IN THE NAME OF GOD

THE MOST COMPASSIONATE THE MOST MERCIFUL

Your Majesties, Highnesses and Excellencies,

Your Excellency Mr. President of the United Nations General Assembly,

Your Excellency Mr. Secretary-General of United Nations,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

 It is a source of pleasure and pride for us to talk, on behalf of the State of Qatar and its people, in the Millennium Session held by the General Assembly at the United Nations Headquarters, address this honourable gathering and salute His Excellency Secretary General Kofi Annan and his staff for the fruitful efforts they exerted in organizing this session..

Ladies and Gentlemen,

 It is no coincidence that most speeches delivered in this podium have, since the beginning of our meeting, concentrated on the subject of Globalization.

 This phenomenon, which is the product of economic, social, cultural and technological developments and breakthroughs in the field of information, has not become only a major factor in the process of political decision-making, but the essential source for defining the components of international relations.

 We find ourselves talking about a world with diminished distances and dimensions, easy means of communications and linkage among nations, by virtue of the emerging means that the informatics revolution has provided; a world in which we witness with great admiration the giant strides taken and the impressive results achieved through scientific research, particularly during the last decade of the century that is coming to an end.

 But it is regrettably in this selfsame wonderful world that technological illiteracy, even alphabetical illiteracy, is spread among the majority of its peoples, and about a billion of its inhabitants suffer from abject poverty that is disgraceful to human dignity and, as a result of economic invasion, the economies of its countries are threatened with permanent crises and suffocating indebtedness. Moreover, its natural environment is deteriorating due to abusive exploitation, although this runs counter to the recommendations of numerous international forums, particularly the conference held at Rio de Janeiro. Is this not the reality? Is this state of affairs not too far from the ideal of building on earth and honouring human beings, which is advocated by the heavenly religions and cherished by international norms and covenants? Are we not, as we take part in this international forum which embodies the universality of man, supposed to stand together, think and ask ourselves about the ideal formula to bring things back to normal and make up for what is lost, before it is too late. We, both individuals and groups, have a great responsibility that we have to bear with integrity in the service of the present and future generations.

Dear Colleagues,

 To achieve a better future for humanity and realize the principles of the United Nations is impossible without collective political will, wherein all parties in the international community help each other in one concerted effort with the aim of adopting a strategy geared basically towards narrowing the economic and cultural gap among states, and getting to the optimum and fair utilization of the fruits of technological progress. We believe that the United Nations Organization is qualified to formulate an international system that comprehends globalization and spreads its blessings on all humanity, while putting checks on its negative effects.

 Here, we should like to introduce our viewpoint concerning the procedural steps that may ensure the success of such a strategy:

 First, we firmly believe that the objective condition for bringing nations closer together lies in establishing a comprehensive educational plan based on eliminating alphabetical illiteracy, promulgating compulsory education, and providing opportunities for harnessing information technology in the service of the goals of development.

 The Third Millennium man is not satisfied only to know how to write, but is supposed to master the use of the modern means of communication, and qualify to freely express his ideas and discuss the ideas of other people.

  Second, to improve the economic situation of developing countries, and the poor ones among them in particular, efforts to write off the debts of poor states should, in our view, be taken seriously, and we believe that it is useful to have these debts transformed into capitals invested in development projects that revive the production process and generate employment opportunities which will, in turn, reduce, if not eliminate, the flux of emigration to developed countries. It would be appropriate, in this respect, to gear special support to those states that take fundamental steps towards democracy.

 Third, it is fairly regrettable that donor countries’ development assistance is not proportionate with their Gross Domestic Product (GDP). This runs counter to good judgment. Fourth and last, we believe that it is in the interest of developed countries to be mindful of the great damage that will, by reason of their economic policies, befall the developing countries. We shall briefly refer, in this respect, to three indicators.

 The first indicator relates to the developing countries that produce and export raw materials. Industrial developed countries lend a deaf ear to the high prices of their own products, while they raise objecting voices when the prices of raw materials, such as petroleum, rise in international markets, although this price-rise is the result of high taxes imposed by those developed countries.

 The second indicator relates to industrial countries’ resort to various excuses with the aim of weakening the competitive power of some developing countries.

 The third indicator relates to the increasing restrictions those developed countries and their giant corporations imposed on utilizing the vast progress in the different spheres of human knowledge and technology development, under the pretext of protecting intellectual prosperity.

 Ladies and Gentlemen,

 We endorse the constructive proposals submitted by His Excellency the Secretary-General in his report concerning the elimination of armed conflicts in the world, and the role of the U.N. in this respect and emphasize the particular importance of three issues:

 First, the United Nations should be urged to activate its role in bringing the Arab-Israeli conflict to an end. At the same time, we welcome any other efforts that could be made outside the United Nations in this regard, provided they pay due respect to the rights of the Palestinian and Syrian peoples established by international resolutions.

 In the same context, we consider that the issue of Holy Jerusalem should be granted the extreme importance that it deserves, by reason of its distinct place in the hearts and minds of Arabs and Muslims, and since it is the cornerstone of any prospective peace in the Middle East.

 The second issue is the necessity of moving fast towards making the Middle East a nuclear-weapon-free zone. From this forum, we call on Israel to accede to the Treaty on the Nonproliferation of Nuclear weapons.

 The third issue relates to the necessity of putting checks on the way international sanctions are imposed. These checks should establish a time frame to stop the continuation of sanctions forever.

 Ladies and Gentlemen,

 As we look forward to contributing to the improvement of the performance of the United Nations Organization, we feel that the only way to realize this goal is to extend democratic practice and equal opportunities within the various international organizations. It is also high time for expanding representation in the Security Council to include, fairly and equitably, all regions of the world. By reason of its importance, the Arab World should have a permanent seat in the Council.

 Ladies and Gentlemen,

 While we are on the threshold of the Third Millennium, we look forward to a peaceful and safe world, pervaded by justice, security and prosperity, free of division, harm or wars, moving smoothly towards change, development and betterment, and contributing to the progress of all humanity.

 Peace be upon you all and may the mercy of God and His blessings be with you.