UN General Assembly
1973

141. An historic event, in our view, is the progress made as a result of the convening of the Conference on Security and Co-operation in Europe. The Czechoslovak Socialist Republic was one of those socialist States which, as early as 1966, took the initiative of proposing that steps be taken in Europe to ensure the security of all States in that area, whatever their social system, and to provide an opportunity for comprehensive and mutually advantageous cooperation. 142. Czechoslovakia's interest in these developments stems not only from the sad experience of our people during the first half of the century, when the continent of Europe became the theatre of two catastrophic world wars; it also stems from the fact that we consider the preservation of peace, the prevention of war and the creation of peaceful conditions to be a fundamental task which will make it possible to develop fully peaceful co-operation between the nations of Europe and thereby also to develop and apply the principles of peaceful coexistence between States with differing social systems.