All discussions of the problem of land-mines are redolent with statistics and verbal images of a profoundly shocking and disturbing nature, invoking numbers of civilians, including children, killed or injured, the extent of their injuries, the cost of rehabilitation, the effect on their livelihoods …
As many before me have observed, the Summit at Copenhagen was the largest meeting of its kind ever held. That was not the result of an accident or of some reason incidental to the state of affairs of humankind today. That largest summit ever held — that is, until the fiftieth anniversary of the Unit…
My delegation is pleased to co-sponsor and support the three draft resolutions on the law of the sea, and the sustainable use and conservation of the marine living resources of the high seas.
1995 marked a year of consolidation for the law of the sea after the entry into force of the Convention in …
The Assembly takes up its agenda item on the situation in the Middle East at a critical time for the Middle East peace process. The succession of historic agreements, which began with the signing of the Declaration of Principles by Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) in Washington…
My delegation addresses its comments today to item 154 and in support of draft resolution A/50/L.23.
Australia continues to support the use of national volunteer schemes such as “White Helmets” when appropriate in humanitarian relief and development operations, and we note that Australia currently …
Australia is one of the most multicultural of nations. We have a rich and linguistically diverse indigenous culture. Almost one-third of all Australians are themselves migrants, and they came from every continent. We have 240 different ethnic communities. Practically every modern language is spoken,…
Having heard your remarks of just a moment ago, Mr. Acting President, I wish to assure you that we have prepared relatively brief remarks on this important subject.
Three weeks ago, on the occasion of the fiftieth anniversary of the United Nations, all of us declared in this Hall that:
“The commem…
My delegation has given very considerable thought to the issues addressed in draft resolution A/50/L.6/Rev.1. Let me say immediately that this is an important subject. It is an important subject to the United Nations. It is an important subject to Australia.
Under those circumstances we have shared…
I should like to begin this statement by thanking the Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Mr. Hans Blix, for his comprehensive statement given to the Assembly. That statement underlined with great clarity the vital role of the IAEA in preventing the proliferation of nu…
Last week the General Assembly convened in special meetings to commemorate the fiftieth anniversary of the United Nations. Those meetings saw the largest gathering of Heads of State and Government ever held. The past was reviewed but, more important, the focus was on the future.
It is deeply approp…
We wish to express our appreciation to the Secretary-General for his comprehensive and forward-looking report on the work of the Organization. The report demonstrates clearly the challenges and opportunities which continue to face the United Nations in an increasingly complex global environment. It …
I congratulate Mr. Diogo Freitas do Amaral on his election to the presidency of this session of the General Assembly. His election is a tribute both to him and to Portugal, and Australia will work with him to ensure that this historic fiftieth session is as memorable as it could possibly be.
I join…
Australia, too, welcomes the adoption of the resolution financing the International Tribunal for the Prosecution of Persons Responsible for Serious Violations of International Humanitarian Law Committed in the Territory of the Former Yugoslavia since 1991. We are pleased that the Tribunal now has an…
The first stated purpose of the United Nations under its Charter is to “maintain international peace and security”.
It is that fundamental objective which is the basis for the draft resolution proclaiming a World Week of Peace, which the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Worship of Costa Rica has in…
I wish to congratulate you, Sir, on your assumption of the presidency of the Council for the month of December.
Australia welcomes the convening of this meeting of the Security Council and the initiative taken by the Permanent Representative of France in submitting proposals for the convening of pu…
I have the honour to address the Assembly in Australia’s capacity as current Chair of the South Pacific Forum and on behalf of the nine member States of the Forum which are also Members of the United Nations, namely, the Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, Marshall Islands, New Zealand, Papua New …
The Convention contained in report A/49/742 is an important achievement and responds to immediate needs that the international community currently faces. The Convention signals the international community’s commitment to take action against deliberate acts of violence which strike against the person…
For the reasons very well articulated by the representative of Poland, Australia wishes to oppose the motion for division in respect of this draft resolution.
This inauguration of the International Decade of the World’s Indigenous People
Indigenous peoples have suffered dispossession. With few exceptions, they did not participate in designing the constitutional order of the States into which they were incorporated. Nor were they given a voice in the proc…
The Assembly takes up its agenda item on the situation in the Middle East at a critical time for the Middle East peace process.
The succession of historic agreements, which began with the signing of the Declaration of Principles by Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) in Washingto…
