Bosnia and Herzegovina, 2011

It is my great honour to

address the General Assembly today in my capacity as

the Chair of the Presidency of Bosnia and

Herzegovina. Allow me, at the very outset, to

congratulate Mr. Al-Nasser upon his election as

President of the General Assembly at its sixty-sixth

session, as well as the members of the Bureau, and to

express our full support for your future work.

Furthermore, I would like to congratulate Mr. Joseph

Deiss on the results achieved when he presided over

the sixty-fifth session of the General Assembly, in a

period when this body and the international community

in general were facing an array of challenges stemming

from current global issues.

I am especially honoured to extend

congratulations to the Secretary-General, Mr. Ban

Ki-moon, for his unanimous re-appointment as the

Secretary-General of the United Nations. Over the past

five years, Mr. Ban has worked tirelessly to address the

various issues facing the Organization. We expect that

the Secretary-General will continue to pursue these

activities during his second term.

Allow me to express my gratitude for all the

cooperation and the support we have received during

Bosnia and Herzegovina’s membership in the Security

Council, which will expire in a few months. Speaking

of our membership in the Security Council, let me once

again reiterate the view that the presence and

participation of small States such as Bosnia and

Herzegovina in the work and decisions of the Security

Council is particularly important for maintaining

balance within it. Accordingly, other countries, along

with the Security Council’s permanent members and

the world Powers, also have the opportunity to express

their views and participate in Security Council

decision-making on important issues of international

peace and security. It has been our pleasure and honour

to work together with all members of the Security

Council during the term of our membership,

2010-2011.

Bosnia and Herzegovina had the honour to

preside over the Security Council in January 2011.

Although acting as President was only one segment of

the two-year experience in the Council, Bosnia and

Herzegovina once again proved that it can be an equal

partner on the international diplomatic scene and

respond to a variety of obligations.

Bosnia and Herzegovina has played a

constructive role in the work of the Security Council

by contributing to the Council’s better, more effective

and faster response to situations with the potential to

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threaten international peace. Furthermore, Bosnia and

Herzegovina has also sought to share its own

experiences in post-conflict peacebuilding and

contribute actively to better and long-lasting

understanding and reconciliation. Through its role in

the Council, Bosnia and Herzegovina showed that it

can be an equal and competent partner in international

relations.

The Security Council thematic debate (see

S/PV.6472) entitled “Post-conflict peacebuilding:

institution-building”, which was initiated by Bosnia

and Herzegovina, reached a number of conclusions. I

would like to mention some of them.

In the interests of the success of peacebuilding

initiatives, priority must be given to institution-

building. so as to prevent a return to conflict and

ensure the survival, renewed credibility and legitimacy

of States. The purpose of institution-building is to

progressively reduce dependence on the international

community and promote sustainability. Ownership of

the reform process is the main condition for the

establishment of effective institutions and for ensuring

sustainable peace.

Success in post-conflict institution-building

depends primarily on establishing partnerships between

the international community and post-conflict

societies, a partnership that is based on a set of

common goals. Bearing that in mind, we would like

once again to thank the Assembly for the confidence its

members have shown and for the support they have

provided during our membership in the Security

Council.

Bosnia and Herzegovina also continues to

provide concrete contributions to the United Nations

peace operations in Liberia, the Sudan, Cyprus and the

Democratic Republic of the Congo.

In Bosnia and Herzegovina, we are united in our

determination to move towards full membership in the

European Union (EU); our unity provides a solid basis

for the achievement of this goal.

Bosnia and Herzegovina places special emphasis

on regional and subregional cooperation and dialogue

between neighbouring countries in the Balkans, with

their different cultures and traditions that have been

present for centuries. We are committed to future

cooperation with our neighbours, based on the

principles of mutual respect and respect for sovereignty

and territorial integrity. We are interested in sharing

our experiences with others and in developing mutually

beneficial relations in post-conflict peacebuilding,

based on mutual respect for differences, which, in our

opinion, represent an advantage.

I would like to take this opportunity to emphasize

that the issues of neighbourly and regional cooperation

are closely related to the integration of Bosnia and

Herzegovina into the EU and NATO, which is a

strategic and high-priority foreign policy objective for

my country. We believe that this is the best and only

way to ensure stability, security, economic

development and prosperity for all citizens of Bosnia.

The strategic goal of establishing formal relations

and EU membership is based on the aspiration of

Bosnia and Herzegovina to achieve the full functioning

of our own institutions and the further development of

society, on the basis of the principles of a free market,

the rule of law and, especially, the protection of human

rights.

Furthermore, my country wishes to improve its

relations with the States of Asia, Africa, Latin America,

Australia and the wider region, at the multilateral and

bilateral level, in accordance with common interests

and real possibilities. Bosnia and Herzegovina remains

dedicated to the principle of openness in cooperation

with all countries of the world.

Many important world events have occurred since

the previous session of the General Assembly. Bosnia

and Herzegovina is following with great attention,

preoccupation and concern the development of the

situation in the friendly Arab countries that are affected

by deep social and political changes. Bosnia and

Herzegovina supports democratic processes aimed at

the creation of free, democratic and prosperous

societies. However, such processes are often followed

by tragic consequences, and we therefore appeal once

again for the violence to stop and for peace to be

achieved in those societies.

We are deeply concerned by the standstill in

crisis resolution in the Middle East. Despite the

optimistic announcements and plans made, the peace

process has not yet been revived, as had been expected.

The only way forward is a solution that is based on the

principle of the peaceful coexistence of two sovereign

States: a viable and independent Palestine and a stable

and secure Israel, with respect for the provisions of

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international law and humanitarian law and human

rights instruments.

To date, the United Nations has supported and

actively participated in the creation of a positive

atmosphere in order to reach a just, comprehensive and

lasting peace in the Middle East. Bosnia and

Herzegovina believes that the conditions for a lasting

and just solution can be achieved with additional

political will and responsibility on the part of the

negotiating parties.

We are witnesses to the fact that the international

community’s determination to deal with terrorism and,

at the same time, create conditions conducive to the

peaceful development of Afghanistan has yielded

results. However, we cannot but conclude that it will

take much greater efforts to establish self-sustaining

peace and stability in Afghanistan. In April 2010, as a

sign of support for the activities of the international

community, Bosnia and Herzegovina issued a decision

on the sending of an infantry unit to the International

Security Assistance Force mission in Afghanistan.

I would like to emphasize here that Bosnia and

Herzegovina is still very concerned about terrorist

attacks, which claim innocent civilian lives in many

countries around the world. Bearing in mind the fact

that the modern world continues to face various forms

of international terrorism, I express our support for the

full implementation of the United Nations Global

Counter-Terrorism Strategy and the activities of the

Counter-Terrorism Committee. In that regard, let me

reiterate that Bosnia and Herzegovina is

unconditionally dedicated to the fight against terrorism

and is particularly active in cooperating with the

countries of our region to increase security and

enhance preparedness for the effective prevention of

terrorist acts. Completing negotiations and adopting a

United Nations comprehensive convention against

terrorism would be an important contribution in this

field.

In addition to the political crisis, this year we are

faced once again with many other problems to which

the international community still lacks proper and

effective responses. Despite signs of recovery, the

greatest economic and financial crisis in recent history

has, unfortunately, left visible consequences that are

having repercussions on global peace and security. It is

clear that countries individually cannot cope with this

issue, no matter how efficient their Governments may

be. Global crises require global solutions.

In the context of the activities of the United

Nations, we must face the fact that the greatest

economic crisis since the foundation of the world

Organization has to some degree threatened and even

begun to bring into question the achievement of the

Millennium Development Goals, one of the most

comprehensive strategic tasks set by the Organization

since its establishment.

Therefore, it is necessary to do everything in our

power, individually and collectively, in order to

prevent any further erosion of this key strategic

project. We believe that it is necessary for the

international community, especially the United

Nations, to redouble its efforts to assist primarily the

least developed countries.

The climate change problem caused by human

activity is leading to changes in the environment that

could have catastrophic consequences for humankind

as a whole if the process of reaching agreement on

environmental protection is not intensified.

Bosnia and Herzegovina shares the concern of the

most States Members of the United Nations at the fact

that drought, floods, sea-level rise, lack of running

water and food, deforestation and all the other

phenomena caused by global warming pose a serious

threat to global security, which in future could be a

cause of conflict throughout the world. The extremely

important issue of climate change therefore requires

urgent action by the international community. Bosnia

and Herzegovina has expressed interest in joining the

countries that support the Copenhagen Accord; thus

our country has joined the large number of States

Members of the United Nations that consider that

Accord to be a necessary step in relation to Kyoto until

the achievement of a final, legally binding agreement.

Bearing this in mind, I believe that neither

economic nor political interests should stand in the

way of achieving a global consensus as the beginning

of the global and common struggle to preserve the

natural balance of the planet. It is often forgotten that

climate change has a direct effect in terms of

development, poverty and hunger, and, consequently,

global peace and security. I am convinced that it is in

our common interest to ensure that future generations

inherit the best possible world on our common home,

planet Earth.

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I hope that all of us who are here today agree that

comprehensive United Nations reform is necessary;

such reform must be carried out with extreme care,

with the broadest possible consensus on the part of

Member States. Bosnia and Herzegovina sees the role

of the United Nations and its agencies as central to

resolving key issues of international significance.

Therefore, it supports the Secretary-General’s efforts

and proposals for reform.

United Nations reform should lead to the efficient

and coordinated functioning of all agencies and bodies

of the United Nations system, bearing in mind the need

to avoid any duplication of activities in the context of a

more rational allocation of financial resources.

Regardless of the future configuration of the

Security Council, we believe that the Eastern European

group of countries must have another non-permanent

seat, taking into account the fact that in the past two

decades the number of countries in this group has more

than doubled.

While presiding over a subsidiary body of the

Security Council — the Informal Working Group on

Documentation and Other Procedural Questions —

Bosnia and Herzegovina set the consideration of the

working methods and transparency of the Security

Council as a primary goal. Bosnia and Herzegovina

also organized several informal meetings in

cooperation with partner countries and the General

Assembly, at which States Members of the United

Nations expressed their opinions and views and put

forward concrete proposals for improving the

efficiency of the Security Council.

I wish to emphasize in particular that it is

expected that the United Nations, particularly the

Security Council, be more active in the area of

preventive diplomacy. We believe that in order to make

the work of the Council more efficient, greater activity

in this respect would provide a starting point for

resolving many of the world’s problems and crises

before they flare up. Providing timely and effective

conflict prevention, rather than reacting once the crisis

has escalated, is certainly a more efficient and less

expensive mechanism for preserving peace and

security.

During the six decades of its existence, the

United Nations has undergone ordeals but it always

was and still is the best framework for seeking and

providing adequate responses to the wide range of

global issues that we face. Therefore, I urge Member

States to work for the full implementation of all our

agreements in order to make the world a better place

for our future generations.