peaceful circumstances. We want to live

in peace with our neighbours and to engage in good-

neighbourly relations. We leave it up to the astute observers

of the United Nations and the impartial analysts of the

world community to judge the efficacy of the United

Nations in alleviating the sufferings in Afghanistan.

The year 1995 opened with good omens for

Afghanistan. The country witnessed positive changes

towards peace and political stability. Following the removal

of the sources of danger from the southern part of the

capital, the people of Kabul found a moment of peace after

years of being rocketed indiscriminately. Every day since

mid-March an average of about 3,500 refugees

returned home — mostly to the capital — according to

the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for

Refugees (UNHCR). Prices fell sharply. Goods and

services became plentiful in the markets. The Government

reopened 156 schools for girls and boys, and the

universities reopened in an atmosphere of security and

peace.

Official delegations from the United States,

Switzerland, Germany, France, the United Kingdom, the

Republic of Korea, the Islamic Republic of Iran, Pakistan,

Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Tajikistan, the Russian Federation,

Uzbekistan, the People’s Republic of China and the

Sudan, as well as many international organizations and

others, came to Kabul. High-ranking Afghan delegations

also travelled abroad.

The Islamic State of Afghanistan even won an

opportunity to take steps towards peace and regional

security. Among the Tajikistan peace mediators, Professor

Burhan-ud-din Rabbani, the President of the Islamic State

of Afghanistan, accomplished the most. We remember

that his peace initiative conduced to unprecedented and

positive changes regarding the civil strife in Tajikistan.

Kabul city, for the first time, hosted direct talks between

His Excellency Imam Ali Rakhmanov, the President of

Tajikistan, and Sayed Abdullah Nouri, the leader of the

Islamic Revival Movement, representing all the Tajik

opposition. In a historic press conference the two leaders

embraced each other and agreed on a longer-term cease-

fire.

Confidence-building measures were taken on the

basis of domestic endeavours between Afghanistan and

the opposition. The Islamic State of Afghanistan, with the

aim of putting an end to all problems in the country,

presented to the United Nations a peace plan, on most of

whose items there emerged, for the first time, a sense of

agreement among all sides. The plan pledged to the nation

the convening of a Grand National Assembly — Loya

Jirga, as we call it — within a year. The Islamic State of

Afghanistan, while leaving to the United Nations Special

Mission the question of the creation of an appropriate

mechanism for the convening of the Grand National

Assembly, promised to agree to the participation of the

opposition groups in the current Supreme State Council

and in the present one-year-term transitional Government

until the convening of the Grand National Assembly.

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As a result of these proposals the people of our

country and of the region felt more optimistic about the

return of peace to Afghanistan. However, those needlessly

afraid of an independent, stable and self-reliant Afghanistan

sought to change the course of events to coincide with their

own interests. They once again used the made-up Taliban

group — whose actual identity and character and the

sources of whose funding and arming are yet to be made

known to most of the members in this Hall — equipped

with arms, light and heavy, from across the border of our

country and with air power. Ironically enough, they recently

chose to target the west of Afghanistan, which, according

to earlier statements of Ambassador Mahmoud Mestiri,

head of the United Nation Special Mission to Afghanistan,

was the best model of healthy administration, order,

stability and people’s welfare.

Intent on exposing the Islamic State to instability,

military intelligence services across the border tried hard to

unite the opponents of the State under a single command.

They boosted the Taliban mercenaries with their own

frontier militia. Thousands of those being trained across

Afghan borders launched attacks against the Shindand air

base and a number of other western provinces of the

country, including Herat, as a result of which the peaceful

city of Herat was on 5 September turned into a place of

occupation, chaos and insecurity. A great number of

civilians lost their lives. Tens of thousands were forced to

leave their houses. The bands of the so-called Taliban, or

religious students, began their rule by closing schools for

girls and the universities, as well as banning women from

working in offices or teaching in schools. They have even

forbidden the use of televisions and videos, and all movie

theatres are closed down in the areas under their

occupation.

As the so-called Taliban are said to have the capability

of jeopardizing any viable peace process in the country, I

deem it necessary to register some basic facts about this

mysterious movement.

In Islamic countries there are many religious schools

or “Madrasas” where several subjects related to Islam are

taught. The purpose of these schools is to prepare Muslim

youth for religious service to their countrymen. In no

“Madrasa” in the world is the subject of modern warfare,

such as the use of artillery and rockets, or the flying of

warplanes, taught. That is the work of military academies.

The only modern items the Taliban mercenaries are

aware of are advanced armaments. As for their links with

the outside, the most pertinent and very important question

is: if their numbers are about 30,000, as they claim, and

each of them would require $100 for daily and military

expenses, who is paying the more than $88 million a

month for their expenses?

As for logistical support, for instance, it is calculated

that in order for the Taliban to keep their transport

vehicles, tanks and other armoured vehicles running they

need more than 15,000 gallons of fuel each day. That is

separate from almost the same amount of fuel that they

require as reserve. Again, who is providing them with

such huge logistical support?

The Taliban have no single leader. They claim to

have a Central Council in Kandahar. However, no

platform or political agenda has been made known yet.

The declarations of their many leaders are not consistent.

On 20 September one of their leaders, Mullah Mishr, told

Peter Greste, a correspondent of the Reuters news agency,

that the problem of Afghanistan could only be solved

through war.

The Islamic State of Afghanistan expressed the

intense indignation of its people and Government in its

letters of 5 September 1995 (S/1995/767) and 14

September 1995 (S/1995/795) addressed to the Secretary-

General, calling for immediate measures to end the state

of occupation in western Afghanistan. We specifically

requested the United Nations to send a fact-finding

mission to the western part of the country to investigate

and assess the reality of the state of occupation. That is

the responsibility of the Security Council.

The resistance of our people together with the forces

of the Islamic State of Afghanistan, against the

mercenaries and foreign militia, has been further

strengthened. As a result, the Province of Ghowr, east of

Herat, once occupied, has been liberated. The foreign

armed intervention, however, reached a new dimension.

The bands of mercenaries were reinforced west of Kabul

to attack the capital, the plan of attack being engineered

and guided from abroad.

We strongly demand that the United Nations Special

Mission break its silence regarding those mercenaries and

answer the relevant questions, including whether this band

is a threat to peace. This is particularly pertinent because

the Special Mission once considered the Taliban to be a

positive factor for peace. Is it not time for the Special

Mission to find out the intentions of the Taliban in

relation to General Assembly resolutions on Afghanistan?

Events have proved that the United Nations Special

Mission encountered many difficulties and challenges,

owing to the lack of an adequate capability to carry out the

mandate entrusted to it by General Assembly resolutions

48/208 and 49/140. To enhance the capabilities of the

Special Mission, the Islamic State of Afghanistan submits

the following five-point proposal.

First, the necessity to reinforce the Mission requires

the formation of a contact group on Afghanistan to speed

up the peace process. The contact group on Afghanistan

should be composed of one representative of the United

Nations Special Mission; one representative of the

Secretary-General of the Organization of the Islamic

Conference, which is already active in the peace process in

Afghanistan; one representative from among the member

States of the Organization of the Islamic Conference, but

not a country directly involved; one representative from

among the members of the European Union; and one

representative from among the members of the Non-

Aligned Movement.

Secondly, the contact group would promote the peace

process in Afghanistan by focusing its endeavours in the

light of information, evidence and documents provided to

the Special Mission pertaining to the violation of the

sovereignty and territorial integrity of Afghanistan.

Thirdly, the contact group on Afghanistan would

search for ways and means to end foreign intervention and

interference in the internal affairs of Afghanistan, and make

effective and appropriate recommendations to the Secretary-

General of the United Nations and to the Security Council.

Fourthly, the various proposed programmes to bring

peace to Afghanistan should be studied by the contact

group in consultation with the involved Afghan parties.

These endeavours would have the following objectives:

Creation of a commission for the convening of the

Grand National Assembly, or “Loya Jirga”; this

commission would also have the mandate to draft the

Constitution, to include a firm disposition guaranteeing

democracy and human rights for the future

Afghanistan.

Convening of the Grand National Assembly, or “Loya

Jirga”, within one year.

Election of the future leader of Afghanistan for a

subsequent fixed term of office.

Adoption of the Constitution.

Formation of the first parliament from among the

members of the Grand National Assembly, which

could represent the administrative units of the

country on the basis of their proportion of

population.

Fifthly, the contact group on Afghanistan would

immediately approach all Afghan groups and invite them

to participate in the Supreme State Council and

Government, until the formation of the Grand National

Assembly, or “Loya Jirga”.

The contact group on Afghanistan would also play

a crucial role in the reconstruction of the country, as

required by General Assembly resolution 49/140, adopted

on 20 December 1994.

We consider that proposal, which has already been

submitted to the Secretary-General of the United Nations,

to be a secure and short path towards peace, national

rapprochement and stability, through the cessation of

hostilities.

To those who refuse to accept the one-year lapse of

time for that peace process, insisting on an unconditional

and immediate transfer of power, we say that a period of

one year is not long in the life of a nation. Had there

been an agreement a year ago for the transfer of power

and for the consolidation of the political process, we

would by now have been in the process of transferring

power.

We solemnly ask the General Assembly to take this

proposal into consideration when discussing the agenda

item on Afghanistan during this historic fiftieth session.

Having said this, we would like to state — for those

who insist on the need for a military solution to the

problem — that the Islamic State of Afghanistan, while

willing to transfer power to a legitimate and lawful

authority, has the capacity and capability to respond to the

terrorist acts of mercenaries linked to foreign quarters.

Afghanistan would not allow any circles to

undermine the process of the peaceful transfer of power

and the normal political process that is to be implemented

under the supervision of the United Nations and the

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Organization of the Islamic Conference. Those cliques of

outsiders who are recruiting, training, arming, and providing

financial assistance to the mercenaries — as well as

reinforcing them with their own militia — and using such

reactionary groups to destabilize a moderate Islamic system

which believes in democracy and human rights, are wrong

in their assessments and calculations. Such foreign circles

may think that after the usurpation of power by the Taliban

all will go well for them. In fact, they will add a further

problem, especially by bringing onto the scene a faction

which has no factual presence on Afghanistan’s political

scene. These circles should be aware that the peace and

security in the capital, the actual relative peace and stability

in the country and in the region, would be jeopardized by

such an erroneous miscalculation. The same error was made

by the former Soviet Union in 1979.

For the record, we would like to emphasize that those

who ignite a fire in our country will burn themselves. It

would then be too late to return to the peaceful political

process on which we are now trying to embark.

The statement made by His Excellency the Foreign

Minister of Pakistan on 27 September 1995 before this

Assembly pertaining to the relation between Afghanistan

and Pakistan was itself a clear illustration of his

Government’s unfriendly intentions towards my country.

The assertions of His Excellency the Foreign Minister of

Pakistan, as contained in his statement, need to be

responded to for the sake of the record.

First, the Pakistani Foreign Minister was trying to

confuse our friends and to divert the attention of world

public opinion from his country’s own acts of blatant

interference in Afghanistan and from the invasion by its

militia in assisting the so-called Taliban in Western

Afghanistan to the tragic incident in the Pakistani Embassy

at Kabul.

In this regard the following explanations are necessary.

I express, on behalf of His Excellency the President and the

Government and the people of Afghanistan, profound regret

about the very sad and grievous incident that occurred in

the Embassy of Pakistan at Kabul on 6 September 1995.

This message has also been forwarded by an official note

of the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Afghanistan to the

Foreign Ministry of Pakistan. Furthermore, I have conveyed

two messages by telephone from Kabul to His Excellency

Mr. Najmuddin Sheikh, Foreign Secretary of Pakistan.

The tragic incident contradicts the traditional

hospitality of the Afghan people. While we express our

grief at the incident, which we consider unjustifiable, at

the same time we say that some aspects of the events

have been overlooked by the Foreign Minister of

Pakistan, whose Government tried to use different forums

for political gains through a distortion of the facts.

Allow me, for the sake of the record, to point out

the sequence of incidents as they occurred. On 6

September 1995, on the morrow of the occupation of

Herat City by the so-called Taliban mercenaries, with the

help of foreign militias, the people of Kabul held a

peaceful demonstration. Tens of thousands of peaceful

demonstrators gathered outside the compound of the

Embassy of Pakistan at Kabul chanting anti-Pakistani

slogans. The staff of the Embassy, contrary to all

recognized principles of international law, used a firearm

from inside the Embassy premises against the peaceful

demonstrators. This caused the death of one of the

students, a student by the name of Badruddin Muslim, an

eleventh grader in the Naderia High School of Kabul.

This highly unjustifiable and provocative act of the

Embassy staff incited the fury of the demonstrators, who

in the beginning were non-violent and peaceful, gathered

only to express their deep resentment at the occupation of

part of their country.

It is noteworthy that the security forces of the

Government were already active in the early morning,

having observed the spontaneous gathering of people in

different parts of Kabul city. The security forces formed

two security belts around the Embassy premises.

However, the death of the young demonstrator caused a

sudden reaction and, unfortunately, the crowd got out of

control. The security forces tried their utmost to prevent

the upsurge of violence and to protect the Embassy and

its staff. Regrettably, despite the losses suffered by the

security forces, five of whose personnel were killed while

protecting the Embassy, they did not succeed in

preventing this tragic event. Mr. Ejaz Ali, the Third

Secretary of the Pakistani Embassy at Kabul, a witness to

the event, acknowledged in an interview at Islamabad

airport on 7 September 1995 that the security forces of

the Afghan Government exerted efforts to avert the tragic

happening.

We declare from this rostrum that the Afghan nation

never had recourse to terrorism, even during the long

years of resistance against the invasion of their country by

the former Soviet Union. That fact clearly shows that,

despite heavy sacrifices by the Afghan nation, it never

had recourse to terrorist acts against any consulate or

embassy of the former Soviet Union.

10

Secondly, in his statement the Foreign Minister of

Pakistan referred nine times to the Islamic State of

Afghanistan as the “Kabul regime” or the “Rabbani

regime”. We do not intend to reciprocate with similar unfair

language because of our sincerity and commitment to

friendship towards Pakistan.

Thirdly, it is ironic to witness His Excellency the

Foreign Minister of Pakistan prescribing the type, nature

and characteristics of a government that he would like to

see in Afghanistan. My delegation, however, reciprocates

the sense of good will and brotherhood he expressed

regarding our two nations. Moreover, we recall with

appreciation the strong sense of brotherhood and Islamic

solidarity by which the fraternal nation of Pakistan extended

its support to the just struggle, the Jihad of the Afghan

nation, against the invading forces of the former Soviet

Union. We trust that our Pakistani brothers are also fully

aware of the sacrifices we made when Afghanistan served

as a shield for the protection of Pakistan territories against

the most important mobilization of an army since the war

in Viet Nam.

However, our complaint is addressed, not to the nation

of Pakistan, but against the manifest interferences of

Pakistani authorities, especially the Inter-Service

Intelligence (ISI), which is the Pakistani military

intelligence. Sometimes the explanations of the Pakistani

Government, which claims to remain impartial, seem to be

justified owing to the fact that the Pakistani civilian

administration is not capable of containing the operations of

the ISI, a powerful military-intelligence body which has

emerged as a State within the State.

Secondly, we wonder which of the internationally

accepted norms and principles governing relations between

nations justify the Pakistani desire to prescribe the type and

characteristics of government for a sovereign and

independent neighbour. Could there be any clearer example

of Pakistani interference in our internal affairs?

The Foreign Minister of Pakistan has repeatedly

claimed that Pakistan is not interfering in the internal

affairs of Afghanistan. Let us leave aside all evidence

pertaining to the aggression of the Pakistani frontier militia

on Afghan territory, as set out in the documents of the

Security Council that we have submitted, as well as the

comments and statements of independent international

reporters and scholarly analysts on Afghanistan identifying

and highlighting the interference of Pakistani military

intelligence in the internal affairs of Afghanistan as the only

source of the present-day conflict in Afghanistan. We need

only refer to internationally recognized newspapers: The

Washington Times, in its issue of 24 September 1995, The

Times of London, 26 September 1995, and The Canberra

Times, 11 September 1995.

Both The Washington Times and The Times of

London quote Ambassador Mestiri’s comments regarding

the so-called Taliban and Pakistan’s involvement in

supporting them.

The Times of London of Tuesday, 26 September

1995, under the headline “Student army gives notice of

attack on Kabul”, states,

“Mahmoud Mestiri, who heads the United Nations

peace efforts in Afghanistan, said he was convinced

Pakistan was behind the Taliban group”.

The Washington Times of 24 September 1995, in an

article entitled “Pakistan aid to rebels has Kabul talking

war”, states,

“Even the United Nations special envoy to

Afghanistan is suspicious ... The power of Taliban

is mysterious', envoy Mahmoud Mestiri said. I

think they are getting money and help, maybe from

Pakistan'.”

The same article, written by Ian Stewart of the Associated

Press, contains a description of a Taliban fighter:

“One of a new breed of noble fighter in

Afghanistan, the dust-caked 19-year-old is armed

with a Kalashnikov and the writings of the Muslim

Prophet Mohammed and trained, he says, in

Pakistan”.

In his statement, the Foreign Minister of Pakistan

cannot conceal the true intention of his Government with

respect to Afghanistan. He inadvertently uncovers the

intention:

“provocation will not deter us from our steadfast

path of neutrality towards the Afghan people and the

unity of Afghanistan or from non-interference in

Afghanistan’s internal affairs, nor will it affect our

abiding friendship and brotherhood with the Afghan

nation”. (Official Records of the General Assembly,

Fiftieth Session, Plenary Meetings, 8th meeting,

p. 22)

11

However, subsequently the Foreign Minister of Pakistan

negates the spirit of the above by saying,

“In the meantime, we would like to assure the people

of Afghanistan that we shall stand by them in their

hour of trial. We shall not abandon them.” (ibid.)

I am certain that the words “we shall stand by them in their

hour of trial” will raise a question in the minds of the

Members of the Assembly: what could Pakistan’s intention

be in making such a statement?

The former Soviet Union’s aggression in Afghanistan

is long over. Our nation would like our neighbours and the

world to assist us in our endeavours towards national

reconciliation and peace.

Moreover, His Excellency the Foreign Minister of

Pakistan promises that they will not abandon the Afghans.

The Assembly should realize that this amounts to assuring

the opposition of the Afghan Government that Pakistan will

continue interfering in Afghanistan’s affairs in their favour

until the Islamic State is destabilized and a proxy

Government obedient to the will of Pakistan’s Government

is brought to power.

The Minister for Foreign Affairs of Pakistan has cast

into doubt the legitimacy and legality of the Afghan

Government and the territory governed by it. We call on

His Excellency the Foreign Minister of Pakistan to allow

any impartial observer to visit the north-western agencies

and find out if the central Government of Pakistan has any

administrative authority over them. Is it not a fact that the

production of firearms has continued, as an ongoing

traditional trade, ever since the establishment of Pakistan?

Where is heroin, the most dangerous enemy of humanity,

produced and refined? John F. Burns of The New York

Times wrote,

“Top army officers have been accused in the past of

conniving with drug lords, to the extent of running

heroin shipments to Karachi aboard army-owned

trucks”. (“Heroin scourges million Pakistanis”, The

New York Times, 5 April 1995, Section A, p. 12)

The Islamic State of Afghanistan and Pakistan will

both be losers if they try to confront each other. The only

way leading towards securing both countries’ highest

interests is to re-establish, broaden and consolidate their

mutual brotherly relations on the basis of equality of States,

respect for each other’s territorial integrity and sovereignty

and the right of each to determine its own future.

President Rabbani is a strong believer in the

perpetual necessity for both countries to establish ties of

fraternity and cooperation. Both countries, and the entire

region of Asia where they live side by side, will gain

through Afghan-Pakistani friendship.

While the international community is deploying

efforts to prevent conflicts and wars, the peace and

security of individuals and of human communities are

under the threat of an undeclared and inhumane war

waged by the world’s terrorists. This year the world has

witnessed terrible terrorist acts, such as the tragedies in

Oklahoma City, Paris and Tokyo, in which many innocent

civilians lost their lives.

Prosperity and the welfare of the human being

cannot be secured without tranquillity and peace of mind.

If the international community does not take drastic

measures to eradicate terrorism, people in different

regions of the world will continue to live in fear and

under the menace of terrorist acts. Islam teaches the

principle of the rights of innocents to live in safety and

dignity. The Islamic State of Afghanistan considers that

there is a great need for the signing of an international

treaty ensuring meaningful cooperation between States, in

the form of a convention to combat terrorism.

Afghanistan, as one of the early Members of the

United Nations, contributed to the drafting, discussion and

adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights

and participated in the drafting of both Covenants of

Human Rights. We once again reaffirm our deep

commitment to these international instruments.

The Islamic State of Afghanistan considers respect

for human rights one of its fundamental objectives.

During the year under consideration, however, the human

rights of a number of Afghan citizens in the country, as

well as international humanitarian law, have,

unfortunately, been violated as a result of the continued

terror perpetrated by the so-called Taliban. The Taliban

mercenaries’ closing of schools for girls and depriving

women of their right to work has been a major violation

of human rights. The Islamic State of Afghanistan has the

conviction that taking appropriate and effective

international measures towards putting an end to foreign

interference in the internal affairs of Afghanistan would

serve as a major step towards the realization of human

rights in the country.

As far as the issue of women’s rights in Afghanistan

is concerned, as brought to the attention of Mr. Paik, the

12

new United Nations Special Rapporteur on Human Rights

in Afghanistan, during his recent trip to Kabul, such

concerns do not seem to be appropriate in the case of a

country where 383 women army officers, ranking from the

position of Lieutenant-General to lower positions, defend

their people and country; where women are serving as

pilots in the Army, as well as parachutists; and where

women are representing their country at Afghanistan

diplomatic missions and are serving in various branches of

the Administration. Women’s rights are guaranteed in the

presently enforced laws and regulations governing the life

of our nation.

I turn now to the question of land-mines. For the first

time, an international meeting was held in Geneva on mine

clearance. This meeting further enhanced international

awareness of different dimensions of the land-mine crisis

and contributed to strengthening international cooperation.

It is an alarming fact that every year, while 100,000 land-

mines are removed, more than 2 million land-mines are

laid. An estimated 30 people are killed by land-mines, and

as many as 60 are maimed, every single day. The slow

pace of demining operations is another major concern to be

noted. According to the International Committee of the Red

Cross (ICRC), at the current pace of the mine-removal

process, it will take 1,100 years to get rid of existing mines

- and the laying of mines continues in different regions of

the world.

As we already stated in the Geneva meeting on mine

clearance, only the adoption of a convention which would

ban the production, sale and stockpiling of all varieties of

land-mines, and especially a sincere commitment on the

part of mine-producing countries to such an instrument,

would serve effectively to put an end to this problem.

Afghanistan, a war-stricken country, where the largest

number of land-mines have been laid, needs further

assistance from the international community. This assistance

would further help the cause of the repatriation of refugees

and the revitalization of agricultural activities all over the

country.

The Islamic State of Afghanistan expresses its serious

concern at the acts of aggression and genocide that continue

to be committed against the people of the Republic of

Bosnia and Herzegovina. Effective measures should be

taken to put an end, once and for all, to this tragic crisis.

Srebrenica and Zepa must be restored as safe areas and the

siege of Sarajevo must be ended. The International Tribunal

on war crimes in the former Yugoslavia should bring to

justice those Serbian civil and military individuals who

perpetrated crimes of war and genocide, and crimes against

humanity. Afghanistan has repeatedly maintained the view

that the arms embargo against the Republic of Bosnia and

Herzegovina is not applicable de jure. The right of the

victim to self-defence has to be respected and restored.

I would like to draw the Assembly’s attention to one

of the great threats to the life, health and well-being of

present and future generations. This man-made plague is

narcotic drugs, and its production, sale and smuggling.

The expansion of the poppy fields in my country,

Afghanistan, as one of the legacies of war, is unfortunate.

Statistics show that the cultivation of poppy increased

during 1994, as compared to 1993. This is in spite of the

allocation of about $25 million, which the international

community spent in Afghanistan through non-

governmental organizations. The Islamic State of

Afghanistan cannot agree to the procedure through which

the assistance was channeled. Perhaps an evaluation is

needed to correct the procedure. The Islamic State of

Afghanistan declares its sincere readiness to cooperate

effectively with regional and international organizations.

We are working for the preparation of a master plan to

effectively combat narcotic drugs on the regional and

international levels. We have invited Mr. Giacomelli, the

Executive Director of the United Nations International

Drug Control Programme, to visit Afghanistan and speed

up the drawing up of such a master plan.

We have had critical episodes in our life, but we

have a vision of a peaceful and stable Afghanistan; an

Afghanistan which it is hoped this Assembly will render

free of foreign interference in its internal affairs; an

Afghanistan where our people come to be blessed with

brotherhood and understanding, national conciliation and

unity; a country to which its 3 million refugees will have

returned with confidence and assurance, and where our

intellectuals, as a source of hope, will dedicate their vast

energy and experience and their scientific and physical

potential to the cause of rebuilding their country; a

country that will once again serve as a major factor in the

strengthening of regional peace and stability; a country

that will be actively involved in the common efforts of

this world family in combating extremism, adhering to a

positive and dynamic impartial and non-aligned policy,

and firmly participating in combating terrorism and drug

abuse. Such a vision takes its source from the heart of our

nation.

Our expectation of the world community is that it

assist us in achieving these goals. The objectives of the

reconstruction and economic development of Afghanistan

cannot be achieved without economic assistance from

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industrialized nations and other countries that are able to

furnish such assistance. Afghanistan has enormous

economic capabilities. During the time the former Soviet

Union thought of our country as its strategic backyard, the

world’s major corporations were prevented from becoming

involved in the exploration of Afghanistan’s natural

resources and wealth. At the threshold of Afghanistan’s

reconstruction and rehabilitation, possibilities exist for the

exploration of our natural wealth, such as natural gas, oil,

copper, iron, precious stones and even uranium.

Afghanistan can become a major producer and exporter of

fruit. Once the crisis is over, Afghanistan will emerge as

one of the most attractive sites for private investment.

Afghanistan, a land-locked country, is now vitally important

at the heart of Asia, connecting Central Asia to the south

and the Middle East as a historical transit route.

From this rostrum, we invite the industrialized

countries, as well as private sectors, to benefit from the

enormous investment opportunities in our country. In this

context, the Islamic State of Afghanistan warmly welcomes

delegations determined to conduct relevant studies, as it is

expecting a number of potential investors in the coming

month. This move would itself contribute towards the

further strengthening of stability and an early return of

peace to Afghanistan.