Bulgaria, 2012

It is a great honour for me

to speak from this rostrum for the first time since I

took office in January. I would like to congratulate

President Jeremić on assuming the chair of this highly

representative body and wish him success in his

challenging task. I also wish to commend the work

of his predecessor, Mr. Nassir Abdulaziz Al-Nasser,

President of the Assembly at its sixty-sixth session.

Let me express our gratitude and appreciation to

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon for his inspiring

vision, reform efforts and result-oriented action. I also

wish to welcome the appointment of Mr. Jan Eliasson of

Sweden as Deputy Secretary-General.

Our time is marked by historic shifts and

by achievements in science, technology and

communications that shape the global economy and politics but that, we should also bear in mind, have an

impact on every human being. More and more nations

around the world have now opted for open, free and

democratic societies based on the rule of law and

good governance. But such historic transformations

do not always bring more peace and stability. On

many occasions we still face extreme violence and

bloodshed, causing senseless loss of innocent lives,

human suffering and destruction.

The main theme of the Assembly’s general debate

today could not be more relevant for us as political

leaders. Dealing with violent conflicts and promoting

peace, security, development and human rights have

always been at the core of the United Nations. At

yesterday’s High-level Meeting, we affirmed our

credo that the rule of law forms the basis of a peaceful

and predictable system of international relations.

Nowadays, as conflicts have become more complex, we

share the view that mediation and good offices should

be the tools of preference for dealing with escalating

tension.

Delivering justice is vital to addressing terrorism,

one of the ugliest and most despicable crimes against

humanity. No cause whatsoever can justify the

indiscriminate killing of innocent civilians. Sadly

enough, no country or human being today can feel safe

or insured against this evil. Just a few weeks ago, at the

Sofia synagogue, we paid tribute to the memory of five

Israeli citizens and one Bulgarian who lost their lives in

the shocking terrorist attack last July at the airport of

Sarafovo, a lively tourist destination on our Black Sea

coast. From this high stage today in New York, a few

miles from the September 11 memorial, I now reaffirm

our strongest condemnation of that awful crime. My

country will spare no effort to bring the perpetrators

and masterminds to justice. That attack on our own

soil has made us stronger and more determined to align

with others in implementing the United Nations Global

Counter-Terrorism Strategy.

We condemn the violent acts committed recently

in the name of defending religious beliefs. This is

unacceptable. We urge all involved to show tolerance

and avoid provocative actions that can be destructive to

peace and stability.

For more than a year now the continuing brutal

violence in Syria has provoked our extreme concern.

Each day brings testimony of unacceptable levels

of bloodshed and human suffering. The regime in Damascus has lost all legitimacy by waging a reckless

war on its own people and refusing to heed the calls for

a negotiated way out of the crisis. Due to the growing

number of refugees, the humanitarian situation is

deteriorating day by day and the stability of neighbouring

countries is also at risk. Bulgaria condemns these

gross violations of basic United Nations principles

and of international humanitarian law. We call for full

accountability on the part of the perpetrators, including

by bringing them before the International Criminal

Court. My country subscribes to the acts of solidarity

undertaken by the European Union and its members

in providing relief to the suffering civilian population

through emergency humanitarian assistance.

It is regrettable that the active involvement of

the United Nations and the international community

has so far failed to ensure the Syrian authorities’

compliance with the peace proposals elaborated

through international mediation. Bulgaria gave its full

support to the diplomatic efforts of Mr. Kofi Annan and

welcomed the appointment of Mr. Lakhdar Brahimi as

Joint Special Representative of the United Nations and

the League of Arab States for Syria. While the violence

and bloodshed should be stopped immediately, we

also call for the start of a transition towards inclusive

and representative democratic rule in Syria, one

that guarantees the rights of all citizens regardless

of ethnicity or religion. Bulgaria has supported the

Syrian opposition groups in their efforts to unite on an

alternative to the current regime, on the basis of the

vision of a new democratic State that can be a home that

welcomes all Syrians.

The promotion of just, inclusive and transparent

societies supports the process of democratic transition,

known as the Arab Spring, that has swept across the

Middle East and North Africa. Bulgaria welcomes

the steps taken by several countries on the path to

constitutional and political reform, and we trust that

those are now irreversible.

At the same time, the need to reactivate the Middle

East peace process seems now more pressing than

ever. Bulgaria looks forward to the resumption in good

faith of direct negotiations and expects both parties to

demonstrate their continued commitment to a peaceful

solution that respects the legitimate interests and

sensitivities of the Israeli and Palestinian people. All

efforts should made to create an environment conducive

to a comprehensive peace settlement between the two

States, a two-State solution. In that respect, we urge both the Palestinians and the Israelis to refrain from

any unilateral actions that could be destructive to the

peace process.

Disarmament and non-proliferation of weapons

of mass destruction are areas that continue to demand

strong political will and action by the international

community. It is essential that we continue to

strengthen the comprehensive regime of the Treaty on

the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons and of other

major international instruments, such as the Chemical

Weapons Convention. With regard to conventional

arms, Bulgaria consistently supports the negotiation

process leading to the adoption of a legally binding

arms trade treaty that is robust in substance.

Along with others, we believe that Iran’s full

cooperation with the International Atomic Energy

Agency is of paramount importance. The Government

in Tehran must show greater transparency of its nuclear

activities and fully comply with all relevant Security

Council resolutions. We look to a resumption of the

high-level negotiations on the future of Iran’s nuclear

programme and a clear demonstration of political

will by the Iranian authorities to undertake concrete

confidence-building steps and address the concerns of

the international community.

Bulgaria highly values the role of the Human

Rights Council as the primary United Nations body

for the protection and promotion of human rights. I am

delighted to announce that my country will be seeking,

for the first time, election to the Council for the period

2019 to 2021.

Over the past two decades, Bulgaria has gone

through a successful transition from totalitarian rule to

a functioning democracy with an open market economy

and a vibrant civil society. It has been a difficult,

dramatic and sometimes turbulent journey. I think

our greatest achievement in this process was to have

preserved the long-standing tradition of tolerance and

dialogue between ethnic and religious communities

within Bulgarian society. That tradition can be clearly

illustrated by a glimpse of the centre of our capital, where

four temples of different religions — Islam, Judaism

and Catholic and Orthodox Christianity — coexist

peacefully, surrounded by archaeological monuments

of several ancient civilizations.

It is in this spirit that we stand ready to share the

experience from our road to democracy with other

countries undergoing similar challenges. More than a year ago, Bulgaria initiated an international forum

called the Sofia Platform , providing a useful venue for

dialogue and an exchange of views and best practices

among countries in the region. We got experts,

officials and representatives from Governments,

non-governmental organizations and civil societies all

over the world focusing on the transition processes in

Central and Eastern Europe, the Balkans and the Middle

East. The forum showed that although the historical,

cultural and political realities vary in different countries

and regions, conclusions and lessons learned can be

relevant in the field of national reconciliation, rule of

law, institution-building and security sector reform.

Bulgaria maintains its unwavering commitment

to the process of European Union (EU) enlargement,

involving all our neighbouring countries of South-

Eastern Europe and the Balkans. We confirm our

conviction that all States of the region should one day

become part of the European Union, on the basis of

their own merits and criteria fulfilled in the negotiation

process. At the same time, pursuing the national reform

agendas, solving outstanding issues and building

regional cooperation and good neighbourly relations, in

accordance with the European standards, is of direct

benefit to all countries of the region and their European

perspective. All of us in South-Eastern Europe are

interested in promoting business and human contacts

with our neighbours, developing cross-border projects

and facilitating travel, building railways and highways,

and developing communications and regional energy

and transport infrastructure facilities — all as part of

the pan-European networks. That is why we need to

make the best use of existing regional bodies, such as the

Organization of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation

and the South-Eastern European Cooperation Process

with its Regional Cooperation Council.

A few months ago, at the Rio+20 Conference on

Sustainable Development, we made a good start on

the path to a greener and safer world. The outcome

documents indicate that sustainable development is

the only possible way forward. The triple-win policies

envisaged in the outcome document, “The future we

want” (resolution 66/288, annex) seek to advance social

development, economic growth and environmental

sustainability, all at the same time. Our task now is

to focus on the Conference follow-up and to deliver.

The General Assembly should discuss the formulation

of sustainable development goals to be integrated

into the United Nations development agenda beyond

2015. We see an important role for the Economic and Social Council in the process, and we stand ready to

contribute, taking the opportunity of our membership

in the Council.

In the context of the United Nations development

agenda, let me stress that Bulgaria, as an EU member,

is deeply committed to the implementation of the

Millennium Development Goals and is working to

gradually increase its share as a donor of development

and humanitarian aid, in compliance with the

commitments it has undertaken. During this Assembly

session, Bulgaria will sign the Food Assistance

Convention.

Being myself a strong supporter of greater focus

on education as a key area for sustainable development,

allow me to express my high appreciation for the

initiative of the Secretary-General “Education First”.

I am convinced that in a knowledge-based network of

economies, education is the best investment in order

to prepare young generations for global citizenship.

We welcome the designation of UNESCO’s Director-

General, Mrs. Irina Bokova, as the Executive

Secretary for this initiative. In view of her outstanding

performance so far, Bulgaria advocates Mrs. Bokova’s

re-election for a second term at the helm of UNESCO

for the period 2013 to 2017.

We highly value UNICEF’s noble mission to

promote children’s rights, safety and well-being. Over

the past few years, the role of UNICEF in Bulgaria

evolved from the usual technical assistance to a

strategic partnership with the Government in order to

promote fundamental reforms. In November this year,

my country will host a UNICEF-sponsored high-level

regional conference on child care system reform.

Finally, let me assure the Assembly that Bulgaria

will continue to give its full support to the noble cause

of building a stronger, rule-based multilateral system

with an enhanced role for the United Nations at its

centre. Success on that path will be achieved only by

working together.