Page 60 - 100 Reflections that Crafted Geneva International_V-Petrovsky_private special edition

100 Reflections that Crafted Geneva International

Second, to increase the role of Geneva in the global activities of the
Organization, primarily in the field of human rights, trade and sustainable
development, but also in preventive and peacemaking diplomacy in peace-
building and disarmament efforts.

Third, to make Geneva a good example of a UN centre in its adaptation to
the new international environment. We have already started the process of
adaptation of UNOG to the new conditions and I am pleased to tell you that a
number of our proposals on decentralization within the UN system and better
use of material and resources have been accepted by Headquarters in New
York.

In 1995, the United Nations will commemorate the 50th Anniversary of
the signing of the Charter. In the new international environment of conflicts
and the financial difficulties of the UN, this should not take the form of a
world-wide festival, but rather a series of commemorative, action-oriented
events, which might in themselves be impressive. Member countries have been
called upon to establish national committees to join the UN in these
preparations.

For Geneva and for Switzerland, 1995 will be a double anniversary - that of
the UN and also of the League of Nations which held its constitutional
assembly in Geneva's Reformation Hall in 1920. I do not think that either of us
- the institutions of our host country nor ourselves - should let this occasion for
a broad discussion on the future role of the UN pass us by.

In conclusion, let me stress my own deep belief in the future of Geneva as
the natural habitat of multilateral diplomacy. But I must also stress that the
future of Geneva depends not only on the attitude of the UN, but also on your
own support, and primarily that of your Parliament which represents all the
people of the Swiss Confederation.

I hope that our meeting today will serve our better understanding and the
interests of both the United Nations and the Swiss Confederation.

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