North Macedonia, 2007

It is a privilege and an

honour for me to address this forum and to share the

views of the Republic of Macedonia regarding issues

of utmost importance for the current session of the

General Assembly. However, allow me first of all to

avail myself of this opportunity to congratulate my

fellow countryman, Mr. Srgjan Kerim, on his election

as President of General Assembly at its sixty-second

session. His nomination to this prestigious position is

yet another proof of the full dedication of the Republic

of Macedonia to the promotion of the aims of this

unique global Organization.

I would also like to congratulate the previous

General Assembly President, Sheikha Haya Rashed

Al Khalifa, for her successful presidency of the

Assembly at its sixty-first session. Allow me as well to

take this opportunity to congratulate the Secretary-

General, Mr. Ban Ki-moon, on the energetic start of his

mandate and his dedication in this time of great

importance for our Organization.

The issue of climate change was rightly proposed

by the President of the General Assembly as a topic to

be discussed during this general debate. The alleviation

of the impact of global warming and climate change,

which has become one of the greatest challenges for

individual countries, but also for the entire

international community, calls for the undertaking of

coordinated and serious measures. It is our obligation

to preserve our planet for the generations to come.

Therefore, one of our imperatives would be to provide

clear political support in responding to the negative

impact of global warming, while not impeding

economic growth and the reduction of poverty. In this

context, apart from recognizing the central role of the

United Nations Framework Convention on Climate

Change, we should also promote consultations within

the United Nations environmental institutions.

People around the world expect the United

Nations to improve its performance and continue to

deliver. For many, this Organization remains a symbol

of hope and of support in times of need, but also a

helping hand in times of crisis. The world has changed,

and so have the challenges. The United Nations must

also continue to change in order to be ready to respond.

The 2005 World Summit Outcome created a solid

basis for all necessary reforms. A lot has been

achieved perhaps not as much as was expected, but

the progress made so far is visible. We must continue

working on the reforms of the main bodies, in the

interest of transparency and effectiveness.

The Republic of Macedonia strongly supports the

current management reform directed towards achieving

efficiency and accountability in the United Nations

system. The new bodies are already a reality and fully

operational. What we expect in particular is the Human

Rights Council to strengthen its role in the global

promotion and protection of human rights. Driven by

our strong will to contribute to the work of this highly

important body, we have put forward our application

for membership for the period from 2009 to 2012.

The report of the United Nations High-level

Panel on System-wide Coherence offered a number of

valuable recommendations for the reform of United

Nations operational activities. I hope that the

discussions during the current session will help to

create a consensus on measures to strengthen United

Nations capacities in the areas of development,

humanitarian assistance and environment.

The issue of disarmament, arms control and

non-proliferation must remain high on our agenda. We

must therefore attach further importance to these

issues, which are relevant for the achievement of

global peace, security and development.

Terrorism continues to threaten our world. The

fight against terrorism is yet another area in which we

must stand united. The United Nations Global Counter-

Terrorism Strategy and its Plan of Action, adopted last

year, provide an excellent framework for our individual

and joint actions. We must promote their

implementation at the national and regional level and

seek to achieve visible results.

At the 2005 World Summit, we reaffirmed our

commitment to global partnership for development as

stated in the Millennium Declaration, the Monterrey

Consensus and the Johannesburg Plan of

Implementation. We fully agree that every country

bears the responsibility for its own development, which

depends mainly on national policies and strategies. We

also agree that global actions are necessary as a

support to national efforts.

Some regions need more shared responsibility

than others in order to achieve the projected targets.

Africa, where the situation remains alarming, requires

special attention. With this in mind, we endorse the call

for renewed commitment to the implementation of the

Millennium Development Goals, and we await the

forthcoming High-level Dialogue on Financing for

Development, which is expected to bring specific

results.

United Nations involvement in Africa, including

in the Sudan, remains of exceptional importance. The

situation in Darfur is extremely critical and alarming.

Member States must reunite once again and provide

support to United Nations activities in order to respond

to the challenges on the ground.

The Middle East situation continues to be an

issue of utmost concern. People in the Middle East

deserve to live free from fear and threats. The Republic

of Macedonia supports the efforts of the Quartet and

the Road Map. A renewed peace process is also of

utmost urgency. The situation in Lebanon also remains

high on the international agenda. Recently, the

Republic of Macedonia joined the United Nations

forces in that area by sending military officers to the

United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon.

Since the very beginning, the Republic of

Macedonia has been part of the international anti-

terrorist coalition in Iraq and Afghanistan. The

Republic of Macedonia fully supports the unity of Iraq.

We also support the recent Security Council resolution

1770 (2007) regarding an extended role for the

Organization in Iraq. Building peace and democracy in

those two countries remains a key challenge both for

the international community and for the Iraqis and

Afghans themselves.

The Republic of Macedonia continues on its path

towards a functional multi-ethnic democracy. There are

many challenges on that path that we should tackle and

obligations that we must fulfil. We are committed to

comprehensive reforms in all segments of Macedonian

society in order to obtain a date for the beginning of

pre-accession negotiations for membership in the

European Union in 2008. At the same time, bearing in

mind the successful reforms that we have been

implementing for years, we are deeply convinced that

it would be realistic to obtain an invitation for

membership of the Republic of Macedonia in the North

Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) at the next

summit of that organization, scheduled for April 2008

in Bucharest.

The region of South-East Europe has come a long

way in the past decade. We are all striving towards the

common goal of European and Euro-Atlantic

integration, which is a strong driving force in terms of

reforms and final stabilization of the region. The

Republic of Macedonia remains firmly committed to

good-neighbourly relations and regional cooperation,

and we believe that dialogue is of key importance for

all outstanding issues in the interest of everyone in the

region.

We continue to support the efforts of the

international community regarding the resolution of the

status of Kosovo. At this stage, the Republic of

Macedonia hopes that the next round of negotiations

and consultations led by the Troika will bring the

positions of both parties closer. We also endorse the

position that a resolution of the Kosovo issue should be

formulated within a reasonable time frame, in the best

interest of stability in the region and the region’s Euro-

Atlantic perspective.

In that context, I would like to underline in

particular that we do not agree with the recently

mentioned idea of partition of Kosovo according to

ethnic lines, since that might have serious negative

implications for the entire region. The issue of the

technical demarcation of our northern border with

Kosovo according to a predefined procedure and

agenda remains a top priority for the Republic of

Macedonia.

Allow me to assure the Assembly that we will

spare no efforts translating our words into actions, so

that people around the world may be convinced of our

commitment to respecting and implementing the

principles and values enshrined in the United Nations

Charter.

Finally with or without any points of order

the name of my country is the Republic of Macedonia

and will be the Republic of Macedonia.