A/58/PV.85 General Assembly

I come before the Assembly to introduce the report of the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme that is before it at this meeting. The date of 31 December 2003 marked the end of South Africa’s term as Chair of the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme. We were pleased to hand over the chairing of the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme to Canada on 1 January 2004. We commend the Canadians on the diligence and thoroughness of their chairing of the Kimberley Process so far. It is indeed significant and important that the Chair should pass to Canada as a major diamond- producing country. It emphasises that the issue of conflict diamonds is not an African issue. On the contrary, it is an issue that affects the whole global diamond-producing, trading and processing community. Only with the commitment of all players in the diamond industry can the integrity of any system to combat conflict diamonds be guaranteed. For that reason, it is commendable that the Kimberley Process has attracted such widespread support and now enjoys the participation of all major diamond-producing, trading and processing centres. We need to continue to encourage participation by all relevant players in the Kimberley Process so that it can be assured of full coverage of all diamond-trading activities. In the past year, there has been good progress made in the implementation of the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme. Of great significance is the outcome of the Sun City plenary held in South Africa, at which agreement was reached on monitoring and investigative procedures for the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme. The procedures remain voluntary, but such is the commitment of Kimberley Process parties that we anticipate the full cooperation of all Governments in allowing access for investigation where serious discrepancies have been found to arise. A review mission to the Central African Republic was carried out successfully, to the satisfaction of all parties concerned, and we are confident that the proposed review mission to the Republic of the Congo will help to clear up discrepancies in diamond export figures there and will point the way forward in improving the effectiveness of the control systems. We would welcome offers by all parties to the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme to host review missions, which can only bolster confidence in the system and strengthen it. South Africa similarly believes that, as statistical records are built up in terms of the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme, the analysis of those statistics will help to underpin the Scheme and to identify potential problems more effectively. We would also like to thank the community of non-governmental organizations for their vigilance in keeping this issue under review and making sure that the system increases in effectiveness. They have been essential partners in this whole initiative and we trust that the system will continue to have their support. Their ongoing critical review of developments is an essential element in the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme. South Africa would also like to commend the diamond industry, and especially the World Diamond Council, for their support of the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme and their strong participation in its meetings. Their activities are at the heart of the system and their support is essential. Their commercial success is important to a number of participants and, as Chair, South Africa was always able to depend on their constructive participation. In conclusion, all our members know that the battle against conflict diamonds is far from over. We have to maintain the integrity of the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme and continue to implement its provisions. Our experience in implementing the system dictates that we may need to look at further developing the system where necessary. The success of the review mechanisms is important in this regard, as will be the emergence of a statistical database that is able to provide an accurate picture of global rough diamond flows.

I call on the representative of Canada to introduce draft resolution A/58/L.59.

I thank Ambassador Kumalo not only for his introduction of the report today, but also for the outstanding work that South Africa has done as Chair of the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme. I am honoured today to introduce the draft resolution that reflects the work done to date and I am very grateful that a strong consensus has developed in support of it. May I bring to the Assembly’s attention some additional countries that have agreed to co- sponsor the draft resolution since the documents were prepared. The additional co-sponsors are Angola, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Costa Rica, Côte d’Ivoire, Croatia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Iceland, Indonesia, Italy, Latvia, Lesotho, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Moldova, New Zealand, the Philippines, Sierra Leone, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Ukraine and Zimbabwe. It is a great honour for Canada to serve as Chair of this important Process for 2004. This debate and the draft resolution we are adopting are very important for the strong signal they send. By reaffirming its support for decisions and actions taken, the General Assembly will strengthen the determination of the Kimberley Process participants to comprehensively implement the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme. In our view, such comprehensive and long-term implementation is necessary to ensure that the link between conflict diamonds and armed conflict is severed once and for all. Through the Kimberley Process, we have made substantial progress in combating the trade in conflict diamonds. On the basis of a very fruitful meeting in Sun City, South Africa, in October, the final dimensions of the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme have now been negotiated. Forty-seven participants, including the European Community, are currently implementing the scheme, which covers the vast majority of the global diamond trade. We are in regular contact with a number of other prospective participants to promote the widest possible participation in the Scheme. It is clear that the Kimberley Process is having a real impact. It is now well understood that Governments, industry and civil society expect and require that the global trade in rough diamonds be conducted in an open and transparent manner and through legitimate markets. To show their commitment to those principles, participants have acted to seize shipments of rough diamonds lacking Kimberley Process certificates and to prosecute smugglers. Most important of all is the positive contribution that the Kimberley Process is making in those countries that have suffered the devastating effects of conflict diamonds. Since the Certification Scheme began to work, a growing portion of diamonds has been channelled through official Government mechanisms. In Sierra Leone, for instance, since the country’s participation in the scheme, recorded exports have grown some 200 per cent, from $26 million in 2001 to $76 million in 2003, while in the Democratic Republic of the Congo recorded exports have increased some 70 per cent, from $395 million in 2002 to $642 million in 2003. Authorities in both of those countries have explicitly and publicly associated this positive trend with the Kimberley Process. (spoke in French) The draft resolution before us speaks of breaking the link between the illicit trade in rough diamonds and armed conflict as a contribution to the prevention and settlement of conflict. The contribution of the Kimberley Process is fundamental in that regard and is thus deserving of the full support of the General Assembly. We are therefore very pleased, again this year, at the full and unswerving support of members for the draft. (spoke in English) The Kimberley Process Certification Scheme makes a crucial contribution to the ongoing implementation of fragile peace agreements in Angola, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Liberia and Sierra Leone by denying resources to potential spoilers. As those peace agreements take root, the Kimberley Process will remain an important vehicle for preventing the outbreak of future conflicts. The participants are now engaged in carrying forward our work based on a strong foundation built under the supervision of South Africa during its term as Chair and on a close relationship with the diamond industry and civil society. The challenges that lie before the Kimberley Process this year — the challenges of implementation — revolve around effective monitoring and the collection of statistics. As the draft resolution notes, at the Kimberley Process plenary meeting in Sun City, South Africa, last October, participants endorsed a peer review system consisting of three pillars: first, the submission of annual reports on national implementation; secondly, voluntary review visits to all participants; and thirdly, the deployment of review missions in the event of credible indications of significant non-compliance. (spoke in French) As Chair, Canada is firmly committed to the implementation of that important decision. Thus, the first of such review visits was undertaken to the United Arab Emirates on March 27 and 28, 2004. Moreover, we are encouraged that nearly half of all participants have expressed an interest in receiving a voluntary review visit and we are convinced that other countries will do so in the near future. (spoke in English) The draft resolution also addresses the important aspect of the provision of statistics by the Kimberley Process participants. Analysis of statistics on production, import and export for rough diamonds is essential to identifying anomalies that may indicate potential entry points for conflict diamonds into the legitimate trade. The collection of reliable and comparable data from a broad range of producing and trading countries presents, of course, considerable challenges. Important progress has been made in recent months, however, and statistics from the majority of participants are now available to participants and observers on the statistics web site of the Kimberley Process. The task ahead for the certification scheme now is to routinely analyse this data to ensure effective implementation. Some four years ago, Member States met in this Hall to support the development of effective measures to break the link between armed conflict and so-called conflict diamonds. As is reflected in the draft resolution before us today, we can now take satisfaction that we have the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme at our disposal. It is an essential tool in fulfilling this critical objective of the international community and in advancing human security by preventing future armed conflict driven by the illicit trade in diamonds.

The United States is pleased to co-sponsor the draft resolution on the role of diamonds in fuelling conflict. We have been pursuing a solution to the problem of conflict diamonds since their horrific, destructive effects became known in the late 1990s. We have worked hard with other Governments, the diamond industry and human rights organizations to create a controlled trading system for rough diamonds. We seek to halt the flow of conflict diamonds while avoiding harm to the legitimate diamond industry. We have seen striking progress towards that goal. In November 2003, 36 countries, plus the European Community, pledged commitment to the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme for rough diamonds. Domestically, each participant in the Kimberley Process has put legislation in place to implement its commitments to the Process. In the United States, Congress drafted and passed the Clean Diamond Trade Act and President George W. Bush signed it within just three months — unusually rapid action in the United States system. One year later, the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme is up and running. We know it is working on some levels because rough diamond shipments between Kimberley Process participants are routinely stopped and scrutinized and some participants have seized shipments that have arrived in their countries in violation of the Kimberley Process. Perhaps more tellingly, a representative from a non-governmental organization that has been carefully monitoring the Process reported that two former dealers in conflict diamonds he had met became upset when he mentioned the Kimberley Process and complained bitterly that it had put them out of business. The participants have been active over the past year, improving and refining the system. We have assured ourselves that we have all met the minimum undertakings of the Kimberley Process; we have agreed on a system of peer review; and we have conducted peer review visits to two participants, with many more scheduled. We now number 48 participants, including the European Community, and our system includes the vast majority of the world’s producers, traders and consumers of rough diamonds. My Government is proud of our leadership role in the Process — a role that our Congress has explicitly and repeatedly supported. We recognize that the system would never have come into being without the leadership of a number of key participants, including African producer States. In truth, the list of Governments that have played a leadership role is as long as the list of participants, for unless each participant shows leadership, this voluntary system will not work. We offer special thanks to South Africa, which chaired the Kimberley Process so effectively and brought the system from vision to reality; to Canada, the current Chair, which is doing such a masterful job at leading the process during its infancy; and to Russia, which will become the next Chair. I also acknowledge the important work of the European Commission in furthering the Process. Finally, the Kimberley Process would never have come this far without the active support and participation of the diamond industry and concerned non-governmental organizations. They have offered invaluable insight into what must be done to halt the scourge of conflict diamonds.

This year the General Assembly is again addressing the question of the role of diamonds in fuelling conflict and reaffirming the need to continue international collective action, under United Nations auspices, to study the root causes of conflicts in all their aspects, particularly in Africa, where armed conflict has long been linked to the illicit trade in diamonds, within the general framework of the question of combating the illegal exploitation of natural resources in a number of African countries. In that context, our debate today is a necessary review of the development of international action embodied in the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme, and of the most serious manifestations of conflicts in Africa. Our delegation has taken note of the report presented by the previous Chair of the Kimberley Process — the Government of South Africa — which stresses that the Kimberley Process is an interesting model of the concept of partnership among the Governments concerned, the companies producing and trading in diamonds and the relevant civil society organizations, all working together in the area of the maintenance and strengthening of international security, with support from the United Nations, represented by the General Assembly. The World Trade Organization, is also cooperating, by granting waivers to States participating in the Certification Scheme; this reaffirms that all the diverse members of the international community must assume joint responsibility to protect international peace and security. In that regard, we wish to state how important it is that the General Assembly promote participation in the Certification Scheme through the annual adoption of a resolution. We hope that, in the next stage, further steps will be taken to broaden participation in the Kimberley Process and to pay the requisite attention to enhancing technical capacity in Africa, in order to ensure tighter control over mining and trading in diamonds, in order to guarantee that they are compatible with the Certification Scheme and to support the allocation of revenues to attaining development and achieving peace and stability, while not hindering the legitimate diamond trade in general. The success of the Certification Scheme and its ability to help eliminate the use of illicit diamonds to finance armed conflict are linked to the implementation of relevant Security Council resolutions in ensuring tighter control over mining activities in countries experiencing internal conflict or taking the first steps towards peace. Clear criteria are needed to enable us to take timely decisions to lift Security Council embargoes on the export of diamonds from African countries emerging from conflict, making it possible for diamond revenues of those countries to enhance the ability of transitional or elected Governments to partly finance reconstruction and rehabilitation projects and programmes, create job opportunities and support the State budget. The model adopted by the Security Council in the case of Sierra Leone exemplifies the required coordination between the Council and the Kimberley Process in comprehensive support of peace- building. Our delegation fully appreciates the efforts undertaken by South Africa in support of the Kimberley Process and in mobilizing international support during its chairmanship of the Certification Scheme in 2003. We also look forward to great success for the Kimberley Process under the guidance of the Canadian Government in 2004. The Egyptian delegation will support the draft resolution before the General Assembly.

The harmful impact of traffic of rough diamonds on fuelling armed conflict is increasingly evident. Since the topic was first considered by the United Nations, significant progress has been made in the fight against the illegal trade of diamonds. Undoubtedly, the most important element has been the establishment of the Kimberley Process and, more recently, the implementation of its Certification Scheme, in which Venezuela is a participant. The Certification Scheme is an extremely valuable and appropriate mechanism for detecting and preventing diamond trade in conflict zones; ultimately, it has a direct impact on the promotion of international peace and security. The delegation of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela wishes to express its recognition of the outstanding work done by the Government of South Africa on behalf of the Kimberley Process. As Chair of the Process, South Africa skilfully facilitated the work of implementing the Certification Scheme during its first year in force. We are certain that the Canadian chairmanship of the Process this year will maintain and enhance the progress achieved thus far. Canada can rely on Venezuela’s cooperation in continuing to work to achieve the objectives of the Kimberley Process and its Certification Scheme. The delegation of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela believes it is important for the General Assembly to considering the item before it. The item is relevant not only because of its nature, but also essentially because it is being incorporated into a broader vision of conflict prevention and resolution. We are aware of the negative impact of diamond trade in conflict zones; that trade is a source of financing for conflicts, facilitates the purchase and proliferation of weapons and, at the same time, curbs opportunities for growth and economic and social development, thus perpetuating the vicious circle of conflicts. From this holistic perspective on conflict prevention and resolution, proper handling of the problem will undoubtedly contribute to the maintenance and strengthening of international peace and security. Venezuela advocates a broad and comprehensive concept of peace which will make is possible to deal with all causes and factors that affect the origin and development of conflicts and which, at the same time, incorporates the commitment of all States to work towards creating economic and social conditions that will make it possible to eradicate the causes. Our country is resolved to fulfil all its obligations as a member of international community and vis-à-vis the resolutions of the Security Council and the General Assembly. It spares no effort in cooperating with and fulfilling provisions relating to the maintenance of international peace and security. Our participation in the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme reflects that thinking and that commitment. Venezuela has been a participant in the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme since 1 February 2003, and that year the Venezuelan Government took the necessary measures for the effective implementation of that Scheme by issuing a certificate recording the fact that the rough diamonds of the shipment in question have been handled in accordance with the provisions of the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme. However, the importance of the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme is not merely political in nature, but also socio-economic, given the benefits that promoting legitimate trade in diamonds can generate by fostering the conditions necessary to stimulate the economic and social development of many countries, particularly with respect to job creation. Likewise, proper implementation of the Certification Scheme will have a significant impact on the economies of participating countries, as it will serve as an effective mechanism to suppress smuggling and customs fraud. As more countries come to participate in the Scheme, its implementation will yield better results. In that regard, and as a sponsor of draft resolution A/58/L.59, we appeal to the countries that are not yet participating to join in the efforts already under way. The entry into force of this mechanism and the progress made in implementing it prove to us that the desired objectives can be achieved when countries have common interests and when there is real cooperation and political will. What is even more important is that it is possible to move forward in the quest for the social and economic well-being of our peoples. Therefore, we reiterate the appeal to Member States that are not yet participants in the Certification Scheme to join it and thus help strengthen the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme.

Botswana welcomes the report of the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme (KPCS) submitted to the President of the General Assembly by the outgoing Chair, South Africa, in compliance with resolution 57/302 of 15 April 2003 (A/58/623). The said resolution requested the Chair of the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme on rough diamonds to report to the fifty-eighth session of the General Assembly on progress made in the implementation of the Scheme. I wish to pay tribute to South Africa for the sterling job it has done in guiding us through the very difficult negotiations in the Kimberley Process. I also wish to congratulate and welcome Canada as it assumes the Chair of the Process. The report shows the remarkable progress made by the KPCS during the past two years. First, the Certification Scheme came into effect on l January 2003, as had been proposed. Participating States were, however, given until May 2003 to put into effect the full implementation of the minimum standards required by the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme. As of 3l October 2003, 44 States and one regional organization — the European Community — had been certified as participants in the KPCS. Many more countries have since indicated their desire to join. Even more remarkable is that participants finally adopted a recommendation that provides for the establishment of a peer review mechanism for monitoring the implementation of the Scheme. The Kimberley Process Certification Scheme has, thus, in many respects fulfilled the mandate of the Security Council and the General Assembly: to bring about a system that would eliminate from the legitimate trade in rough diamonds the nefarious trading in conflict diamonds which has largely been responsible for so much human misery in some of the conflicts in Africa. The coming into effect of the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme now places a major challenge upon States Members of the United Nations to comply fully with the Scheme, whether as diamond producers, as diamond manufacturers or as consumers. It also places a heavy burden upon the diamond industry itself, through the World Diamond Council, the Diamond Manufacturers Association and other trade bodies, to educate their membership and their clients about the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme. After all, during the negotiations, the diamond industry made the following undertakings: first, to implement a code of conduct to prevent buying or selling of conflict diamonds; secondly, to implement a system of warranties that all invoices for the sale of diamonds or diamond jewellery contain a written guarantee that the diamonds are conflict-free; and thirdly, to inform employees about the industry’s policies and Government regulations on the sale of diamonds. The eyes of consumers and lobby groups will be watching closely the implementation of the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme. The credibility and the effectiveness of the Process strongly depend on the diamond industry being held accountable with respect to commitments made to stop the trade in illicit diamonds. We as Governments will therefore have to maintain vigilance in its implementation. Botswana, as one of the conveners of the Kimberley Process, and given its heavy dependence on the diamond industry, remains fully committed to the Kimberley Process. We implemented the Scheme on l January 2003. We have continued to make improvements in the internal controls dealing with rough diamonds, which include compiling and submitting Botswana’s diamonds statistics, as required by the Certification Scheme. Recently, as a demonstration of our commitment to the Scheme, Botswana invited a peer review mission to come to audit our systems. We expect the peer review to be undertaken in May or June this year. Botswana has joined in sponsoring the draft resolution (A/58/L.59) before us along with the report of the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme. We wish to pay tribute to the new Chair, Canada, which has done such a magnificent job in piloting the draft resolution. We urge its adoption by the General Assembly by acclamation.

We are very pleased to participate in this important debate on agenda item 21, entitled “The role of diamonds in fuelling conflict”. We congratulate Canada on its election as Chair of the Kimberley Process for 2004. We also congratulate South Africa on the excellent job it did and the excellent contribution it made to the Kimberley Process during its chairmanship. Obviously, we fully support the recommendation referred to in the report (A/58/623) that South Africa submitted to the General Assembly. We would like to associate ourselves with the statement made by the representative of Canada, Chair of the Kimberley Process. Efforts to address the problem of conflict diamonds started some time ago. Mining ministers of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) agreed, in 2000 at Cape Town, South Africa, that international action was imperative to prevent the problem of conflict diamonds from negatively affecting the legitimate diamond trade, which makes a critical contribution to the economies of those countries. A technical forum to address concerns related to conflict diamonds was subsequently held at Kimberley, and a series of technical meetings was followed in September 2000 by a ministerial meeting, where major diamond producing, processing, importing and exporting countries made recommendations on the conflict diamonds issue. We believe that the General Assembly — particularly by virtue of its adoption of resolutions 55/56 and 56/263 — has a crucial role to play in breaking the link between the illicit transaction of rough diamonds and armed conflict as a contribution to prevention and settlement of armed conflicts. The Kimberley Process, as stated in its report submitted by South Africa to the General Assembly, continues to enjoy widespread and growing support, and it now represents all major diamond producing, trading and processing countries. The progress achieved in the international implementation of the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme demonstrates what can be achieved by the international community in addressing issues of serious international concern such as the illicit trade in diamonds. It is hoped that the United Nations will continue to support the implementation of the Kimberley Process, since it helps to ensure the effective implementation of relevant General Assembly and Security Council resolutions pertaining to the trade in conflict diamonds. From the outset, Angola has played an important role in international efforts to address the global trade in conflict diamonds — which has had devastating effects on peace and human security in several African countries, including Angola — but also in ensuring that decisions involving Security Council sanctions on this matter have been translated into effective action. Therefore, we look forward to the unanimous adoption of the draft resolution (A/58/L.59) before us. We will continue to do whatever we can to ensure that the issue of conflict diamonds continues to be addressed in a comprehensive manner through implementation of the international Certification Scheme.

In accordance with General Assembly resolution 3208 (XXIX) of 11 October 1974, I now call on the observer for the European Community.

I have the honour to speak on behalf of the European Union (EU). The acceding countries Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia and Slovenia, the candidate countries Bulgaria, Romania and Turkey, the countries of the Stabilization and Association Process and potential candidates Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and Serbia and Montenegro and the European Free Trade Association countries Iceland and Norway, members of the European Economic Area, align themselves with this statement. Breaking the link between the trade in rough diamonds and the fuelling of armed conflict is now firmly established as a recurrent item on the Assembly’s agenda, as it should be. The sale of rough diamonds by rebel movements has helped to fuel some of the terrible conflicts that have ravaged parts of Africa over the past decade. Both the General Assembly and the Security Council have addressed the issue in the past, and that has contributed decisively to persuading the international community — particularly diamond producing and trading countries as well as the international diamond industry — to adopt concrete measures to stop the flow of conflict diamonds. In particular, it has provided essential backing to the Kimberley Process. At this year’s session of the General Assembly, we can say with confidence — perhaps for the first time — that the Kimberley Process is no longer just a process: it has given rise to the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme, which has now been in operation for a full year. In the course of that year, the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme has found answers to most of the questions that had remained open after the Interlaken document was adopted in November 2002. The Kimberley Process has thus found an effective response to the challenge of ensuring that those applying to join the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme are actually able to fulfil its obligations by establishing a Participation Committee. That has ensured that the Scheme’s minimum requirements are applied rigorously when new participants are admitted, while at the same time allowing the widest possible participation in the Scheme, as called for by last year’s General Assembly resolution (resolution 57/302). Moreover, with the agreement on peer review adopted at last year’s Sun City plenary meeting, the Kimberley Process has risen to the challenge of devising effective and comprehensive monitoring provisions. If properly implemented, these will help to ensure that the provisions of the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme are upheld by all participants. The EU believes that such monitoring is crucial if we are to prevent loopholes through which illicit diamonds can enter the legitimate diamond market. We wish emphatically to commend South Africa for having steered the Kimberley Process during this decisive first phase. As Chair of the Process, South Africa has consistently shown the firm yet consensual touch needed to galvanize a varied coalition of Governments, industry representatives and non- governmental organizations behind a common purpose. The EU also wishes to express its appreciation to Canada for having taken over the difficult assignment of chairing the Kimberley Process in 2004. The Kimberley Process Certification Scheme, strengthened by extensive provisions for monitoring by peer review, is now a viable instrument backed by a remarkable effort at the national level — and, in our case, at the European level — to give effect to its provisions. Nonetheless, the Kimberley Process clearly continues to require the strong support of the United Nations. We should avoid any sense of complacency about implementation of the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme. This year, one of the main challenges for the Scheme will be effective implementation of the peer review system agreed upon last year. The European Community, as Chair of the Working Group on Monitoring in the Kimberley Process, will work closely with the Canadian Chair and with other participants in building as comprehensive and effective a review programme as possible. The Scheme may also have to confront individual situations in which its provisions are not being implemented as they should be. It will need to deal with those situations equitably yet decisively. The strong backing given to the Scheme by the United Nations will provide it with both the authority and the responsibility to do so. Let me make one final observation. Many of the wars that the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme was designed to starve of their sustenance have now abated. But the EU believes that, as a conflict prevention instrument, the Scheme remains essential. The adoption of this draft resolution (A/58/L.59) will send a strong message that the international community is not complacent about the continuing potential of diamonds in fuelling conflict.

We have heard the last speaker in the debate on this item. The Assembly will now take a decision on draft resolution A/58/L.59, entitled “The role of diamonds in fuelling conflict: breaking the link between the illicit transaction of rough diamonds and armed conflict as a contribution to prevention and settlement of conflicts”. I should like to announce that, since Canada’s introduction of the draft resolution, the following countries have become sponsors: Bulgaria, Estonia, Guyana and Lithuania. May I take it that the Assembly decides to adopt draft resolution A/58/L.59?

May I take it that it is the wish of the General Assembly to conclude its consideration of agenda item 21? It was so decided. The meeting rose at 4.05 p.m.