Allow me to congratulate you most warmly, Sir, on your election as President of the General Assembly. Through you, I would like also to thank your predecessor, Mr. Jean Ping, for the manner in which he conducted the preparatory work for the summit of Heads of State and Government which has just take…
I would like to begin my statement by congratulating and thanking Secretary-General Kofi Annan, who has seized the occasion of the sixtieth anniversary of our Organization to strengthen its effectiveness and legitimacy. In fact, the need for the United Nations is more palpable now than ever before. …
For the past 10 years, Belgium has been actively involved in discussions on Security Council reform. Our thinking on this matter has been coordinated within a group of 10 countries; our objective was realistic, pragmatic, balanced reform that will serve to reconcile the Council’s efficiency and its …
I have the honour to speak on behalf of the European Union (EU).
The European Union believes that the United States trade policy towards Cuba is fundamentally a bilateral issue. However, American legislation such as the Cuban Democracy Act of 1992 and the Helms- Burton Act of 1996 has extended the …
Belgium regrets that agreement could not be reached on a declaration that would enjoy consensus the General Assembly.
My delegation has always believed that the question of human cloning — which is clearly an ethical question — must be dealt with through a declaration of a universal nature in order…
During this joint debate I should like to refer to sub-item (j) of agenda item 56, entitled “Cooperation between the United Nations and the Inter-Parliamentary Union”.
Belgium attaches great overall importance to opening up our Organization’s work to the outside world. Our debates in this forum, as…
The report of the Security Council (A/59/2) to the General Assembly is a useful instrument. However, we must continue the efforts aimed at making it more analytical.
This report gives us the opportunity to take a look at the progress of the work of the Security Council and its relations with the Ge…
Belgium’s international commitment is rooted in the conviction that initiatives taken at the global level can move forward only through dialogue and cooperation. The careful European building process taught us that. That is why Belgium firmly believes in the virtues of multilateralism. We are strong…
We can not avoid a certain feeling of weariness when, once again, we have to note with regret that the work of the Open- ended Working Group charged with considering all aspects of the reform of the Security Council has hardly made any progress since the fifty-seventh session of the Assembly. And ye…
The terrible HIV/AIDS pandemic continues its progression at a frightening pace, affecting first and foremost the most deprived populations of our planet. This, of course, is a serious medical research issue, but the challenge goes far beyond that.
The social, economic and human discrimination that …
Allow me at the outset to congratulate the representative of Cameroon for the effective way in which he presided over the work of the Council during the month of October, and to congratulate you, Sir, on your assumption of the presidency of the Council. I am convinced that, under your competent lead…
My delegation would like to begin with a word of praise for the efforts that have been undertaken this year, particularly by Ambassador Mahbubani and his team, to shorten and make more substantive the report of the Security Council (A/57/2). We find the analytical summary, written by way of an intro…
I would like to salute the vision of the future, the sense of history and political courage of the founders of the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD). would like to convey my esteem to the Presidents of South Africa, Algeria, Egypt, Nigeria and Senegal. This initiative opens the way to…
Some 50 years ago my predecessor Paul-Henri Spaak said before the Assembly, in a phrase that stands out in our minds, “We are afraid”. At that time, totalitarianism threatened democratic freedoms and our open society was in danger. Fortunately, political and diplomatic dialogue gradually won out ove…
I would like first of all to convey my gratitude to the President of the General Assembly for having taken the initiative of convening this meeting and for having organized it so well. Because of his determination, the
General Assembly is addressing for the first time a theme that will become incre…
It is my honour on behalf of the European Union and other sponsors to introduce draft resolution A/56/L.63/Rev.1, entitled “Assistance in mine action”. Since that document was issued, the following countries have become sponsors of the draft resolution: Angola, Armenia, Bangladesh, Bolivia, Burkina …
I have the honour, on behalf of the European Union and the other co-sponsors, to introduce the draft resolution on the safety and security of humanitarian personnel and
protection of United Nations personnel, contained in document A/56/L.64.
Since the publication of that document, the following co…
I have the honour to speak on behalf of the European Union on the draft resolution on the situation in Bosnia and Herzegovina before the Assembly today.
The Central and Eastern European countries associated with the European Union — Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania,…
It is my honour to speak on behalf of the European Union. The Central and Eastern European associated with the Union — Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia — and the associated countries Cyprus, Malta and Turkey, as well as Iceland…
I have the honour to speak on behalf of the European Union. The Central and Eastern European countries associated with the European Union - Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia — and the associated countries Cyprus, Malta and Turke…
