Uzbekistan and Central Asia as a whole do not feel they have received substantial support from the United Nations in ensuring stability in the region, Uzbek President Islam Karimov told a news conference following his talks with UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan on 18 October, broadcast by Uzbek TV on the same day.
Kofi Annan said that the talks discussed terrorism and regional security. He said that only international effort could defeat terrorism. Turning to the Iraqi problem, he said that the UN Security Council would "very soon" adopt a "joint resolution" on Iraq, and that Russia was taking an active part in this. Following is an excerpt from the report:
Uzbek President Islam Karimov: Dear representatives from media agencies, it is my great pleasure and in your presence I would like once more to welcome UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan to our country. It is the secretary-general's first visit to Central Asia, and also to Uzbekistan. We describe this visit as a historic event."
UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan: Thank you very much, Mr President. Good evening ladies and gentlemen.
As Mr President said, we had fruitful talks on a wide range of issues, including fighting terrorism, the problems of developing the region, rational use of water resources and the Aral Sea problem. We discussed the work to be done by the world community and the Uzbek government to prevent an ecological disaster. We also discussed how to improve the governance of the country and noted the need to initiate close cooperation between the High Commissioner on Human Rights and the Uzbek government.
We describe relations between Uzbekistan and the United Nations as very good and rapidly developing. We hope that the relations will further develop in future. I attach a great significance to the visit. I arrived ahead of the 10th anniversary of the independence of Uzbekistan and many other countries in the region. I am planning to visit all five Central Asian states to see the situation with my own eyes. I understand that the countries are now experiencing the difficult time of transition to a market economy. I am here to meet the states' leaders, to listen to their opinions on the situation in the region and the assistance which the UN can provide to the region.
We discussed the Aral Sea problem. We have agreed that in tackling the problem, there should be a regional approach that is backed by the international community. We need to draw up a programme to stop the environmental problem and its detrimental effect on the lives of many people.
As for terrorism, we discussed this problem on the global scale as well as on the regional scale. We discussed the measures to stop the evil. The United Nations is fully involved in this process. Resolution No 1373 of the UN Security Council calls on all countries to join efforts to fight terrorism, to provide no support to terrorists. The UN Security Council also asks governments and states to notify the Security Council of the measures taken against terrorism. I think that the evil can be defeated only through joint efforts. In some cases force has been used, but in future we hope that such issues will be resolved through local preventive measures, exchange of information and close cooperation between law-enforcement agencies.
The United Nations is very serious about the problem, which is confirmed by ongoing debates at the UN Security Council. I think that the UN Security Council will soon adopt a resolution, which will expand the powers of UN inspectors and require compliance with international rules and commitments from Iraq. I think that the UN Security Council will soon be able to adopt a general resolution to resolve the problem.
President Islam Karimov: The latest developments shows that the United Nations should undergo reform. It badly needs reforming. The United Nations, which was set up 50 yeas ago, should currently meet present day reality. Much time has elapsed since then. The situation in the world has changed. The world's political and geographic maps have changed. Emerging challenges and threats, especially the ones that have emerged in the new millennium, should be discussed in the United Nations. That is why reform is the demand of the times. This process is under way thanks to guidance from Mr Kofi Annan. But you may ask a question: Does Uzbekistan see any results of the reform, taking Central Asia or Uzbekistan as an example. I cannot see it. Virtually all events that are taking place in Central Asia and all the existing threats that we could not get rid of ourselves over the past few years, [bear witness to the fact that] all the decisions taken by the United Nations, its Security Council, did not have any influence on the Taleban or affect the existing regime in Afghanistan. We felt hardly any specific, effective influence from the UN on the problems of security, peace and stability.
As for humanitarian aid, these issues are being resolved. We are grateful to the UN for its stance in fighting drugs and organized crime, resolving transnational problems and other challenges. The United Nations has been providing tangible assistance in tackling the Aral Sea problem. But as for the reforms that should be carried out at the United Nations, we feel hardly any changes there.
Kofi Annan I can say that Russia is actively involved in the debates in the UN Security Council. I recently had negotiations with Russian Foreign Minister [Igor Ivanov] on the resolution that is being discussed at the Security Council. I think that the council will very soon take a joint resolution on this issue. Thank you.