At the outset, we wish to congratulate you, Sir, on your election to preside over the General Assembly at its sixtieth session.

President Gašparovič At the outset, allow me to congratulate you, Sir, on your election to the presidency of the General Assembly at its sixtieth session.

I need to make a confession at the outset here.

Poland has been active in the Initiative's development since its very outset.

At the outset, we wish to reaffirm our solidarity and unity with Africa.

So, I do want to say, at the outset, that I think compassion's great.

At the outset, Mr. Minister, I would like to welcome your presence in the Chair at this important meeting.

Mr. Rupel (Slovenia) (spoke in Slovenian English text provided by the delegation) Allow me at the outset to congratulate you, Sir, on your election as President of the General Assembly at its sixtieth session.

At the outset, my Government would like to express its gratitude to the Secretary General for his report on women and peace and security, contained in document S 2005 636.

The Committee observes, at the outset, that in cases where a person has been expelled at the time of its consideration of the complaint, the Committee assesses what the State party knew or should have known at the time of expulsion.

Now, at the outset, I want to be very clear that this speech comes with no judgments.

At the outset, I would like to thank the three Committee Chairmen for their most informative briefings.

At the outset, the Federation and its member national societies, and our colleagues from the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), quickly reached agreement on our cooperation in the region.

I should like at the outset to stress that, far from being reactive, Africa, in formally submitting its draft resolution, is staking its claim as a powerhouse of ideas with its vision of a renewed, more democratic and more representative Security Council.

Mr. Sardenberg (Brazil) Mr. President, allow me at the outset to thank you for having convened this meeting.

At the outset, allow me to congratulate you on the assumption of the presidency of the Conference at the beginning of our session.

Given that the application of rules of electronic commerce was in its early stages, many exclusions by Contracting States were likely at the outset but the need for them would decrease over time.

President Duarte Frutos (spoke in Spanish) At the outset, I congratulate the Co Chairpersons on their well deserved election.

At the outset I should like to make some opening remarks as Norway assumes the presidency of the Conference.

At the outset, I should like to join my colleagues in thanking the Secretary General for his report on the situation in Afghanistan and its implications for international peace and security (A 60 224).

Mr. Calderón (Peru) (spoke in Spanish) At the outset, I express to you, Mr. Chairman, my delegation's satisfaction at seeing you leading the Committee's discussions.

Mr. MINE (Japan) Mr. President, at the outset I would like to congratulate you on your assumption of the presidency.

Mr. Gala López (Cuba) (spoke in Spanish) Permit me at the outset to congratulate you, Mr. Chairman, on your election.

My delegation would like to express at the outset its appreciation to the Secretary General for his report submitted under agenda item 73(d), entitled Assistance to the Palestinian people , in document A 60 90.

Mr. Berruga (Mexico) (spoke in Spanish) At the outset, allow me to wish all success to Argentina as it begins its mandate on the Security Council and assumes the presidency for the month of January.

At the outset, I would like to thank President Møse, President Pocar and Prosecutors Del Ponte and Jallow for their reports.

At the outset, it was recognized that that concept was more complex than a simple divide between developed and developing countries.

I mentioned at the outset that it is essential to realign the United Nations with the reality of our modern era.

Mr. Gillerman (Israel) Allow me at the outset, Mr. President, to congratulate you again on your leadership of the Security Council.

Today, as the Fed documents clearly demonstrate, the IMF has become marginalized not least because of its ineffective policy process. Indeed, at the outset of the crisis, the IMF, assuming that demand for its resources would remain low permanently, had already begun to downsize.

At the outset, Romania will have to direct inevitably limited development cooperation resources in such a manner as to maximize their impact.

At the outset of this new round of consultations, it seems worthwhile asking ourselves Why does that issue prompt such priority interest?

As I said at the outset, Israel's disengagement from Gaza dominates the agenda less than one month before the announced starting date.

Mr. Kingibe At the outset, may I welcome the remarks that the Special Representative of the Secretary General just made regarding Darfur.

At the outset, I express our sincere thanks to you, Mr. President, for convening this timely debate, and I commend your outstanding leadership in conducting the work of the General Assembly at its fifty ninth session, in particular the preparatory process for the September summit.

President Bakiev (spoke in Russian) At the outset, I would like to congratulate you, Sir, on your election to the important post of President of the General Assembly at its sixtieth anniversary session and to wish you every success in your responsible and difficult task.

Those regions are normally considered at the outset of the session, while applications from the group of Western European and other States are reviewed at a later stage.

From the outset, Dr. Eva Sandis, Professor Emerita of Sociology at Fordham University, has served as the Center's NGO Representative to ECOSOC at UN Headquarters in New York.

Mr. Gerus (Belarus) (spoke in Russian) At the outset, I take this opportunity to join in congratulating the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and its Director General, Mr. Mohamed ElBaradei, on being awarded the 2005 Nobel Peace Prize.

Scotland might try to keep its currency at par with sterling, but this would require larger reserves than a Scottish central bank could command, at least at the outset. And a Scottish currency that floats against the British pound would mean large transaction costs and reduced trade between the two countries.

Mr. Motoc (Romania) Allow me, at the outset, Sir, to congratulate you very warmly on your assumption of the presidency of the Council.

Mr. Motoc (Romania) (spoke in French) Permit me at the outset to thank you, Mr. President, for having convened this important meeting today.

I make that point at the outset because the countries members of the Group consider democracy to be a basic condition for development.

At the outset, allow me to thank our gracious host, the people and Government of the United States of America for their hospitality.

At the outset, I would like to extend our gratitude to the Romanian Presidency of the Council for the month of October 2005.