Turkey, 1999

Mr. President, the session of the

General Assembly over which you are presiding marks the

last to be held this century. We are about to turn a new leaf

in history. It is, therefore, a time for reflection, a time to

reap our lessons and draw our conclusions. It is also a time

to reorganize our goals, priorities and our agenda for the

next century.

Therefore, there is a recurrent theme throughout this

session. We all try to assess what we have achieved and

where we have failed in the twentieth century. As we look

back on our performance, we observe that within every

success story, we also somehow had our failures.

The twentieth century has witnessed unprecedented

scientific progress. These achievements, however, were not

used solely to advance the human cause and to improve the

quality of life. To a very large extent, these scientific and

technological innovations were also used as instruments for

the destruction of life. Throughout the century, there was an

enormous accumulation of wealth. But the vast majority of

the world's population is deprived of this wealth. Poverty,

and sometimes even hunger, is still their fate.

This century has produced great intellectual

achievements and depth. But it has also been the stage of

distorted ideologies which produced tyrannies and

sometimes encouraged practices like ethnic cleansing. In

other words, while the twentieth century created technology

and generated material and intellectual wealth, it could not

organize the means to put them totally to the service of

humanity as a whole. This is our failure. This is the

challenge we face. This is what we must overcome.

The global issues we face, whether political,

economic, social or environmental, will from now on

require further intensification of our concerted efforts. As

the primary forum for international cooperation, the

United Nations will continue to be the focal point of our

collective endeavours.

The wealth of experience accumulated by the United

Nations, together with the plans of action devised to

address the challenges we face, must now be put to more

effective use. The millennium summit next year should

provide the guidance needed to place our assets to work

more efficiently in the twenty-first century.

A little over a month ago, one of the deadliest

earthquakes of the century struck the northwest of

Turkey. This is the most populous region of my country.

The devastating quake claimed more than 15,000 lives,

and thrice as many were wounded. It left about half a

million people homeless. We have, undoubtedly, derived

great fortitude from the exemplary display of solidarity

and the swift response of the international community.

The best qualities of human nature were at work: sharing

the other's agony and lending a hand to help heal and to

reconstruct.

I would like to convey the gratitude of the

Government and the people of Turkey to all Members,

the international community, the United Nations system,

along with the numerous volunteers and individuals who

stood with us at our most trying hour.

We express our deep feelings of sympathy for and

solidarity with those affected by the earthquake near

Taipei. In the face of the recent wave of earthquakes, we

believe this Organization can take a further step with

regard to natural disasters. This would be in keeping with

the greater role of the United Nations in our lives. That

is why my country, together with our neighbour Greece,

which also suffered a similar calamity recently, is

introducing a draft resolution to the General Assembly.

This was eloquently announced by my Greek counterpart,

George Papandreou, yesterday in the General Assembly.

We hope that it will receive Members' support.

On the eve of the twenty-first century, Turkey looks

forward to enhancing its contribution to international

peace and stability. At the epicentre of Eurasia, it aspires

to broaden the scope of cooperation and prosperity, while

it continues in its traditional role of connecting continents

and civilizations.

37

More specifically, Turkey is actively involved in the

efforts to secure peace and stability in the Balkans, the

Middle East, the southern Caucasus region and Central

Asia. We also partake in their democratic and economic

development efforts. Turkey enjoys the vast potential of

historical and cultural affinities with many of the countries

in the Caucasus region and Central Asia. We will work for

the resolution of the various conflicts in the region and

continue to foster ever closer relations with all of them.

Cooperation can rapidly lead the peoples of this region

to higher levels of wealth and prosperity. Central Asia will

certainly witness tremendous economic development, given

its rich human and natural resources. Turkey, lying at the

hub, will become an energy terminal, connecting in more

ways than one, the wealth and resources of Eurasia. We see

the mega-projects of the next century realized in our

country and our region.

We are committed to the vision of a peaceful,

democratic, and prosperous future in south-eastern Europe.

We will continue to bring forth our resources and

contributions to that end. The need for a large-scale and

long-term stabilization and reconstruction programme for

the entire region, and more urgently for Kosovo, is evident.

We therefore welcome the stability pact for South-Eastern

Europe. In this context, it is important that the agreements

and arrangements on Kosovo are fully implemented, along

with the continuation of support and assistance to Albania

and Macedonia.

As the wounds of the Bosnian tragedy are yet to be

healed, the provisions of the Dayton Peace Agreement must

be strictly observed and implemented.

The tragedies in the Balkans have taught us to be

absolutely cautious and balanced in addressing conflict,

whether ethnic or otherwise. We do not have the luxury of

acting upon selective memory or one-sided preferences. We

cannot afford to impose solutions that do not correspond to

the realities and to the aspirations of the peoples concerned.

A case in point is Cyprus. Until 1974 the Turkish

Cypriots suffered a great deal in protecting their legitimate

rights and interests. There can be no return to those dark

days. A just and lasting compromise in Cyprus today can

only be based upon the existing realities. There are two

separate peoples, two separate States in Cyprus. These two

States should be able to solve their differences through their

own free will. In the meantime, there could be steps to

improve the atmosphere between the two sides by lifting

the unjust embargo on the Turkish Cypriots and by also

adopting deconfrontational measures, as proposed by the

United Nations Secretary-General.

On our part, we believe that the confederation

proposal provides the basis for a realistic and viable

settlement in Cyprus.

We are encouraged by the recent developments in

the Middle East peace process. Once mutual tolerance and

understanding start to fully reign over this region, we

believe all nations will display fully their historic

economic capabilities and their wisdom. My country will

continue to actively support the aim of reaching lasting

peace and security in the Middle East.

Following an exchange of letters with my Greek

counterpart, George Papandreou, about three months ago,

our two countries, Turkey and Greece, initiated joint

committees to work on specific issues. Since then high-

ranking officials of the Foreign Ministries held two

rounds of meetings and explored the possibilities of

promoting cooperation. Committees were mandated in the

fields of tourism, environment, trade, culture, regional

cooperation and the fight against organized crime, illegal

immigration, drug trafficking and terrorism.

Both sides are agreed that there is scope for further

cooperation in these fields and identified specific projects

to this end. Turkey has the will to carry this process to

other spheres of our relationship. Following the

earthquakes that struck the two countries, the emotions

and solidarity displayed by the Turkish and Greek peoples

demonstrate that the two peoples will not accept

confrontation and tension as a way of life, and that they

prefer friendship. This powerful message of our peoples

will help our Governments to move forward with greater

confidence.

Turkey will this year host the last summit of the

century. The Organization for Security and Cooperation

in Europe (OSCE) summit to be held in Istanbul in

November will set the stage for important decisions. The

outcome will play a significant role in shaping the future

security and cooperation architecture in the Eurasian

landscape.

Our political resolve to promote peace and stability

over such a wide horizon is on record. Given the

opportunity, we are prepared to take upon ourselves even

greater responsibilities.

38

Turkey has presented its candidature for membership

on the United Nations Security Council for 2001-2002. We

want to contribute to the making of the next millennium as

a member of the Council. We ask for Members' support.

The compelling lesson to be drawn from the twentieth

century is that our highest priority should be the protection

of the dignity of humankind and the enhancement of the

quality of life. Whether it is to halt aggression, to stop

crimes against humanity, to purge societies of racist and

xenophobic tendencies, of cultural and religious intolerance,

to combat international terrorism, to provide humanitarian

assistance, to bridge the gap between the rich and the poor

or to secure sustainable economic and social development,

we should act as an international coalition — that is, as the

United Nations.

Let us make the twenty-first century the new age of

nations united for a more humane and prosperous era for

all.