UN General Assembly
1991

It is easy to welcome change and to exult in the prospects for building a new world. It is painful, however, to speak of the many obstacles that still stand in the way of hope. Among these obstacles we find the acute problem of external indebtedness that drains the developing countries of scarce capital, arbitrary constraints on the transfer of technology and disregard for market principles under the protectionist policies pursued, first and foremost, by the industrialised countries. The paths leading to an international framework that ensures peace and fosters development are complex and have yet to be defined. There is consensus on the objectives and perhaps on the means, but resistance to real change remains enormous. The great strides that have been made in the ideological and strategic realms must be matched by no less courageous strides towards building confidence and cooperation. In the political sphere, democracy should open up the way for new decision-making procedures in the international field. Security must be an effectively collective endeavour, enforced by law and not by the spectre of arms.