Mr. President, your country, Nigeria, shares a large number of common interests and affinities with Cameroon, which need no emphasizing now. Your presence in the President's seat at this late hour is clear evidence of the links between and the shared concerns of our two countries and peoples. Your personal interest in the problems of our continent, Africa, is shown by your dynamic action as Chairman of the Special Committee against Apartheid.
On behalf of Cameroon, I should like to congratulate you most warmly on your unanimous election to the presidency of the forty-fourth session of the General Assembly. Your qualities and experience guarantee the success of the work of this session. I should like to take this opportunity to assure you of the constant co-operation of the Cameroon delegation.
I should also like to pay a tribute to your predecessor, Mr. Dante Caputo, who, throughout his term of office, so skilfully discharged his responsibilities.
I should also like to take this opportunity to pay a tribute to the Secretary-General, Javier Perez de Cuellar. We should like again to state our confidence in him and our support for his tireless and effective efforts on behalf of peace and international co-operation.
Our time is one of interdependence and solidarity, which are so indispensable between nations, regions and peoples. The common destiny of mankind in the face of the many dangers threatening all countries, large or small, rich or poor, has become an inescapable reality of our time. Also inescapable are the fundamental aspirations of all nations and peoples concerning their own welfare. Thanks to the tremendous progress of science and technology, particularly communications, our planet has become a global village, as will the whole human community. We must therefore learn without delay the lessons of this common destiny of mankind. The reduction of tension throughout the world in the search for solutions to the various local conflicts in various regions are all factors which can create an international environment that is stable and secure and that favours economic and social development. That is why bilateral and multilateral negotiations on disarmament, security and development, must be stepped up, as must be efforts to extinguish the various existing hot-beds of tension. In this regard, we continue to encourage the new climate of dialogue between the Soviet Union and the United States. We hope to see this climate, which has already produced appreciable results, become even more marked in the interests of those two great nations and the world at large. We welcome the undertaking of the two super-Powers to continue to report to the international community, and particularly to the Conference on Disarmament, on the progress and results of their bilateral negotiations.
We note with satisfaction the willingness of all States to intensify their negotiations on the crucial questions of disarmament, particularly nuclear disarmament. In this regard, the holding, in Paris this January, of the International Conference on the prohibition of chemical and bacteriological weapons and recent progress in the Conference on Disarmament on work on an international convention on this important question are encouraging elements in the process of disarmament, which Cameroon fully supports. This optimism is confirmed by the proposals made recently from this rostrum by the President of the United States and by the Foreign Minister of the Soviet Union.
As representatives are aware, over the last few years my country has submitted a number of proposals on strengthening the role of the United Nations in the disarmament field, on rationalization of the work of the First Committee, and on consolidation of regional peace and security in Africa. We are encouraged by the Assembly's attentive reception of these proposals. We hope that they will contribute to concrete, action-oriented decisions.
In this context, we want to stress the decisive and fundamental role played by United Nations peace-keeping forces in the process of the settlement of various conflicts throughout the world, which earned them the Nobel Peace Prize last year. Indeed, the implementation and management of peace-keeping operations are among the central activities of this Organization. It is important, therefore, for Member States to provide the Secretary-General with the necessary administrative machinery for the centralization and following up of all questions relating to military forces and observer groups deployed by the Organization.
That is why my country proposes the creation, within the Secretariat, of an integrated administrative structure for the co-ordination and effective carrying out of the various missions and operations decided upon by the Security Council for the maintenance of peace. This is the appropriate place to express our satisfaction at the consensus that has emerged as to the need to strengthen the role of the United Nations and international negotiating machinery. The establishment of international dialogue, which is an essential element in the universal search for peace, has made it possible to take dynamic and concrete initiatives to facilitate the settlement of many regional problems.
In southern Africa, the process of Namibian independence, which was launched on 1 April 1989 by the implementation of Security Council resolution 435 (1978), is now under way. It is the duty of the United Nations to work tirelessly for the success of this process. We must make it impossible for South Africa - which has accustomed us to trickery, bad faith and all kinds of subterfuges - to interfere with the functioning or distort the results of this process. At this crucial stage in the history of the Territory, Cameroon, which is a member of the United Nations Council for Namibia, calls upon the international community to render all necessary assistance to the South West Africa People's Organization, which is the legitimate representative of the Namibian people. Above all, we should give thought to the provision of high-quality assistance to the young Namibian nation to enable it to bring about its independence and development in the best possible conditions. Cameroon wishes to announce its readiness to strengthen even further its aid to the Namibian people - to establish, consolidate and develop with that country, when it becomes independent, reciprocal and mutually advantageous co-operation of all kinds.
The new peace dynamic launched recently in Angola and in Mozambique, thanks to the efforts of Africa, should be strengthened in order to permit those two countries to preserve their sovereignty and to devote themselves wholly to the economic and social development they need so urgently.
In South Africa, the odious system of apartheid persists. The most elementary freedom of movement is denied to the majority black population simply because of their colour. The state of emergency is being stepped up. Nelson Mandela and many other leaders of the anti-apartheid movement are still in prison. Beyond the ostensibly conciliatory attitude that the racist regime authorities have been adopting for some time now, there are no grounds for assuming that Pretoria is ready to abandon its policy of apartheid and its acts of aggression against the front-line States.
We should not lose sight of the fact that this situation, which is explosive in the short term, could get out of control and become catastrophic for the world, in view of the nuclear capacity that has been acquired by the racist South African regime, as well as its arrogance and its thirst for power and blind domination. The international community should not hesitate to use the sanctions provided for in Chapter VII of the United Nations Charter to prevail upon South Africa to co-operate with the United Nations - not to reform the system of apartheid but to eradicate it. We appeal urgently to all those whose complicity of all kinds has hitherto enabled South Africa to defy the international community with impunity to participate actively in dismantling apartheid and bringing about a new era of peace and security in that part of the world.
As to the other hot-beds of tension, we must commit ourselves to pragmatic and realistic solutions in accordance with the spirit and principles of our Charter.
On Western Sahara, we should spare no effort to make it possible for the initiatives that are under way to yield positive results under the aegis of the United Nations and the Organisation of African Unity (OAU).
On the conflict between Chad and Libya, we are happy about the observance of the cease-fire, which has now been in force for more than a year, and the willingness of the two parties to continue their dialogue under the auspices of the ad hoc committee of the OAU, of which Cameroon is a member, with a view to normalizing their relations. The recent agreement between Algiers and the two countries is undoubtedly the decisive stage in the peaceful settlement of this dispute. It is our great hope that the terms of this agreement will be put into effect as soon as possible so that a new era of peace and co-operation may be established between these two sister nations of our continent.
In the horn of Africa, Ethiopia and Somalia have normalized their relations. Other mediation efforts to achieve peace are under way in the sub region.
With regard to the Middle East, we welcome the signs of positive developments and hope that they will soon bring about a restoration of peace in the region. We must gird ourselves to search, together, for peace there. Cameroon, which has excellent relations with both Israel and the Arab States, believes that this peace requires recognition of the fundamental right of the Palestinian people to self-determination and to their own homeland, and also the equally fundamental right of the State of Israel to live in peace within internationally recognized frontiers. The time has come for the international community to take the necessary steps to convene the International Conference on this subject.
As to other parts of the world where hot-beds of tension persist, whether in Central America or in Asia, the principles of international law enshrined in our Charter - non-interference in the internal affairs of States; peaceful settlement of disputes; non-use of force in international relations - should be accepted by all as the basis for politically negotiated solutions. In this context, we support the Tela Agreements with a view to the normalization of relations between the countries of Central America. We also hope for continuation of peace negotiations on Cambodia within the framework and in the spirit of the recent international conference in Paris.
The world continues to face a grave economic crisis. The relative resumption of growth in the rich countries has not been accompanied by the hoped-for beneficial trickle-down effect in the countries of the third world. Those countries, which are living in the most wretched conditions ever known in this century, as well as conflicts of various kinds, constitute a serious threat to the peace, stability and security of all mankind and warrant our keenest attention. In this regard, the economic and financial situation of Africa has aroused the greatest possible concern.
The situation is exacerbated by such factors as the following: the deep structural imbalances that mark the world economy ; trade restrictions and protectionist pressures; deteriorating terms of exchange following the brutal plunge in commodity prices and erratic exchange-rate fluctuations; the intolerable growth of the debt burden; the negative flow of capital; and the lack of political will for the establishment of a just and equitable new international economic order.
International economic co-operation as it is understood today is unlikely to promote the true development of our young nations. That certainly constitutes a serious threat to the very foundations of international peace and security. It is therefore urgent to review the machinery of international economic exchange in order to maintain commodity prices at a level that would guarantee fair remuneration to the producers. In that context, we await with considerable interest the first actions by the Common Fund for commodities, which has now become operational.
We welcome the international community's search for appropriate solutions to the debt problem. Measures taken by the two recent summits of the Seven, held at Toronto and at Paris, and by some developed countries are positive actions that deserves to be encouraged.
We should also encourage and strengthen the possibility of intervention by international development institutions, which should be given fresh impetus. Such action can be effective only in a broader framework of a resumed North-South dialogue and global negotiations making it possible to identify in the relations among the parties various aspects of the world economy with a view to promoting growth and development.
In that connection, Cameroon supports the convening next year of a special session of the General Assembly devoted to international economic co-operation. If such a session is to succeed, we must first of all learn the lessons of the present decade and ensure that the new development strategy takes advantage of opportunities before it. We must therefore stress the importance of a change in attitude by the principal world economic partners. On both sides, we must avoid ideological squabbling and focus pragmatically on the substantive questions that underlie our poverty and underdevelopment.
We also support holding an international conference on African debt, which would enable the parties concerned to find realistic solutions that would break the vicious cycle of indebtedness. We want objective and equitable solutions to that debt that could safeguard the development process in our countries and secure the welfare of our peoples. We need true international solidarity. As the President of the Republic of Cameroon, Mr. Paul Biya, has said,
"There can be true solidarity only with the strictest respect for the dignity and freedom of others".
For that reason, we call on all our partners to participate constructively in that international conference, giving expression to the solidarity that must unite all countries and nations. I stress that such a conference could gain impetus in the framework of the United Nations, which has already formulated a Programme of Action for African Economic Recovery and Development.
Of course, our continent must be able to count first and foremost on itself. It is therefore determined to give fresh impetus to agricultural development, to make more rational use of its human resources, to improve the management of the economy through restructuring, and to strengthen co-operation within regional and sub-regional organizations.
Africa now expects the international community to show the extra political will by supporting its own efforts through the adoption of concrete measures both bilaterally and in the framework of international economic, financial and monetary institutions. It is our difficult but lofty duty to preserve mankind and create a world of peace and prosperity. In that context, questions of the environment and human rights are of paramount importance. We welcome the 1992 convening of a United Nations conference on environment and development. The recent dangerous damage to the ozone layer, natural disasters, drought, desertification, the dumping of toxic waste in Africa and other parts of the world and many other ecological disasters point to the urgency of convening such a conference. We must work to reconcile the protection of the environment with the imperatives of growth for the developing countries. At stake is the very survival of mankind.
It has become the custom to speak much of human rights questions while stressing their civil and political aspects. Cameroon feels that human rights should be understood in their most complete and comprehensive sense, including economic, social and cultural rights and, above all, the right to development. We feel too that greater importance should be attached to the protection of the child, whose rights to health, nutrition and education do not always get the priority attention they deserve. Cameroon warmly supports initiatives by the United Nations Children's Fund with respect to the declaration of a decade for the African child, the organization of a world summit on the child, and the formulation of a convention on the rights of the child. We hope the international community will give those initiatives the support they deserve.
We are here because we have faith in the ability of multilateralism to find global solutions to the problems of our day. We reaffirm that peace, disarmament and development are goals that can be reached.
Harsh economic conditions and the evils they spawn - poverty, misery, political instability and lack of security - are inextricably bound together. Recognition of those bonds gives all political leaders a new imperative reason to consider and work to improve everyone's access to well-being. Political wisdom dictates the search for a more stable, just and equitable new international order. It calls on us to work for a global, common search for viable solutions to the many problems arising from the extreme poverty in which three quarters of mankind lives, world stability must be our first concern in the search for the well-being of nations and the advent of a better world.
Such a world means the reversal of harmful trends that have long marked international relations. Above all, it means that all States must renew their faith and their commitment to the ideals, purposes and principles of the United Nations Charter, which must truly guide the main trends of relations among States. In that context, the Organization must be able to play a larger, more active role in promoting international peace, security and co-operation. Its principal organs - the General Assembly, the Security Council, the Economic and Social Council and the Office of the Secretary-General - should be strengthened and revitalized in order to increase their effectiveness and promote more democratic international relations.
We must give full support to the Secretary-General in that endeavour. We must not follow standard practice in asking too much of the Organization without giving it in return what it needs to play an effective role in regulating our higher common interests, of which peace, international security and co-operation are the decisive elements. We can do this only if, as States and regions, we display firm determination to promote policies leading to an international climate fostering trust among States, peace, the elimination of conflicts, disarmament and the promotion of justice and equity. Within this process the major Powers, most of which are founding Members of this Organization and which have special responsibilities under the Charter, should set an example. It is up to them particularly to play a major role in accordance with the spirit of the Charter of San Francisco.
At this time of profound change we welcome the dynamic action taken by the Movement of Non-Aligned Countries, which, as always, has made a major contribution to the positive development of international relations. At its recent ninth summit Conference, in Belgrade, our Movement once again presented to the world its ideas, priorities and vision, which, in the final analysis, sum up the aspirations of the whole of mankind to a safer, more just and equitable world.
The realism, wisdom and relevance of the consensus reflected in the final Declaration adopted at that summit Conference is eloquent testimony to the movement of this group in the right direction, and we should welcome that. This is a sign of the modernization, maturity and growing credibility of the non-aligned countries.
 All the questions of the hour that are crucial for the future of mankind now have a world-wide dimension. That is why my country, Cameroon, remains convinced that the United Nations remains the best place for activating the various negotiations designed to make significant progress towards a new order. In the final analysis the United Nations constitutes an irreplaceable centre for harmonizing the positions of nations in order to preserve future generations from the scourge of war and to leave them a better and better world.


It gives the delegation of the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic great pleasure to greet the representative of Nigeria, Mr. Garba, as President of the United Nations General Assembly. Many years of co-operation with him have convinced us that he will fulfil his high duties with honour and dignity. Please convey to him our heartiest congratulations on his election.
The prospects of an era of peace in international relations and of the consistent implementation of related tasks for multilateral co-operation among States can open up an entirely new phase in world history. If that were to come to pass, succeeding generations, saved from the scourge of war, would pay fitting tribute to those present in this Hall as contributors to and joint authors of that process.
It is noteworthy that a number of representatives, as well as the Secretary-General in his report on the work of the Organization, found it necessary to recall the fiftieth anniversary of the outbreak of the Second World War and to speak about its lessons. The Ukrainian delegation deems that appropriate and logical. The peoples of the Soviet Union, including the Ukrainian people, bore the brunt of the war and sustained its heaviest losses. At the same time, they made the most significant contribution towards saving the peoples of Europe from Fascist enslavement. The liberating mission of the Soviet Union is indelibly printed in the grateful memory of nations. To forget, let alone to ignore the fact, would be to desecrate the sacred memory of the fallen and to insult the living. The lessons of history shall not fall into oblivion.
The wheel of history cannot be reversed. The inviolability of post-war borders constitutes the foundation of peaceful relations in Europe. We share the clear and unambiguous position expressed in that regard by the Vice-Chancellor and Foreign Minister of the Federal Republic of Germany, Mr. Hans-Dietrich Genscher.
We are encouraged and heartened to see the promising and positive changes in international relations gathering momentum and becoming ever more teal and tangible. Tensions have eased and confrontation has diminished, fruitful political dialogue is emerging between States, confidence is growing and injecting an entirely new, peaceful note into international relations. There is a growing trend towards ensuring global security not through an arms build-up but through agreed reductions in arms. A new world order is taking shape based on the primacy of international law, the renunciation of confrontation and enmity in favour of confidence and good-neighbourliness, and mutual regard for the interests of countries and peoples. There is a growing awareness of the need to elaborate generally acceptable approaches to global challenges, to seek universal consensus and to achieve comprehensive international security in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations.
The time has come for concrete action that would allow, without excessive reliance on methods involving military force, the activation of the mechanism of political and legal restraint, as well as the peacemaking potential of the non-military components of security. The United Nations can and should play a major role in that respect. The Ukrainian delegation is in favour of making the most effective use of United Nations potential to prevent crises and maintain international peace and security. We are firmly convinced that it is through the United Nations and with its assistance that a secure and non-violent world can be established, the first outlines of which can be discerned even today.
The path leading to such a world is not an easy one. There remain many roadblocks, chief among which is the arms race. Only disarmament can ensure progress towards a secure future. The beneficial influence of the first practical results of disarmament on the overall political climate in the world can already be felt today. Those results are clearly stimulating negotiations in other areas.
The order of the day is nuclear disarmament. In that context, an early conclusion of an agreement between the USSR and the United States on a 50 per cent reduction of strategic offensive arms is of paramount importance, as is the eventual complete elimination of nuclear weapons. The strategy of nuclear deterrence is clearly indefensible. It essentially means the perpetuation of nuclear weapons with all the fatal consequences they entail.
The question of halting all nuclear testing has become of special importance. It is central in keeping the general nuclear-weapons situation under control. The Ukrainian delegation supports the calls for early consideration by the Geneva Conference on Disarmament of the problem relating to a comprehensive nuclear-test ban. The proposals to extend the 1963 Treaty Banning Nuclear Weapon Tests in the Atmosphere, in Outer Space and under Water to underground tests could be considered as one way of addressing the problem. A mutual Soviet-United States moratorium on all nuclear tests could serve as a prelude to a verifiable comprehensive nuclear-test-ban agreement.
Should the arms· race extend to outer space, international security would be undermined in an unpredictable way, and the threat of global catastrophe would increase immeasurably. Outer space must remain peaceful and open for international co-operation in its exploration for the benefit of all nations. In that context, we have high hopes for the Soviet-United States dialogue and the intensified effort towards practical results on the work of the Geneva Conference on Disarmament.
Today real conditions exist for the total and global elimination of chemical stockpiles and a ban on development and production of these weapons. The encouraging progress achieved in Geneva, where work on a convention banning chemical weapons and eliminating stockpiles of them is in its final stage, as well as the Soviet-United States approach to this issue, are proof of that. The Ukrainian delegation believes that the General Assembly at its forty-fourth session must urge the Conference on Disarmament to bring negotiations to a successful conclusion at the earliest possible date. The conclusion of a convention would undoubtedly make a major contribution to the process of real disarmament, started by the elimination of Soviet and United States intermediate and shorter-range nuclear missiles, and would signify its diversification and its elevation to the multilateral level.
There should be no areas closed to disarmament talks. A comprehensive approach to solving disarmament problems would appear to be the most productive. The progress of negotiations in Vienna confirms that this is an entirely justified and realistic way of dealing with the issue. Proposals and counter-proposals advanced by the War saw Treaty and North Atlantic Treaty Organization member States have opened up a teal prospect of reaching early agreement on a gradual switchover to a defensive military doctrine and to the development of armed forces on the principle of reasonable sufficiency.
As the socialist countries members of the Warsaw Treaty organization stated at the Bucharest meeting of the Political Consultative Committee, they see the immediate goal of negotiations to be the establishment, as early as in a first-stage agreement, of common ceilings, equal for both alliances, on the aggregate numbers of troops and the amounts of main types of armaments in Europe and its various parts. New levels would be considerably lower than the current lowest levels of either side.
Drastic reductions of armed forces and conventional armaments in Europe in the next few years, coupled with a phased reduction and, ultimately, elimination of tactical nuclear weapons, would be are effective means of reducing the risk of war. It would make the disarmament process universal and contribute to enhanced confidence.
On the subject of confidence-building measures, let me stress the special importance that the Ukrainian SSR attaches to developing and expanding measures. We are in favour of extending confidence-building, observation and limitation measures to cover all kinds of military activity, including naval and air force activities. kind of armed forces or armaments should be exempt from the negotiating process.
Our position of principle is to ensure a dynamic transition from individual confidence-building measures, openness and glasnost in international relations to a large-scale policy of confidence in all spheres of military activity without exception as an integral part of security and peace on Earth.
 A sine qua non for ensuring international security is an effective verification regime. We are firmly convinced that it should embrace all aspects of the disarmament process, leading to the establishment of a comprehensive disarmament verification system. The United Nations can, and indeed must, make a substantial contribution to it.
Recently we have often heard concern voiced at the fact that multilateral disarmament measures are lagging behind bilateral ones. This situation should be remedied. Prospects of multilateral disarmament would look much better if the Security Council, pursuant to Article 26 of the United Nations Charter, were to take & meaningful interest in the ,maintenance of international peace and security with the least diversion ... of the world's human and economic resources, for the cause of armaments. In other words, it should seek to ensure security at the lowest possible levels of armament in individual States - levels sufficient for their defence but insufficient for offence.
The initial steps taken towards real disarmament open up prospects of channelling resources released in this way to meeting the needs of social and economic development. The problem of converting military production to civilian use is now being addressed in practical terms.
Conversion undoubtedly poses complicated problems, involving retooling and reorienting plants and re-employing and retraining personnel, and so on. It therefore seems all the more necessary to pool our efforts to solve those problems at all levels - national, regional and global - drawing upon the experience so far accumulated in this area.
We have· every hope that the United Nations and its specialized agencies will conduct specific studies and make recommendations on individual aspects of the problem. It is essential, however, that the United Nations should be able to collect all information available and thus become a kind of centre for developing a global strategy on converting military production. Many conversion studies conducted both in the East end in the West have demonstrated that conversion not only is feasible but will also have positive social and economic effects.
What is becoming increasingly clear is that military expenditures slow down economic, technological and social development. It is to be regretted that that these conclusions have not been supported everywhere. Nevertheless, we would like to hope that a conversion in thinking is not too far off either. What we need is to share our experience on an international scale and to work out together approaches to, and criteria for, converting military production. Disarmament is important - and not just as an end in itself. It should become an additional resource for raising the living standards of peoples and giving them tangible benefits. In our view  the famous phrase ,We shall beat swords into ploughshares, is an apt description of the indivisible triad of disarmament  conversion and development.
Now let me make one final point on the problems of disarmament. This concerns the role of the public  of parliaments - citizens' diplomacy. We should like to see the international public exerting even more vigorous efforts in the context of the World Campaign for Disarmament. The United Nations seminar on multilateral confidence-building and war-preventing measures held last September in Kiev proved that such projects were useful. The Ukrainian SSR intends to continue its support for activities related to the World Campaign for Disarmament.
Over decades the entire system of international relations has been in a state of tension generated by regional conflicts. The last year  however  has brought us the first gleams of hope.
We needed a policy that would take into account the realities of the nuclear age so as to make headway in attaining a political settlement of existing crises. We needed new thinking that would give us a view of the world not in the light of confrontation and a balance of forces  but in the light of a balance of interests  We can new speak about a new situation. A chain reaction of positive changes, varying in scale and importance, has affected almost all regional crises. A kind of pattern for settling them is taking shape. Typically, it features a realistic approach to evaluating the actual state of affairs in conflict areas, the political will and readiness to reach compromise, a quest for national reconciliation with no external interference# the use by the major parties to the conflict of negotiating machinery with United Nations mediation and under its auspices, and the establishment of an institution of international guarantors.
We are highly appreciative of the contribution made by the United Nations to the drafting and conclusion of the Geneva Agreements on Afghanistan. The Organization should play a major role now as well, in ending the bloodshed and attaining political solutions in Afghanistan affairs, as provided for in the Geneva Agreements and the resolution adopted at the forty-third session of the General Assembly. The United Nations, and above all, its Secretary-General, are able actively to promote intra-Afghan dialogue and to establish the machinery for a political settlement enlisting the involvement of Afghanistan's neighbours.
The Foreign Minister of Afghanistan, Mr. Abdul Wakil, proposed here a clear and constructive plan for an Afghanistan settlement. Regarding the plan's external aspects, the situation around Afghanistan could be best settled by an international conference, to be attended by Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iran, India, China, the United States, the Soviet Union and the country serving as Chairman of the Movement of Non-Aligned Countries. It would be convened for the purpose of reaching agreement on ending supplies of weapons to the warring parties and guaranteeing Afghanistan's status as a demilitarised and neutral State, friendly towards its neighbours.
These provisions would be included in the country's new Constitution. Such an approach to, and a way out of, the crisis is fully in keeping with the imperatives and spirit of the times.
The general trend towards improved international relations, reduced tensions, and the diminished risk of war has cleared the way for a settlement in the Middle East. The world has, by and large, come to realize that this calls for collective efforts at an international conference under the auspices of the United Nations which would offer an opportunity for the parties to the conflict to reach a historic compromise. It could undertake an exhaustive examination of the proposals designed to attain a comprehensive settlement in the Middle East. Prospects for a non-violent solution to the impasse caused by a longstanding confrontation have emerged in southern Africa as well. At the same time, it is quite clear that the dynamics and endurance of a solution to the problems facing southern Africa are directly proportional to the speed with which the dismantling of the apartheid regime can proceed, for the regimes is the toot cause of the region's tensions. The international community must do its utmost to bar the apartheid regime's admittance to the third millennium.
Encouraging steps have been taken towards a real settlement in Central America. They make it incumbent upon all the members of the international community to support the still fragile process towards reaching a final settlement that would accommodate the interests of all the parties concerned. We commend highly the agreement reached by the five Central American Presidents as well as their awareness of the region's problems and their wisdom, audacity and realism. We welcome the constructive and flexible position of the Nicaraguan Government, which is complying faithfully and scrupulously with its obligations and showing its genuine interest in bringing peace to the region.
Like all other States, we have an interest in establishing a zone of peace, co-operation and neutrality in South-East Asia. The road towards this goal lies through achieving a settlement in Cambodia. The withdrawal of Vietnamese forces from Cambodia creates the necessary conditions and prerequisites for a comprehensive settlement of the Cambodian problem. This involves measures to prevent civil war and genocide and to adopt international guarantees for Cambodia's status as an independent, peaceful, neutral and non-aligned State.
The implementation of proposals put forward by the People's Democratic Republic of Korea on the peaceful, democratic reunification of Korea and the withdrawal of foreign armed forces from the territory of that nation would promote peace and security on the Korean peninsula and clear the way for a unified Korea to join the United Nations.
We advocate broad and constructive interaction among all members of the international community in eliminating hotbeds of tension through political means on a just, honest and, hence, solid basis. All States, great and small alike, and international organizations - above all, the United Nations - have an important contribution to make to this end.
Our Organization has not yet fully tapped its potential in conflict-prevention. The resources of the Security Council and the possibilities of the Secretary-General have not yet been fully utilized. We share the conclusions in the report of the Secretary-General on the role and significance of preventive diplomacy.
While duly recognizing the current positive trends in political relations among States, we cannot but note the lack of real progress in the development of the economic interaction of States. The situation of the world economy remains unstable, and existing problems are getting worse.
The economic situation of developing countries is particularly disturbing. They are still suffering from backwardness, external debt, inequality in international trade and various kinds of protectionist and other unlawful measures used by the strong against the weak. The present system of international economic relations does not meet the interests of the overwhelming majority of States and is undemocratic.
The growing economic interdependence of States and the internationalisation of economic life has set the stage for the development of co-operation and healthier international economic relations. These goals have been advanced by the production, at the United Nations, of the idea of international economic security, aimed at achieving an equitable, generally advantageous and generally acceptable state of the world economy and international economic relations and at creating conditions for peaceful coexistence and co-operation among all States, regardless of their level of development or of their socio-economic system.
In recent years the environment issue has firmly established itself on the list of international priority problems. The problem of environmental protection can be resolved effectively only at the global level. We very much appreciate the role of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) in mobilizing the efforts of the world community to prevent environmental catastrophe. We need to develop and improve the potential of the United Nations in monitoring, assessing and predicting threats to the environment and in providing relief assistance in case of environmental emergencies. The Ukrainian SSR supports the idea of setting up, within the framework of the United Nations, a centre for urgent environmental assistance. The work of that centre could bring the conservation efforts of international organizations to a new and higher level and would be a practical contribution to overcoming environmental crises.
The international conference on environment and development, scheduled for 1992, will have to draft a world strategy for environmental survival. The proposed mandate of the conference is almost perfectly in keeping with the goals and purposes of the international environmental security concept initiated by the Ukrainian SSR, together with Czechoslovakia and other countries.
We hear more and more people demanding that protection of the environmental health of the planet be placed on a solid foundation of international co-operation. That gives us the hope that environmental security will be ensured and that the environment will not suffer irreparable damage. As was pointed out at the Congress of People's Deputies of the Soviet Union, it is criminal to drain the world economy through the arms race and to ignore the need for preserving man's habitat.
Today, more than ever before, the correctness of a country's historical direction is to be judged by the human dimension of its domestic and foreign policy. A State's participation in united Nations humanitarian activities and its rejection of double standards is a clear indication that it cares about people and is striving to preserve universal human values. I should like to address just one aspect of this topic.
Virtually all those- who have spoken during the general debate have voiced great concern about the problem of drug abuse. Possessing huge financial resources, criminal drug trafficking syndicates are undermining the political and economic foundations of States and ate entangling governmental and judicial institutions in a web of corruption. Millions of people are losing their health, and even their lives, to drugs. No one can overcome this evil single-handedly. Only joint efforts can produce the desired result. International conferences on drug-abuse control have demonstrated that the world community is serious in combating this scourge. The Convention against Illicit Trafficking in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances and other instruments adapted to fight drug abuse were the result of the growing awareness among States of the global nature of this problem.
The international co-operation that has clearly emerged in this field must be developed further. What is necessary is close interaction and co-ordinated efforts in combating drug trafficking and drug abuse. We believe that the United Nations could take the next logical step in this direction by proclaiming a decade for combating drug abuse and illicit trafficking in narcotic drugs.
The Ukrainian delegation is prepared to submit a draft resolution on the subject for consideration at this session of the General Assembly. The General Assembly could ask the Economic and Social Council and the Commission on Narcotic Drug? to draft a programme for such a decade to be adopted by the General Assembly.
At the heart of such а programme as we see it, there would be measures for the effective implementation of conventions to fight drug abuse and the 1987 Interdisciplinary Plan, as well as activities sponsored by the United Nations Fund to combat drug abuse, and the integration of efforts at the national level. The convening of an appropriate international conference could constitute one of the stages of the programme. The conference could review progress in implementing the programme for the decade and decide on further steps.
Finally, the Ukrainian SSR is prepared to co-operate actively with all countries in strengthening the international legal order and drafting specific measures to enhance the role of international law. In our view, a decade of international law, proposed by the non-aligned countries, could promote this objective. Our policy of asserting the supremacy of international law is intimately related to the process of creating our own State based on a genuine rule of law. Bringing the norms of domestic legislation, into full conformity with its international obligations, the Ukrainian SSR stands in solidarity with all States that are also striving to achieve higher standards of legal protection for the individual.
The renaissance of the United Nations is linked with renewed hopes for a peaceful future. We hope that efforts to create a world in much peaceful, civilized relations among States and nations rule supreme will meet with the support of all delegations attending the forty-fourth session. We hope that the work of the General Assembly will impart a new impetus to progress towards a more secure future and help turn the United Nations into an effective instrument of peace.


On behalf of the Thai delegation, permit me to extend to Ambassador Garba our warmest congratulations on his unanimous election to the presidency of the forty-fourth session of the General Assembly. His recognized wisdom, proven diplomatic skill and strong dedication will undoubtedly contribute to the successful work of this Assembly at an important juncture in the life of the United Nations. We are grateful to Nigeria and, indeed, to Africa for providing us with the services of one of its most distinguished sons.
Permit me also to take this opportunity to pay tribute to Mr. Dante M. Caputo, President of the forty-third session, for the leadership, dedication and wisdom he has shot over the past year.
May I also extend our warm felicitations to all the Vice-Presidents of the General Assembly. While representing the different regions of the world, they also reflect the universality of the United Nations.
Developments over the past year enable me to maintain a high degree of hope and optimism. Twelve months ago, I stood here at this podium and welcomed a new and more encouraging trend in international affairs: a trend towards peace and accommodation; a trend towards co-operation and consensus among the permanent members of the Security Council; a trend towards what I called "a new world order of peace and justice". It is a trend that I believe continues to be discernible.
But it is also clear that numerous and substantial tasks remain before us.
Detente and relaxation of tensions among the major Powers have not been translated in all cases into resolution of outstanding regional and global issues. In many cases, what is urgently required is a more active intervention on the part of an impartial international body such as the United Nations. The time is ripe for the United Nations to act with increased vigour. We should not let the opportunity provided by a more favourable international environment pass us by.
The dream of a free Namibia needs to be realized with the full implementation of the United Nations plan for the Independence; of Namibia. The return to Namibia, after 30 years of exile, of Mr. Sam Nujoma, the courageous nationalist, augurs well and should be a positive step for peace in that country. Sadly, no significant progress has been made in neighbouring South Africa. The bankrupt policy of apartheid continues. We have spoken in outrage of this inhuman policy and system. We have condemned it in this and other forums. The United Nations must continue to press Pretoria to make the necessary transition, by focusing attention on the issue and by maintaining political and economic pressure. We can only hope that reason and good sense will prevail soon enough to avert the tragedy waiting to occur in South Africa.
In the Middle East, the question of Palestine also remains unresolved. The Palestine Liberation Organization's acceptance of Security Council resolutions 242 (1967) and 338 (1973) was a major step forward. Yet peace is not at hand. The inalienable rights of the Palestinians are still being denied. The intifadah is a manifestation of the struggle for freedom that continues unabated in the occupied territories of the West Bank and Gaza.
The overwhelming majority of members of this Assembly have made clear what needs to be accomplished. The foundation for a possible solution has been established with Security Council resolutions 242 (1967) and 338 (1973) as well as other Security Council and General Assembly resolutions and decisions. Let these serve as guidelines towards an eventual settlement of this problem, which for too long has held back peace in the Middle East.
Earlier this morning, I listened with great interest to President Mubarak's speech. My delegation was encouraged by recent developments which have helped to produce conditions favourable for the launching of dialogue between the Palestinians and the Israelis without pre-conditions. My delegation wishes also to express the earnest hope that this proposed dialogue will lead to a "converging perception of steps which would pave the way for peace and for overall agreement on conditions for a comprehensive settlement". Furthermore, Thailand has always supported the convening of an international peace conference as part of this process in order that a final comprehensive political settlement can be achieved, paving the way to a durable peace in this important region of the world.
As we look north from Palestine, we see the continuation of another conflict, one that has caused so much suffering and so many deaths. For so many years, members of the international community have tried hard, but in vain, to end the bloodshed in Lebanon. A political solution through national reconciliation is desperately needed in Lebanon.
I welcome the Arab League Committee's announcement of 16 September proposing a new peace plan for Lebanon. My delegation hopes that all the parties concerned, including the United Nations itself, will join the Arab League in working for the immediate termination of the hostilities that have gone on for far too long in Lebanon.
Closer to home, developments concerning the Korean Peninsula continue to be very important to the question of peace and stability in north-east Asia. For this reason, the unification initiative by President Roh Tae Wco deserves serious consideration. Furthermore, we would welcome any move by the Koreans to join this Organization if they so desired, for we believe in the principle of universality of membership in the United Nations.
In my delegation's immediate part of the world, the question of Kampuchea also remains unresolved. The General Assembly has for 10 years laid down guidelines for the restoration of peace and security in that war-torn country, but thus far, diplomatic efforts within and outside the Organization have proved insufficient. The two Jakarta Informal Meetings convened over the past year were significant regional efforts. The Paris International Conference on Cambodia in August helped the parties and participants concerned to come to grips with the complex technical problems and difficult political issues. My own Government has attempted to maintain informal dialogues with the Kampuchean parties concerned to avert large-scale hostilities. But peace remains elusive.

Only a political settlement of the Kampuchean problem in a comprehensive manner can assure a return to peace and order in that country. A solution which addresses only one or two out of the multitude of aspects for a comprehensive settlement will invite prolonged hostilities and impose further hardship on the Kampucheans.
My delegation notes the announced withdrawal of foreign troops from Kampuchea. But in the absence of United Nations supervision, control and verification, we are unable to be confident that all the foreign troops have left. And indeed, the reality on the ground at present appears to be one of intensified fighting.
My delegation believes that it is crucial and most pragmatic for the United Nations to be intimately involved in the implementation of any peace plan for Kampuchea. The institutional expertise and long experience of the United Nations are universally acknowledged, especially in the area of peace-keeping and in the preparations for, and supervision of, free, fair and democratic elections. The same applies to the repatriation of the half million Kampuchean refugees and displaced persons. A central role for the United Nations in reconstruction and rehabilitation efforts for Kampuchea will also be vitally important.
Let me now turn to the problem of refugees in South-East Asia. Refugees and displaced persons from Kampuchea, Laos and Viet Nam remain a humanitarian problem of some magnitude. For this reason, my delegation recalls with much satisfaction the International Conference on Indo-Chinese Refugees, convened in Geneva by the Secretary-General this past June. The Declaration and the Comprehensive Plan of Action adopted at that Conference contain much-needed and timely guidelines for coping with this problem in an all-embracing and balanced manner by all who are directly concerned within the region and beyond. It was good work. I commend all who participated and made it possible to arrive at the conclusion we reached. The co-operation of the international community is still essential and, it is hoped, will he forthcoming at the levels required.
Let me move from problems of the various regions to problems that affect all of us without exception on this planet. The first among these is the continuing build-up of conventional, nuclear and chemical weapons. Billions upon billions of dollars continue to be channelled to developing and deploying armaments. The major Powers among us now have instruments capable of destroying this planet many times over.
A reduction of a mere 2 per cent of these expenditures by major Powers would yield upwards of at least $200 billion a year in resources for peaceful development purposes. This is four times more than the total amount of resources available in the world for development today. Such a small reduction in the defence budgets of the major Powers in the armaments field cannot possibly nullify their military capability to defend themselves. But the resources that could be diverted to development purposes would help redress economic imbalances and mitigate some of the causes of regional conflicts.
With this in mind, my delegation welcomes the report of progress made in the disarmament talks between the United States and the Soviet Union. My delegation hopes that progress in bilateral negotiations will be complemented by progress in multilateral negotiations. This week, from this same podium, the President of the United states and the Soviet Foreign Minister made important proposals on the subject of chemical weapons. We welcome both proposals as significant initiatives marking a major step towards the global elimination of all types of chemical weapons.
Another problem which affects all of us on this planet as we approach the beginning of the twenty-first century is the environment - our common environment. How well mankind may survive into the next century depends upon how well we preserve and conserve the Earth's environment. The list of serious environmental problems grows ever longer. We pollute the air we breathe, the water we drink, the soil we till. We let loose chemicals that puncture holes in the ozone layer, and we dump our dangerous unwanted toxic wastes upon one another. At this rate, we cannot hope to pass on to posterity the environmental heritage entrusted to us by preceding generations of humanity. I am pleased to share with the Assembly my Government's own modest efforts addressed in our current national economic and social development plan. Logging concessions have been revoked. Urgent measures are being made in reforestation throughout the Kingdom. We have also designated 1989 as the Year of Natural Resources Preservation and Environmental Protection. We will intensify public- awareness of environmental issues.
But environmental issues cannot be successfully tackled by single nations or even groups of nations. They require the universal support and efforts that can be marshalled only by the United Nations. We must devise common strategies to combat these pressing problems at the national, regional and international levels. Our common strategies must be based on full awareness of these problems and dangers. My delegation is pleased that the environment is now receiving the broad interest of this world body.
It is fitting and urgently necessary that environmental protection should also be at the top of the regional development agenda. For this reason, my delegation commends the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) for its proposed convening of a ministerial-level conference on the environment for Asia and the Pacific in 1990. We will encourage this conference to produce practical guidelines and measures for immediate implementation. This conference should serve as an important step towards the convening of the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development in 1992. My delegation welcomes Brazil's generous offer to host that important conference.
Another problem of grave concern and magnitude that threatens us all because it recognizes no boundaries is drugs. Drugs are insidious and lethal-, insidious because of the greed they inspire in those who would prey upon us lethal because drugs completely destroy not only the individuals, but also the society of which their individuals are a part. We support those who have declared a war on drugs because war is what it takes to combat and to vanquish this menace.
National efforts are essential and international co-operation and co-ordination are crucial in a total war on drugs. The United Nations convention on this issue adopted in December 1988 points the way towards more effective and comprehensive international efforts. But eradication of this menace cannot succeed if the demand for illicit drugs continues to beckon the supply. Social aid cultural dimensions of the problem at both the demand and the supply ends must be addressed.
I have spoken of global problems that we all share because the Assembly is the most appropriate forum in which to discuss them. They are problems that threaten us and our survival. I have spoken of the need to work as one to tackle them. There is an underlying interdependence we all share. Interdependence has been the driving philosophy of this House. In one major aspect of international life the critical importance of interdependence needs to be further underlined. This is in the economic and the development fields.
My country and most of those within my region believe in an open multilateral trading system. We have been more fortunate than some in our ability to obtain the kind of growth and development we have today. The countries in the Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN) are our partners. So now are the Pacific Rim countries. Together we hope to spur growth and development for the Asia and the Pacific area as a whole. We see this expanded regional co-operation as a means to promote a multilateral trading system which is outward-looking and in harmony with the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT).
Through our regional efforts my delegation hopes to achieve a unanimity of understanding that a free and open multilateral trading system is mutually beneficial over the long term and that, in contrast, protectionism is harmful to all our common inter eats. If those basic objectives could be achieved, perhaps the international community could be on the way towards easing debt and other economic problems. For those reasons my delegation has attached great importance to the Uruguay Round of multilateral trade negotiations and, through it, the promotion of trade liberalization.
In addition, there are other economic problems that must be addressed as well, These include trade imbalances, the fluctuation of exchange rates, depressed commodity prices and the net transfer of financial resources from developing countries. On all those issues unilateral measures will not suffice. Political will, international co-operation and constructive dialogue are required to effect the necessary structural changes.
Here again the role of the General Assembly is a beneficial one. In its wisdom the Assembly has decided to focus the world's attention on these pressing problems at a special session on international economic co-operation in 1990. There are also special categories of countries that need special attention within the framework of the United Nations. For this reason the Second Conference on the Least Developed Countries next year also has my delegation's full support and endorsement.
As we look down the road towards the end of this century and the beginning of the next, I am convinced that we could be on the threshold of an era of unprecedented peace and prosperity. International co-operation and understanding are the key components of any strategy to reach these goals. In such a strategy I see the United Nations as an indispensable instrument and our deliberations here as the necessary catalyst. I also see the role of the Secretary-General as crucial in these common endeavours. Under the leadership of our Secretary-General the Organization has made a difference. Under him it has become even more relevant to our lives. I wish the President of the Assembly great success in overseeing the important work that lies before us. At the end of this forty-fourth session I trust we shall be one step closer to the goals of peace and prosperity we seek for all mankind.


The sessions of the General Assembly of our Organization offer Government officials such as ourselves the solemn opportunity both to give the views of our respective countries on the status of the world and to take a look at prospects for its future. I myself am particularly honoured to address the Assembly for the first time on behalf of my country, Gabon.
1 should like first of all to discharge the pleasant duty of conveying to President Joseph Garba, the Permanent Representative of Nigeria to the United Nations, on behalf of His Excellency El Hadj Omar Bongo, the President of Gabon, and on my own behalf, the warmest fraternal congratulations of the Gabonese people on his brilliant election to the presidency of the forty-fourth session of the General Assembly. The confidence thus demonstrated shows the esteem he enjoys among us, and is a tribute to his outstanding qualities as a man well versed in international affairs and his commitment to the Special Committee against Apartheid, which he chairs. The President may rest assured that in this body the Gabonese delegation will be guided by its firm determination to make a sincere contribution to the success of our work.
It is my delegation's conviction that under the presidency of Joseph Garba the deliberations of the Assembly will proceed in the spirit of the principles and purposes of the Charter of our Organization for the achievement of a just and equitable world.
We should also like to congratulate the members of the Bureau, who are working with the President to ensure the success of our deliberations. We take pleasure in availing ourselves of this opportunity to thank Mr. Garba's predecessor, Mr. Dante Caputo of Argentina, and his Bureau for the invaluable work they did during the forty-third session.
To the Secretary-General, Mr. Javier Perez de Cuellar, my country would like to pay a well-deserved tribute for the self-sacrifice, talent and complete dedication he has shown in carrying out his difficult tasks. By way of illustration I would mention his recent visit to southern Africa, as well as his participation in both the twenty-fifth summit of the Organization of African Unity and the ninth summit of the Non-Aligned Movement.
With the experience it has acquired from the various trials, tribulations and upheavals that have taken place since its creation, our Organization is more than ever aware of its place and its responsibilities with regard to the destiny of mankind. Each of us must become aware of the need for all Members to take part in world decisions in this body, for without a doubt the United Nations remains, the centre for the harmonizing of the actions of nations in the attainment of common ends.
The signing of the American-Soviet agreement of 8 December 1987 on the dismantling of intermediate-range nuclear missiles? the conclusions of the Belgrade summit last September, and the determination then restated by the non-aligned countries to work towards the building of a better world; the very recent American and Soviet proposals for the elimination of chemical weapons? the tireless activities of the United Nations in these spheres - all have given rise to a climate of detente and confidence truly propitious for the peaceful settlement of regional conflicts.
The same applies to Afghanistan, and Gabon hopes that, following the Geneva agreements, as well as the withdrawal of foreign troops, an international and national consensus might emerge to enable the Afghan people to express its legitimate aspirations and devote its resources to the rebuilding of its country without external interference of any kind.
As regards Cambodia, we take pleasure in noting with interest the role played by the ASEAN countries at the Jakarta meetings, and the first peace initiative of France, which has led to the creation of three so-called monitoring, safeguard and refugee committees, as well as to the establishment of an ad hoc committee. The mission of inquiry of the Secretary-General in Cambodia, as well as the establishment of machinery for international monitoring, are not only a useful tool but also and above all a prerequisite for a return to peace in that country.
Concerning the Korean peninsula, my country has always worked for peaceful unification in a framework of sincere joint efforts that take into account the will of the Korean people as a whole, a necessary prerequisite for the genuine representation of that country in our Organization.
Taking advantage of the overall climate of detente, the parties to the Iran-Iraq conflict have agreed to negotiate in Geneva on the basis of Security Council resolution 598 (1987). We can only welcome this, while exhorting the two parties to commit themselves to doing their utmost to help the Secretary-General in the full implementation of that resolution. That is how they can show their true willingness to achieve peace.
As regards the Middle East crisis, my country has always held the view that its settlement requires the total and unconditional withdrawal of Israel from the Arab occupied territories, de jure recognition of the PIO as the sole legitimate representative of the Palestinian people, and free exercise by the latter of its right to self-determination, and its right to have its own State with internationally recognized borders. Gabon, then, fully subscribes to the idea of an international peace conference on the Middle East under the aegis of the United Nations, with the participation of all the parties concerned, including the Palestine Liberation Organization.
I commend here the excellent relations Palestine has had with my country, which were manifested in the opening in 1986, in Libreville, of Palestinian diplomatic representation.
We cannot talk about the situation in the Middle East without dealing with the painful problem of Lebanon because above and beyond the ordeal suffered by its people for more than 15 years, it is Lebanon's survival, that should concern us today. Gabon, therefore welcomes the resumption of the work of the Tripartite Committee of the Arab League on Lebanon, which should form part of overall broad-based diplomatic action, and supports its efforts to find a lasting solution to this real human tragedy.
As regards the situation in Central America, Gabon hails the conclusion of the Esquipulas II and Tela agreements, which pave the way for the return of peace to that region. It also welcomes the Security Council's firm support for these agreements, which should facilitate the achievement of the objectives set forth in the plan.
I could not conclude this part of my statement without touching on the conflicts that beset our dear continent of Africa.
As regards the Chad-Libya border dispute, the Heads of State and Government, at the twenty-fifth summit of the Organization of African Unity (OAU), renewed the mandate of the Ad Hoc Committee, which has been chaired by my country since 1977.
I take pleasure in emphasizing in this connection that the recent conclusion in Algiers of the framework agreement on the settlement of the Chad-Libya border dispute is the logical culmination of the various initiatives of the Ad Hoc Committee and its Chairman. At the twenty-fourth summit of the OAU His Excellency El Hadj Omar Bongo proposed that pride of place be given, as a necessary prerequisite for peace, to the establishment of a climate of confidence between the two countries and the dynamics of dialogue, bringing the two parties together, which would be very significant. The Angolan issue, also, was dealt with by Heads of State of the African sub region, including the President of Gabon, and they reaffirmed their support for the plan for peace and reconciliation in Angola formulated in the Gbadolite declarations.
In international terms, Gabon would like to express its satisfaction to those countries that have provided military observers and international officials, and to the United Nations for all its technical assistance for the verification mission in Angola. As regards Namibia, my country welcomes the implementation of the United Nations plan for the independence of that territory. Furthermore, we express full appreciation to the Secretary-General for his efforts within the framework of Security Council resolutions 629 (1989) and 632 (1989) and urge the South African authorities to co-operate with the United Nations Transition Assistance Group in their implementation.
Finally, we are grateful to the Security Council for its vigilance, shown recently in resolution 640 (1989), whereby it requires that all parties concerned, especially South Africa, comply, among other things, with the provisions of resolution 435 (1978).

The process of Namibia's accession to international sovereignty - long overdue - is today irreversible. The desperate manoeuvres at intimidation of the civilian population and the attacks against the leaders of the South West Africa People's Organization - all plots hatched by a minority of proponents with a backward-looking, anachronistic vision of history - cannot stop or delay its implementation.
The situation in Namibia is not the only source of tension in southern Africa. Apartheid, which has become a crime against humanity, is also a considerable source of tension. That is why, now more than ever before, and taking into account current political developments - the results of the sustained action of forces for change within South Africa and of external pressure - Gabon demands that the state of emergency be ended and that all political prisoners, including in particular Nelson Mandela, be released. furthermore, we ask those who still
support that regime to face the facts and to help in the total eradication of that shameful system.
I could not conclude my statement on the political situation in Africa without referring to the burning question of the Comorian island of Mayotte. Gabon reaffirms its solidarity with the fraternal people of Comoros and reiterates its determination to continue its efforts to have the Comorian island of Mayotte returned to its homeland. I come now to international economic issues, which various parties have met to discuss. Among other issues, I want to mention the Interim Committee of the International Monetary Fund, which met in Washington on 31 March 1989 and at which Gabon presided, and the last summit of the seven most industrialized countries held quite recently in Paris.
If we have seen a slight improvement in 1988 and 1989, as compared with previous years, we are bound to note that the developing countries have not really benefited from it. The trend of negative net transfers from our countries to the industrialized world and the international financial institutions, the deterioration in the terms of trade, the increase in international interest rates and a reduction in the gross domestic product of our various countries are the best illustration of this.
As regards the delicate problem of debt, which in 1988, according to the estimates of the World Bank, had reached the outrageous sum of 31,245 billion for all the developing countries taken together, including 3230 billion for African countries alone, it is well known that the current cost of servicing this, by absorbing a growing proportion of export and budgetary income, is undermining adjustment efforts and is a major obstacle to the development prospects of our countries. I . spite of the rescheduling agreed to by creditors, our countries have not yet been able to achieve an overall improvement in the financial balance.
The African countries in particular, with the assistance of international financial institutions, have even set up programmes of structural adjustment in order to cope with their serious indebtedness. The Gabonese Government, for its part, has, since 1986, established an adjustment programme with the objective, on one hand, of remedying the medium-term imbalances, both internal and external, and, on the other hand, of reducing the vulnerability of our countries to fluctuations in the price of oil.
We must admit that these efforts have not yielded all the desired results. Therefore, taking into account the reasons for these distortions, the African countries have advocated, within the framework of the Organization of African Unity (OAU), collective steps with a view to tailoring structural adjustment programmes to the specific characteristics of the countries concerned. This approach is in accordance with the general guidelines suggested in the African Alternative Framework to Structural Adjustment Programmes for Socio-economic Recovery and Transformation (AAF-SAP) , submitted last July at the fiftieth session of the Council of Ministers of the OAU, which adopted it, and by the Executive Secretary of the Economic Commission for Africa. Gabon requests that the General Assembly, in turn, adopt the AAF-SAP and hopes that the Development Committee of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, as well as the Group of 24, will do likewise.
Furthermore, my country notes with interest the American initiative - the so-called Brady Plan - and the announcement, by President François Mitterrand in Dakar, of the intention to write off the public debt of 35 African countries. Even though Gabon aid other medium-income countries have not benefited from this last measure, these are initiatives that we hope will lead to additional resources, and they are a real cause for satisfaction. In any case, they demonstrate the emergence of solidarity between North and South. Gabon, for its part, hopes that
provisions to reduce the volume of trade debt and alleviate the cost of servicing it will be adopted. In this spirit, my country urges the creditor community to be impartial by establishing greater equity in the treatment of debt.
I should like to take this opportunity to salute the Canadian Government for its recent initiative in writing off the debt of medium-income African countries. By and large, the economies of the developing countries will not show real growth so long as the prices of raw materials are not at a level that takes into account the movement in those of manufactured goods and the sluggishness of international markets.
The international detente which we all agree should be emphasized and the development efforts agreed on for my country are aimed at achieving a better life for mankind in a sound environment.
As regards the environment, the perils of the modern world - such as industrial pollution of the air, the warming trend in the planet, the greenhouse effect, the depletion of the ozone layer, and the dumping and storing of waste of all types, to name only a few - call for world-wide attention.
In the face of what might seem to be a brake on progress, my country has adopted measures that should alleviate the repercussions on its people. I am thinking particularly of the establishment, in the Ministry of the Environment and the Protection of Nature, of a national anti-pollution centre and the establishment of a policy on the recycling and treatment of waste produced by our country and programmes to improve and preserve living resources through the reforestation of specific areas. It is in this spirit that, in international terms, my country welcomes the recent decision of the World Bank to include the idea of protection of the environment in the development projects that it finances. We also support the convening, in 1992, of a United Nations conference on the environment and development, described as a development which will help to meet the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to satisfy their needs.
Over and above the fears caused by degradation or deterioration of the environment scourges such as the problem of drugs are no less serious in undermining our societies. Although confined, so far, to certain regions, the spectre of this calamity haunts the rest of the world. That situation led my country to convene, in June 1989 its first national seminar on the drug problem, and the recommendations to be adopted will include the setting up of an inter-ministerial committee to combat drugs, the development of a toxicology laboratory in Libreville for regional use, and the introduction of legislation on the use of, and trafficking in, narcotic drugs, adapted to the requirements of the penal code and the public-health code.
These recommendations, which are similar to those enunciated by the President of the United States, and to those contained in the Secretary-General's plan, will we hope, help to stamp out this scourge of our times. Among all the ills that afflict our world today, AIDS is the most mind-boggling. Its lightening-like progression, as well as the devastation it wreaks, are staggering.
Our countries, whose health infrastructures still have to be improved upon, are particularly concerned over this threat and we are following with the greatest of interest the efforts made by researchers the world over to find a cure. Gabon, thanks to its facilities for advanced medical research at the international centre in Franceville, recently organized a symposium on AIDS. We are firmly determined to continue, through this machinery, to make our contribution to the campaign against this terrible illness, and hope to see an intensification and diversification of exchanges with similar facilities in the rest of the world.
The developing countries, committed as we are, along with international financial institutions, to programmes of structural adjustment, cannot overlook the effects of those programmes on the poorest strata of our society, especially the risk of social upheaval, which is bound to threaten international peace and detente.
Thus, after the Bamako Initiative, the proposals made by the United Nations Children's Fund for "adjustment with a human face" - the only way our countries can hope to begin developing - were welcomed by us.
While efforts made in recent years for international detente are worthy of praise, it seems nevertheless necessary to call the attention of our Assembly to the fact that its gradual establishment has not yet led to significant changes in international relations.
Our times demand that detente not be thought of as immobility, or as a breathing spell for the great Powers, lb the contrary, by its underlying dynamism detente should serve the cause of world peace.
Our common destiny requires that we work towards this together in order to achieve one of the major objectives of our Organization, to "save succeeding generations from the scourge of war".
More than ever it is time to act with determination in order to achieve this end. Our Organization has so many commitments to meet, that only this prospect will allow for the achievement of the ideal of peace, which is the basis of all of Gabon's policies.
Peace, justice and harmony in Africa and in the rest of the world: that is the message that my country wished, through me, from this lofty rostrum, to address to this Assembly.


I am privileged to be afforded this opportunity to congratulate Mr. Garba on his election to the office of President of the forty-fourth session of the United Nations General Assembly, secure in the knowledge that his vast and varied experience will serve to ensure a fruitful and constructive session.
I would also like to express my delegation's appreciation and congratulations to his predecessor, Mr. Dante Caputo, for the able manner in which he presided over the forty-third session of the General Assembly.
The Commonwealth of Dominica is a firm believer in the principles espoused and the goals pursued by the United Nations and its subsidiary agencies. We have been particularly heartened by the significant role played by the United Nations in the redaction of tension and the resolution of conflicts in the recent past. Foreign troops have departed from Afghanistan and Kampuchea, there is a cease-fire in the Iran-Iraq war, and preparations are under way for free elections in Namibia.
It now remains for the people of Afghanistan and Kampuchea to resolve their internal conflicts and reach for that peace that has unfortunately eluded them for so long.
The United Nations has been rediscovered, as it were, as a mediator, and that bodes well for the future of the Organization and for peace in the world. It demonstrates that this body can operate with some effectiveness once we abandon our contentious attitude and discard the ideological blinders that so often deter efforts to find solutions to the many problems confronting the international community today.
My delegation wishes to commend the Secretary-General and his staff for the progress trade towards free elections in Namibia aid a foreseeable end to the domination of that country by South Africa. The struggle for free expression by all the peoples of southern Africa must, however, continue apace. We need not be reminded that a minority regime continues to dominate and repress the black majority in South Africa. We cannot take any comfort from the intimations of a President whose authority is validated by the evil that is apartheid and who, in the service of the white minority, is bent on the preservation and perpetuation of a system that is abhorrent to the civilized world. In the context of apartheid, gradualism is unacceptable. As long as apartheid exists we cannot, as Members of the United Nations, rest easy. That evil must be eradicated completely, and no effort should be spared in that regard.
The Commonwealth of Dominica believes that only stringent, comprehensive and effective measures by all nations will force the minority Government in South Africa to heed the call for peaceful change to a society of men and women of all races freely participating in all facets of the affairs of their country.
The immediate lifting of restrictions on the press, the end of the state of emergency, and the release of Nelson Mandela aid all other political prisoners would be, in our view, the preliminary indications of the Pretoria regime's intention in good faith to bring about the peaceful change desired by all people of good will.
The extent of human rights abuses in various parts of the world is nothing short of appalling. Members of the Organization, in keeping with the relevant provisions of the Charter, have a duty to denounce any violation of human rights in the strongest possible terms. Adherence to and respect for the principles of the United Nations require every Member to speak up loudly against all human rights abuses, whether it is the brutal repression and massacre of students peacefully seeking democratic change in Asia or the indiscriminate killing of innocent women and children in local conflicts in Africa, Central America or elsewhere. We must untiringly work for a world where the fundamental rights of men and women everywhere are protected against abuse from the State.
The Commonwealth of Dominica welcomes the new spirit of co-operation, openness and frequent discussion between the United States and the Soviet Union. The improvement in super-Power relations and its attendant lessening of tension in the world is an encouraging sign and we fervently hope the process, which has already led to a better climate for international peace and security, will continue, notwithstanding the immense obstacles posed by reactionary forces on both sides. One of the benefits of the new understanding is the recently signed Treaty on the Elimination of Intermediate-Range and Shorter-Range Missiles - the INF Treaty - and current proposals for further education about the stockpile of nuclear weapons, which is still unacceptable large. We dare to hope that one day the world will be free of the fear of nuclear war, but that hope is tempered by the alarming proliferation of nuclear weapons and technology.
The production and distribution of conventional weapons, ever increasing in sophistication and destructiveness, continue to cause problems for regional stability. The appetite for those weapons grows daily, especially in countries strapped for resources to provide the basic economic and social needs of their people. At a time when common sense should dictate a reordering of priorities, many nations irrationally opt for destruction rather than construction. As lamentable as that policy appears to be, there is little hope for its reversal as long as the preservation of power by a few takes precedence over the utilization of power for the good of the many.
At this time every year we make mention of the dangerous state of instability in the Middle East. Division, mistrust end irrationality continues to fuel the conflicts in that area. The international community looks on helplessly as the State of Lebanon is destroyed. As we assemble here the sovereignty and territorial integrity of that once flourishing nation are being violated by the presence of foreign troops on its soil. Its capital city has been reduced to rubble by warring factions. The people of Lebanon deserve a better fate.
Prospects for a solution to the Palestinian uprising in the West Bank and Gaza appear bleak because the underlying issues have not been adequately and seriously addressed. Proclaiming the right of Israel to exist within secure boundaries is only half of an equation which also requires recognition of the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people to self-determination end to a homeland. The question is forced upon us: does the international community lack the will, inclination or purpose of spirit to endeavour to find solutions to the problems of the Middle East, and are we relegated to the task of adopting resolutions, or even to matters like perennially querying the credentials of Israel, that prove meaningless to the people in that region, whose lives are destroyed on a daily basis?
International terrorism continues to be a cons tent threat to the world aid we should recognize it in all its ugly disguises, so that we are the better able to deal with it effectively. Acts of terrorism violate the fundamental tenets of the civilized world community, threatening the democratic freedoms of all mankind. As Members of the United Nations we must band ourselves together to rid the world of this evil, taking every practical measure to conquer the terrorists no matter what their ideological stand.
As with international terrorism, the scourge of illicit drugs must be of immediate concern to all Members of this body. No hope for a halt in the trade in illicit drugs can be entertained unless a concerted international effort, co-ordinated by the United Nations, is undertaken. The problem knows no boundary; it respects no ideology or power; it makes no distinction between rich and poor. North and South, East and West. Its engine is driven by the prospect of the huge fortunes capable of being amassed clandestinely and quickly. Nations which once connived at the production of illegal drugs for export have belatedly discovered the pain and misery of drug abuse among their own people.
The Commonwealth of Dominica, like most Members of the Organization, has laws strictly prohibiting the production, distribution and use of illegal drugs. Punishment is swift and certain. But small countries like ours cannot hope to match the resources and organizational effort at the command of those engaged in this unwholesome activity and, from all appearances, a solution to the problem of illicit drugs is beyond the capacity of even the most well-endowed communities acting alone.
Universal in its destructive force, the illegal drug problem presents a unique challenge to the world and an opportunity for co-operative action on an unprecedented scale. As Members of the United Nations we must accept the challenge, and for the sake of humanity we cannot fail to seize the opportunity here and now. Some matters which were of foremost importance 44 years ago have, in some instances, assumed less significance on the agenda, but essentially the United Nations must still make every effort to ensure that we live in a better world. And a better world encompasses a safe environment for all the inhabitants of this earth. The United Nations involvement in the identification of environmental problems and the search for solutions is commendable, but nations must all do more, both collectively and individually, to protect the environment in which we live.
Depending on the economics of the situation, the origin of the problem takes different forms. Industrialized countries are confronted with huge amounts of deleterious waste resulting from the production of an expending variety of goods and services to meet the demands of their customer-driven societies, while the struggle for economic survival in third world countries unfortunately end unavoidably results in the depletion and destruction of ecological systems vital to the balance necessary for maintaining a safe environment. We believe that, given the present state of technology, economic and industrial development is not necessarily incompatible with a healthy environment, aid the development and implementation of programmes for the safe disposal of industrial waste should not be postponed indefinitely. As a complement to that effort we call for increased assistance to those countries which are lacking in the resources necessary for the protection and preservation of important ecological systems.
Citizens of developing countries have the same right to a clean and safe environment as their counterparts in the industrialized world, and the cynical practice of inducing third-world countries to accept waste hazardous to the environment should cease. It is in the interest of all of us to take steps to protect the entire planet.
I am convinced that unless we take a good hard look at ourselves at regular intervals we shall merely continue to meander along with no purpose, with no goal and a good deal of indecision. At a time of budgetary constraints the United Nations can ill afford to react to every whimsical suggestion of every Member State. There are, I believe, sufficient and adequate resolutions of this body on every issue - resolutions which, if implemented, would go a long way to curing the ills of the world. With courage, determination and purposeful commitment, we can make this earth a better and safer place for all its inhabitants.