U.N. Millennium Summit concludes in New York (09/17/00)

U.N. Millennium Summit concludes in New York

by Irene Jarosewich

UNITED NATIONS - At the largest gathering in human history of world leaders, the United Nations Millennium Summit brought together approximately 150 heads of state and government for a three-day summit on September 6-8 to begin the process of renewing the mission and purpose of the international organization.

Fifty-five years after its founding, with the issues of the Cold War receding and on the cusp of a new era in history that is witness to unprecedented technological innovation and increased globalization, the leaders of the world vowed to strengthen the United Nations and focus on equitable economic development, reduction in world poverty and increased environmental protection.

Organizers described the summit as a defining moment for the United Nations. U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan noted before the summit, "I have no illusions that a single summit in itself can change the world, but I believe that this meeting provides a unique opportunity for leaders ... a real chance for the leaders of the world to make the United Nations a more effective servant of the world's peoples."

Addressing the gathered leaders of the world on the summit's first day, Mr. Annan, acknowledging the power of those assembled, stated: "You have the authority to speak for and the ability to transform the lives of 6 billion people." He expressed his gratitude that so many of the world's leaders felt honor-bound to attend this summit.

Ukraine's delegation to the Millennium Summit was headed by President Leonid Kuchma and included Minister of Foreign Affairs Borys Tarasyuk, Ambassador Volodymyr Yelchenko, permanent representative of Ukraine to the United Nations, Ambassador Kostyantyn Gryshchenko, Ukraine's envoy to the United States, and Ambassador Valeriy Kuchinsky, first deputy representative of Ukraine's U.N. Mission. More than 8,000 representatives from 190 delegations that included U.N. member-states as well as observer organizations attended the summit, which was covered by 5,500 journalists.

During the almost 200 presentations made in the General Assembly Hall and at the special meeting of the Security Council, the disparity in national development between wealthy and poor countries was glaringly obvious. As telecommunications technology explodes, more than half of the world's population has never made a phone call. Several billion people worldwide live on less than a few dollars a day. A petition was presented with 22 million signatures from 155 countries (of 189 U.N. member-states) that the debt of 40 of the world's poorest nations be canceled. These countries send approximately $60 million per day in debt repayment to the world's wealthiest nations at the expense of food, health care and education for their populations.

The regional and civil wars that are now dispersed around the globe, as opposed to the wars between countries or groups of countries that were prevalent in the past, are often rooted in poverty and economic distress, noted numerous speakers commenting on the link between poverty and violence. This link surfaced in particular during the meeting of the heads of state of countries that are members of the Security Council, where discussion focused on bolstering U.N. peacekeeping efforts, but also implementing preventive measures, such as economic assistance.

During the summit, President Kuchma spoke both in the General Assembly Hall and at the Security Council meeting [see complete texts of his remarks on page 3], met with Secretary-General Annan and also held bilateral meetings with the heads of state of Hungary, Italy, Mongolia, Iraq, Jamaica, the Netherlands, Bangladesh, Argentina, Slovakia and Turkey, as well as attended a meeting of representatives of the regional group known as GUUAM (Georgia, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, Armenia and Moldova).

After the conclusion of the summit, Foreign Minister Tarasyuk noted that the summit was impressive in its scope and stated goals, an event that would have consequences for all of humanity. He said that Ukraine was ready to participate in the resolution of the eight main areas addressed in the Millennium Summit's final document.

Mr. Tarasyuk added that Ukraine "showed that it was not simply a member of the United Nations, or even just a simply member of the Security Council, but a unique member. Ukraine introduced the initiative to have the summit of the Security Council, and 75 percent of the text of the declaration adopted at the Security Council meeting was drafted by Ukraine. ... This summit definitely indicated the elevation of Ukraine's authority in world relations."

As to the value of the summit for the average citizen in Ukraine, he commented that such a summit "could give them a vision for the better development of our civilization in the future, and, though it is difficult to give a concrete answer about what it did for Ukrainians, for the nation it definitely added to our authority, and afforded Ukraine the opportunity to have the entire world listen to Ukraine's vision and thoughts about world developments for the future."

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