New York, 02/11/2000 (Agence Europe) - The Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, led by President Kostunica, joined the United Nations on 1 November. The resolution was adopted by acclamation without a vote and Goran Svilanovic, a special envoy of Yugoslavia's President (candidate for the position of Foreign Affairs Minister) was escorted to his country's seat in the assembly chamber. Paying tribute to those killed in the most recent Balkan War, Mr Svilanovic, with UN Secretary General Kofi Annan at his side, said, "Tens of thousands of people have died for high principles they were bearing in their hearts. Too many of them did not live long enough to see this historic moment". The General Assembly ruled in 1992 that the rump state of Yugoslavia comprising only Serbia and Montenegro after the secession of the four other constituent republics, could not continue to be a member of the UN and would have to apply for UN membership as a new entity.
French Ambassador to the United Nations, Jean-David Levitte, introduced the resolution for the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia to join the United Nations on behalf not only of the European Union but also for the associated central and east European countries, Cyprus, Malta, Turkey, Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein and 70 other sponsoring countries. Mr Levitte announced,
"On 24 September the Yugoslavian people chose democracy: this choice, made under particularly difficult circumstances, won them the unanimous admiration of the international community. Their choice will have positive effects on the entire region. In requesting today that the FRY be admitted to the United Nations, President Kostunica confirms his desire to break with the dead-end policies which the Milosevic regime had set itself. He confirms that his country fully supports the principles and values of our Charter. President Kostunica has made the step today that we had all been waiting for. An eight year digression will be able to come to an end. With legitimate pride, the Yugoslav people are going to take their rightful place in the concert of nations. This evening, the first words of our Charter, "We the peoples of the United Nations" will be given even more meaning. Also this evening, an important step will be taken toward reconciliation, stability and peace in a region that has been marked by so many trials. The countries of the European Union are involved with determination in the historic event that we are experiencing today. They did it because President Kostunica and the Yugoslav people have risked all so that democracy and the rule of law could triumph. And because by bringing our common values alive, the Yugoslav people have opened the way towards joining its family: the European Union. By unanimously adopting this draft resolution, our General Assembly would send a unanimous message of friendship and hope to the Yugoslav people and their new leaders. It would send them fraternal greetings and the warmest wish for full success from all the states gathered together in this room. Let us welcome the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia to the United Nations."