286.	Not so long ago, the United Nations was subjected to criticisms which were as vehement as they were destructive by some forces. Accused of powerlessness, it was thus insidiously kept out of the settlement of questions vital to peace, international security and the progress of peoples, which are its fundamental goals.
287 In so doing, those forces tried to keep an exclusive hold on the conduct of international affairs, on the one
hand, and, on the other hand, they tried to divert the United Nations from its primary mission: the democratization of international relations in favour of all Members, large and small.
288.	Today, the credibility of the United Nations is increasing among nations. This renewal of confidence is due to a large extent to the world-wide scope of the problems dealt with here, to the results attained and to the quality of the men called upon to exercise responsibilities therein.
289.	Mr. Lievano is the most convincing example of that quality. My delegation welcomes his election to the presidency of the thirty-third session of the General Assembly. In these difficult times of tension and confrontation the choice could not have been wiser. His long diplomatic experience and the fact that he belongs to a people whose philosophy is one of both moderation and resolute determination in the service of just causes are encouraging factors for those who are expecting this session to be conducted in an experienced manner, giving clear but judicious expression to the right of peoples, the very raison d'etre of our Organization. It would be superfluous, I think, to assure the President, of the co-operation of my delegation in ensuring the total success of this session, which will do honour not only to him but also to Colombia, his country. And his success will be his own.
290.	I should like on this occasion to pay a tribute and express our thanks to the Deputy Federal Secretary for Foreign Affairs of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, Mr. Lazar Mojsov, who conducted with such wisdom and vision the work of the thirty-second session of the General Assembly and the special sessions which followed it.
291.	I should like to pay a special tribute to the Secretary-General of the United Nations, Mr. Kurt Waldheim, for his tireless efforts in the interests of peace and security, which can only be attained by a more democratic redistribution of responsibilities and resources among nations, as he himself has often recalled.
292.	The admission of Solomon Islands to the concert of free nations which Burundi welcomes with pleasure falls within an inevitable process of decolonization for all peoples of the earth.
293.	The serious problems before our Organization have been subjected to wide and comprehensive analyses at this rostrum. From that standpoint, our contribution might run the risk of merely reiterating the relevant statements made by those who preceded me, and thus tire an audience already sorely tried.
294.	Nevertheless, the persistence of colonialism and racist regimes, the re-emergence of conflicts among States fed by the allies involved, the permanence of a system of exploitation of the weak by the rich, the accelerated waste of human and material resources invested in an over-armament which is as dangerous as it is inexplicable are concerns which cannot but be mentioned here.
295.	To be sure, all the voices of the world combined would not bring any answer to the problems involving such vast egotistical and contradictory interests. Nevertheless, it
is true that the constant return to the same questions gradually defines their shape, thus making possible greater awareness on the part of the peoples, which alone in the final analysis are capable of finding lasting and just solutions.
296.	Were it not for the possibility of learning to speak on behalf of the right of peoples, the recurrence of our debates within this Organization would be reduced to vain reiteration of statements, irritating because of their futility. So the right tone must be used so that the lesson makes it mark.
297.	A certain Power endeavours to single out the faults, even the crimes of others, in the conduct of third parties, hoping thus to blind its own people and be considered innocent by other Members.
298.	A humble nation sometimes advocates the interests of its defenders and assists its adversaries, forgetting its own short-comings vis-à-vis its responsibilities. Accusing others becomes the art of vindicating oneself. Thus, the rostrum of the United Nations may soon run the risk of becoming the place for passionate invective and petty bickering.
299.	As for us, along with many others, we think that the seriousness of the situations requiring our attention calls for a lucid approach and calm and collective thought, which should be concerned not with overcoming or diminishing the adversary but with together finding dynamic compromises for the benefit of all.
300.	Guided by the spirit of conciliation, without complacency or surrender, any statement would be a positive contribution to transforming old situations of injustice of which colonialism, apartheid and Zionism are typical examples.
301.	Whether we are dealing with southern Africa, Western Sahara, the Middle East, East Timor or Belize, we are faced with flagrant colonial situations: the denial to peoples of their right to self-determination, the diversion of their resources and labour forces for the profit of their masters and metropolitan countries, cultural subordination and the distortion of their values.
302.	Faced with that iniquity, the advantage of an objective start requires that we identify the protagonists in order to allocate the respective responsibilities.
303.	Within our Organization and elsewhere it has become a commonplace to denigrate the white minority regimes. Of course, those regimes bear the grave responsibility of exercising anachronistic racist domination over millions of Africans. Nevertheless, this cannot vindicate the Powers that are the allies of those minorities, which in certain respects are the tools of exploitation of the black people.
304.	If, instead of resorting to the usual subterfuges, the friends of Pretoria and Salisbury were to recognize their open complicity, and if, instead of virtuous protests, effective pressure were brought to bear upon those advocating racial discrimination, there is no doubt that a step would be taken towards peace and the rehabilitation of those peoples reduced to slavery in their own land.
305.	One seeks in vain the reason for the constant support provided to the white regimes in the political, economic and above all military fields.
306.	It is true that Pretoria is constantly developing preposterous ideas to legitimise its policy, such as the superiority of the white man, to be safeguarded by racial solidarity against black barbarity or Western civilization threatened by communism, for which the blacks serve as middleman.
307.	It would be alarming if such falsifications were to gain support, however vaguely it might be expressed. It goes without saying that a formal disavowal in fact would not be sufficient to comfort the victims of apartheid and their allies, led by Africa.
308.	Rather than be given verbal assurances, Africa and our Organization are entitled to witness specific gestures on the part of the Western Members. On the one hand, instructed by colonial history, they are in a position to understand the justice of the cause of subjected peoples and to assess their determination to win in the end. Moreover, the past of many of them is characterized by desperate struggles to gain or maintain their independence. Finally, it seems that the place of those who escaped the scourge of nazism should naturally be in the forefront of the anti-apartheid and anti-colonial struggle. The humiliations and the tombs are there: devastating proof to compensate for any lapse of memory which might occur.
309.	If, despite all these reasons, a decisive opening has been so long in coming, it is beyond all doubt because of the existence in these colonies-and in southern Africa especially—of vital material interests, objectively linked to the socio-political structures of the racist and colonialist systems.
310.	Here again, a cool and open-minded look at the reality of the future reveals the possible choices. Either the West will try to guarantee its interests by maintaining the socio-political regimes which are an insult to mankind and therefore must be condemned, or it will change its allies and become involved in the task of establishing cooperation among the far-sighted humanist elements existing in white society on the one hand, and the popular forces on the other-those forces which  are the architects of the inevitable national liberation, whatever may be the shortcomings, the backward steps or even the internal betrayals.
311.	The alternative seems clear.
312.	Given the temporary material superiority of the white regimes and the colonial Powers, the first choice, alliance with oppressive forces, has the tenuous advantage that it maintains the enormous immediate interests in an outmoded situation. The second path, alliance with progressive forces, opens up a threefold prospect: first of all, preventing white and black mankind being struck down in the flower of its youth in a savage and deadly war; then setting up between former enemies lasting egalitarian co-operation which takes account of the legitimate aspirations and interests of all the parties involved; finally, after so much hatred and blood, proclaiming before the world that right is greater than might, that freedom will prevail
over subjugation and that fraternity will prevail over discrimination, all of which is in accordance with the humanist tradition of Western civilization and honours man per se.
313.	If reason thus took precedence over passion and emotion, the essential over what is expedient, and if, therefore, those who have traditionally supported the oppressors chose the second path, backing the progressive forces, such a development would impose new duties and attitudes with respect to each colonial situation.
314.	In South Africa, instead of adopting a reprehensible delaying attitude which allows Pretoria time to create irreversible situations, our Organization, unanimously this time, must proceed to threefold concerted action: first of all, to breaking off all relations with the apartheid regime to force it into total isolation; secondly, at the same time to begin, using all the communications media, a psychological campaign to rid the white and black people of their respective complexes of racial superiority and inferiority, which create psychological trauma, mutual distrust and reciprocal persecution. If one assesses the destruction caused to people's minds by the ideology of the natural supremacy of some and the inherent deficiencies of others, one realizes that this cleansing action is in no way superfluous. Finally, it will be necessary to promote internal structures of egalitarian co-operation among races, at work, in the schools and in the areas of social and political life.
315.	These structures of co-operation will not only counterbalance the dismemberment of the country into bantustans, but will also be the necessary internal link which, together with the co-ordinated struggles of the nationalist movements, will create the conditions for the final overthrow of the stubborn racist core in power.
316.	Let no one see in what I have said mere academic thoughts. Victory will be the fruit of multifarious popular resistance, co-ordinated both internally and externally.
317.	We are among those who abhor the use of violence. If the racists renounce the use of violence, the nationalists-who have little means of violence-will have to use peaceful means; otherwise, they will have to fight.
318.	On Zimbabwe, our Organization must reiterate its condemnation of the "internal settlement" and discourage inconsistent compromises aimed at undermining the unity of the Patriotic Front, the sole fighting force and the only guarantee of decolonization which would not be merely a revitalization of foreign domination in the guise of docile and complaisant black power.
319.	As for Namibia, the international community must unconditionally support the decolonization plan of the Secretary-General of the United Nations and call on the Security Council to implement it without further delay. The fact that South Africa exercises over Namibia a power usurped from our Organization in 1966 and, moreover, today arrogates to itself the right to dispute the provisions established by the legitimate administering Power, is inadmissible. Recent developments are not encouraging. We must nevertheless show the Western countries, which have
already made praiseworthy efforts, that those efforts are not sufficient and that more pressure and more sanctions are necessary in order to lead Namibia to total independence, with complete territorial integrity, under the leadership of SWAPO.
320.	The heroic struggle of the Saharan people must be hailed by all those who believe in right and freedom. The best tribute which Burundi can pay to that people is to call on our Organization to give general recognition to the Saharan Arab Democratic Republic under the leadership of the Frente POLISARIO. If this desire is not fulfilled immediately, I am happy to say that justice will certainly not be long delayed. Already positive prospects are opening up, which are the just results of a bitter and tenacious struggle out of all proportion to the modest numbers and means available. This is touching proof of the invincibility of peoples who abhor submission.
321.	Turning to the question of Palestine and the Middle East, whatever the initiatives taken in various bodies, the position of my country is clear: the restoration of the occupied Arab territories and the restoration of the national rights of the Palestinian people constitute the foundation of a just agreement. But to reach that point, the Arab nation must assess the dangers of fragmentation on the one hand and, on the other, the possible relegation to the background of Palestinian resistance, which is the principal protagonist in the struggle against Israel and the driving force of any lasting victory.
322.	There is no need to review all the colonial situations. Those profiting from such injustice should understand that the liberation of peoples is an irreversible phenomenon. Therefore the manoeuvres, whether overt or disguised, designed to maintain under foreign domination East Timor, Belize, Mayotte and all the African islands around the continent, appear futile.
323.	If our Organization is to live up to its objective of maintaining peace and security, some Members will have to refrain from fostering hotbeds of tension and divisive
situations, which must be eliminated in whatever way necessary. In fact sooner or later like the two Viet Nams, the two communities of Cyprus will find a modus vivendi, Taiwan will be reintegrated in the People's Republic of China and the two Koreas will be reunited, as Burundi whole-heartedly hopes. That is the profound wish of the peoples; that is the course of history. Capriciously dismembered, torn apart by countless dissensions, Africa itself will find within itself the resources necessary to make it whole again.
324.	Decolonization would be an unfinished task and the relaxation of tensions and the solution of conflicts a success without a future if conditions for a genuine economic liberation were not created at the same time.
325.	After the decisions adopted by the General Assembly at its sixth and seventh special sessions, after the proclamation of the Charter on Economic Rights and Duties of States [resolution 3281 (XXIX)], despite all attempts to establish equitable international economic relations, a
minority of wealthy nations continues to prosper at the expense of others who suffer from hunger, disease, ignorance and natural disasters.
326.	While the structures which have created these injustices still exist some would have the so-called poor countries believe that access to the capital, technology and products of the rich world is the royal road to development.
327.	It is easy to forget that this affluence is what is blocking the development of our countries. Extreme indebtedness, the facile and subordinate role of the supplier of raw materials-a role which keeps us from industrialization - the outward flow of trade which prevents us from having access to huge potential neighbouring markets, and the intrusion of inappropriate technology, which inhibits the creative skills of our people-all these are things unlikely to produce the goods required to meet the basic needs of the majority.
328.	If at least this policy were proposed at least in good faith! But what do we see? As soon as the developing countries are able to master a given technology for the market the rich countries overtly or covertly resort to protectionism; they want to ensure in every possible way that the international economic system operates first and foremost in their favour, while making certain concessions which are reassuring to the third world.
329.	We must indeed in our Organization continue to look for tentative solutions to such serious problems as those of commodities, foreign indebtedness, the balance of payments and the transfer of technology.
330.	However, in order successfully to achieve real development for our countries, we must have a complete transformation of the world economic system. While that is easy to say, it must nevertheless be translated into facts. This involves two requirements: first of all, the poor countries must resolutely choose a new development policy; and secondly, it is necessary to elaborate a global strategy accordingly.
331.	This new vision of development is based on two main beliefs. The first is that the so-called poor countries possess an enormous potential. Instead of yielding to a sense of powerlessness and dearth, Africa, Asia and Latin America should show their people the wealth of their soil, their manpower, and their energy and mineral resources. The second belief is that, instead of allowing the foreign exploitation of this wealth, the third world has enough imagination to develop it on its own on the basis of interdependence with the industrialized countries and not on the basis of servitude.
332.	Having recovered their sense of self-confidence, the people of the third world can bring about genuine development, guided by a few key ideas which have become increasingly popular and which have been tried and tested: autonomy, on the one hand, and, on the other, the belief that man is the centre of initiative as well as of creation.
333.	Without overlooking the need for co-operation, the need for autonomy gives to those who choose this option
the assurance that the tools of development are within their reach in the mastery of their environment on the basis of existing potential, thanks to their own strength. Such a reasoning will bring about a beneficial breaking off of all kinds of colonial relationships and structures of dependence.
334.	Thus, instead of engaging in a frenzied search for capital, technology and expertise as the only nostrums the men of the third world, since they are most directly concerned, must be the initiators of development, with the help of well organized collective work, workmanlike methods constantly being perfected and their own creativity which can become expertise. This outlook has often been criticized as backward-looking. But, while like the flow of capital from abroad, the flow of technology and expertise remain useful and even indispensable, it could never be a lasting substitute for genuine involvement and the use of one's own tools.
335.	While history does give examples of societies which have developed themselves from within by their own muscle power using simple, local techniques and appropriate imitations when necessary, on the other hand, when industrialization has invaded man's living space from the outside, breaking down his doors, it is not development that is produced, but the marginalization of the peoples, who are reduced to serving crushing machines without overcoming hunger and disease.
336.	In short, rather than lagging behind the industralized world, the third world should rely first on its own population and the means at its disposal in order to achieve development on the basis of self-reliance and to satisfy the basic needs of the masses of the people.
337.	What is needed is realism rather than originality. We need the politics of the possible. To try to create the most modern industry at the expense of agriculture in areas where there is hunger and disease runs counter to reason and common sense.
338.	Most nations Members of our Organization, even those which have many options and choices, could not achieve development by themselves in the face of the crushing power of the transnational corporations and the nationalistic selfishness of the industrialized world. What is needed is concerted action on the part of all the forces of progress. The bases of a tripartite strategy already exist and must be strengthened; I am referring to a strategy of the developing countries, the United Nations and its specialized agencies, and the forces of the industrialized world.
339.	Even though they do not always satisfy everyone the tireless efforts of the United Nations have exceptional merit. Evidence of this is the United Nations Conference on Technical Co-operation among Developing Countries, whose decisions and recommendations have the strong support of my delegation.
340.	May I also be permitted to pay a tribute to our Organization for persevering in the elaboration of an international convention on the law of the sea which is designed to govern the equitable distribution of marine resource. The drafting of national legislation in this
connexion by some technologically powerful States worries us. Such actions seek to circumvent the future international convention and to lend legitimacy to the appropriation of the wealth of the sea at the expense of our countries. This, we think, is inadmissible and must cease.
341.	Although the efforts of the United Nations are important they can never replace the struggle of the third world itself. In order to determine the role the countries of the third world should play in the strategy for the new economic order they must draw up an inventory of their strengths and their weaknesses. Suffice it to point out the • disparity of their means as well as the diversity of their cultural and socio-political systems. This is an indication of the need for greater consistency, which is indispensable for the achievement of economic integration.
342.	This integration is needed for several reasons. First, it is impossible for most States of the third world to achieve development separately because of a lack of adequate human and material resources. Secondly, even the richly endowed large States cannot individually withstand the partisans of an international system of economic exploitation. Lastly, in the absence of a genuine, well-balanced development profitable to everyone, it will be impossible to ensure inner stability, peace and security among neighbouring States.
343.	It is therefore clear that integration is necessary in order to increase the ability to resist the forces of exploitation and neo-colonialism. In this connexion the non-aligned movement, the continental organizations which are not in the sphere of influence of the major Powers, regional co-operation under the leadership of young economic communities, and the groupings of producers of raw materials are all reasons for satisfaction and, at the same time, an indication of what remains to be done for the third world in order effectively to counteract the imperialist coalition.
344.	In addition to the timely efforts needed there are other requirements for the success of economic integration which are as yet far from being met: without an effective harnessing of the national wealth, without greater intensification of horizontal trade and the development of regional industrial policy, without the joint financing of autonomous scientific and technical research programmes the third world will continue to be exploited by the industrialized world and its disinherited peoples will have to suffer further intolerable consequences.
345.	Even if it were in our interests a show of force is not part of our tradition. But, in light of our responsibility to our people, I would like to ask: what other options do we have when faced with the intransigence of the rich?
346.	Instead of being an exercise in empty polemics, this statement was designed as an objective reflection in an effort to contribute to the understanding of certain painful problems and also to outline some solutions which have not been sufficiently explored.
347.	In the areas of colonial domination or dangerous conflicts and tensions we have called upon the victims and the oppressors to reassess their conduct in order to
safeguard their long-term mutual interests and to respect the people who no longer accept brute force as the guiding principle of their relations with others.
348.	As to the unequal distribution of resources and unfair trade, a new way must be found to achieve development on the basis of autonomy and the skills of the people themselves. Moreover, at the international level equitable co-operation is preferable to economic warfare.
349.	Aware of their needs aid of the complementarity which is necessary among people, the poorer countries unceasingly display patience. Some may have believed that the systematic resort to compromise was tantamount to capitulation.
350.	A long history of humiliation always brings serious dangers for the victim as well as for the adversary. Human rights are so often mentioned these days. Is it not time to render justice to this humanity of the third world, the prime victim of exploitation and domination? Despair and resistance are interpreted everywhere as expressions of anarchy and terrorism. Should we not gradually put an end to all situations of frustration which are tantamount to provocation?
351.	To those who rely on the lassitude of the oppressed and the abandonment of their rights, we would like to say that the people have never given up. On the contrary, each passing day strengthens their faith in their cause. The exemplary history of the peoples who have triumphed-in former Portuguese Africa, in Indo-China-the maturation of their aspirations for freedom in the wake of the suffering they have endured in their struggles; the growing solidarity of the progressive forces of the world-all these elements converge to strengthen the legitimate combat of the peoples and inevitably lead them to victory.
352.	Between intransigent oppression and the determination of the victims to take up the challenge, our Organization has no choice.
353. In keeping with our Charter, its objectives of peace and justice, it is our obligation to promote solutions acceptable to all. Where there is obstructionism or bad faith, we must side with the victim. It is our duty: our Organization cannot fail in this duty without betraying us.


138.	On my own behalf and on behalf of the delegation of the Sultanate of Oman it is a pleasure to associate myself with those who have preceded me in congratulating Mr. Lievano, through you, Sir, upon his election to the presidency of the thirty-third session of the United Nations General Assembly. The agenda of this session includes several important issues which are closely linked with the stability of international peace and security and with the- stability of all peoples of the world and their steady progress towards economic and social development. I have no doubt that, with his well-known competence, wisdom and wide experience, Mr. Lievano, as our President, will supervise the work of the session in a way that will ensure further progress towards the realization of the aspirations and noble objectives of the entire world community set forth in the Charter of this Organization.
139.	I wish also to commend the presidency of his predecessor, Mr. Lazar Mojsov of Yugoslavia, who directed the deliberations of the thirty-second regular session and the three special sessions held since.
140.	Also, I should like to praise the continued efforts made by the Secretary-General, Mr. Kurt Waldheim, in the service of this Organization in order to promote its effectiveness and to ensure the discharge of its role and the responsibilities that it bears.
141.	I also wish to seize this opportunity to express my country's welcome to the newly-independent Solomon Islands as it joins our Organization, assuring it of our co-operation in our joint efforts to realize the objectives upon which the .Charter of this Organization is based.
142.	At this time every year we meet together to reassess the international situation and exchange views on the most important international issues. We review our contributions and intensify our efforts to find appropriate and just solutions to the issues and problems that we face.
143.	The Middle East problem is one of the most important, and consequently Over the past 30 years it has been one of the major preoccupations of the Organization.
144.	The Sultanate of Oman, under the leadership of His - Excellency Sultan Qabus—may God preserve his life—has
been careful to clarify its position throughout this period through which the Arab nation is passing, and it summarizes its attitude as follows.
145.	First, the Sultanate of Oman has called and will continue to call for the establishment of a just, honourable and durable peace for coming Arab generations. It will always support courageous Arab efforts to defend Arab rights, which are clear to the whole world, and to eradicate the impact of hostile efforts to blur the clarity of rights.
146.	Secondly, the Sultanate of Oman is determined that a just and comprehensive solution to the problems of the area must be based upon total Israeli withdrawal from all Arab territories occupied in 1967, foremost among which is the
city and the area of Arab Jerusalem, which has been Arab and Islamic ever since the days of Caliph Omar ibn Al-Khattab and will so remain. No one in the Arab or Moslem world has the right to change its Arab or its Islamic character. Arab sovereignty has to be restored to it.
147.	Thirdly, the Sultanate of Oman supports the right of the Arab Palestinian people, wherever they may be, to self-determination and to the exercise of the full rights, as stipulated by United Nations resolutions, in the Arab territory of Palestine.
148.	Fourthly, the Sultanate of Oman, in the light of the present circumstances in the region, gives its blessing to all efforts that may lead to salvaging the situation of the Arabs and the restoration of Arab unity, and it welcomes the idea of an Arab meeting at summit level to deal with that situation. It favours all efforts to consolidate the Arab position on Jerusalem in the Arab and Islamic world with a view to establishing a just, honourable and durable peace.
149.	My country, being geographically close to the African continent and because of the historical links between it and the peoples of that continent, shares their aspirations for the complete elimination of racist systems, which we hope the world will witness very soon. At the same time we are following with great interest the various efforts deployed to avoid confrontation and to settle all disputes by peaceful means. No matter what difficulties are involved, it is incumbent upon us to find the means to achieve peaceful settlements of disputes, to work for unanimity of effort, to strengthen our solidarity and to maintain our sovereignty, independence and good-neighbourly relations, in order to attain the desired objectives. But this can only be achieved, in our opinion, by putting an end to foreign intervention and its harmful impact on the sequence of events in the African continent. The OAU has proved its ability to tackle the problems of that continent and to find appropriate solutions, in order to preserve and maintain security and stability for its peoples. We are confident that the OAU will continue its efforts to bring about a better life, an independent and noble life, for the sons of the African continent and put an end to all injustice and oppression.
150.	My country regards with grave' anxiety overt intervention in the affairs of the African continent by foreign forces intent on the domination and control of its resources. Such foreign intervention does not in any way help to solve existing problems in Africa, but drags Africa into the disputes of the great Powers. This deprives the African continent of real peace and prolongs the bitter sufferings of its peoples, depriving them of liberty and equality.
151.	The African Assembly held recently in Khartoum realized this, namely, that the problems and preoccupations of Africa are the responsibility of Africa, and the OAU at that Assembly, denounced foreign intervention in the African continent, which sows seeds of dissension among the peoples and exploits regional disputes, furthering plans for domination and hegemony over African resources.
152.	At successive General Assembly sessions, and elsewhere in other international forums, the Sultanate of
Oman, a country with a long coastline on the Indian Ocean, has, like other countries, firmly supported and called for the declaration of the Indian Ocean as a zone of peace, free of nuclear and strategic weapons, to ensure that that area remains outside the sphere of conflicts among the superpowers, thus ensuring for the countries and peoples of the region stability, peace and security and freedom from foreign intervention and foreign threats. My country expresses its readiness to contribute effectively to all the current efforts being made in the United Nations, and its hope that the United States and the Soviet Union will resume talks on this subject as soon as possible so that we may achieve the objective of bringing durable peace to this region.
153.	The tenth special session of the General Assembly, devoted to 'disarmament, reaffirmed the need to intensify efforts to bring about general and complete disarmament under effective international control.
154.	We are all aware of the great dangers which mankind faces as a result of the continued development and manufacture of nuclear weapons in quantities and with destructive potentialities unprecedented in the history of mankind. We join others in expressing our anxiety over the fact that progress was not made towards ending nuclear experiments and the development and manufacture of nuclear weapons and towards the destruction of existing stockpiles.
155.	We hoped that the result of the special session of the General Assembly devoted to disarmament would be the beginning of a new stage in United Nations efforts in this field. For the first time in the history of this Organization the General Assembly was giving special and well-merited attention to the problem of disarmament. We hope that the Final Document approved by the special session [resolution S-10/2] will be implemented, that agreements will be formulated for the non-proliferation and use of nuclear weapons, and that the nuclear-weapon States, particularly the two super-Powers, will participate in such efforts, since they shoulder the major responsibility for achieving real, authentic progress towards that end.
156.	The two super-Powers bear special responsibility for maintaining international peace and security but, unfortunately, we note that the split between them still-exists, and its impact spreads beyond relations between them and their allies to other countries and regions which are linked to them by relations of a different kind. That leads, as we have witnessed during past years, to the aggravation of some regional disputes. We join others in calling upon the super-Powers to refrain from extending their differences to the rest of the world and to work for the solution of their regional problems instead of exploiting them in order to extend their spheres of domination.
157.	My country has taken part in all the sessions of the Third United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea, because it is convinced of the importance and vitality of those deliberations for ensuring the formulation of a comprehensive international convention which would serve as a sound legal basis for all activities relating to the sea.
158.	Despite the fact that patience is almost exhausted as a result of the slow progress in the work of that Conference and the problems resulting from that slow progress, as well as by the waste of effort, money and time, it gives us pleasure to note that during its last two sessions, in Geneva and New York, the Conference did manage to make some progress. We hope that the world will see the crowning of those strenuous efforts by the signing of the convention which we have long awaited.
159.	In this connexion we welcome the achievements of the negotiations on subjects relating to the control of production and protection of the rights of the developing countries to the utilization and exploitation of their resources and to equitable arrangements for their distribution. We hope that the negotiating groups will be able to reach agreement regarding the transfer of technology to and the training of cadres from developing countries, a matter which is no less important than the necessity of safeguarding the sovereignty of the littoral States.

160.	I turn now to the international economic situation. There is no doubt that a certain amount of economic and technical co-operation exists among countries today, but at the same time we realize that there is scope for wider co-operation for development and progress and we call for the intensification of efforts, particularly on the part of the developed and industrialized countries. We also call upon those countries to increase, or double, their aid to promote the rate of growth of the developing countries, to work for the fixing of prices of their manufactured goods and to put an end to inflation and alleviate the burden of debt of the developing countries, for fairer prices for their products, and other aims and objectives expressed by the Group of 77.
161.	We call for the intensification of efforts in those fields as that would permit the attainment of the objectives of development, particularly in the developing countries. In this connexion we must affirm the necessity of continuing the constructive dialogue regarding the establishment of a new, more equitable world economic order. We deplore the failure of the Committee Established under General Assembly Resolution 32/174, we appeal to all parties to re-examine the reality and the practical effect of the harmful results that will be inflicted on the whole international community in the case of the failure of those negotiations. We also hope that the political determination exists in the industrialized world to permit those negotiations to be effectively and seriously pursued within the United Nations framework, so that we may be able to achieve the desired results and to adopt decisions during a special session of the General Assembly in 1980.
162.	Similarly, we cannot forget that the developing countries, for their part, should redouble their efforts, by focusing upon development and production in the pursuit of vigilant practical policies, because social and economic development should be based on firm foundations of stability and self-reliance. As we can see, there is wide scope for the promotion of economic, trade and technical co-operation among the developing countries themselves, and particularly at the regional level. We believe that through pursuit of regional co-operation we can create greater potential for the expansion of international cooperation in general. The regional framework provides opportunities for co-ordination, and economic and cultural integration, and geographical proximity facilitates the development of co-operation and co-ordination in keeping with the abilities and potential of the different regional groups. In addition, those countries increase their cohesiveness in a spirit of friendship, co-operation and goodwill in their relations. In that way we avoid any possibility of dispute or confrontation among them.
163.	In view of all this, my country has always called for the promotion of such co-operation in our region and has worked for this end in all sincerity. It still continues to hope for further co-operation among the different countries, in our region in various spheres for the well-being of those countries and their peoples.
164.	The Sultanate of Oman, under the leadership of His Majesty Sultan Qabus—may God preserve his life-extends a hand of sincere friendship and fruitful co-operation to all peoples and countries of the world, regardless of their different economic, social and political systems, on the basis of respect for sovereignty and the principle of non-intervention in the internal affairs of others. Furthermore, it will make every effort for self-development in co-operation with all, for the welfare of all and in complete commitment to the fullest possible implementation of the principles of the United Nations Charter.


25.	Allow me first to congratulate you, Sir, on your election to the important post of President of the General Assembly.
26.	I wish also to take this opportunity to welcome the State of Solomon Islands to our Organization.
27.	The events which have occurred since the last session of the General Assembly attest that die situation in the world remains serious and complex, and fraught with threats and dangers to freedom, independence and the sovereignty of various peoples and countries.
28.	Today we see increased aggressiveness on the part of the super-Powers, constant intensification of their expansionist and hegemonist policy, and their feverish preparations for wars and aggression. Their fierce rivalry to divide and re-divide the world and to ensure for themselves zones of influence, markets and sources of raw materials, has increased. In numerous parts of the world hotbeds of tension and conflict, wars and aggression exist and are being created.
29.	Events such as those occurring in the Middle East, in Africa and in South-East Asia prove that ancient and modern imperialism, colonialism and neo-colonialism will stop at no crime to regain their lost positions, and to prevent peoples from devoting themselves to strengthening their political independence, and their independent economic and social progress.
30.	The American imperialists, the Soviet social- imperialists and other imperialists are trying to submit peoples of sovereign countries to their domination, to make them subscribe to their doctrines of bondage, and to make them renounce their freedom, their national independence and their liberation struggle. In order to achieve these ends they stop at no action-however reprehensible it may be, and however much it may run counter to the norms of moral and international law—from sabre-rattling to treacherous attitudes and the brutal breach of agreements officially concluded between States.
31.	While they have recourse to pressure and violence, the super-Powers are waging an intense propaganda campaign to delude world public opinion, and to pass off their aggressive stratagems as actions serving the cause of peace, the settlement of major international problems and the defence of the interests of other countries. They are not lost for words to express their desire to see "harmony and understanding established", "detente", and "general and complete disarmament", "to avert nuclear wars", and to see the world becoming a mosaic of "zones of peace and denuclearized zones", and so on.
32.	The consequences of the policy and aggressive activities of the imperialist super-Powers are obvious in many parts of the world. Much has been said about detente and peace and security in Europe. But the facts show that Europe is not a continent of solved problems, tranquillity and stability. In Europe the dangerous confrontation between the United States and the Soviet Union and their aggressive political and military blocs of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and the Warsaw Treaty Organization continue as hitherto. In Europe the two super-Powers have massed considerable military forces and have further strengthened their military bases and their nuclear arsenals. They continually organize offensive manoeuvres and make feverish preparations for war. The American imperialists and the Soviet social-imperialists use every political, economic and military means to strengthen their positions in their respective zones of influence and to undermine the positions of their adversaries. The accusations they level at each other concerning the non-observation of the so-called "spirit of Helsinki" decisions and the deadlock in the Vienna negotiations and deals are attempts to justify the maintenance of their influence and their hegemonistic policies. The status quo established by the United States and the Soviet Union has harmed and is harming very seriously the sovereignty of the peoples and States of Europe.
33.	Today in Europe other imperialist forces which show much zeal in fanning the flames of conflict in that continent are seeking ever more overtly to gain a foothold. They are doing their utmost to increase the possibilities of conflict and war in Europe between the two super-Powers, between the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and the Warsaw Treaty Organization, to give rise to as many confused situations as possible in Europe.
34.	The Albanian Government has long expressed its view that detente and the establishment of genuine peace in Europe are attainable not through illusions and hopes based on the promises of the imperialists and the social imperialists, but only by unmasking and countering resolutely their misleading diplomatic manoeuvres. In order that genuine steps may be taken towards the establishment of peace in Europe, first and foremost the military bases and the foreign troops stationed in various countries of that continent must be withdrawn and the aggressive military blocs headed by the super-Powers must be dismantled.
35. The imperialist Powers have always striven to create and maintain a tense situation in the Balkan peninsula and to stir up quarrels and conflicts between the States of that
region. As a result of the policy of intervention of the
super-Powers a number of disquieting factors have accumulated
today in the Balkans; there are problems which
hamper the normal development of good-neighbourly relations
between the various States in that region; and there
still prevail conditions which prevent the Balkan peoples
from feeling secure and sheltered from danger.
36. The most recent events show that the imperialists, far
from having renounced their plans in the Balkans, are
stepping up their provocative actions to turn that region
into a "powder keg," an armed camp and a bridge-head for
the~ warlike strategies. It is to this end that the various
visits by delegations have been made at the highest possible
level by the imperialist Powers to various Balkan countries.
It goes without saying that whoever goes along with the
game of the super-Powers in the Balkans is harming the
interests of his own people and at the sane time creating
dangers for other peoples.
37. The People's Socialist Republic of Albania has always
taken principled and constructive attitudes on problems
which concern genuine peace and security in the Balkans.
By its actions it has shown its will to contribute to
improving the situation in that zone. It is and always has
been in favour of good-neighbourly relations, and has
declared that it will never allow any evil or danger to
neighbouring States to come by way of its territory .
38. The Albanian Government holds that the Balkan
people are capable of acting resolutely to bar the way to
any intervention, to any intrigue by the imperialist Powers.
It considers that the interests of peace and security in the
Balkans require that the Balkan States act responsibly, that
they not allow themselves to be involved in the dangerous
plans of those who do not wish them well. The leader of
the Albanian people, Comrade Enver Hoxha, once said:
"The Balkans have never in themselves been a 'powder
keg'. They were made so in the past by foreigners and
imperialists, who held all the detonators and who wish to .
maintain that situation even today. The Balkan peoples
are in duty bound to cut all the fuses with the sword, so
that peace- and security may be firmly established in the
Balkans. It goes without saying that our peoples need
friends. But they must never become the tools of
foreigners to the detriment of the interests of any people
or of all our peoples jointly."
39. As a Mediterranean country, the People's Socialist Republic of Albania has always attentively followed the complex situation which has been created in the Mediterranean
by the aggressive aims and activities of the United States of America and the Soviet Union and in particular by the presence of their navies in that sea. The situation in the Mediterranean would "change for the better - which would  contribute to the maintenance of peace in the region - were the Mediterranean countries to take specific measures against the presence of the navies of the United States of America and the Soviet Union, to forbid the establishment of
American and Soviet military bases on their territories and to refuse port facilities to the warships and air corridors to the military aircraft of the two super-Powers, The concessions being granted to one or the other super-Power, or to both, are fraught with grave consequences not only
for the country which grants them but for other countries
as well.
40. The earliest and most just possible solution of the
problem of Cyprus would eliminate one of the hotbeds of
tension in the Mediterranean and one of the factors which
has a negative influence on the situation in the Balkans.
Cyprus must be an independent and sovereign State where
the two communities can live in understanding and harmony.
The Albanian Government's view has been and
remains that this problem can and must be resolved in a just
manner by the people of Cyprus itself, on the basis of its
free will and without any foreign intervention.
41.. The effects of the imperialist-Zionist aggression and
the rivalry of the United States of America and the Soviet
Union in the Middle East continue to weigh ever more
heavily on the Arab peoples, first and foremost the
Palestinian people. The Israeli Zionists have until now
enjoyed numerous advantages from the constant military,
political and economic support they have received from the
American imperialists and from the anti-Arab manoeuvres
of the super-Powers. The tragic events in Lebanon show
that they have stepped up even further their aggressive
actions against the Arab peoples and countries. Life and the
facts have confirmed the warnings given by the true friends
of the Arab peoples with regard to the danger and the grave
consequences of the numerous plots hatched by the
imperialists for years on end to sabotage the liberation
struggle of the Arab peoples, to divide them and to draw
them into the trap of so-called political settlements, of
conferences and mediations of the imperialists, which can
only lead to the sacrifice of the fundamental rights of the
Arab peoples, first and foremost the Palestinian people. The
imperialists strive to impose humiliating conditions on the
Arab States and partial solutions to the Middle East problem. But as long as its legitimate rights are denied to
the Palestinian people, as long as Israeli troops occupy even
one inch of Arab land, peace in that world trouble-spot
cannot be assured.
42. We are confident that, whatever the difficulties, the Arab
peoples, whose energy is great, will finally attain their
rights, thanks to their resolute struggle and their unity. The
people and the. Government of Albania have supported and
will always support with determination the just cause of the
Palestinian people and the other fraternal Arab peoples.
43. This year has been marked by a sharp increase of
tension in 'the African continent. The African peoples, which have after a long struggle, arduous efforts and many sacrifices broken the chains of centuries-old colonial domination and now aspire to consolidate their independence
and national sovereignty, are now confronting difficult
political, economic and military situations brought about
by the interference of the super-Powers and imperialist
Powers in Africa. The imperialist super-Powers stir up
disputes and conflicts among the African countries and incite among them hostility that has its roots in the problems which they have inherited from colonial domination. Africa is flooded by arms, countless advisers, specialists and military instructors from the West and the East, who seek to induce the Africans to fight among
themselves for the benefit of foreigners. The hotbeds of war
and armed conflicts kindled by the United States, the Soviet Union and other imperialist Powers in various parts of Africa are causing great tragedies to the African peoples. In order to befuddle the African peoples and countries as much as possible, the super-Powers make a great show of being the friends of the African peoples and accuse one another of "intervention" in Africa or of "disrupting the balance". Others, on the pretext of struggling against Soviet social-imperialism, strive to intervene themselves in Africa and advise the African countries to unite with American imperialism and the former colonial Powers. In fact, all have the same goal—to dominate, and carve up Africa, to create or extend zones of influence and to bring the African States into the orbit of their policy of bondage.
44.	But the African peoples can no longer allow the imperialist Powers to act as they see fit in Africa. They can no longer allow, them to oppress the peoples, to pillage and to establish the borders of a State according to their whim. Their struggle to defend their sovereign rights against the interference and intrigues of the imperialist Powers and to wipe out colonialism, neo-colonialism and racism enjoys the sympathy and support of the whole of progressive world opinion.
45.	The victories which the African peoples have won thus far in their struggle for liberation and the consolidation of their national independence, the struggle of the peoples of Azania, Zimbabwe and Namibia against apartheid and the racist regimes, the efforts of freedom-loving countries of Africa to exercise complete sovereignty over their natural wealth for their own free and independent development prove that the process of great changes which has begun in Africa cannot be stopped.
46.	The Albanian people and the Government of the People's Socialist Republic of Albania express their complete solidarity with the African peoples in their just struggle against brutal intervention by the imperialist Powers in Africa. They staunchly support the struggle of the peoples of Azania, Zimbabwe and Namibia against the racist regimes in South Africa and Southern Rhodesia, the existence of which continues to inflict a serious wound on Africa.
47.	A serious situation fraught with dangerous consequences has been created once again in South-East Asia. The armed conflict between Viet Nam and Cambodia is saddening, especially to freedom-loving peoples who for years followed with great admiration and supported the heroic struggle for national liberation waged by the peoples of those countries, shoulder to shoulder, against American imperialism and its lackeys. The conflict between these two countries is stirred up by the imperialist Powers which, in order to intensify their expansionist policy, continue their interference and their plots to prevent those peoples from living in peace, developing and advancing on the road to progress.
48.	The Albanian people and its Government, sincere friends of the Vietnamese and Cambodian peoples, have followed with sadness the development of events and are grieved at the grave consequences of the fratricidal war between those two peoples. They have expressed and still express their conviction that the bloodshed can be stopped and the disagreements resolved only through joint efforts and goodwill on the part of the two countries, through friendly negotiations and by barring the road to any foreign interference.
49.	But unfortunately we note that the conflict in South-East Asia, instead of progressing towards a solution in a spirit of friendship and mutual understanding, is tending to worsen. The Vietnamese people who have waged a heroic war and have made a great contribution to the peoples' struggle, have now become the target of open blackmail and pressure from outside, which horrifies honest people. No one has the right to interfere in their internal affairs and to dictate to them what they should do internally.
50.	As a result of the American occupation of South Korea the situation in the Korean peninsula remains complicated. The Albanian people supports the just demand of the Korean people for the withdrawal of the United States troops from South Korea and for the independent reunification of the country.
51.	In the turbulent situation which prevails in the world today, the peoples are confronted by the imperative task of fighting resolutely to foil the plans of the imperialist super-Powers and reactionary forces designed to cause a new world conflagration.
52.	The danger of that war breaking out remains real. The super-Powers and the imperialist Powers by their various .policies are heading for war. It would be an illusion to think that the military balance between the super-Powers eliminates the possibility of another war breaking out. The world cannot escape that danger by leaving it to the imperialists to settle problems of war and peace as they see fit.
53.	The demagogic words and slogans of the imperialist Powers do not bring about disarmament; they mask armament. The tenth special session of the General Assembly showed once more that the super-Powers are not thinking about disarmament at all but are striving by all means in their power to increase and improve weapons of all kinds, speed up the aims race and increase their military budgets. Weapons are not being reduced or eliminated and war cannot be avoided by pinning hopes on the discussions and bargaining of the super-Powers, such as the Strategic Arms Limitation Talks and many other negotiations arranged by the United States and the. Soviet Union, or by decisions such as those taken at Helsinki,  or by resolutions and documents, which TO often adopted under the pressure and the manipulation of the imperialist super-Powers.
54.	Peoples and sovereign States which want peace and genuine security support genuine and effective disarmament and hate imperialist war. Their interest demands that they struggle resolutely against the aggressive policies and plans, the armament and preparations for war and the deceitful demagogy of the super-Powers.
55.	The imperialists, social-imperialists and other reactionaries greatly fear the intensification in breadth and depth of
the struggle of the peoples and the strengthening of their solidarity and fighting unity. Therefore they strive by all possible means to stifle the liberation and revolutionary struggles of the peoples in order to destroy, by co-ordinated force and methods, the unity and solidarity of the people, to divide them, to isolate them from each other or to lead peoples and sovereign countries into misguided and dangerous paths.
56.	The strengthening of the unity and solidarity of people is of major importance today. The peoples need a genuine and healthy unity, directed against their enemies, not a false unity in line with the stratagems and slogans invented by the imperialists and the opportunists.
57.	The super-Powers have now intensified to the maximum degree their efforts to create a psychosis according to which no people and no country can guarantee its freedom and independence except under the umbrella and the tutelage of a large State. The American imperialists, who have always played and still play the role of the international policeman and who spread the policy of oppression and exploitation to the four corners of the world, have spread the idea that they alone can guarantee independence and progress for other countries, and that, if other States rely on them, they can feel themselves sheltered from the danger of the Soviet social-imperialists, or the Warsaw Pact, or any other dangers. The Soviet social-imperialists, for their part, endeavour to pave the way for their policy of expansion, domination and diktat, by offering to defend countries against the danger of American imperialism and of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. They trumpet the slogan of the "anti-imperialist front" under their guidance.
58.	Accepting the "protective umbrellas" of the super-Powers is tantamount to accepting the elimination of the freedom, independence and national sovereignty of one's own country, and accepting bondage.
59.	We ate opposed to the imperialist and social-imperialist super-Powers which engage in various forms of neocolonialism exploit and oppress peoples, deny them freedom and independence, and pit them one against the other in bloody conflicts to satisfy their own rapacious interests, Among the fallacious means used to ensure exploitation; and domination we find a certain theory of "the three worlds", the authors of which preach to the proletariat and the oppressed peoples that they should enter into monstrous affiances with the imperialists and the capitalists. They do so to justify their hegemonistic designs, which they camouflage by the alleged need to fight one of the super-Powers.
60.	The policy of our party and our State is and always will be directed against any hostile action which would endanger the freedom, independence and sovereignty of the peoples. We expose, as we have always exposed, all enemies of the people and their reactionary ideological ideas and expansionist actions, whether overt or covert. The policy of our Government is to support the aspirations of peoples and to combat policies of oppression and exploitation no matter who practises it.
61.	The peoples of the world must be vigilant, because a tragic game is being played out behind the backs of us all.
We think, therefore, that no country and no people ought to stand idly by, accepting the frauds and malevolent actions of the super-Powers and of various imperialists.
62.	The People's Socialist Republic of Albania has always staunchly supported the just struggles of the peoples for their national and social liberation, the right of sovereign peoples and countries to live freely and independently, to develop, to make progress in conformity with their own legitimate will and aspirations.
63.	The Albanian people and Government are vigorously opposed to any reactionary concept, any concept of enslavement, which the imperialist Powers seek to impose in international relations in order to force the small peoples and countries to submit to the diktat and policies of the big Powers, and they reject that concept. In our view, all countries and peoples, whether large or small, have their contribution to the development of human society. The weight of that contribution cannot be measured by geographical size or the size of the population of the State concerned but, first and foremost, by the path it is following, the ideas it holds and the positive or negative role which it plays in international relations.
64.	We consider that international policy should not be the preserve of the large States. To us it is inadmissible that other countries should be denied the right to hold and openly express their points of view and their positions on major political problems of concern to peoples and to mankind as a whole, and to participate actively in finding solutions to those problems.
65.	The Albanian Government has always pursued a just policy of principle in its relations with other countries. It has always been, and still is, in favour of the development of normal and friendly relations with all countries which respect the principles of equality, sovereignty and non-interference in the internal affairs of others. Faithful to that policy, the People's Socialist Republic of Albania has constantly maintained, developed and extended good normal relations with an ever growing number of States. It has rejected the attempts made by various imperialist and chauvinist Powers to exploit relations or agreements as a means of pressure to dictate their will and impose their positions and views on Albania.
66.	With the same determination, the Albanian Government has rejected the efforts of the Chinese leadership to dictate to socialist Albania its own policy and its big-Power attitudes. As the Assembly knows, on 7 July last the Government of the People's Republic of China engaged in an overtly hostile act against socialist Albania and the Albanian people by cutting off aid and credits which it was committed to supply under the terms of official bilateral agreements. That was an arbitrary and a perfidious act by the Chinese Government, a flagrant violation of the obligations it has assumed on the basis of official agreements and the most elementary rules of relations between sovereign States and laws governing international relations. The real reasons for those agreements being rescinded were not purely technical, as the Chinese Government claims, but were profoundly political and ideological. The only reason for the Chinese Government's decision to violate the agreements concluded and extend ideological differences to the sphere of inter-State relations was that socialist Albania never agreed to go along with the chauvinist great-Power policy of the Chinese leadership.
67.	The Albanian people has always appreciated sincere friendship. Our history has taught us to be vigilant, to distinguish between friend and foe, not to fear the attacks and threats of enemies or be deceived by the hypocritical smiles of those who pretend to be friends but whose actions are prompted by evil intentions towards us. Albania has never held out a begging hand to anyone, nor will it do so. We are not alone or isolated, as our enemies would wish or as they would have other people believe. The so-called isolation is a concept spread by the propaganda of the imperialist and chauvinist Powers, which see the position of other States according to their ideology and describe as "isolated" anyone who refuses to toe their line.
68.	The People's Socialist Republic of Albania has declared that no imperialist Power whatsoever should whet its appetite or cherish illusions by thinking that Albania, under the pressure of international circumstances, may change its course and rely on one super-Power or another. Anyone who thinks that a so-called vacuum has been created in Albania and dreams of filling it is greatly mistaken and will suffer defeat. There has never been and will never be in our country any vacuum waiting to be filled by the imperialists or social-imperialists.
69.	In its free and completely independent homeland, the Albanian people, under the leadership of the Labour Party, with Comrade Enver Hoxha at its head, is working selflessly to build a completely socialist society and to defend the freedom and independence of its country. Albania has seen uninterrupted development in all fields and is a country of progress, social justice and work for all.
70.	The Albanian people will continue to advance with determination along the path of socialism, relying on its own forces. Self-reliance does not mean that we are in favour of autarchy or introversion. On the contrary, we have always been and still are in favour of extending international co-operation. We favour the development of trade and cultural relations and relations in other fields with .different States on the basis of the recognized principles that govern relations between sovereign States.
71.	We base the defence of our country not on political expediency or on the various aggressive military alliances but on the strength of our people, which is prepared as one man to defend with determination its achievements and its socialist homeland.
72.	In the future, too, the Albanian people and the People's Socialist Republic of Albania will strengthen their solidarity with freedom-loving peoples and with the democratic and progressive countries. They will staunchly support the struggle of the peoples for national liberation against the old and the new imperialism and against reaction.
73.	During the work of this session of the General Assembly the Albanian delegation will spare no effort to make its modest contribution to the discussion of the problems on the agenda, in the interest of the cause of the peoples and of international peace and security.


37.	The Tunisian delegation takes pleasure in the election of the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Colombia to preside over the General Assembly. It is an honour to his country, Colombia, with which we maintain the best possible relations within the framework of co-operation among the members of the Group of 77, and is indeed a well-deserved one. The Tunisian delegation is convinced that under his leadership the Assembly's work will be conducted with wisdom and efficiency.
38.	This session of the General Assembly has not opened under the best possible auspices, but we should not give way to pessimism. Instead, we should face realities with the greatest possible measure of lucidity so that we can find appropriate solutions to the pressing problems facing the international community which are now being considered by our Assembly.
39.	Whether it concerns the Middle East, southern Africa or international economic relations, the present situation in

no way allays the anxieties we expressed at the last session. Indeed, the hopes glimpsed 12 months ago have now given way to disappointment, and there is the danger of this increasing the general feelings of disenchantment and frustration, which only generate bitterness, despair and violence.
40.	Not too long ago grounds for hope seemed greater than ever, and with regard to international problems there opened up before us prospects which suddenly were belied by dangerous developments.
41.	As far as the Middle East is concerned, from time to time we glimpsed rays of hope that there was a possibility of a negotiated general settlement. Unfortunately, we have been disappointed in that, but we continue to believe that an equitable solution will be found and that the Palestinian people will enjoy its right to a free and independent existence in security and peace.
42.	In southern Africa the Anglo-American plan for Rhodesia  and the efforts of the five Western Powers to fina a solution in Namibia gave grounds for believing that the obstinacy of the white minorities in maintaining their colonial and racial domination had finally been overcome and that a peaceful settlement would shortly restore freedom and dignity to the peoples of that area. But we know what is happening: one "internal settlement" succeeds another, while the spectre of a widespread conflagration is beginning to haunt us once again.
43.	With regard to disarmament, the hopes aroused by the first special session of the General Assembly ever devoted to that question have been only partially justified.
44.	As to the North-South dialogue, the principal instrument for the creation of a new international economic order, the hopes which had been placed in the creation of the Committee of the Whole have been dashed. The developed countries, having systematically turned their backs on the reality of interdependence-which, however, they miss no opportunity of calling for—in the final analysis rejected the principle of true dialogue and specific negotiations.
45.	If such trends were to continue all those anxieties would be justified and we could only fear the worst, because problems of this kind will not brook the procrastination which hitherto has marked the attitude of one part of the international community.
46.	Thus in the Middle East all the gestures made by the Arab side, which were marked by moderation and the will for peace, affirmed, reaffirmed and proved, have turned out to be futile in the face of systematic rejection by successive Israeli Governments, particularly the present one, which remains tied to the policies of another age. The Government of Israel refuses to recognize the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people; it refuses to recognize its authentic representative, the Palestine Liberation Organization, thus closing the door to genuine peace.
47.	The Tunisian Government regards all efforts to bring peace to that area as meritorious; similarly, any serious gesture in that direction deserves consideration. But it is clear that the diplomacy of contacts, however essential it may be, cannot truly be expected to prove effective unless it is based on a correct analysis of the nature of the problem. Now, the essence of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict lies in clear-cut and sincere recognition of the fundamental rights of the Palestinian people.
48.	In 1947 the United Nations adopted a resolution advocating the creation of an independent Palestinian State [resolution 181 (II)]. As a matter of principle, respect for international legality, rejection of the occupation of territories by force, and recognition of the right of peoples to self-determination are obligations incumbent upon all Member States and determine the degree of their responsibility in the conduct of international relations.
49.	If we fail to bring to bear the will to peace on the very core of the conflict we run the risk of thwarting once again the possibility of a new era of peace and relief from conflict for all the peoples of the region. Indeed, all the upheavals and convulsions afflicting that part of the world are directly connected with the instability created by the Israeli- Palestinian conflict.
50.	The latest manifestation of this conflict is the invasion of southern Lebanon, which the occupation forces refuse to evacuate, despite United Nations resolutions and the intervention of the international Force dispatched by the Security Council, UNIFIL.
51.	In this regard, we take pleasure in paying a tribute to the Secretary-General and to his civilian and military colleagues for their devotion and efficiency. Indeed, it has become clear that it is only Israeli obstruction which has prevented UNIFIL from attaining the objectives laid down for it by the Security Council.
52.	The time has come for the international community and our Organization, particularly its most responsible Members, to impose peace, lasting peace, peace which will respect the independence and dignity of all the peoples of the area, and particularly the pillaged people of Palestine. On the Arab side, the will to peace has been accompanied by an effort at comprehension and a concern for realism, supported by an overwhelming majority of members of the General Assembly.
53.	The Middle East region as a whole can enjoy genuine lasting peace only within the framework of an over-all settlement that takes into account the following essential aspects, among others: first, the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination, including its right to build an independent State; secondly, participation in the peace negotiations by all parties concerned, including the Palestine Liberation Organization as the sole legitimate representative of the Palestinian people; and, thirdly, the illegality of the acquisition of territory by force, which would entail, in particular, the liberation of the city of Jerusalem.
54.	The Charter of the United Nations and General Assembly resolutions provide the guidelines for a rapid and over-all settlement, without which the threat of a new war, with all its unforeseeable consequences, will continue to face not only that already dangerously troubled region but the world at large.
55.	In this connexion, we should heed the warning of the Secretary-General in his report, that in the Middle East "time is not in favour of peaceful developments" [see A/33/1, sect. III].
56.	After the tenth special session, devoted to disarmament, the Assembly should do its best to promote the implementation of its decisions, and to extend the real scope of the historic impact of that session on all those areas connected with international peace and co-operation. It was indeed a historic session because it was the first of its kind and also because it brought about a real consensus. Because it opened the way to more active participation on the part of the medium-sized and small countries in the disarmament negotiations, and because it gave more precise outlines for action and conduct, the special session marked an important milestone in our common effort to spare humanity the enormous waste of effort and resources devoted to armament to the detriment of economic and social development.
57.	We believe that, in addition to diverting productive resources, the arms race serves to fuel conflicts and rivalries and inevitably serves to make tighter and tighter bonds of dependence on the principal suppliers. For the third-world countries this anomalous process fundamentally jeopardizes the principle of non-alignment and leads, in the final analysis, to a greater measure of vulnerability.
58.	African problems continue to be of the greatest concern to my country and Government. It is not only that the grave problems in the south of the continent have not been solved, but the whole of Africa is today the scene of crises and regional conflicts which have been aggravated in the course of a deliberate process of interference and intervention from outside Africa, both of which unfortunately have done much more to crystallize these problems than to solve them.
59.	Thus, we note a rapid deterioration of the situation in southern Africa. The disappointment and anxiety we feel are a measure of the hope we had entertained that the problems of Rhodesia and Namibia would be brought into a process of peaceful settlement worked out by the Western countries. The racist Governments of Salisbury and Pretoria have responded to this by setting up their own so-called internal plans for settlement, which are just so many manoeuvres that are fraught with consequences. The distrust shown by the Patriotic Front in one case, and SWAPO in the other, have proved, unfortunately, entirely justified.
60.	The authorities in Salisbury and Pretoria have cynically exploited the breathing-space provided by the peaceful settlement initiatives, in an attempt to create in the Territories which they dominate irreversible situations to perpetuate the exploitation of the people and the resources. Any new initiative should therefore be accompanied by the most serious guarantees if we do not want despair and violence finally to prevail over a peaceful settlement, which remains the preferred approach of the African peoples. For their part, SWAPO in Namibia, and the Patriotic Front in Zimbabwe, have shown the measure of their realism and moderation in an attempt to find democratic and humane solutions.
61.	The authorities of Pretoria have just rejected the settlement plan of the United Nations for Namibia.  This reversal makes it even more incumbent upon us to safeguard the opportunity for a peaceful outcome and to associate SWAPO, as closely as possible, with the efforts of our Organization and the Western Powers, which have already been launched, for Namibia to be able to become independent on schedule, within the framework of its unity and territorial integrity.
62.	In South Africa itself, a heroic struggle is being waged by the black people and its youth against the apartheid regime. Neither intimidation nor the most brutal repression will be able to crush this struggle, which is none the less extremely arduous and murderous, in a country where a white minority, with feelings of racial superiority, have no inhibitions in the way they treat the nationalists. The murder of Steven Biko will remain for ever the symbol of what has now become, from Sharpeville to Soweto, an authentic nationalist struggle.
63.	We are convinced that the resistance of the last outposts of racism is doomed to failure. However, the persistence of the struggle is delaying even further the development of the African continent by diverting its resources, by destroying its best elements, and by sacrificing its youth.
64.	Every year the General Assembly examines the international economic situation, and every year it sees that the problems facing the world, and in particular the third world, are becoming more numerous and more complex. We consider in turn such subjects as monetary instability, inflation, the slowing down of the rate of growth. Today, the world is staggered by the sight of the combined effects of all these phenomena.
65.	It would appear that the international community is overlooking global and long-term solutions. It is confining itself to attempting to blunt, as best it can, the worst effects of the crises. Indeed, the grave monetary crises which in 1971 culminated in the suspension of the convertibility of the dollar and which gradually came to extend to the whole of the Western economy, made it an imperative necessity to bring to bear concerted action at the world level. The momentum thus generated helped to strengthen the notion of interdependence and entailed an intensification of international negotiations. The general awareness of the scope of the crisis and our incapacity to overcome it in isolation won round the last remaining sceptics to a recognition of the need to work towards the establishment of a new international economic order.
66.	But the countries that were strongest economically quickly acquired a safeguard mechanism, which, though limited and fragile, was a misguided diversion of energies that should have been devoted to the major dialogues and broad and global solutions called for by the vast majority of the developing countries. This shilly-shallying, so ill adapted to the actual dimensions of the problems, of course only granted a short-lived respite, which was immediately threatened because, in the face of problems of world dimensions, such as monetary instability and the slowing down of the growth rate, it served only to delay the inevitable.
67.	The consequences of this situation affect even more severely the economies of the developing countries, which are not able to act decisively. In the face of the protectionism which is affecting more and more seriously the most dynamic sectors of their fledgling industries, and the tumbling of the export prices of primary commodities, the developing countries have been suffering from an even more marked deterioration of the terms of trade and a consequent worsening of the deficit in their trade balances. Those developing countries with "an intermediate income" which have succeeded, at the cost of many sacrifices, in maintaining a reasonable balance of payments, could not really maintain this effort much longer. They were forced into massive indebtedness towards the private capital markets, on the most difficult conditions and terms, while the supply of public assistance had dried up almost completely.
68.	Are we to wait until the crisis assumes catastrophic dimensions before we begin once again to take action and to do so together? Of course, conferences at the highest levels among the major developed countries are being held one after another and decisions are taken or envisaged in an attempt to arrive at co-ordinated policies. Permit me to repeat here that any policy which today ignores the interests, needs, and economic potential of the third world, not only serves to perpetuate injustice but actually stems from selfishness which can only aggravate general economic insecurity.
69.	In this regard, analyses in various quarters corroborate each other. In his address to the World Bark and the IMF just two weeks ago, Mr. Robert McNamara denounced with remarkable candour the absence of any coherent global policy, as well as the illusory and perilous refuge of protectionism and the dangers of the excessive indebtedness of the developing countries. His commitment and his conviction deserve commendation from this rostrum because he was speaking, with the utmost clarity and was bold enough to place the responsibility squarely where it belongs.
70.	The third world for its part cannot resign itself indefinitely to playing a passive role in world industrial production. As the developing countries proceed to modernize their economies, they must be able to play a more active world role without being exposed to artificial obstacles. The New International Economic Order, established to serve the general interest, had as its central theme that of permitting the developing countries to take their proper place within the world economy, to contribute to the general growth and to benefit from it appropriately. The North-South dialogue was to have provided the outlines for, and to have embarked upon, the process of reform likely to trigger off this process.
102. The dialogue has rarely gone beyond the stage of analyses, general declarations and statements of intent. The Committee of the Whole set up last year by the General Assembly to supervise and co-ordinate the various aspects of that dialogue immediately came up against the conflicting multiplicity of interpretations as to the nature of its mandate, to such an extent that it was prevented from taking any action. That makes it absolutely clear that divergences relate fundamentally to the sense and purport of the dialogue itself.
103 For Tunisia, and we think for the developing countries as a whole which form the membership of the Group of 77—which did us the honour this year of entrusting its presidency to us-the dialogue is not a forum simply for the use of theoreticians, or a battleground for confrontation and polemics, nor is it a subterfuge to maintain, however flimsily the status quo in international economic relations. The dialogue we look for would be a framework for negotiations best suited for the purpose, and devoted essentially to the promotion of the New International Economic Order, in the strictest sense of the term. In order to promote this dialogue our Assembly must be able to play a central role. More than ever before the United Nations needs an effective instrument bringing together all Member States and having a clear-cut and unquestioned mandate. The dialogue if it is to succeed cannot continue to take place disparately or within technical structures seemingly indifferent to the evolution of international relations.
104.	It is the task of this session of the General Assembly to give content and a framework to the North-South dialogue, which will thus be able to develop in harmony and security rather than in confusion and confrontation. Beyond matters of procedure, the debate on this point will illustrate more fundamentally the reality of commitments undertaken vis-à-vis the New International Economic Order itself and the will of all the partners to make a sincere and determined contribution to this project, which will affect the security and welfare of all nations and which Tunisia considers, for its part, as one of the fundamental reforms of our time.
105.	One of the best ways to bring about this New International Economic Order is certainly to inform international opinion faithfully, carefully and accurately about the reality of the claims of the third world, and the spirit of co-operation and interdependence that underlie it. How can we trust the mass media today to transmit this message of justice and solidarity?
106.	In the developed countries, most of the media present the New International Economic Order as a threat to the well-being of industrialized societies and often claim that the crisis of the developed world stems primarily from the claims and demands of the developing counties. That is one aspect, but an important aspect, of world imbalance which serves to accentuate the cleavage between the developed and the developing countries.
107.	By its very essence, information plays a vital role in international relations as a way of bringing knowledge and understanding from one nation to another. Furthermore, the headlong progress of technology makes the media today increasingly influential and gives it an ever-growing audience. The diffusion and dissemination of information and knowledge has become an essential pre-condition of progress and the flourishing of all organized society.
108.	In the circumstances, we must undertake a far- reaching reform of the distribution circuits and the content of information so as to make the developing countries actually producers and partners in the whole process instead of just being consumers.
109.	These third-world countries essentially receive information conceived, prepared and distributed by other countries. They suffer from the effects of a de facto monopoly of the information media by the industrialized countries.
110.	The concept of freedom of information, which we basically support, is thus so distorted as actually to serve as an additional factor of domination which perpetuates relations based on inequality and injustice. The free circulation of information must not be reduced to the freedom to receive that information; it must also include the ability to produce the information and to pass it on.
111.	That objective is connected with the determination of the third-world countries to rely upon themselves first and foremost to promote their own means of information, while remaining open to support from outside, and to give an authentic expression to their own problems, their aspirations and their values.
112.	That effort will make it possible to embark in more favourable conditions upon a definition of equitable and balanced co-operation among developed countries: the new Order in information is all the more necessary because it is a corollary of the New International Economic Order, and an instrument of a new humanism.
113.	The situation in the world does not encourage optimism However, this Organization, whether it be the Security Council or the General Assembly, has laid down with respect to each problem the outlines of a peaceful and just solution. That is true of the Middle East, of Namibia, of international economic relations and many other problems.
114.	Will it be too much to ask those who possess the means of translating the intentions of the international community into concrete realities to do their duty? Is it too much to ask of them to keep their promises in southern Africa, to apply their resolutions in the Middle East and to translate into reality their professions of faith with regard to interdependence by condescending to hold a dialogue and to negotiate with the peoples of the third world?
115.	Let us hope that this session will be an opportunity for all of us resolutely to undertake not to allow blind, narrow interests to blind us to our true common interests, namely peace, peace everywhere, in a necessarily interdependent world of growing solidarity.