UN General Assembly
1997

our time, then we must seek to remove — or at least, as a first step, restrict — the use of the veto power. Democracy in the United Nations is a mockery if the voice of the majority is rendered meaningless by the narrow interests of a dominant few. Malaysia believes that genuine global peace and security and the survival of mankind can only be assured in a world free of weapons of mass destruction. Therefore, disarmament, particularly nuclear disarmament, remains a foremost priority of the global community, and we urge the Secretary-General to reaffirm his support — notwithstanding his preoccupation with certain aspects of proliferation issues, particularly small arms. We are deeply concerned over the trend in some quarters to ignore the need to stop vertical proliferation. We urge the international community to expedite efforts to achieve the total elimination of nuclear weapons, to be formalized in a nuclear weapons convention. We hope that the new and reconstituted Department of Disarmament and Arms Regulation will place as high a priority on