A/47/PV.2 General Assembly

I should like to inform members that the following representatives have been elected chairmen of the seven Main Committees of the Assembly and are accordingly members of the General Committee for the forty-seventh session: First Committee: Mr. Nabil Elaraby (Egypt) Special Political Committee: Mr. Hamadi Khouini (Tunisia) Second Committee: Mr. Ramiro Piriz Ballon (Uruguay) Third Committee: Mr. Florian Krenkel (Austria) Fourth Committee: Mr. Guillermo Melendez Barahona (El Salvador) Fifth Committee: Mr. Marian-George Dinu (Romania) Sixth Committee: Mr. Javad Zarif (Islamic Republic of Iran) I congratulate the Chairmen on their election and wish them every success. ITEM 6 OF THE PROVISIONAL AGENDA ELECTION OF THE VICE-PRESIDENTS OF THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY

Pursuant to rule 31 of the rules of procedure, we shall now proceed to the election of the Vice-Presidents of the General Assembly. All members of the General Assembly are eligible in this election except those already represented in the General Committee, namely, those countries whose representatives have been elected to the presidency of the General Assembly or to the chairmanship of the Main Committees. In accordance with paragraphs 2 and 3 of the annex to resolution 33/138, the 21 Vice-Presidents of the General Assembly at its forty-seventh session shall be elected according to the following pattern: (a) Six representatives from African States; (b) Five representatives from Asian States; (c) Three representatives from Latin American and Caribbean States; (d) Two representatives from Western European or other States; (e) Representatives of the five permanent members of the Security Council. In accordance with paragraph 16 of annex VI to the rules of procedure, the election of the Vice-Presidents of the Assembly by secret ballot will be dispensed with when the number of candidates corresponds to the number of seats to be filled. In other words, whenever the number of candidates in a given region corresponds to the number of seats to be filled in that region, those candidates will be declared elected. We shall proceed accordingly. I shall now read the names of the candidates endorsed by the regional groups: African States: Benin, Cape Verde, Comoros, Gabon, Lesotho, Libyan Arab Jamahiriya Asian States: Afghanistan, Kuwait, Philippines, Sri Lanka, Yemen Latin American and Caribbean States: Belize, Nicaragua, Suriname Western European and other States: Ireland, Turkey Since the number of candidates endorsed by the regional groups corresponds to the number of seats to be filled in each region, I declare those candidates elected, in addition to the representatives of the five permanent members of the Security Council. The following States have therefore been elected to vice-presidencies of the General Assembly: Afghanistan, Belize, Benin, Cape Verde, China, Comoros, France, Gabon, Ireland, Kuwait, Lesotho, Libyan Arab Jamahiriya, Nicaragua, Philippines, Russian Federation, Sri Lanka, Suriname, Turkey, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, United States of America and Yemen. I wish to take this opportunity to congratulate the States which have been elected Vice-Presidents of the General Assembly. The General Committee for the forty-seventh session of the General Assembly has now been fully constituted in accordance with rule 38 of the rules of procedure.

I call on the representative of the United Kingdom on a point of order. Sir David HANNAY (United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland): I apologize. Sir, for being the first member of the Assembly to trouble you with a point of order, but may I take this opportunity to congratulate you on your election to the presidency of the forty-seventh session of the General Assembly. I have the honour to speak on behalf of the European Community and its member States. The European Committee and its member States have given long and careful thought to the position of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (Serbia and Montenegro) in the United Nations. During the latter part of the forty-sixth session of the General Assembly they repeatedly stated that they did not accept the automatic continuity of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia in international organizations, including the United Nations. It is clear that the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (Serbia and Montenegro) does not have any right to claim the seat of the former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. Its position in this regard is no different from that of other components of the former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. In these circumstances, it is anomalous and unacceptable that representatives of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (Serbia and Montenegro) should continue to participate in the work of United Nations bodies. The European Community and its member States intend to press for early action by the appropriate organs of the United Nations in accordance with the Charter. The aim would be that the Council recommend that the Assembly deny the claim by the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (Serbia and Montenegro) to continue automatically the membership of the former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia in the United Nations and accordingly to ensure that the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (Serbia and Montenegro) is not allowed to participate in the work of United Nations bodies.

The remarks of the representative of the United Kingdom will be reflected in the record of the meeting. I now call on the representative of Turkey, who has also asked to speak on a point of order. Mr. AKSIN (Turkey): Taking the floor for the first time after your election to the presidency of the Assembly, Sir, I should like to extend to you the heartfelt congratulations of the Turkish delegation. The leader of my delegation, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, will formally extend congratulations to you in the course of the general debate next week. We also want to thank Ambassador Shihabi once again for his outstanding stewardship of the forty-sixth session. I have the honour to speak on behalf of the 47 member States of the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC). A resolution adopted at the Fifth Extraordinary Session of the Islamic Conference of Foreign Ministers, held in Istanbul on 17 and 18 June this year, noted that "the claim of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (Serbia and Montenegro) to assume automatically the membership of the former Socialist Federative Republic of Yugoslavia in international organizations has generally not been accepted" (A/47/284, fifteenth preambular paragraph) Furthermore, in paragraph 19 the resolution "Urges all States not to recognize the succession of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (Serbia and Montenegro) to the former Socialist Federative Republic of Yugoslavia, until it fully complies with the Security Council resolutions concerning Bosnia-Herzegovina, and formally and unequivocally recognizes the independence, sovereignty, territorial integrity and unity of that Republic and until an agreement on the question of succession is reached among the States that constituted the former Socialist Federative Republic of Yugoslavia" (A/47/284, para. 19) During the latter part of the forty-sixth session of the General Assembly my delegation, on behalf of the member States of the OIC, made it clear that the members of the OIC considered that the participation of Yugoslavia (Serbia and Montenegro) with its present status in meetings of the United Nations did not prejudice the position of our respective Governments regarding the representation of that country in the United Nations. Finally, General Assembly resolution 46/242 of 25 August 1992, adopted by an overwhelming majority, noted the reservations of a large number of States regarding the succession of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. As the forty-seventh session of the General Assembly begins, I should like to reiterate the position of the member States of the OIC on this issue. The Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (Serbia and Montenegro) has no right to claim the seat of the former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, and therefore it should be excluded from the United Nations and its bodies. The member States of the OIC strongly support all actions in the United Nations to deny the claim by the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (Serbia and Montenegro) automatically to continue the membership of the former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia in the United Nations.

The remarks of the representative of Turkey will also be reflected in the record. I now call on the representative of Austria, who has also asked to speak on a point of order. Mr. HOHENFELLNER (Austria): Let me first congratulate you. Sir, on your election to the presidency of the forty-seventh session of the General Assembly, and at the same time express my appreciation of the performance of Ambassador Shihabi as President of the forty-sixth session. In a statement of the Austrian Government circulated as a document of the General Assembly (A/47/201, annex) and the Security Council (S/23876, annex), dated 5 May 1992, and on many other occasions since then, our position has been clearly stated: there is no legal basis for an automatic continuation of the legal existence of the former, now-defunct. Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia by the new federation of Serbia and Montenegro, which therefore cannot be considered to continue the Yugoslav membership in the United Nations. For an eventual international recognition of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, the criteria contained in the guidelines on the recognition of new States adopted by the Council of the European Communities on 16 December 1991 should be applied. In this respect, Austria draws special attention to the requirements of the protection of human rights and the rights of ethnic groups, We declare today, as we have stated before, that the presence of representatives of Serbia and Montnegro at United Nations meetings has to be viewed as being without prejudice to the resolution of this question. But now the time for action has come. Indeed, Austria is actively participating within the framework of the Security Council in the consideration of this question, with the aim of adopting a recommendation to the General Assembly. We hope that this issue will then be settled accordingly by a resolution of the General Assembly in the coming days, thus ending the present situation.

The remarks of the representative of Austria will also be reflected in the record. I now call on the representative of the United States, who has also asked to speak on a point of order. Mr. PERKINS (United States of America): Allow me, on behalf of my delegation, to join those who have extended congratulations to you, Sir, on your assumption of the presidency of the forty-seventh session of the General Assembly. I also express our thanks and congratulations to Ambassador Shihabi for his excellent stewardship of the forty-sixth session of the General Assembly. We call attention to the tenth preambular paragraph of Security Council resolution 757 (1992) of 30 May 1992, which noted that "the claim by the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (Serbia and Montenegro) to continue automatically the membership of the former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia in the United Nations has not been generally accepted". The United States firmly believes that the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia no longer exists. Furthermore, we do not consider Serbia-Montenegro to be the continuation of or sole successor to the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. Accordingly, the position of the United States is that Serbia-Montenegro is not entitled to assume the seat of the former Socialist Federal Repbulic of Yugoslavia in international organizations, including the General Assembly of the United Nations. The United States also believes that, following appropriate action in the Security Council, the General Assembly should, once the Council has made its recommendations, act to resolve this issue.

The remarks of the representative of the United States of America will also be reflected in the record of the meeting. I call on the representative of Hungary, who has also asked to speak on a point of order. Mr. ERDOS (Hungary) (interpretation from French): I have the honour to speak today on behalf of Czechoslovakia, Poland and Hungary. The Ministers for Foreign Affairs of these three countries will have an opportunity to express to you, Mr. President, their congratulations on the occasion of your election to the post of President of our Assembly and to pay tribute also to the outgoing President of the General Assembly. Following the disintegration of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, we made it known at the appropriate time that unilateral declarations could not create legal grounds for decisions concerning the continuity of the membership status of the former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia in the United Nations and other international organizations. We continue to believe that this question of continuity will have to be based on the agreement of all the successor States of the former Yugoslav federation. The procedural arrangements which the United Nations has followed since the beginning of the crisis in former Yugoslavia could in no way prejudge the positions our three countries would adopt on the questions of the status of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia Serbia and Montenegro in international organizations. In the meantime, we have seen the former federal republics of former Yugoslavia become sovereign States recognized by the international community and admitted to the United Nations. With the regularization of the international status of the former constituent parts of former Yugoslavia, it has become more and more evident that those who continued to occupy the seat of the country which had been a Member of the United Nations since 24 October 1945 could not benefit from an automatic continuity within the international organizations of the former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia in the form of the newly proclaimed Federal Republic of Yugoslavia Serbia and Montenegro. From this point of view, it seems vital to us that the same status and position should be granted and guaranteed to all the sovereign States created in the stead and in the territory of the former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. Today, as the forty-seventh session of the General Assembly begins its work, it seems timely and necessary to take an essential step towards settling a question of great importance for the international community. Together with the other Members of our Organization, we wish to help clarify a complex situation that is the result of a bloody conflict in former Yugoslavia. Czechoslovakia, Poland and Hungary likewise wish to stress the vital importance they attach to the full and unconditional implementation of the agreements reached by the participants in the London Conference, a forum which is called upon to achieve and we hope that it will do so within a reasonable time a just and lasting solution to the crisis that is continuing to ravage a region of Europe with which our three countries have forged innumerable bonds throughout history and with which they are determined to maintain and to develop in the future the best relations of good-neighbourliness and cooperation.

The remarks of the representative of Hungary will also be reflected in the record of the meeting. The representative of Croatia has also asked to speak on a point of order. I call on him now. Mr. NOBILP (Croatia): Mr. President, let me likewise express cordial congratulations on your election as President of the General Assembly. Let me also express my admiration to Ambassador Shihabi for his skilful and prudent leadership during the forty-sixth session of the General Assembly. Croatia must once again raise the guestion of the status and legitimacy of former Yugoslavia in the United Nations. Many international forums and legal bodies, including the Conference on Yugoslavia, have been clear in stressing that the former Yugoslav State has ceased to exist. All recent United Nations documents call this entity "former Yugoslavia". Although it is widely known, I must underline that three of the former Yugoslav republics have become States Members of the United Nations, while Serbia and Montenegro, which are claiming the right to succeed to the post of former Yugoslavia, are under Security Council sanctions because of their aggression against Croatia and against Bosnia and Herzegovina. I have to remind you, Mr. President, that this controversial issue still remains unresolved as we start the forty-seventh session of the General Assembly. Therefore Croatia finds that the Security Council and the General Assembly must resolve this question as soon as possible.

The remarks of the representative of Croatia will also be reflected in the record of the meeting. The representative of Australia has also asked to speak on a point of order. I call on him now. Mr. BUTLER (Australia): Mr. President, my delegation takes great pleasure in seeing you in the Chair of this Assembly, and we took particular note of the remarks you made about the special circumstances of your country which have brought you here today. I am sure that my Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade will address particular congratulatory remarks to you when he takes part in the general debate. My purpose today is to take a point of order. My delegation wishes it to be recorded that Australia has not accepted the claim of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia to be the continuing State of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. Australia therefore reserves its position on the status of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and on issues dealing with its representation in international organizations. We look forward to early action by the General Assembly on the recommendation of the Security Council on this issue.

The remarks of the representative of Australia will also be reflected in the record of the meeting. The representative of Slovenia has also asked to speak on a point of order. I call on him now. Mr. TURK (Slovenia): Allow me, firstly, to congratulate you, Sir, on your election to the presidency of the General Assembly at its forty-seventh session. The President of the presidency of Slovenia, Mr. Milan Kucan, will address this General Assembly at a later stage, and he will express his congratulations more fully and more formally. May I also take this opportunity to express our appreciation to the President of the General Assembly at its forty-sixth session. Ambassador Samir Shihabi, for the exemplary manner in which he presided over the proceedings of the forty-sixth session of the General Assembly. At this stage, the delegation of Slovenia wishes to explain very briefly its position on the question of the membership of Yugoslavia in the United Nations. The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, which was a composite, that is, a federal State, has dissolved and ceased to exist. The process of dissolution took place over several years and has gradually obliterated the legitimacy and effectiveness of that former State. (Mr. Turk. Slovenia) Four out of the six constituent republics of that former State gained independence, and three of them became Members of the United Nations. The organs of the former federation lost their representativeness. Thus, what had earlier been a federal parliament had degenerated by the end of 1991 into a group of deputies from Serbia and Montenegro who obviously could not form a quorum for any decision. Consequently, none of the decisions adopted by that group of deputies can be considered as legitimate; they therefore have no legal effect. With respect to the issue of the effectiveness of the defunct organs of the former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia it is hardly necessary to add anything to the obvious fact that the armed conflict starting in Slovenia and continuing in Croatia and later in Bosnia and Herzegovina demonstrated the virtual extinction of the former federation. All these and other facts were more fully described in a document that Slovenia presented to the General Assembly earlier this year, issued as document A/47/234 of 28 May 1992. In short, a federation made up of six constituent republics must be considered as having ceased to exist when a majority of these constituent republics, embracing also the greater part of the federation's territory and population, constituted themselves as sovereign States with the result that federal authority could no longer be effectively and legitimately exercised. It is certainly the right of the remaining two republics Serbia and Montenegro to create or to be a common State, but that State too has to be considered as a new State, and only one among the equal successors of the former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. (Mr. Turk. Slovenia) These facts are clear and do not need much further elaboration. What is needed is a coherent approach by international forums with respect to the political and legal consequences of these facts. An important group of those consequences, namely those related to various issues of State succession, are currently being discussed in Geneva. Those questions relating to the question of membership of the former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia in international organizations, however, must be decided by the competent bodies of those organizations. We are convinced that the beginning of the session is the time for the General Assembly to address this issue so it can embark upon its forty-seventh session without the burden of this unresolved question and finally recognize that the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia that is, Serbia and Montenegro cannot continue automatically the membership of the former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. As one of the successor States of the former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia that is, Serbia and Montenegro has yet to prove that it is a peace-loving State willing to comply and capable of complying with the obligations enshrined in the United Nations Charter. It is with those considerations in mind that we look forward to action by the Security Council and the General Assembly.

The remarks of the representative of Slovenia will be reflected in the record of the meeting. The representative of Albania has asked to make a statement on a point of order. I call on him now. Mr. SHKURTI (Albania): I take particular pleasure. Sir, in extending my personal congratulations to you on your election to the post of President of the General Assembly. I also want to convey my gratitude to His Excellency Mr. Samir S. Shihabi for his admirable work during the forty-sixth session. Your election, Mr. President, is sure evidence of your professional accomplishments and your determination to help this Assembly solve the serious problems with which it is faced. I wholeheartedly wish you full success in your work. I thank you. Sir, for your kind permission to make a brief statement relevant to a question of principle. We are happy to note that the number of States Members of the United Nations has been constantly increasing this year. Newly born independent countries have come into existence and have joined the world Organization. Among them are the Republics of Slovenia, Croatia, and Bosnia and Herzegovina, which were constituent parts of the former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. As a consequence, the latter has already ceased to exist. In view of this new reality, the State made up of the Republics of Serbia and Montenegro, which calls itself the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, must be considered as a new political and geographical entity, which can by no means be the automatic successor to the former Yugoslavia. It should also be noted that almost all the Members of the United Nations have serious reservations as to the right of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia Serbia and Montenegro to claim the seat of the former Socalist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, as was shown by General Assembly resolution 46/242 of 25 August 1992. Therefore, I share the view expressed by most of my colleagues, that the Federal Republic of Yugoslaviaa Serbia and Montenegro - should be excluded from the United Nations and its bodies.

The remarks of the representative of Albania will be reflected in the record of the meeting. The representative of Bosnia and Herzegovina has asked to make a statement on a point of order. I call on him now. Mr. SACIRBEY (Bosnia and Herzegovina): Let me first extend my congratulations to you. Sir, on your election to your high post. I hope that my President, His Excellency Mr. Alija Izetbegovic, will be here in person, as planned, to offer our sincerest congratulations. I should like also to express my admiration and appreciation for the leadership of His Excellency Mr. Samir S. Shihabi during these most difficult times for our nation. The Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina strongly feels that Serbia and Montenegro do not have the legal legitimacy to inherit the seat of the old Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. We strongly believe that Serbia and Montenegro have not shown themselves to be deserving of participation in this noble body. The actions and policies of that Government have been against international law and basic human rights. That Government has perpetrated aggression and pursued a policy of "ethnic cleansing". On the basis of both legal legitimacy and moral standing, Serbia and Montenegro currently fail the test for participation in this Assembly. We look forward to the time when they will meet such standards. Herzegovina will be reflected in the record of the meeting. The representative of Yugoslavia has asked to make a statement on a point of order. I call on him now. Mr. DJOKIC (Yugoslavia): Allow me first of all, Sir, to congratulate you most cordially, on behalf of the delegation of Yugoslavia, on your unanimous election to the post of President of the forty-seventh session of the General Assembly. Let me also express our full support for the Secretary-General in the relentless efforts he has been making to maintain world peace and security and to make the world Organization ever more viable. My country highly commends his endeavours. Regrettably, instead of expressions of support for you as you approach the responsible tasks that lie ahead of you, Mr. President, the issue of the membership of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia has been raised. The position of my Government in that regard was presented at the meeting of the General Assembly on 29 July 1992; that position is still relevant. On this occasion, I should like to emphasize certain important elements that should be taken into account in considering the issue of the membership of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia in the United Nations. The Federal Republic of Yugoslavia does not consider itself to be the sole successor of the former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, but strongly believes that in accordance with established practice in international relations, the membership of Yugoslavia in the United Nations and its legal personality should not be challenged. This is also fully in compliance with the general principles adopted by the General Assembly's Sixth Committee in 1947, which inter alia state: "That as a general rule it is in conformity with legal principles to presume that a State which is a Member of the Organization of the United Nations does not cease to be a Member simply because its Constitution or its frontiers have been subject to change, and the extinction of that State as a legal personality recognized in the international order must be shown before its rights and obligations can be considered thereby to have ceased to exist." Those principles are still valid. They have never been contested by United Nations practice, or objected to by Member States. We are particularly concerned that the initiative for the suspension of Yugoslavia should come at a time of intensified peace efforts on the part of the Government of Yugoslavia within the framework of the United Nations. The Government of Yugoslavia has taken a number of steps in order to fulfil the requirements of the relevant United Nations Security Council resolutions. The Prime Minister of Yugoslavia, Mr. Milan Panic, in his letter of 7 August 1992 to the President of the Security Council (A/46/956-S/24391). put forward the programme of his Government for peace. The programme received strong support at the London Conference. The London Conference was a turning-point for the peace process, and some headway has already been made. We believe that that progress could be further invigorated in the weeks to come. The Government of Yugoslavia is determined to fulfil its commitments and to implement its programme for peace. This task is not an easy one, but we will not be discouraged by the difficulties that lie ahead. In our efforts, we need the support and help of the international community, the United Nations, the General Assembly and the Security Council in particular. Therefore, it is hard to understand the initiative to prevent a representative of Yugoslavia from participating in the proceedings of all the United Nations bodies, since it would be detrimental to the common efforts to achieve much-needed peace and a speedy solution to the crisis. This could seriously jeopardize the positive outcome of the London Conference and current efforts to implement its decision. I do not wish to reply to the allegations of the representatives of the former Yugoslav republics, as I strongly believe that the rostrum of the General Assembly should not be used for recriminations and confrontations. If all former Yugoslav republics are truly seeking to bring peace to the peoples they represent, if we all are truly seeking to achieve a political solution as soon as possible to end the nightmare of the Yugoslav peoples and ensure the prospective of democratic development, then what we need today more than ever before is mutual cooperation and understanding. Mutual recriminations will not bring us any closer to that goal. Of course, it is up to each country to determine for what purposes it is going to use the rostrum of the United Nations. It is without a doubt their own choice. We can only regret that they have chosen the course of confrontation and recriminations, which leads us to new political challenges, instead of the one of cooperation and understanding towards which we are striving as the only road towards a speedy political solution to the problems we are facing today.

These remarks will also be reflected in the record of the meeting. The Assembly will now turn its attention to document A/47/409, which contains a letter dated 28 August 1992 addressed to the President of the Assembly by the Chairman of the Committee on Conferences. As members are aware, the Assembly in paragraph 7 of its resolution 40/243, decided that no subsidiary organ of the General Assembly should be permitted to meet at United Nations Headquarters during a regular session of the Assembly unless explicitly authorized by the Assembly. As indicated in the letter I have just mentioned, the Committee on Conferences has recommended that the General Assembly authorize the Committee for Programme and Coordination, which has been meeting since 31 August, to meet beyond 15 September, until 18 September 1992. Bearing in mind that this date overlaps with the forty-seventh session of the Assembly, may I take it that the General Assembly adopts the recommendation of the Committee on Conferences? It was so decided.

Members will recall that by decision 46/472 of 13 April 1992, the Assembly established a Preparatory Committee for the Fiftieth Anniversary of the United Nations (draft decision A/46/L.fiRt. In this connection, I should like to propose that in order to enable the Preparatory Committee to commence its work, the Assembly authorize it to meet during the current session. I see no objection. It was so decided.

Before adjourning the meeting, I wish to thank all representatives for their kind words addressed to me. The meeting rose at 5.10 p.m. (The President)