64.
65.	Mr. President, allow me to offer you the heartfelt congratulations of the Hungarian delegation on your election as President of the thirty-third session of the General Assembly. I am particularly pleased to note that recently more favourable conditions have emerged for the further development of relations between our two countries, Hungary and Colombia. May I assure you that the Hungarian delegation will do its best to promote the successful work of the General Assembly under your guidance.
66.	On behalf of the delegation of the Hungarian People's Republic I welcome the delegation of Solomon Islands and wish this new State Member of the United Nations every success in its activity.
67.	The events which have occurred since the thirty- second session of the General Assembly have given clear proof once again that mankind has no task more important and more urgent than that of defending peace and ensuring the normal international conditions necessary for creative pursuits. Those conditions can be guaranteed only by peaceful coexistence and the deepening of detente. That is, indeed, in the common interest of all peoples and of mankind as a whole. It is by no mere chance, therefore, that the process of detente is playing a fundamental role in international politics.
68.	The beneficial effects of the advance of peaceful coexistence and of the extension of detente are particularly perceptible in Europe. In our part of the world, political consultations between representatives of countries with different social systems have become regular, with trade relations expanding and co-operation programmes and cultural exchanges broadening in scope.
69.	Yet, we also witness intensified efforts and counterattacks to halt the launching of that positive process by those who cash in on the arms race, by the forces opposed to the relaxation of tension, which try to justify their intentions with false arguments such as the non-existent Soviet military threat and the alleged military supremacy of the Warsaw Treaty Organization. But nothing can be invoked to justify actions against peace and security and international understanding, or attempts to start a new spiral of the arms race or the decision of the North Atlantic Council, meeting at the level of Heads of State and Government in Washington on 30 and 31 May, to launch a long-term programme of armaments.
70.	There can be no doubt that, by reason of sabotage by the forces acting against peaceful coexistence and detente, recent times have seen a slowdown, a check, in the momentum of the process of detente which may be observed in relation to a number of world affairs.
71.	Still, we look with optimism to the future, mainly because we hold that detente is a necessity ensuing from the international balance of power. We are convinced that, if the advocates of peaceful coexistence and of detente join forces and act with resolve, they will succeed in surmounting the obstacles now in the way of the process of detente, in sustaining the results achieved thus far and, above all, in strengthening and deepening the process of detente by extending it to the military field. We note with satisfaction that a number of realistically-minded politicians in the Western countries similarly come out in favour of detente and of wider relations between socialist and capitalist countries. We regard it as being of great importance that the non-aligned countries are taking a stand against the use of force, armaments and intervention in the
"internal affairs of other countries, as well as for peace and security.
72.	The position of the Hungarian People's Republic on this decisive issue is well known. We struggle for lasting peace and stable security and we spare no effort to prevent the genie of the "cold war" from getting out of the bottle of the past. We come out consistently in favour of the peaceful coexistence of countries with different social systems, of wider international co-operation, of preventing the arms race and of placing peace and security on even firmer foundations.
73.	The most pressing task in international life is to promote the cause of disarmament, first of all nuclear disarmament. The strength of the process of detente is evidenced by the fact that the various disarmament forums continue with their work despite the unfavourable changes in the international situation. Moreover, the tenth special session of the General Assembly devoted to disarmament is added proof that collective efforts tend to impart a fresh impetus to talks seeking to advance effective disarmament. The special session made it possible for more countries to join in the disarmament talks and confirmed the correctness of applying the principle of consensus to questions related to disarmament and international security.
74.	In our judgement the proposal presented by the Soviet Government at the special session concerning practical measures for ending the arms race 0 is of particular relevance to the promotion of disarmament. The great number of other documents submitted there provides an additional pool of useful ideas that deserve further study. It is our common task to work for the implementation of the constructive proposals made on disarmament. By so doing we can make a large contribution to the proper preparation of a world disarmament conference.
75.	The Hungarian Government follows with great attention the tripartite negotiations on the complete prohibition of nuclear-weapon tests. The conclusion of a treaty on that subject would be a major step towards reducing the danger of nuclear war. From the point of view of the successful outcome of those negotiations I should like to commend the useful work of the Ad Hoc Group of Scientific Experts to Consider International Co-operative Measures to Detect and to Identify Seismic Events, set up to consider international co-operative measures to detect and identify seismic events, a group in which my country's representative is also taking an active part.
76.	The Hungarian People's Republic warmly welcomes and considers as a highly significant step the new proposal of the Soviet Government that at this session the Assembly should discuss a draft international convention on the strengthening of guarantees of the security of non-nuclear States [AI33I241J. A similar proposal was submitted by the Soviet Union as early as 1966,  but it did not meet with sufficient response at that time. We feel that now real possibilities exist for concluding such a convention.
77.	The Hungarian delegation likewise pins great hopes on the work of the Special Committee on Enhancing the Effectiveness of the Principle of Non-Use of Force in International Relations and strongly supports the efforts to draw up an international treaty, as proposed by the Soviet Union. The conclusion of such a treaty could form an integral part of the disarmament process.
78.	The extension of the prohibition against certain weapons to chemical weapons is becoming a matter of increasing urgency. We hope that the long years of talks thereon will be crowned with success.
79.	We continue to demand that the production and deployment of the neutron bomb should be abandoned once and for all.
80.	The disquieting prospect of the development and manufacture of new types and systems of weapons of mass destruction only underlines the timeliness of the proposal to ban those weapons. The last advances of science and technology should be prevented from being used for the development of new devices of mass destruction. We are firmly convinced that it is easier to agree on banning weapons of mass destruction in the design stage than at the time of series production.
81.	The outcome of the ongoing talks on disarmament issues depends to a great extent on the results of the negotiations between the Soviet Union and the United States of America concerning the limitation of offensive strategic weapons. Precisely for that reason, we attach exceptionally great importance to the Soviet-American talks to reach agreement at the second series of Strategic Arms Limitation Talks [SALTII], which it is hoped will be concluded m the near future. The SALT II agreement would greatly promote the disarmament talks going on in other forums, would substantially improve the international climate and would advance the process of detente.
82.	The Vienna talks on the reduction of armed forces and armaments in Central Europe have made little headway despite the serious efforts exerted by the socialist countries of Europe. In June of this year the socialist countries submitted a new proposal which, with the aim of promoting an agreement, took into account several important elements of the position of the countries members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. We hope that our Western negotiating partners will be acting in the same spirit and will open the way to an agreement by proceeding on the basis of the principle of equal security. It is our earnest desire to see Helsinki followed up by Vienna entering world politics as a synonym of international understanding and co-operation. Following the path taken at the Helsinki Conference,  Europe could well set another example in Vienna. In our view, an agreement on the reduction of armed forces and armaments in Central Europe would lay the basis for additional arms limitations; what is more, it could in the longer run facilitate accords on arms reduction in a broader area than that covered by the talks currently under way.
83.	The results achieved so far by the implementation of the Final Act of 1 August 1975 adopted at the Conference on Security and Co-operation in Europe similarly react favourably on the process of detente. In our opinion, the Belgrade meeting concluded its work with basically positive results, despite; the well-known difficulties it had to face. It reaffirmed the commitment of States to the continued implementation of the recommendations of the Helsinki Final Act and determined the directions of developing co-operation in Europe. The work of that meeting has given further proof that great effort is still needed for the settlement of questions related to the elaboration of different forms of co-operation and to the promotion of political and military detente and economic and cultural co-operation. It is encouraging to note that the Bonn Economic Summit Conference in July, one of those envisaged at Belgrade, concluded its work successfully on the subject of the "Scientific Forum". Serious efforts are being made to prepare additional meetings of experts in a constructive spirit and to carry out the proposals for the implementation of the Final Act by laying the basis for the Madrid meeting scheduled for 1980.
84.	The Government of the Hungarian People's Republic will, as heretofore, strive for the consistent implementation of the recommendations of the Final Act, thereby contributing to the improvement of the international climate and to the expansion of Hungary's relations with the countries of Western Europe and North America.
85.	There have been clear indications even before now of Israel's quest for a separate peace with the Arab Republic of Egypt as a means of bringing the other Arab States to their knees and of asserting its own annexationist interests in the Middle East. The Camp David agreements are a reflection of such endeavours.
86.	It is understandable that the representatives of the genuine interests of the Arab peoples should dissociate themselves from those agreements and should have decided to take measures in defence of their interests. The
Governments of several Arab countries have condemned those accords, which are harmful to the Arab peoples, and have dissociated themselves from them.
87.	In our View, the peoples of the Arab countries will never accept these humiliating agreements, which ignore their interests. We repeat what We have already said time and again, namely, that a Middle Hast agreement that is made without the participation of all the parties concerned, including the Palestine Liberation Organization, cannot result in a lasting peace.
88.	We hold that a just and lasting peace in the Middle East can be achieved only if account is taken of the well-known principles that should govern a settlement and of the relevant decisions and resolutions of the Security Council and the General Assembly, as well as of the right of tire Arab people of Palestine to set up its own State, and if the framework of the Geneva Peace Conference on the Middle East is revived.
89.	Tire worsening situation in the Middle East is being further complicated by Israel's repeated armed provocation against Lebanon. The territorial integrity of Lebanon has been directly threatened. One of the most pressing tasks in the region is to curb the Israeli aggressors.
90.	The situation on the African continent is characterized by new successes that have been scored in the struggle by the patriotic forces and the adherents of social progress to win the independence of their countries, preserve their sovereignty and territorial integrity and defend their progressive social systems.
91.	It was with great hopes that public opinion in Hungary greeted the decision of the Security Council on the question of Namibia. We believe that the United Nations should do its utmost to ensure that the proposed settlement will not result in a sham independence for Namibia designed as a screen for the prolongation of foreign domination. Such a "solution" would only lead to the emergence of a broader conflict. The South African racists' refusal to accept the report of the Secretary-General of the United Nations and their scheme to stage an electoral farce in order to present the world with a fait accompli amount to outright defiance of our world Organization.
92.	It is evident now that the "internal settlement" in Southern Rhodesia has failed. One must be prepared for the illegal Smith regimens attempting new provocations against its neighbours. We regret to state that certain Governments fail to regard this highly important matter with due seriousness and, in defiance of the Security Council resolutions, stall maintain commercial contacts with the Salisbury regime.
93.	The Hungarian people is convinced that no manoeuvring wall be able to prevent the victory of SWAPO, the legitimate Representative of the Namibian people, and Of the Patriotic: Front struggling For the genuine interests of the Zimbabwean people, as in the past, we will continue to assist "the peoples of Namibia and Zimbabwe in their struggle for complete and final liberation from colonial bondage and from the domination of the white minority.
94.	Disquieting news continues to reach us from South-East Asia. Tensions in that part of the world have been aggravated by the big-Power and hegemonistic policy of the Chinese leaders, by their gross pressure on and constant provocations against the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam. This is now the greatest obstacle to peace and security in that region. Hungary pledges its solidarity with the fraternal Socialist Republic of Viet Nam, which has won its right to a life in peace and independence through long years of arduous struggle and sacrifices.
95.	We still hold it necessary for the United Nations and the specialized international organizations to assist the people of Viet Nam in healing the wounds of war as soon as possible.
96.	There is still no progress in the settlement of the Korean question. My Government lends continuing support to the endeavours of the Government of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea on behalf of the peaceful unification of the country.
97.	This year's session has to face again the unresolved situation in Cyprus. The Hungarian Government unswervingly maintains that a lasting settlement can be achieved only through respect for the independence, sovereignty, territorial integrity and non-aligned policy of the Republic of Cyprus and by guaranteeing the equality and mutual interests of both communities.
98.	Given its natural and economic conditions, my country has a very great interest in establishing a pattern of international economic co-operation that is free from any discrimination and factors that stand in the way of building broader ties.
99.	My Government supports the restructuring of international economic relations on a just and democratic basis, in accordance with the principles embodied in the resolutions of the sixth special session of the United Nations General Assembly [resolutions 3201 (S-VI) and 3202 (S-VI)J and in the Charter of Economic Rights and Duties of States /resolution 3281 (XXIX)].
100.	The Hungarian People's Republic attaches great importance to social problems and human rights issues. We think "that discussion of these questions in the United Nations would enable us to take further steps towards the final elimination of the different forms of colonial and racial oppression, of social injustice and of hunger and misery which still beset a number of countries across the world.
101.	We favour the consideration by the present session of the role played by the equitable distribution of national income in the promotion of economic and social progress. It is our conviction that national income should be devoted essentially to peaceful economic construction, to the creation of conditions for the practical implementation of the right to work, and to the improvement of material, medical, social and cultural services for the broad masses of the people. The products created by working people should be used, first of all, to raise their standard of living. Only this will make it possible to realize the principle of social justice as enshrined in the Charier and to achieve the fullest observance of human rights.
102.	It is in the spirit of the United Nations Charter and in accordance with the provisions of the Helsinki Final Act that Hungary for its part wishes to participate in international co-operation aimed at effective respect for human rights, and it expects other countries to do likewise. Therefore, my Government rejects any attempt at interference in matters within the domestic jurisdiction of other States under the pretext of defending human rights. Justified international action to ensure respect for human rights should also in the future be distinguished from political campaigns seeking the revival of "cold war" confrontation.
103.	The Hungarian Government considers that the United Nations system of institutions concerned with human rights is satisfactory and sufficient. Precisely for this reason we "are against the creation of additional human rights bodies, since their functioning would raise considerable difficulties for the related activity of our Organization and might lead to a deterioration of relations between Member States.
104.	The Hungarian delegation avails itself of this opportunity to condemn once again the terror prevalent in Chile and to demand the cessation of brutality and the restoration of human rights and democracy. Our people supports the Chilean patriots in their struggle for a democratic revival of their country. We similarly condemn all forms of racial oppression and demand that an end be put to the apartheid policy of the Pretoria regime.
105.	My Government believes that it is absolutely essential to enhance the effectiveness of the United Nations, and therefore we follow attentively the work of the Special Committee on the Charter of the United Nations and on the Strengthening of the Role of the Organization. We note with satisfaction the Committee's growing awareness of the fact that any step forward in this direction can result only from complete consensus of opinion. The role of the United Nations can be strengthened and its effectiveness increased primarily through greater observance of the Charter, which has stood the test of time.
106.	While recognizing the useful activities of the United Nations, I should like to voice the concern of the Hungarian delegation about certain concepts for the restructuring and developing of the Organization, including the Secretariat. The Hungarian delegation is naturally not opposed to carrying out the necessary restructuring, but it holds it essential that such efforts should be. made with great caution and with a clear definition of the areas of activity and competence.
It is along these lines that I have wished to sum up the position of my Government concerning some questions on the agenda of this thirty-third session of the General Assembly. I hope that the session will also perform useful work and will contribute to strengthening co-operation and understanding among nations and to consolidating peace and security.


162.	On behalf of my delegation I am happy to discharge the pleasant duty of congratulating the President most warmly on his brilliant election to preside over the thirty-third regular session' of the United Nations General Assembly. By a happy combination of circumstances the presidency of our Assembly has successively been entrusted to members of the Group of 77, who all face the same difficulties of existence and are thus part of a movement of collective solidarity in the face of common challenges. My delegation is convinced that under Mr. Lievano's presidency we will do constructive work to overcome the present difficult world situation. This conviction is based on his brilliant personal qualities and his experienced statesmanship.
163.	We likewise congratulate Mr. Lievano's colleagues on the General Committee, whose contribution will no doubt be indispensable in the discharge of his heavy and serious duties.
164.	My delegation is pleased with the excellent report on the work of the Organization [A/33/1J submitted to this Assembly by the Secretary-General of the United Nations, Mr. Kurt Waldheim, who has once again proved his qualities as a tireless pilgrim of peace. The relevance of the proposals contained in that report, like the courage with which they are presented, constitute confirmation of the judiciousness of the choice of our Organization in renewing his mandate two years ago by an overwhelming majority.
165.	I wish to pay a more than deserved tribute to Mr. Mojsov, the President of the thirty-second session of the General Assembly, who, during a year filled with work for the Organization, discharged his duty with honour to his country, the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, and to the entire family of non-aligned countries by competently and authoritatively guiding the destiny of our Organization.
166.	Today, as in the past, Zaire continues to place its confidence in the United Nations because we consider it to be an irreplaceable instrument for the quest for peace in the world. Our Organization is a melting-pot in which a universal conscience is defined and affirmed at the same time as the major principles of co-operation among nations. If all States displayed genuine political will, there is no doubt that the means of action of our Organization in the full assumption of its responsibilities would be markedly increased. But in order to improve the output and increase the effectiveness of our Organization perhaps some of our working methods should be changed. The present practice of holding an annual session with an annual general debate followed by a vote on draft resolutions is certainly constructive. First of all it gives us the opportunity and the privilege to meet and to exchange ideas. But in some ways it looks like a huge tourist operation. Moreover, if we examine things closely we see that since the problems are often the same, our speeches and resolutions remain the same too. Sometimes, even, statements are made before an almost empty hall. Even so, we are satisfied to produce an impressive number of resolutions, three fourths of which, certainly, are not implemented. This sometimes has a depressing effect. That being so, should we not reduce the number of meetings, and set up a committee to monitor the implementation of resolutions in order to avoid their being repeated? Finally, would it not be desirable to reduce the number of items submitted to us for consideration? These are some thoughts my delegation submits to the Assembly for its consideration.
167.	Since it came into being the United Nations has often faced arduous problems the solution of which has necessarily entailed the goodwill and assistance of all States. Regrettably we must note that, while there are rays of light here and there, complete success in seeking peace and fruitful co-operation requires increased vigilance by our Organization.
168.	At present the United Nations is reaching the end of a decade in which we ambitiously set ourselves some important goals in various fields which can all be grouped as one, namely that of development. In this field we are bound to note that results have fallen short of our expectations and ambitions.
169.	In a world characterized by interdependence peace and security become common treasures and constitute indispensable factors for sincere and fruitful co-operation in respect for the sovereignty of one's partners whatever the socio-economic regime to which they belong, and whatever their prestige or level of development.
170.	However, this world in which we live is daily threatened by cataclysms of all kinds and by the unbridled super-arms race which absorbs important resources that could be allocated to development. It is also threatened by the aggravation of inequalities which tends to become systematic-in brief, by the dehumanization that runs the risk of bringing our planet to total ruin.
171.	At its tenth special session the General Assembly devoted more than a month, to a question of vital importance in our time: disarmament. It is 17 years since the non-aligned countries expressed the desire of having our Organization assume more direct responsibility in regard to disarmament. All mankind places great hopes in this prospect, given the problem of the escalation of the violence to which the world is now subjected and the production of increasingly sophisticated arms the destructive capacity of which grows alarmingly.
172.	The tenth special session of the General Assembly aroused great hopes, but they have not been fulfilled-far from it. The results of that session were, it must be realized, very scant. The international community still wants to arrive at results such as those enumerated by the President of the French Republic, Mr. Valery Giscard d'Estaing,1 8 so that it can propose elements for a solution or a system for de-escalation and a return to calm.
173.	There have been various reactions to the proposals of the French President. But we think that they should be considered a positive contribution to increasing mankind's awareness of the apocalyptic danger represented by the excessive armaments that in our day nations that can indulge in the. luxury of such military enterprises allow themselves. Yet it may be observed that both in real and in relative terms the gross national product of the majority of
the States Members of our Organization clearly reveals a state of decided poverty.
174.	Of course the arms race and the constant improvement of these more and more sophisticated weapons are the consequence, the corollary, of a persistent climate of insecurity created by fear of the future: fear first of all of being the victim of a holocaust and fear also of losing supremacy and the diplomatic advantages that that entails. Finally, the aggression perpetrated by Member States against other countries has only intensified the climate of mutual distrust already aggravated by the absence of any significant international control of disarmament.
175.	That is why we must attack the evil at its roots. It is to be hoped that acts of aggression will cease through a voluntary and deliberate return by all members of our international community to respect for the principles of the Charter, in particular the principles of the peaceful settlement of disputes arising in one place or another between Member States, strict respect for the sovereignty of States, and non-interference in the internal affairs of other States.
176.	It was in that spirit that, at the thirty-first regular session, my delegation supported the Soviet proposal for the conclusion of a treaty on non-recourse to force in the settlement of international disputes.
177.	If such principles were adopted and respected there would perhaps be more respect for commitments, thereby , lessening aggressiveness and resulting in less and less recourse to violence. This would have as its corollary recourse to dialogue, which implies negotiation, because, in order to settle conflicts which arise throughout the world in the absence of adequate conciliation machinery, there is only armed violence either with conventional or with nuclear weapons.
178.	The draft convention submitted by the Soviet Union with regard to the prohibition of the use of nuclear weapons against non-nuclear-weapon countries [AI33/241, annex, addendum] is an excellent initiative and represents a first step, but the most adequate solution would consist in simply prohibiting nuclear weapons as such.
179.	On 16 December 1969, at the twenty-fourth regular session of the General Assembly, when the 1970s were declared the Disarmament Decade /see resolution 2602 E (XXIV)j. the major objective to be attained was the release of resources devoted to the arms race and their channelling for the benefit of economic and social development. However, we have since then witnessed a reverse trend. Military expenditures are increasing at an accelerated rate, going from approximately $US 113 billion in 1969 to approximately $400 billion at the present time, which represents an average of more than $1 billion every day. And there is nothing to indicate that in the near future there will be a reversal in the curve regarding military expenditures.
180.	If a tax of that magnitude were to be collected by the Organization and devoted to development, as proposed

so wisely by President Sedor Senghor of Senegal,  important progress could be made in achieving a new balance in international economic relations, instead of continuing to sink such colossal sums in an enterprise at once as absurd as it is perilous for the future of mankind.
181.	Thus my delegation endorses the proposal to set up machinery to collect such a tax.
182.	For rather more than five years the world has been living through one of the most serious crises of its economic and social history from the point, of view of both its proportions and its duration. This crisis is being particularly felt by the under-equipped and poor countries, which are suffering the cumulative effects of inflation, deterioration in the terms of trade, a decline in the principal raw materials market, drought and other natural calamities.
183.	On the other hand, today there are still States indulging in senseless waste of large resources on military enterprises, instead of using them for the benefit of development in keeping with the declared objective of this Disarmament Decade.
184.	Faced with this situation, our Organization should adopt all the measures needed to define a new strategy for development, for the crisis which is raging has brought to light the inadequacy of the machinery and the failure of the means made available for development.
185.	The North-South dialogue, which should work out the procedures for the new international economic order, is marking time. And the first hopes it had aroused in Paris, at the Conference on International Economic Co-operation in 1977, are beginning to be stifled because of the lack of political will and firm commitment among the rich countries which cling to their privileges, although a proper perception of their interests should have led them to greater understanding and determination.
186.	We must encourage the continuance of this dialogue within UNCTAD. We regret that since agreement was reached on the principle of setting up a common fund no substantial progress has been made at the negotiating conference.  We remain convinced that the common fund could play the role of catalyst in the attainment of the objectives of the Integrated Programme for Commodities. In another context, the industrialized countries accepted other commitments in Paris, including the establishment of a special fund to assist the most needy countries. They also declared themselves ready to support the African countries in their programme within the framework of their Transport and Communications Decade in Africa.
187.	My country, Zaire, which relies in particular on exports of raw materials, including copper, was severely shaken by the international crisis, with its train of misfortunes, to which were added other difficulties caused by its geographical location as a semi-land-locked country. Outlets for most of its export products are located outside its territory. All these negative factors have created a very difficult situation for my country, to meet which special measures and recourse to international solidarity are required.
188.. Thus, within the framework of its development Zaire has been forced to draw up a programme for recovery which includes such action as transport reorganization, agricultural development and the complete development of the mining industry. However, to the many difficulties in the implementation of this plan, there is added a natural phenomenon-the drought now afflicting the western region of the country, where this natural calamity has resulted in very serious losses in agricultural production and in the income of the population of that region, which numbers nearly 2 million.

189.	I should like to take this opportunity to thank all the countries which have agreed to participate in implementing the recovery plan, which bears the name of our President.
190.	It is fitting to mention here another area in which negotiations between rich and poor countries are not advancing. This is the Third United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea, the importance of which is vital to all in the establishment of a new international economic order.
191.	The vast resources of the sea-bed and the ocean floor, which have been proclaimed as the common heritage of mankind, must be equitably distributed among all the members of the international community, taking due account of the interests of the under-equipped and geographically disadvantaged countries.
192.	In this new context the new law of the sea should not lead to aggravation of the situation of the under- equipped countries, particularly those which produce raw materials on land, countries which are already severely afflicted by the world crisis and by declining prices for most of their raw materials.
193.	The exploitation of the resources of the sea must be carried out for the benefit of all-rich or poor, technologically advanced or not. However, in order to achieve this, all countries must show sufficient political will so that the arduous negotiations may reach a successful conclusion within a reasonable time. Meanwhile, no ill-considered initiative should be taken.
194.	I should like now to take up a question which for some 30 years has been debated by our Assembly; this is, of course, the Middle East crisis or, more accurately, the Israeli-Arab conflict, the background of which is the question of Palestine.
195.	Zaire's position on this thorny problem has never altered since at this very rostrum on 4 October 1973 it was clearly defined by the most authoritative voice of Zaire, that of the President of the Republic.
196.	Any lasting and genuine solution of this crisis must necessarily include the recognition of the right of the Palestinian people to a homeland and the withdrawal by
Israel from the territories it occupied as a result of the 1967 war. To this end, it seems to us that there should be a dialogue between the parties concerned. Zaire, like the other Members of our Organization, cannot fail to encourage this.
197.	No one can deny that the tragedy of the Middle East is extremely complex. Simplistic solutions cannot be applied to it. Similarly, it is neither adequate nor seemly to become involved in condemnations and sterile invective or in facile congratulations for some minor success. Zaire supports all efforts aimed at establishing a just and lasting peace in the interests of the peoples of the region. We therefore encourage the initiatives of President El-Sadat and hope that they will lead to a lasting solution satisfactory to all parties to the conflict, the Palestinian people and the entire Arab nation.
198.	Furthermore, Zaire has always proclaimed that all the countries in that part of the world must have the right to exist. Israel is a fact, a geopolitical reality , which cannot be denied by anyone since Israel actually exists and is there. Similarly, that the Palestinian people also exist is a fact. One cannot therefore refuse to some what has been given to others.
199.	When we speak about boundaries between Israel and its neighbouring Arab States we often use expressions such as "secure and recognized boundaries".
200.	The concept of internationally recognized boundaries appears reasonable, while the concept of secure boundaries has always seemed to us to be artificial, for how can frontiers be secure, bearing in mind modern means of warfare, except through the will-of those who inhabit the region and through international guarantees, because if there is bad faith on one side everything will be brought into question again.
201.	To be more convinced of this it is only necessary to recall that, despite the boundaries it considered not to be secure, Israel waged and won the 1967 war, whereas with
so-called secure boundaries it almost lost the war of 1973.
202.	Let us not forget that for centuries the Jewish people suffered from the Diaspora. The international community then gave it territory where it exercised its sovereignty for 30 years. It would be unfair now to subject the Palestinian people to a similar Diaspora.
203.	In taking up the Middle East problem the international community must bear these realities ever in mind. It must do everything in its power to facilitate the establishment of propitious conditions for a frank and sincere dialogue among all the parties concerned so as to safeguard the exercise of their sovereign national rights in territory with boundaries guaranteed by the international community.
204.	In recent years Africa has experienced a difficult political situation which has been exacerbated by economic difficulties engendered mainly by the international crisis and natural calamities.
205.	The year 1979 will perhaps bring a ray of hope for peace and stability after the tumult we have suffered during the past three years. The process of decolonization has entered into its last phase, a decisive and hazardous phase, that requires of our Organization the greatest vigilance and a strictness that will withstand all tests, because the enemy, which is struggling with the energy of despair to maintain its immoral and historically condemned privileges, attempts by tricks and violence to vitiate and rob of all meaning the inevitable accession to independence and majority rule of the peoples of southern Africa.
206.	Since the process of liberation began the African continent has polarized the attention of world public opinion. Today the world can no longer question what will happen tomorrow in Africa in the field of decolonization.
207.	It was following the crumbling of the bulwark of the Portuguese colonialists in Africa that the process of liberation was accelerated and broadened to include Zimbabwe and Namibia, thus creating new conditions, unknown until then in the very bastion of apartheid.
208.	Tomorrow—who can doubt it? —Zimbabwe and Namibia will accede to independence, and this will deal the final blow to the system of apartheid that afflicts South Africa. This is why we can now affirm that 1979 will be for our continent a decisive year for the future of all of Africa, and this despite the rear-guard action that is being desperately carried out by the racists who built the last colonialist bastion in that part of the world.
209.	As regards Zimbabwe, confusion reigns. We welcomed the Anglo-American plan,2 3 hoping that its faithful application would become a basis for discussion. The internal settlements have solved nothing because, to be valid, they would have to include all components of the problem and indicate the successive steps for peaceful accession by Zimbabwe to real independence.
210.	Nevertheless, because of its experience and recent history Zaire sincerely hopes that all those who are fighting will unite so that the majority may take power in order and calm, without foreign interference, for the benefit of all of
Africa.
211.	Lack of unity has often given an opportunity to foreign Powers to interfere in our continent and thus hamper our progress towards development. In conformity with its Constitution and the fundamental ideas defined in the Manifesto of the Popular Movement of the Revolution, Zaire reaffirms its determination to contribute to the struggle against the white racist minority in Zimbabwe, as well as its total support for the brother countries of Africa, the neighbours of Rhodesia and the victims of repeated acts of aggression by the Ian Smith clique.
212.	We have been informed that Ian Smith has been invited to come to the United States and deliver a lecture. We certainly should not interfere in the internal affairs of another country, but we sincerely hope that there is still

time for the United States to prevent the arrival of Ian Smith on its territory.
213.	Ian Smith is a criminal and an assassin and his arrival in the United States would be considered by all to be an attack on human rights. If he should come here, we sincerely hope that Amnesty International will intervene.
214.	The situation in Namibia, in our opinion, seems clearer. SWAPO, the only movement recognized by our Organization and the legitimate representative of the Namibian people, has accepted the peaceful path to independence within the framework of a plan drawn up by the five Western Powers.
215.	The Secretary-General of the United Nations has made relevant proposals indicating the stages leading to irreversible independence, including adequate consultation with the population concerned. Zaire cannot but subscribe to that clear and precise plan and reaffirms its belief in the unity of the Namibian people and the territorial integrity of that country.
216.	The Republic of Zaire therefore vigorously condemns the sordid manoeuvres of South Africa to precipitate elections in Namibia so as to bring about a puppet government loyal to it. No form of independence is acceptable for that Territory unless it is sanctioned by our Organization. The United Nations has the imperative duty to bring Namibia to independence with respect for its unity and territorial integrity.
217.	The accession to independence of the States which surround South Africa has sounded the death knell of the minority racist regime of South Africa. South Africa is waging an anachronistic war to save its iniquitous apartheid system. As was stated at this rostrum on 4 October 1973 by the President of the Republic of Zaire: "A fruit falls only when it is ripe; but in the storms and the tempests of history, the fruit falls, whether ripe or not."
218.	It is a sign of our times that for some days a process of political instability has been going on in South Africa. The situation prevailing in South Africa must be considered in terms of the racial conflict which provoked it and the odious and reprehensible system of apartheid, that new form of slavery of our times.
219.	The tension which apartheid in South Africa has always caused and the terrible and barbarous massacres of the non-white populations to which it has given rise since Sharpeville have made the international community fully aware of the situation so that today the infamous doctrine of apartheid is unanimously condemned by all mankind.
220.	This explains all the meetings and conferences which have taken place, whether in Maputo, Lagos, Maseru or, very recently, Geneva. In regard to the last, my delegation regrets the rather disappointing results of the Geneva Conference,  but continues to believe that it is not because there has been a change of attitude regarding the more general question of the elimination of racial discrimination and in particular the system of apartheid. These questions are too serious for our community to be able to compromise on them.
221.	I should now like to take up a matter to which my delegation attaches as much importance as to the preceding ones: good-neighbourly relations. The President of the Republic of Zaire, during the Second Congress of our Popular Movement of the Revolution, recalled this policy when he declared :
"Faithful to our Constitution and its fundamental action as defined in the Manifesto of the Popular Movement of the Revolution, Zaire attaches special importance to its African vocation and, and in particular, promotes good-neighbourly relations."
222.	And Zaire sets great store by that policy. That is why my delegation wishes to draw the attention of the Assembly, during this session, to the genuine and complete normalization, in accordance with the political and diplomatic process, of our relations with our neighbour, the People's Republic of Angola.
223.	That is a major achievement of our international policy, which is to the credit of our will for peace, solidarity and brotherhood, so often proclaimed by the President of the Republic of Zaire. That will has met with an echoing response from and the same positive determination on the part of Antonio Agostinho Neto, the President of the People's Republic of Angola.
224.	This, I think, is one of the appropriate important places for us to exalt this elevated political sense of the Presidents of Zaire and Angola, who resort to African wisdom based essentially on dialogue and consultation. Between them they have brought our peoples to this situation, over which every Angolan and every Zairian rejoices. The two countries have put an end to the atmosphere of opposition, which was not appropriate for two brother peoples. In our world of interdependence, peace and security constitute, to be sure, factors indispensable for the development of our countries. Africa is still far from having an atmosphere favourable to genuine development.
225.	Our two countries, the People's Republic of Angola and the Republic of Zaire, despite their different economic and social systems, have decided to co-operate so that cordial and brotherly understanding shall reign between them and their brother peoples with a view to their development.
226.	This reconciliation, which took place after that reached by our brothers of Senegal and the Ivory Coast, on the one hand, and Guinea on the other, cannot but create rejoicing among all sons of the African continent. It shows also that as long as Africans are among themselves, free from evil geniuses or wicked sirens, there are no difficulties or disputes which they cannot overcome and iron out.
227.	I could not conclude under this heading without special mention of our blood brothers of the People's
Republic of the Congo and their President, Mr. Yhomby Opango, for the positive and substantial role they played in this normalizing of relations between Zaire and Angola.
228.	I shall end my statement by expressing the satisfaction of my delegation at seeing Solomon Islands joining the great United Nations family. We welcome it. We are sure that its contribution to our work will be most constructive.


63.	The delegation of the Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic would like to congratulate you, Sir, on your election to the office of President of the thirty-third session of the General Assembly of the United Nations and to wish you full success in that high office.
64.	We also welcome the admission of the State of Solomon Islands to membership in the United Nations.
65.	Each regular session of the United Nations General Assembly provides an opportunity for States Members of the United Nations to engage in political stocktaking of the period that has elapsed between sessions, to make an assessment of the present situation in the world, and to outline for the future specific measures aimed at consolidating the peace and security of peoples, settling outstanding problems, and developing and deepening international co-operation in various fields.
66.	The salutary changes in the world, which have become especially numerous in the 1970s, are tangible and concrete. They consist in a recognition and formalization in international documents of a kind of code of rules for honest and fair relations among countries, a code which erects legal as well as moral and political barriers in the way of those given to military gambles. They consist in the achievement of the first understandings—however modest they may be so far—which seal off some of the channels of the arms race. They consist also in an intricate system of agreements covering many areas of peaceful co-operation among States with different social systems.
67.	On 25 June 1978, speaking at the ceremony devoted to the presentation of the Order of Lenin and the "Gold Star" medal to the hero city of Minsk, the capital of the Byelorussian SSR, Comrade Leonid Ilyich Brezhnev, General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union and Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR, emphasized that:
"The vital interests of the working peoples of all countries demand that the positive achievements of the last few years on the world arena should not be discarded and that efforts should be made to advance towards a genuine, lasting peace for all nations. By the joint efforts of all peace-loving forces this aim can be achieved, and we believe it will be achieved."
68.	Given the complexity and contradictory nature of world developments, and despite the resistance of the forces of imperialism and reaction, the successful implementation of the programme of peace put forward by the Twenty-Fourth Congress of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, and of its organic follow-up, the programme of further struggle for peace and international co-operation, and for the freedom and independence of the peoples, adopted by the Twenty-Fifth Congress of the Communist
Party of the Soviet Union, promotes the consolidation of the process of detente and provides a real opportunity for the consistent assertion in international relations of the principles of peaceful coexistence, for the development of mutually advantageous co-operation between States, for the removal of the threat of another world war and the elimination of war from the life of humanity, for the cessation of the arms race and the attainment of disarmament, for the solution of the problems of decolonization and the liquidation of racism and apartheid, and for the further economic and social progress of all peoples.
69.	One cannot fail to note, however, that with the deepening of the process of detente, its adversaries are mounting a more active campaign. This requires increased vigilance on the part of all peace-loving forces. The task has become particularly urgent in the context of the apparent activation of militarist forces. The aggressive circles of imperialism are not willing to reconcile themselves to all their failures: defeat in social battles, the loss of their colonial possessions, the departure from capitalism by an increasing number of countries, and the successes of world socialism. Under the guise of deceptive propaganda campaigns, one of which makes a lot of fuss about the so-called "Soviet military threat", they are feverishly launching long-term military programmes to secure their military superiority—a fact which poses a very serious threat to the cause of the peace and freedom of the peoples.
70.	The actions of China are also fraught with serious danger. By embarking on the road of great-Power chauvinism and hegemonism, the leaders of that State preach the inevitability of another world war, openly count on an increase in international tension, sabotage disarmament, and form blocs with the most reactionary militarist forces. The course at present being followed by the leaders in Peking is a great threat to many peoples of the world. This is attested to also by the continuous provocations of the People's Republic of China against its neighbouring States, against heroic Viet Nam, whose people recently maintained, in bloody battles, their freedom and the unity of their native land.
71.	In present conditions it is absolutely essential to counteract in the most resolute way any attempts to undermine the process of detente, to turn international developments back to the times of the "cold war". Now more than ever before it is imperative to adhere strictly in relations among States to the principles of the non-use of force and non-interference in the internal affairs of other States, to respect the rights of all peoples to freedom and independence, and to increase efforts designed to ensure the extensive development of peaceful co-operation-and the possibilities of such co-operation are clearly defined in the United Nations Charter, in the Final Act of the Conference on Security and Co-operation in Europe, in the United Nations Declaration on the Deepening and Consolidation of International Detente [resolution 32/155/, and in other United Nations decisions.
72.	In international affairs the Soviet Union is steadily pursuing the Leninist policy of peace, of consolidation of the security of peoples, and of broad international cooperation. Our Constitution outlaws war propaganda and puts forward the task of achieving general and complete disarmament. Designed for the years and decades to come, our plans are directed towards peaceful construction, for the happiness and well-being of the people. That is why the Soviet Union is so active and consistent in its policy of curbing the arms race and proceeding towards measures of real disarmament.
73.	Lately the Soviet Union put forward a comprehensive programme of new constructive and realistic initiatives to ensure a break-through in the struggle for stopping the arms race. These specific proposals have been formulated in a number of speeches by Comrade L. I. Brezhnev and in the document entitled "Practical measures for ending the arms race", submitted by the Soviet Union to the United Nations General Assembly special session devoted to disarmament. It is to be noted with satisfaction that all major Soviet initiatives are reflected in some form or other in the Final Document adopted by the special session on disarmament, and they should be negotiated further or become part of the future programme of work of the Committee on Disarmament.
74.	It will be recalled that the Soviet proposals provide for the complete cessation of further quantitative and qualitative increases in the arms and armed forces of States having large military potentials; an end to the production of all types of nuclear weapons and a gradual reduction of their stockpiles until they have been completely destroyed; the cessation of the production of, and prohibition of, all other types of weapons of mass destruction; the cessation of the development of new types of conventional armaments of great destructive capability; the renunciation by the permanent members of the Security Council, and by countries that have military agreements with them, of the expansion of their armies and the increase of the quantity of their conventional armaments; a reduction in the military budgets of States with a large economic and military potential, and above all those of the permanent members of the Security Council. Suggesting that negotiations towards the cessation of the nuclear arms race be started at the earliest possible date, the Soviet Union has also made a number of proposals for political measures and measures of international law to strengthen the security of all States. Of paramount importance in this respect is the need to conclude a world treaty on the non-use of force in international relations, whereby all States, including, of course, all the nuclear Powers, would pledge not to use or threaten to use force; this would guarantee the genuine security of all States, big and small, nuclear and non- nuclear. We support also the proposal of the Polish People's Republic on the adoption of a declaration on the preparation of societies for life in peace [A/C.1I33I2].
75.	A move of greatest importance in the further struggle for the strengthening of international security is the Soviet- sponsored draft international convention on the strengthening of guarantees of the security of non-nuclear States which stipulates that:
"The nuclear-weapon States Parties to this Convention pledge themselves not to use or threaten to use nuclear weapons against non-nuclear States Parties to this Convention which renounce the production and acquisition of nuclear weapons and which have no nuclear weapons in their territory or anywhere under their jurisdiction or control, on land, on the sea, in the air or in outer space," (A/33/241, addendum, article A].
The implementation of this Soviet initiative and the reaching of an understanding to the effect that no nuclear weapons should be stationed in the territories of States where there are no such weapons at present would make a substantial contribution to reducing the threat of a nuclear war.
76. The socialist countries have recently made very substantive proposals at the Vienna talks on the reduction of armed forces and armaments in Central Europe. These proposals are based on the principle of equal security for all parties. They accommodate the wishes of Western countries, from which we are entitled to expect a constructive approach to these talks.
It is of great importance to conclude as soon as possible the current negotiations on such questions as the limitation of strategic offensive arms, the complete and general prohibition of nuclear-weapon tests, the prohibition of chemical weapons, the prohibition of new types and systems of weapons of mass destruction and the prohibition of the production, stockpiling, deployment and use of neutron weapons. It is necessary to take effective measures to prevent the further spread of nuclear weapons and to frustrate attempts to put into effect plans for the production of nuclear weapons in South Africa and Israel.
78. A most pressing problem of our time is that of curbing the arms race. It is clear to all that the development of new, even mete destructive and barbaric types of weapons and the further build-up of military potential may lead mankind to the dangerous threshold of an armed confrontation. All this imposes a special responsibility upon Governments, statesmen and the United Nations, from which the peoples of the world expect not mere lip service to disarmament but the attainment of disarmament in real terms.
79.	The Byelorussian SSR and all States of the socialist community are firmly convinced that the task of making sweeping advances in disarmament requires the preparation and early convening of the World Disarmament Conference, as the most representative and authoritative international forum, which could make the concern for the formulation and adoption of effective and mandatory decisions on disarmament a matter of first priority for the leaders of ail States at the highest level.
80.	One of the main tasks before the present session is to take mom effective measures to eliminate as soon as possible the existing hotbeds of international tension and to prevent the emergence of new ones. This is true first and foremost of the Middle East. A just and lasting peace in the Middle East and be achieved only on the basis of the complete liberation of all Arab territories occupied by Israel in 1967, full said unambiguous respect for the legitimate rights of the Arab people of Palestine, including their right to create their own independent State and ensuring firm guarantees of the security of all countries in the region and their right to an independent existence and peaceful development.
81. The delegation of the Byelorussian SSR believes that it is neither through separate deals at the expense of the interests of the Arab peoples nor through capitulation to the aggressor, thus consolidating the spoils of the Israeli aggression, but through the implementation of the United Nations decisions on the Middle East and the Palestinian issue and through negotiations within the framework of the Geneva Peace Conference on the Middle East, under the co-chairmanship of the Soviet Union and the United States, with the full participation of all parties concerned, including the Palestine Liberation Organization, that a lasting and just solution in the Middle East can be achieved.
82.	The United Nations decisions on Cyprus providing for the settlement of the problem on the basis of respect for the independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic of Cyprus and its policy of non-alignment, non-interference in its internal affairs and the strengthening of trust between the two communities should be fully implemented. The proposal of the Soviet Union to convene an international conference o, Cyprus under the auspices of the United Nations  has lost none of its relevance at the present time.
V
83.	Our delegation advocates the implementation of the decision of the United Nations General Assembly concerning the withdrawal of foreign troops from South Korea [resolution 3390 B (XXX)/, thus creating the prerequisites for the independent peaceful reunification of Korea on a democratic basis, free from any outside interference.
84.	It is imperative to seek the elimination of the racist und colonialist regimes in southern Africa, the prompt exercise by the peoples of Zimbabwe and Namibia of their right to self-determination and genuine independence, the liquidation of the system of apartheid in the Republic of South Africa, and the cessation of military, political and economic interference by imperialist Powers in the affairs of independent African countries. The imperialist forces should not be permitted to undertake, under a new disguise of far-fetched propaganda—as they have more than once in the past—activities tailored to the patterns of the colonial era against the peoples of southern Africa or any other dependent territories.
85.	The General Assembly must make wide-ranging international efforts with a view to implementing the provisions of the Declaration and Programme of Action adopted last August by the World Conference to Combat Racism and Racial Discrimination [A/33/262, sect. III]. The Conference stressed the danger of the growing ties between Israel and the racist regimes in southern Africa. It recalled the tragedy suffered by the people of Palestine and emphasized the need for comprehensive and binding sanctions against the apartheid regime in Pretoria and the racist regime in Rhodesia. The non-participation of Western countries in the Conference and their negative approach to its decisions are clear evidence of their intention to hamper the elimination of racism and of their disregard for fundamental human rights.
86.	It is necessary to intensify the struggle against mass and flagrant violation of human rights and freedoms, which, among other things, endanger the peace and security of the peoples: in other words, to Intensify the struggle against apartheid, racism, the violation of the rights of the Palestinian people on the occupied territories and the infringement of human rights in Chile, Nicaragua and South Korea,
87.	According to the United Nations Charter, one of the purposes of the Organization is to achieve international co-operation in promoting and encouraging respect for human rights. What is involved here is co-operation at the inter-State level through the conclusion and universal implementation of the relevant international instruments, with due respect for the principle of non-interference in the internal affairs of States. The struggle for human rights cannot validly serve as a pretext for attempting to shield or exonerate racist or pro-Fascist regimes or to allow agents on the payroll of imperialist services engaged in subversion to go unpunished.
88.	The progress made in the main and most important area of United Nations activity aimed at strengthening peace and international security generates more favourable conditions for safeguarding the political and economic independence of the developing countries and restructuring international economic relations on a just and equitable basis. The socialist countries actively support the aspirations of the developing countries to eliminate discrimination and all kinds of artificial barriers in international trade and all manifestations of imperialist diktat, exploitation and inequality in international economic relations. It is specifically the vestiges of the colonial past and the neo-colonialist activities of international monopolies with regard to relations between developed capitalist States and developing countries that are being used by the imperialist forces to encroach upon the sovereignty of young independent States, impose their will on those States and interfere in their internal affairs. The Foreign Ministers of those developing countries have given details of the scale this danger assumes and the scope of the economic, trade, scientific and technical problems the developing countries are facing. They rightly pointed out that the political and .economic factors related to the foreign policy and economies of the developed capitalist countries, which are afflicted by crises, inflation, unemployment and constant increases in the cost of living, give rise to the phenomena of destabilization and precariousness in the development of international economic relations and have most adverse effects on the situation in the developing countries.
89.	As is well known, the socialist countries have nothing to do with the colonial plundering of African, Asian and Latin American countries, the neo-colonialist ways of exploiting them or the adverse impact of the economic factors of the capitalist economy on the developing countries. The States of the socialist community neither hunt for concessions in the developing countries nor covet control over their natural resources. In our view, the way to solve the problems of economic growth and social progress in the developing countries lies in the elaboration and implementation of a series of measures that would meet the requirements of the restructuring of international economic relations on a just and equitable basis, in reducing the burden of military expenditures and channelling the resources thus released to the objectives of development, with 10 per cent of that amount being allocated to increase assistance to developing countries.
90.	History knows of no society that has been able to do or has done as much as socialism for the benefit of the working people. The peoples of the socialist countries cherish their economic, political and social gains and their social order, which they won in fierce battles and built up with their strenuous labour. A case in point is the Byelorussian SSR, which will celebrate its sixtieth anniversary on 1 January 1979. The enlightened policy of the Communist Party, the internationalist unity and fraternal assistance of the peoples of the USSR and the selfless labour of the people of the Republic have made it possible not only to make up for the material losses caused by the wars that were imposed upon us but also to transform in a short period of time a once backward country of semi- primitive enterprises and an almost ruined agriculture, a country of poverty, disease and illiteracy, into a socialist republic having a highly developed industry, a highly mechanized, intensive and collectively-managed agriculture, modern science and high standards of culture. The salient feature of the Byelorussia of today is its large-scale industry, which accounts for over 60 per cent of the Republic's gross national product. Its main components are machine building, machine-tool construction, radio- electronics, chemistry and petrochemistry, instrument- making and other modern industries underlying scientific and technological progress. The industrial output of the Byelorussian SSR has increased more than 190-fold as compared to the pre-revolutionary level. In recent decades Byelorussia's economic potential has doubled every seven years. During the past 12 years its grain and milk production has doubled and its production of meat has increased by a factor of 2.6. In the current five-year period, 1976 to 1980, industrial output should increase by 45 per cent and grain production will amount to 1 ton per capita. At the same time the average earnings of industrial and office workers in the Byelorussian SSR will increase by 22 per cent, and those of collective farmers by 32 per cent. In the past 12 years over a million apartments have been built in the Republic, housing 9.5 million people. State allocations for free all-grade education, free medical Care, social welfare and so on have been growing every year.
91.	The new Constitution of the Byelorussian SSR, adopted by the Supreme Soviet of the Republic on 14 April following a Republic-wide discussion, reflects the important social and economic changes that have taken place in the Byelorussian SSR during the years of Soviet rule. Favourable conditions have been created, and their scope is increasing, for continuous improvement of the people's well-being and full enjoyment of the entire range of rights and freedoms of the Soviet people. Ever widening and more active participation by the working people in the management of State and social affairs is the central direction of the political development of our country.
92.	The delegation of the Byelorussian SSR, which is a supporter of and a participant in the statutary activities of the United Nations, wishes to stress the importance of effective administrative and budgetary activity in the Organization. In our opinion, when considering this problem at all levels and in all bodies, one should proceed from the basis of the inadmissibility of excessive expenditure and the need for rational and economical use of the allocated resources, first and foremost in the interest of achieving the major objectives of the Organization as defined in the Charter—that is, the promotion of lasting peace and the consolidation of international detente, which must have specific material content.
93.	It is also known, however, that the efforts made in recent years to improve the programme planning and budgetary system of the United Nations have not yet reached the goals set and that the internal reserves and resources released as a result of the completion, reduction, reorganization, cancellation or elimination of overlapping in United Nations programmes, projects or activities, or as a result of any other changes in them, are being misused and are not being turned into savings, which in turn results in unreasonably high rates of increase in the Organization's expenditure. Insufficient attention is being paid to raising the labour efficiency of the staff, to improving the administrative methods of the United Nations Secretariat and even to implementing decisions already adopted. All this naturally gives rise to legitimate concern among the States Members of the United Nations and suggests the need for constructive measures to eliminate the above- mentioned and other deficiencies in the work of the United Nations Secretariat.
94.	The United Nations, whose membership totals 150 States:, plays an ever more positive role in international affairs, in the consideration of the most important issues in die world and the key problems of international relations. Under conditions of international detente, the United Nations is conducting its activities in a more business-like atmosphere and with a higher degree of constructiveness and consistency. The contribution of each State to the strict observance and implementation of the provisions of the United Nations Charter is a real guarantee of the resolution of existing international problems and the opening up of new prospects for fruitful and mutually beneficial co-operation among countries. The role of the United Nations is to be enhanced not through the revision of the Charter but rather through its consistent observance. Together with the fraternal States of the socialist community, the Byelorussian SSR attaches paramount importance to the task of safeguarding peace and eliminating the danger of war, and will actively contribute to the progress of United Nations activities in this field. By consistently pursuing and advocating this policy we are putting into practice one of the main slogans of the October Revolutions behest of the great Lenin: "Peace to the peoples".