I commend the Council, and other Member States represented here, for the sense of urgency they are showing in dealing with this grave crisis in Sierra Leone. This is entirely appropriate, given the very serious challenge which that situation now presents to all of us in the international community.
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I am very pleased to join you today for this important debate dedicated to the protection of civilians in armed conflict. I wish to welcome the Foreign Minister of Canada and to express my appreciation for his commitment to making this issue a priority for the entire United Nations system. I also wi…
I have the honour to present my millennium report.
The millennium might have been no more than an accident of the calendar, but you — the Governments and the peoples of the world — have chosen to make it more than that: an occasion for all humanity to celebrate and to reflect. The world did celebra…
My report is already in the Council’s hands. If I may, I will make just a few brief remarks about the oil-for-food programme, limiting myself to the humanitarian aspects of resolution 1284 (1999) and the actions that they call for from the United Nations.
I also have with me Ms. Carol Bellamy, Exec…
I would like to begin by paying tribute to Secretary of State Albright and Ambassador Holbrooke for their extraordinary efforts in convening yet another in a series of important meetings during the United States presidency of the Security Council. They are making the world sit up and take greater no…
Once again I congratulate you, Mr. President, on your success in using your presidency to focus world attention on Africa and its problems, and I join you in welcoming President Mandela to the Council Chamber. His presence with us today is a credit both to him and to you, Mr. President. It shows the…
Let me thank you, Mr. President, for your thoughtful statement. Your presence here today is a promising start indeed to the New Year and welcome evidence of your country's commitment to the United Nations.
As we open this new millennium, many of us have much to be thankful for. Most of the world is…
Mr. President, let me welcome you to Headquarters today.
May I first say how much I appreciate the sustained attention which both the Council and the General Assembly are giving to African issues. If meetings alone could solve Africa’s problems we would have none, but, alas, they do not, which is w…
I am pleased to join the Assembly today to renew our common efforts to bring lasting progress to Africa. We meet at a time of change, in a spirit of determination to turn words into action. Since my previous report was issued, in April 1998, I have been gratified to see an intensification of the int…
I am delighted to take part in this vital meeting on one of the greatest challenges facing the United Nations, and one that, since the beginning
It is clear that prevention is one of the main tasks of this Organization. And yet, far too often, we find ourselves dealing with the effects of conflict …
Nearly a year and a half ago I submitted to the Security Council a report on one of the most pressing challenges of our times: how to achieve durable peace and sustainable development in Africa.
I have been encouraged by the lively response to the report, within and outside the United Nations syste…
I am pleased to join the Council today in this effort to tackle one of the key challenges in preventing conflict in the next century. Small arms and light weapons are primary tools of violence in many conflicts taking place in the world today.
The proliferation of small arms, ammunition and explosi…
I am deeply honoured to address this last session of the General Assembly of the twentieth century and to present my annual report on the work of the Organization. The text of the report is before the Assembly.
On this occasion, I should like to address the prospects for human security and interven…
I am pleased to have the opportunity to present to the Security Council my report on the protection of civilians in armed conflict. This report takes as a starting-point the worst acts of humankind and calls for our best efforts to defend civilians where they are most imperiled.
More than just the …
A week ago in this Chamber, I informed the Council that the people of East Timor had voted overwhelmingly to reject an offer of autonomy from the Indonesian Government and in favour of a transition towards independence.
The conditions under which the popular consultation took place on 30 August wer…
On 5 May 1999, Portugal, Indonesia and the United Nations concluded a historic set of Agreements intended to resolve the long-standing issue of East Timor. These 5 May Agreements requested me to determine, through a popular consultation based on a universal, direct and secret ballot, whether the Eas…
It is entirely fitting that the General Assembly should interrupt its proceedings as a mark of respect for the memory of the late King Hassan II. I am deeply honoured to share with members this moment of sadness and of gratitude for the life of a great man, as I was honoured to attend His Majesty’s …
With this resolution, the United Nations Security Council has charted the way towards a better future for the inhabitants of Kosovo: a future in which all the refugees and internally displaced persons can return safely to their homes; a future in which full respect is assured for the civil, politica…
We meet to commemorate the half-century of a testament to human hope at the end of a century of human loss. We meet to pay tribute to the spirit of idealism and the faith in humanity that made our forebears believe in the best in man when all around was evidence of the worst in man. We meet to mark …
