Statement by Jorge Cumberbatch, First Secretary, Cuban Delegate to the Fifth Committee of the General Assembly. Agenda item 120 “Improving the Financial Situation of the United Nations”.
New york, 6 november 2008.
Mr. Chairman,
First and foremost, my delegation would like to thank Mrs. Angela Kane, Assistant Secretary-General, for her presentation on the financial situation of the Organization last 28 October.
Likewise, we endorse the statement made by the distinguished delegate of Antigua and Barbuda on behalf of the Group of 77and China. However, there are a few points our delegation would like to highlight.
Mr. Chairman,
Year after year, we attend the ritual of the presentation on the financial situation of the Organization, to see similar panoramas described by the Secretariat officials responsible of following the issue up.
The main contributor, which has granted itself the right to say the rest of the Members what they must or must not do, owes the United Nations 94% of the contributions in arrears to the regular budget; a third of the debts to the peacekeeping operations and 85% of the debts for the work of the Tribunals. In the year 2000, by this time of the calendar year, it owed 81% of the regular budget.
The most ironic thing in this case is that, while we the developing countries make enormous efforts to meet our financial obligations to the Organization, the responsible for the principal distortion in calculating the scale of assessments, the United States, tries to evade their financial responsibilities with the Organization, proposing new methodologies that have nothing to do with the principle of the capacity to pay.
Mr. Chairman,
For our country, its real commitment to the United Nations is beyond any doubt.
Despite the adverse economic conditions and the obstacles imposed by the strengthening of the US genocidal policy of the economic, commercial and financial blockade against Cuba, our country is up to date with the contributions to the Regular Budget, the Capital Master Plan and the Tribunals. Also, we have made important payments to the different Peacekeeping Operations during the current year and it is our intentions to make some others in the coming weeks.
We denounce once more in this room that the impossibility of using US dollar in the international transactions, including the payments to international organizations, which makes our transactions be constantly subject to the market currency fluctuations and has a negative impact on our capacity to pay. And all that is without taking into account the additional obstacles we have faced to make our contributions to the United Nations, being forced to use a third country to carry out the transactions.
An example of this situation, are the difficulties in the payment of their international patent application for Cuba to the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). These transactions were made through two Swiss banks, which refused to continue conducting operations in accordance with the restrictions of the U.S. blockade. This obliges us to make bank transfers through a third party, thus increasing the risks and costs of operations.
The contempt of the Bush Administration for the United Nations cannot be more evident. He would better appeal to common sense. Last 29 October, 185 out of the 192 Member States that make up the organization, demanded the United States to end of such criminal actions.
Mr. Chairman,
Our delegation is following the evolution of the UN financial situation very closely. The effectiveness in the actions of the Secretariat and its officials is directly proportional to the resources at their disposal to take actions.
That is why, we are totally surprised and outraged at how superficially has been dealt the issue of the 2% reductions in the budget of the Organization for the biennium 2008-2009 and the instructions to realign the expenses for the biennium 2010-2011. The explanation given in the informal consultations of last Monday, 3 November, is simply absurd. Unacceptable.
The current events constitute an actual attack to the United Nations. It was not enough to cut 400 million dollars from the budget proposal of the Secretary General, to be voted anyway, but in addition further reductions are requested, when most of the ongoing reform processes are of the interest of developed countries.
Such behaviour must be put to an end. What is happening contradicts every precept related to responsibilities and accountability and we still wonder what neutrality of the Secretariat we have been talked about.
Sr. President,
No games should be played with the political support of the UN Member States. Instead, such support should be expressed by fulfilling the legal obligations of its Members to make their contributions to finance the Organization. We hope that this time there would be no attempts to use the retentions of the assessments to impose positions during the deliberations of the Fifth Committee. We warn that pressures will not work out.
Thank you
(Cubaminrex- Embacuab ONU)