UNITED NATIONS SECURITY COUNCIL 15 November, 2004
Report of the Secretary General on the United Nations Mission of Support in Timor-Leste
Statement by H.E. Mr John Dauth LVO Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Australia to the United Nations
(Check against delivery)
Mr President
Thank you for convening this open meeting of the Security Council on Timor Leste. Australia remains proud of what we have done to assist Timor Leste in building a stable and sustainable democracy. Together with the United Nations and other neighbours of Timor Leste, we continue to have a big stake in ensuring that Timor Leste is equipped to meet the challenges that it faces.
Australia welcomes the Secretary-General�€™s progress report on the UN Mission of Support in East Timor (UNMISET). As the report confirms, Timor Leste has made steady progress in its institution building efforts. It is encouraging that the support of the United Nations and the international community is having a tangible impact in areas of key concern.
Although notable advances have been made, Timor Leste has not yet achieved self-sufficiency. More needs to be done to develop public administration capacity and the professionalism and competency of its security institutions. Both areas are obviously critical to Timor Leste�€™s longer term stability. It is clear that Timor Leste requires the ongoing assistance of the international community and the United Nations.
We therefore strongly endorse the Report�€™s key recommendation that UNMISET be retained with its current tasks, configuration and size until 20 May 2005. Any precipitate withdrawal will undermine the many gains that have been made to date. Most importantly, UNMISET will continue to play a critical role in enabling Timor-Leste to further develop the capacity of key institutions. We very much hope that Security Council members will support the Secretary-General�€™s recommendations and agree to UNMISET continuing for the next six months.
Over the next six months it will be important for UNMISET to accomplish as much as possible and to implement a viable transition strategy, taking into account Timor Leste�€™s development needs. Looking further afield, it will also be critical for UN development agencies and the broader international community to remain engaged in a coordinated way and assist Timor Leste with its many development challenges. We hope the next Secretary-General�€™s report on Timor Leste will address these important issues.
For Australia�€™s part, we remain firmly committed to assisting Timor Leste to meet its development needs. We will continue to provide strong support to UNMISET, including through the contribution of personnel to the military liaison officer and police adviser contingents. Australia will also continue to be a major provider of bilateral development assistance to Timor Leste, especially in the areas of policing and good governance.
Much remains to be done, but we remain fully confident that UNMISET personnel, in conjunction with the commitment and efforts of the Timor Leste people, will ensure that UNMISET successfully fulfils its important mandate.