Mr. Chairman,

I wish to congratulate you and the other members of the Bureau on your election to guide the deliberations in the Second Committee.

My delegation aligns itself with the statement made by the European Union under this agenda item. In this connection, I would like to highlight a Regional Environmental Initiative that was launched by the Hungarian Government last June on the occasion of the anniversary of a regional environment centre that was set up in Hungary back in 1990. This centre is a brilliant example of international cooperation in the field of environment. The present initiative of the Government aims at strengthening regional cooperation in environmental protection in Central and Eastern Europe, making the existing organizational structures more operational and more efficient, and creating an enforcement mechanism in the field of environmental security.

Safeguarding our environment is a fundamental task for governments. Facing up to ecological hazards and establishing a preventive management system are integral parts of a sound environmental policy. By definition, the risks to the environment cannot be tackled within a national framework, joint decisions and actions are needed by the countries concerned.

In its initiative, the Hungarian Government proposes that the States of the Central and Eastern European region should reaffirm that environmental security cannot be viewed as an internal affair of a given country, that they should widen, through their national environmental agencies, the exchange of data and should ensure transparency among them through the provision of specific information on environmental hazards, sources of potential danger, industrial technologies requiring increased supervision and on State funding for environmental protection. The initiative also aims at creating institutional arrangements to help eliminate factors jeopardizing the security of the environment, in particular those having a cross-border effect, and it stresses that the installation of systems to predict environmental damage, readiness to prevent or diminish those damages, as well as assuming State responsibility for damages are fundamental prerequisites for cooperation in the environmental field among the countries of the region.

Hungary believes that, in the specific conditions of the region of Central and Eastern Europe, water and air pollution, which knows no boundaries, is the prime threat to human health and the ecosystem of the countries of the region. The Hungarian initiative stems from the various problems encountered by Hungary and other countries in the field of ecology in a very specific geographical region which, in addition, is undergoing an immensely complex transition from centrally planned to market economies with all the far-reaching consequences that such a transformation entails. Therefore, the protection of our environment, the stopping of its degradation, and its restoration go well beyond purely ecological considerations. This undertaking is directly tied to the political, economic and social tomorrow of these countries. Undoubtedly, the prospects of accession to the European Union are playing a role of catalyst in the field of the environment, too, by making sure that the necessary legislation is in place and implemented and regional environmental cooperation is expanded among the countries concerned. The high standards of the Union in this regard can benefit not only Europe but can have a beneficial impact on international efforts, within the framework of the United Nations, to make this world a safer and healthier place. It is in this spirit that Hungary calls on the various subregional, regional and international organizations and institutions to support this Regional Environmental Initiative and to give further momentum to our common efforts to preserve our natural habitat.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman.