UN General Assembly
1979

﻿My opening words must be addressed to the valiant people of Angola, whose great sufferings on this sad occasion we share. I refer to the untimely death of President Agostinho Neto, who was struck down at the helm. Agostinho Neto uncontestably belongs to the line of great men of noble ideals who devoted their lives to the defence of the interests of their peoples and who, because of their thinking and their actions, have shaped history. He was a man of culture, a poet and a humanist, and his loss was painfully felt by all the people of Mali, who admired him and who were planning to welcome him happily during the official visit he was to make to Mali next November. Bowing again in reverence to his memory, we remain convinced that his Party, the MPLA, will continue to work towards the goal to which he dedicated his efforts.