Mr. President,

Allow me to extend to you my delegation's warmest congratulations upon your election to the Presidency of the forty-ninth session of the General Assembly. You may rest assured that the Hungarian delegation stands ready to assist you in carrying out your responsible tasks. Sincere words of recognition shall also go to Ambassador Insanally, the outgoing President, for the outstanding and forward-looking manner in which he conducted the work of the previous session of the Assembly.

As a representative of the newly elected coalition government of the Republic of Hungary may I be permitted, first of all, to assure this august Assembly of nations that in her foreign policy Hungary will continue to serve international peace and stability with special regard to the Central-European region. We are committed to further develop the political and economic transformation in order to consolidate democracy and stabilize market economy in Hungary. Our foreign policy rests on three main pillars which are closely interrelated and treated on an equal footing. We are determined to promote the full integration of Hungary into the Euro-Atlantic institutions. We are seeking genuine good-neighbourly relations with all the countries in our region, especially with countries bordering us. And thirdly, we are advocating respect for human rights with particular emphasis on the minority rights of the millions of Hungarians who live beyond our borders. All in all, we intend to conduct our foreign policy in a most pragmatic and realistic manner and will act accordingly in our bilateral relations and at multilateral fora as well.

Mr. President,

At the threshold of the fiftieth anniversary of the United Nations and in the present post-Cold War era, mankind is facing enormous challenges. The euphoria and the great expectations we entertained only yesterday when a new and promising world seemed to be emerging, have come to a bitter turn by now. As the bipolar world was falling apart, and freedom and democracy were sweeping across the globe, we had to recognize some negative aspects of those fundamental changes, such as the outbreak of violent nationalism and ethnic hatred fed by economic and social tensions. The international community, and notably the United Nations, have proved sometimes unable, and on a number of occasions its Member States unwilling, to meet the dramatic challenges of our times.

New and violent manifestations of intolerance which caught the world unprepared, aggressive wars and bloody ethnic conflicts accompanied by crimes against humanity, and the abhorrent practice of ethnic cleansing are today unanimously considered issues that ought to have been tackled in time and in a resolute way. It is with deep regret to register that the United Nations, together with other relevant international organizations, instead of preventing the outbreak of crises in a number of areas of the world, has rather been trying to react to them, either without the necessary determination or by belated action. Indisputably, the means available to our organization to come to grips with the many international problems were stretched far beyond existing capacities. We believe, however, that the time has come to take a good, hard look at the role the United Nations is called upon to play, and to devise new ways and means by which it can prove its raison d'être in our troubled contemporary world. We, therefore, reinforce our support for the Secretary-General's Agenda for Peace and continue to regard it as a forward-oriented plan of action for the years to come. In this regard, we consider that special efforts be made in order to resolve the problems facing United Nations peace-keeping operations with a view to improving their efficiency and capability.

In case we are unable to find adequate answers to our failures and missed opportunities, we may well be on the verge of losing the precious benefits we have gained and the potential prospects we have opened up at the end of the Cold War for the international community, including the United Nations to create a qualitatively new, cooperative world order.

Mr. President,

As has often been stated, we live in a time of great contrasts that are also reflected at the United Nations. We could welcome momentous results and encouraging progress in South Africa and the Middle East. The assumption of office by the first democratically elected government in South Africa and the normalization of relations with its neighbours, the signing of the declaration of principles by Israel and the PLO and the beginning of its implementation, the breakthrough in relations between Jordan and Israel and the hopeful evolution of talks between Syria and Israel, are all truly historic achievements and bode well for the future.

The upcoming 1995 Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons will be an event of cardinal importance which can further enhance the aforesaid positive tendencies. Hungary is keenly interested in ensuring the indefinite and unconditional extension of the Treaty, and is ready to contribute to achieving this important goal. Recent events have once again reinforced our conviction with regard to the critical significance of such an act.

If the United Nations wants to live up to the promising processes, it must, first of all, adjust itself to the new realities. It would, therefore, do well to get rid of outdated, anachronistic resolutions which have nothing more to do with present-day developments.

It must, however, be admitted that attempts to tackle crises in the former Yugoslavia, in Somalia, in Rwanda and elsewhere have not brought about conclusive evidence of the ability of the United Nations to find the right answers to major hotbeds of tension.

Because of her geographical proximity, Hungary has followed with particularly grave concern the devastation and suffering over her Southern borders, first and foremost in Bosnia and Herzegovina and in Croatia. We have supported to the best of our abilities the efforts of the international community aimed at finding a just solution to that human drama. The basis for the solution of this unprecedented crisis in the heart of Europe is given. The principles of the United Nations Charter and those adopted by the International Conference on Yugoslavia are there: respect for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of countries, the inadmissibility of acquisition of territory by force, the elimination of the consequences of ethnic cleansing, the return of refugees and displaced persons, and the protection of human rights, including the rights of minorities. These principles should never be ignored if we are to reach a just and lasting settlement in Bosnia, Croatia and elsewhere.

Hungary has a vital stake in the restoration of peace and international legality in the former Yugoslavia. The volatile situation of the sizable Hungarian ethnic community in the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (Serbia and Montenegro), the interruption of traditionally close economic ties with our Southern neighbours, the serious losses we have suffered as a consequence of the sanctions regime imposed by the Security Council on the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, all inspire us towards an active involvement in the search for a durable and equitable settlement in those tortured lands. In doing so, we expect the international community to uphold the principles of the Charter of the United Nations and to enforce the relevant resolutions of the Security Council. We also expect that appropriate ways will be found in the course of post-conflict peace-building there to alleviate the burden of losses incurred due to the sanctions regime by the most directly affected countries, such as Hungary.

Mr. President,

Hungary is following with keen interest the encouraging process of the revitalization of the United Nations. In this respect, I wish to reaffirm that we attach particular importance to the question of the reform of the Security Council, with a view to ensuring its transparency, representative character and effective functioning, in order to better reflect the realities of our contemporary world. In this context, we fully concur with others in supporting permanent membership in the Security Council for Germany and Japan.

Hungary welcomes the ever-growing recognition that in maintaining international peace and security regional organizations should be given a more decisive role. In our view, the time has come to work out the necessary arrangements whereby regional organizations can effectively contribute to conflict-resolution, namely to preventive diplomacy, peacekeeping, peacemaking and post-conflict peace-building. We endorse the proposition that by involving the regional organizations, under the umbrella of the United Nations and in particular the Security Council, in the safeguarding or restoration of international peace and security, our world can indeed be made a much safer place. We, for our part, are prepared to share in efforts at securing wider participatory action.

Mr. President,

Hungary is honoured to host this fall in Budapest of the next Review Conference and Summit Meeting of the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe. In our expectation, the Conference and the Summit would not only contribute to the better functioning of this important regional arrangement, but will also serve as a useful vehicle in the efforts toward a democratic and integrated Europe where rationalism should prevail over nationalism. Furthermore, we are convinced that success within the CSCE is beneficial not only to the peoples living in the CSCE region, but can also underpin efforts at conflict prevention and crisis resolution in other parts of the world. In this context, we believe that the realization of the Dutch-German proposal to establish a genuine and practical division of responsibilities between the CSCE and the United Nations in the settlement of conflicts within the CSCE region, while upholding the principles and provisions embodied in the relevant chapters of the United Nations Charter, could well be a major step forward.

Following the Budapest Summit, when Hungary is to take over for a year the duties of the CSCE chairmanship-in-office, I personally intend to pay particular attention to the consolidation of mutually advantageous cooperation which is so promisingly unfolding between the CSCE and the United Nations.

Mr. President,

Promotion and protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms are a high priority of Hungary's foreign policy. In this connection, I would like to recall that in the Vienna Declaration of the World Conference on Human Rights it was solemnly stated that "the promotion and protection of all human rights is a legitimate concern of the international community". Consequently, we find it indispensable that, in this spirit, the United Nations act in the defense of human rights, irrespective of where violations of those rights occur.

In our world of interdependence and growing interaction, Hungary calls for an integrated response-capacity to be developed by the United Nations with regard to the renewing waves of human rights violations. We view with serious concern the alarmingly growing trends in the reported cases of gross violations of human rights, as well as their frequent occurrence in situations of internal armed conflicts or ethnic strife. These developments have serious repercussions affecting peace, security and stability in the given region and beyond. In this regard, we should be mindful of the requirements laid down in the Vienna Declaration for all Governments to promote and protect human rights in their own country, regardless of their political, economic and cultural structures. On the one hand, an open and active, both constructive and critical dialogue needs to be established and sustained in order to promote the protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms. On the other hand, a stronger commitment to economic and social development in various areas of the world would considerably facilitate observing these universal values.

By the same token, we believe that the United Nations has not yet exhausted the means available for the international protection of human rights. We urge the international community to seek new and innovative means and methods to safeguard the rights and freedoms of our fellow human beings, wherever they may live. We wish to see the United Nations embark in a timely manner - within the framework of preventive diplomacy - upon the road of international protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms. Rather than responding only to reported human rights violations, the United Nations should build effective preventive mechanisms into its activities, whenever the need arises. The notion of preventive protection should also include adequate international monitoring.

Upon decisions of the competent organs of the United Nations such as the Security Council or the Commission on Human Rights, civilian human rights monitors could be deployed if in any part of the world the situation of human rights so warrants. Hungary, for its part, is prepared to participate with monitors in joint actions of the international community in this field.

In these endeavours, we also count on the effective participation of the High Commissioner for Human Rights. The High Commissioner has had our full support ever since he assumed his office, and we pledge our cooperation in all aspects of his mandate. We would like to reiterate that adequate financing of the human rights activities of the United Nations must be ensured through the regular budget.

Mr. President,

I cannot conclude without mentioning the issue of sustainable development with its many aspects covering industrial and agricultural development, trade, human resources, regional cooperation, protection of the environment, etc. Clearly, what is at stake here is our ability to tackle without delay these global issues. Growing sensitivity with regard to these questions cannot but be welcome. We consider the work of the UN Conference on Population and Development held recently in Cairo, as an important step in that direction at a time when contrasts between requirements of human development and limited resources become more and more evident.

Mr. President,

In conclusion, I would like to reaffirm that Hungary continues to be a strong supporter of multilateralism. The nations are looking to this Organization for protection and assistance. We must not let them down in these critical times. In spite of failures, we should keep faith in the United Nations and meet the challenges which, in the final analysis, will determine mankind's destiny in the new millennium.

Thank you, Mr. President.

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