UN General Assembly
1956

70. Those friendly States must stop believing that power confers infallibility of judgement, they must recognize without bitterness that the world has changed — thanks largely to the initiative of the European States themselves. They must not deplore or try to arrest the growing national consciousness of people, but adapt themselves to it. They must display a keen sense of political realism and admit that the power and economic strength which were, and still are, such important factors in their assessment of international problems, have undergone a process of evolution from the point of view of international distribution and balance. 71. We hope that their present experience will lead the statesmen of the European States who, until a short time ago, had shown remarkable capacity for vision, adaptability and resourcefulness, to make a realistic reassessment and rapid adjustment — and I repeat the word “rapid” — of the general lines of their economic and international policy.