152.	 Sir, I wish to say how happy I am to associate myself with the preceding speakers in welcoming with great satisfaction and friendship your election to the presidency of the thirty-second session of the United Nations General Assembly. In my view, that choice is fully in accord with the eminent qualities as a diplomat and statesman for which you are noted, and is a tribute to the Federal Socialist Republic of Yugoslavia, a sister country with which we have solid, friendly relations which were established at the beginning of our national liberation struggle and have since been consolidated. Your election also crowns the tireless efforts and dynamic action which you have constantly contributed to our Organization in the interests of the progress of our nations and of peace for mankind. In other words, your election represents to us a pledge of the devotion, effectiveness and success with which you will be guiding our work.
153.	May I also, through you, extend my sincere thanks to your predecessor, Mr. Hamilton Shirley Amerasinghe, the Permanent Representative of the Republic of Sri Lanka to the United Nations, who won general acclaim by the great skill with which he presided over the thirty-first session of our Assembly.
154.	May I be allowed to greet the United Nations Secretary-General, Mr. Kurt Waldheim, whom I am pleased once again to assure of our full co-operation. On behalf of the Government and people of the Republic of Guinea- Bissau, I offer him our congratulations on the noteworthy results constantly being achieved by the United Nations in the interests of our respective nations and of peace for mankind.
155.	I wish also to express my delegation's satisfaction at the admission to the United Nations of the Socialist
Republic of Viet Nam, a country which is both our brother and our friend. Viet Nam, which represents to us the finest example of a people's courage, self-abnegation and love of freedom, has finally taken its rightful place in this comity of nations. To attain that place it has had to make innumerable sacrifices in defence of the principles of our Organization. Hence its admission is, in our view, a historic event and a step forward in the achievement of the objectives of our Charter and of the principle of the universality of the United Nations. I am sure that the brother-people of Viet Nam, for which we have deep admiration, will enrich the United Nations through its remarkable qualities and, above all, its long and dynamic experience in the struggle for peace.
156.	The entry of the Republic of Djibouti into this great United Nations family is a source of pride for all African peoples and for the world at large, which has followed with interest and supported with admiration that people's struggle for independence. We hope that the international community will give the people of Djibouti all necessary assistance in the defence and consolidation of its independence.
157.	Since the thirty-first session, there has been but little substantial change in the problems confronting mankind. Our Organization, despite its praiseworthy efforts, has not managed to give real impetus to international detente. The conflicts which persist here and there should encourage us to unite our co-operative efforts in the search for just and durable solutions.
158.	Once again the oppressed peoples send us an appeal, made urgent by their sufferings, to join them, basing ourselves firmly on the fundamental principles of our Organization, in their search for the necessary ways and means of achieving the complete eradication of all vestiges of colonialism, oppression, injustice and racism.
159.	For our part, we bear in mind as a constant factor in our efforts respect for human rights, equality and the right of peoples to self-determination and the choice of their own destiny. We are all the more attached to these principles because they are indissolubly linked to the documents of international law of the United Nations: the Charter, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, the Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples and the resolutions of the General Assembly and the Security Council.
160.	The people of Guinea-Bissau, who throughout a long armed struggle for national liberation and at the cost of many sacrifices gained their independence and right to freedom, feel as their own the bitter trials undergone by its brothers in southern Africa, and therefore follow with particular interest the developments in that part of the world.
161.	That is why we feel that the United Nations must show more unity and invite Member States to respect and apply its decisions rigorously in order to be able to make an effective contribution to the struggle for peace, and give it wider dimensions and greater impetus.
162.	Since we are unanimous in recognizing and condemning unjust, inhuman and criminal nature of racism, let us also be unanimous in focusing our efforts unreservedly on the struggle against this scourge of the world.
163.	Armed struggle is a necessity, the only means and the only path which can lead the people of southern Africa towards total and real liberation. This means the intransigent defence of the sacred principles with which the international community as a whole is identified. We cannot deny their justice; we cannot refute their objectivity.
164.	The people of South Africa, by rejecting the policy of apartheid and struggling against it with all their force, are defending our own freedom, that of mankind as a whole, which can only be the achievement of all men, without distinction as to race, creed or philosophical belief.
165.	In other words, we -have responsibilities which we must assume in full, bringing to the peoples of southern Africa assistance in accordance with their needs, intensifying it whenever circumstances and the extension of the struggle so demand.
166.	First of all, we must concert our efforts to prevent, by all means possible, a situation in which South Africa would be in a position to use the atomic bomb in order to perpetuate its system of exploitation and oppression. We are aware of this danger, which may have catastrophic consequences, but our apprehension must not be taken to mean anything other than an urgent appeal to countries which, for trade, political or other reasons, feel they must ignore or breach the decisions of the United Nations concerning the supply of equipment, technology and fissionable material to the racist regime of South Africa. There is no guarantee ensuring the use of such technology for peaceful purposes in that country, in view of the inhuman and criminal nature of its regime.
167.	By stepping up our assistance to the oppressed people of South Africa, we should also be contributing to the struggle of the liberation movements in Namibia and Zimbabwe. Only the triumph of the freedom fighters can put an end to the illegal occupation of Namibia by the racist Government of South Africa.
168.	SWAPO, which is the only legitimate representative of the Namibian people, must be assisted effectively and supported by our Organization in all its efforts to eliminate totally South African domination. We firmly hope that soon, through the concerted actions of the freedom fighters and the international community, the true sons of that country can take their place in this Assembly beside us.
169.	The recent decision of the Heads of State and Government at the OAU Assembly in Libreville to recognize the Patriotic Front as the sole representative of the people of Zimbabwe, is not only a clear reflection of the common will of the African States to concentrate their efforts on concerted and more effective action in. support of the freedom fighters of Zimbabwe, but we believe also an appeal from the OAU to the other peoples of the world, and in particular to the United Nations, for active solidarity in support of that brother people.
170.	In view of the repeated acts of aggression on the part of Ian Smith's mercenaries against Mozambique, Zambia and Botswana, acts of aggression which we forcefully condemn, we cannot fail to stress the urgency and the imperative need to co-ordinate our political, diplomatic and material support for the Patriotic Front.
171.	This is all the more essential since it is true that only an increase in the fighting strength of the Patriotic Front, which needs considerable material and financial resources, can really halt the perfidious acts of terrorism and barbarism carried out by the Rhodesian racists against the front-line countries.
172.	The OAU Assembly, at the end of its proceedings in Libreville, also took a vital decision: to convene in the near future an extraordinary session on Western Sahara. This session is most timely, because it is a question of reaffirming, in accordance with the principles and resolutions of the United Nations and the OAU, the inalienable right of peoples to self-determination.
173.	We are convinced that this session will offer good prospects for a final solution of the problem.
174.	But my Government has not forgotten that it is the peoples themselves that determine their future, and no one has the right to impose solutions on them. The peoples will choose, according to the circumstances, the best way to seize their liberty, because independence in the long run must be won.
175.	That is why it is essential, in our opinion, that at the next extraordinary session on the question of Western Sahara the gap between rhetoric and reality be closed and only the voice and the higher interests of the Saharan people should prevail.
176.	The position of my Government in regard to this problem is clear and can only take the form of militant and active solidarity with the Frente POLISARIO and unflinching support for the cause so valiantly defended by the Saharan people/It is history itself, the history of the heroic struggle of peoples for their independence, which inspires us and encourages us in this course.
177.	We should also like to express solidarity with the people and Government of the Comoros, in view of the illegal occupation of part of their national territory by the former colonizing Power. The occupation of Mayotte in contravention of the principles governing international relations is an infringement of the sovereignty of the Comoros and calls for an urgent solution to restore the full rights of the Comorian people in defence of their territorial integrity and unity.
178.	The situation in the Middle East remains one of the essential concerns of my Government. The heroic struggle of the Palestinian people for its most legitimate rights continues to merit particular attention and deserves the total support of all the peoples of the world. How could it be otherwise, indeed, since we are well aware of the worst oppressions and the subjection of the people of Palestine and committed as we all are to the principles of the United Nations Charter, to the defence of man and his right to freedom, peace and well-being?
179.	Faced with the stubborn refusal of Israel to respect and apply the repeated recommendations of the international community, faced with the arrogance of the successive Governments of that country, which, as in a relay race, passes the stick and entrenches itself ostentatiously in the most reactionary positions, the international community must take steps to adopt a more realistic and consistent strategy. Indeed, only the continuous pressure of our concerted forces can speedily produce concrete results and make a positive contribution to the triumph of the struggle of the Palestinian people.
180.	The flood of blood and tears caused by the annexationist policy of the Government of Israel, far from dampening the liberating zeal and the determination of the freedom fighters of the Palestine Liberation Organization, undoubtedly produce new forces, daily more capable of annihilating the chains of oppression.
181.	We feel that we must tell this Assembly yet again that in the opinion of our Government any negotiated solution of the problem must have as an indispensable pre-condition the recognition by Israel of the inalienable right of the Palestinian people to a homeland, to freedom and to progress on the one hand and to the evacuation of the Arab territories occupied since 1967 on the other.
182.	Although we recognize the importance of the positive contribution such a country can make to the much desired settlement of the conflict, there can be no substitute for the legitimate representative of the Palestinian people-that is to say the Palestine Liberation Organization, which, more than anyone else, defends the interests of this brother people. I should like to say again from this rostrum that the Government and people of the Republic of Guinea-Bissau support totally and unconditionally the sacred cause of the brother people of Palestine.
183.	Last year, on the occasion of the thirty-first session of the General Assembly, I raised with some apprehension the question of East Timor and said how concerned my Government was by the situation in that country. Today we have to say that, despite the appeal from the United Nations to Indonesia that country, deaf and insensible, continues its illegal occupation of East Timor, and thousands of the people of Timor, women, children and the aged, are dying or still suffering from the fire and the arrogant boots of the Indonesian armed forces.
184.	This unjust war was imposed on a people which, after having known and endured the long dark night of colonialism were calmly preparing to face courageously the no less terrible problems of development and constitutes in our opinion a flagrant violation of the principles of the United Nations Charter. The very idea that, for reasons of political, military or economic convenience, a country can annex another independent country and trample underfoot the most elementary principles governing human relations is inadmissible and calls for the strongest possible condemnation. In our opinion the United Nations must take appropriate measures with a view to going to the assistance of the people of East Timor who, under the leadership and the impetus of the Frente Revolucionaria de Timor Leste Independente, is conducting a heroic struggle to repel the Indonesian aggressors and to build a land of peace and progress.
185.	But it must be emphasized that in this war it is not simply a matter of the interests of the victims of aggression and of the aggressors: there are also other interests at stake which are better concealed because they are more perfidious in nature, and they should be brought into the open and condemned with equal severity. The Government and people of the Republic of Guinea-Bissau firmly support FRETILIN and the people of Timor in their struggle for true independence and express again their unflinching solidarity with the Democratic Republic of East Timor.
186.	The United Nations once again will have to deal carefully with the situation in Chile, where despite many appeals to the Chilean authorities from the international community urging them to restore and safeguard the rights, the freedom and the well-being of the people of Chile by observing the principles of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the Government of that country continues, with total disdain for human values, to bludgeon and make martyrs of the Chilean people. We feel that the United Nations can do more to help the Chilean people who, in extremely difficult conditions, are carrying on an exemplary struggle for their freedom and for the return of democracy.
187.	The situation in Cyprus demands that we redouble our efforts and work for the maintenance of the independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of the island, inspired by the constant dynamic activity and wisdom of the man who was and will remain one of the greatest figures in the struggle for peace, the late President Makarios. On behalf of the Government and people of the Republic of Guinea-Bissau I should like to take this opportunity to pay an appropriate tribute to his stature, his merits, his talents and his valour.
188.	We hope that the two Cypriot communities, Greek and Turkish, thanks to their will to maintain peace, will arrive at a lasting agreement which will guarantee a brotherly coexistence respecting the rights of all citizens of the Cypriot State.
189.	We have often proclaimed our attachment to the ideals of peace and progress of the United Nations but above all we have expressed our confidence in the unshakable will of the international community to fight for the maintenance of world peace and security. This confidence is further strengthened by the conviction that all Member States are aware of the importance of peace for the progress of their peoples.
190.	We have always followed with great interest the debates in this Assembly concerning this problem and have shared the concerns of the international community in the face of the imminent dangers inherent in the proliferation of nuclear weapons. Our apprehension is justified because it must be noted that the arms race has not slowed down but has even become a contagious disease which, if not tackled swiftly and effectively, may have disastrous, indeed incalculable, consequences for mankind as a whole.
191. Military budgets, although apparently diminishing in official debates and statistics, have not lost their increasingly alarming proportions. It is true that the United Nations has made remarkable efforts to inform world opinion of the problem and to extend its dynamic action to all the nuclear-weapon States.
192.	Today, when we are talking about the neutron bomb, a weapon which is undoubtedly of terrible destructive capacity, it is well to recall that this action, which we firmly support, could not really have truly satisfactory results if it is confined to the simple aim of checking an expansion or proliferation of nuclear weapons.
193.	What we also have to contemplate-and urgently in our opinion-is, through a stage-by-stage negotiation process, total and complete disarmament and the destruction of those weapons which, as long as they exist, are a threat to mankind.
194.	Thus, we welcome the forthcoming convening of a special session of the General Assembly on disarmament, the importance and the pressing need for which we fully appreciate.
195.	We hope, for our part, that the international community will be able, through constructive discussion, to create the basis essential to the signing of a general agreement on the limitation, indeed the destruction, of nuclear weapons.
196.	I wished to mention some of the dangers threatening international security, but the situation currently prevailing in Africa also deserves special attention from us. Africa, despite its differences and peculiarities, is above all a geopolitical whole which history has forged into a vigorous and at the same time sensitive body. The only frontiers in Africa are artificial ones, and no African people, regardless of its economic potential, can ensure its happiness, well- being and development by ignoring the problems affecting its neighbours. It is the very interdependence of African States which is at once their weakness and their strength- which means that any problem, any intra-African conflict, however grave, can always be given a peaceful solution based in African wisdom. This tradition is one of the major strengths of our continent and has largely contributed to the establishment of the OAU and has made it an effective instrument in the search for peaceful solutions to problems which sometimes divide African States.
197.	The OAU Charter embodies a set of principles the observance of which, by all member States, constitutes the pre-condition and the guarantee for a united Africa, committed to the construction of progress in peace.
198.	The major upheavals currently affecting the economic bases of international relations affect all countries and, above all, the developing countries. That is, in any case, why we are all responsible for finding a way out of this situation. But it is not enough to take partial measures to plaster over the existing system. The present system of international economic relations is long out of date, and is detrimental to our interests. It has to be replaced by another system, one that is more just and more equitable. To do this what is needed is not evolution but really revolution.
199.	The proliferation of contacts should be continued and closer co-operation between developed countries with different economic and social systems should be extended to the international community as a whole and thus provide a basis for development towards a new form of economic, trade and technological relations based on national complementarity and establishing the conditions for fuller development in accordance with our needs and potential.
200.	Indeed, one must look increasingly for solutions taking precisely into account the differences in political and economic systems at the end of the twentieth century. New methods, concepts, rules and institutions must be found, harmonized, agreed to and applied, so that, finally and in practical terms, we can start along a path ensuring satisfaction and the meeting of the legitimate aspirations of all peoples, with no discrimination whatsoever. It is well known that these aspirations are being expressed through claims for independence and equality in international relations and for the establishment of economic conditions which make it possible for everyone to live in peace by restoring to the majority of mankind the rights to which they are entitled:
201.	This claim is basically each country's sovereign right to dispose of its natural resources, including the right to nationalize them; the need to introduce into this system of international economic relations instruments which will ensure compensation and make it possible to set up special protective funds against dislocations on the world market; the need to develop a code of conduct for the transfer of scientific and technological discoveries, it being understood that we have to facilitate the access of the developing countries to modern technology, which they-must be able to use on advantageous terms; the need to reinvigorate the search for supplementary sources of financing for economic and social progress in the developing countries.
202.	These claims are nothing new. They were in particular set forth in the Economic Declaration of the Fourth Conference of Heads of State or Government of Non- Aligned Countries in Algiers in 1973. We can find them again in a number of United Nations documents and in documents of other international bodies. They were restated in the Manila Declaration by the Ministerial Conference of the Group of 77 and in the Economic Declaration and Action Programme for Economic Cooperation of the Fifth Conference of Heads of State or Government of Non-Aligned Countries, the proceedings of which were held at Colombo from 16 to 20 August 1976. But to date they still meet with the organized opposition of the industrialized countries, particularly the most powerful among them. This was clearly shown once again at the North-South Conference at Paris, where the refusal of those countries to arrive at a general agreement caused those proceedings to fail. The reasons were many. The most important, doubtless, is that the industrialized Powers are seeking to safeguard their position of domination in the world economy. However, it should be added that the developed countries are also becoming increasingly aware of the fact that such a policy is getting them nowhere. Hence, among the industrialized States the decision has been taken to undertake some initiatives with respect to a dialogue with the developing countries.
203.	One thing is certain: these industrialized countries have themselves admitted the need to reform the existing international trade and monetary system. So it is not a matter of an unexpected attack on the interests of the industrialized capitalist Powers, but an inevitable measure taken in the interests of all. The deficit of the developing countries, which derives from the discrimination they suffer in the international economic system, is continuing to worsen in disquieting proportions. Needless to say, this worsening is a supplementary burden for those countries whose indebtedness is known to us all and which was clearly one of the concerns of the Colombo Conference.
204.	The major documents adopted at different international conferences bear witness to our will, as non-aligned countries, to enter into a dialogue with the developed countries in order to establish more equitable relations in the world. But over and above this willingness, we are working for the rapid establishment of a new international economic order.
205.	The Colombo documents offer in themselves a more dynamic basis for this resumed dialogue. We are also thinking in particular of the Economic Declaration and the Action Programme for Economic Co-operation. That is of course understandable when we realize that the principles of those documents reflect the broadest interests of the peoples and give the policy of peaceful coexistence, mutual assistance, solidarity and active co-operation an economic basis resting on both the Charter of the United Nations and that of the non-aligned movement.
206.	In view of the seriousness of the problems we are facing, the developing countries are more than ever aware of the imperative need to devote their energies to the consolidation of their national independence and the strengthening of their front-line struggle for the final eradication of the existing arrangements for economic exploitation The action of the non-aligned countries at the Conferences of Belgrade, Cairo, Lusaka and Georgetown, the decline of colonialist or neo-colonialist groups, the strengthening of the unity of action of the Group of 77 on the basis of the provisions of the Algiers Charter and the Declaration of Lima and the action taken for regional co-operation or integration, are so many stages on the way from passive claims to the active affirmation of the will of the developing countries to rely first and foremost on their own resources, individually and collectively, to assume responsibility for the defence of their fundamental interests and to organize their development by and for themselves.
207.	It should be recalled here that there is a sacred principle, according to which every country has a right to adopt the economic and social system which it regards as the most advantageous to its development, and that States have an inalienable right to exercise their national sovereignty over their natural resources and over all the economic activities of the country. We feel that any infringement of those rights or of the right of each State to exercise effective control over its natural resources and their exploitation by the means most consonant with its own circumstances-including nationalization and the transfer of ownership to nationals-is contrary to the purposes and principles of the United Nations Charter and is an obstacle to the development of international co-operation and the maintenance of international peace and security.
208.	It would be unrealistic to think that there could be any true equality between donors and recipients, or that our political emancipation could have any reality without economic independence obtained through co-operation in equality and mutual respect.
209.	These are the considerations we wished to bring to the attention of our Assembly.
210.	May I, in closing, repeat on behalf of my delegation that we are willing to contribute to the search for a just solution to the problems affecting the international community, and we wish to state that we hope to see the thirty-second session of the General Assembly of the United Nations achieve satisfactory results and thus satisfy our joint will to work for international peace and security.


158.	 Mr. President, I should first like to congratulate you on your unanimous election to the high post of President of the General Assembly, and also to express our gratitude to your predecessor, Mr. Amerasinghe, for his very fruitful activities.
159.	I am particularly pleased to welcome the newly admitted Members of the United Nations, the Republic of Djibouti and the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam. We are convinced that heroic Viet Nam, which has now taken its rightful place in our Organization, will make a valuable contribution to the work of the United Nations through its active and peaceful policies.
160.	The thirty-second regular session of the General Assembly has convened on the eve of the sixtieth anniversary of the Great October Socialist Revolution, which is correctly described as the main event of the twentieth century.
161.	And, true enough, the October Revolution not only became the turning-point in the history of Russia, but also marked the beginning of a new stage in the history of the world, a stage distinguished by a profound reconstruction of the old system of international relations. That Revolution created conditions for the promotion of a new type of international relations between truly free and equal States, on the basis of the principles of socialist internationalism, fraternal friendship and all-round co-operation and mutual assistance. It gave a powerful impetus to the process of self-awareness and the self-determination of colonial and dependent peoples, a process which, after the Second World War, and with the active support of the socialist countries, developed into an accelerated decolonization and radically changed the political geography of the world. The road travelled by the Soviet Union from the Decree of Peace in 1917 to the Programme for Peace in 1971 and 1976 is marked by one and the same consistent and fundamental policy aimed at strengthening world peace and security, putting an end to the arms race and achieving disarmament, respecting the sovereign rights of all States, not interfering in their internal affairs, extinguishing the hotbeds of colonialism and racism and bringing about the broad development of international co-operation. The basic principles of this policy find their full expression in the draft of the new Constitution of the USSR and will thus be embodied in the supreme law of the Soviet State.
162.	It is because of this policy which has been pursued unswervingly and supported by all peace-loving forces in the world, that mankind has not experienced the horrors of a world war for more than 30 years and that international relations have gradually become free from anachronisms and recurrences of the cold war.
163.	If we had to describe in general terms the period which has elapsed since last year's session of the General Assembly, we could say that the prevailing trend in the development of the international situation continues to be the relaxation of international tensions. The tangible impetus given to detente in Helsinki two years ago made it possible to promote further the cause of peace, not only in Europe, but in the whole world as well. The successes which have been achieved are considerable: political ties and confidence among States have been strengthened, ever more strength has been imparted to the material fabric of co-operation in the fields of the economy, science and technology and culture. Of course, the most important achievement remains that of having made the nightmare of a new world war more remote. At the same time, however, it should also be emphasized that certain influential reactionary forces have stepped up their efforts to slow down, to check and, in the final analysis, to torpedo the very process of detente. What is more, there have been some actions which have created the danger of returning the world to the days of the cold war.
164.	One of the manifestations of these efforts is the launching of hostile and slanderous campaigns against the socialist countries. It is not difficult to understand that these campaigns are undertaken as a smoke-screen in order to conceal interference in internal affairs, in order to increase military budgets and to stockpile new armaments. The main obstacle which is now blocking the road to detente and threatening to impair its achievements is the continuing arms race. World peace cannot be achieved as long as the danger of a thermo-nuclear holocaust is not removed and as long as real measures are not taken in the field of disarmament. As Todor Zhivkov, First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Bulgarian Communist Party and President of the Council of State of the People's Republic of Bulgaria said recently:
"The main objective now is to make detente an irreversible process. This has not yet been done. Furthermore, the arms race, side by side with detente, is being whipped up, and I would say even more intensely. That is what is most dangerous for the world now. That is the main threat to world peace. Therefore the halting of the arms race is the immediate, fundamental and most urgent task."
165.	As is well known, the countries of the socialist community have put forward a constructive programme with new dimensions for co-operation among States, a programme which is aimed at broadening the scope of detente and supplementing it with measures in the military field.
166.	The proposal addressed to the States participating in the Conference on Security and Co-operation in Europe for the conclusion of a treaty whereby each would engage not to be the first to use nuclear weapons against the others is also in this spirit. Reaching an agreement on this question, as Leonid Ilich Brezhnev has pointed out, would provide new opportunities for curtailing conventional armaments in Europe, especially where their concentration is great.
167.	Unfortunately, once again certain influential circles are still captives of the one-sided approach towards the initiatives of the socialist countries and have not reacted to them positively.
168.	The countries of the socialist community have repeatedly stated that they do not lay claim to the monopoly as far as initiatives are concerned; they are prepared to consider any idea as long as it is genuinely aimed at stopping the arms race. Yet, instead of such ideas, we often hear general declarations which are at variance with and even sometimes completely contradict the actions taken by the respective Governments. It is impossible to fan hostility for other countries while at the same time talking about allegiance to detente, just as it is impossible to speed up the arms race and simultaneously to conduct successful negotiations on disarmament.
169.	This peculiar dualism in the policies of certain States is fraught with great danger for peace. All those who bear responsibility for the policies of their countries and for the fate of world peace must become aware of this danger. Mankind, which is anxious to rid itself of the burden of armaments, needs no declarations of good intentions, but rather the pragmatic consideration of specific proposals for disarmament and the adoption of effective measures to this end, without any attempt to obtain unilateral military- strategic advantages.
170.	The intention of beginning the production of the so-called neutron bomb and its inclusion in armaments has caused serious concern which has taken the form of a storm of indignation and forthright protest on the part of world public opinion. That intention can only be regarded as an attempt to impose a new round of the arms race upon nations, as a challenge to the climate of detente created with so much effort. It is not without point to recall, however, that the arms race will bring no lasting advantages to those who initiate it. It will only place a further heavy burden upon the shoulders of the peoples and may in fact bring them yet another step closer to the danger which is the peril of human civilization.
171.	We do believe that the voice of reason will prevail, so that the way may be paved towards sincere co-operation in order to put an end to the arms race and to move forward towards real disarmament. We are convinced that the forthcoming special session of the General Assembly will provide  an opportunity for agreement on a common, principled approach to disarmament, and will create favourable conditions for convening a world disarmament conference in the near future.
172.	The most complex and the most important task continues to be that of putting an end to the arms race and curbing nuclear weapons both qualitatively and quantitatively.
173.	An important step in this direction would be the total prohibition of nuclear-weapons tests. The People's Republic of Bulgaria has always held the view that this problem needs to be resolved as soon as possible. We attach great importance to the tripartite negotiations in Geneva. We support the constructive position taken by the Soviet Union, and we hope that the successful completion of these negotiations will create favourable conditions for progress towards disarmament and for a general improvement of the political atmosphere in the world.
174.	Particularly topical in present conditions is the matter of the prohibition of the development and production of new types of weapons of mass destruction and new systems of such weapons. The Geneva negotiations must be speeded up in order to reach international agreement in this field.
175.	Of considerable significance for the achievement of nuclear disarmament are those measures designed- to strengthen the regime of the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons. It is not difficult to imagine what would happen if the arsenals of the countries engaged in local conflicts, such as flare up in various parts of the planet from time to time, were to be stocked with nuclear weapons. This question becomes particularly acute in the light of the reports that the- racist regime of the Republic of South Africa plans to manufacture nuclear weapons. The appearance of such a weapon in the hands of the present regime of Pretoria would create an immediate danger for all African States as well as for world peace and security. Swift and effective action by the United Nations is needed to avert this danger.
176.	During the present session, the Bulgarian delegation will join its efforts with those of other delegations that are trying to adopt measures to accelerate the preparation of an agreement on the prohibition of chemical weapons and also to achieve progress on other partial measures. The entire activity of the People's Republic of Bulgaria in the Conference of the Committee on Disarmament and outside it continues to be focused on reaching the ultimate goal, which is general and complete disarmament under strict and effective international control.
177.	The most vital task in the present-day international situation is undoubtedly that of strengthening detente, making irreversible the process of the relaxation of international tensions, and averting a nuclear conflict. Were mankind truly to resolve these problems, this last quarter of the twentieth century would be inscribed in gold in the history of our planet.
178.	That is why we warmly welcome and fully support the Soviet Union's proposal to include on the agenda of the thirty-second regular session of the General Assembly, as a matter of urgency and great importance, the item emptied "Deepening and consolidation of international detente and prevention of the danger of nuclear war". It is our belief that the draft declaration on the deepening and consolidation of international detente and also the draft resolution on the prevention of the danger of nuclear war will receive the support of all peace-loving States and will serve as a basis for further development in the process of easing international tensions. The People's Republic of Bulgaria will do its utmost towards the realization of those proposals.
179.	An important role in this respect is being played by the growing acknowledgement of the principle of the non-use of force or the threat of force in relations among States. Although there are some who cannot conceive of the contemporary world without the use of force and are even convinced that its prohibition would almost create a vacuum in the international legal order, it becomes increasingly evident that the conclusion of a world treaty on this matter would greatly advance the process of detente.
180.	It is really quite difficult to talk about a complete improvement in the international climate when in various parts of the world there occur armed clashes which threaten to spread and engulf new territories. Regardless of the specific pretexts and reasons that give rise to those conflicts, there is no doubt that they are the result of imperialist policies based on the old principle of "divide and rule", and that their common aim is to undermine progressive political regimes.
181.	The situation in the Middle East continues to be explosive. The main reason for the stalemate in the settlement of that conflict is the position taken by Israel, which, supported by its allies, is trying to maintain its illegal occupation of the Arab territories, as is evidenced by the establishment of new Israeli settlements on those lands. The Government of the People's Republic of Bulgaria remains convinced that genuine peace in the Middle East is possible only under the following conditions: the complete withdrawal of Israeli forces from all the Arab territories occupied in 1967; the exercise of the legitimate national rights of the Arab people of Palestine, inducing their right to an independent State; and respect for the independence, existence and security of all the countries in the area. We believe that the Geneva Peace Conference on the Middle East should be reconvened, without any further procrastination, with the participation of all interested parties, including from the very outset, and with equal rights, the Palestine Liberation Organization as the sole legitimate representative of the Arab people of Palestine.
182.	The situation in southern Africa, where the racist regimes of South Africa and Southern Rhodesia continue to keep the peoples of Namibia, Zimbabwe and South Africa in colonial bondage, is one of the most acute problems now facing the United Nations and the international community.
183.	Hitherto, the efforts for the final elimination of the last vestiges of colonialism in Africa have run into stiff opposition not only on the part of the racist regimes but also on the part of some forces outside Africa which are helping those regimes. This is unequivocally confirmed by current attempts to distort the process of decolonization in order to preserve the positions of colonialism and imperialism in Africa.
184.	The People's Republic of Bulgaria will continue to give full support to the struggle of the peoples of South Africa, Namibia and Zimbabwe for the full and complete elimination of colonialism, racism, racial discrimination and apartheid.
185.	For us, the situation in Cyprus continues to be a source of concern. The People's Republic of Bulgaria unswervingly supports the kind of solution of the Cyprus question that will guarantee the sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity of the Republic of Cyprus in the interests of the Cypriot people—the Greek Cypriots and the Turkish Cypriots—and in the interests of peace and security.
186.	The People's Republic of Bulgaria favours the withdrawal of foreign troops from Korean soil and the peaceful reunification of Korea without outside interference.
187.	As we all know, one of the purposes of the United Nations Charter is to promote international co-operation in defence of fundamental human rights and freedoms. Under the pretext of fighting for the materialization of this noble objective, certain groups are trying to arrogate to themselves the right to impose their own moral values upon other countries and peoples, thus flagrantly interfering in their internal affairs. At the same time, those groups undermine the United Nations collective endeavour to cut short the most brutal and massive violations of human rights, such as those in southern Africa, in Chile and in the Israeli-occupied Arab territories since 1967.
188.	The problems of economic development and the reconstruction of international economic relations are closely linked with the establishment of peace and security in the world. To carry out this reconstruction on r. democratic basis and in order to eliminate all forms of discrimination and inequality, we must fulfil one of the important mandates of our times.
189.	We support the just demands to find ways of overcoming the under-development and the grave economic situation of developing countries since we are fully aware that historic responsibility for this state of affairs rests with the former metropolitan Powers which have exploited those countries and which continue to amass enormous wealth within the framework of the international machinery which has been set up by them, and through unequal international economic relations.
190.	In our relations with the developing countries, which are based on the principles of full equality, non-interference in internal affairs, mutual advantage and selfless aid, we are striving to the extent of our possibilities to assist their efforts to strengthen 'their political and economic independence, to consolidate their sovereignty over their natural resources, and to defend the fundamental interests of their own peoples.
191.	The Government of the People's Republic of Bulgaria attaches great significance to the Third United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea, whose work has now entered its crucial stage. Considerable efforts and political good will be needed, however, in order to bring the Conference to a successful end.
192.	The question of the role of the United Nations and the ways to enhance its effectiveness has become recently the subject of increasing discussions, There are also attempts, under the guise of concern for the strengthening of the United Nations, to put forward concepts and views which if they were acted upon would yield the opposite result. In other words, they would result in undermining the foundations of the United Nations and its basic principles, and in weakening the international basis for peaceful coexistence among States with different social systems.
193.	The People's Republic of Bulgaria will continue in the future to support all efforts to make the United Nations more effective through strict observance of the purposes and principles of the Charter-a Charter which has stood the test of time-in order to make a better use of the possibilities contained in the Charter and to frustrate the attempts to have that document, as it were, "revised" and "perfected."
194.	The Government of the People's Republic of Bulgaria is fully aware of its responsibilities for peace and is therefore consistently implementing the provisions contained in the Final Act of Helsinki. We shall make all efforts at the forthcoming meeting in Belgrade to contribute to strengthening further peace and security in Europe, and to make this another link in the process of the ever-growing detente in the world. It is a happy fact that, as be judged by the preparatory work, the majority of the participants are interested in a positive dialogue at the meeting.
195.	To make universal peace durable and lasting, to ensure that detente has the go-ahead-these are the objectives which the People's Republic of Bulgaria is trying to achieve throughout its activity both inside and outside the United Nations. Along with the other countries belonging to the socialist community, we put forward constructive solutions in order to achieve these purposes, in order to achieve and realize the noble objectives and aims of the United Nations.


97.	First, Mr. President, I should like to offer you my congratulations on your election. The United Kingdom delegation looks forward to working under a President so experienced in the work of the United Nations.
98.	I should like also to extend a welcome to the two new Members of this Assembly, Djibouti and Viet Nam.
99.	The constant struggle to close the gap between aspiration and performance in the United Nations was described 22 years ago by the then Secretary-General as making the difference between civilization and chaos. Today, this gap between aspiration and performance remains and the danger of chaos is ever present.
100.	The United Nations has from its inception championed all the most fundamental human rights: the right to live without hunger or disease, in peace, free from conflict and the fear of nuclear or any other kind of war.
101.	Appalling and well-documented events naturally focus great attention world wide on the abuse or absence of political, civil and legal rights; and on violations and degradations of the integrity of the person, though the sense of outrage over Chile and Uganda, to take but two examples, has not yet been matched by effective international action. But the global challenge of chronic poverty, malnutrition and disease ensures that we cannot escape our responsibility for economic and social rights.
102.	Between 1952 and 1972 the gross product of the advanced industrialized nations increased by $1.82 trillion. The aggregate product of the under-developed world in 1972 was less than a third of this increase. This statistic is shocking enough. The reality behind it is even more so. It is generally agreed that more than 400 million people have an insufficient protein supply. About 70 million of them are immediately threatened by starvation. In some of the very poorest countries there is a 50 per cent infant mortality rate, and the development of people's brains is literally stunted by protein and calorie insufficiencies. Most of the world's poor only have access to unsafe water. They are, therefore, chronically vulnerable to schistosomiasis, and to filariasis, the leading cause of blindness. In some areas of conflict the disruption of basic social and medical services poses a challenge to world health. We risk a recrudescence of smallpox in the Horn of Africa and a re-emergence of the tsetse fly in east and southern Africa.
103.	The human needs of the developing world are an inescapable challenge to us all and a central element in any foreign policy based on human rights.
104.	To establish a fairer and more rational international economic order, both developed and developing nations must work together as equal partners. The dialogue, if it is to be successful, must be seen as a long-term sequence of negotiations on specific issues. The Governments of the industrialized democracies are at present under tremendous domestic political pressures to reduce rapidly high rates of unemployment. We need a greater frankness and realism in the dialogue. The present world recession has hit both developed and developing nations. The developing nations will easily become cynical and despairing if the developed world's actions run counter to its rhetoric. Those of us who represent the industrialized democracies are not entitled to use our economic difficulties as an excuse for abdicating from the dialogue. We must all try to ensure that we develop a long-term strategy which is credible and corrects the effects of some of the short-term decisions which we may feel compelled to take. If we continue into the future the present allocation of resources, we will only perpetuate the existing imbalance between the developed and the developing world.
105.	One of the benefits we all derived from the work we did together at the Conference on International Economic Co-operation was a realization of the crucial role that collaboration with regard to energy must play for all sectors of the world economy. It is for this reason that I warmly welcome the Secretary-General's recent proposals for some institutional development within the United Nations framework for the discussion of energy. Its exact form will have to be discussed further—whether an institute, as the Secretary-General has suggested, a new agency, or some other body.
106.	The United Nations is rightly devoting a high priority—nearly 40 per cent of its net regular budget-to economic and social activities. Britain, in addition to its own European Community aid programmes, contributed in 1976 some $85 million to the United Nations work in the economic and social field.
107.	In my judgment, despite the immense problems which still face us, in the crucial areas of poverty, hunger and disease, the United Nations has shown itself to be an effective and practical instrument. The institutions of the United Nations have also made a major technical contribution towards a more orderly international environment in, for instance, the fields of labour relations, posts and telecommunications, shipping and civil aviation.
108.	But in reducing conflict in the world, in achieving peace and in restraining the armaments race, the United Nations cannot claim that its performance has anywhere near matched its aspirations. It is worth examining the distribution of the total financial effort of the United Nations.
109.	The United Nations here in New York, together with the all-important autonomous agencies, spent last financial year some $2,200 million. Of the total United Nations financial commitment, only 8 per cent went on what can be summarized briefly as political, diplomatic and peacekeeping activities. If words uttered and words written were anything to go by, those activities would occupy a far higher position in our order of priorities than any other United Nations activity. Why do we write and speak so much about this area and yet spend relatively so little on it, for the consequences of conflict are grievous for millions?
110.	It is a regrettable fact of life that in institutional terms the maintenance of world security is the most neglected activity within the United Nations. Health, hunger and poverty are issues on which Member nations are prepared to concede an institutional competence and role for the United Nations. But, with few exceptions, security is seen as the preserve of national Governments. We are prepared to see our doctors, agriculturists, sociologists and economists working together and pooling their expertise within a United Nations institutional framework. But we are reluctant to see our generals and our admirals and our strategic thinkers working within such a framework on behalf of world security.
111.	We are all familiar with our own national security problems. But there is all too little understanding of each other's security problems, fears and objectives. We are, as an international body, unable to foresee areas of dispute and to act in time to prevent open conflicts from breaking out. We are unable to act speedily to damp down a dispute in its early stages. The United Nations, if it is involved in a conflict, is usually involved late, and with reluctance.
112.	The United Nations is the only forum in which the whole international community is represented. It has the right and they duty to be involved in disputes which threaten peace and stability whether on a regional or on a global scale. But to date it has lacked the necessary authority and commitment, which can only be given to it by Member States for a truly effective security role.
113.	In the United Nations we are reluctant to make even modest commitments to international security arrangements. But it is also true that the amount of resources devoted to peace-keeping matters is only a fraction of those employed in the United Nations as a whole, and that the role of the United Nations in peace keeping has in the past received far less attention than its deserves both in speeches from this rostrum and in various committees of our Organization. These facts alone highlight the low priority we give to this area of our Organization's activity.
114.	Now, the over-all record of the United Nations in the field of world security is one which we should be prepared to analyse critically, particularly now that the cold-war era and confrontation diplomacy are over and when the super-Powers themselves now exchange detailed information on the most sensitive security issue of all, namely, strategic nuclear weapons. What is needed is for the United Nations to stimulate a specialized and constructive dialogue between Governments on every aspect of world security in a way which would improve the ability of the international community to respond quickly and effectively in situations where action by the United Nations is required. If such a dialogue had been in operation today, we would have been far better able to examine some of the detailed security problems which now confront us all in Africa.
115.	The present limitations, as well as the value of the United Nations in its peace-keeping role, are clearly demonstrated by the situation in the Middle East and Cyprus where the United Nations has made a massive, sustained, but all too frequently unappreciated, effort over the years to keep the peace.
116.	In the Middle East, the world still faces the most serious of all potential conflicts. The recent resurgence of fighting in southern Lebanon is a sad reminder both of the urgency of finding a solution to the Middle East conflict as a whole and of the difficulties which the Lebanese Government faces in restoring peace and security in that country. One might have thought that here was an obvious situation in which the United Nations could and should have played a more prominent role. For a number of reasons, which we understand, this has not so far been the case. Nevertheless, the assistance of the United Nations remains a possibility, should the present effort of those in the region fail to yield the success for which we all hope. The United Nations has been involved diplomatically in the whole question of the Middle East since 1947. Its involvement in security arrangements through UNEF and UNDOF has cost more than $269 million. In the current financial year it will cost $98 million.
117.	The United Nations presence in the Middle East has been at times controversial. But in my view there would have been even greater conflict without it.
118.	In the debate about occupied territory, security issues are of central importance and of deep and genuine concern. Hitherto nations have tended to equate security solely with the possession of territories. This is no longer the only relevant security factor. Sophisticated electronic devices can now give a military security which nations had hitherto believed could only come from the physical occupation of territory. The monitoring techniques already in place in Sinai have made possible a measure of disengagement and lessened mistrust between Israel and Egypt. Confidence-building measures, in the shape of demilitarized zones, zones of limited forces, surveillance and early warning systems, and microwave links, could all be an essential component in any final settlement. The United Nations has a role to play, either by supervising and operating these devices or, even more importantly, by promoting an informed public debate on the underlying technical security issues. Now, Mr. Simonet, speaking for the nine member countries of the European Community, has set out our views on the main ingredients of a negotiated settlement, and I do not intend to recapitulate those here this afternoon.
119.	The danger of United Nations peace-keeping involvement, initially to hold the ring, is that it can become an excuse for political inactivity or a substitute for serious negotiation. In Cyprus, as in the Middle East, the United Nations peace-keeping forces have reduced hostilities and provided time in which serious negotiations could and, in my view, should have taken place. The meetings between the late Archbishop Makarios and Mr. Denktaf, which led to the resumption of the intercommunal talks, appeared to offer the prospect of some progress. The mission undertaken by Mr. Clark Clifford to Cyprus, Greece and Turkey in February and March has also played an important part. But so far the current intercommunal talks have shown sadly little progress, and the situation has, if anything, deteriorated in recent months. The United Nations, in the person of the Secretary-General and his Special Representative Mr. Perez de Cuellar, has acted with tremendous skill between the parties. But the present United Nations commitment in Cyprus cannot be taken for granted. In the last 13 years the existence of UNFICYP has cost Member States, by way of voluntary contributions, some $200 million. Furthermore, UNFICYP is now seriously in deficit to the tune of some $50 million. The United Kingdom has contributed $45 million in men and in logistical support. This year our contingent, numbering 800 men, is the single largest contribution. The United Nations does not enjoy infinite resources, as the Secretary-General's recent appeal for further contributions to UNFICYP made plain.
120.	The United Nations cannot therefore in either Cyprus or the Middle East be used indefinitely as a cover for a stalemate in negotiations. It cannot continue to be seen as a refuge of last resort—a permanent crutch for remaining in a state of  no peace, no war . What the United Nations can do is both to establish the political framework within which negotiations between the parties can take place and, through harnessing the initiatives of its Member States and acting as a catalyst for their ideas, to help to provide the impetus needed to break out of the present stalemate.
121.	I turn to southern Africa.
122.	It has become increasingly clear that only negotiated settlements which are internationally acceptable and which have the full support of the United Nations will end the violence and achieve stable government by majority rule. This is the hope for a future Zimbabwe and Namibia. In considering how Britain could best exercise its responsibilities in Rhodesia the British Government faced up to the fact that Britain alone could not ensure a peaceful transfer to a majority rule. We also recognized that, though the Commonwealth and the Organization of African Unity [OAUJ had a legitimate and major interest in the future of Zimbabwe, neither organization had an institutional framework which could help to provide the stable climate and international recognition for free elections.
123.	It was equally clear that, while Britain has legal responsibilities—which we do not seek, and have never sought, to evade—some additional catalyst to make the transition from war to peace, from illegality to legality, was necessary for an internationally acceptable settlement.
124.	The United Nations is already deeply involved in the problem of Rhodesia through the various sanctions resolutions. So United Nations involvement is not a new issue of principle for the Security Council. It is probably a realistic constraint on the power of initiative of the United Nations that progress in the Security Council is not responsible unless there is a clearly perceived support from the countries of the region in question for the course of action proposed.
125.	We believe that the draft resolution which my Government will submit very shortly in the Security Council has such support. The draft resolution will provide for the appointment by the Secretary-General of a representative to enter into discussions with the British Resident Commissioner designate and with all the parties, with a view to establishing in detail the respective roles of all the forces in Southern Rhodesia during the transition to majority rule. The draft resolution will, we believe, provide the necessary basis for the cease-fire negotiations referred to in the documents which were presented to the Security Council on 1 and 8 September. No final settlement can be agreed or brought to the Council until these essential preliminary negotiations are completed.
126.	Now, it is a truism that the Organization is only what its Members make of it. It is precisely because the British Government is acutely aware of the paradox of the United Nations role—on the one hand, indispensable in the search for peace, and on the other, limited in what it can achieve on its own initiative-that we have framed proposals for Rhodesia which acknowledge the vital importance of a United Nations role in guaranteeing an impartial and orderly framework for negotiations, and in helping to supervise fair and free elections.
127.	Our proposals also reflect the blunt truth that peace on the ground is unobtainable unless there is first agreement between the parties who are conducting the fighting. The lesson of United Nations involvement in the Congo and in Cyprus is that a peace-keeping force has little chance of doing its job if, around it, rival armed forces are building up their strength and are determined to use it. This is why the five front-line States and OAU have an important role in helping to achieve an independent Zimbabwe. They have supported the liberation forces in their struggle for freedom, but they have always maintained that it is for the people of Zimbabwe to determine who is to be the future president and who should form the government on independence.
128.	Over Namibia the five Western members of the Security Council, including my own country, took an initiative. Negotiations are still in progress, so it is hard to be specific, but we are all under no illusions that, without the support of the United Nations, no settlement can be achieved there which will command the support of the international community, end the violence and allow for a majority-rule government to be freely elected.
129.	Now, southern Africa, over the next few months and years, will be the focus of growing tensions. There is at the moment a controlled anger among the majority of the population. The risk that this anger will develop into urban violence is considerable. Those of us here in the United Nations who uphold the essentially peaceful values of a pluralist democracy will come under growing challenge to support violent change. But if we cannot become the advocates of violence and at the same time stay true to our beliefs, our responsibility to the world is to show, beyond any shadow of doubt, that change can be brought about by peaceful means, whether we are talking of Rhodesia, Namibia or South Africa. If we turn our backs on the path of peace—a path of peace—a path which still lies open—then once again the barrel of the gun will be seen to wield more power and influence than reason. Peaceful persuasion and pressures can still achieve results. Violence is the last resort. To advocate it alone is to threaten the whole system of values on which the United Nations rests, and which we are all pledged to sustain.
130.	These considerations apply with particular force to the situation in South Africa. South Africa will not be allowed to avoid its responsibilities. It sustains and supports the illegal regime in Rhodesia; it has allowed United Nations sanctions to be systematically undermined since 1967. Within South Africa, apartheid is abhorrent to us all.
South Africa faces a choice between a democratic and orderly evolution and an inevitable descent into bloodshed and violence. The choice which South Africa makes may present a challenge to all of us, as Members of the United Nations. Rhodesia is not just an issue for Britain or for the United States, whose support has been so important to my country; it is not just an issue for the freedom fighters, the nationalist leaders, the front-line Presidents, OAU: it is an issue for us all.
131.	Over southern Africa the world community and individual Member States may have some awesome and difficult choices in the next few months. These issues cannot be treated with anything other than the utmost seriousness. Certainly, if the negotiations over Rhodesia produced a settlement which the Security Council could endorse, the world would not allow South Africa to continue, in the face of such a settlement, to sustain an obdurate illegal regime in Rhodesia, were it to refuse to give up power.
132.	As a world community we are, over South Africa, attempting to change human behaviour, to turn a State away from institutionalized racialism. It will not be achieved overnight, but it must be achieved, Without a serious programme of reform inside South Africa the oppressed majority will have no hope. The tough code of conduct recently adopted by the European Community for its companies operating in South Africa demonstrates, by attacking racialism at the place of work, one form of positive action which I hope others will also adopt. It is but one of the pressures for continuing change which it is vital we espouse if peaceful change is to  be successful.
133.	Anxiety over the proliferation of nuclear weapons also lurks in the background. It is in the interests of us all that South Africa should sign the Treaty on the Non- Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons [see resolution 2373(XXII)l and agree to international inspection of all its nuclear installations. A State which feels itself under attack may, regardless of logic or long-term interest, seek to acquire nuclear weapons as an act of desperation. Desperation is the crucible of violence.
134.	My Government, traditionally active in seeking disarmament and promoting the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons, is engaged in various negotiations. I am particularly glad that the United States, the Soviet Union and my country are now actively negotiating about a comprehensive nuclear test-ban treaty. This achievement has eluded the world for too long. A comprehensive nuclear test-ban would have a profound effect in limiting the proliferation of nuclear weapons. The development of a specialized dialogue between the Soviet Union and the United States on strategic nuclear weapons and the signing of the first agreement concluded as a result of the Strategic Arms limitation Talks [SALT] was a major step. We all hope that the present negotiations will be successful. It would have been inconceivable, even 10 years ago, that military and scientific personnel from these two countries would share such detailed and highly-classified information about their own national security. We need now to widen and build on this important dialogue.
135.	World security involves more than conflict situations. It is intimately associated with the search for practical and realizable measures of disarmament. All Member States aspire to the objective of total disarmament, but the relentless increase in most Member States' armament budgets shows how far performance falls short of aspiration.
136.	In the more general field of disarmament, we welcome next year's special session of the General Assembly. It will directly engage the international community and the United Nations in what must be a world effort to promote disarmament and check nuclear proliferation. While certain important disarmament negotiations, such as SALT, are necessarily the subject of a bilateral or restricted dialogue, it is vital that the international community and the United Nations in particular should not be excluded from the disarmament effort. It would perhaps have been easier to secure more accessions by now to the non-proliferation Treaty had the international community as a whole, as opposed to a small group of major nuclear Powers, been more closely involved in drawing up its provisions at the start. It means, however, that if the United Nations is to be involved meaningfully it must move from just passing resolutions to the intricacies and the detail of complex scientific negotiations. It will need to develop and expertise that can work in the interests of all the Member States.
137.	The search for peace, the promotion of human rights and individual freedom, the elimination of poverty and want in all its forms—these are formidable but inescapable challenges. To meet them our performance will have to move closer to our aspirations. To succeed in this endeavour we must make, in the recent words of the Secretary- General,  a conscious effort to develop more positive attitudes to the work of the United Nations both among ourselves and in the outside world. In Britain, support for the United Nations is a corner-stone of our foreign policy. We for our part are resolute in our determination to help make the United Nations a more effective instrument for world peace and co-operation.


1.	 I am happy to express to you, Sir, the satisfaction of the Government of Ecuador upon your well-deserved election as President of the General Assembly at its thirty-second session. That decision represents an express recognition by the Assembly of the dynamic international career of Yugoslavia, as well as of your own qualities.
2.	I also wish to join in congratulating Mr. Hamilton Shirley Amerasinghe for the efficient and impartial way he led the deliberations of the General Assembly at its last session.
3.	My praise goes also to the Secretary-General of the United Nations, Mr. Kurt Waldheim, whose judicious re-election is the best proof of the wide support and general trust which his tireless efforts have earned him in the search for international peace, understanding and co-operation.
4.	I should also like to extend a cordial welcome to the two new Members of our Organization and wish them well on the road followed by free peoples: Viet Nam, which has reached complete independence after a relentless and heroic struggle over the last few generations, and Djibouti, now attaining full self-government, the administering Power having discharged its responsibilities towards it. The presence of these two States among us brings the United Nations closer to the ideal of universality which my country has always, at all times, most whole-heartedly supported.
5.	In the field of foreign relations, every day brings more evidence of the fact that political questions are closely linked to socio-economic matters. One can rightly state that there can be no peace in the world unless at the same time States are willing, on the one hand, to co-operate in solving  the problems stemming from international tension which are always a threat to mankind and a possible cause of armed conflict, or worse still, of a nuclear holocaust, and, on the other hand, to decide to work unceasingly in order to set international economic relations on a foundation of justice and equity and thus contribute to a reduction of the appalling gap between rich and poor peoples. While it is true that peace is the essence of order and the basis for the development of the nobler qualities of the individual, it is also the result of a desire for justice which must inspire all countries, large and small alike, for none can feel removed from the problems which are at the root of international tension, in political as well as economic matters.
6.	The United Nations is the contractual expression of this decision. As such, it must be involved in the review and negotiation of every question, whenever collective action proves to be the most appropriate way of stimulating the will to find solutions and thus paving the way towards peace and progress for mankind. For this reason, Ecuador has always sought to strengthen the world Organization, aware as it is of the fact that its fundamental task, as required by the Charter, is to be a centre for harmonizing the actions of nations in the attainment of common ends, these being the preservation and maintenance of international peace and security; the relaxation of international tension, based on the solution of existing problems by peaceful means; the matter of disarmament in general and the limitation of arms purchases; the achievement of effective international co-operation in solving international problems of an economic, social, cultural, or humanitarian nature; and the furtherance and promotion of respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms.
7.	Within the world Organization, to which Ecuador once again pledges its support, my country will continue, moreover, to follow a policy of friendship and co-operation with all others, on the basis of the principles of mutual respect and solidarity in dealing with the problems of mankind.
8.	The question of disarmament, one of the constant sources of concern to the United Nations, has been the focal-point of its debates and the object of the aspirations of all peace-loving peoples of the world.
9.	It is in the area of general and complete disarmament that the United Nations commitment to improve conditions for mankind is of the greatest importance; yet it is also the area where the least progress has been registered. The peoples of the world view with alarm the fact that a sum of more that $334 billion is spent on destruction every year, funds which could be put to much better use in improving the quality of life. The arms race, both nuclear and conventional, is an expensive aberration whose price, paid in terms of lives and universal regression, is the senseless offering that mankind makes to death and destruction.
10.	The new and deadly weapons, born of the fertile imagination of scientists, are designed to wipe out all trace of life by making it impossible for the civilian population to find shelter from them; yet these weapons carry the ironic advantage of sparing property.
11.	Ecuador believes that it is essential for the international community to give due attention to all the problems which are or could be a cause for the appearance of tensions or for a breach of the peace. The community's peace-keeping activity must prevent conflicts from worsening; it is everyone's responsibility to preserve and maintain international peace and security; it is the common duty to ensure that disputes arising between countries are settled reasonably and justly.
12.	While it is undeniably true that the major Powers carry the prime responsibility in this matter, it is nevertheless disquieting to note their growing tendency to handle questions of disarmament on a bilateral basis: this is a problem that affects all members of the international community and concerns their security interests. The small and medium-sized countries cannot remain indifferent and passive in matters of disarmament: such matters are not the preserve of specific Powers, or of the exclusive, but not excluding,  Atomic Club . The future and the very survival of mankind are at stake, and no one has been assigned the role of warden in deciding the fate of mankind.
13.	That is why people attach particular importance to what is happening in the United Nations. For this reason, Ecuador attaches particular importance to the next special session of the General Assembly on disarmament and sees it as a great opportunity to direct the efforts of all nations towards the search for solutions which will expedite the negotiations that have been aiming at general and complete disarmament under effective international control.
14.	For all these reasons, Ecuador has given close attention to the report prepared by the Group of Consultant Experts on the economic and social consequences of the arms race and of military expenditures . Acting with deep pacifist conviction, it has supported the resolutions pertaining to the banning of incendiary weapons and the need to put a stop to nuclear testing, to the banning of the use of chemical as well as bacteriological weapons and also of the development and manufacture of new types of weapons of mass destruction. Ecuador has supported the purposes and objectives of the Disarmament Decade and will continue to do so unconditionally.
15.	By virtue of its equatorial location, my country views with particular interest the scientific progress in the field of outer-space exploration; this opens up new prospects for the improvement of man's life on this planet. Ecuador hopes to become a member of the Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space and asks for the Assembly's support in order that its hopes in this regard may be fulfilled. We have already participated in the Committee's work as observers. In its Legal Sub-Committee this year
Ecuador once more stated its reasons for declaring, together with other equatorial States, its will to exercise its sovereignty over the segments of the geostationary synchronous orbit which are located above its continental, maritime and insular territory. We are determined to maintain this position despite any obstacle that may be put in our way, in regard to this matter of natural resources such as the geostationary orbit. I am bound also to state at this time that such an orbit is a separate and different entity from outer space, the latter- being a concept for which the States have not yet found a valid and satisfactory definition.
16.	A few days ago my country celebrated with Chile and Peru the twenty-fifth anniversary of the Declaration on the Maritime Zone which the three nations signed in Santiago on 18 August 1952; This Declaration proclaimed, as a norm of the international maritime policy of the signatories, that each of them wields exclusive sovereignty and extends its jurisdiction over the sea to a distance of 200 miles, the purpose being, first and foremost, to preserve the resources of the maritime zone for the benefit of their respective peoples. We are pleased that those principles proclaimed in Santiago have received universal support and that the countries of the entire world have made them an irreversible reality. Ecuador will continue to maintain its well- known position, as stated in all forums and especially at the Third United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea, that it wishes to reaffirm its claims in this regard: they have become a national reality, established and applied for a quarter of a century, and they are in no way contrary to the jus communicationis, as it is practised by all countries around the world.
17.	On the question of the Middle East, Ecuador expresses its most sincere hope that Arabs and Israelis will gather as soon as possible around the negotiating table in Geneva. The tension in that part of the world has been most acute and has lasted for too long; the chances that this situation will degenerate into a major conflict increase with each passing day. Occupation by force does not create any rights; therefore the territories held must be returned promptly, and the work done to establish Israeli settlements in the occupied Arab zones must be undone. At the same time there must be full recognition of the State of Israel, created by the United Nations, just as the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination, independence and sovereignty and to an effective geographical location must also be recognized.
18.	The time has come for all people of Mediterranean culture to live together in peace, sharing the opportunity for progress in co-operation with all in the service of the people's interest; therefore it is essential that a global and just settlement of this problem be reached within the framework of the relevant resolutions of the Security Council and of the General Assembly.
19.	On the question of Cyprus, my country hopes that both Cypriot communities will reach an agreement, free from any external pressure or interference, that will enable them to live together in brotherhood and in peace. Ecuador pays tribute to the memory of the late Archbishop Makarios, President of Cyprus.
20.	My country condemns racial discrimination, which is a problem that has been overcome in our midst, and it energetically condemns apartheid as a crime against humanity. It further believes that the attitude of defiance and disregard for the United Nations resolutions on the part of South Africa creates a situation which threatens the integrity of the system of international law.
21.	Ecuador is concerned at the tense situation prevailing in southern Africa, which makes for a permanent state of insecurity and anxiety, not only in the whole area, but even at the world level. The continued illegal presence of South Africa in Namibia flouts the principles of the Charter and defies the resolutions of the world Organization. Ecuador therefore stresses once again the urgent need for strict compliance with Security Council resolution 385 (1976).
22.	My country is also following with close attention the developments in Zimbabwe. Faithful to its principles, it disapproves the continuing attitude of the white racist minority which, for many years, has prevented the majority of the population from exercising its right to decide its own future. It is therefore essential that new measures be taken to solve the problem and that Member States show the necessary political will to apply strictly the resolutions of the Security Council which provide for sanctions against that regime.
23.	A few days ago, the mandated officials of the American States met in Washington to solemnize by their presence the signature of new instruments concerning the Panama Canal. The negotiations that led up to this event represent a positive step forward towards the solution of one of the problems most adversely affecting relations between nations in the hemisphere. The President of the Supreme Governing Council of Ecuador, commenting on this historical and auspicious event, said:
 Besides putting an end to a serious international problem, the signing of the new treaties is a demonstration of the fact that through fair and honest negotiations, as well as through persistent peaceful dialogue, it is possible to settle the problems and disputes still outstanding in Latin America.
24.	Just as peace and security are inseparable, and breaches or threats of breaches thereof, wherever they may come from, affect and concern all members of the international community, so the disputes that divide these nations are a legitimate cause for concern not only for the parties directly involved, but also for most nations, particularly for those who live in the same region or continent, where a greater impact is felt from the harmful effects of straying from the path of co-operation and the potential consequences in terms of breaches of the peace that inevitably arise from those disputes that remain unresolved.
25.	The  spirit of Washington , particularly noteworthy because of the support it received from the whole of America in the solution of the question of Panama, must continue to inspire all those involved in other outstanding problems on our continent, in order to strengthen the atmosphere of full trust, perfect harmony and sincere co-operation that must exist among all peoples who build their future on the soil of the Americas.
26.	Ecuador therefore seeks, through a frank and cordial dialogue initiated with Peru, a goodwill agreement that would effect a satisfactory solution to its territorial claim, in line with the requirements of its national honour and of its destiny in the Amazon river basin.
27.	Respect for human rights and human dignity, both nationally and internationally, is a principle which is ingrained in the Ecuadorian nation.
28.	Ecuador deems the promotion of human rights to be a matter that does not exclusively concern each individual State, but involves the responsibility of the formally organized world community.
29.	My country believes that individual Member States, as well as the world Organization and the other international organizations, must see to it that human rights are fully observed; this excludes violence, torture and terror, and also poverty and its consequent subhuman conditions. We consider that the all important quality of human rights lies in their very universality. It should be possible to arrange, in the United Nations, for the yearly presentation of a report on the situation with regard to human rights; there would thus be a general critique, or a general expression of appreciation and encouragement, as the case may be— violation or observance—for the particular country' concerned. However, the present practice of preferential treatment, with obvious bias in some cases and significant silence in others, cannot continue without prejudice to the system.
30.	In any case, the subject of human rights is not in any way negotiable, and it must not. therefore, be used as a means of applying pressure for obtaining advantages in other fields of international relations, such as security, or economic and technical co-operation.
31.	Full protection of the human being is only possible through unrestricted observance of his civil, political, social, economic and cultural rights on the national level and, on the international level, through the establishment of a new international economic order, which will give effect, with equity and justice, to the safeguards enshrined in the Charter of Economic Rights and Duties of States.
32.	My country submitted its report on human rights to the appropriate organs of the international system, whose competence it recognizes. They in turn have shown satisfaction at the way human rights are observed in Ecuador and at the implementation of the legislation which protects them. They have also shown their satisfaction in respect of our plan for the legal restructuring of the State, whose implementation is progressing normally, and which will enable the Ecuadorian people to return to a constitutional regime in the near future.
33.	Ecuador reaffirms its firm decision in favour of the full implementation of the new international economic order and regrets that for lack of an agreement in the first half of the Decade, the world should have found itself witnessing dangerous confrontations that may affect the entire world population, unless the developed countries implement the measures laid down for reaching the specific objectives of the International Development Strategy.
34.	My Government endorses the principle that requires international economic relations to be based on the sovereign equality of all States, with the full and effective participation of all countries in finding the solution to world economic problems, and on the right of each country to adopt the economic and social system which it deems most appropriate. In that context, we ask for the speedy establishment of a fair and just price relationship between the prices of raw materials and of manufactured goods, while at the same time we encourage the influence of the producers' associations that are pursuing the same ends.
35.	Ecuador hopes to see international co-operation applied to the elimination of discriminatory practices against producers' associations in countries that export raw materials.
36.	The Charter of Economic Rights and Duties of States is an international instrument which makes it possible effectively to protect natural resources, which are the lifeline of future generations, and helps control the entry of foreign capital and technology, with full regard being given to the sovereignty and the laws of each State.
37.	Ecuador is aware of the problems caused by the shortage of energy which affect the world today, and of the projected cumulative effect of such shortages in the future; it therefore notes with interest the proposals of the Secretary-General to make a technical study of this factor of human progress, since my country is in the process of acquiring the technology and other necessary elements to produce nuclear energy for peaceful purposes, as befits its tradition and its international commitments.
38.	On the other hand, my country observes with concern the progress of negotiations on the Integrated Programme for Commodities within the framework of UNCTAD. The length of the negotiations relating to the commodities listed in the Integrated Programme is in itself evidence of the lack of political will on the part of the developed countries which, despite their protestations of goodwill, have not taken any significant steps to resolve, even partly, the current international trade crisis. Ecuador hopes that the negotiations on the Integrated Programme's common fund will be brought to a favourable conclusion and expects to see a consolidation of the required machinery to set such a programme in motion.
39.	My Government appeals to the stronger countries, asking them to show the necessary political will in the negotiations which are due to start next November, on the establishment of the common fund for financing commodity buffer stocks, which will benefit not only the weak countries, but also the world economy as a whole.
40.	Ecuador earnestly requests the political support of the international community to help bring the negotiations on the sugar and banana agreements, in particular, to an early conclusion, since it was noted, during the negotiations that took place in Geneva and Rome respectively, that the industrialized countries did not give the support necessary for the drafting and signature of such instruments.
41.	Looking back on the results of the negotiations that brought together industrialized and developing countries, particularly the North-South dialogue held during the Conference on International Economic Co-operation in Paris, it is disheartening to see how limited the results were in terms of basic global policy matters that might have opened better prospects for international economic relations. There can be no isolated policies applicable only to certain aspects of development, nor can there be only transitional measures that are mere palliatives to hunger, poverty and the unequal distribution of wealth, ever present in the world today.
42.	The North-South dialogue has not yet ended. Though it started in Paris, it will continue in its natural and universal forum, at the United Nations, which was established for consultation and negotiation and the search for global solutions by consensus likely to guide economic relations and encourage co-operation on the basis of justice.
43.	It is the responsibility of the present General Assembly to define a clear mandate and establish a forum for the negotiations that are to follow those initiated in Paris and bring them to a successful conclusion.
44.	My country has full confidence in the restructuring of the economic and social sectors of the United Nations; above all, it considers that the Economic and Social Council must be strengthened so that it may really become the most important operational arm of the international community, upon which the hopes of the needy peoples are founded. The Council must undertake specific tasks in order to rise to the great challenges of our time without dissipating it's action through subsidiary bodies. Its role must be strengthened constantly as the co-ordinator of action and the policy director of the United Nations system, faced as it is with the broad array of action by the specialized agencies of the system. Full use has not yet been made of the possibilities available under Articles 62, 63 and 64 of the Charter.
45.	In this regard, a matter of great concern is the total absence of representation by the Latin American countries at the top levels of the specialized agencies, and this does not meet the criteria of universality or of equitable geographical distribution at levels of real significance.
46.	Ecuador believes that the dynamic and respected presence of the international community is felt in the developing countries through the operational activities of the United Nations. Consequently, it endorses the process of strengthening of UNDP and of its function of co-ordination, in support of the plans formulated by Governments in exercise- of their sovereign rights; it also feels that the Resident Representatives should also be representatives of the Secretary-General.
47.	A serious cause for concern to Ecuador is the current of opinion that holds that resources should be reduced for the countries which have reached the midway point in the process of development, without withdrawing the sources of support from the most backward countries on the scale. Such a thesis cannot be accepted if it means withdrawal of international co-operation from the whole of the Latin American region is the very moment when it is making its most determined effort to find its way to well-being, with full utilization of its natural and human resources, while the technological gap keeps widening alarmingly, separating the advanced countries of the industrial world and those of our region which still depend on markets that offer unfair prices for our raw materials. Ecuador will resolutely oppose any action that implies technological neo-colonialism aimed at withdrawing resources from the Latin American region, on the pretext of concentrating those resources entirely on the world's poorest countries.
48.	Meanwhile, the undertaking by the major countries to contribute 1 per cent of their gross national product to the transfer of resources to the developing world, has still not been implemented, save for two or three rare, honourable exceptions. The major countries still remain deaf to this call for justice which requires such a transfer to be made for the safeguard of world peace, under the new international economic order. The aid received by the developing countries helps the great nations who supply this aid to discharge their duties of co-operation in our interdependent world. Thus it is that Latin America, for instance, has started to transfer to other countries, particularly to those that have most recently reached independence, the results of its experience of one and a half centuries of independent life and 32 years of persevering action within the United Nations system.
49.	Finally, I believe that it is necessary to underscore the activities relating to the drafting of a code of conduct for transnational corporations and the work of the United Nations Commission on Transnational Corporations, of which my Government has taken particular note. Ecuador confirms on this occasion that it is convinced that an instrument of such importance should be fully binding in law.
50.	Ecuador places its full trust in the United Nations, and in its responsibility in the matter of peace, understanding, international co-operation and the safeguards of coexistence for all countries, large and small. The world Organization offers the best, if not the last, historical opportunity for the survival and progress of the human race, and all countries—not only the great Powers—must use their energy and apply the full force of their will to achieve understanding, without wasting time over matters of procedure, in order to meet the closely interwoven, multiple challenge of insecurity, aggression and under-development, and thus bring about in our generation the realization of a world of justice and peace.