Algeria, 1996

The current session of the United Nations General

Assembly is taking place at a complex international time,

marked by worrisome developments that exacerbate the

feelings of anxiety and precariousness that plague the

majority of humanity. These developments result from the

profound historic changes that have occurred in recent

years, which at one time had given us hope for a new and

improved system of international relations that would be

more open to the concerns of all in matters of security

and more receptive to development needs.

The transformation of the international economy and

accelerated trends towards globalization have, to be sure,

resulted in new, more complex relations, but have also,

due to certain harmful side effects, aggravated the

imbalances and the dependency of many developing

countries, whose courageous economic reforms, achieved

at the highest of costs, still confront a hostile

environment.

In this new era of heightened interdependence, a lack

of solidarity still characterizes international relations, and

self-interest is persistent in terms of both security and

development, emphasizing the lack of a mechanism that

can effectively narrow the growing gap between

developed countries — ever more prosperous and

stable — and a developing world faced with poverty and

disorder of every sort.

Such observations emphasize that a real awareness

on the part of the international community as a whole,

and of the developed countries in particular, is slow in

coming. They also confirm that piecemeal measures,

taken on an urgent basis, are not enough to compensate

for the lack of an overall approach to the global problems

of our times.

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Also quite clear in this regard is the marginalization of

the mechanisms established to foster, channel and develop

cooperation, solidarity and joint efforts among nations.

It is significant to note that on the heels of an

anniversary session at which the commitment of States to

strengthen the authority of the United Nations was

forcefully reaffirmed, the Organization is experiencing one

of its greatest crises, notably due to restrictions on the

resources it needs to accomplish its missions — and this at

a time when the demands on it have increased and when

expectations are growing that it will play a larger role in

preserving peace, in promoting and developing international

cooperation, and in emancipating peoples still under

domination. Hence the need for all States to discharge their

obligations to our Organization, especially since it has

embarked upon a courageous process of restructuring and

reform designed to make it an instrument capable of

generating and developing dialogue, cooperation and

confidence among nations.

It should be noted, in this regard, that democratization,

transparency and a better balance among its major organs

all are requirements and basic objectives for a genuine

reform of the institution and for ensuring the restoration of

the General Assembly’s authority and the functions

conferred upon it by the Charter — also a key objective in

order to enhance the effectiveness of its action and restore

its credibility.

Similarly, it is important, within the framework of the

question of the expansion of the Security Council, to pay

special attention to such crucial aspects as the transparency

of its work, the representation on it of the Member States

on whose behalf it acts, and the links to be established with

the General Assembly.

Algeria, which has made a priority, in its foreign

policy, of strengthening the credibility and the authority of

the United Nations, naturally provides continuous political

support and makes varied contributions to its activities, as

shown by our participation in the success of certain peace-

keeping operations.

This is because our Organization remains the most

appropriate framework for realizing our aspirations for

shared security and development, at the very time when the

realization of the twin Agendas for peace and development

calls for respecting and strengthening its authority.

Here I should like to pay a well-deserved tribute to

our Secretary-General, His Excellency Mr. Boutros

Boutros-Ghali, for his vision, his perseverance and the

tireless efforts he has been making in the service of

adapting the United Nations to the challenges of the

current era. His courage, his commitment, and the

ambition he has to reinforce the reach and effectiveness

of the Organization at a particularly difficult phase in the

evolution of international relations have gained him the

support of the Organization of African Unity and the

League of Arab States. My country reiterates its support

for him and wishes him every success at the head of the

United Nations.

The dawning of a better-organized and more stable

international order requires seeking joint responses to the

most dangerous threats to the security and development of

our countries. These responses can emerge only through

joint undertakings, greater solidarity and an effective

commitment to combat the most serious consequences of

the rise in intolerance and extremism and the denial of the

most basic principles of humanity.

Among these phenomena, international terrorism is

more than ever manifest, in its seriousness as a universal

phenomenon, as a threat to the stability of nations and to

democratic values in our societies, and as a new type of

threat to international peace and security. So combatting

terrorism today requires effective international

mobilization commensurate with the challenges of a key

phenomenon which knows no limits or inviolable

sanctuary.

It is fortunate that an international awareness of the

dangers inherent in this scourge is beginning gradually to

emerge. The international response, however, will to a

large extent remain insufficient if it is not reflected in

concrete action in line with three requirements: the

establishment of true international cooperation; a show of

greater solidarity; and determination commensurate with

regularly stated political commitments.

In this regard, the fight against terrorism should not

be ambiguous or selective, as it sometimes is. It should be

marked by a constant, unfailing mobilization of efforts to

dismantle the criminal chain of terrorism, including those

who are perpetrators, those who are behind them, the

various political networks and their sources of financing

and supply, and the direct or indirect logistical support

given by individuals, groups or States. The necessary

conditions should be created for this. In this context,

Algeria supports the idea of holding an international

conference on the fight against terrorism.

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Promoting more stable and more balanced international

relations requires collective effort to improve the situation

in areas of tension and conflict which threaten international

peace and security. In order to be fruitful, these efforts

should be buttressed by a search for viable, lasting solutions

to these conflicts and by increasing joint efforts and

strengthening existing frameworks for dialogue.

From this standpoint, the crisis in Bosnia and

Herzegovina was an example of how indecision and lack of

determination on the part of the world community cost us

a great deal in tragedy and destruction. This long-suffering

country is now, to be sure, embarking on the path to peace,

even if still remains fragile, and strewn with many

obstacles. We venture to hope, however, that its new

institutional direction will insure for Bosnia and

Herzegovina the peace it needs for stability and

reconstruction.

Furthermore, the promotion of international relations

also presupposes the strengthening of regional integration

frameworks which today are the hallmark of an emerging

new system of international relations.

In its immediate environment, Algeria is actively

participating in the establishment and consolidation of joint

action for solidarity and cooperation with its neighbours,

with which it hopes to develop exemplary good-neighbourly

relations. In the Maghreb, the identity, aspirations and

common mission of the peoples of the region, naturally,

make us desirous of retaining a plan for Maghreb unity as

a central element of my country’s policy. This is an

irreversible national priority.

Algeria’s determination is an expression of faith in the

future as is the ability of each of the Arab Maghreb Union

partners to take advantage of the opportunities for relations

which can be mutually beneficial and which can meet the

legitimate aspirations of our peoples. It is in this context of

a unified, homogenous and strong Maghreb that Algeria

hopes to contribute to the beginning of a just and lasting

peaceful settlement of the issue of Western Sahara. It is in

this regard too that Algeria continues to provide political

support and human and financial resources to the

Settlement Plan jointly put in place by the United Nations

and the Organization of African Unity (OAU) with a view

to holding a genuine, credible referendum which would

guarantee the free exercise by the people of Western Sahara

of its right to self-determination and independence.

Continuing problems encountered in the

implementation of the Settlement Plan, and the uncertainty

surrounding the desired political solution of this conflict,

require that we redouble our efforts to establish better

conditions for a genuine peace framework. We are

convinced that this will be possible only if each and every

party fully discharges its responsibilities in the

implementation of the Plan. A rapid solution would only

be advantageous for the peace and concord to which all

peoples in the region are entitled.

This means in particular that the two parties to the

conflict — the Kingdom of Morocco and the POLISARIO

Front — should become aware that forthright,

constructive and responsible dialogue can bring a solution

to pending issues at the current stage, and can also help

them to prepare for the future.

This also means that the duty of the international

community, and of the United Nations in particular,

should be translated into a more sustained commitment

and presence, and into a continued peace effort in line

with international responsibilities towards the people of

Western Sahara and their legitimate rights.

The establishment of the OAU Mechanism for

Conflict Prevention, Management and Resolution reflects

the determination of African leaders to make a decisive

contribution to reducing tensions and settling disputes on

our continent. Thanks to this spirit, the painstaking efforts

made by the countries of the Economic Community of

West African States have opened up promising prospects

for a settlement of the conflict in Liberia through national

reconciliation and a return to democratically elected

institutions.

Algeria hopes for a return to calm, reconciliation and

national unity in Burundi, which are so crucial for the

whole region. We continue to encourage all efforts being

made by the countries of the Great Lakes region.

The lack of prospects for a settlement in Somalia

and the international community’s lack of interest are

exacerbating the sufferings endured by the civilian

population and are a source of great concern to us. While

it is true that Somalians themselves must make a special

effort, it is also the duty of the international

community — through the United Nations, the OAU and

the League of Arab States — to do everything possible to

help in reconciliation and in the establishment of national

institutions which could earn the embrace and confidence

of all Somalians.

In the Mediterranean, Algeria has constantly worked

towards the establishment of a permanent framework for

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dialogue and cooperation which would enable the coastal

States, without exception, to address their political, security,

economic and human concerns. We have always acted with

a view to defining a renewed operational machinery which

would organize and lead a future of stability and progress

in the European-Mediterranean theatre. This is what

motivated Algeria to join the process begun in Barcelona.

In our view, this was an initial accomplishment, an

important step towards the establishment of new European-

Mediterranean relations based on mutual confidence and

joint actions, which will give tangible content to the

indivisibility of security and development in the region.

In the Middle East, recent developments have in many

respects caused us concern and alarm. The Madrid

conference created a historic opportunity for a peaceful

settlement for the Arab-Israeli conflict. In the name of good

faith and responsibility, the commitments entered into must

be respected. Algeria hopes to pursue its contribution to a

just and lasting peace, and renews its commitment to the

principals adopted by the Madrid conference: land for

peace; the implementation of Security Council resolutions

242 (1967), 338 (1973) and 425 (1978); and respect for the

national aspirations of the Palestinian people. These

principles are at the heart of the peace process and the basis

for our participation in it. Algeria believes that there is no

alternative to a settlement based on the total withdrawal by

Israel from all Arab territories occupied since 1967 and on

the right of the Palestinian people to the establishment of a

sovereign State, with Al-Quds Al-Sharif as its capital.

Today, it is the duty and the responsibility of the

international community, and in particular of the co-

sponsors of the peace process, to show resolve and

determination in continuing their efforts to promote the

success of the process — a process which has been

jeopardized by Israeli intransigence and back-sliding.

The improvement of relations between Arab States and

their unity constitute an essential pillar of the peace

process. The dawning of peace will depend to a large extent

on the mobilization of Arab potential and capacity in the

service of peace and to promote relations based on the

principles of good-neighbourliness, the non-use of force or

the threat of force, and non-interference in the internal

affairs of States. All of us, Algeria included, must reverse

the logic of confrontation, which has compromised relations

between Arab countries since the Gulf war, and work

towards reconciliation on the basis of respect for

international law.

In this context, the unjustified violations of the

independence, sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity of

Iraq require an increased awareness on the part of the

world community of the risks inherent in such practices,

which are contrary to international law, and of their

effects on the stability of the region. Such violations,

which Algeria rejects, have only increased the suffering

of the Iraqi people, who have already been sorely tried by

several years of sanctions which can no longer be

justified.

In the same vein, Algeria remains concerned at the

continuation of sanctions against our sister country, the

Libyan Arab Jamahiriya, and by the sufferings these

involve for the Libyan people, to which we would like to

reiterate our full solidarity. Furthermore, Algeria renews

its support for the restoration of the sovereignty of the

United Arab Emirates over the Abu Musa islands and the

Lesser and Greater Tunb islands, which remain under

foreign occupation. My country also expresses its

solidarity with Bahrain in the face of the increased

foreign interference and threats to which it has been

subjected.

Algeria’s actions with regard to disarmament stem

from its conviction that the acquisition, stockpiling and

increased sophistication of arms, in particular high-

technology weapons and weapons of mass destruction, do

not bring security, but undermine the essential

establishment of confidence among nations. Strengthened

by this conviction, Algeria has shown — through concrete

initiatives taken at the international, regional and internal

levels — its commitment to strengthening the process

towards general and complete disarmament by eliminating

weapons of mass destruction. In this regard, we recall our

participation in the drafting and adoption of the

Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty as an initial

stage for more substantial measures in this area.

Similarly, after having ratified the Convention on

chemical weapons and adhering to the nuclear non-

proliferation Treaty, on 30 March 1996 Algeria signed a

safeguards agreement with the International Atomic

Energy Agency.

Acting with similar responsibility, Algeria has helped

African efforts. These led to the adoption on 11 April of

the Pelindaba Treaty, by which the States Members of the

Organization of African Unity declared Africa a nuclear-

free zone. This African momentum should be encouraged

by similar efforts to establish new zones, especially in the

Middle East, which remains a legitimate source of

concern for all Arab countries, in particular with regard

to Israeli nuclear potential.

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A better structured and more unified international

economic order is a precondition for international peace and

security. The globalization of economic, social and political

problems, the lack of coordinated management of

interdependent issues, the increase in global challenges, and

the weakening of national regulatory structures make it ever

more necessary to establish new structures for global

management within a framework of true democratization of

international relations. In response to these objectives, the

international community must shoulder more responsibility

for the many, interdependent links which hold it together;

improve its ability for a collective response to the challenge

of development; and increase its support for these efforts.

The worsening of the external, bilateral and

multilateral debt crisis of developing countries; the erosion

and unpredictable nature of resources from export earnings;

restrictions on access to markets; the lack of fairness in

international trade; one-sided views which affect

cooperation; and the unilateral nature of the world decision-

making process: all these highlight in different ways the

various obstacles which remain on the path to development.

This means that, in order to organize a common future

on a new basis, the international community must make

development a greater concern, promote joint solutions for

the sustained growth of the countries of the South and

ensure their true integration in the world economy.

In this vein, the issue of development financing

deserves special attention in the context of the persistent

external debt crisis in the countries of the South and the

drying up of funds for cooperation, since the approaches

taken to this issue thus far have been questionable, to say

the least. Imaginative and more global solutions must be

found to the external debt problem of the countries of the

South and their access to international financing. It is also

important to include in our vision of development the

enormous potential of the expanding world trade expected

from the fair and consistent implementation of the Uruguay

Round agreements.

The first Ministerial Meeting of the World Trade

Organization (WTO), to be held soon in Singapore, will be

a good opportunity for the international community to make

a clear appraisal of the implementation of these agreements

and to make the necessary corrections for a more

significant and equitable participation of the countries of the

South in international trade. It is through its predictability,

stability, openness and transparency that the new world

trade system established by the WTO will become a true

and forceful factor for development.

The international economic situation is still

characterized by gaps that make the future of the world

more uncertain, given the increase in inequalities and the

risk of social rifts they entail. These gaps, which also

affect developed countries faced with the severe problems

of adjusting to unemployment and exclusion, show how,

faced with globalization, international society can only

find joint solutions to global problems, particularly those

of growth and development. It is in Africa, where the

socio-economic situation is evolving more tragically, that

this dimension can be seen in all its gravity with the

expansion of abject poverty, the spread of disease and the

threat of impending famine.

It is on that continent that we find the greatest

expression of the categorical need for renewed and

strengthened international solidarity in a spirit of open-

mindedness and partnership to help African countries in

their efforts at the socio-economic restructuring necessary

to lay the foundations for lasting political and social

balance and to open new prospects of hope for their

peoples. It is in fact politically unacceptable and morally

intolerable to continue to ignore the international threat

inherent in the deterioration of the development crisis on

that continent.

In this vein, the new appeal made last March by the

Secretary-General through a special initiative of the

United Nations system for Africa deserves our full

support, since it compels the international community,

and, in particular the wealthy countries, to face up to their

basic responsibilities to our continent.

In a world that is constantly changing, we must

undertake in all diligence and determination to work

together to set new balances, enable mankind

harmoniously to manage its interdependence and make the

international economic environment more conducive to

development.

By its very nature and unique mission, the United

Nations is the appropriate place to give an articulate, joint

global response to these challenges. Who better than the

United Nations can carry out such a task at a time when

managing interdependence is more than ever at the heart

of the problems of development and peace?

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That is why we should come to an agreement on the

development programme proposed by the Secretary-

General. This programme should support United Nations

efforts for Africa. This is why the criteria for streamlining

and efficiency which accompany the reform process in the

United Nations system in the economic and social spheres

should be made manifest in a joint quest for common

objectives in organizing the new system of international

relations. It is by doing so and by finding further

inspiration in its Charter that the United Nations will avoid

drifting off track and will become a more effective

instrument for the orderly reconstruction of international

relations and thereby provide the necessary stability for

peace and development.