South Korea, 1996

On behalf of the

Government and the people of the Republic of Korea, Sir,

I would like to express my sincere congratulations on your

assumption of the presidency of the fifty-first session of the

General Assembly. We are confident that under your able

leadership the Assembly will take action to revitalize the

world Organization, building on the foundation laid by your

predecessor, Mr. Diogo Freitas do Amaral of Portugal. My

gratitude goes also to the Secretary-General, Mr. Boutros

Boutros-Ghali, and the staff of the Secretariat for their

excellent work for this session.

The most pressing business of this Assembly is to

create the architecture for United Nations renewal. The

Member States, with vision and determination, need to

construct step by step a consensus on reform that will not

only bring the Organization out of its present crisis, but will

also prepare the world community to meet the challenges of

the twenty-first century. We welcome the ongoing efforts

to strengthen and revitalize the United Nations. But at the

same time we must admit that unless progress is accelerated

in the months ahead, there is a real danger that the

momentum and sense of purpose spawned by the fiftieth

anniversary could well be lost.

My Government actively supports the various working

groups of the General Assembly as they seek ways to make

the United Nations more effective, efficient and democratic.

As a member of the Group of Sixteen States in support of

renewing multilateralism, we are also pleased to actively

participate in the efforts to enhance the principle of

multilateralism. The Group’s joint statement embodying this

principle was reported to the General Assembly last

Wednesday by Prime Minister Persson of Sweden, on

behalf of the 16 Heads of State or Government.

All these efforts, however, will be of no use if

Member States fail either to meet their financial

obligations or to make the political compromises

necessary to produce a durable package of reforms. Let us

not forget that the very principles of multilateralism on

which the United Nations was founded are at risk. As was

so aptly put by the President of the General Assembly in

his 17 September inaugural speech, “the syndrome of

business as usual'” (Official Records of the General

Assembly, Fifty-first Session, Plenary Meetings, 1st

meeting, p. 3) must be discarded.

Our Organization is in serious financial trouble due

to the arrears and outstanding contributions of Member

States. The Security Council needs to be modernized to

reflect the expansion in United Nations membership, to be

more equitably balanced geographically and to work

efficiently, transparently and democratically. To better

serve the needs of economic development and to reduce

duplication, we should undertake a sweeping reassessment

of the scores of subsidiary bodies of the Economic and

Social Council and of the Assembly itself. While we

welcome General Assembly resolution 50/227 as a step in

the right direction, much more needs to be done. History

will not judge the United Nations on how many

committees it forms or how many resolutions it passes,

but on how much it does on the ground, day in and day

out, to further peace, prosperity and justice for the

world’s peoples.

Today I would like to focus my remarks on four

major challenges facing the United Nations and then to

say a few words about the situation on the Korean

peninsula.

In considering the architecture for United Nations

renewal, we should shape an Organization better prepared

to respond to the following four priority needs: first,

restraining the proliferation of dangerous and destructive

weaponry; secondly, bolstering United Nations capabilities

for effective peacekeeping and peace-building; thirdly,

assisting economic and social development while

enhancing protection of the environment; and fourthly,

improving mechanisms for ensuring respect for

international law and human rights.

Calls for a new international order will ring hollow

without more reliable controls on the spread of dangerous

armaments, particularly those capable of mass destruction.

As a supporter of the early conclusion of a comprehensive

test-ban treaty (CTBT), my Government heartily welcomed

the long-awaited adoption of the Treaty earlier this month.

The conclusion of the CTBT will help curb nuclear

proliferation in all its forms and will contribute towards

nuclear disarmament. As an original signatory to the CTBT,

the Republic of Korea aims to ratify the Treaty swiftly. In

order for the CTBT to become universal and verifiable, my

Government urges all countries to accede to the Treaty at

the earliest possible date.

While the Conference on Disarmament failed to reach

consensus on the CTBT, the Conference, through two and

a half years of intense negotiations, was instrumental in

articulating the eventual Treaty. I would like to take this

opportunity to pay tribute to the Conference and to assure

the Assembly that the Republic of Korea, as a new member

of the Conference, will spare no efforts to contribute to its

vital work.

Despite much progress towards a world free of nuclear

weapons, the Korean peninsula still faces the threat of

nuclear proliferation. North Korea has yet to achieve

nuclear transparency. Once again, my delegation urges

North Korea to comply with its obligations under the Treaty

on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) and

International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) safeguards in

a comprehensive manner, and to implement fully and

faithfully the Framework Agreement between the United

States and the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea. We

also renew our call on North Korea to live up to its

obligations under the South-North Joint Declaration on the

Denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.

Until they are eliminated from the face of the Earth,

chemical and biological weapons too will pose a grave

threat to humanity. Towards this end, the Republic of

Korea, as an original signatory to the chemical weapons

Convention in 1993, recently concluded the domestic

procedures to ratify the Convention. We look forward to its

swift entry into force, for universal adherence to the

Convention is critical to achieving a total ban on chemical

weapons. My delegation therefore strongly urges those

countries which have not yet joined the Convention,

including the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, to do

so as early as possible.

Moreover, my Government, which acceded to the

biological weapons Convention supports the efforts to

introduce a strict verification system into the Convention.

Both of these non-proliferation measures are essential

building blocks for world peace.

My Government, moreover, shares the international

concern over the millions of anti-personnel landmines

scattered throughout the world. We are looking forward

to working closely with other Member States to minimize

the suffering and casualties among innocent civilians

caused by these indiscriminate weapons. To this end, I am

pleased to announce that the Republic of Korea will again

extend its moratorium on the export of anti-personnel

mines for another year.

The second priority for United Nations renewal

should be to adapt and bolster its uniquely valuable

peacekeeping and peace- building work to meet new

challenges. Following several years of rising expectations

and expanding mandates, Member States have developed

over the past two years a more sober appreciation not

only of the limits of United Nations capabilities but, more

important, of their own willingness to provide the

requisite material and human support for a more

ambitious role for the world body. Both the scope and the

nature of peacekeeping operations are being tested as the

demands for United Nations involvement remain high in

a world confronted by an alarming number of intra-State

conflicts and acts of terrorism.

Today’s peacekeepers are often required to undertake

diverse tasks such as monitoring violations of human

rights, staging elections, rehabilitating civic institutions

and reintegrating combatants and refugees into peacetime

society. Thus, peacekeeping now directly contributes to

peace-building and conflict prevention. Post-conflict

peace-building, by rehabilitating a country’s war-ravaged

economic and social base, can serve to prevent the

recurrence of conflict. Member States should recognize,

however, that the broadening of peacekeeping objectives

should be matched by an expansion in the resources and

capabilities of the United Nations for carrying out these

tasks. Peace, too, has a price.

Recently, several promising proposals have been put

forward for enhancing the rapid deployment capability of

the United Nations. We consider the United Nations

system of standby arrangements — currently comprising

of 59 countries, including the Republic of Korea — to be

an innovative and practical mechanism for coping with

emergency situations. We also believe that the growing

interest and participation of Member States have boosted

the credibility of the system of standby arrangements,

making it easier to secure the consent of parties in a

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given conflict to United Nations peacekeeping involvement.

In addition, we support the establishment of a rapidly

deployable headquarters team within the Department of

Peacekeeping Operations, as proposed by the friends of

rapid deployment. The Korean Government is willing to

detail personnel to the team as part of our contribution to

strengthening the United Nations rapid deployment

capability.

Since we first dispatched an engineering unit to the

United Nations peacekeeping operation in Somalia in 1993,

the Republic of Korea has contributed to many

peacekeeping operations around the world. We intend to

expand our participation in terms of human resources, and

material and political support for practical steps to improve

the peace-management capacity of the United Nations.

In an uncertain world, terrorism poses an ever-present

threat to international and domestic peace and security.

Having been a direct victim of terrorism, the Republic of

Korea strongly condemns all acts of terrorism. We urge the

international community to take firm action to contain and

combat terrorism. The 1994 Declaration on Measures to

Eliminate International Terrorism clearly states that

terrorism in all forms is not only criminal, but also

unjustifiable under any circumstances, regardless of

political, ideological, ethnic or racial motivation. My

Government reaffirms its strong commitment to join the

ongoing efforts to eradicate terrorism worldwide.

Economic and social development should also remain

a high priority at a time when scientific progress and

information technology are globalizing the world economy

at a rapid pace. Driven by unprecedented levels of cross-

border trade and investment, globalization presents new

opportunities to bolster economic development and improve

quality of life. Nonetheless, we must not lose sight of the

detrimental effects of this trend, which threaten to leave

some developing countries increasingly marginalized.

The United Nations has an obligation to try to help

those least developed countries, particularly in Africa, that

are truly in need. My delegation fully supports the United

Nations System-wide Special Initiative for development in

Africa, a joint undertaking by the United Nations and the

Bretton Woods institutions launched last March. We look

forward to joining other Member States in a common effort

to bring this worthy endeavour to fruition.

Having risen from the devastation of the Korean War,

the Republic of Korea has achieved sustained economic

growth and advancements in living standards over the past

three decades. Seeking to share the lessons of our own

development experience, we have worked to help other

developing countries apply two key elements of our own

growth: capacity-building and human resource

development. The Korean International Cooperation

Agency is implementing diverse programs to assist other

developing countries in this regard. At the same time,

Korea will increase its voluntary contribution to the

operational activities of the United Nations by 120 per

cent during 1996-97. In these and many other ways, we

are determined to participate in United Nations efforts to

bring about economic and social progress throughout the

world.

Since 1994, my Government has worked with the

United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) to

establish the International Vaccine Institute in Seoul. This

Institute will be dedicated to capacity-building for

developing countries in the development and use of

vaccines, particularly for children and the impoverished.

The official launching of the International Vaccine

Institute will take place in New York on 28 October. We

would encourage as many countries as possible to show

their support for this worthy and noble project by

becoming party to the agreement.

The emergence of unprecedented global

environmental issues, such as climate change and

biodiversity, calls for genuine global partnership based on

equitable burden-sharing. The special session on

environmental issues of the General Assembly in 1997

will provide us with a valuable opportunity to formulate

a clear, sustainable development strategy for the twenty-

first century. On 5 June 1997, immediately before the

special session, my Government will co-host World

Environment Day, together with the United Nations

Environment Programme (UNEP), as part of our efforts

to contribute to the resolution of environmental issues.

The fourth theme for United Nations renewal, in our

view, should be to reinforce the unique United Nations

capacity for codifying, monitoring and encouraging

respect for international law and human rights. As the

Charter so eloquently attests, genuine peace and stability

depend upon a healthy respect for international law and

human rights norms. The continuing United Nations

commitment to human rights and social justice was

reaffirmed by a series of international conferences during

the 1990s. They include the Vienna World Conference on

Human Rights, in 1993, and the Fourth World Conference

on Women, held in Beijing in 1995.

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In particular, the Beijing Conference underscored the

critical principle that gender equality — through the

protection of women’s human rights and the eradication of

all forms of violence against women — forms the

foundation of a sound and prosperous society. The Republic

of Korea is committed to maintaining its support for

international efforts to advance the status of women.

All of us need to do more, however, to help the

United Nations live up to its potential for promoting human

rights. Its mechanisms for furthering respect for universal

human rights need to be reinforced and upgraded across the

board. We need to enhance the coordinating role of the

High Commissioner for Human Rights and of the resources

of the Centre for Human Rights. The Korean Government

will do its best to make a meaningful contribution to this

end.

Envisioned since the Nuremberg and Tokyo Tribunals

of a half century ago, the idea of an international court to

punish crimes against humanity is now being materialized,

even as the Yugoslavia and Rwanda Tribunals are

struggling to bring to justice criminals who have committed

genocide and other mass crimes. A preparatory committee

is refining the draft statute of the international criminal

court, prepared by the International Law Commission. We

look forward to the early establishment of the court, which

we believe will deter violators of human rights. We also

welcome the establishment of the International Tribunal for

the Law of the Sea, which should contribute significantly

to the strengthening of international law and order.

The road to democracy in the Republic of Korea has

been long and difficult. Indeed, laying the foundation for

democracy in a developing country is never easy. It

requires a vigilant public conscious of democracy and

human rights and a government willing to nurture the will

of its citizens. This has been and will remain a primary

objective of the Korean Government. We are making every

effort to promote further human rights and democracy

through the enhancement of our legal and institutional

mechanisms.

My Government has also been active in the endeavour

to assist the democratic impulse throughout the world.

Lending our support to the electoral assistance activities of

the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe,

we provided a dozen election monitors, as well as supplies,

for the international operation to ensure free and fair

elections in Bosnia and Herzegovina. In the past, we also

participated in the electoral observer missions in

Mozambique, Cambodia, South Africa and Palestine.

Let me now turn to the situation on the Korean

peninsula. Despite the easing of tensions worldwide since

the end of the cold war, the Korean peninsula continues

to be a source of instability, posing threats to the peace

and security of north-east Asia and beyond.

Unfortunately, the tides of openness and reconciliation

that swept other parts of the world have not yet reached

the Korean peninsula, the last remaining legacy of the

cold war.

Last week North Korea dispatched a military

submarine to infiltrate armed commandos into the South.

We uncovered this infiltration when the submarine ran

aground on the shore of Kangrung, a city on the South

Korean east coast, and 26 armed agents are believed to

have come ashore. Of these, 21 were killed and one was

captured. According to the captured agent, the armed

infiltrators were all military officers from the North

Korean defence ministry. Subsequent examinations also

revealed shocking findings. The 11 North Koreans found

dead on the day of the landing were apparently killed by

their cohorts for reasons unknown.

The investigation is still under way to find out the

purpose of the infiltration and other details, but the

findings to date present a strong possibility that last

week’s infiltration is part of a larger-scale infiltration

operation.

This brazen act of military provocation by North

Korea constitutes not only a serious infringement of our

territorial waters and sovereignty, but also a blatant

violation of the Armistice Agreement. It also clearly

demonstrates that North Korea still seeks Korean

reunification by any means, including the use of force.

Needless to say, this act of provocation poses a direct

threat to peace and stability on and around the Korean

peninsula.

We once again urge North Korea immediately to

renounce its absurd goal of unifying Korea by force and

to pursue peaceful coexistence with the South. The North

should also abide by the Armistice Agreement and end

any attempt to disrupt the current armistice regime.

We also take this opportunity to renew our call on

North Korea to accept our proposal for four-party talks

involving both Koreas, China and the United States,

which will enable constructive negotiations for the

establishment of a lasting peace on the peninsula. In the

absence of Pyongyang’s positive response and given the

seriousness of North Korea’s violation of the armistice,

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my country firmly believes that the Armistice Agreement

should remain in full force.

At the historic fiftieth session of the General

Assembly, we took a collective look at where the United

Nations had been and where it was going. In an open and

forward-looking spirit, we compared visions of the kind of

world body that will be needed to meet the challenges of

the twenty-first century. Now, with this fifty-first session,

comes the hard part: redoubling our collective commitment

to the world body so that it can become a means for

translating our visions into realities.

Together, we can fashion the architecture of United

Nations renewal. Can we achieve harmony out of diversity?

Can we refocus our energies on the four priorities of

stemming the spread of weapons of mass destruction,

bolstering United Nations peacekeeping and peace-building

capabilities, advancing sustainable economic and social

development, and reinforcing our joint commitment to

international law and human rights? The answer to these

questions must be a resounding collective “yes”. The

Republic of Korea stands ready to make its share of

contributions, through the United Nations, to meet the

challenges of the next century.