Mr. President,
Mr. Secretary-General,
Excellencies,
Distinguished Delegates:

May I begin, Mr. President, by congratulating you on your election as President of this 52nd Session of the United Nations General Assembly. I am confident that the skills and vast experience that you have acquired throughout your distinguished diplomatic career will provide the guidance we need to guarantee the successful outcome of the session. i must also recall the remarkable personal diligence and valuable contribution of your predecessor, His Excellency Mr. Razali Ismail, to the work of the last and the 19th Special Sessions of the General Assembly.

Mr. President,

As the twentieth century comes to an end, it is evident that all countries in the world-- advanced, developing, and transitional-- will be substantially affected by globalization. Further specialization and widening of markets through trade, larger division of labor, and more efficient and diversified allocation of financial resources should increase overall productivity and raise living standards. However, no country will benefit from this trend spontaneously and automatically. The major tasks which governments face today are development and the pursuit of sound policies and appropriate structural adjustments to meet the challenges and take advantage of the opportunities that globalization offers.

Economic reforms, which Armenia began immediately after the declaration of independence, changed all key sectors of the economy, particularly agriculture, enterprises, prices and wages, the banking industry, and fiscal, foreign trade, and exchange systems. Concurrently, the country began the institution of secure property rights and a judiciary strong enough to protect them.

After a devastating fall in real output from 1991 through 1994, macroeconomic and structural reforms combined with privatization have stabilized the country's economy while bringing down inflation, and allowed it to achieve significant growth in 1996. Armenia's GDP. which dropped 25.3 percent on average from 1991 to 1993, turned around and has averaged 6.3 percent annual growth since then. This is despite a disastrous earthquake in 1988, the conflict between Nagorno-Karabagh and Azerbaijan which caused the inflow of more than 300,000 refugees, and continuing problems in obtaining stable energy and industrial supplies because of a blockade imposed by neighboring Azerbaijan.

The drastic changes were coincident with the adoption of a World Bank and IMF-supported medium-term macroeconomic reform program. The major objectives of the 1997 period are: to maintain a real GDP annual growth rate of about 6 percent; to keep on curbing the inflation rate counted for the whole year to under 10 percent; and to augment the level of foreign exchange gross reserves to the equivalent of 2.8 months of imports.

Also, the Government of Armenia will go on to take several measures during the program period towards continuing to refine the targeting of social safety net benefits to alleviate a sharp decrease in average consumption levels and improve income distribution.

Mr. President,

For Armenia and countries with economies in transition as a whole, the move toward world market prices brought severely deteriorated terms of trade. The introduction of currency convertibility and a notable increase in external borrowing began to cause frequent unsustainable external debt positions. The resources which are urgently required to modernize the industrial structure up to internationally competitive levels and improve the general infrastructure immensely exceed domestic saving capacities. The situation underlines the necessity to address more thoroughly the needs of countries in transition by the international donor community, though this should not cause a decrease in ODA flows to the developing world.

In this context, Armenia welcomes the adoption of the "Agenda for Development by the General Assembly earlier this year as one of the major documents which should be among the guidelines for actions of the United Nations system and affiliated institutions to strengthen international cooperation for development.

We support also the appraisal of conditions in Africa, least developed countries, small island developing states, and land-locked developing countries as "Critical situations and special problems" within the "Agenda for Development," and hope that the post-cold war international community will pay more attention to these issues of prime concern.

The interaction between the United Nations and other multilateral development institutions, including the Bretton Woods institutions and the World Trade Organization, should be intensified, involving the field level in particular. Joint efforts should be concentrated especially on those areas where private investors need encouragement, and where without such institutional support, they would hesitate to commit long term capital. Proper intergovernmental follow-up and implementation of the corresponding General Assembly and EPOSOC resolutions and decisions are capable of facilitating this process.

Sustainable development and related environmental issues are other areas of strategic importance where the United Nations must further strengthen its credibility. We acknowledge the outcome of the 19th Special Session of the General Assembly for the Purpose of an Overall Review and Appraisal of the Implementation of Agenda 21 as an important step to enhance the implementation of the major international global and regional environmental agreements.

Mr. President,

Economic and democratic reforms are complimentary and heavily interdependent. Political and economic freedom means more predictable, more transparent, more constitutional, less discriminatory, and less corruption-prone law-making and enforcement.

We recognize democracy and respect for human rights, universal access to knowledge and information, and a high level of public awareness as preconditions for sustainable social development. We welcome the Secretary-General's efforts to strengthen the role of human rights within the UN system.

Mr. President,

Armenia considers self-determination to be an inalienable human right. In this respect, the Nagorno-Karabagh conflict continues to occupy the government of Armenia. Despite the concentrated negotiations of the past several years, the maintenance of the cease-fire for more than three years, and the intensified efforts of the international community, the Nagorno Karabagh peace process continues to suffer from a lack of serious progress. The OSCE Lisbon Summit of December 1996, which was expected to reflect on the peace process, consolidate the cease-fire and provide impetus for a possible breakthrough during this year, failed to serve its intended purpose. Instead, by attempting to determine the final status of Nagorno Karabagh, it unnecessarily stiffened Azerbaijan's position, and minimized the possibility for a mutally acceptable compromise solution. We believe that the final status of Nagorno Karabagh should be negotiated among the parties directly involved, and not dictated by outside interested parties.

Armenia appreciates the most recent efforts of the Minsk Group co-chairmen, insisting on securing commonly recognized freedoms for the Nagorno Karabagh population as well as guaranteeing their security in such a way that their physical existence and control over their territory and destiny is never threatened.

Armenia believes that a resolution acceptable to all parties involved is key to establishing durable peace and security in the region, and stimulating economic growth and prosperity in Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Nagorno Karabagh.

Armenia remains committed to a negotiated settlement to the conflict, and will continue to constructively engage in the peace process. However, we urge Azerbaijan to negotiate directly with the elected officials of Nagorno-Karabagh, for we strongly believe that no final solution can be achieved without Karabagh's direct participation in the deliberations on its own political status.

Mr. President,

The Republic of Armenia has been actively participating in the fields of arms control and disarmament. We reaffirm our commitment to full implementation of the Non-Proliferation Treaty objectives. To that end, Armenia welcomes the IAEA program on strengthening the effectiveness and improving the efficiency of the safeguards system. We have already expressed our willingness to conclude a Supplementary Protocol to the Safeguards Agreement with the IAEA.

The overwhelming majority of the United Nations Member States signed last year the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty. We join the international community in calling upon all states to sign and ratify this treaty to ensure its early entry into force. The Chemical Weapons Convention was another historic accomplishment in the field of global disarmament. as a founding member of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, Armenia will advocate the full and effective implementation of the CWC.

Armenia also supports the complimentary efforts-- thought the Ottowa process-- aimed at achieving a complete ban on anti-personnel land mines. We realize the importance of developing technological solutions to mine deterioration and clearance, and fully support programs on assistance to mine victims.

Mr. President,

The reform of the Security Council should become another important component of the overall reform within the United Nations. Armenia supports the current discussions on improving the representative character of the Security Council. We are in favor of expansion in both categories- permanent and non-permanent. However, while strengthening the capacity of the Council, such an increase should also safeguard its decision-making efficiency. We believe that five new seats should be allocated as permanent, for the Security Council to better reflect the present political and economic realities. This should include improved representation of the countries from Africa, Asia, and Latin America and the Caribbean. We also support the desire of Germany and Japan to acquire the status of permanent members of the Security Council.

As regards the non-permanent seats, it is our view that the expansion should take into account the legitimate interests of the Eastern European Group, which has more than doubled its membership in recent years.

Mr. President,

The Government of Armenia welcomes the proposals by the Secretary-General for the reform of the United Nations. We fully support his commendable efforts to refine the structure of this Organization and streamline the operations of its system, to make it more flexible and capable of adequate, timely response to the challenges of today's world.

These proposals are a sound basis for immediate actions, further negotiations and deliberations by the General Assembly. There is a strong necessity to consolidate the ongoing attempts of the United Nations system and Member States to alter and develop this Organization. Simultaneously, we should avoid reducing the evaluations of these reforms to a purely financial or managerial approach. reform must enable the United Nations to attain more effectively the mandates and priorities enshrined in its Charter.

In conclusion, Mr. President, let me assure you that Armenia, keenly aware of the importance of an active and effective UN, is committed to contributing her share in the strengthening of this Organization.

Thank you, Mr. President.