Mr. President,
Thank you for convening this meeting on Security Council reform so quickly after starting your term.
The work carried out by Ambassador Tanin has led us to the conclusion that there are areas of convergence between the members of the General Assembly regarding the principles of Security Council reform. These areas of convergence were pointed out by the Representative of India and reaffirmed by the Permanent Representative of Indonesia. An expansion of the Security Council in the two categories of members is one of the areas that is attracting increasing support.
We must work on these areas of convergence, by clearly identifying them, in order to start genuine negotiations and to avoid repeating the unilateral juxtaposed statements that we are so familiar with even before hearing them. In this respect, we can build on the progress made through the document established at the 64th session thanks to the facilitator’s efforts. It’s now time to work towards achieving a shorter, more functional text which will serve as a basis for the negotiations that we must start before the end of the year.
Essentially, we support the accession of Germany, Brazil, India and Japan to permanent member status. We also support an increased presence of African countries within the Security Council, in particular among its permanent members. There is also the question of the presence of an Arab State among the permanent members of the Security Council.
With this in mind, we have noted the interest of many members for a temporary solution; this is a practical solution jointly proposed by President Sarkozy and the British Prime Minister. It could represent the first step towards a definitive solution, which would allow us to make progress and avoid the risk of getting bogged down.
We are looking forward to the upcoming substantial discussions which we will hold on November 11. We are confident that the 65th session, under your presidency and with the facilitator’s assistance, will achieve the long-awaited dialogue which should bring the capitals closely together. It is at the political level that we will find the inspiration we need to carry this reform through.
Thank you.
