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Messrs. Chairpersons, Distinguished Delegates, Ladies and Gentlemen, 　Before beginning my remarks, I would like to express my deepest condolences to those who have lost loved ones in Hurricane Katrina. We stand firm in our support of those who are struggling to recover from the horrifying devastation. 　Today, I would like to share with you a vision of a new United Nations. 　We need a caring United Nations that reaches out to those who struggle with extreme poverty and lends a hand to those who strive to help themselves. 　We need a strong United Nations that lays a path toward peacebuilding and takes an active role in the fight against terrorism. 　We need an effective United Nations that reflects our aspirations and the standards of today's world, not those of sixty years ago. 　The caring United Nations needs to enhance its efforts for the attainment of the Millennium Development Goals. Achieving these goals demands action and not just statements of good intentions. Implementation of the enhanced commitments made by developed countries, including Japan, will serve as a foundation for a better world. 　But efforts should not end with financing. The new United Nations will need to encourage the ownership of developing countries through partnership with the international community, focusing on a human-centered approach that we call "human security." 　Peace does not prevail automatically when a conflict ends. The new, strong United Nations, with the proposed Peacebuilding Commission in place, must show initiative in ensuring a smooth transition from ceasefire to nation-building, and to reconciliation, justice and reconstruction. Japan is ready to play its part in this challenging but vital undertaking. 　In the fight against terrorism, the new United Nations must play an active norm-setting role. In this spirit, I have today signed the International Convention for the Suppression of Acts of Nuclear Terrorism. I also call for an early conclusion of negotiations on the Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism. 　The world has changed dramatically over the last sixty years. Asia and Africa, once under the shackles of colonialism, are now significant players in our global community. For the last sixty years, Japan has determinedly pursued a course of development as a peace-loving nation, making a unique and significant contribution to the peace and prosperity of the world. 　The composition of the Security Council must reflect these fundamental changes. Japan is convinced that Security Council reform is a just cause for the international community - as is the deletion of the long obsolete "enemy state" clauses from the UN Charter. In a reformed Council, Japan is ready to play a larger role as a permanent member. 　Last year, from this podium, I called upon my colleagues to rise to this fundamental challenge. Now, for the first time in UN history, there is a real prospect that action will be taken, with extensive support from the Member States. Building upon this momentum, we must pursue an early decision for Security Council reform in this session of the General Assembly. 　A renewed UN system, including its Secretariat, must have the unwavering trust and support of all the Member States and their citizens. The new, effective United Nations must therefore open itself to rigorous public scrutiny. Japan will work with like-minded countries to make that happen expeditiously. 　Reform is always a challenge, as it requires us to confront the status quo. But that is no justification for inaction. 　Let us all unite in an endeavor to make this session of the General Assembly the session for action - action to achieve the comprehensive renewal of the United Nations. 　Thank you very much. go to top of the page