I would like to congratulate you, Mr. Eliasson, on your election to the presidency of the General Assembly and to assure you of my country’s full support during this sixtieth session of the General Assembly.
Reform will be a central theme at the Assembly’s sixtieth session. Allow me to focus on fou…
First, let me thank you, Mr. President, for convening this debate. Switzerland, as co-chair of the Group of Friends on conflict prevention, has a special interest in this important topic.
Civil society, whether at the local or international level, is well placed to send out early-warning signals of…
I would like to join other speakers in thanking you, Mr. President, for having provided this opportunity to discuss the reform of the Security Council today.
My country has had the opportunity, on a number of occasions during informal discussions in the course of the fifty-ninth session of the Gene…
As the recent report of the Secretary-General (A/59/2005) very eloquently shows, our world has become much more complex and interdependent. Such globalization certainly offers excellent opportunities, but it also carries very significant risks. That situation requires new strategies.
That is why pa…
Madam President, I would first of all like to congratulate you on the skill and commitment with which your country has conducted the presidency of the Security Council during the month of May 2005.
Over the last few years, the United Nations has been strongly committed to preparing the ground for e…
I thank you, Mr. President, for giving me this opportunity to present Switzerland’s position. At the outset, I commend you for convening today’s debate on such an important issue, and I thank you for the stimulating document (S/2005/316, annex) that you have circulated as a basis for discussion.
Th…
At the outset, I wish to join in the condolences expressed by other speakers to the delegations of the Holy See and of Monaco. I should also like to thank the President of the General Assembly and to congratulate him on the way in which he is guiding our discussions.
Switzerland commends the Secret…
Switzerland would like to thank Benin for convening this open debate of the Security Council on small arms and light weapons.
The United Nations Programme of Action to Prevent, Combat and Eradicate the Illicit Trade in Small Arms and Light Weapons in All Its Aspects states that Governments bear the…
The tragedy that struck South-East Asia on 26 December 2004 was one of the worst of the modern age. Its toll surpasses understanding. We are all struck with humility before these forces of nature that are beyond human scale. We thank the countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations for th…
There is no need to recall the harmful role played by the illicit conflict-diamond trade in the armed conflicts of diamond-producing regions, or the massive human rights violations that have accompanied them. Nevertheless, in the span of under five years, the development and implementation of the in…
Switzerland, which attaches great importance to family-related issues, did not want to oppose the consensus adoption of draft resolution A/59/L.29. However, like other delegations, my delegation dissociates itself from the consensus.
As we stated this morning, Switzerland echoes the Secretary-Gener…
Switzerland attaches great importance to issues concerning the family, and we welcome the celebration of the tenth anniversary of the International Year of the Family. Switzerland would like to highlight — as the Secretary-General did in his introductory statement — that the family is the basic unit…
The context of the Middle East conflict today is one of change. The international community has just shown its solidarity with the Palestinian people in mourning the loss of Yasser Arafat, the first elected President of the Palestinian Authority. The image of that statesman being awarded the Nobel P…
The international community has been strongly committed to Kosovo for more than five years now. The deplorable events of last March have forced us to review the strategy we had pursued until then in order to find a lasting political settlement. The Secretary- General made proposals to this effect. S…
My delegation wishes to thank the Secretary-General for his reports on the points on today’s agenda. In particular, it would like to express appreciation for his reflections on the value of international law norms which the Secretary-General chose to touch upon in the preamble to his report on the i…
Switzerland attaches particular importance to the discussion on strengthening the coordination of humanitarian aid. All Member States and observers are thus given the opportunity to undertake a necessary exchange of views on the essential areas of United Nations action. We note that the general tren…
I will be speaking on agenda item 47 today.
My delegation took note with great interest of the report by the Secretary-General on sport in the service of peace and development and the International Year of Sport and Physical Education. We are also pleased that this report is being discussed at the …
The importance of cooperation between the United Nations and the other international organizations hardly needs to be stressed. The aim is to achieve a better distribution of tasks between the United Nations, which is the most important organization of a universal nature, and regional and sectoral o…
Terrorist acts are one of the gravest threats to international peace and security. Therefore, the fight against terrorism concerns the entire international community. In that regard, Switzerland welcomes the holding of an open debate and is pleased that the Swiss delegation of the Inter-Parliamentar…
The Charter of the United Nations confers upon the Security Council the primary responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security. When the Security Council acts it does so on behalf of the international community. When it is powerless to act or when it fails to do so, the credi…
