11.02.2003 # 5 61310/21-041-384
ADDRESS by President of Ukraine Leonid KUCHMA to
representatives of diplomatic corps
Dear
Mr. Doyen,
Dear
heads of diplomatic missions,
Lady and gentlemen,
I am glad to greet you in Mariinsky palace at
our first meeting in the New Year - its conduct has become a good tradition.
I will try to be as laconic as possible: it will allow saving time for informal
discussion and free conversation.
In my opinion, there is no special need to go into the details of our internal
political issues, I am confident that you are well informed about them.
So I will be talking about the most import issues.
Less than a year ago Ukrainian voters - by a large majority - gave preference
to political forces, which clearly suggested democratic way of the country's
development.
I am convinced that the choice made by my countrymen proves that political
maturity of our people is growing.
Supporters of historical nostalgia became a parliamentary minority - for the
first time since Ukraine had become independent.
It shows only one thing: the number of my countrymen who stopped relying on
utopia decisions for difficult problems of modern Ukraine has increased.
The results of the elections would be even more noticeable, if all those who
share the declared values - with no exception - had united in the Parliament.
I can only regret it did not happen.
In my opinion, in that case we would not have constant discussions in the
Parliament on who is more and who is less democratic.
We would have cooperation instead of confrontation. We would have responsible
politics instead of permanent outbursts of political ambitions or conjuncture
positioning.
Despite mutual confrontation we managed to create a parliamentary majority. I
am impressed that even those who did not enter the majority join it in the
moments, which are of special important for our country.
I think it is a great achievement that for the first times in our modern
history the government and the parliamentary majority signed a political
agreement on cooperation and soldiery responsibility.
Of course, by making this step we achieved only a certain level of cooperation
between parliamentarians and the government. But the first step is important. I
am confident that the political reform we started will formalize the situation.
It will make the execute power more accountable to the people - with the help
of parliamentarians they elected. I will make my best to achieve it.
Economic growth in all the key spheres has been continuing for three years on
end. Agricultural sector and our foreign trade demonstrate stable dynamics of
growth.
In my opinion, it is another important result of our economic reforms.
There are some positive achievements in social sphere as well, but they are not
as noticeable as we would like them to be. I am confident that if we had more
of mutual understanding in the sphere of politics, our achievements would be
even more important.
Of course, we will keep working on these problems in 2003. But even now it is
evident that this year does not promise to be an easy one. Both for our country
and for the world community.
Never before has the world been so interrelated and vulnerable.
Never before has the world been so aware that answers to global challenges
should be searched and found only together, by joint efforts, basing on
universal values and on ability of all the partners to listen to each other and
make well thought and agreed decisions.
The Iraqi situation clearly demonstrates the necessity to act basing on such
principles.
Ukraine is pleased that mechanisms of the United Nations Organization and, in
the first place, the Security Council, have been applied from the very
beginning of the spiral of tension around this country.
Our stance that the situation should be solved by political and diplomatic
means remains unchanged.
At the same time, Ukraine shares concern of the world community about
possibility of proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, especially about
terrorists' attempts to get hold of them.
We hope the UN Security Council will find adequate measures to overcome this
crisis.
As you know, three weeks ago I returned form my trip to the Persian Gulf
countries.
The situation around Iraq was the key issue discussed during my negotiations
with leaders of the Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates.
These countries are in the epicenter of a potential conflict.
Leaders of the said countries recognized that Ukraine's position on settlement
of the Iraqi crises is well thought, sensible and based on fundamental
principles of the international law.
Ukraine has constantly supported the UN inspection activity in Iraq, in
particular, by sending its experts.
We positively evaluate State Secretary Colin Powell's briefing at the meeting
of the UN Security Council and the information on violation of the Security
Council's Resolutions by Iraq provided by him. We believe that all the data
provided in this relation should be submitted to the mission of international
observers to be analyzed and checked on the scene. Iraq should cooperate with
the UN inspectors in a due way and provide exhaustive answers to the
accusations made by the US State Secretary in his report. To a large extent
further development of the situation depends on the position of the Iraqi side,
which should take real steps to strengthen cooperation with the international
experts and fully meet the requirements stipulated in the Security Council'
Resolutions.
We intend to continue supporting international efforts aimed to settle this
crisis, and if the situation becomes especially grave, we are ready to consider
making a practical contribution to the course of restoring peace and stability
in the region.
This sense of responsibility makes us willing to strengthen friendly relations
and fruitful cooperation with our partners in the East and West.
Both with our neighbors and on other continents.
Our neighborhood is, in the first place, the Old World, Europe, our mother
continent, and many generations of my countrymen are inseparably connected with
its history.
I would like to take this opportunity to greet ambassadors of the countries
which received an invitation to join the EU and NATO in Copenhagen and Prague.
You are a vivid example to us how to uphold our interests and defend them.
Enlargement and internal transformation of the European Union have no precedent
in the history of mankind. The largest market in the world and the most
integrated political union on the planet are being formed simultaneously.
I am confident that Ukraine has no historical right and will no stand aside
from the process of unification of Europe.
A few hours ago I conducted the first meeting of the State Council for European
and Euro-Atlantic Integration.
The Council's decisions will be published and you will have an opportunity to
get acquainted with them soon. They include some concrete tasks aimed, in the
first place, to eliminate the barriers hampering our progress along the road we
chose.
In spite of their doubtless importance the calendar dates - 2004 or 2007 - will
not bring full and final unification of the continent. Europe will not be
united if at least one nation, which considers itself as its part and aspires
to join it, remains outside its boundaries.
We will continue relaying on support of our friends, the countries of Central
and Eastern Europe, on their experience and traditional attention to Ukraine.
We place special hopes on strengthening strategic partnership with the Republic
of Poland, whose proposals on cooperation between Ukraine and the EU we
evaluate very highly and support.
Relations with the North Atlantic Alliance are among our priority directions.
The Ukraine-NATO Plan of Action approved in Prague shows that the Euro-Atlantic
course of our state was recognized and supported.
But the Plan of Action is, in the first place, responsibility of all the organs
and branches of Ukraine's state power with no exception.
Ukraine has no intentions to renounce the proclaimed priorities in realization
of its Euro-Atlantic course. Neither does it intend to renounce intensification
of strategic partnership relations with the Russian Federation.
In my opinion, the European and Russian directions of Ukraine's foreign policy
activity complement each other.
Cooperation with our eastern and western partners is based on common values,
common interests, and common responsibility for world and regional safety.
We do not want demarcation strips to appear either West or East of our
frontiers.
I am pleased to state that in the last few months we have made real progress
and settled a number of problems existing in our relations with the Russian
Federation.
The bilateral Agreement on State Boundary is a conclusive proof of it.
Within the framework of the Year of Russia in Ukraine we intend to bring our
cooperation in the sphere of economy, science and culture to a new level. Of
course, we will make concerted efforts to settle problems in trade and economic
sphere.
In its relations with the USA Ukraine remains loyal to the ideals of strategic
partnership in spite of the existing problems.
I want to stress with all responsibility that we have never intended and do not
intend to revise our policy toward the USA.
In the new year we will attribute more importance to regional cooperation,
creation of a free trade zone within the framework of the CIS.
In the context of its leadership in the CIS Ukraine will make efforts to become
a reliable connecting link between the extended EU and the Commonwealth's
states.
Last year brought Ukraine real breakthroughs in the development of partnership
relations with China and India.
We will continue paying a lot of attention to their consolidation.
We will strengthen cooperation with the countries of the Asiatic-Pacific
region. This year I plan to pay a number of visits to this region.
Dear friends,
Concern over the future of our planet means, in the first place,
responsibility for overcoming unacceptable distortions in economic and social
development of different countries and regions.
It cannot be achieved without establishing true partnership between poor and
rich countries of the world. Without establishing fair rules of the world
trade. Without correcting international aid programs so that they would take
into consideration political realities in different countries.
The summit on sustainable development held in Johannesburg last year clearly
showed how difficult it is to reach an agreement in this sphere.
I am confident that the Ukrainian initiatives put forward during the summit are
timely and will help overcome the heavy burden of problems in developing
countries.
We will continue working on their implementation.
Finally, the establishment of fair and partnership relations between the states
with different levels of economic development does not limit to material
dimensions.
I can - to a certain extent - agree with the words of British Prime Minister
Tony Blair: "the values we uphold - freedom, human right, supremacy of
law, democracy -are universal".
The entire world aspires to them, people aspire to them. But they should be
promoted alongside another value: justice, hope that there are opportunities
for everyone. If there is no justice, the values I am talking about can be
considered as "western values"; globalization becomes a battering-ram
for western trade and culture; the order we aim at, is often considered in the
world as "theirs", not "ours".
I can agree, but with one reservation - we should work together in order to
avoid the danger the British leader spoke about: the world should not consider
those values as values of the western world only.
What is necessary to do in order to achieve it? To gain a victory over
terrorism, hunger, poverty and devastation of the planet we all need to demonstrate
a true sprit of partnership and mutual help.
We should also support the UN efforts aimed to consolidate real dialogue
between civilizations, dialogue between cultures and religions based on
tolerance and mutual respect.
The words said by outstanding writer and philosopher Jonathan Swift sound like
a reprimand to modern mankind: "We are religious enough to hate one
another, but we are not religious enough to love one another".
Dear friends,
Today, as never before, we should do our best to strengthen mutual trust and
respect, spirit of loyalty to common global values in relations between our
states.
We should do it in accordance with the best traditions of diplomacy.
I really wish our cooperation in the new year were characterized by wisdom,
deliberation, optimism and hope for better future for everyone.
I wish you, you family members and friends good, happiness and success, and
from behalf of Ukrainian people I wish the nations you represent on the
Ukrainian land peace and prosperity.
Thank you for attention.