One fourth of a nation lost.

Belarus was one of the founding Member States of the United Nations, perceived by its founding fathers as a guarantor for both small and large nations, irrespective of the level of their economic development and military might, to defend them based on equality of rights and national interests in the international arena. An integral part of the former Soviet Union, Belarus was given the status of a full member of the United Nations as a recognition by the international community of its outstanding contribution to the defeat of the Nazi troops and the tremendous human loss--a fourth of its citizens--suffered during the Second World War.

The first years of its membership in the United Nations witnessed the rise to qualitatively new heights of the Belarusian international diplomacy. The Permanent Mission of the Republic of Belarus to the United Nations, opened in 1958 despite limited diplomatic staffing, gradually increased the country's contribution to various UN activities.

During the cold war, Belarus could not avoid being involved in the global confrontation as an integral part of the Soviet Union. Nonetheless, it was making a tangible contribution to UN activities in the process of nuclear disarmament and decolonization, establishing a new international economic order. Belarus, from the very outset of its state sovereignty, took part in several major international fora held under the aegis of the United Nations. Going far beyond mere participation in the development of the final documents of those fora, Belarus does not limit itself to the national programmes of action, but is in a permanent search for mutually beneficial cooperation with regional partners as a sure means to expedite and facilitate the implementation of internationally adopted decisions under the UN aegis.

In April 1997, for instance, an international conference on sustainable development of countries with economies in transition was jointly organized in Minsk by the Belarus Government and a number of UN funds and programmes and the UN Secretariat. The idea to establish an international centre for sustainable development in Minsk also originated from Belarus. Today, it is actively engaged in the preparatory process for the ten-year review of the Agenda 21 implementation and the international intergovernmental forum on financing development. It has been repeatedly elected to the UN Economic and Social Council and its numerous commissions and committees. In 1998 and 1999, with Belarus as Vice-Chairman, the Council experimented with its first steps within the framework of its humanitarian segment. It initiated consideration by the UN General Assembly of the item on mobilizing the international efforts to help mitigate the consequences of the Chernobyl accident.

Belarus has consistently advocated at the United Nations the strengthening of international cooperation in combating trans-boundary organized crime, international terrorism and illicit trafficking of drugs and psychotropic substances. A number of important decisions taken by the Government in the early years of its newly acquired State sovereignty were aimed to contribute to strengthening international peace and security. It renounced the nuclear weapons stationed then on its territory. In the 1990s, Belarus acceded to major international disarmament and nuclear non-proliferation treaties, and has been actively involved in the International Conference to Combat Illicit Trade in Small Arms and Light Weapons in All Its Aspects.

Belarus had been well known in recent years for its initiatives in the First Committee. It has always been an initial cosponsor of resolutions on the prohibition of the development and manufacture of new types and new systems of weapons of mass destruction. Since 1998, when Belarus joined the Nonaligned Movement, its position on major items on the international disarmament agenda has been gradually transforming to better adapt to the Movement's traditional stance. Over the last three years, it has undertaken considerable efforts in support of the nuclear-weapon-free zones in various regions of the world, having considered its positions when voting on a number of First Committee resolutions.

Belarus' position on the reform of the Security Council, as set out in document N54/909, also closely follows that of the Non-aligned Movement. It wishes the Security Council to be an efficient and transparent body. Increase in Council membership, in its view, should be undertaken with due regard for the legitimate interests of all regional groups. Under the circumstances, Belarus has on many occasions demonstrated its flexibility in finding mutually acceptable arrangements when filling the post on the Security Council for the group of Eastern European countries. As a result, in over 55 years of its participation in UN activities, it has only once, in 1974-1975, been elected to the Council. Belarus advocates strict adherence to the UN Charter provisions and principles now that the existing international system has been undergoing complex transformation. It deems inadmissible the use of military force against a sovereign State without the appropriate sanction of the Security Council, which would jeopardize the achievements gained by the United Nations over the decades of its existence and might easily provoke a return to practices of dictatorship and dividing the States into subjects and objects of international law.

In spite of the economic hardships it has been through in recent years, Belarus is gradually increasing the amount of resources it earmarks for financing peacekeeping operations. In 2000, it contributed some $2 million, and in 2001 intends to exceed that figure and considers the possibility of moving to another group of participating States with higher financial obligations in financing peacekeeping activities. It is also planning to continue to increase its direct participation in peacekeeping operations.

In 2000 and 2001, Belarus was among the first Member States to fully meet its financial obligations with regard to contributions to the UN regular budget. Last year, it made substantial voluntary contributions to the major programme resources of the UN Development Programme and the UN Children's Fund. Financial resources were allocated to help implement the humanitarian assistance programmes in a number of African States. In 2001, Belarus provided humanitarian assistance to India and Viet Nam to help them overcome the consequences of natural disasters.

The Millennium Summit Declaration, adopted in September 2000 and aimed at enhancing the United Nations potential in meeting the challenges of the twenty-first century, must be implemented by Member States who declared their readiness to work together to ensure the triumph of the ideals of peace, justice and democracy. It is only through concerted efforts that the foundation of a stable, durable and sustainable world would finally be built. Belarus is optimistic about the future of the United Nations and is set to make the Organization's achievements in the coming years more tangible and meaningful for all sectors of the global population, and increase its prestige.