Czech Republic, 1996

Let me congratulate

Ambassador Razali on his election to the office of President

of the fifty-first session of the General Assembly and wish

him all the best in that challenging post. I would also like

to thank the outgoing President, Mr. Diogo Freitas do

Amaral, for the outstanding manner in which he conducted

the work of the previous session.

A year ago, many world leaders gathered here to

commemorate the fiftieth anniversary of the United Nations

and, in particular, to discuss its future prospects. No one

questioned its importance as a worldwide forum for dealing

with important global problems. Based on the principle of

universality, it should be open to all those who are willing

and ready to participate in this endeavour.

But as it enters the second half-century of its

existence, the United Nations faces increasing, ever more

complex and often even conflicting demands. Its response

has often been to try to do everything, eventually watering

down its energies and drive, thus contributing to a

perception of declining efficiency. It should in fact focus

only on what it does best: maintaining international peace

and security, promoting respect for human rights, providing

development assistance and alleviating human suffering.

We therefore believe that a critical stage in its reform

should consist of setting out clear-cut priorities for United

Nations action. There are areas where the United Nations

holds a competitive advantage, where it can act more

efficiently than individual States or regional organizations,

and where it has proven its ability to achieve more cost-

effective and rapid results than other entities.

Reform is no longer a subject for discussion. Action

is needed. Significant steps in the right direction have, of

course, already been taken. We have noted with

satisfaction the gradual downsizing of the Secretariat in

the past several years and the adoption of a no-growth

budget for the current period. Similar efforts by

specialized agencies have furthermore included moves

towards their better coordination. We welcome the

establishment of an Efficiency Board within the

Secretariat.

Though reform is well under way, the current system

is still hindered by overlapping mandates and duplication

in the work of various United Nations bodies and

specialized agencies. Departments within secretariats

suffer from insufficient coordination and oversight

mechanisms, unclear priorities and bureaucratic

procedures. Intense reflection on these matters is taking

place in various United Nations bodies. The Open-ended

High-level Working Group on the Strengthening of the

United Nations System has discussed rationalizing the

General Assembly’s methods and organization of its

work, streamlining its agenda and reshaping its subsidiary

machinery, as well as reforming the structures and

functioning of the Secretariat. We hope that some of these

ideas will mature enough to be presented as formal

recommendations to the General Assembly.

The financial situation of the United Nations

continues to be critical, in spite of a reduction in

peacekeeping activities. In our view, there are two main

causes of this situation: the present method of assessing

contributions and arrears.

On the first point, we believe that a new scale of

assessments should be developed that would equitably

reflect the economic circumstances of individual Member

States and their capacity to pay, based primarily on gross

national product (GNP) indicators. On the second point,

it is essential that Member States fulfil their financial

obligations in full, on time and without conditions.

Certain incentives and disincentives should be adopted to

encourage Member States to honour their financial

commitments. These measures, however, should not be

applied to Members unable to pay for reasons beyond

their control.

The Czech Republic fully associates itself with the

European Union’s package of financial proposals. I recall

also that our share of peacekeeping operations has not

been determined yet. We take this issue very seriously

and have made certain specific proposals to resolve it.

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Security Council reform has attracted extremely wide

attention. As I mentioned in 1995, we support an increase

in both permanent and non-permanent seats while insisting

on safeguarding rapid and effective Council action. Yet the

more members it has, the more its effectiveness will be

hindered. In our view, therefore, only a modest expansion

is feasible. We oppose new categories of membership.

The criteria for new permanent members should

include their level of commitment to maintaining peace, to

promoting development and to meeting their financial

obligations to the United Nations. We believe Germany and

Japan are suitable candidates, and support an expanded

representation of Africa, Latin America and Asia.

The second aspect of Security Council reform relates

to its working methods. Several proposals have been

submitted, including the Czech one, on a broader

interpretation of Article 31 of the United Nations Charter.

The proposals submitted include a number of points

acceptable to the overwhelming majority of Member States.

We regret that the Working Group on the Security Council

has not yet reached consensus on any of them. We believe

that issues not requiring amendments to the Charter should

be resolved separately from those that would. We will

pursue our efforts in this respect and strive for some

agreement next year.

Having been elected to the Economic and Social

Council and having assumed the post of its Vice-President,

we have taken on a fair share of responsibility for its work.

We strongly support reform efforts to restructure the

Council and to enhance its efficiency and its coordinating

role. It should more adequately reflect the new world

economic and social situation. We believe that the

Council’s position within the United Nations system should

be strengthened and its procedures streamlined. It should

provide policy guidance for development activities and

become the supreme steering and coordinating body for all

United Nations-based programmes that fall under its

purview.

Restructuring its functional commissions is a key

aspect of its reform. Regional economic commissions

should play a more visible role. Upgrading development

cooperation with Bretton Woods institutions and the World

Trade Organization is another challenge for the Economic

and Social Council. To reduce duplication with the General

Assembly, the Council should pass on to the Assembly only

those issues that it does not have the power to decide by

itself. On the other hand, the General Assembly should

strike from its agenda those items that are fully within the

Council’s authority.

Although the Czech Republic’s two-year term on the

Security Council expired at the end of 1995, we continue

to pay attention to the conflicts and other events that

endanger world peace and security.

The Dayton peace process gave a chance to the

people of Bosnia and Herzegovina and to the other

countries involved. The September 1996 elections

constituted a milestone on the road to a lasting peace in

the Balkans. The Organization for Security and

Cooperation in Europe performed its election task in an

outstanding manner. We applaud all those who

participated in those elections.

On the other hand, we cannot ignore the fact that the

election results reconfirmed ethnic divisions in the

country. It will not be easy for the parties to overcome

this problem. The international community should

therefore remain alert and continue in its peaceful

engagement by committing the necessary troops and by

exerting political pressure on all the parties to keep up the

momentum of the Dayton peace process. Local elections,

to be held in November, are the next step in this process.

It is important that all planned political institutions be

formed and start functioning as soon as possible.

Another area of deep interest to us is the Middle

East. As a participant in the multilateral talks on peace

and economic cooperation in the Middle East and as one

of the donor States in the area, we have consistently

voiced our full support for the continuation of the peace

process based on a just and comprehensive solution of the

issues. We do so again today with renewed urgency in

view of the recent tragic events in Jerusalem.

Security and stability in the Gulf region are

important to the Czech Republic. We support all efforts

to solve the tense situation concerning Iraq. Iraq must

comply unconditionally with all relevant Security Council

resolutions in order for sanctions to be lifted and for Iraq

to return to the international community. At the same

time, the territorial integrity of Iraq must be preserved.

We look forward to a peaceful resolution of the Iraqi

issue. For humanitarian reasons we hope that Security

Council resolution 986 (1995) is implemented as soon as

conditions permit.

Despite geographical distance, we are deeply

concerned by conflicts in African countries, such as

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Angola, Somalia, Liberia, Rwanda and Burundi. My

country supports United Nations efforts to rid these

countries of war and suffering, which, besides engendering

violence, further widen the gap between developed

countries and these often desperately poor countries.

The Czech Republic intends to contribute to

international stability and economic development.

Domestically, we laid the foundations for this policy by

strengthening our democratic institutions and by reforming

our economy. Internationally, this effort was endorsed last

December when the Czech Republic was admitted to the

Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development

(OECD). For my Government, OECD membership amounts

also to a serious commitment to share the knowledge and

experience of the Czech people with other countries and to

provide development assistance.

Solid domestic results are also a precondition for

membership in the European Union and in the North

Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). These regional

arrangements are vital for Europe’s security structure.

Through membership in NATO, the Czech Republic intends

to contribute to Europe’s security and stability. The

decision on our membership will be made by NATO

members and by our country. Russia’s participation in

discussions on European security is, of course, critical, and

we understand the need for a strategic partnership between

NATO and the Russian Federation. These discussions,

however, should not precondition the process of NATO

enlargement.

Peacekeeping is an important tool in the hands of the

Security Council. However, it has its limits, in so far as

hostilities often occur within States. These limits are

dictated by the principles of impartiality, the non-use of

force — except in self-defence — and consent of the

parties. Following United Nations experiences in Somalia,

Bosnia and Herzegovina and, most recently, in Liberia,

unwarranted enthusiasm concerning peacekeepers has

evaporated.

The Czech Republic has been actively participating in

United Nations peacekeeping. We support the establishment

of stand-by arrangements and intend to participate in the

system aimed at expanding United Nations capacities to

deploy its forces. My country’s participation in the

Implementation Force (IFOR) in Bosnia and Herzegovina

is our current major effort devoted to peace. The United

Nations does not have peace-enforcement instruments of its

own, but regional arrangements are often useful in

enforcing peace. Our IFOR experience only confirms this.

Last year we signed the Convention on the Safety of

United Nations and Associated Personnel, and we

anticipate its early ratification. We hope that it will enter

into force soon.

The fifth Review Conference of the Treaty on the

Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) reconfirmed

the elimination of nuclear weapons as its ultimate goal.

Concluding the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty

represents a significant step in this direction, and we

intend to sign the Treaty very shortly. It is disturbing

however, that the Conference on Disarmament did not

reach consensus on this question and that the Treaty was

not adopted unanimously. Every effort should be made to

achieve universality of NPT membership. Perhaps the

most important task is the implementation of Article VI

of the Treaty. The role of the Conference on

Disarmament in this process is irreplaceable and will take

on even more importance, as the Conference is expected

to deal with another growing problem that we want to

help resolve — the elimination of anti-personnel

landmines.

Matters of security have long ceased to be only

matters of armies and weapons. The devastating social

damage done by drug abuse and illicit drug trafficking

threaten the entire international community. Close

international cooperation in tackling the drug menace

should be our response to this dangerous challenge.

International terrorism is another source of great

concern. The international community must stand united

to suppress it. It is the responsibility of each State to fight

terrorism and to strictly apply and abide by all

international instruments in this field. We appeal to States

that have not ratified the appropriate conventions to do so

without delay and to implement them.

The Czech Government attaches great importance to

the promotion of human rights and in particular to United

Nations activities in this field. An environment that

upholds human rights is our best protection as individuals

and as a society. We defend human rights because it is in

our own best interest. This year the Czech Republic has

been elected to the United Nations Commission on

Human Rights. As a member of the Commission, we

intend to contribute actively to its work and to meet the

objectives of the international community in this field.

President Havel is one of the 16 Heads of State or

Government who have recently issued a statement on

reviving multilateralism. The statement voices deep

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concern over the lack of progress, both in pace and in

scope, of multilateral renewal. Nations must either move

forward to reform and strengthen the United Nations

system, or we risk facing a weakened solidarity, more

unilateralism and perhaps conflict and overt disregard of

international law and human values. Multilateral diplomacy

goes well beyond the United Nations itself. Regional

cooperation is crucial to strengthening global cooperation.

Without a stronger United Nations, however, other forms of

international cooperation will lose coherence.