The happiness of any society begins with the well being of the families that live in it.

You may have noticed over the years that the UN became a bit more media-friendly, a bit more open to the media than in the past.

We must restore the sacredness of the family as a bedrock of humane values everywhere, in peace as well as in war.

Let us, above all, be clear that, without a convincing program of debt relief to start the new millennium, our objective of halving world poverty by 2015 will be only a pipe dream.

Young people should be at the forefront of global change and innovation. Empowered, they can be key agents for development and peace. If, however, they are left on society's margins, all of us will be impoverished. Let us ensure that all young people have every opportunity to participate fully in the lives of their societies.

The World is not ours to keep. We hold it in trust for future generations.

This is an historic step forward in the world's efforts to combat a truly global threat.