Lithuania, 2001

Let me at the outset

express our deepest condolences to the families of the

victims of Monday’s tragic accident in Queens, New

York.

I am particularly pleased to see Mr. Han Seung-

soo guiding the General Assembly during this session.

I wish to assure him of my delegation’s fullest support

in all his endeavours. I would like also to extend my

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congratulations to Mr. Kofi Annan on his election to a

second term of office as Secretary-General.

It is also with great satisfaction that we join other

speakers in congratulating Mr. Kofi Annan on having

been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. We are proud that

the one hundredth Nobel Prize also honoured the

United Nations as a whole. As rightly pointed out by

the Secretary-General, this “challenges us to do more

and to do better”. It is our responsibility to ensure that

the Organization is at the forefront of efforts to achieve

peace and security in the world.

This year Lithuania is celebrating the tenth

anniversary of its membership in the United Nations.

On 17 September 1991, our nation proudly watched as

the Lithuanian flag was raised for the first time at the

United Nations.

In the 10 years that have elapsed, we have seen a

rapid transformation in the world order. The world

around us has shrunk with incredible speed. The

benefits accruing from globalization have made us

more dependent upon each other and thus more

vulnerable to complex phenomena that affect the

stability and security of our societies.

Terrorism does not recognize national borders. It

spills over into international terrain, no matter how

ingenious the defences are that have been put in place.

Only through the common efforts of the international

community will it be possible to create successful

defence mechanisms. Indeed, on 11 September, the

world grasped the sheer magnitude of the defences that

will be required.

Terrorism is closely linked to extreme poverty,

marginalization, human rights violations, ethnic strife,

the proliferation of arms and drug trafficking. Thus, it

is essential in the long term to devise and carry out an

anti-terrorism policy that is inclusive and spans all

regions and continents.

I wish to express once again from this rostrum my

nation’s strong condemnation of terrorist actions and to

reaffirm our solidarity with the people of the United

States. We are determined to stand alongside the

international community in combating terrorism. In the

immediate aftermath of the terrorist attacks, Lithuania

supported the actions taken by the European Union and

the North Atlantic Alliance, including the decision of

the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) to

invoke article 5 of the Washington Treaty. My

Government has decided to grant permanent diplomatic

clearance for the overflight and landing of United

States Government aircraft.

An important step aimed at combating and

preventing terrorism was the adoption of an

unprecedented Security Council resolution: resolution

1373 (2001). Now it is up to Governments to act

without delay in following through the detailed

requirements of the resolution.

The General Assembly should also make its own

contribution, first of all, by speeding up its work on the

draft comprehensive convention on international

terrorism.

Domestic legal steps to be taken by Member

States include ratification of the 12 United Nations

multilateral instruments directly designed for the

suppression of terrorism. Lithuania has already stepped

up its efforts to accede to the remaining five

Conventions.

In this endeavour, the experience and practice of

other international bodies in the fight against terrorism

should not be forgotten. For instance, the Council of

Europe has successfully elaborated a number of

treaties, such as the European Convention on the

Suppression of Terrorism, the European Convention on

Extradition and its Protocols, and so on. The

experience of this regional organization could also be

used in the field of crime prevention, money-

laundering and corruption. It is noteworthy that

instruments of the European treaty system are also

open to non-member States.

Just last week — meeting in Warsaw at a

conference of heads of State of Central and Eastern

Europe on the common fight against terrorism — 17

leaders from the region, including from my own

country, adopted a declaration on cooperation in the

combat against terrorism and a plan of action against

terrorism. It is aimed at improving cooperation among

intelligence, customs and police services and cracking

down on money-laundering and drug trafficking.

The challenges posed by a globalized world are

multifarious and interrelated. They require diverse and

versatile actions. Therefore, due consideration and

resources should be devoted to the problems of arms

control and disarmament, as well as to poverty

eradication and sustainable development.

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In this regard, I would like to note the resolution

adopted just a few weeks ago by the First Committee

on multilateral cooperation in the area of disarmament

and non-proliferation and on global efforts against

terrorism. It puts a clear focus on multilateral efforts to

combat international terrorism and fight proliferation.

The results of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-

Ban Treaty (CTBT) article XIV Conference have

rekindled the hope that widespread concerns about the

delayed entry into force of the Treaty will be taken into

account. We also hope that the implementation of the

13 steps agreed upon at the 2000 Review Conference

of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear

Weapons (NPT) will not be put on hold. Likewise,

intensive bilateral consultations between the United

States and the Russian Federation on a new strategic

framework will, it is hoped, foster a common

understanding and provide a basis for deep reductions

in all classes of nuclear weapons, consistent with the

commitments under article VI of the NPT.

Strengthening the Biological and Toxin Weapons

Convention also remains an urgent priority.

The 2001 Conference on the Illicit Trade in Small

Arms and Light Weapons in All Its Aspects has yielded

a Programme of Action, a strategy and the political

momentum to deal with the proliferation and misuse of

small arms. There needs to be a follow-up process to

tackle their brokering, marking and transportation and

to build upon the measures agreed thus far. In the

meantime, we believe that the strict implementation of

the Programme of Action will bring about a real

change at the end of the day.

History has proved that democratic, prosperous

States provide the most favourable environment for

human activities. The United Nations should therefore

continue its efforts to promote democratization and

sustainable development. I would also like to

underscore the need to pay even greater attention to the

promotion and protection of human rights.

Today we face the challenges of a globalized

world, which are the result of rapidly developing

technologies and human negligence. These challenges,

although not as evident as open military conflicts, are

no less threatening. A devastated and deteriorating

environment could cause conflicts of an unprecedented

scale.

No effort should be spared to free people from the

dehumanizing conditions of extreme poverty.

Assistance, new trade arrangements and debt relief

should be complemented by firm commitments to

poverty reduction, economic equality and measures to

support education; they should be reflected first and

foremost in the national policies of individual States

and, at the same time, on the agendas of international

organizations. In this regard, we commit ourselves to

ensuring successful preparation for the International

Conference on Financing for Development and the

World Summit on Sustainable Development.

The Summit, in Johannesburg, should make

concrete contributions to the eradication of poverty and

the promotion of sustainable modes of production and

consumption. In this regard, the Government of

Lithuania, in its domestic policy, aims at economic

development that does not harm the overall quality of

the environment. Priority is given to promoting

investment aimed at the prevention of pollution, the

use of clean fuel and energy sources and the

introduction of low-waste and other progressive

environmental technologies.

The International Conference on Financing for

Development should focus on better mobilization and

more effective use of financial resources and find ways

for more efficient cooperation between all development

actors. The meeting will set strategic goals of policy

coherence in order to integrate into the world economy

countries with differing levels of economic

development. The Bretton Woods institutions and the

private sector should play important roles in the

development process.

The events of 11 September have proved how

fragile international security can be. Moreover, in

defence of our common values — freedom, democracy

and openness — no nation can idly stand by or act

unilaterally. Every nation must pull its own weight in

contributing to regional and international stability.

Strengthening dialogue and understanding among

nations and civilizations should also remain in the

forefront of our thinking. Better understanding and

identified common values will foster trust and

tolerance among people, preventing the spread of

fanaticism, violence and terrorism. Lithuania made its

contribution to these goals by hosting the International

Conference on Dialogue among Civilizations in April

this year.

It is of crucial importance to Lithuania to

participate actively in international organizations and

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to contribute to peacekeeping efforts. We have

continued to provide our civilian police officers to

United Nations peacekeeping operations through the

United Nations Standby Arrangements System. Our

troops have been serving in the Balkans since the very

beginning of the international engagement in that

region. Just a few days ago, a Lithuanian medical

squad, a small, but much-needed contribution to the

United Nations, was placed under the Standby

Arrangements System. Shortly, Lithuania will submit

its application for full-fledged membership in the

United Nations Standby Forces High-Readiness

Brigade.

Membership in the European Union and the North

Atlantic Treaty Organization will solidify our region’s

institutional, economic and security ties. Lithuania is

sparing no effort in preparing for the challenges of a

unified pan-Atlantic family of democracies. The work

of the Vilnius 10 group, initiated a few years ago and

launched in Vilnius, is proof of the ability of the

region’s States to promote transparency, partnership

and common values.

At the subregional level, Lithuania stresses

practical cooperative efforts to promote democratic and

economic transformation throughout the region. Over

the last decade, our engagement with Poland has

become a close partnership. Dynamic trilateral Baltic

cooperation has become part of broader Baltic-Nordic

cooperation. Excellent cross-border cooperation with

the Kaliningrad region has given rise to many dynamic

developments.

Just a couple of days ago, on 8 November,

Lithuania assumed the chairmanship of the Committee

of Ministers of the Council of Europe. The Council of

Europe, based on the common values of pluralist

democracy, human rights and the rule of law, already

has a history of cooperation with the United Nations

and its agencies, most notably in the field of human

rights. Recent joint efforts by the United Nations, the

Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe

and the Council of Europe to facilitate recovery of

South-Eastern Europe have proved to be of the utmost

significance for the people of the region, and have

opened a new chapter of cooperation between these

organizations.

During its chairmanship, Lithuania will seek to

stimulate dialogue between the Council of Europe and

the United Nations and its specialized agencies. We

encourage a regular exchange of views on issues

related to the fight against and prevention of terrorism,

organized crime and money-laundering. Intensive

coordination with regard to setting standards for

pluralist democracy and respect for human rights will

also be promoted.

In the work of the Council of Europe, the

Lithuanian chairmanship will focus mainly on fighting

terrorism, supporting the enlargement process of the

Council of Europe, promoting regional cooperation and

ensuring the effective functioning of the organization.

With the aim of building a modern pan-European

society, we will keep working to establish a wider

European identity, sharing the best practices of the

Council of Europe with other organizations and States,

and strengthening the impact of the Council of Europe.