February 11, 1999
Statement by HE Mr. Michel Duval, Ambassador and Deputy Permanent Representative of Canada to the United Nations of the open-ended working group on the question of equitable representation on and increase in the membership of the Security Council and other matters related to the Security Council.
Mr. President,
At the outset of our deliberations on these issues so closely linked to the health of the United Nations, I would like first to offer you my best wishes for the success of our enterprise. I would also like to welcome our two new Co-Vice-Chairs, Ambassadors Dahlgren of Sweden and de Saram of Sri Lanka, whose experience, knowledge and discretion will be invaluable in the coming weeks. Allow me to also offer my thanks to their predecessors, Ambassadors Breitenstein of Finland and Jayanama of Thailand, for their outstanding contribution to our work.
Legitimacy and Credibility
Security Council reform is central to that body's legitimacy, and so to the viability of the United Nations. This realization prompted our decision in the General Assembly that the Working Group reach "general agreement" on any reform of the Security Council. This decision was subsequently confirmed by Resolution 53/30, unanimously adopted by the General Assembly on November 23, 1998. This clarification of the majority required for decision-making was necessary to enhance the legitimacy of our efforts to reform a body whose decisions are binding on all member states.
Mr. President, we commend your wisdom and your efforts which made possible the adoption of Resolution 53/30, allowing us to focus today on the substantive issues, the resolution of which will lead to concrete reform and result in a Security Council better able to adapt to meet the challenges of the new millennium - our ultimate objective.
Mr. President,
Canada has actively participated in the Open-ended Working Group since its inception with a view to making the Security Council a more efficient, accountable, transparent and open body. We firmly believe that Cluster I and II issues, namely expansion of the Security Council coupled with a review of its working methods and decision-making processes, including the use of the veto power, are central to the success of our undertaking.
Expansion and Equitable Representation
On the issue of Security Council expansion (i.e. Cluster I issues) we have been guided by one essential principle: the requirements of the United Nations and its Member States.
As the vast majority of members now agree, we believe that any expansion of the Security Council must be based chiefly, but not solely, on the long-overlooked need to create a Security Council which better reflects the membership of our Organization in accordance with the letter and spirit of Article 23 of the Charter.
We will continue to promote general agreement within the Working Group which places the needs of the United Nations and its membership first. Similarly, on the sole ground that such would run counter to the fundamental principles of the United Nations - democracy, openness, responsibility and accountability - we will continue to oppose the aspirations of some to permanent membership. We will also continue to vigorously support any solution aimed at enhancing the representativeness, credibility, responsibility, and thus the effectiveness, of a reformed Security Council.
It is difficult to point to tangible progress on the matter of Security Council expansion. None of us will be surprised by this, as the issue is nothing less than the way in which we select, from among our peers, those who will make binding decisions on our behalf on questions of basic importance that impact, often very directly, on our national and collective security.
Even so, Mr. President, we have made more progress on this issue than may at first appear. In examining the various proposals we have discussed these last five years, we must acknowledge that we have come a long way since we began our initial discussion of Security Council enlargement.
As many of us have mentioned during this discussion, a basic awareness is beginning to emerge from our deliberations: increasing the number of elected and non-permanent members of the Security Council is not only a basic necessity, but also, for the moment, the only way of making real progress on the issue of equitable representation on the Security Council.
Working Methods and Decision-Making
The Open-ended Working Group has already made tangible progress with regard to the Council's working methods and processes of decision-making (i.e. Cluster II issues).
For example, one of the broadly accepted common elements, reflecting in fact a clear general agreement among Working Group members, is the desirability of limiting the veto to Council decisions made under Chapter VII of the Charter. Canada unreservedly subscribes to this position.
Many other examples of progress exist, some of which have already been put into practice by the Council, namely:
These new practices have been established through the perseverance of certain members who are individually making real efforts to increase the transparency of Council activities. Some of these practices are already subject to a certain codification through Notes or Statements by the President of the Security Council. However, a great deal remains to be done because too much depends on the goodwill of the President and elected members of the day.
Canada on the Security Council
Canada has been a member of the Security Council since January 1. We even have the privilege of holding the Presidency at this time. We have used the responsibilities and small discretion of this office to consolidate the gains of recent years on the issues of the Council's working methods and its transparency.
Our efforts will not stop there. We also intend to support other elected members in their efforts and initiatives on these issues. We also count on their support. We will continue these efforts throughout our mandate and collaborate with future efforts well beyond the year 2001.
There is no doubt that our deliberations in the Working Group inform and support the efforts and the success of those who have the privilege of sitting on the Security Council. Our progress on these questions directly impacts the very body we are attempting to reform. The impact varies with the nature of the conclusions arrived at by the Working Group; in practice, the Security Council evolves more rapidly in certain areas while remaining virtually immutable in others.
The tensions which result can become sources of innovative and pragmatic solutions that strike an acceptable balance between, for example, transparency and secrecy, consultation and rapid reaction, formality and familiarity. By creating these new balances, we will ensure that the Council's credibility is not diminished, and that we provide the Council with the necessary tools and support to effectively carry out its mandate in an accountable manner.
Possible Progress and Programme of Work
Mr. President,
Several areas of fundamental disagreement remain concerning the future form and operation of the Security Council. However, the elements of a general agreement are becoming apparent. If we want to see real progress during the course of the upcoming session, we must focus our efforts on these emerging areas of general agreement.
This is the case for issues relating to Clusters I and II, and we are in favour of progress in these Clusters. At the same time, we believe that tangible progress is most possible this year on Cluster II issues, issues relating to the Security Council's working methods and decision-making processes.
For these reasons, we believe that last year's Programme of Work, as reproduced in Annex II of Report A/52/47, with the changes proposed by Ambassador Fulci, is a good framework for the conduct of our deliberations over the months to come.
Finally, some delegations have referred to the possibility that our two Co-Vice-Chairs proceed with an informal poll of Working Group members. This would be a good idea if it hadn't recently been the subject of an unhappy attempt, the memory of which is still fresh.
I would like to reaffirm Canada's commitment to the Working Group as the principal forum for the consideration of these intimately intertwined issues. I can assure you of Canada's active and full participation.
Thank you, Mr. President.
