States say Summit Outcome should serve as platform for further action

Speakers addressing the General Assembly's annual debate today offered mixed assessments of the Outcome document adopted at last week's United Nations Summit, while generally agreeing that it should serve as a platform for future action.

Cuba's Foreign Minister, Felipe Pérez Roque, said last week's UN Summit failed. "It was a complete farce," he said. "The scandalous pressures and blackmails on the member countries, after the US Ambassador brandished the stick and attempted to impose 750 amendments, will go down in history as the most eloquent evidence that a new world and a new United Nations must be built, with respect for and recognition of the right to peace, sovereignty and development for all, without genocidal wars or blockades or injustices."

Seri Syed Hamid Albar, the Foreign Minister of Malaysia, called for strengthening the General Assembly "to reflect the true voice of democracy, transparency and accountability." He also expressed disappointment over the absence of reference to disarmament and non-proliferation in the Summit Outcome document, and urged dedicated efforts to achieve the total elimination of all weapons of mass destruction.

Ireland's Foreign Minister, Dermot Ahern, said following the Summit, all UN members must fulfil their collective responsibility to grasp the opportunity to reinvigorate the UN. "If we fail, our peoples today and in the future will not judge us kindly," he warned. Ireland gave its full backing to the Secretary-General's proposals for change, he said. "I personally was honoured to act as his Envoy, because, like him, we recognized that the United Nations was at a fork in the road," he added, pledging continued support for this effort.

Greece's Foreign Minister, Petros G. Molyviatis, said the Summit had adopted an historic Declaration which constituted a new and important step in the direction of enforcing collective security and strengthening the UN's capacity to deal with the challenges and threats facing humanity today. "Our efforts should now focus on the implementation of the commitments made, so that the generations to come live in a better and more secure world."

Diogo Freitas Do Amaral, the Foreign Minister of Portugal, voiced disappointment that the Summit had not approved a "large part" of the Secretary-General's reform proposals. Reform must focus on key objectives, including peace, development and human rights. In addition, the functioning of the UN Secretariat also must be modernized.

India's Foreign Minister, K. Natwar Singh, said the Summit's Outcome document reflected some success but "much has been left incomplete." It should therefore serve as a foundation on which to build future action. He particularly called for efforts to achieve nuclear disarmament and to expand the Security Council. "Security Council reform remains more necessary than ever and should preferably, as the Secretary General has said, be completed by the end of the year," he said. "Security Council reform is not about any country's prestige or power but about transforming the balance of power in the world."

The Foreign Minister of Indonesia, Hassan Wirajuda, agreed on the need for a reformed Security Council. "As the Asia-Pacific region is home to more than half of the human race and the cradle of ancient civilizations and religions, we feel that it should have more seats on the Council," he said. He also joined in calling for more attention to nuclear disarmament. "We are not out of danger of nuclear annihilation," he said. "At the same time, developing countries must be allowed peaceful use of nuclear energy to hasten their development."

Slovenia's Foreign Minister, Dimitrij Rupel, said the Summit has provided Member States with a platform for further action. "To be frank, Slovenia would prefer a more ambitious platform, offering clearer solutions about how to cope with the challenges and threats facing the globalized world." That said, Slovenia welcomed the Outcome document and viewed it as "the beginning of a proper reform process," he said.

The President of Gambia, Yahya Jammeh, voiced support for the proposed reforms to the UN Commission on Human Rights but warned that the issue is of concern to all. "Enforcement is not the prerogative of a select few," he said. "A smaller human rights body would reinforce that notion and entrench the credibility crisis that the current commission suffers from."

He also called for revitalizing the General Assembly and said it was time for that body to be "more assertive within the mandate accorded it by the Charter." In addition, he said the current size and composition of the Security Council "makes a mockery of the larger membership of the UN and the realities of the world today." Africa must have full representation on the Council, he added.

Gabon's Foreign Minister, Jean-François Ndongou, said reform measures should focus on strengthening the General Assembly, which is the most representative body in the international community. He also voiced support for efforts to reform the Security Council. Enlarging the Council would make it both more representative and more effective. "A reformed United Nations can better tackle multiple challenges facing humanity today, such as HIV/AIDS, environmental degradation, terrorism, armed conflicts and poverty," he said.

Alí Rodríguez Araque, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Venezuela, said the UN, which embodies the international community, should operate in a democratic manner. He questioned, then, whether the UN was a democratic institution. Given the process of adopting the reform document, which was driven by a very small number of countries, "the answer, sadly must be a resounding No!" On the contrary, this small group of countries acted like an oligarchy, violating the rights of many others to push decisions through that did not take account of the views of the majority. For this reason, when speaking of reform, it is essential to ensure that the Assembly has the power to function democratically, he said.

Li Zhaoxing, Minister for Foreign Affairs of China, said his country would consistently oppose the use or threat of force in international relations. "We do not support the reinterpretation or revision of the provisions in the UN Charter relating to the right of self-defence," he said. "Should the occasion rise that calls for the use of force, it is the Security Council that should make sensible judgment and prudent decision on the merits of the situation."