S/PV.2913 Security Council

The Security Council will now beain its consideration of the item on its aqenda. The Security Council is meetina in accordance with the understanding reached in its prior consultations. | Members of the Council have before them the report of the Secretary-General on the United Nations Observer Group in Central America, which is contained in document $/21194, | Members of the Council also have before them document S/21207, which contains the text of a draft resolution which has been prepared in the course of the Council's consul tations. It is my understanding that the Council is ready to proceed to the vote on the draft resolution before it. Unless I hear any objection, I shall put the draft resolution to the vote now. | There being no object ion, it is so decided. A vote was taken by show of hands. In favour: Canada, China, Colombia, Céte d'Ivoire, Cuba, Democratic Yemen, Ethiopia, Finland, France, Malaysia, Romania, Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Treland, United States of America, Zaire ’ The PRESIDENT (interpretation from Arabic) ¢ There were 15 votes in favour. The draft resolution has thus been adopted unanimously as resolution 650 (19900. I shall now call on those members of the Council who wish to make statements Mr. WILKINSON (United States of America): A page of history is turnina in Central America, The resolution we have just adopted makes clear that the challenge for us all is to accomplish the objectives set by the five Central _ American Presidents: a firm and lasting peace in Central America, Along with the Organization of American States and other observers, the United Nations played a key role in the free and fair elections which took place in Nicaraqua in February. Now it can play a further essential part in democratization of this troubled reqion. The United States supports both the full Esquipulas process of the five Central American Presidents and the continuing efforts by the Secretary-General ana his staff, in consultation with the Council, to assist in implementation of the peace plan. We welcome the Secretary-General's report of 15 March, which proposes further steps to bring that plan to fruition. We fully support the Secretary-General's intention to deploy phase IV of the ; United Nations Observer Group in Central America (ONUCA) immediately. There is important work yet to be done in terms of achieving the cease-fire in El Salvador envisaged in the San Isidro Declaration and ensurina the cut-off of arms to irreqular forces as stipulated by the five Presidents, There should be no doubt in anyone's mind about the position of the United States on the question of the contras: We want and encourage them to demobilize freely and return to their land to contribute to its development. This vosition has been amply stated both in public and in private by President Bush, Vice-President Quayle and Secretary of State Baker. It must be clear in all our minds that after 10 years of struqale the Nicaraguan resistance has leqitimate concerns for the safety of its members and their dependants. We believe the framework of ONUCA's expanded mandate, proposed by the Secretary-General in his report, sets forth a useful startina~point for achieving (Mr. Wilkinson, United States) agreement by all the involved parties on a settlement leading to voluntary demobilization and repatriation of the resistance. Tt is clear that this is only a framework into which many operational details must be fitted, especially in Light of the 23 March demobilization aqreement reached between the Nicaraquan resistance and representatives of Mrs. Chamorro's qovernment-to-be, We applaud their aqreement to arrange for promet demobilization and call upon the Sandinista authorities in Managua to agree to the proposal immediately. We believe it particularly important that the arrangements requested by the contras be set in place, namely "an effective cease-fire by both sides, verifiable by international organizations” and “concentration of contra armed forces currently inside Nicaragua in security zones previously defined inside Nicaraguan territory and overseen by the above-mentioned international organizations and Cardinal Obando y Bravo, in order that the process of demobilization be carried out in an atmosphere of security and peace". Clearly, the first priority must be achievement of formal aqreement on and adherence to a cease-fire and a clear~cut separation of forces within Nicaraqua. The conditions for and the mechanisms to verifv a comprehensive settlement are not yet in place. In addition to ONUCA, we also believe it essential that there be rapid movement to make the International Support and Verification Commission (CIAV» fully operational. We believe it important, in this context, that the overall settlement plan be balanced and that responsibility for its successful implementation rest equally on dae (Mr. Wilkinson, United States) om both the resistance and the current ruling party of Nicaragua, the Sandinista Front, and its military and security apparatus. There has clearly been a new development in the peace process since the Secretary-General's report, with last Friday's agreement between the contras and the Opposition National Union (UNO), and we expect that this new development will be addressed in further proposals to the Council, We will support and contribute to this process. We cali upon all those who have influence with any of the parties in the region to contribute in a similar Manner, The people of Nicaragua and of the entire Central American reqion will thank us for that contribution. Mr. ALARCON DE QUESADA (Cuba) (interpretation from Spanish}: My delegation voted in favour of the resolution just adopted on the understanding that the resolution can contribute to restoring peace in Nicaraqua and that in the resolution the Council authorizes the Secretary-General to do what he asks us to authorize him to doz: expanding the mandate of the United Nations Observer Group in Central America (GNUCA) and the inclusion in that Group of armed personnel for the specific purpose of playing a role in the demobilization of the members of what is termed the Nicaraguan resistance. (Mr. Alarcon de ‘Quesada, Cubat In so doing the Security Council is hoping to brina an“end to something that, in our judgement, should not have. existed. There is a lonq history of international efforts, especially: those exerted by the States of Latin América, beqinning with the formation of the Contadora Group at the beginning of the last decade, which, inter alia, appealed for the cessation of such actions aqainst Nicaraqua. According to the latest information received from the Secretary-General, the present situation would indicate that there are still some areas of uncertainty as to how the process will unfold, areas that imply possible risks to the operation the United Nations is preparing to undertake, and we would alert members of the Council to them. We hope that with the resolution just adopted and the activity of the United Nations in Nicaraqua an end will finally be brought, once and for all, to the activities being carried out by those elements that have cost the neople of Nicaraqua so much in terms of human life and material damaqe. During the consultations we have held some concerns have been expressed with regard to the financial implications of the United Nations operation on which, in the light of the latest developments in Nicaraqua, some uncertainty may still remain. In that connection I would draw attention to the fact that it would be ironic if, at the end of this episode, it were to fall to the international community and to all Members of the Organization to pay for the mechanisms that will monitor the end of an operation that should never have taken place, particularly since the so-called Nicaraquan resistance has benefited from well-known external financing, which, if we rely only on the fiqures quoted for licit and public contributions from 1982 to date, amount to more than $321 million, some 40 times the amount the present operation will cost all the Members of the Organization. Indeeit, in the United States fiscal year that has just elapsed, the Bee + ; aoe eo (Mr, Alarcon de Quesada, Cubat amount was nearly $50-million - roughly five times the maximum amount the Secretary-General estimates it will-cost all of us to be able, finally, to confirm the end of this lamentable page in Central American histor. The PRESIDENT (interpretation from Arabic)s There are no further speakers on my List. The Security Council has thus eoneluded the present stage of its consideration of the item on the agenda, The meeting rose at 5.15 o.m.