Permit me to begin by congratulating you on your election to the presidency of the General Assembly at its forty-fifth session. With your illustrious background and wide experience in affairs of state and government, you will guide the Assembly through its agenda with the skills and sensitivities required of the job. Singapore and Malta achieved independence in the same group of now States within a year of each other. We are thus particularly proud to see Malta in the Chair. I would also like to place on record our appreciation to His Excellency Major-General Joseph Garba for carrying out his duties as President of the General Assembly so efficiently and diligently during the last session.
We take this opportunity to welcome independent Namibia to the General Assembly as a member of the United Nations for the first time. Its presence has been long stalled and we are most happy to see Namibia finally take the seat in our Midst. We also welcome our newest member, Liechtenstein, which played an active role in many Multilateral bodies even when it was not formally a Member of the Organisation.
There is no doubt that the United Nations gains strength as its membership gains universality. We WELCOME the interest shown by the Republic of Korea in joining the United Nations. We would also welcome the Democratic People's Republic of Korea if it wishes to join. Membership for the two Koreas in the United Nations need not preclude their efforts for peaceful reunification.
Momentous changes are transforming the world. Historians have pronounced that the post-war era and the structure of world politics which it engendered collapsed in 1989. We witnessed breathtaking events in Eastern Europe as existing political orders gave way to new ones, culminating in the breach of the Berlin Wall on 9 November. Today, on 3 October, we see the two Germanys united as one.
History will no doubt recognize and record that it was President Mikhail Gorbachev's courage and determination to initiate change in the Soviet Onion and his now thinking that transformed the historical context in which we now live and act. Super-Power rivalry and the balancing of military power and blocs have been replaced by super-Power dialogue and co-operation. In many parts of the world this has meant the easing of tensions and a greater latitude in relationships.
The cold war is over. But it is not the end of history. History will go on and it will not be boring. If we are not careful, it might even be devastating. The end of the ideological cold war only reveals the vast dimensions of the problems still confronting us.
Notwithstanding the auspicious climate between the East and the Host, the problems of the threats to international peace and security and the maintenance of peace and security are as pressing and as relevant as ever. Not since the Cuban missile crisis of 1962 have we been faced with an international crisis of such grave proportions. In August, we were on the verge of a military catastrophe. As the Secretary-General, Mr. Javier Peres de Cuellar, said recently in Bogota, on 23 August, the third world countries "continue to experience alarming insecurity, of which we are now seeing dreadful evidence".
With hindsight we can see that the euphoria ushered in by the end of the cold war could not have lasted. Even as we witnessed the peaceful political changes in Europe and a successful transition to independence in Namibia we were made acutely aware of the elusiveness of global peace. The withdrawal of Soviet troops from Afghanistan did not hasten the achievement of a political settlement and the fighting and killing persisted. The situation in Lebanon continued to worsen and the peace process on the question of Palestine moved at a glacial pace. Thus the learned that détente between the super-Powers need not automatically mean a more congenial environment globally. The Iraqi invasion of Kuwait is a grim reminder of the problem of security for smaller States in a Hobbsian world. In a matter of hours, the Iraqi takeover of Kuwait was complete.
At the forty-fourth session of the General Assembly my delegation drew attention to the paradox of peace for the weaker and smaller nations. If the structure of world politics has changed irrevocably with the breathtaking eradication of the deep ideological divide, a new order is waiting to be constructed. There are undoubtedly many new players that can affect the restructuring of the international order. There is little doubt that the retreat of the super-Powers from their global role creates an opening wedge for the development of regional ambitions and encourages new aspirants to regional hegemony. This was what Iraq set out to do by force. This is what the international community must seek strenuously to prevent.
The Iraqi invasion and annexation of Kuwait is absolutely unacceptable because it was unprovoked. It was an act of blatant aggression. It was against the principles and the Charter of the United Nations. Kuwait has been a peace-loving and law-abiding member of the international community. Furthermore, it enjoyed good relations with its neighbour, Iraq. Yet on 2 August thousands of Iraqi troops backed by tanks and helicopters overran Kuwait City, taking the capital. The Security Council reacted swiftly and decisively and it voted unanimously to condemn the Iraqi invasion and annexation of Kuwait. It reacted correctly when it expressed its determination not to recognize any regime set up by the occupying Power.
This was what the United Nations was created for - to maintain international peace and security and to take collective measures to prevent and remove threats to the peace and to suppress acts of aggression. For the first time in the history of the United Nations the Security Council imposed comprehensive sanctions backed by a naval and air blockade to put pressure on Iraq to withdraw its forces from Kuwait and to restore sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity to the country. In the new post-cold-war era the United Nations rose to meet the threat and the challenge. There is no other way. The United Nations must stand united in its resolve to get Iraq out of Kuwait. Iraq must see that the whole world is against its actions, and not just a few countries.
The international community must not shrink from its duty to take concerted action against aggressors who violate international law and principles. Otherwise, nations would exist in a state of permanent insecurity. It is also a tact that third world nations depend to an extraordinary degree on international bodies for the preservation of security. There should be more effective ways to prevent aggression. We should not wait till the belligerent strikes.
Singapore views the annexation of Kuwait most gravely. This is especially so as one historic epoch is closing and another is unfolding. For about 40 years we established an international order where the rules of the game were understood. The super-Powers played a role in upholding that order. Today, in the fluid international situation, new players are testing the system. We must not lose the opportunity to insist now that the new international order should be one which demands the strictest adherence to the norms and the principles of international law backed by an effective system of common and collective security.
If history since the Second World War has taught us anything, we should have come to the recognition that military power cannot be used to achieve political objectives and that aggression does not pay. It is the task of the United Nations to underscore this message with the weight of its collective will to deter future aggressors. In South-East Asia the United Nations played a crucial role in an analogous problem of peace and security. After more than a decade of war it is now possible to envisage realistically an end to the long tragedy of Cambodia.
On 10 September 1990 a major breakthrough was achieved in Jakarta, when all the Cambodian parties agreed to accept, in its entirety, the framework for a comprehensive political settlement based on an enhanced United Nations role in Cambodia that was worked out by the five permanent members of the Security Council during the course of this year. In Jakarta, the Cambodians also formed a Supreme National Council which now occupies Cambodia's seat in this Assembly. This is the first critical stage towards a more far-reaching national reconciliation.
Many years of patient work by countries in and outside the region contributed to this success. The Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN) has played a leading role on Cambodia from the very beginning. An International Conference on Kampuchea was held at the United Nations in 1981 under the chairmanship of the Foreign Minister of Austria. The Ad Hoc Committee of that Conference, led by Senegal, has played a useful role. Indonesia took the initiative to organize a series of informal meetings in Jakarta. France and Indonesia convened an International Conference on Cambodia in Paris last August which established the basic framework for the negotiating process.
The Permanent Five must be commended for having had the vision and the courage to seize the historic opportunity afforded by the profound international realignments that have occurred, to work together to shape the framework of a settlement. The recent adoption of Council resolution 668 (1990) by a unanimous vote of the Council is a watershed in the Cambodian peace process.
But in the most basic and important sense, a political settlement in Cambodia will be the achievement of the international community as a whole; a success for all States, big and small, in and outside the region. It is only because the international community, expressing its will in successive sessions of the General Assembly during the last decade, refused to compromise on basic principles of international law that it is possible to look forward to the restoration of Cambodian independence and peace throughout South-East Asia. Z should like to tasks this opportunity to thank all those who have steadfastly supported ASEAN for more than a decade. It was their faith in the United Nations and in international law that made the achievements of Jakarta, Paris and the Permanent Five possible.
The Permanent Five framework accepted by the Cambodians in Jakarta is not a perfect document. We are dealing with political realities that are far from perfect. There are still many challenges ahead. But it is the best hope for the majority of ordinary Cambodians who have no interest in the machinations and rivalries of their leaders and their patrons and whose only desire is peace. For these many ordinary Cambodians, the United Nations offers their only hope for a better life for themselves and their children. We must not falter or fail them. If much has been achieved, much more needs to be done. Peace in Cambodia will require an enhanced role for the United Nations that is without precedent. The framework accepted by the Cambodian parties needs to be fleshed out and elaborated in many details.
There should be no illusions that this will be an easy task. But the foundations have been laid. I am confident that if the major Powers and the regional Powers continue to co-operate, and the Cambodians themselves build upon the opportunity now before them, it is a task that is well within our grasp. The urgent need now is to maintain the momentum and press ahead, setting aside old animosities, working only for the good of all Cambodians, without being distracted by recriminations or irrelevant rivalries. We hope that all parties will co-operate fully in the process of elaborating the framework, without raising new issues or reviving questions that have been overtaken by events. Attempts to alter the Permanent Five framework will only prolong conflict. We look forward to the early reconvening of the Paris International Conference on Cambodia, where a final comprehensive political settlement can be signed.
When this occurs it will turn the page on an unhappy period in the history of Cambodia, Indo-China and South-East Asia. It will signal the beginning of a new chapter in which the animosities of the past can be set aside in favour of co-operation for mutual benefit. The peoples of Indo-China have suffered deprivation for too long. They deserve better. Κ Cambodia at peace with itself and with its neighbours and a vibrant and dynamic Viet Ham, at peace with the region and sharing fully in the prosperity of the rest of South-East Asia, is in the interests of all the ASEAN countries, and indeed of the world. This will be a triumph for the international community and for the United Nations.
All this leads us to conclude that the United Nation is poised to play an increasingly significant role, to foster and uphold a now international order; an international order which is peaceful; an international order which is just; an international order which is equal; an international order which will not tolerate larger States devouring smaller States; and an international order in which gross imbalances between nations will be reduced.
My delegation is pleased that co-operation between the great Powers has facilitated the work of the United Nations, allowing it to respond in a crisis with requisite speed. But we would be concerned if great-Power unanimity translated into a great-Power directorate which would in effect shape the new international order without the necessary checks and balances. If we are to leave behind the old international order to reach out for a new order in a new era, where domination and aggression are phenomena of the past, then the voices of the many, the voices of the North and the South, the great and the small, should be heard and heeded. The United Nations, which is a microcosm of the macrocosm, is a useful forum through which the great Powers must consult the rest of the world to forge a consensus on peace and development.
The United Nations in the new era will be stretched to perform additional functions as its potential is now fully appreciated by all. Some of those functions will be new; they will be innovative activities demanded by a rapidly changing world that is impatient to enjoy the promise of economic modernization and political change. There will be catalytic actions demanded for tackling the problems of the global environment, debt, terrorism, drugs and AIDS. The United Nations is best placed to co-ordinate the efforts and provide the mechanisms necessary to tackle urgent environmental issues, which are complex, multifaceted and related to issues of development. The 1992 United Nations Conference on Environment and Development will require follow>up action to achieve the targets of the twenty-first-century agenda. The United Nations will thus surely grow. Other functions will be those that were envisaged under the Charter by the founding fathers but were never implemented because ideological differences and mistrust got in the way.
Certainly the time has come in the interests of international peace for the United Nations to sharpen its ability to deter or counter aggression by one State against another. The monitoring and decision-making mechanisms of the United Nations, as well as the machinery of collective defence, should be increasingly geared towards a policy of "prevention is better than cure".
The United Nations has now come full circle. There was a time when its detractors were abundant and its prestige was low. Today, after a string of successes with the Iran-Iraq war, Afghanistan, Namibia and Cambodia, we have new faith in the institution. But the effectiveness of the United Nations cannot be based simply on respect and faith or even on political support. In the end the potential of the United Nations will be determined by the financial solvency of the institution. If we are to help the United Nations realise its potential it is important that all its Members should pay their assessed contributions in full. Just as it is important to uphold the Charter in natters of international law and principles, so it is equally important to abide by its rules on financial arrangements.
The United Nations may never fulfil the Utopian dream of its founders, but it can stake new beginnings in the 1990s, if all of us want that to happen.


I welcome this opportunity to extend to you, Sir, the congratulations of the delegation of Saint Kitts and Nevis on your election to the eminent post of the President of the General Assembly at its forty-fifth section. Your election is a clear reflection of the high esteem in which you are held and of the complete confidence placed in you by your colleagues. My delegation is particularly pleased to welcome you to this position as the representative of the fellow island nation, and pledges its fullest co-operation as you guide the critical deliberation of this body.

I also express the hearty congratulations to the outgoing President of the General Assembly for the skilful guidance of the Assembly through the critical issues that commanded its attention during the last session.

It is with a profound sense of admiration that I pay a tribute also to our distinguished Secretary-General, Javier Peres de Cuellar, for his untiring efforts to bring about resolution of the dangerous conflicts that beset the world community.

On behalf of our delegation, I extend a warm welcome to the Organization's newest member state, Liechtenstein, which has supplanted Saint Kitts and Nevis as the smallest nation in the United Nations. This addition to our membership emphasizes that the United Nations is alive and provides the opportunity for all countries, great and small, to contribute to the making of a better world.

I address the assembly just five days after the seventh anniversary of the independence of my country. My government, from the outset, established as its primary objective - raisan d'etre - the improvement of the quality of life of our people. In pursuit of this mission, we sat ourselves certain sectoral objectives, which included/l enhancement of the rate of economic growth; continuation of the our programme of economic diversification, and the general transformation of the structure of the economy so that the rate of economic growth might be stable and sustainable over the long term; containment of the rate of inflation; provision of increased employment opportunities for our people; satisfaction of the health, nutritional, educational, housing and other socio-cultural needs of our people; and provision and maintenance of adequate physical infrastructure for the convenience of the public at large, and to facilitate trade, industry, tourism and agricultural development.

These are the objectives with which every member nation of the Assembly can identify and which they can readily support. They are objectives which every small
developing country in the world would hold dear. Until recently the odds against a
small
developing country achieving sustained success in realising all of these

basic and essential objectives were monumental. Until recently super-Power
tensions and the arms race, regional conflicts, ideological divisions all conspired
to divert the attention of the world away from the plight of the poor  and
disadvantaged people everywhere.

Then suddenly hope burst upon the world like a flower in Moon. The two
super-powers -the United States and the Soviet Union - embraced, and the world
breathed a sigh of relief. Freedom began bursting out all over, and in Latin America
and in Eastern Europe democracy descended like rain upon a thirsty land.
The Berlin Wall, like the wall of Jericho, came tumbling down; and Germany, so long
divided, now stands upon the threshold of reunification, a beacon of hope for all
divided people to follow.

While the prospect of peace around the world would obviously be welcomed by
all nations, amongst developing countries, and more so among island developing
countries like Saint Kitts and Nevis, there was a special feeling of elation. We
felt that at last the developed countries could be able to focus their attention
seriously on the plight of the developing nations. We were of the view that small
island developing countries could now be seen and appreciated as presenting
difficult problems peculiar to their geographical status and that, at last, a universal effort could be focused on finding and implementing lasting solutions to these problems.

This was the time for  the massive resources which hitherto were going into the
production and proliferation of nuclear, conventional, chemical or bacterial
weapons of destruction to be diverted on a grant scale into a new world war -a war
on the production, trafficking and use of narcotic drugs, a war on atmospheric,
marine and land-based pollution, a war on under-development, a war on disease,
illiteracy, ignorance and  poverty. This should have been a global war waged under
the banner of the United Nations, and with the full support of its entire
membership. This was the time for nations to beat their swords into ploughshares and their spears into  pruning hooks.

Once again the attention of the world community has been diverted by
conflict. Once again we are brought face to face with the reality that conflicts
and global tensions are the enemies of development

The invasion and occupation of Kuwait , a member country of the United Nations,
by Iraq is an illegal act of aggression. My Government joins in the worldwide
condemnation of this illegal act and further supports the United Nations resolution
calling for the immediate and unconditional withdrawal of Iraqi troops from
Kuwait. We recommend that every effort be exploited to bring this crisis to a
peaceful resolution.

This crisis in the Gulf highlights again the vulnerability of small states.
We are not only at the mercy of the elements, but we face the risk of being
swallowed up by larger end more powerful nations. Our only protection against this
eventuality is either the military support of friendly neighbours or the
indignation and punitive sanctions  of the international community.

Our vulnerability is further demonstrated by the seriously adverse impact
which this crisis in having on the economy of our country in that fuel prices have
skyrocketed; the cost of generating electricity has escalated  significantly and,
hence, the cost of pumping water from our wells has also risen, and inevitably, the cost of imports has risen, leading to a greater outflow of foreign exchange
earnings, while at the same time assistance from the industrialised countries will
no doubt be further decreased.

I applaud the efforts of the Secretary-General to endeavour to find a peaceful
solution and trust that he will succeed.

In the light of the present crisis it almost seems pointless to seek to
address all the issues of concern to my country as well as to other developing
countries. It is difficult to avoid wondering if anyone in the developed countries
would be 1istening at this time. However, the issue of development and the
environment is so fundamental to the achievement of  our improved quality of life
that I must address it and hope that my message will be heard.

First, I wish to commend the activities of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the World Health Organization (WHO), the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO), the United Nations Industrial Development

Organisation (UNIDO) and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) as they continue to provide our countries with the desired technical assistance in such environmental development programmes as water-quality protection, water and sanitation, sustainable agriculture and aquaculture.

I also wish to applaud the work of the Preparatory Committee for the United
Nations Conference on Environment and Development, which held its first session in
Nairobi in August this year. I congratulate the Government and people of Kenya as
the proud hosts of this symbolic first session. Saint Kitts and Nevis will follow
the work of  the Committee and would wish to participate in the plans of action that
derive from its work.

My Government and people would greatly value the assistance and collaboration
of UNESCO and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNSP) to promote
environmental education and training for the 1990s in our schools and to
incorporate environments1 literacy into our national strategies for educational
advancement.

It is clear that the world is more sensitive today to issues relating to the
environment . This is the case to such on extent that many projects in developing
countries are either delayed or denied because either the industrialised countries
or the multilateral agencies have concerns about the impact of these projects on
the environment. Philosophically, this may seem to be a reasonable approach.
However, it must be viewed against the background that most, if not all, of the
problems we worry about today are caused by the industrialized countries, which, in
order to achieve their developmental objectives, place development first and the
environment last, and sometimes nowhere at all.

We hear about the greenhouse effect now because the industrialized countries
have been cutting down their forests for decades. It is they who accumulate
nuclear waste and toxic waste. It is they who have polluted rivers and seas. Some

animal-rights groups will malign the good name of a whole nation of farmers whose
crops are systematically destroyed by monkeys, leading to extreme frustration, loss
of income, a depressed and disenchanted sector and depletion of foreign exchange.
We must be rational in our approach to the environment. Sustained development
and effective environmental protection must be complementary and not competitive.
Linkages must be forged between industry and environmental protection to attain an
improved quality of life. In short, the environment must not be used as a
scapegoat or as an excuse further to stultify the aspirations of developing
countries.

Now that the industrialized countries have achieved outstanding levels of
development, the environment notwithstanding  - and we all share the adverse
effects - they should be prepared immediately to make additional resources
available to developing countries for the protection of the environment, while
ensuring that projects designed to achieve sustained and sustainable development
can proceed.

In Saint Kitts and Nevis we place a high premium on the implementation of
land-use policies that would enhance food production, ensure food security and
improved nutrition, and thus improve health and industry.
we are striving now to diversify our formerly monocultural economy. Tourism
is an important part of that programme. It is clear that if our tourism industry
is to grow and contribute meaningfully to the economy, then as island communities
we must protect the seas and oceans which give life to our important marine
resources and our coastal areas. The prevention and clean-up of ocean pollution,
however, require international co-operation and the willingness of the  international community to respond quickly to calls for assistance. The whole issue of the environment is a major subject  which can be properly addressed by
developing countries only with the assistance from the United Nations and also directly
from the developed countries.

Another area of grave concern in relation to our quality-of-life objective is
the serious harm that illicit narcotic drugs can cause to this and succeeding
generations of young people. Our determination as a nation to fight the menace of
drugs remains strong and unswerving. We have tightened law enforcement and enacted l  stiffer penalties. We have benefited in a small measure from the United Nations
Fund for Drug Abuse Control (UNFDAC) in areas of law enforcement and training. We
require more assistance in reducing demand through preventive education, health
care and rehabilitation. There is a need for continued international co-operation
to combat the cultivation and trafficking of these illicit substances, to eliminate
the demand, to intensify efforts in the field of public information, health and
education, and to develop programmes for rehabilitation.

The drug traffickers, the narco-terrorists, must be stopped at all costs.
They must no longer be allowed to terrorise the lives of our young people, threaten
the security of the region, subvert our youth,  rape our society and retard the
future of generations. The global war against drugs must be declared during this
forty-fifth session and all our Governments and peoples must enlist.

Although the current tensions continue to dominate our consciousness, and
indeed hang like a pall over our deliberations, we must not forget the progress
that the Organisation has helped to make.
I welcome a free Namibia into the family of the United Nations. I pay tribute

to the United Nations Transition Assistance Group (UNTAG), which played a vital
role in the Namibian electoral process, facilitating a fundamental improvement in
Namibia's political climate, setting the stage for the reality of free end fair
elections, and reflecting the commitment of the Namibian people to independence. The struggle was hard and long and the freedom of Namibia today is a tribute to the people of Namibia and to this family of nations.

Even in South Africa a glimmer of hope has lit the scene. My Government and  people welcome with great joy the release of Nelson Mandela. We marvel at his remarkable fortitude and his eschewing of bitterness in spite of the enormity of his ordeal. Clearly Mandela's release, the unbanning of the African National Congress of South Africa (ANC), and the start of the dialogue all represent encouraging signs that change may well be on the horizon in South Africa. We are saddened by the violence in the black townships  of South Africa. That may not, however, be taken as an excuse to maintain the status quo.

We in Saint Kitts and Nevis will not be, and we call upon all nations to not allow themselves to be, lulled into tacit acceptance of aparteid by token gestures of conciliation. Apartheid is an evil and abhorrent system which propounds the superiority of one man over another based upon the colour of his skin. There can be no compromise with apartheid. All men are created equal - that is a universal truth. It is only by the elimination of apartheid that South Africa can hope to re-enter the family of nations. My country, Saint Kitts and Nevis, while recognizing that progress has been made, calls for the maintenance of all sanctions against South Africa, of December 1989, and recommend that the international community continue to assists the South African people and support the front-line States.

It is cause for deep concern that peace and justice continue to elude the
people of Cambodia. The people of that war-torn country must be allowed to enjoy the right to self-determination without external interference.  We continue to
demand that all foreign troops be removed from Cambodia and that any such
withdrawal be verified and ensured by the  presence of an international
Peacekeeping force. We call for dialogue between all parties in Cambodia to
continue until a settlement is reached, and my Government is of the view that in the interim the status of Cambodia at the United Nations should not change.

Closer to home in our Caribbean region we are deeply concerned about the unstable situation which continues to exist in Haiti. Clearly, political events have made it difficult for meaningful economic development to proceed. We in the region will continue to support all efforts to facilitate the holding of free and fair elections. I express the hope that the forces of influence inside and outside Haiti will do everything possible to help, and nothing to hinder, Haiti's transition to electoral democracy.

Saint Kitts and Nevis applauds the attempts at rapprochement between North and South Korea. The world needs all the peace and conciliation it can find.

We support the continuation of the dialogue between the two Korean Governments in the firm belief that it can lead to peace and reunification. My delegation reiterate its call for both countries on the Korean peninsula to become States members of the United Nations as a positive step to enhancing their dialogue towards reunification within the Organization's structured and sympathetic framework.

The international community is so preoccupied at this time that the concerns and aspirations of small island nations may not occupy a position of prominence on its agenda. However, I must endeavour to keep the development concerns of this unique group of nations before the members of the Assembly. We are vulnerable to hurricanes, as demonstrated by the devastation suffered by Saint Kitts and Nevis from the winds of Hurricane Hugo. In this regard, I take this opportunity to express the eternal gratitude of the Government and the people of Saint Kitts and Nevis for the assistance which was rendered by States members and related institutions of this Organization.

We are also very vulnerable to every fluctuation in economic parameters far removed from our shores, like the crisis in the Gulf. We are vulnerable to the adventurism or terrorists, like those who held the Prime Minister and Cabinet members of Trinidad and Tobago hostage in July this year.

We in the Caribbean provided humanitarian assistance and we were prepared to supply military assistance if it was required. we are vulnerable to aid, sea and land pollution originating outside of our shores.

The highest calling of the United Nations is to facilitate the peaceful development
 of all nations and to mobilise the community of nations to improve the
quality of life of people everywhere. For this noble ideal to be realized, the
world must have peace. Let us stand firm against aggression, exploitation and suppression, so that peace may be won and the world can direct its attention and
its massive resources to the development of people everywhere. There is no higher
ideal to which the United Nations can aspire.


I have the honour of speaking today on behalf of the States members of the South Pacific Forum in my capacity as current Chairman of the Forum.
At the outset I extend to you, Mr. President, our congratulations and best wishes on your election to preside over this body. Malta, like most of the countries of our own region, is a small island State. Thus, we take particular notice of the honour that has been bestowed upon you. We extend these congratulations to your Government and people as well.
We also applaud the accomplishments of the forty-fourth session of the General Assembly and of the three special sessions of the Assembly conducted under the capable leadership of your predecessor, His Excellency
Major-General Joseph H. Garba of Nigeria. To him, we express our appreciation and offer our congratulations.
I also take this opportunity to extend our congratulations and best wishes to the Government and people of the Republic of Namibia, which has finally been allowed to take its rightful place within the community of nations. Namibia's triumph is a triumph for Africa, for the United Nations and for all of humanity. We also congratulate the Principality of Liechtenstein on becoming the newest Member of the United Nations. We look forward to the constructive contributions its delegation will make.
Today an important chapter of world history closes, and a new chapter begins. The formal establishment of a single German State provides ample evidence that the most lasting ideas and qualities are those that unite rather than those that divide. This should also serve as a reminder that no people can ever be removed from the contest of its history nor permanently barred from the appointed rendezvous with its destiny.
Our congratulations and sincere best wishes are attended to the Government and people of the Federal Republic of Germany on this historic day. Similarly, our congratulations and sincere best wishes are extended to the Government and people of the Republic of Yemen on the recent unification of their country.
In both instances unification was achieved peacefully and resulted from the will of the people themselves rather than from political edict or Military fiat. Therein lays an important message. It is to be hoped that that message will be borne in mind by those who night mistakenly believe that another path can be followed successfully. Unity, much like love, can only be based on free consent, equality and mutual respect.
The beautiful and majestic Pacific Ocean comprises almost one third of the Earth's surface. Our corner of that great ocean lies in the South Pacific, which is itself a dramatic study in great contrasts. Nature has endowed us with great natural beauty and a hospitable environment. However, from time to time, our beautiful skies turn cloudy, our clear blue waters become turbulent and our calm tropical breezes become frightening winds of death and destruction. Cur environment is thus a blessing and at the same time a major concern.
Most, but not all, of the countries in our region are small island States which are extremely vulnerable to external economic factors, as well as sudden climatic changes. All of us prefer to live in peace; yet we repeatedly see our lands, our waters and our atmosphere utilised by others to test their horrible weapons of mass destruction. All of us share a deep and abiding commitment to the United Nations and to the principles of international democracy. However, we are often struck by the fact that our concerns - and in some instances our very existence - are often neglected or even forgotten in the context of the larger global picture. In a symbolic sense, some of us on occasion feel as invisible to others as the title of the classic work. The Invisible Man by the noted African-American author, Ralph Ellison.
Although we are island countries, we recognise that, when it comes to economic development and the outstanding social issues of contemporary civilisation, no nation is an island into itself. Some may consider our geographic location to be remote. However, we are very much a part of today's world, just as we were very much a part of the history of yesterday's world. Like the peoples of every other region, we have our own history and our own cultures. We also share common dreams and common expectations, just as we share common fears and common frustrations.
The South Pacific Forum, our paramount regional organisation, held its twenty-first annual meeting in Port Vila, Vanuatu, on 31 July and 1 August. The region's Heads of Government addressed a number of important political, economic and environmental concerns. These have been set forth in our communiqué, which we have requested the Secretary-General to circulate as an official document of the General Assembly.
That document, A,4S,456, in very brief form sets forth some of our major concerns and preoccupations. However, it does not touch upon every single issue that we believe merits the attention of the international community. For example, we highlighted some of our major concerns on environmental issues, including the very real threat posed to the survival of some Pacific island nations by climatic changes and a rise in the sea-level. However, our very deep concern over nuclear testing in the South Pacific is by now well known to every member of the international community and needs no explicit restatement.
The testing of nuclear weapons in the South Pacific continues to cause us to fear for the future of our young and for unborn generations. At a time when the threat of nuclear war between the super-Powers is far less likely now than it ever was, we continue to ask: What sin have we committed? Why must our region be the site for the testing of nuclear devices, particularly now that the cold war has ended? So soon after the highly successful World Summit for Children, we are struck by the irony of having to pose the questions How, may we ask, are we to enhance the development of our children unless we can assure them that the environment we bequeath to them is an environment capable of sustaining life?
Another great concern shared by all members of the South Pacific Forum is the planned destruction of existing chemical weapons at Johnston Atoll. Our concerns have been communicated to the Government of the United States, and we are continuing a constructive dialogue with the United States that centres on those concerns. Without a doubt, our central concern is this specific issue and on our broader conviction that our region should not become a permanent toxic waste disposal centre.
On another environmental issue of great importance to the Forum, we have welcomed Japan's decision to cease large-scale drift-net fishing in our region one year in advance of the date stipulated in General Assembly resolution 44,225. This was a very positive measure taken by Japan, and we appreciate its demonstrated sensitivity to our concerns.
France has also demonstrated sensitivity with respect to one of the great concerns of countries in our region. As the international community prepares to commemorate the thirtieth anniversary of the historic Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples, we are pleased to note the positive measures being pursued in Hew Caledonia by the French authorities. The Forum has urged all parties involved to maintain their dialogue and to continue promoting a framework for the peaceful evolution of New Caledonia towards an act of self-determination consistent with the principles and practices of the United Nations.
The prestige and the structure of the United Nations are now reaching new heights. Accordingly, the objectives of the Decade for the Eradication of Colonialism are clearly within our reach. Therefore, the Forum believes that a visit to the remaining Non-Self-Governing Territories by the Secretary-General, or a specially designated representative of the Secretary-General, could help facilitate the completion of the decolonisation process.
Like others, countries of the South Pacific cheered the release from prison of Mr, Nelson Mandela. We have also called upon those who currently govern South Africa to take further steps that would signal a commitment to the profound and irreversible changes necessary to accelerate the process of dismantling the apparatus of apartheid and eliminate its effects. Until such time, the Forum has joined others in calling for the continuation of the functions already imposed against South Africa and exploring other avenues of bringing a rapid end to the system of apartheid.
That concludes my statement as Chairman of the South Pacific Forum. I shall now make a few observations on behalf of ray own country, Vanuatu.
The recently concluded World Summit for Children was a major diplomatic event of potentially enormous social significance. The initiators and organisers are to be commended. But the true measure of the Summit's success does not lie in the number of words written about the meetings or in the number or perceived importance of the Heads of State or Government who participated in them. Rather, the true measure of the Summit's success will be determined by how rapidly we are able to mobilize the resources necessary to guarantee hope for the children of the world.
Children are often the first victims of war, the first victims of the drug traffic and the most tragic victims of AIDS, malaria and other crippling and fatal diseases. Unfortunately, children are also often the last to realize benefits from new scientific or technological breakthroughs. Let us take this opportunity to change that.
One of the things the nations of the world can do for children, and for everyone else, is to renew our commitment to the rule of law. The recent changes that have swept the entire world from Europe to Africa, to South and Central America, to Asia and to the Pacific demonstrate that there is absolutely no substitute for respect for the rule of law.
Today the attention of the entire world is focused on the Persian Gulf. A larger, militarily more powerful country has invaded and continues to occupy its smaller neighbour. As a result, mankind faces the possibility of yet another war. There will be no winners in such a conflict. There will be only losers. The biggest losers will once again be the children. For many of them, the future will end before it begins.
The world cannot accept the invasion and attempted annexation of Kuwait. They are acts that defy every accepted norm of international law and offend everyone's sense of decency. The Government of Vanuatu knows of no deed, whether real or imagined, that could conceivably justify the fate that has befallen Kuwait.
We pray that the conflict will be resolved without any further loss of life. However, we know that for this to occur, there must be a remarkable change of course. We harbour no illusions with respect to the difficulties ahead.
The effects of the conflict are already being felt in every corner of the world. Not a single country can escape the consequences of the invasion of Kuwait. Thus, none of us can sit idly by and be spectators. We must attempt to resolve the problem together, or it will consume us all, one by one.
Already the economies of many countries, including our own, have been seriously affected. However, we shall continue to support the principles on which the United Nations is based, for without adherence to those principles that will be nothing but international anarchy. Small countries such ш our own would be particularly vulnerable to the appetites of others.
There is no doubt that the invasion of Kuwait is a tragic occurrence. It is tragic for Kuwait; it is tragic for Iraq and for every other country in the region. It is also tragic for the innocent civilians from all countries trapped by circumstances in Kuwait and Iraq.
One encouraging sign is that there has been almost universal condemnation of the invasion and continued occupation. Had the nations of the world spoken with similar clarity earlier after similar invasions, Kuwait might perhaps have been spared the fate it now faces. Now that the international community has spoken so unequivocally on the invasion of Kuwait, perhaps others will pause to rethink their own actions.
The situation in the Persian Gulf is not the only current regional tragedy. It is merely the on· now occupying centre stage. The Palestine issue is today no nearer to being resolved than it was yesterday. Lebanon continues to be a bruised and battered victim of an endless cycle of violence. Liberia has been deeply shaken by a particularly violent civil conflict. East Timor’s people continue to be forgotten or ignored by many ,ho now speak forcefully on the Persian Gulf. One can only hope that there will soon be an opportunity for the people of Western Sahara finally to determine their own future.
The potential of a United Nations free of confrontation is highly visible in the progress made towards the settlement of the Cambodia issue. We congratulate the Cambodian parties and encourage them to continue their efforts on behalf of the people of their country, who have suffered so long.
The recently concluded second United Nations Conference on the Least Developed Countries was a success, even though it was not possible to fulfil all the very high expectations of those who participated. France, which hosted the meeting, continues to play a positive role in this area. Gradually, progress is being achieved on some of the key issues. Now we must attempt to implement fully the new Plan of Action.
Since its inception, the South Commission, under the chairmanship of the former President of Tanzania, Julius K. Nyerere, has been diligently analysing the problems faced by developing countries, the strategies adopted for dealing with those problems and the lessons to be drawn from past experiences. The report of the South Commission contains many useful recommendations. Perhaps its greatest value, however, in its clear statement that responsibility for the development of the South lies in the South and in the hands of the peoples of the South. We fully agree.
In conclusion, I wish to join in commending the excellent work of Mr, Javier Peres de Cuellar, our Secretary-General. Today we stand on the threshold of a new era in international relations. To the Secretary-General and the other members of the Secretariat we offer our thanks for their tireless efforts in helping to bring us to that threshold. Now it is for us, the Member States, to take the final decisive step which will open the door to new opportunities and close the door on all our old hostilities and antagonisms.


Our delegation is very pleased to see Mr. Guido de Marco presiding over the work of this session of the General Assembly, at a time of particular importance for the destiny of humankind. The contribution of Mr. de Marco's country within the Non-Aligned Movement and his proven capabilities and experience signal success in the work we have taken on. I wish to congratulate him most warmly on behalf of the people and Government of Cuba, and also on my own behalf.
This is certainly a suitable opportunity for me to express our grateful appreciation for the work carried out by Major-General Joseph Garba as President during the last session of the General Assembly.
To the new Member States, Namibia and Liechtenstein, I extend our best wishes on their joining this great family of nations and, by so doing, making that family more universal.
The world has changed. Today the international situation is qualitatively different from what it was a year ago, when we met in this same Hall. The risk of a nuclear confrontation has diminished, along with the holocaust such a confrontation might entail. That is something to be welcomed. Progress is being made in the negotiations towards nuclear disarmament, negotiations which ought to be conducted with all States participating within the United Nations framework.
The tensions stemming from the so-called East-West confrontation have practically disappeared, but the peace which now prevails is not the peace for which we have always fought - real peace for all States, weak and strong, large and small, in whatever continent. We say "yes" to peace, but we want it to be a worthy peace and a peace for all. We say "yes" to détente and co-operation, but we want it for everybody, not only between East and West but between North and South as well. We say "yes" to multilateralism and the United Nations, but we demand it for everybody, large and small, nuclear and non-nuclear Powers, developed and underdeveloped, rich and poor.
We must not continue advocating détente, peace and development by pole or by latitude: these are problems of all humankind and hence they cannot be projected onto a map and then split up. For there to be peace, mere disarmament is not enough. Without development, there can be no peace either.
The world has changed, and instead of East-West and North-South contradictions we now have a world with increasing problems in the South, a world where there are no signs that the economically developed States are willing to do their duty and contribute towards the tenacious development effort of those peoples that have suffered centuries of colonial and neo-colonial exploitation.
In the Middle East, where there is continuing delay in the convening of an international peace conference in which all parties, including the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) as the legitimate representative of the Palestinian people, would take part on an equal footing, we now see that after the end of the Iran-Iraq war and the beginning of a solution to the consequences of that conflict, a new situation has arisen: the occupation and annexation of the State of Kuwait by Iraq.
Cuba, in keeping with its principled policy, expressed itself in the Security Council in favour of the adoption of resolution 660 (1990) against the invasion, and similarly came out, in so many words, against the annexation of Kuwait. For Cuba, strict observance of the norms of international law is the greatest assurance that can be given to all nations that international peace and security will really be maintained in the climate proclaimed by the premises and principles of the Charter.
We have therefore constantly acted to promote a negotiated solution and avoid the outbreak of a war of incalculable scale whose immediate effects would be felt by all peoples in the region, and which would also have serious economic effects for all developing countries in general, given the importance of oil in the world economy. President Fidel Castro has contacted the Heads of State of the Arab countries, the President of the Movement of Non-Aligned Countries and other Heads of Government, and has given instructions for various steps to be taken within the Security Council itself.
It is not possible, however, to disregard the fact that the United States is making use of this crisis to achieve, in its supposed role as planetary policeman, its old ambition to establish itself militarily in the Gulf area and to be able to do whatever it likes with the oil wealth of the region, which is of strategic economic importance for the whole world. The concentration of United States naval forces and those of Western countries in that region is enormous. They seek to fulfil a military role that no one has assigned them with regard to an effective blockade of Iraq. As a result, there is the more disturbing possibility that hostilities might break out by accident or by premeditated provocation, given not only the existence of nuclear-powered vessels, but also the reported presence of nuclear weapons in some of those vessels, a fact that certainly serves to exacerbate the crisis.
The announcement by highly placed officials of the United States administration that such a military presence could be kept on for some time and that the sole effective means to get the Iraqi troops to leave Kuwait is to use military force, demands a reaction on the part of the international community, which cannot remain silent and must reject such notions. Cuba abstained in the vote on Security Council resolution 665 (1990) because we felt that its provisions would be tantamount to spreading a cloak of legality over the acts of blatant piracy that the United States navy had been carrying out in the Gulf, and over the adoption of measures not provided for in Article 41 of the Charter, which was the basis for the embargo against Iraq. Therefore, we do not accept the self-proclaimed role of policeman that the United States has assumed, nor the pressures it has been applying to prevent the sending of food and medicines to the civilian populations of Iraq and Kuwait, despite the provisions of Security Council resolution 661 (1990).
We are surprised that the United States, which spent a number of years flattening Viet Ham, bullied tiny Grenada, and most recently sent its elite troops to invade Panama - among other similar actions in its long history of interventionism - should now pose as a champion of international peace and security. But we are even more surprised that those who have repeatedly opposed the application of sanctions by the Security Council against Israel for its repeated acts of aggression and its occupation of Arab and Palestinian territories, should now come forward as the principal advocates of those measures. Cuba rejects the haste that has been so evident in the preparation and adoption of new resolutions, which only add to the risk of a conflagration and are clearly incompatible with the supposed desire to exhaust political and diplomatic means.
No State is entitled to set itself up as an arbiter with the right to decide when such efforts have been exhausted. The international community must not simply acquiesce in the sense of inevitability that tends to pervade the Council's resolutions. For Cuba, there can be an reasonable alternative to a negotiated political solution, which roust necessarily include the restoration of the sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity of Kuwait and the complete withdrawal of foreign forces deployed in the region. Resort to force, with all its devastating consequences for the peoples and wealth of the region, would set in notion an economic catastrophe for the countries of the third world. Even without the outbreak of war, the price of a barrel of oil has surpassed $40. What would the consequences be for the economies of the more than 100 States of the third world if actual military hostilities were to break out in the Gulf?
At the same time, we wish to reiterate that basic foodstuffs and medical assistance are fundamental human rights that must be guaranteed in all circumstances for the civilian population of Iraq and Kuwait, as well as for nationals of third States in those territories. Hot even evacuation would provide a quick solution for all the citizens of third countries, because more than 500,000 Palestinian citizens will be unable to return to their homeland, which continues to be occupied by Israel.
In numerous regions of the world, peoples continue to clamour for the establishment of peace, although the negotiating process has not yet met their legitimate aspirations.
We now have a new, unified Yemen which Cuba salutes. Through the maturity and intelligence of its peoples and Governments, Yemen has overcome the division that survived the colonial inheritance that once divided them. The now Namibia, which after a long-drawn-out but no less heroic struggle, won its independence - to which we Cubans are honoured to have contributed - can now take its rightful place among us. That is another manifestation of today's new atmosphere. There have been developments in the Cambodian conflict, and the parties appear to be moving towards an agreement. But the process is still in its early stages and has not yet crystallised.
The Government of Afghanistan is persistently and flexibly pursuing its policy of national reconciliation, despite the difficulties that one party to the conflict, with United States support, has been placing in its path, despite the Geneva Agreements. Cuba supports the just position of the Government of Afghanistan.
The question of Cyprus remains deadlocked while the country remains under military occupation. Cuba reiterates its support for the legitimate rights of the Cypriot people; for dialogue between the two communities that compose it; for the establishment of a bi-communal federal republic preserving the unity, sovereignty, independence end non-aligned status of Cyprus; and for the urgent convening of an international conference on the question of Cyprus under the auspices of the United Nations in order to resolve the matter.
We support the establishment of an independent and sovereign Sahraoui State, as well as the withdrawal of the Moroccan administration and troops from the territory of the Western Sahara.
We reiterate our support for the people of Lebanon in its just struggle for national unity and territorial integrity.
We wish the People's Republic of China success in the process of integrating into its national sovereignty those parts of its territory and peoples that were wrested from it by colonial domination or imperialist intervention.
Korea continues to be divided, although significant steps have begun to be taken that could lead to the long-desired reunification. In that respect, we reiterate our solidarity with the just policy pursued by the People's Democratic Republic of Korea.
In Angola, where Cuba has been strictly and impeccably implementing the withdrawal of its military contingent as a result of the agreements arrived at, peace has not proved possible as a result of the actions of UHITA, which has been supported militarily and politically by the United States and continues its destabilising actions.
In Central America, the atmosphere of tension has declined, although the people of Nicaragua, after the guns have fallen silent, is now striving to achieve domestic stability and to overcome the difficult economic legacy of the war imposed on it for so many years. In El Salvador, the process initiated between the parties, with the participation of the Secretary-General, has not been carried out fully. In Guatemala, steps continue to be taken towards a domestic solution, but with no rapid development in sight.
Cuba wishes again to place on record its support for the just demands of the Argentine people to recover its sovereignty over the Malvinas Islands and for the demands of the Government of Bolivia for a direct and useful outlet to the sea.
The South African people, which in the recent past has achieved through its difficult struggle certain social changes providing a political space for the forces that have represented it, has not yet succeeded in doing away with all the barriers that exist or in burying once and for all the policy of apartheid. The international community must therefore continue to advocate the maintenance of economic sanctions against South Africa. Cuba reiterates that apartheid cannot be reformed - it must be completely eradicated.
In the Americas, the Puerto Ricans, our brethren by virtue of blood and of struggle, still do not know when their land will cease being a colonial Territory of the United States. Indeed, at the very end of the twentieth century there are attempts further to impede their progress towards self-determination by means of the so-called referendum or plebiscite the United States Government is organizing, while the conditions are being readied to continue the spread of transnational corporations and nuclear military bases through the Territory in an attempt - a vain attempt - to erase its genuine Latin American identity and its historical and cultural roots.
Notwithstanding the undoubted successes in the fight against colonialism in recent years, we must not forget that there remain more than 20 Territories with many millions of inhabitants still under colonial domination. The United Nations must redouble its efforts to make this decade the last for colonialism.
Today the United Nations is the only forum suitable for confronting the major challenges facing mankind. The question of the environment, the drug problem and the needs of children undoubtedly require in-depth universal attention to find formulas for an effective solution. In all these cases, however, everyone must assume his share of the burden; it would be wrong to allocate the principal task to the developing countries or to lay the primary responsibility upon them.
The Eighth Congress on the Prevention of Crime and the Treatment of Offenders, recently held in Cuba with a level of participation exceeding that of previous congresses and with results that have been described as very successful both by the United Nations and by participants, is an example of how the growing problem of crime must be confronted.
We cannot omit two basic issues: disarmament and economic questions.
We view disarmament not only as a necessity but also, first and foremost, as an imperative for peace. There has been progress - which we welcome - in the  process between the two major nuclear Powers to reduce and eliminate nuclear weapons, and thus to remove the threat o£ nuclear conflict; but the danger has not yet been eliminated, and we cannot say that the progress made is irreversible.
Cuba supports the possibility of converting the present partial nuclear-test ban into a total ban, in keeping with the demands of the international community.
The failure of the recent review conference for the nuclear non-proliferation Treaty - where it was impossible to agree on the adoption of a final declaration - proves that there are still forces, in the United States in particular, which resist suspension of nuclear testing.
We welcome the fact that the negotiations on conventional-arms reduction in Europe, in accordance with the special characteristics of that region, are moving forward.
Intense work is under way on the subject of chemical weapons, but important questions remain unresolved. Cuba will continue to work in the negotiating body with a view to the swift adoption of a universal convention that will not impose limits or obstacles on the economic development of developing countries in this sphere, discriminate in any way among States parties or lead, through the retention by other States of their chemical arsenals, to weakened security for parties to the convention which do not possess chemical weapons.
In the economic sphere, the contrast between the glimmers of light on the world political scene and the shadows which generally prevail in international economic relations is very disturbing. While there is a gradual process of detente and of closer relations between the two major world Powers and between East and West, North-South relations grow ever grimmer.
In the decade that has just begun, we note that the abyss of inequality between the development levels of the industrialised countries and those of the underdeveloped countries continues to grow deeper, both in the economic and social sphere and in the area of science and technology.
The wrongs condemned by President Fidel Castro in this Hall in 1979 have grown out of all proportion and have over the years reached unimagined levels. Horse still, there is no prospect of a real, lasting solution: the debt crisis, the net reverse transfer of financial resources, the growing deterioration of terms of trade, protectionism and diminishing sources of credit for development add up to a situation of total economic desperation and utter social insecurity for our countries. This is beginning to manifest itself in violent outbursts of social instability.
Cuba's position on the external-debt crisis - which as President Fidel Castro has pointed out is now the main obstacle to development, the principal instrument for financial plunder and the most modern form of neo-colonial dependence imposed by developed countries - is well known to the international community. There is an urgent need for a comprehensive political solution to root out this evil; it must necessarily include total cancellation of the debt of all developing countries.
One of the consequences of the debt crisis has been a constant deterioration of living standards in third-world countries. Almost 30 per cent of the economically active population is unemployed; more than 950 million people live in utter poverty; 195 million children below the age of five suffer from hunger; infant mortality is 10 times higher, on average, than it is in developed countries; 40,000 children die daily, most of them of preventable causes and of malnutrition; 900 million adults are illiterate; and hundreds of millions of people live in misery. That striking situation has caused us to dub the 1980s a lost decade for development. The longer we delay a substantive decision on this delicate problem, the more serious will be the consequences of inaction.
Neither creditors nor debtors now doubt that the external debt of the underdeveloped countries is not only un-payable but uncollectable. The various modalities for exchanging debt for equity do not merely evidence a general acknowledgement of that fact, but also reveal that creditors are desperately scrambling to unload at the lowest possible cost debts they know cannot be recovered. Similarly, the various proposals made by the developed Hest in an attempt to resolve the crisis have proved inadequate and limited in scope - so much so that one can hardly talk of a global debt strategy at all.
None the less, and bearing in mind the economic vulnerability of all our countries, Cuba is prepared to recognize and work on behalf of initiatives which, while not constituting substantive formulas, approach the question from an integrated and innovative point of view. This implies substantial debt reductions, the overall handling of all types of debt, and additional measures.
In that spirit, my Government fully supported the results of the regional conference for Latin America and the Caribbean on external debt, recently held under the auspices of the Latin American Economic System (SELA); this could be a good beginning for a serious effort to achieve a solution of the indebtedness that is crushing our peoples.
Like the rest of the developing world, my country is confronted with an unjust and discriminatory system of international economic relations. Whatever efforts individual countries may make in one direction or another, they will always be restricted in a world in which the imbalances I have mentioned persist. Thus, Cuba reaffirms yet again the validity of the principles of the Hew International Economic Order. We are convinced that true economic co-operation that fulfils the needs of development and economic growth of the developing countries requires, at the very least, application of those principles in addition to such further measures as, inter alia, cancellation of the third world's external debt, elaboration of universal co-operation on environmental and development problems and an international contribution to the necessary processes of economic integration in those countries.
I cannot conclude without pointing out that, as in previous years, pressures and threats are still being directed against our people by our neighbour to the north. The Bush Administration is the eighth United States Administration that has persisted in carrying out hostile and aggressive actions against Cuba. The United States Government, in violation of international law, and particularly the 1982 Nairobi Convention, went to great lengths to carry out its project for intrusion into our television space, for the purpose of destabilization, with a pirate television station based on United States territory.
We state with pride that through our people's intelligence and tenacity, that new United States act of aggression has been thwarted at a low cost to Cuba and that the pirate signal has been eradicated from our land. We are now also beginning to eliminate radio broadcasts that are also being beamed from United States territory for the same purposes.
None the less, the criminal economic blockade that has been imposed against us continues, along with the violation of our waters and airspace in the naval base the United States arbitrarily maintains in our country and its aggressive military manoeuvres around it.
Cuba, as in the past, reiterates its just demand for the return of land illegally occupied by the United States on our national territory. Our greatest desire is to live in peace and to use all our resources for the noble purpose of economic and social development. Nevertheless, the political blindness of the most reactionary circles in the United States leads them stubbornly to pursue their vain attempt to bring the Cuban revolution to its knees. We have said before and we say again today: the socialism being built by our people came into being as a result of its own struggle, and our people is now defending that socialism as its most valuable acquisition, since with it has come the social justice that was for so many years trampled underfoot, along with true sovereignty and national independence. That people, which has known justice, independence and liberty, will not give them up and will defend them to the very last.
For Cubans, for the 10 million men and women who work, create, build and are prepared to defend the fruits of their labours, the situation is clear: the struggle for the revolution, for socialism, is not only the struggle for a better future. It is also the only way to defend our independence and our national identity. We shall not falter in that endeavour. We are sure our struggle can only end in victory.


It is with pleasure and satisfaction that, on my own behalf and on behalf of my delegation, I congratulate his Excellency Mr. Guido de Marco on his unanimous election to the presidency of the forty-fifth session of the General Assembly. We wish you, Sir, much success in fulfilling your important functions. Your election to this important office demonstrates the great prestige that your country, Malta, enjoys in the international community and the trust we all place in you and in your outstanding qualities. We are sure that under your leadership the deliberations of this session will have a successful outcome. We stand ready to co-operate with you and give you all the support within our power towards the successful attainment of this objective.
I should also like to convey to your predecessor, His Excellency Mr. Joseph Garba, the satisfaction and appreciation of the Mozambican delegation for the able manner in which he presided over the forty-fourth session of the General Assembly, as well as over the special sessions that took place during his mandate.
Our renewed congratulations go to the Secretary-General, Mr. Javier Perez de Cuellar, on his creativity and dynamic leadership and on his commitment to the search for an adequate solution to the various problems threatening peace, progress, development and the welfare of all peoples.
An event of transcendent importance marked the period that has elapsed since the last session of the General Assembly: the independence of Namibia. It was with joy and emotion that we witnessed the assumption of the reins of sovereignty and self-determination by the people of the sister nation of Namibia. The accession to independence of that African country was the culmination of a long and heroic march of resistance and struggle by the people of Namibia against the colonial occupation. It was a victory for all mankind; the corollary and the final outcome of decades of joint effort on the part of the people of Namibia and of all peace-loving forces. It marked the downfall of the last stronghold of colonialism on the African continent.
I associate myself with the previous speakers in extending a special welcome to the delegation of independent Namibia. The independence of Namibia has widened the frontiers of freedom and strengthened the community of free and sovereign nations in the world. We welcome as well the admission of the Principality of Liechtenstein as the 160th Member of our Organisation. The accession of that Principality to the United Nations makes our family stronger and constitutes a further step towards wider universality of our Organisation.
The forty-fifth session of the General Assembly is taking place at a time of both hope and apprehension for our planet. While, on the one hand, we witness with joy and satisfaction the dawn of an era of openness, interdependence and co-operation among nations, and are happy to see a reinforcement of democratic practices in various parts of the world, on the other, we are also witnessing the emergence, with the unusual vehemence, of unacceptable attitudes and behaviour, which create dangerous pockets of tension and threaten the fragile achievements so far made by mankind towards relaxation and disarmament.
At a time when peace efforts have become a driving force shared by all of us, and when dialogue is given important weight in the solution of the world's conflicts the explosive situation that has arisen in the Gulf is of great concern to us., Serious events, whose catastrophic consequences are already being felt in each one of our countries, are taking place in the region. The invasion, occupation and annexation of Kuwait are unacceptable. We demand respect for the norms of international law and the restoration of Kuwait's sovereignty. We urge that a peaceful platform be found to put an end to the spectre of war that hangs over the region, in compliance with the relevant resolutions of the Security Council.
As to the problem in the Middle East, we realise that the rights of the Palestinian people continue to be violated. We reiterate our belief in the need for the convening of an international conference with the participation of all the concerned parties including the State of Palestine.
We feel encouraged by the progress achieved towards a peaceful solution to the conflict in Kampuchea. We strongly believe that the United Nations could play a vital role in the solution of this problem.
In East Timor, the Maubere people continue to be deprived of their right to independence and self-determination. We encourage the Secretary-General to pursue his efforts towards the achievement of an acceptable solution to this problem, which must necessarily be based on respect for the fundamental rights of the people of East Timor.
With respect to the question of Western Sahara, we welcome the steps taken by the Secretary-General with a view to a peaceful and definitive solution to this conflict, and we encourage him to pursue this effort without hesitation.
In the Korean peninsula, we encourage the current efforts being made towards a peaceful reunification of the Korean nation. The high-level meetings recently held between the two Koreas constitute a positive step in this direction.
In the period under consideration, Europe has witnessed far-reaching political and economic developments, of which it is worth pointing out the changes in Eastern Europe and the agreement on German reunification.
In southern Africa, we are encouraged by the decisions taken by the Government of President De Klerk in South Africa. The release of Nelson Mandela, the historic leader of the South African people, and that of some of his compatriots, as well as the legalisation of all South African political and democratic organisations that had been banned until then, the lifting of the state of emergency, and the preliminary talks between the Government and the African National Congress (ANC), open up new horizons in the history of South African politics.
Those changes, which are the result of the sacrifice and relentless struggle of the South African people, of Africa and of the international community as a whole are the harbingers of hope in a more stable, peaceful and promising future for the development of southern Africa. We await with hope the beginning of constitutional negotiations among the South African authorities, the ANC and other South African democratic forces. It continues to be necessary for the international community to play a crucial role in the efforts for the eradication of the apartheid system within the framework of the premises contained in the Declaration, adopted at the sixteenth special session, on apartheid and its destructive consequences in southern Africa.
We urge President De Klerk and his Government to pursue with courage and determination the path they have embarked upon.
Mozambique will continue to contribute in whatever manner nay be necessary to guarantee the success of this great and lofty undertaking. However, we note with great concern the wave of violence that has been occurring in South Africa recently. We praise the maturity and the sense of responsibility shown by the AHC in the person of its Vice-President, Nelson Mandela, in trying to put an end to this violence.
We point out the inherent danger of the extremist attitudes of those who want at all costs to perpetuate the system of apartheid. We urge the South African Government to commit itself forcefully to the elimination of the causes behind this climate of tension.
In Angola, we acknowledge with satisfaction the steps undertaken by the Government through peaceful means to put an end to the war that is devastating our sisterly nation. Those efforts should be supported by the international community, so that they may lead to peace and national harmony.
In Mozambique, our country, the end of the war and a return to tranquillity, and to a normal life for all Mozambicans, constitutes the chief priority of our government and of the FRELIMO Party. The senseless war of sabotage and destruction still ravages our country, continues to take its toll in human lives and cause enormous damage to property. As a direct result of this indiscriminate destruction carried out by RENAMO, thousands of Mozambicans have been displaced, both within and outside their country, deprived of their possessions, reduced to extreme poverty, and are surviving only thanks to the generous assistance of their countrymen and of the international community. The economic and social emergency we are experiencing in our country is just one of the dramatic facets of the consequences of this unjustified war. Schools, kindergartens, health centres and a number of economic infrastructures have been destroyed, leaving hundreds of thousands of people without access to education and health care facilities.
Despite its positive results, the economic recovery programme begun in 1987, with broad support from the international community, is confronted with the negative effects of continued acts of destabilisation, which hinder its full implementation, especially in the rural areas. Efforts by the Government, with the support of the international community, to save the lives of millions of Mozambicans in an emergency situation have been hampered by RENAMO armed action against populations and against economic and social targets. Our commitment to defend our country does not prevent the Government from seeking peaceful ways of putting an end to the war, as we believe that everything should be done to bring about an honourable and dignifying peace in our country.
We have had an opportunity in the past to inform the international community about the principles set by the Government as a basis for the dialogue with RENAMO and about the indirect contacts we had undertaken, with the support of the mediators, with a view to creating a climate conducive to direct dialogue.
Through this dialogue, the Government seeks to achieve the cessation of violence, the restoration of peace throughout the country and national reconciliation. We want a genuine and lasting peace, a peace built upon national unity and stability. We seek a peace which upholds our national interests, a peace brought about by Mozambican for the benefit of the Mozambican people.
In spite of these significant efforts, RENAMO continues to use delaying tactics, thus protracting the negotiations. Such manoeuvres do not serve the supreme interests of the Mozambican nation and serve only to prolong unnecessarily the suffering of our people.
The Government continues, however, to be committed to pursue direct dialogue and to surmount any real obstacles it may encounter along the way. We are prepared to discuss any issue of substance that may bring us to the fulfilment of the just expectations of our people. '
There is no valid reason for the continuation of the war in Mozambique. In spite of the war situation prevailing in the country, the FRELIMO Party has spared no effort in its attempt to find better ways of organising Mozambican society and ensuring the people's real and effective participation in formulating and deciding on the destiny of the nation. It was in the light of this that the debate on the draft amended Constitution was concluded last July. This debate allowed for the people to express their views on the future of the country. Millions of Mozambicans, including Koaarabican communities abroad, aired their views in a spirit of unity, openness and frankness, with dignity, pride and patriotism, on the issues of national interest. The people also expressed their views on the nature of the political system they want to see established in the country.
An analysis of the contributions made in the course of the discussion enables us to grasp and portray the interests and aspirations of the people at the present stage. In addition, it has enabled us to opt for a multiparty political system in our country and for the formulation of the various national policies which are contained in the draft Constitution that is to be submitted within a few days to the people's Assembly for adoption. The endorsement of the new Constitution will be followed by presidential and legislative elections through direct universal suffrage in 1991. The introduction of the multiparty political system in Mozambique is subject to the observance of certain criteria which shall be subjected to a specific law to be passed in due course by the people's Assembly. Such criteria stipulate inter alia that a political party shall be constituted on the basis of tribe, race, religion or other factors likely to undermine national unity or lead to the fragmentation of Mozambican society. They further stipulate that the parties shall defend national interests and the independence and sovereignty of the Mozambican State.
While recommending the introduction of the multiparty system in the country, the FRELIMO Party is aware of the fact that the multiparty system per se does not necessarily mean democracy. According to our understanding, democracy implies the participation of the people in the mapping out of decisions on the destiny of the nation and in the exercise of sovereignty by the people.
The current climate of detente and dialogue, together with the increasing political changes occurring in the world and the growing consensus on the policies to be adopted for development strategies, calls for the greater democratization of international economic relations, which will allow the countries of the South to benefit from advances in science and the new technologies for the progress and prosperity of all peoples of the world.

We recognise that, although solutions have been progressively found to political conflicts, the handling of matters related to the problems of development, which are pervasive in the majority of our countries, is hindered by a considerable degree of apathy and sluggishness.
The structural changes occurring in the world economic system, as well as the increasing interdependence which results there from, should create new opportunities for encouraging economic growth in the developing countries, instead of widening the gap that separates them from industrialised countries.
We are aware of the responsibility that we should shoulder as the main players in the development processes of our own countries. We would call for greater understanding and sensitivity to the nature of the difficulties that form a stumbling-block to our development. It is urgent that the flow of capital for development be increased and made available in such a way as to permit the financial and material means to be applied for expansion, diversification and modernisation of the productive sectors of the economy.
We would like to seize this opportunity to welcome the report of the South Commission, whose release has recently been announced by its Chairman, His Excellency Mwalimu Julius Kambarage Nyerere. This report, in view of its in-depth analysis of the economic situation in the developing countries and its recommendations, constitutes a valuable contribution not just to the problems confronting the developing countries but also to the improvement in North-South relations.
We urge the States Members of this Organisation jointly to work out ways and means of implementing the guidelines of this report.
The foreign debt crisis remains one of the main obstacles to our economic growth and development. It is extremely important that a constructive dialogue between debtors and creditors be established, with a view to finding definitive solutions to the problem. We take this opportunity to express our appreciation to the various creditor countries which took concrete measures to alleviate the debt burden of Mozambique and that of some other countries with great economic difficulties.
Another challenge faced by the international community is the problem of protection of the environment. Here too the future of mankind is in our hands. We urge everyone to be fully involved in the preparations of the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development, to be held in Brazil in 1992.
In a few days the international community will witness an unparalleled event, the summit for children. The presence of many Heads of State and Government and illustrious dignitaries at this meeting is a testimony to our common willingness to join forces in the search for solutions to the problems that threaten the future o£ the coming generations.
We have the responsibility to create a future of harmony and peace for our children, who are the citizens of tomorrow. Children are a source of inspiration to us and a prime challenge to our actions; they should be offered something rare in our generation, that is, peace, stability, harmony and development.
We believe that this summit will strengthen our determination to preserve the current trend in international relations by defending the lofty ideals which presided over the birth of our Organization.
We are pleased to note the trend in present international relations, the revitalisation of the role of the United Nations that makes it the centre around which solutions are sought to the serious problems affecting mankind, such as regional conflicts and wars.
Our Organization assumes a universal dimension today. This dimension however, cannot just be measured through the rise in the number of its Members, but also, and mainly, in accordance with the extent to which the values, principles and objectives it pursues are universally upheld.
Co-operation, solidarity and the new emerging consensus at the international level constitute the most eloquent example of this. It is our understanding that this new trend in international relations should not be an instrument for the management of selected crises, but a systematic policy to confront the countless challenges in the world, namely, underdevelopment, poverty, endemic diseases, AIDS, drugs and environmental problems, to name just a few.
We would like to conclude by reiterating our confidence in the ability of the United Nations successfully to face these challenges. It remains the most privileged forum for the solution of the economic and social development problems of peoples and for the promotion of international peace and security.