offered by some contributing Governments would be needed to ensure UNPROFOR's security as it adjusted to the revised mandate Option D would also reduce the risks to which UNPROFOR personnel are currently exposed in the safe areas, at weapons collection points and elsewhere when air power is used at the Force's request. It would, I believe, give UNPROFOR a realistic mandate that would enable it to help to contain the situation in Bosnia and Herzegovina without creating expectations that it could either enforce an end to the war or join it to fight on the side of one of the parties.

80. I would like to conclude this report with the following personal thoughts. The United Nations is currently experiencing in Bosnia and Herzegovina dramatic events that recall other crises that have afflicted its peace-keeping operations in past decades.The Organization's reaction to these events will again have a decisive effect on its standing for many years to come These are, truly, defining moments. In dealing with them we must not lose sight of three interconnected objectives, which. represent the very essence of the United Nations: the quest for peace, the protection of human life and the rejection of a culture of death. These objectives will take time to attain and they will be attained only through the successful use of non-military methods.

81. In the present crisis, the safety of, and respect for, the personnel of peace-keeping forces and humanitarian agencies must be high priorities.All of us have been troubled by the television pictures of United Nations personnel being humiliated and placed in danger in recent days. I pay tribute to their courage and steadfastness and I express my condolences to the families of those who have given their lives. I also grieve for the civilians who have been killed in Bosnia and Herzegovina. We must not put more lives in jeopardy for the sake of short-term solutions. What is threatened is not only the lives of peace-keepers and humanitarian workers on the ground but also the future ability of the United Nations to conduct effective peace operations:

82. Finally, the credibility of the United Nations is of the utmost importance and must be safeguarded at all times. Few things damage it more than to give United Nations peace- keepers tasks that cannot be accomplished in prevailing circumstances. And the damage is not only to peace-keeping. Loss of United Nations credibility there will affect the Organization's endeavors for development, for the environment, for human rights and for every other important objective. This is another reason why we must always insist on the inviolability of United Nations personnel in peace operations.

-----

<53>