Mr President, Excellencies,

Five years ago we agreed on the Millennium Development Goals. We should keep our promises. I therefore welcome our commitment to increase our official development assistance.

The world is expecting us to make poverty history – to turn poverty into something our great grandchildren will read about, but not really understand. We can do it. And we must do it:

By increasing our support to the efforts by the developing countries. By involving women fully in our noble undertaking based on gender equality. By reducing barriers to trade. By promoting investment and social development. By mobilising business and civil society – in both rich and poor countries – in the war on poverty. And like a good farmer, manage the earth and its resources so that they will benefit not only present but also future generations.

Development also requires good governance. It calls for determined efforts to fight corruption. It entails responsible and transparent government – by and for the people.

Ultimately, good governance is about democracy and human rights. Freedom of expression, freedom to seek information, freedom from discrimination – these rights do not only enable people to use and develop their God-given talents, but also to make greater contributions to their societies. Human rights must be fully integrated into all UN activities. I thus welcome the strengthening of The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights.

When a fellow human being needs our protection, we have a duty to help. One of the achievements of this Summit, is our readiness to take collective action – through the Security Council – to protect. We will do so if peaceful means are found to be inadequate and if national authorities manifestly fail to protect " their populations from genocide, war crimes, ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity."

Maintaining peace and security was, and still is, the aim of the Organisation. Preventing and ending armed conflicts, stabilising and rebuilding failed or failing states… these are huge and complex tasks. I believe the Peacebuilding Commission and Fund will make the UN better able to take on these challenges. I’m happy to announce that Norway will contribute to the Fund with 15 mill USD, and the same amount to the Humanitarian Fund.

But the UN cannot do much on its own. We need the commitment of the member states – all of us here today – and we need a new partnership between the UN and regional organisations. We – the member states – must take collective, and effective, measures to maintain peace and security, and to prevent and remove threats to humanity.

One of our most urgent priorities is the area of disarmament and non-proliferation. We see a growing risk of proliferation, of catastrophic terrorism. All States must work for disarmament and non-proliferation. Yet, our World Summit could not generate any consensus on how to address these truly global threats. This we regret deeply. Norway will continue to seek a new consensus and achieve results.

By their evil actions, terrorists are attacking the values held by all the great religions and by the United Nations. We must do whatever we can within the framework of international law to stop them. The war against terrorism cannot be won by military means alone. We need a broad approach. I believe the best strategy is to address the root causes of terrorism – like armed conflict and occupation, intolerance and repression, humiliation and hopelessness.

These are the very tasks we entrusted to the UN in 1945. They are just as relevant.