The UN General Assembly in New York is holding consultations on proposals which Annan presented last month suggesting the enlargement of the Security Council, as well as measures aimed at the strengthening peace and security, eradication of poverty and the enhancement of human rights.
Expressing Croatia's support to the UN reforms, the deputy of Croatia's ambassador to the UN, Ivan Nimac, told the General Assembly yesterday that the reforms were timely.
Croatia supports Annan's call on developed countries to meet their commitments and start allocating 0.7 percent of their Gross Domestic Products as the official aid to developing countries.
The Croatian official also supported the proposal for the establishment of a commission for building peace. He, however, suggested that voices of small countries should be heard in that body.
Nimac hailed Annan's proposals for the strengthening and promotion of human rights. The UN Secretary General moved the establishment of an efficient council for human rights to replace the current the Commission on Human Rights.
With regard to the reform of the Security Council, Zagreb supports the suggestion that the number of its permanent and rotating countries should increase. Nimac added, that Croatia was concerned over the failure of the proposal to include a group of eastern European countries.
This will not help in efforts to reach final agreement on the reform of the Council. We believe that considering the rise in their membership in last 15 years, countries of the eastern European group, are also entitled to have an additional nonpermanent seat in the Council, as others, the Croatian diplomat said.
Annan has proposed that the 15-member Security Council become a body with 24 members so as to reflect the reality of the contemporary world.
Nimac said that apart from the Security Council, other bodies of the World Organisation, including the General Assembly and the Economic and Social Council, also need to be reformed
At the ongoing meeting of the General Assembly, Croatia joined the statement presented by a representative of Luxembourg, the current chair of the European Union,