26.	Comrade President, I should like to take
this opportunity to congratulate you very
cordially on your election to your high and
responsible office. I am particularly happy about
that because your country and the country that I
represent have close and brotherly ties with each
other. I wish you, as well as the
Secretary-General, Mr. Perez de Cuellar, every
success in the performance of your respective
duties. At the same time we wish to convey our
thanks to the President of the thirty-sixth
session, Mr. Kittani, for the great deftness and
prudence with which he discharged his
responsibilities in an undoubtedly difficult
international situation.
27.	The present international situation must
give the peoples cause for profound concern.
Never since the Second World War has peace been
threatened more seriously than today.
28.	The policy of confrontation and arms
build-up has affected all spheres of life. In
many countries, the state of the economy and,
consequently, the living conditions for millions
of working people, have been rapidly
deteriorating, and unemployment and poverty have
taken on mass proportions. In situations like
that, as history has taught us, there is an
increasing temptation to seek a way out of the
crises that shake the capitalist system by
embarking on military adventurism. It is commonly
known by whom wars have been instigated—no matter
where and when: by the same forces which today
are engaged in an unbridled expansion of military
might and the fomenting of conflicts.
29.	Sanctions boycott and trade war not only
set the development of international economic
relations back dozens of years but also thwarts
all efforts aimed at restructuring those
relations democratically and on the basis of
equality. The protagonists of such a policy are
out to undermine confidence and destroy all the
bridges of co-operation built with great effort
as a result of the policy of detente. Worse
still, they are sowing distrust, impeding or
preventing political dialogue, causing strains in
the conduct of international negotiations and
disrupting the normal development of
international relations.
30.	Under the banner of anti-communism they
are waging a crusade against all
realistically-minded forces in all spheres and by
all means. And they stop at nothing to achieve
their ends, not even the use of force, prohibited
though this is by the Charter of the United
Nations.
31.	What they are aiming at is hegemony and
world domination. And, while both of those goals
are illusory, they are fraught with mortal
danger, for any attempt to achieve them in
practice is bound to push the world closer to the
abyss of a nuclear inferno.
32.	It stands to reason, therefore, that
millions of people in all the continents are
joining in the cry for peace and the instant
cessation of the maniacal drive for arms. They
call for the continuance of detente, based on the
beneficial results attained in the 1970s, and
they expect the United Nations, too, to meet its
great responsibilities in this context by playing
its proper part in the preservation of
international peace. The German Democratic
Republic subscribes to the view that it is
necessary to reinforce the protective and
pre-emptive ring of collective security which
should be our common shelter and the most
important task of the United Nations.
33.	The challenge flung down to all
peace-loving mankind by those bent on
militarization must be answered with firmness and
determination. The United Nations has a clear
obligation to contribute in all its spheres of
activity towards the development of peace¬ful
relationships conducive to the welfare of the
peoples. The Organization offers unique
opportunities for States to come to terms with
one another. It is legitimate to expect all
Member States to make use of those opportunities
in the spirit of the Charter. Regrettably, those
in certain quarters, including permanent members
of the Security Council, have, especially in the
most recent past, been making attempts to exclude
the United Nations from the settlement of acute
problems and to shirk their moral and legal
responsibilities under the Charter. The efforts
by the Secretary-General to strengthen the role
and effectiveness of the Organization on the
basis of the Charter are therefore very timely.
34.	It is the objective of the German
Democratic Republic to help ensure that all the
possibilities provided by this thirty-seventh
session of the General Assembly are used to stem
the danger of a nuclear war, end the arms race
and achieve agreements on arms limitation and
disarmament; to put a stop to ideological
subversion and psychological warfare and ensure
renewed acceptance of constructive dialogue and
peaceful coexistence as the dominant trend in
international relations; to defuse international
con¬flicts and settle them in a lasting way, that
is, on a just basis and by peaceful means; and to
overcome the politics of trade boycott and
destruction of treaty relations and promote ties
of propitious and mutually advantageous
co-operation among peoples.
35.	The two mutually opposed trends
discernible in international relations today
manifested themselves with particular clarity at
the second special session of the General
Assembly devoted to disarmament.
36.	The majority of States regard the removal
of the danger of nuclear war as the highest
priority in inter¬national politics. The numerous
proposals of the socialist countries are directed
precisely towards this goal. The solemn pledge of
the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics not to be
the first to use nuclear weapons is of historic
significance. Could a more convincing
demonstration of good will and, indeed,
determination to establish peace be imagined?
37.	It is not sophistical arguments, but
simple yet effective steps such as this that will
banish the night¬mare of nuclear annihilation.
The unilateral under¬taking of the Soviet Union
testifies to the seriousness and continuity of a
policy which it has followed ever since its
foundation 60 years ago. It is a policy which is
inherent in socialism and which inspires the
peoples with hope and confidence at this time of
tension also.
38.	Together with the overwhelming majority
of States and in keeping with the aspirations of
all the forces of peace, the German Democratic
Republic calls upon the other nuclear-weapon
States to make analogous pledges. This would be
understood and appreciated everywhere in the
world as a sign of genuine readiness to head off
the danger of war.
39.	Such action would in fact be decisive in
initiating the adoption of joint measures to
prevent the outbreak of nuclear war.
Unfortunately, the necessary readiness is so far
lacking. And, while many of the participants in
this year's special session on disarmament were
trying hard to identify ways of achieving
concrete disarmament measures, the members of the
North Atlantic Treaty Organization, just as they
did in Washington at the time of the first
special session on disarmament, decided at their
summit in Bonn to strengthen their military
potential even further. They are pushing ahead
with preparations for the deploy¬ment of United
States medium-range missiles in Western Europe
from 1983 on and speeding up the implementation
of their long-term arms program. The line
followed by a number of States at the second
special session on disarmament reflected that
policy -small wonder, since those who on the
Potomac River are busily adopting plans for the
achievement of military superiority can hardly be
expected to agree at the same time on the East
River to measures to outlaw war.
40.	At the present session the General
Assembly can draw on a large number of concrete
proposals which were put forward by socialist and
non-aligned coun¬tries at the special session on
disarmament. The German Democratic Republic feels
that there is a pressing need for the adoption
without delay of measures to freeze nuclear
weapons, put a compre¬hensive ban on
nuclear-weapon tests and prohibit the neutron
weapon.
41.	At the same time, it emphasizes that
doctrines on the feasibility of fighting,
limiting and winning a nuclear war are inhumane
and hostile to the very concept oflife. Such
doctrines are designed to accustom the public to
the concept of nuclear war and war generally and
to make it seem a legitimate means for achieving
political ends.
42.	On 8 February of this year it was decided
in Washington to escalate further the build-up in
the chemical weapons field and to start the
manufacture of new systems, such as binary
weapons. In the light of this development, an
instant and comprehensive ban on all types of
chemical weapons is an imperative.
43.	The German Democratic Republic advocates
the speedy drafting of a relevant convention
along the lines of the basic provisions of a
convention for the prohibition of the
development, production and stock¬piling of
chemical weapons and on their destruction,
proposed by the USSR at the second special
session on disarmament.
44.	One point, though, should be stressed
here. The heavy responsibility for the
preservation of peace forbids such negotiations
being abused, for instance as an excuse to
escalate the arms drive.
45.	In my country, therefore, the public
reacted with indignation when it was reported on
20 July of this year that the United States had
gone so far as to formalize its decision not to
participate any more in the trilateral
comprehensive nuclear-weapon test ban talks in
Geneva. The German Democratic Republic proposes
to the General Assembly at this session to take a
step in the direction of spurring progress in the
Held of disarmament and arms limitation by
reaffirming the political and legal duty of
States to negotiate on these vital issues for
mankind in an honest manner and in good faith.
And here I repeat something that has been said
before: in our contemporary world, peace requires
not lip-service but actions which must be
concrete and have the support of all States.
46.	The German Democratic Republic is open
to, and will back up, any proposals, no matter by
whom provided only that they can help achieve
substantive progress.
47.	Flourishing international economic
co-operation is advantageous for all parties
involved. It enhances international security
because it is the basis of a shared interest in
calm and stable relationships. The start of
economic warfare, on the other hand, destroys not
only the fabric of international economic
co-operation but it destroys the structure of
international relations generally. The losers on
this policy of sanctions, which is contrary to
international law, are, not least, those who
are—more or less compliantly—helping to put it
into effect.
48.	It is a task for the General Assembly to
stimulate constructive co-operation in all areas,
to combat neo- colonialist practices and to
strengthen the economic independence of States.
It is equally necessary to prevent colonialist
exploitation, in whatever guise, being used to
shift the burdens entailed by the arms build-up
and the crises on to the peoples.
49.	No forum is more suited than the United
Nations, by patient effort and on the basis of
equality, to discuss and determine global
economic problems affecting the interests of all.
Likewise suited for this would be the proposed
round of global negotiations on international
economic questions.
50.	It can, at the same time, be instrumental
in the democratization of international economic
relations as provided for in the Charter of
Economic Rights and Duties of States adopted by
the Assembly in reso¬lution 3281.
51.	The German Democratic Republic welcomes
the fact that the Third United Nations Conference
on the Law of the Sea this year has been able
after nine years of undoubtedly difficult
negotiations, to complete and adopt the
Convention on the Law of the Sea.
52.	The German Democratic Republic regards
the earliest possible signing and ratification of
the Con¬vention by all States as a duty which
should be fulfilled in the interests of
stabilizing the rule of law on the oceans as well
as for the sake of peaceful co-operation and
detente.
53.	The consequences of the imperialist arms
build¬up leave no region of our globe unharmed.
In Europe, detente and the proved policy of
searching for reason¬able compromises are to be
replaced by fomentation of tension and expansion
of the whole range of means for waging cold war
and a shooting war.
54.	However, the future of the European
peoples, like that of all other peoples, can be
made secure only if military confrontation is
lessened and the concept of a peaceful synthesis
of interests accepted as the rationale of
political action.
55.	A few weeks from now, the Madrid meeting
of the Conference on Security and Co-operation in
Europe is to resume its proceedings. The German
Democratic Republic believes that it will be both
necessary and feasible for that meeting to wind
up its work with results that are aimed at
preserving and reinforcing the basic elements of
European security and co-operation. My country is
a reliable partner in the steadfast pursuit of
that objective. That is why the German Democratic
Republic was quick to express support for the
call by the foreign ministers of Europe's neutral
and non-aligned States that fresh efforts be made
to ensure a successful conclusion of the Madrid
meeting. The convening of a conference on
confidence- building and security-building
measures and disarma¬ment in Europe is still the
primary task; in fact, it is a test of the
readiness of the participating States to carry on
and lend fresh momentum to the process mapped out
in the Final Act of Helsinki of 1975. Those who
have already shown that they have deserted the
road of Helsinki, no matter under what pretext,
and who are bent on increasing the intensity of
con¬frontation still further by provoking a
failure of the Madrid meeting, are taking a heavy
responsibility upon themselves.
56.	The solemn signing of the Helsinki Final
Act by the heads of State or Government of the
participating countries came after years of
negotiations conducted with a great deal of
patience. Time and again divergent interests had
to be reconciled and mutually acceptable
solutions ironed out by way of consensus. Should
all this hard work have been in vain, and should
this whole process, the fruitfulness of which has
been recognized by the peoples, be sacrificed for
the selfish interests essentially of just one
country?
57.	Attempts are being made to give the
impression that a conference as authoritative and
representative as that of Helsinki was an
everyday affair. It is perhaps fit and proper to
recall the great input of effort in the 1970s,
for especially now in a time of acute
interna¬tional tension much depends on whether,
at the dividing line between the two social
systems and their military coalitions, peaceful
co-operation, in accordance with the Helsinki
Final Act, that is co-operation in the interest
of life itself, can continue.
58.	In this context, the relationship between
the two German States is, no doubt, of
significance. By working consistently for normal
relations between the two German States, on the
basis of the relevant agreements and in strict
respect for sovereignty and equality of rights,
the German Democratic Republic contributes
towards stable security on the European continent.
59.	The meeting which the General Secretary
of the Central Committee of the Socialist Unity
Party of Germany and Chairman of the Council of
State of the German Democratic Republic had with
the Federal Chancellor of the Federal Republic of
Germany in December 1981 has confirmed the
accuracy of the following conclusions. First,
especially in a time of political tension, the
conduct of businesslike dialogue, based on the
pursuit of a peaceful synthesis of interests, is
not only necessary but also feasible. Secondly,
if such dialogue is to yield results, it must be
based on the principle of sovereign equality and
on strict non¬interference. Thirdly, if such
dialogue is to benefit the people, the
interlocutors must focus their efforts on the
paramount issue of our time—the guarantee of
lasting peace—and, of course, political dialogue
presupposes realism and a sense of proportion.
Fourthly, and finally, political dialogue also
requires the awareness of the parties that
good-neighborly relations cannot prosper in the
shadow of new missiles intended for use in a
nuclear first strike.

61.	It would be of great significance for
European security-because of the resulting
encouragement-if the Vienna Talks on Mutual
Reduction of Forces, Armaments and Associated
Measures in Central Europe could at last be
crowned with success. The German Democratic
Republic and the other socialist participants
have expressed readiness to reduce their forces
in Central Europe and also their respective
weaponry, on the basis of reciprocity. The NATO
countries object to that. As has been mentioned
here earlier, even unilateral advance concessions
like the withdrawal of 20,000 Soviet troops and
1,000 tanks from the German Democratic Republic
have been answered by the other side with a
build-up of its military potential and the
announcement of plans to move the United States
troops in the Federal Republic of Germany still
closer to my country's border, that is, to the
dividing line between the Warsaw Treaty and NATO
countries.
62.	Whether in Vienna, Geneva or
elsewhere-the proposals of the Western side are
invariably aimed at gaining unilateral military
advantages. This approach is a careless one, but
ignoring that attitude would be even more
careless.
63.	The policy of strength and the
intensified arms build-up have resulted in an
exacerbation of interna¬tional conflicts and
encouraged aggressors to flout the right of
peoples of self-determination.
64.	In the Middle East, another sovereign
country, Lebanon, has become a victim of the
aggressor. The Palestinian people and their
legitimate representative, the Palestine
Liberation Organization [PLO], are to be
physically destroyed. It would be possible to put
a stop to the genocide in Lebanon, to the still
con¬tinuing systematic extermination of the
Palestinian people patterned after the worst
Fascist atrocities, quite simply by forcing
Israel to comply with the relevant United Nations
resolutions. In actual fact, however, the
aggressor is receiving political and military
support under an agreement on so-called strategic
co-operation.
65.	Intrigues, lies, cynicism, brutality and
terror -one would not believe it, but that is
what makes up the internal posture of that
regime. It is to be wel¬comed also that among the
Israeli people themselves more and more forces
are speaking out against this. Israel's leaders
and those who support them here also at the
United Nations cannot by any means absolve
themselves from their guilt.
66.	The German Democratic Republic demands
the immediate withdrawal of Israel's troops from
Lebanon and from all other occupied Arab lands.
Its support is for the Palestinian people who,
under the leadership of the PLO, are fighting so
courageously for self-determination and the
establishment of a sovereign State of their own.
67.	The latest pertinent proposals of the
Soviet Union point out the path towards a lasting
solution of the Middle East conflict. They accord
with the points considered by the Arab States at
the Twelfth Arab Summit Conference in Fez to
constitute the elements for a comprehensive
settlement of the conflict.
68.	The time has long been ripe for
compelling South Africa to end its illegal
occupation of Namibia and to cease its aggression
against Angola. AH relevant decisions of the
United Nations, in particular Security Council
resolution 435 (1978), must be complied with. At
the same time, it is necessary-and the majority
of States in the Organization will watch
carefully- that effective steps be taken against
all attempts to despoil the Nairobian people of
their independence and their right to
self-determination by means of neo-colonialist
maneuvers. The German Democratic Republic is
committed to a policy of steadfast solidarity
with the South West Africa People's Organization
and the Namibian people. As regards the People's
Republic of Angola, which is the target of
persistent acts of aggression by South Africa, my
country is maintaining close links with it in
accordance with a treaty of friendship and
co-operation.
69.	Inside South Africa, the regime is
intensifying its terrorism against the majority
of the population Cannot be reformed. In the
interests of humanity and peace, its roots must
be tom out completely, so that it will disappear
for ever. This calls imperatively for the
immediate cessation of any kind of
support-political, economic or military- extended
to the South African regime by some Western
countries and transnational corporations.
70.	States in the region of the Indian Ocean
have been making great efforts to achieve the
establishment of a zone of peace in that region.
The German Democratic Republic is committed to a
policy of promoting those efforts.
71.	On the other hand, the expanding
imperialist military presence, the greed for
bases and the im¬perialist war against the
Democratic Republic of Afghanistan are making ^he
situation still worse. The convening of a
conference on the Indian Ocean must not be
delayed any further if peace and security in that
region are to be strengthened.
72.	In South-East Asia every attempt is being
made to call in question the right of the
Kampuchean people; to determine their own
political status and to choose their own road to
development. The methods employed range from
direct intervention and economic and political
pressure to the setting up of a so-called
coali¬tion Government ' outside the country. This
contrasts with the constructive proposals which
the States of Indo-China have made for
strengthening peace and co-operation in
South-East Asia and which have our full approval.
73.	The German Democratic Republic also
supports the proposals put forward by the
Democratic People's Republic of Korea for the
solution of the Korean question, including the
demand for the withdrawal of the United States
troops from South Korea.
74.	In the Caribbean and in Central America,
on¬slaughts by imperialist forces on the freedom
and independence of the peoples of that region
are on the increase. In particular, a vote in the
United States Senate of 11 August 1982, which is
designed to open up possibilities for the use of
military force against socialist Cuba, a member
of the non-aligned movement, has resulted in a
dangerous deterioration of the situa¬tion in the
region and endangers world peace. The German
Democratic Republic supports the efforts and
constructive proposals by Cuba, Nicaragua and
Mexico, made with a view to normalizing the
atmo¬sphere in Central America and the Caribbean,
and believe that they can lead to a more stable
peace and enhanced security.
73. As regards the conflict in the South
Atlantic, the German Democratic Republic favors a
settlement based on the Charter of the United
Nations and the resolution adopted at the
Ministerial Meeting of the Co-coordinating Bureau
of Non-Aligned Countries in Havana in June 1982.
76.	The German Democratic Republic reiterates
once again from this rostrum that it feels
strongly about the need to solve the question of
Cyprus in accordance with the Charter and the
pertinent United Nations resolutions aimed at
maintaining the independence, sovereignty,
territorial integrity and non-alignment of
Cyprus. Indispensable prerequisites for such a
settle¬ment are the withdrawal of all foreign
troops from Cyprus and the cessation of all kinds
of interference in the island country's internal
affairs. A representa¬tive conference on Cyprus
under United Nations auspices could, no doubt,
help pave the way to a life in peace for the
people of Cyprus.
77.	A world in which peoples can live
together in peace needs the fostering and
propagation of the great humanist ideas of
international understanding. But warmongering and
hatred against other peoples or races have
already reappeared and are once more poisoning
the international atmosphere. In fact, as a
result of the politics of threats and resort to
force, they find ever new breeding ground. If, as
the Charter requires, such Fascist and
neo-Fascist activities imperiling world peace are
to be brought to an end, as they must be in the
interest of peace, effective action by both the
Organization and its Member States individually
is imperative.
78.	So it is evident that the present
international situation must worry the peoples.
The danger of a thermonuclear war which is facing
mankind lends ever greater urgency to the task of
implementing the Soviet proposal to call a
special series of meetings of the Security
Council at the highest level.
79.	All States will have to make a choice. To
opt for the policy of peaceful coexistence is to
make a choice for life, for progress and for a
peaceful future for man. This policy corresponds
to the interests of the people of the German
Democratic Republic and they will not deviate
from that course. The German Democratic Republic
will unswervingly continue the building of a
socialist society and make every effort within
the framework of the community of socialist
States to advance the cause of peace, detente and
international co-operation.


Sir, I should like to begin by congratulating you on your election to
the presidency of the thirty-seventh session of the General Assembly
and to offer you my best wishes in the tasks which lie ahead of you.
I should like, too, to join other speakers who have expressed their
gratitude to the outgoing President, Mr. Kittani, for his
distinguished efforts on behalf of the Assembly. It also gives me
particular pleasure to pay a tribute to the Secretary-General, who in
his first year in office has shown admirable flair and discretion in
discharging his responsibilities. His dedication and integrity are
beyond praise. He has already brought the Organization much credit.
The United Nations could not be in better hands.

165.	The maintenance of peace, the development of friendly
relations between States, the promotion of social and economic
progress and of respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms
through international co-operation-these are the noble purposes for
which, under the Charter, the United Nations exists. Once more we
must assess how far those purposes have been achieved; we must
examine the problems facing the world community, and see how better
to realize our joint purposes. These purposes are by no means
exclusively political, and neither, of course, are the problems. The
daily lives of all our peoples are just as much affected by the
decisions we take and the progress we can make on economic, social,
humanitarian and commercial issues. The United Nations has rightly
involved itself in such questions as agricultural productivity,
energy and food programmes and population control. These are issues
to which Britain attaches great importance, as we do to international
economic matters, such as the role of the financial institutions and
the avoidance of protectionism and trade wars.

166.	I do not intend today to deal comprehensively with all the
problems that confront us. That would make my speech intolerably
long. I would also be repeating much of what the Foreign Minister of
Denmark said at the 8th meeting in the name of the European Community
and its member States. I propose to concentrate today on questions of
peace and war. This year we have little cause for satisfaction, and
none for complacency. The world is no more peaceful than it was 12
months ago. On the contrary, new conflicts have arisen-several of
them. Old ones have worsened. Since the last session of the General
Assembly thousands of innocent lives have been lost. Hundreds of
thousands have been forced from their homes to swell the growing
flood of refugees. Countless others have witnessed the destruction of
their property and livelihood. Who is responsible for this misery and
waste on such an enormous scale? I do not think that the blame can be
laid in any way at the door of the United Nations system as such. The
Charter remains as valid today as when it was drawn up almost 40
years ago. Nor does the fault lie in the way in which the organs of
the United Nations are constituted.

167.	The fault lies with us, the Member States. The
Secretary-General, in his report on the work of the Organization, has
drawn attention to the need for us to re-examine the way in which we
use the system we have inherited. I warmly endorse his thesis. We
have received his proposals with respect and will study them with
care. The Secretary-General has also emphasized the fundamental need
for Member States to recommit themselves to the Charter. Clearly, the
system cannot perform the tasks which the founders gave it when there
is so widespread a tendency for Member States to flout the
obligations they have assumed under the Charter. Time and again we
encounter the depressing fact that if a State is determined to resort
to force or to violate international law it is virtually impossible
to stop it. Wars arise not because of any failing on the part of the
United Nations system but because national ambitions and rivalries
prove stronger than respect for the principles of international law
and the Charter. The impotence of the United Nations in these
circumstances may seem to historians in the next century to be one of
the more extraordinary facts of contemporary international life. I
know that the Secretary-General is determined to do what he can to
improve the record. We for our part will do all we can to help him.
The first step must be to discard preconceptions and self-serving
analysis, and to look again at the roots of the problem.

168.	What are the principles of the Charter whose violation is at
the heart of so many of our conflicts? First and foremost is the
requirement in Article 2 of the Charter to settle disputes by
peaceful means and to refrain from the unlawful use of force. As the
drafters of the Manila Declaration on the Peaceful Settlement of
International Disputes, which is to be considered at this session
and, we hope, approved,^ have so aptly put it, neither the existence
of a dispute nor the failure of a procedure to settle it peacefully
can justify the use of force by any of the parties to it. Otherwise,
in a world where there are such disparities between nations, the
strong will inevitably batten on the weak and we shall all be subject
to the law of the jungle.

169.	By extension of the same principle, terrorism, too, must be
rooted put. Terrorists can only discredit the causes for which they
claim to work. We will always listen to civilized advocacy. But
terrorism means the massacre of innocent people. Bombs planted in
crowded restaurants, airline passengers held hostage or sprayed with
gunfire, diplomatic personnel assassinated-this can be condoned by no
one. The international community should unite to condemn terrorists
and bring them to justice. To make exceptions is to spread the
scourge.

170. I therefore urge all those that have not already done so to sign
and ratify the Hague/ Montreal and Tokyo? Conventions concerning the
safety of civil aviation and the Conventions against the taking of
hostages and on crimes against internationally protected persons. And
I hope that those that have signed and ratified those Conventions
will do their utmost to carry them out.

171.	A second basic principle of the United Nations is respect for
human rights, entrenched since 1948 in the Universal Declaration to
which we all subscribe. Respect for the Declaration is easy. What
remains is for us to ensure that its provisions are observed. That is
far harder. In many countries the spirit and the letter of the
Declaration are persistently and deliberate^ ignored. In recent years
the United Nations has made some limited progress in developing its
ability to respond to such situations. But all too often its
responses have been and remain pitifully inadequate.

172.	Another of the basic principles is self-determination. It is
a principle whose implementation has preoccupied the Organization and
informed its proceedings ever since its inception. The right of all
peoples to self-determination is enshrined in the two International
Covenants on Human Rights and underlined in such important United
Nations documents as the Declaration of Principles of International
Law concerning Friendly Relations and Co-operation among States in
accordance with the Charter of the United Nations. Indeed, the United
Nations has long since come to regard self-determination as not just
a principle but an inalienable right.

173. Self-determination is therefore fundamental to British foreign
policy. Thanks to our recognition of this right in regard to our own
dependencies, nearly 50 members of the General Assembly have taken
their places here. Never in the whole history of the world has there
been such a massive transfer of power, voluntarily and deliberately
undertaken. The legacy of our imperial past is not bitterness or
suspicion, but friendship and co-operation.

174. The achievements of the British in decolonization since the last
war have been our expression and application of the principle that we
have long supported in other parts of the world. To take one example,
early in the nineteenth century, Britain recognized the struggle of
the newly emerging Latin American nations for independence. We stood
by them and gave them support. We were among the first to realize the
justice of their aspirations, and we laid a basis of friendship and
mutual respect which has persisted to this day.

175.	The example of Latin America showed the world that respect
for self-determination was the right and natural way to discharge
colonial responsibilities. Next year is the bicentenary of Simon
Bolivar, and I should like to pay a tribute to him and to the nations
which he brought to birth. Our relations with the countries of Latin
America which reflect that history have been and remain of great
importance to us.

176.	This last year, Britain itself has been involved in a major
conflict, a conflict which we and our fellow members of the Security
Council tried strenuously to avert. On 1 April 1982 the President of
the Council, in the name of all its members, appealed to Britain and
Argentina to exercise the utmost restraint. Britain responded
positively to that appeal. The response of Argentina was a military
invasion of the Falkland Islands. Following an authoritative
determination by the Security Council the next day that Argentina's
invasion of the Falklands had created a breach of the peace, and a
mandatory demand by the Council in its resolution 502 (1982) that
Argentina withdraw, we went to every conceivable length to avoid
having to resort to force in self-defence.

177.	The Security Council thus sought first to deter Argentina
from aggression and then to induce it to withdraw. The efforts of the
United Nations-the efforts of the Security Council and of the
Secretary-General himself-to achieve a peaceful settlement had the
full, active and whole-hearted support of the British Government.
They failed through Argentine obduracy.

178.	Throughout our campaign to repossess the Islands, we took
immense care to act strictly within the framework of the Charter, at
each point reporting our actions to the Security Council. The force
we used in self-defence under Article 51 was the minimum necessary to
remove Argentina's occupying forces. We made it clear that in so
acting we were showing our absolute determination to implement to the
full our obligations towards the populations of our dependent
Territories under Article 73. We will not be deflected from that
determination and I make that quite clear.

179.	By liberating the people of the Falklands from alien
domination, we were also standing up for the right of a small but
authentic people to determine how they should be governed and how
they should live. Our tragic losses in men and ships were
considerable, but we were able to prove that in some cases, given the
will and the courage and the professionalism required, aggression
does not pay.

180.	The Argentine invasion took place when negotiations in good
faith were actually in train between Britain and Argentina. We were
talking round the table with the Argentines at the time. Suddenly and
brutally they decided upon a military invasion. That flagrant
violation of the principles of the non-use of force and the peaceful
settlement of disputes has radically altered the situation. It will
be difficult indeed to revive our confidence in Argentine intentions.
It will take a long time. Why, even now, has Argentina not accepted
the definitive cessation of the hostilities which it so mistakenly
initiated? Is it not for Argentina to prove that it has renounced any
thought of using force? Is it not for Argentina to demonstrate
respect for the right of self-determination, including the right of
the Falklanders? Will Argentina now abide by the principles of the
United Nations and the precepts of international law? Those are the
questions which must be answered if confidence is to be rebuilt.

181.	But the Falklands dispute, though it loomed large for
Britain, is far from being the only example of defiance by Members of
fundamental United Nations principles. It is certainly far from being
the most costly in lives. The region which has suffered most from war
over the past year has undoubtedly again been the Near and Middle
East.

182.	The Israeli invasion of Lebanon has been horrifyingly
destructive and has taken a terrible toll of innocent life. Israel
has legitimate security concerns, but the operation undertaken
against Lebanon went far beyond the requirements of Israeli security
and was pursued in defiance of the explicit demands of the Security
Council. Force was used disproportionately and relentlessly, and in
the process the Lebanese people and Palestinian civilians have paid a
cruel price. It does not require much imagination to realize the
bitterness and resentment they must feel.

183.	At the heart of the issue is the Palestinian people's right
to self-determination and their aspiration for a land of their own in
the West Bank and Gaza. Only by reconciling that right with Israel's
right to a peaceful existence within its own borders will there be a
lasting end to this appalling conflict. I believe -and we must
certainly hope-that a significant proportion of people in Israel and
the Arab world are now convinced that war is not the answer and are
prepared to compromise for peace. Experience does not encourage us
here, but the proposals put forward by President Reagan and by the
Arab heads of State have created a new opportunity and a new outlook
for negotiations which none of us can afford to see wasted. The
choice lies with the peoples of the region but they are going to want
and to need all the help the rest of us can give them.

184.	The conflict between Iran and Iraq has equally been ruthless
and bloody. It has cost many thousands of lives. Obviously it has
seriously endangered the stability of a crucial region of the world
vital to the interests of many countries outside. Surely by now both
sides must accept that further conflict is fruitless. As so often in
war, both sides have been the losers. To prolong the conflict will
only increase the suffering of their own peoples.

185.	Although the Middle East has recently held the main focus, we
must not forget that the same principles are involved in other areas.
It is now nearly three years since the Soviet Union mounted its
massive military invasion of Afghanistan. The General Assembly has
three times cried out for the self-determination of the Afghan people
to be respected, cries which have been cynically ignored by the
Soviet Union. No one knows how many people have been killed; no one
knows how many villages have been destroyed or how much the lives of
innocent people have been disrupted. All those facts are suppressed,
and people can well understand why. What we do know is that some 3
million refugees have fled their country, imposing an enormous burden
on its neighbours. Pakistan's impressive and generous handling of
this problem deserves our admiration. We also know that the Afghan
people continue to resist the imposition by Soviet arms of a regime
they do not want. What a crime against humanity war is, and what a
blot upon our collective record.

186.	Then, in Kampuchea, an unrepresentative regime is also kept
in power by the armed forces of its larger neighbour; in this case
the invader was Viet Nam. The regime was imposed by military invasion
more than three years ago. All the efforts of the United Nations and
the neighbouring countries of the Association of South-East Asian
Nations-which we have whole-heartedly supported-have so far failed to
move the Vietnamese from their insistence on maintaining by force in
Kampuchea a regime to suit their own interests. The recent formation
of a coalition of Kampuchean resistance forces could prove a
significant step towards a comprehensive political solution based on
self-determination, and we wish it well. As in the case of
Afghanistan, Britain will continue to work with every other
freedom-loving country for a just solution to this dispute and to
ensure that these continuing injustices are not forgotten.

187.	And the same is true concerning Poland. As a European country
Britain has been profoundly concerned with events in Poland. The
struggle in that unhappy country may on the face of it seem to some a
domestic problem. But of course it is far more than that. This time
last year the Polish people were seeking peacefully to liberalize and
reform their society under a regime that was originally imposed on
them from outside-and incidentally, with no consultation and no
reference to their rights of self-determination. Since then, with
full Soviet encouragement and support, the Polish regime has taken
deliberate steps to crush the hopes of the people for a freer and
more just society. No freedom-loving person, no true democrat, no one
with any feeling for human rights can fail to be concerned that a
wave of oppression has once again swept across that long-suffering
country and its valiant and noble people. We shall continue to call
on the Polish authorities to fulfil their undertaking to return to
the path of renewal and reform, and we shall continue to urge and
press the Soviet Union to allow the peoples under their tutelage to
develop in ways more in accordance with their natural traditions and
aspirations and. in accordance with the principles of the Charter of
the United Nations.

188.	By contrast it is a relief to be able to record that in one
of the world's major disputes progress has been made recently towards
a settlement based on a Security Council resolution. I am glad that
Britain, as a member of the contact group, has been able to
contribute towards progress over a settlement in Namibia. For
progress there has undoubtedly been. Although it is premature to
assume that the many obstacles in the path of Namibian independence
will all be overcome, it is not, I think, too much of hope that the
people of Namibia may soon have the opportunity to determine their
own future and to do so in elections held under United Nations
supervision. If a solution can be achieved in this way in Namibia it
will indeed be a success to chalk up for persistent and patient
diplomacy backed by the United Nations. I should like to pay a
tribute to the constructive way in which the parties to the dispute
and the front-line States have approached these lengthy and delicate
negotiations.

189.	A settlement in Namibia, if it can be added to that in
Zimbabwe, would provide further proof that the complex problems of
that troubled region of Africa can be solved through peaceful means
rather than conflict and violence. There is no need for further lives
to be lost. We hope for peaceful evolution within South Africa itself
and the emergence there of a form of government based on the consent
of the South African people as a whole.

190.	I should also like to welcome signs of progress in another
region where the United Nations has long been directly involved,
namely Korea. We are encouraged by the positive attitude to contacts
with the North shown by the Government of the Republic of Korea. This
should contribute to the prospects for a lasting solution to the
Korean question based on genuine understanding.

191.	There are many Member States which are not directly involved
in any of the problems I have touched on. But there are some
international issues which affect us all. One of them is disarmament.
I want to say that the British Government remains fully committed to
the pursuit of realistic, balanced and verifiable arms control and
disarmament measures in both nuclear and conventional forces which
will promote peace with freedom and security at a lesser cost.

192.	The second special session on disarmament did serve to
concentrate the minds of world leaders on this subject. But it was a
forum for stimulus and review, not negotiation. The straight talking
and the hard work has to be done in the negotiations taking place
elsewhere, in talks on strategic arms, intermediate-range nuclear
forces, mutual and balanced force reductions and chemical weapons.

193.	Britain's principal purpose, the principal purpose of the
United Nations, is peace. In the absence of a world-wide will for
peace, it can be achieved only if each and every member of the
international community respects the principles of the Charter. All
Members of the United Nations bear a heavy responsibility to remember
that it is an organization designed to preserve the peace. To use it
as a forum for ideological rhetoric is to undermine the respect in
which it should be held and to diminish its capacity to fulfil its
purpose.

194.	I referred earlier to the importance my Government attaches
to international economic co-operation. Our record speaks for itself.
I wish that that were true of all who orate on the subject in this
Hall. To say that this co-operation presents a moral challenge is not
new. But the concept gains force in face of the current painful
realities of the world economy, with growth barely visible, inflation
a persisting plague, and unemployment still rising. For developed
countries these problems have been serious; for developing countries
they can be devastating.

193. So today it is more than ever in the mutual interest of
developed and developing countries to pull together. Renewed stable
growth in the world economy, the balanced and reciprocal development
of world trade, the social and economic well-being of the developing
countries, especially the low-income countries, are in the general
and the particular interest alike. Cur conviction that current
problems need to be tackled positively is underlined by the United
Kingdom's strong support for IDA and the recent release of our third
instalment for the sixth replenishment of IDA, our continuing support
for an open world trading system, our resistance to protectionist
measures, and our maintenance of a high level of official development
assistance and essential private capital flows. I fully associate
myself with the remarks of the distinguished Foreign Minister of
Denmark, who spoke at the 8th meeting on behalf of the 10 member
States of the European Community. North-South matters require a
continuing commitment from all of us.

196.	Britain's foreign policy is firmly based on respect for the
principles which I have been talking about today. We sha31 continue
to strive for the maintenance of peace, acid we shall work for that
with all our friends and allies in all parts of the world, in this
search for peace there is no place for make-believe or deceit. Unless
we face up to the issues involved in each conflict and in each
disagreement squarely, unless we decide to face them together with a
will to resolve them without recourse to violence or war, we will
never be successful.

197.	So let us go forward from here now, with dedication and
realism, to work together for the peace which the billions and
billions of people we here represent long for.


First of all, Sir, I should like to con¬gratulate
you on your election to the presidency of the
thirty-seventh session of the General Assembly.
We hope that the current session will be crowned
with success under your presidency. I also wish
to thank Mr. Kittani for his contribution as
President of the thirty-sixth session.
76.	On this occasion each year we gather here
to review major world issues of the day. We are
all concerned about the changes in the world
situation as a whole and we all follow the
developments in various countries. Before I
proceed to elaborate on China's views on current
world affairs, I would like to say something
about a recent event of major importance in the
political life of the Chinese people.
77.	As representatives know, the Communist
Party of China held its Twelfth National Congress
in Bering earlier last month. This Congress was
an important milestone in the history of the
People'  Republic of China. It summed up our
experience in achieving great successes over the
past six years. A grand program for China's
socialist modernization was put forward and new
central leading bodies of the party were elected.
China now enjoys political stability and unity
and its economy is growing steadily. It has
entered a new era in its efforts to create a new
situation in all fields of socialist
modernization. Under the leadership of the
Communist Party, the Chinese people are
determined to make gigantic efforts on the basis
of self-reliance in order to achieve, step by
step, modernization in industry, agriculture,
national defense and science and technology
before the turn of the century and transform
China into a culturally advanced and highly
democratic socialist country. We intend to blaze
a path of our own and build socialism with
Chinese characteristics. We know that this is
going to be an arduous task and will be no plain
sailing. But we are fully confident of achieving
our goal and of the bright future of our country.
78.	In his report to the Twelfth National
Congress of the Communist Party of China, the
General Secretary of the Central Committee,
Comrade Hu Yaobang, has given a comprehensive and
profound explanation of China's foreign policy.
We adhere to an independent foreign policy. In
developing relations with other coun¬tries, we
are always guided by the five principles, namely,
mutual respect for sovereignty and territorial
integrity, mutual non-aggression,
non-interference in each other's internal
affairs, equality and mutual benefit, and
peaceful coexistence. More particularly, we will
unite with countries of the third world and join
hands with all other countries and forces working
for peace to combat hegemonism and maintain world
peace.
79.	Our independent foreign policy proceeds
from the fundamental interests of the people of
China and the world as a whole. The founding of
the People's Republic of China has removed the
social causes of China's submission to foreign
aggression and those of any possibility that
China might commit aggression abroad. In the 33
years of the People's Republic, we have shown by
deeds that China never attaches itself to any big
Power or group of Powers, nor yields to pressure
from any big Power. We Chinese people cherish our
own independence and sovereign rights, which we
won only after protracted struggles. We are
firmly opposed to hegemonism. At the same time,
we declare to the whole world that under no
circumstances will China seek hegemony.
80.	8C. In our international relations we
have always abided by the five principles of
peaceful coexistence. Conforming to these
principles, our Government has established
co-operative relations of peace and friendship
with a great number of coun¬tries in the past
three decades and more, and settled many boundary
questions and other issues left over from
history. In the future we will continue to be
ready to solve outstanding issues in our
relations with some countries on the basis of the
same principles. The Chinese Government is
willing to develop normal relations with any
country as long as it truly respects China's independence,
sovereignty and territorial integrity, abides by
the principles of equality, mutual benefit and
mutual respect, and demonstrates by actual deeds
rather than hollow words that it is not hostile
to China and does not threaten China's security.
81.	Our modernization program is based on the
principle of independence and self-reliance. At
the same time, we will continue to adhere firmly
to our policy of opening to the outside world. We
are ready to develop trade ties, economic
co-operation and scientific-technological
exchanges with all countries on the basis of
equality and mutual benefit.
82.	The people of all countries eagerly
desire peace. China's modernization program can
be realized only in an international environment
of enduring peace and stability. In the common
interests of the people of the world, we are
ready to work together with all peace-loving
countries and peoples for the main¬tenance of
world peace and international security and for
the advancement of the cause of human progress.
83.	There are many pressing issues of
universal concern on the agenda. Allow me to
state here the basic position and views of the
Chinese delegation.
84.	First, on the question of maintaining
world peace and international security. The
international scene is far from being relaxed,
but has become more turbulent and tense during
the past year. While wars of aggression against
Kampuchea and Afghanistan have not ceased in
Asia, naked and savage aggression against the
Lebanese and Palestinian peoples has been going
on without let-up in the Middle East. In southern
Africa, the racists are wantonly carrying on
brutal repression, military occupation and armed
provocations. In Latin America, outside
intervention has exacerbated the turmoil in the
Caribbean region. Even the hitherto relatively
calm South Atlantic has witnessed a war of the
strong bullying the weak. Wrangling over the
deployment of intermediate- range nuclear weapons
have intensified the military confrontation in
Europe. Faced with a continued economic
recession, the developed countries are trying
hard to shift the consequences of their economic
crises on to others. This has badly hurt the
devel¬oping countries and added to their economic
woes. Stalemate on the question of global
negotiations has seriously hampered the
improvement of North- South relations.
Disarmament is another issue of universal
concern. Here again, no progress could be made,
owing to the intensified arms race between the
super-Powers. The recent second special session
on disarmament has been a disappointment. In
short, while the hitherto unresolved old issues
of the world have become more complicated, new
problems keep cropping up on the horizon. One
cannot but feel bravely concerned and disturbed
about the present international situation.
85.	The menace to the peace and security of
the world today originates mainly from
imperialism, hegemonism and colonialism. The
quest for hegemony by the super-Powers and the
resultant global rivalry between them are the
main source of the unrest and turmoil in the
world. In their contention for spheres of
influence and world supremacy, the super-Powers
have accelerated the expansion of their armaments
and stepped up their strategic deployment. They
have openly or covertly subjected other countries
to their aggression, intervention or control by
direct or indirect use or threat of force. While
the focus of their global strategies remains in
Europe, the developments in recent years indicate
that the main sphere of con¬tention between the
super-Powers is in the third world. This fierce
rivalry has constantly rocked the world and
increased the danger of a world war. Therefore,
the overriding task of the people of the world is
to combat hegemonism and maintain international
peace. The heroic struggles waged by the peoples
of Afghanistan, Kampuchea and southern Africa and
by the Arab people against aggression demonstrate
that the people can, by means of unremitting
struggle, upset the super-Powers' strategic plans
and land the aggressors in deeper and deeper difficulties.
We are convinced that so long as the people of
the world are truly united and wage resolute
struggles, world peace can be preserved.
86.	Secondly, on the question of safeguarding
the independence and the right to existence of
nations. Word peace and security can be
maintained only if the rights to independence and
existence of nations are firmly safeguarded.
These two aspects cannot be separated. The
question of Afghanistan and the question of
Kampuchea have not yet been settled and have
again been included in the agenda of the current
session. This is because the Soviet Union and
Soviet-supported Viet Nam have continued to
subject Afghanistan and Kampuchea under their
respective military occupation and refused thus
far to withdraw their aggressor troops there from.
87.	Not long ago, the three Kampuchean
patriotic forces resisting Vietnamese aggression
agreed among themselves and formed the Coalition
Government of Democratic Kampuchea headed by
Prince Norodom Sihanouk. This Government enjoys
the support of the Kampuchean people as well as
international recog¬nition and endorsement. This
is an encouraging major development in the
Kampuchean situation. The Kam¬puchean people have
persevered and won important victories in their
war of resistance against Vietnamese aggression,
thus landing the aggressors in a deepening
quagmire. In order to extricate itself from this
predicament, Hanoi has resorted to trickeries. It
has launched a new "peace offensive" designed to
soften and divide the international forces
opposing Viet¬namese aggression against
Kampuchea. Viet Nam is the aggressor in Kampuchea
and the menace to the peace and security of
South-East Asia, and yet it has fabricated a
so-called China "threat" in an attempt to divert
public attention and spread confusion. But this
is completely futile. The five countries of ASEAN
and the great majority of the States Members of
the United Nations emphatically call for the
implemen¬tation of the relevant resolutions of
the General Assembly and the Declaration of the
International Conference on Kampuchea,  which
demand the total withdrawal of Viet Nam's
aggressor troops from Kampuchea so that the
Kampuchean people may build a peaceful
democratic, neutral and non-aligned State of
national union free from any outside
interference. This demand is fully justified.
Since the question of Kampuchea has resulted from
Viet Nam's armed aggression, there can be no
genuine settlement of this question until Viet
Nam withdraws all its aggressor troops from
Kampuchea. Any "political solution" that accepts
the status quo created by Viet Nam's aggression
at the expense of Kampuchea's independence and
sovereignty would be contrary to the Charter of
the United Nations and the norms of international
relations and, therefore, are inadmissible.
88.	The same applies to the question of
Afghanistan. The Afghan people have not been
cowed by their formidable enemy, but have fought
valiantly under the sacred banner of safeguarding
their national inde¬pendence and have frustrated
the aggressors' cherished plan of bringing the
war to a quick conclusion. Soviet armed
aggression against Afghanistan constitutes a
gross violation of the Charter of the United
Nations and a grave threat to peace in Asia and
the world. None of the pretexts put forward by
the Soviet Union to justify its continued
presence in Afghanistan is tenable. We maintain
that the resolutions adopted at three consecutive
sessions of the General Assembly calling for the
withdrawal of foreign troops from Afghanistan
must be strictly implemented. The Soviet Union
must unconditionally pull out all its troops from
Afghanistan. The Afghan people should be allowed
to determine their own destiny free from any
outside interference. Afghanistan must regain the
status of an independent and non-aligned State.
That is the only feasible way to settle the
question of Afghanistan.
89.	The situation in Lebanon has aroused
serious world-wide concern during the last few
months. How the Lebanese situation and the
Palestinian question are treated involves respect
for a State's independence, sovereignty and
territorial integrity and recognition of a
nation's rights to existence and
self-determination. This is also a question
bearing on peace in the Middle East and
international security as a whole. The Israeli
aggressors have flagrantly invaded and occupied
large tracts of Lebanese territory and attempted
to wipe out the Palestinian revolutionary armed
forces. They perfidiously entered Beirut again
and savagely massacred Palestinian and Lebanese
civilians. The United States cannot shirk its
responsibility for this since it has always
shielded and abetted the Israeli aggressors.
China joins all other countries in voicing strong
condemnation of the acts of aggression and the
inhuman atrocities committed by the Israeli
authorities. We firmly support the Palestinian,
Leba¬nese and other Arab peoples in their
struggle against Israeli aggression and expansion.
90.	The question of Palestine is at the core
of the Middle East issue. Although the
Palestinian people have suffered a temporary
setback, their forces will never be wiped out
because they are fighting for a just cause. The
PLO is recognized by more than 100 coun¬tries as
the sole legitimate representative of the
Pales¬tinian people. Any proposal or formula
designed to exclude the PLO from the settlement
of the Middle East question would be wrong and
unworkable. The plan put forward at the Twelfth
Arab Summit Confer¬ence, held recently in Fez,
provides a good basis for a fair and reasonable
settlement of the questions of Palestine and the
Middle East. In our view, to achieve peace in the
Middle East, Israel must evacuate the Arab
territories it has occupied since 1967, including
.Jerusalem; the Pales¬tinian people must regain
their national rights, including the right to
return to their homeland, the right to
self-determination and the right to establish
their own State; and the rights to independence
and existence of all countries in the Middle East
should be respected.
91.	The most urgent task now is to stop
Israel's aggression against Lebanon. The United
Nations and all the countries and peoples that
cherish peace and uphold justice should act
promptly and take effective measures to compel
Israel to withdraw all its troops from Lebanon
immediately and unconditionally.
92.	In southern Africa, with the backing and
con¬nivance of a super-Power, the South African
authorities have intensified their racist
policies. They have continued their illegal
occupation of Namibia and made repeated armed
provocations against and military incursions into
neighbouring countries, thereby posing a direct
threat to the security and stability of the
region. People are deeply concerned about the
situation in southern Africa and, in particular,
about the inde¬pendence of Namibia, which will
affect the historical process of the final
liberation of the entire African continent. We
maintain that, in accordance with the relevant
resolutions of the United Nations, Namibia should
immediately achieve genuine national independence
on the basis of territorial integrity and
national unity; South Africa's apartheid system
should be completely abolished; and the
international community should apply effective
comprehensive sanctions against the South African
authorities. The Chinese people firmly support
-the just struggle of the African people,
particularly the Namibian and South African
people, until they win final victory,
93.	The military conflict over the Malvinas
Islands earlier this year also aroused general
concern. The question of the Malvinas Islands
remains unsolved despite the termination of the
war. It is a reminder that although the cause of
national liberation has won great victories
throughout the world in the post-war period, the
process of decolonization has not yet been
completed. We support the request of Argentina
and other Latin American countries for
consideration of the question of the Malvinas
Islands at the current session of the General
Assembly. Argentina's claim to sovereignty over
the Malvinas Islands should be respected by the international
community. Together with other third-world
countries, we sincerely hope that the parties
concerned will seek a just and reason¬able
solution to this question by peaceful
negotiations.
94.	I would now say a few words about the
Korean question. The Democratic People's Republic
of Korea has made important contributions towards
a reason¬able settlement of the Korean question
and the maintenance of peace in East Asia and the
Pacific region. The Chinese Government firmly
supports the positive proposals put forward by
the Government of the Democratic People's
Republic of Korea for the independent and
peaceful reunification of Korea. We firmly
support President Kim 11 Sung's proposal for
establishing a democratic confederal republic of
Koryo. We always hold that in order to achieve a
peaceful settlement of the Korean question the
"United Nations Command" must be dissolved
immediately in accordance with resolution 3390 B
(XXX) adopted at the thirtieth session of the
General Assembly, all United States military
forces must be withdrawn from South Korea, and
the Korean Armistice Agreement should be replaced
by a peace agreement through negotiations between
the parties concerned.
95.	Thirdly, I turn to the subject of the
economy and development of the third-world
countries. At present, many third-world countries
are faced with deepening economic difficulties.
Certain m or developed countries have tried to
shift their own economic difficulties onto the
third-world countries and have cut back their
development assistance, thus further straining
North-South economic relations. The developing
countries have pressed for the launch¬ing of
global negotiations with a view to improving
North-South relations and establishing a new
inter¬national economic order. The General
Assembly has long since adopted a resolution
pertaining to this question and the Group of 77
has also put forward a reasonable draft
resolution. AH this has provided a constructive
basis for launching global negotiations as soon
as possible. The Inter¬national Meeting on
Co-operation and Development, which held at
Cancun in October 1981, gave expres¬sion to the
common desire of the great majority of nations
for the launching of global negotiations. At the
meeting, Chinese Premier Zhao Ziyang gave clear-
cut support to the demand of the third world for
the establishment of a new international economic
order. Owing to obstruction by a major Power, no
agreement on the launching of global negotiations
has yet been reached. This state of affairs has
caused deep disap¬pointment and resentment among
developing coun¬tries and also among quite a few
developed countries.
96.	The international community faces the
important task of improving North-South economic
relations through global negotiations. The
economies of all countries are closely
interrelated. The developed countries cannot
achieve economic growth without the rich
resources, vast markets and economic prosperity
of the developing countries. All countries,
whether rich or poor, North or South, must abide
by the principle of equality and mutual benefit
if they are to carry out fruitful economic
exchanges and co-oper¬ation. The existing
unreasonable, unfair and outdated international
economic order must be restructured. The
developed countries' economic aid to the
devel¬oping countries conforms to their own
interest and is by no means charity. This has
been recognized by more and more far-sighted
people in the West. We hope that at the current
session the Assembly will surmount obstacles and
make real progress towards the launching of
global negotiations.
97.	While striving to improve North-South
relations, the third-world countries also exert
great efforts to promote "South-South"
co-operation among them¬selves. The developing
countries have industrious people, rich natural
resources and a vast market.
they share the common objective of developing
their national economies. There are unlimited
potentials for developing inner-third-world
co-operation. This will be highly beneficial.
This kind of co-operation is an important means
for the developing countries to strengthen their
self-reliance both individually and collectively.
It also has the vital strategic role of help¬ing
to break down the existing inequitable
international economic relationship and replace
it with a new inter¬national economic order.
98.	The restructuring of the old
international economic order is a demand of the
times which the third-world countries are bound
to raise after they have won political
independence. Political independence cannot be
consolidated or sustained without economic
independence. Regardless of all the obstructions
from imperialism and hegemonism, the third-world
countries will persist in the just struggle to
restructure the old international economic order
until final victory.
99.	The emergence of the third world in the
inter¬national arena after the Second World War
is an event of primary importance of our time. In
recent years the numerous countries of the third
world, united in a common struggle, have
effectively defended their national independence
and State sovereignty and made major
contributions towards restructuring the old
international economic order as well as
maintaining international peace and security.
Their joint struggle has, to a great extent,
changed the situation in which the super-Powers
could arbitrarily manipulate the destiny of the
world. Events show that unity means strength. We
are convinced that so long as we third-world
countries can seek a reasonable settlement of our
own differences and disputes through peaceful
consultations in a spirit of mutual understanding
and accommodation and of seeking common ground
while reserving the differences, and so long as
we can close our ranks and work for our common
cause, we will be better able to control our own
destiny and promote the progress of world
history. As a member of the third world, China
will continue to play its part by further
expanding its friendly co-operation with other
third-world countries and peoples.
100.	Faced with increasing troubles and
turmoil on the world scene, one is entitled to
expect that the United Nations will uphold
justice and play a greater role in maintaining
world peace and inter¬national security and in
promoting the  growth of the world economy.
However, events over a period of time indicate
that the role of the United Nations has been
eroding. This is chiefly because certain
countries have abused their veto power, bypassed
the United Nations on a number of issues or
refused to implement its resolutions.
101.	In his report on the work of the
Organization, the Secretary-General has pointed
to the problems and difficulties confronting the
United Nations and has made some suggestions to
uphold the principles of the Charter which merit
our consideration. We appreciate and support the
efforts of the Secretary- General and also hope
that certain permanent members of the Security
Council will show a more co-operative approach.
We believe that, provided the over¬whelming
majority of the Member States make com¬mon
efforts to uphold the Charter and wage a resolute
struggle against any force that jeopardizes world
peace and international security, the
Organization will not disappoint the people of
the world, but will perform its noble duty of
maintaining world peace and pro¬moting human
progress, thereby fulfilling the historic mission
entrusted to it.