UN General Assembly
1985

The primary purpose of the United Nations is the promotion and maintenance of international peace and security. In its 40 years of existence no world war has broken out. That is something worth cheering. However, there have been and still are several localized wars in many parts of the globe. These wars have claimed more lives than the Second World War. Moreover, they have been and are being fought in the Third World, in areas least able to afford the accompanying destruction and devastation. Even when the signs of the outbreak of such wars are seen, the United Nations, in particular the Security Council, is rendered incapable of taking preventive action in accordance with the Charter. The Organization therefore often looks on helplessly while wars break out and are fought for as long as the antagonists want. Collective security, which was predicated on a degree of consensus among the major Powers, has given way to a polarization of the world into two rival alliances each of which has developed the concept of security based on the competitive accumulation of nuclear weapons. As a result of this arms race, the world is faced with the ultimate peril of total destruction.