General Assembly Official Records Seventy-Fourth Session

United Nations A/74/ PV.4* General Assembly Official Records Seventy-fourth session 4th plenary meeting Tuesday, 24 September 2019, 3 p.m. New York President: Mr. Muhammad-Bande ................................. (Nigeria) In the absence of the President, Mr. Amde poverty, endemic diseases, human trafficking, drug (Ethiopia), Vice-President, took the Chair. trafficking, illegal immigration, terrorism and other threats against peace, in order to create an environment The meeting was called to order at 3.55 p.m. conducive to social progress and development. In order to meet those noble goals, it is imperative that we focus Address by Mr. João Manuel Gonçalves Lourenço, all our efforts on the peaceful resolution of conflicts President of the Republic of Angola that have created a permanent climate of tension and The Acting President: The Assembly will now hear imminent war in some countries. an address by the President of the Republic of Angola. We stand for multilateralism in international Mr. João Manuel Gonçalves Lourenço, President relations, as it alone contributes effectively to the of the Republic of Angola, was escorted into the world’s peace and security. For that reason, it is never General Assembly Hall. too much to insist on the need for a deep reform of the The Acting President: On behalf of the General United Nations, so that the Organization can better Assembly, I have the honour to welcome to the United fulfil its great responsibility for conflict management Nations His Excellency Mr. João Manuel Gonçalves and resolution and the prevention of war. We reiterate Lourenço, President of the Republic of Angola, and to the need to increase the number of permanent members invite him to address the Assembly. of the Security Council, in particular to include members from Africa and South America, as the President Lourenço (spoke in Portuguese; English current composition, which at the time of the Council’s interpretation provided by the delegation): I would like formation mainly comprised the winning Powers of the to salute all present from this important rostrum. I hope Second World War, no longer reflects the need for a that this session will represent a further decisive step in the search for peace and international security and fairer global geostrategic balance. towards a fairer and more balanced relationship among The prevailing tension on the Korean peninsula, all nations. which constitutes a danger to world peace, should Ongoing political and military conflicts, including remain one of the major concerns of the international pervasive economic inequalities, pose a permanent community. We therefore encourage and commend threat to all humankind — a fact that compels us to the diplomatic efforts being made by the major world unite in a common effort to solve the real problems Powers — the United States of America, Russia and that constitute our priorities, such as by protecting the China — to make that part of our planet a zone of peace environment and definitively eradicating hunger and and security. This record contains the text of speeches delivered in English and of the translation of speeches delivered in other languages. Corrections should be submitted to the original languages only. They should be incorporated in a copy of the record and sent under the signature of a member of the delegation concerned to the Chief of the Verbatim Reporting Service, room U-0506 ([email protected]). Corrected records will be reissued electronically on the Official Document System of the United Nations (http://documents.un.org). 19-29169 (E) *1929169* * Reissued for technical reasons 28 Octocber 2019 A/74/PV.4 24/09/2019 We are also concerned about the perpetual Middle cyclones, tsunamis, floods and even severe droughts East conflict. It is crucial that the many relevant that are proliferating around the world. Security Council resolutions be upheld, in particular Stark examples of such hazards are multiplying all those calling for the establishment of an independent over the world, which leads us to associate ourselves Palestinian State that can live in peace with the State with those who point out the responsibility of those of Israel and for those two countries to develop normal who persist in ignoring those signs and feel entitled to neighbourly relations and economic cooperation. continue supporting polluting industries. We welcome With regard to the growing tension in the Persian the initiative taken by the recent protests in many Gulf, where extensive reserves of crude oil are countries around the world, which have become a true threatened by latent conflict that imminently endangers symbol of advocacy to preserve the environment and global energy security, we call on all parties to exercise defend our planet — our common home. moderation. The best solutions are found at the Let us work together to preserve the remaining negotiating table. rainforests in South America, Africa and Asia, such as Africa, our continent, has been ravaged by the forests of the Amazon and Congo river basins, which terrorism, especially that of a religious fundamentalist have not yet been completely devastated by humankind. nature, which affects countries such as Mali, the Those are the planet’s last reserves for oxygen renewal Niger, Nigeria, Cameroon, Burkina Faso, Chad, the and also absorb carbon dioxide and other pollutants that Central African Republic and Somalia, to name just a deplete the ozone layer. few. The international community — and the African Although noble and fair, the Sustainable Union in particular — should pay special attention to Development Goals, which were intended to give the need to normalize the political situation in Libya, continuity to the Millennium Development Goals, as its territories, which are controlled by different are not themselves a guarantee of better results in the militias, constitute the logistical source of the arms and future. In order for us to achieve the desired levels of ammunition of the fundamentalist groups operating sustainable development, it is important to make the in Africa. expected outcomes of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Angola has made a modest contribution to conflict Development the object of positive brainstorming on prevention and resolution as often as it can, in particular alternative projects that are appropriate to the political in the Southern African Development Community and situations and concrete realities of the countries the Great Lakes and Central African regions, the most most affected. recent case being the Rwanda-Uganda memorandum Conflict, hunger, misery and disease cannot be of understanding signed in Luanda, which seems to eliminated by political and bureaucratic solutions represent an important step towards preventing a alone, but also — and more importantly — by good simmering conflict that was about to break out. governance, combating corruption and other social I would like to take this opportunity to call from evils, protecting the environment and strengthening this rostrum for an end to the decades-old economic values such as human dignity, responsible and inclusive embargo imposed on Cuba, especially given the citizenship, social justice and equal opportunities. recent window of opportunity for rapprochement and It is important in that context to highlight the role of normalcy of relations. Allow me to also call for an young people, the only force capable of overcoming all end to the current trade war between two economic those challenges. It is imperative to enhance the quality Powers, the United States and China, considering the of their education, both technically and culturally, negative consequences that are already being felt in the so that their specific training takes into account the global economy. contribution of the different cultures and civilizations The world is helplessly witnessing the effects of which, for centuries, have helped us to better understand climate change and global warming, which have been and love the world of our fellow human beings. It is worsening as confirmed by the latest scientific studies, with firm hope in the commitment of young people that as well as the rapid rise of natural hazards and their I remain optimistic and continue to believe that we can devastating consequences, such as the typhoons, bequeath a better world to our descendants. 2/58 19-29169 24/09/2019 A /74/PV.4 Speaking of Angola in particular, I would like President Rebelo de Sousa (spoke in Portuguese; to highlight the major ongoing reforms that aim to English interpretation provided by the delegation): build a truly democratic State that respects the rule What a happy coincidence it is to follow, at this of law, fights corruption and impunity, and promotes rostrum, President João Lourenço from the brotherly a culture of accountability among civil servants. Such country of Angola, 20 years after the referendum that reforms will create a business environment that is more opened the door to the independence of Timor-Leste. attractive to domestic and foreign private investment, That confirmed the strength of the Community of thereby increasing the domestic production of goods Portuguese-speaking Countries, which is taking steps and services, reducing the import of foreign goods towards greater internal mobility. and increasing the range and quantity of exportable I would ask you, Sir, to convey our congratulations domestic goods as well as the supply of jobs. to President Tijjani Muhammad-Bande on his election, The Government is addressing

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