S/PV.3369 Security Council

I should like to inform the Council that I have received a letter from the representative of Bosnia and Herzegovina, in which he requests to be invited to participate in the discussion of the item on the Council’s agenda. In conformity with the usual practice, I propose, with the consent of the Council, to invite that representative to participate in the discussion without the right to vote, in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Charter and rule 37 of the Council’s provisional rules of procedure. There being no objection, it is so decided.

The Security Council will now resume its consideration of the item on its agenda. The Council is meeting in accordance with the understanding reached in its prior consultations. Members of the Council have before them document S/1994/487, which contains the text of a draft resolution submitted by France, the Russian Federation, Spain and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. It is my understanding that the Security Council is ready to proceed to vote on the draft resolution before it. There being no objection, it is so decided.

There were 15 votes in favour. The draft resolution has been adopted unanimously as resolution 914 (1994). I shall now call on those members of the Council who wish to make statements following the voting.

My delegation welcomes the fact that by adopting resolution 914 (1994) today the Council has finally granted to the United Nations Protection Force (UNPROFOR) the reinforcements requested by the Secretary-General. I say "finally" because we feel that this decision has come late and that for a month there has been an urgent need to give the Force the means to carry out the new tasks entrusted to it under resolution 908 (1994). Indeed, the decision should have come at the end of March, when the Force’s mandate was extended. We can only regret this delay, which we feel is completely unjustifiable in view of the situation on the ground. In being forced to procrastinate in this way, the Council, from a political standpoint, did not reflect the clear determination which we feel the circumstances required. Nor has it shown the support which the soldiers of UNPROFOR have a right to expect from it at a time when, faced with a constant shortage of personnel, they are given additional missions in an increasingly dangerous environment. Increases in personnel having been authorized, Member States must now respond to the earnest requests of the Secretariat; the resolution adopted today should result not in blue helmets on paper, but, rather, in blue helmets on the ground. France, which contributes the most men to UNPROFOR, therefore solemnly appeals to all States able to do so to strengthen their contingents or In conclusion, I would once again like to pay tribute to the soldiers of UNPROFOR, and salute their courage and the memories of the new victims we have had to mourn in the last few days. We also wish to take this occasion to reaffirm our faith in the Secretary-General, his Special Representative and the Force commanders. Sir David Hannay (United Kingdom): May I begin, Sir, by welcoming you and thanking you very much for presiding over this meeting of the Council today. This resolution might seem to be a small and technical one, but it is in fact of major political significance, and I think it is very good that by your presence, you have indicated that fact. As a co-sponsor, my delegation strongly welcomes the adoption by the Council of this resolution to increase the authorized strength of the United Nations Protection Force (UNPROFOR). We regard the Council’s decision, albeit belated, as a clear reaffirmation of its support for UNPROFOR and of UNPROFOR’s activities in Bosnia and a signal of determination to bring about a cessation of hostilities and a peaceful negotiated settlement in that country. If UNPROFOR is fully to carry out the different mandates which we, the Members of the Council, have already given to it, we must give it the tools to do the job. The adoption of this resolution allows the taking up, without further delay, of a number of offers of troops which have already been made by Member States. My Government warmly welcomes this response and hopes that it will even be possible for the Secretariat to find enough troops to cover the whole shortfall. At the Council’s last meeting on Bosnia, on 21 April, the tragedy of Gorazde was at the top of our minds. Each day brought the news of the death of men, women and children from the Bosnian Serb bombardment. On that occasion, the Council adopted resolution 913 (1994), condemning those attacks, demanding the withdrawal of the Bosnian Serb forces and their weapons and calling for an end to the hostilities. In parallel, the United Nations and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) made it clear that force would have to be used if those elements were not complied with. A week later, we seem to have turned another corner in this dark saga, and there is some relief, particularly for the people of Gorazde. Thanks to the determination of UNPROFOR and of NATO, the immediate There would be little satisfaction, however, to be drawn from the ending of the fighting around Gorazde, if it were now to break out again elsewhere in Bosnia. We must be alive to this danger and make clear to the parties our expectation that they will not launch further military attacks. Recent events have demonstrated all too clearly that no one can win an outright military victory. They have also underlined the urgency of efforts to achieve a negotiated settlement. It is only at the negotiating table that a lasting peace can be achieved. It is in that spirit that my Government is giving its full support to efforts to bring more closely together the diplomatic activity of the United Nations, the European Union, the United States and the Russian Federation, including the action we have taken through the establishment of a Contact Group. We are pleased that the follow up to this part of resolution 913 (1994) by those most closely engaged in the peace effort has been so swift. The parties, too, must now respond, and not neglect the opportunity offered. Finally, my country and all other Member States owe a debt of gratitude to the efforts of the Secretary-General, of his Special Representative, of the military commanders and of the men and women of UNPROFOR and the humanitarian agencies working in Bosnia. They continue to work tirelessly and under difficult and dangerous conditions to promote peace and to alleviate suffering in the former Yugoslavia. Many of them have been injured, some have even given their lives. We salute their bravery and their dedication.

I thank the representative of the United Kingdom for his kind words addressed to me.

On behalf of the Spanish delegation, I too wish to welcome you, Sir, as you preside over today’s debate. Over the past few days, news reports have provided a glimmer of hope amid the tragedy in Bosnia and Spain has always maintained that only at the negotiating table can a suitable, lasting solution to the conflict in the former Yugoslavia be found. In that context of politics and negotiations and of that scenario for peace, the Government of Spain fully supports the decisions taken by the North Atlantic Council on 22 April. While we trust that force will be unnecessary to secure respect for the safe areas, we are determined to ensure genuine compliance with Security Council resolutions through the necessary cooperation between the United Nations and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). Based on this new situation, we must all redouble our efforts to spur the peace process through greater cooperation among the main parties that can exert influence. We hope that all these initiatives, from the United Nations, the European Union, the United States and the Russian Federation, which we have been proposing for some time, will now begin to fall into place. They should quickly lead to resumed negotiations among all parties, with a view to a comprehensive political solution to the conflict in Bosnia and Herzegovina and to other aspects of the crisis in the former Yugoslavia. These renewed efforts at persuading the parties and the revitalization of the negotiating process will have no effect unless we provide UNPROFOR with the means it needs to carry out the mandate entrusted to it in successive Security Council resolutions. For that reason, my delegation joined France, the Russian Federation and the United Kingdom in sponsoring the draft resolution the Council has just unanimously adopted. Let me conclude with two additional comments. As we move forward on the path of negotiations and, we hope, of peace, there will be an increase in UNPROFOR’s need for personnel, financing and equipment. As the Special Representative of the Secretary-General, Mr. Stoltenberg, has said, this is the price of success. But it will be fruitless Finally, I reiterate Spain’s support for the Secretary-General and his representatives, for UNPROFOR and for the other international organizations continuing to provide invaluable support for the effort to achieve peace and alleviate the suffering of the civilian population in Bosnia and Herzegovina and throughout former Yugoslavia.

I thank the representative of Spain for the kind words he addressed to me.

I wish on behalf of my delegation to welcome to the Council the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, External Relations, Trade and Pacific Island Affairs of New Zealand, and also to say a word of praise for the tireless labours of the Permanent Representative of New Zealand, Mr. Colin Keating. On a less formal note, it gives me pleasure also to see the family of Mr. McKinnon represented in this Chamber in force. The resolution the Security Council has just adopted complements the decision taken in resolution 908 (1994) of 31 March. Both resolutions have the clear purpose of providing the United Nations Protection Force (UNPROFOR) with the means necessary to fulfil its tasks, which are growing because of the changing situation in the area of its deployment. The Argentine Republic supports authorizing an increase in UNPROFOR personnel to the level recommended by the Secretary-General - and in the circumstances views this as necessary. We must not forget that, now as in the past, the most urgent goal is a comprehensive cease-fire in Bosnia and Herzegovina to make possible a negotiated political solution. Hence, the parties must, in their behaviour, meet the generous action of the international community in putting that peace force at their disposal with a larger number of personnel. In that connection, my country renews its appeal for an end to the manifold acts of harassment of UNPROFOR personnel, and to the unprecedented threats to their safety. The Security Council cannot let this go unpunished: individuals must bear responsibility for these actions.

I thank the representative of Argentina for his kind comments.

The Chinese delegation voted in favour of the resolution just adopted. Like other members of the international community, we hope that the increase in the personnel of the United Nations Protection Force (UNPROFOR) will help create a more favourable environment for the various parties to seek, through peaceful negotiations, an early and comprehensive political solution to the conflict. Recently, the situation in and around Gorazde has eased considerably. The shelling has ceased, humanitarian relief convoys have entered Gorazde and UNPROFOR troops have been deployed. We welcome these developments. We believe that the international community should seize this opportunity to urge the parties concerned to seek a negotiated political solution to the conflict. Indeed, the Chinese delegation is of the view that the whole question of the former Yugoslavia, including Bosnia and Herzegovina, should be settled politically through peaceful negotiations. We are not in favour of the use or threat of force. We therefore continue to have reservations on the resolution’s invocation of Chapter VII of the United Nations Charter to authorize mandatory actions.

Along with my colleagues, Mr. President, I am delighted to see you here. It is especially appropriate that you should be here on a day when we are considering the subject of Bosnia, one which has taken up a great deal of the time of the Council. The resolution we have adopted today is eloquent in its brevity, but even more so in its action. With my Government’s full support, the Council has given force to our joint conviction that the United Nations Protection Force (UNPROFOR) is a key to the continuing search for a peaceful settlement of the conflict in the former Yugoslavia. In the six short days since we adopted resolution 913 (1994) much has happened. Consistent with existing As we think about progress, we might remind ourselves that although we have been consumed by the horrors visited upon Gorazde we have acted here today on behalf of agreements voluntarily reached by the parties. UNPROFOR troops have been called upon to help implement agreements in Bosnia between the Bosnian Government and the Bosnian Croats and separate agreements involving the Bosnian Government and the Bosnian Serbs for the Sarajevo area. UNPROFOR will also help implement the recent agreement in Croatia between the Croatian Government and the Croatian Serbs. There is a lesson here for those who are willing to learn: our resolve to deter aggression is more than matched by our resolve to offer a hand to those willing to make peace. It is up to the parties, especially the Bosnian Serbs, to decide whether they will choose the path of continued confrontation or the path leading to a negotiated settlement of the conflict, for it is they who will either reap the benefits or suffer the consequences of that choice.

I thank the representative of the United States for her kind comments.

I wish to start by conveying a warm welcome to you, Sir, as you preside over this meeting of the Security Council. The delegation of Brazil welcomes the Security Council’s adoption of resolution 914 (1994). It is indeed a positive development that the Council has agreed on the troop reinforcement suggested last month by the Secretary-General. As I have had the opportunity to stress on previous occasions, we believe that all United Nations operations must be provided with the required resources and human power to carry out the mandate assigned to them by the Security Council. Under very difficult circumstances, the United Nations Protection Force (UNPROFOR) is performing a remarkable job in the countries where it is

I thank the representative of Brazil for his kind comments. I shall now make a statement in my capacity as Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade of New Zealand. When this Council extended the mandate of the United Nations Protection Force (UNPROFOR) for a further six months at the end of March, New Zealand was very concerned that it was not possible to increase the numbers of UNPROFOR personnel to the necessary level that would enable the Force to perform appropriately the difficult new tasks that we had given it. We are pleased that it has now been possible to reach agreement on this issue. Events over the past four weeks have reinforced our belief that UNPROFOR does, indeed, need those additional resources. Without them we shall simply find ourselves at a dead end, with peace in only one part of Bosnia attained at the expense of conflict springing up elsewhere because UNPROFOR personnel are so thin on the ground. Even so, the Secretary-General, the Chief of Mission and the Force Commander will have to make very difficult tactical decisions on how and where they deploy the personnel of the operation. Let us recall that the original mandate for UNPROFOR was and that "it would not prejudge the outcome of such negotiations." (S/23280, annex II, para. 1) Although this mandate was avowedly of an interim character, it remains, with its many extensions in time, space and function, the foundation of UNPROFOR’s mission. Recent events do not alter the fundamental character of UNPROFOR. It can facilitate negotiations, secure the delivery of humanitarian relief, monitor agreements already reached and use all necessary means, including force, to protect its personnel and secure these objectives. However, it is not authorized to impose peace in Bosnia by force of arms, nor to fight a war against or on behalf of any of the parties to the conflict. UNPROFOR’s mission is not easy. It is not made any easier by ill-informed criticism of its performance. My Government firmly believes that UNPROFOR has done a superb job with the resources at its disposal. The additional resources authorized in this resolution are the minimum to enable UNPROFOR to do its job. We are therefore very pleased to support the resolution. I now resume my functions as President of the Security Council. There are no further speakers. The Security Council has thus concluded the present stage of its consideration of the item on its agenda. The Security Council will remain seized of the matter.