UN General Assembly
1973

85. The situation in the Middle East, which vitally affects us, remains as dangerous and explosive as ever. Many lamented the fact that, while many of the world's longstanding disputes have been resolved, the Middle East problem remains as difficult and intractable as ever. Why is that so? Israel's spokesmen will tell you it is because the Arabs are bent upon the destruction of the State of Israel and the annihilation of its people. That kind of obvious and shop-worn propaganda can be ignored and dismissed out of hand. Only those who are anxious to find some excuse or justification for Israel's continued occupation of Arab lands and for its persistent flouting and violation of United Nations resolutions will subscribe to such preposterous views. Those who are sincerely and genuinely interested in a peaceful settlement must seek a far more objective and rational analysis of the situation. The question is not and never has been Israel's survival. On the contrary, the question is and has always been the survival of the Arab people of Palestine as a distinct and homogeneous community and their right to live free and secure in their ancestral homeland. That is the crux of the problem. So long as the people of Palestine are denied their basic rights, there can be no peace in the Middle East.