98.	I should like first to congratulate you, Sir, on your election to the important office of President of the thirty-sixth session of the General Assembly and to wish you every success in carrying out your tasks.
99.	I also congratulate Vanuatu and Belize on their admission to the Organization and wish the peoples of those countries success in their free and independent development.
100.	A survey of the events that have taken place since the previous session of the General Assembly shows that the situation in the world has become in general more complicated and explosive. The dangers that threaten peace and the sovereign peoples and countries that wish to enjoy and safeguard their legitimate rights and interests have become greater and more serious during the past year. In many regions of the world new elements have further endangered international peace and security. Many important and acute political problems which have rightly preoccupied progressive peoples and countries for a long time, far from having moved towards a solution, have become more difficult and complex day by day.
101.	On the European continent, tension and political and military confrontation have mounted this year, and differences have become more acute. Hotbeds of tension and conflict have increased and spread in the Middle East and the Persian Gulf. The whole region from the Mediterranean to the Indian Ocean, right to the very center of Asia, has become an arena of aggressive war or preparations for war. The Zionist imperialist aggression against the Arab peoples and countries is continuing with increasing ferocity. Many hotbeds of tension also exist in Asia, Africa and Latin America.
102.	The growing aggressiveness of the imperialist superPowers, and in particular the intensification of the arms race and preparations for war, have during the current year aroused greater concern than ever everywhere in the world. The superPowers are increasing their war budgets at colossal rates. Arms sales and supplies have assumed new and greater proportions. The production of new systems of weapons of mass destruction, including the neutron bomb, has been given a new impetus. The United States of America and the Soviet Union and their aggressive military blocs, NATO and the Warsaw Treaty, have increased their military exercises both in number and in intensity. They have used them even more openly and directly than in the past as a means of applying pressure and blackmail, whether in Europe, the Mediterranean, the Middle East or the Indian Ocean.
103.	These hazardous developments are occurring at a time when the general crisis of the capitalist revisionist world is constantly worsening and deepening. The serious economic and financial crisis which is shaking the foundations of the structure and the superstructure of the capitalist and revisionist countries has led to a further sharpening of all the inter-imperialist contradictions. In particular, the energy crisis has driven the imperialist Powers and monopolies to fierce competition and numerous disputes in their attempts to grab the reserves and markets of oil as well as of other raw materials, to supplant each other and to divide up spheres of influence. By resorting to violence and blackmail, demagogy and subversion, the superPowers and the imperialist Powers are trying to overcome the grave consequences of their economic and financial crisis growing inflation, unemployment and recession by intensifying their plunder and exploitation of other countries.
104.	Numerous facts and events show that the process of confrontation between democratic and progressive sovereign peoples and countries, on the one hand, and imperialism, social-imperialism and other forces of world reaction, on the other, is deepening more and more. This confrontation is reflected daily by the development of events in the world and by international relations in general. The true culprits responsible for the grave situation in the world today, for the hotbeds of aggression and war, for tension and insecurity and, indeed, for all present dangers and injustices are, first and foremost, the United States and the Soviet Union, who pursue an aggressive, neo-colonialist policy and try to dominate the world and subordinate the whole system of international relations to their own interests.
105.	The American imperialists and the Soviet social imperialists have been and remain the greatest and most ferocious enemies of the peoples, the main source of war and aggression. In spite of the grave defeats they have suffered, they have become more unrestrained in their aggressive policies and activities; they have intensified their economic, political and military threats, blackmail and pressure, along with their plots and acts of subversion in different parts of the world, in order to establish their hegemony everywhere and divide the world into spheres of influence. As the leader of the Albanian people, Comrade Enver Hoxha, has stated:
"The great imperialist Powers are resorting to means of all kinds to preserve their markets and spheres of influence in the world today. When one loses a market in a certain region, it tries to win one in another region, to the detriment of its rival or rivals. That is the cause of imbalance, the source of deepening differences and disagreements, which reach the point of armed conflict; it gives rise to the arms race, to partial, localized wars which lead mankind into all-out, predatory, imperialist war."
106.	The United States and the Soviet Union also raise a demagogic hue and cry about "detente" and their "efforts" to safeguard peace and security in the world, particularly in Europe. Inter-imperialist conflicts and the rivalry for hegemony in Europe have sharpened; the dangers that beset European peoples and countries have increased. Hence, the European peoples now see more clearly what lies behind the smokescreen of detente and the Helsinki, Belgrade and Madrid conferences on European security, or the farce of the Vienna talks. In this grave situation of tension and threat created in Europe by the United States and the Soviet Union, people cannot fail to see that, in spite of the fuss over the Final Act of Helsinki, adopted in 1975, the stockpiles of strategic nuclear weapons and the number of United States and Soviet tanks and aircraft on our continent have increased, as has the threat to genuine peace and security in Europe and in the world at large. In the light of the present dangerous developments in Europe, it clearly follows that the Final Act of Helsinki was formulated not to protect the sovereignty or the borders of the European States, but rather to preserve the spheres of influence of the two imperialist superPowers and to cause the European peoples to relax their vigilance. It was precisely for these reasons that the People's Socialist Republic of Albania opposed that demagogic Conference. The world has been well aware of this for some time, and experience has now proved our position correct.
107.	Similarly, the situation in Europe keeps deteriorating, because of the fact that the two superPowers seek at all costs to strengthen their control and diktat over their allies, to patch up the cracks that appear in their political-military groupings and alliances and to compel the members of those alliances to increase their military expenditures and their financial contributions for the upkeep of foreign troops on their territories and, in general, to take upon themselves a heavier burden in all spheres of the preparations for war. The ever-growing proportions which the frenzied United States and Soviet conventional and nuclear arms races is assuming in Europe, apart from the great dangers that race poses for the sovereign peoples and countries of that continent, have also caused nervousness among the respective allies of the two superPowers. Last year a great deal was said and written about the stationing of the Soviet SS20 missiles and the United States cruise and Pershing 2 missiles in Europe. Each superPower tries to justify itself and blame the other for this escalation of the aims race, so fraught with grave consequences for Europe. But the truth is that both the United States and the Soviet Union pursue the same course and have the same aims. They want to turn Europe into an ammunition depot; they want to impose their diktat on the whole continent and, indeed, on their allies, through fear and blackmail.
108.	Throughout this complicated game for domination and hegemony played by the United States and the Soviet Union, alongside the agreement to preserve a certain beneficial status quo for themselves in Europe, they have never relaxed their efforts to challenge each other within their respective spheres of influence. The grave and chaotic situation created in Poland, as a result, of a process of general deterioration dating back to the revisionist twentieth Congress of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, is being utilized by the American imperialists and their allies to shake and weaken the dominant position of the soviet hegemonists in their sphere of influence. On their part, the Soviet social-imperialists spare neither threats nor flattery in dealing with the countries of Western Europe in order to turn them against Washington, especially concerning such problems as "disarmament", "detente", EastWest relations and so on. Similarly, Moscow tries to counterbalance the challenges of Washington in Poland with open demonstrations of strength; that is why it is keeping that country in a state of real military siege and is ceaselessly organizing large-scale military exercises in and around its territory.
109.	Despite the growing rivalry and sharpened tone of the mutual accusations between Washington and Moscow, it would be a mistake to forget that the two imperialist superPowers, even at such times, are able to find a common language in order to come to terms with each other, bypassing even their allies, and always to the detriment of sovereign peoples and States. Concern lest the growing AmericanSoviet rivalry should have grave consequences for international relations is well-founded; it has always been the case. But the dangers and tensions in the world would not be reduced even if the present stage of worsening relations between the two superPowers were to be replaced by a period of more tranquil relations, more frequent meetings and coordination of their activities. The policy, aims and actions of the United States and the Soviet Union continue to threaten and endanger the peoples of Europe and the entire world whether the leaders of those two superPowers embrace each other and sign treaties or harshly reproach each other.
110.	Nor is the situation calm in the Balkan region, where there is a fresh intensification of political and military activity on the part of the United States and the Soviet Union, which exploit the grave socioeconomic situation and the turbulent elements dial have accumulated in one or the other Balkan country and vie with each other to entrench and strengthen their strategic positions in the region. This aim is also served by their growing presence in and their air and naval military buildup around the Balkans, by their efforts to secure military bases and port facilities there, and by the visits of their warships and the numerous military delegations that travel frequently from one country to another.
111.	The Soviet social-imperialists are endeavoring to stir up chauvinist passions and sentiments, to encourage and deepen disagreements, to undermine the friendship among the Balkan peoples and to disturb peace and security in the region. We hold that acceptance of the interference of the imperialist superPowers in that region is fraught with dangerous consequences for the destinies of the Balkan peoples. Such an attitude runs counter to the lawful interests and aspirations of the Balkan peoples and the establishment of trust and sincere friendship among them.
112.	The People's Socialist Republic of Albania, always acting on the basis of the policy of good-neighborliness and safeguarding the interests of the peoples, has fought and is fighting against every attempt and intrigue by the superPowers in the Balkans. It has always adhered to its public statement that no harm will ever come to its neighbors from Albania or through the territory of Albania. The People's Socialist Republic of Albania always adheres staunchly to the principles of noninterference in the internal affairs of other States and respect for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of each country.
113.	The Albanian Government has always displayed goodwill in the normal and fruitful development of relations of good-neighborliness with bordering States. It has made sincere specific efforts and has responded correctly to all useful initiatives for the development of relations in commercial, cultural and other fields. We have assessed the effects of our exchanges with neighboring States on the basis of official bilateral agreements and we are of the opinion that these have yielded positive results. In the future also, the Albanian Government will display the same goodwill in the development of such relations, and we hope that the Government of other countries will act similarly and with the same feeling of responsibility, to the advantage of all the peoples and of peace in the Balkan region.
114.	Last year we witnessed in the Mediterranean region a further increase in the military and naval buildup and activities of the two imperialist superPowers, which are trying t** extend further the network of their military bases in the Mediterranean countries and are intensifying their military exercises for offensive purposes quite close, in fact, to the territorial waters of other countries. The grave act of provocation by the naval aircraft of the United States against Libya, like other actions of the American and Soviet fleets in fee Mediterranean, reveals the danger posed by the presence of the fleets of the superPowers in this basin. Hence the Albanian delegation is> of the opinion that the Mediterranean countries must increase their efforts to compel tr? fleets of the superPowers to leave the Mediterranean
115.	The Middle East continues to be one of the most dangerous hotbeds, where the political, economic and military-strategic predatory interests of the imperialist super Rowers clash, which could lead at any time to grave and generalized explosions. Both the United States and the Soviet Union are conducting feverish all-out political and military activities in the region, are provoking and threatening the peoples of those countries with armed attacks and are concentrating more intensively their aggressive fleets, military bases and forces around those countries. Furthermore, they have continued their activities to deepen further the division among the Arab countries es and to pit them against one another by stirring up local conflicts and tensions.
116.	Making use, as always, of the direct support of the United States and of the turbulent situations created by the antiArab activities of the superPowers in the Middle East, the Israeli Zionists have undertaken other more aggressive acts, such as the criminal military attacks against Lebanon and the air raid against Iraq.
117.	Lebanon is suffering a genuine tragedy. The sanguinary hand of the Israeli aggressor is daily dealing blows at the Lebanese people, and also at the Palestinian people, who have been left without a homeland by Zionism and imperialism. But the heroic Palestinian people have never laid down their weapons and have not ceased for a single moment the just struggle to win back their freedom and their homeland.
118.	The Albanian people and Government, as in the past, stand firmly on the side of the Palestinian people and the other Arab peoples and firmly support their just cause.
119.	The situation in the Gulf area, which is the largest oil bearing basin in the world, has become increasingly explosive as a result of the intensification of the aggressive activity and the policy of interference, provocation and blackmail pursued by the United States and the Soviet Union against the Iranian people and the other peoples of that region. Resorting to the use of counterrevolutionary forces and their espionage networks, they are trying to cause a wave of terror in Iran so as to prevent the Iranian Government from stabilizing the situation in the country and to bring the Iranian people to their knees. The United States imperialists still nurture the hope of regaining their lost privileges and position, while the Soviet social-imperialists seek to exploit the situation in their own favor. However, the revolutionary Iranian people, through their determined struggle, have overthrown the bloody Fascist regime of the Shah and are now dealing telling blows at the positions of imperialism in the Persian Gulf area. They will strengthen their vigilance and determination to safeguard their victories and cope with the hostile plots of the United States, the Soviet Union and other reactionary forces. The Albanian people have followed with regret the situation created as a result of the armed conflict between Iraq and Iran, which has inflicted great losses on the peoples of both countries. This conflict has been and is being exploited by imperialism, social-imperialism and Zionism, in order to interfere further in that region and to strike at and weaken the struggle of the peoples of the Middle East. In view of the development of events and the grave situations created for these peoples, today it has become more imperative than ever that this conflict be ended, that foreign troops withdraw from Iranian territory and that the problems between the two parties be solved through negotiations.
120.	The Albanian people and Government once more express support for and solidarity with the valiant and freedom-loving people of Afghanistan in their struggle for the liberation of their country from the Soviet social-imperialist occupying forces. Without the withdrawal of the occupation troops from Afghanistan there can be no peace in that country or in the region.
121.	The growing aggressiveness of social-imperialist China and its political-military alliance with United States imperialism, and the aggressive schemes and activities of the United States and the Soviet Union in IndoChina constitute the main factors in the continued worsening of the situation in SouthEast Asia. From their own experience the peoples of that region have realized the consequences for their freedom and independence of the "friendship" and "aid" offered by the United States, China or the Soviet Union; therefore they are forcefully opposing any kind of interference. These long-suffering peoples must be left free to settle for themselves their internal questions and their fate, without any foreign interference from any source and with strict respect for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of each country.
122.	As always, the Albanian people and Government support the just struggle of the Korean people for the expulsion of the United States imperialists from South Korea and the independent unification of the homeland.
123.	The rivalry of the superPowers and other imperialist Powers for spheres of influence and markets in Africa has further complicated the situation on that continent and has created hotbeds of conflict and tension in a number of countries and among various States. The United States and the Soviet Union are striving in different ways to bind a number of African countries to the system of imperialist and social-imperialist alliances. The United States and other imperialists are trying to justify their aggressive acts in Africa and the intensification of their political, economic and military support for the racists of South Africa on the ground of the need to counterbalance the interference of the Soviet Union in that continent. For their part, the Soviet social-imperialists like to present their interference as support for the African peoples against imperialism. In fact, whether in South Africa or in other parts of the African continent, the two imperialist superPowers pursue the same objectives and have become embroiled in a feverish race for spheres of influence and military bases, grossly violating the rights and interests of many African countries.
124.	This activity on the part of the superPowers encourages South Africa's racist regime to persist in its policy of apartheid, to keep Namibia under its colonial rule and to carry out provocation and armed aggression against the African countries, as it did recently in Angola. In all their aggressive activity, the racists of South Africa enjoy the full support of the imperialist Powers and, first and foremost, that of the United States. In these conditions it is clear that the path of armed struggle is the only one that will lead the Namibian people to the attainment of its rights and aspirations. The Albanian people has supported and will always support the just liberation struggle being waged by the Namibian people for freedom and national independence.
125.	The difficult situation in some Latin American countries shows that the peoples of that part of the world are being confronted more and more by the interference of imperialism and by superPower plots.
126.	Facts and events daily show that the just struggle of freedom-loving peoples throughout the world for freedom and national independence remains powerful. This is a clear reflection of their growing hatred and indignation against the occupiers, oppressors and exploiters, of their determination ever more powerfully to strike out at the imperialist Powers and their tools and to stay the hand of the aggressors who threaten peace and mankind with an imperialist world war.
127.	The struggles of peoples and of all oppressed masses are the main force shaking the very foundations of the capitalist-revisionist world and opposing the aggressors and warmongering schemes and actions of world imperialism. The imperialist Powers have been and are being dealt successive and powerful blows by the struggle of peoples throughout the world who cherish peace and freedom. The "grave defeat which the Iranian people inflicted on United States imperialism, the blows that the valiant Afghan people are dealing at the Soviet aggressors, the constant intensification of the struggle being waged by peoples against the aggressive and hegemonistic policy of the superPowers enhance the optimism and strengthen the confidence of peoples throughout the world in their invincibility.
128.	Today, this struggle is present and evident everywhere in the world. Its results can be clearly seen in the constant weakening of the positions of imperialism, social imperialism and other reactionary forces.
129.	The Albanian people and its Government have supported and will always strongly support the just struggle of peoples for liberation, for the defense of their national independence and sovereignty and for self-determination. They have stood and will always stand on the side of peoples fighting for genuine freedom and equality against oppression, violence and terror; for the rooting out of colonialism, against neocolonialism and racial discrimination; against the intrigues, plots and brutal interferences of the imperialist Powers and, first and foremost, of the superPowers.
130.	The People's Socialist Republic of Albania will, as ever, continue to back the struggle of the sovereign peoples and countries of Africa, Asia and Latin America against the political, economic and military aggression of the United States, the Soviet Union, China and other imperialist Powers. Today, the peoples of the world are becoming ever more conscious of the danger posed by the attempts of the imperialist Powers to maintain and intensify their exploitation of them, by implementing neo-colonialist theories and practices of "interdependence", "aids", "credits", "multinational collaboration and cooperation" and other forms of plunder and exploitation. We support all the efforts and the just struggle of different peoples and countries to attain and strengthen their economic independence and to place all their national assets under their full control, to defend them from neo-colonialist plundering and to utilize them for the benefit of their independent economic and social development.
131.	The People's Socialist Republic of Albania, a fully independent country, is growing and developing with total reliance on its own forces, on the sweat and selfless work of its people, on the material and financial resources which our own country possesses and creates, without receiving credits or aid from abroad. It has developed and is extending its relations with an ever-growing number of States constantly and on a sound basis. In trade, cultural exchanges and other fields, Albania displays correctness, never implicating itself in political machinations, never damaging the interests of others, never falling into autarchy or retiring within itself.
132.	In spite of the effects of the grave economic crisis in the world, our country is developing and progressing constantly and is achieving satisfactory rates of economic development and an improvement in the wellbeing of the working masses. The Albanian people does not know unemployment, price rises or inflation, economic crises, corruption and moral degeneration or other such ills, which are increasingly afflicting the working masses in the bourgeois revisionist world.
133.	The successful completion of the sixth five-year plan, for the period 19761980, has led to the improvement and further strengthening of the economic structure of our country, thus further consolidating its economic independence and enabling it to aspire to greater development in the future. This five-year plan was marked by a further increase in the production of electric power, oil and coal. As regards food, we are self-sufficient. All bread is produced locally for the people, as is 85 per cent of its needs in industrial mass consumer goods.
134.	Now our people have set themselves to work to carry out the seventh five-year plan for the development of our economy and culture. This new five-year plan will be carried out totally on the basis of our own strength, without any aid or credits from abroad. The average annual production will be approximately 1.5 times higher than the annual production over the past decade. Basic investments will be approximately 1.4 times higher, and export revenues abeuPtwice as large. The diversification of our industry will be further strengthened, giving priority to the development of heavy industries. The energy base, in particular the oil industry, will be further strengthened. Investments in agriculture will increase and we will progress towards its further intensification. During the seventh five-year plan, great progress will be achieved in the fields of education, culture, science and the protection of the health of the people. The Albanian people, under the direct leadership of the Labor Party of Albania, which this year will mark its fortieth anniversary and which is so wisely led by its founder, Comrade Enver Hoxha, is advancing proudly towards its future, aware of the fact that, thanks to its unremitting toil, it will carry forward the cause of the construction and the defense of socialism in Albania.
135.	At the present time, as we are witnessing a worsening of the international situation and increased dangers and threats to peace and to the peoples of the world, the People's Socialist Republic of Albania will not fail to make its modest contribution to the sincere efforts of the peoples and countries which love peace and freedom to stay the hand of the aggressors and ensure true security throughout the world.


73.	 Mr. President, the Republic of Iraq and the Democratic Republic of Madagascar enjoy very close relations, and therefore you will understand the special satisfaction we feel at seeing you preside over the work of the
thirty-sixth session of the General Assembly. In you, Sir, we greet a representative of the nonaligned third world who has already placed at the disposal of his county, of our movement and of this Organization the devotion and the faith with which you are naturally endowed, as well as the experience that you have acquired in many international bodies.
74.	We should like to address our thanks to your predecessor, Mr. Rudiger von Wechmar, for the perfect fashion in which he conducted the diverse and very complex work of our last session. We also wish to pay tribute to the SecretaryGeneral for the efforts he has undertaken in the interests of the Organization and of the international community.
75.	The Malagasy delegation is among the many delegations that sponsored the resolutions recommending the admission of Vanuatu and Belize, not because we were necessarily honoring a tradition born of a common colonial past, but because we attach great significance to the triumph of right, to the struggle of peoples for liberation and to their desire to recover and reaffirm their identity in order to participate fully in international life. We congratulate the Republic of Vanuatu and Belize and we assure the two delegations of our fraternal cooperation.
76.	In the course of the general debate at the
thirty-fifth session [11th meeting], we tried to explain to the Assembly our concern regarding the maintenance and the strengthening of peace in our region, the need to formulate a new definition of collective security based essentially on mutual acceptance of interests, the equality of those interests and their integration in the search for the common good.
77.	Since then the feeling of insecurity has become generalized. The interdependence of the 1970s has been overtaken by a dependence considered more reassuring. The basic imbalance of political power has caused a renewal of the efforts aimed at bi-polarization, to the extent that we can again speak of a new realignment that has become a source of tension, confrontation and open or covert conflict.
78.	We are therefore justified in saying that, far from being dissipated, the concern we expressed at that time has been confirmed and the development of a situation marked by the elaboration of antinomian strategies has stood in the way of the search for cooperative solutions of international problems in accordance with the avowed mission of our Organization. Are we then to conclude that there is a deliberate desire to challenge the purposes and principles of the Charter? We dare not think that, since many Powers would be forced, because of what they perceived to be the facts, to bend the principles to suit their purpose, thus frustrating the desire of the peoples for the world of peace and security promised by the Charter.
79.	Specific alliances and the policy of force have prevailed at the expense of the collective security that was envisaged in 1945, to the extent that, instead of enjoying equal security in accordance with the Charter, we are living in equal insecurity under the threat of nuclear weapons capable of destroying the world many times over. Peace has ceased to be the major concern, putting the survival of mankind at risk, and the dangers of nuclear warfare have unfortunately become a reality. Worldwide and extended confrontation in the military, political, commercial and technological fields has taken the place of detente.
80.	The new doctrine of a limited nuclear war, which is intended to make acceptable what is unthinkable, is accompanied by other decisions, such as those concerning the substantial and constant growth of military expenditures, the unilateral designation of so-called zones of vital interest, the extension of areas of intervention, not to mention such projects as the treaty of the southern Atlantic, in which the South African racist regime is the keystone.
81.	The United Nations undoubtedly has a role to play in defusing this situation, a role that cannot be tainted with resignation or complacency. It is politically and morally unjustifiable to allow the security of the world to depend on relations among the nuclearweapon States.
82.	At best, that system might function, and those Powers would settle world affairs in accordance with their own interests, completely ignoring the right of other States to equal security. At worst and this seems to be the present situation the nuclear club would fail to fulfill its responsibilities, bilateral, regional and multilateral negotiations would be broken off or blocked, and the rest of mankind would realize with anguish how precarious the situation was.
83.	It is for these reasons that we cannot hide the dismay we feel at the lack of true progress since the adoption in 1978 of the program of Action for disarmament [see General Assembly resolution S10/2].
84.	We hope that the second special session devoted to disarmament, planned for next spring, will allow us to draw some lessons from the negotiations which have taken place in the Committee on Disarmament during the last three years, while it will still be useful to pay greater attention to the definition of those measures that might give new impetus to the process of disarmament. At this stage we shall not take up the questions of the program, the priorities or the specific measures; we shall merely limit ourselves to recalling that the will of State" for peace must precede disarmament, not follow it.
85.	The success of that session, as of any disarmament undertaking,, must depend on the proof given by States that they are inspired by that will for peace and not by the search for domination, hegemony, military superiority or confrontation.
86.	It is for this reason that we believe that the non aligned nations can contribute to the achievement of our common goal by defending the principles of peaceful coexistence which underlie the political philosophy of the movement, by refusing to be treated as pawns in an antinomian political game, by refusing to allow themselves to be dragged into, military alliances, by rejecting the efforts to rationalize the arms race, and. by denouncing the deceptive propaganda which establishes an inverted priority between disarmament and security and, with equivocal selectivity, ignores the alliance between the imperialists and the Zionist entity and" the South African racist regime.
87.	These last considerations inspired the initiative that led to the adoption of the Declaration of the Indian Ocean as a Zone of Peace [General Assembly resolution 2832 (XXVI)], of which this year we celebrate the tenth anniversary. This is more pertinent than ever, despite the inability of the Ad Hoe Committee on the Indian Ocean to decide upon the date of the Colombo conference, which had originally been scheduled for 1981. Need we recall the understandable disquiet that was shown by the littoral and hinterland countries which almost unanimously recognized, contrary to certain claims, that the existing conditions of insecurity militated in favor of the holding of that conference?
88.	As far as we are concerned, we shall press for the Colombo conference, the agenda of which must truly reflect the principles of the Declaration, to take place before the end of 1982, and for the summit conference at Antananarivo to be held in 1983. May I at this point recall the proposal by the President of the Democratic Republic of Madagascar, which was presented and explained during the
thirty-fifth session [11th meeting], and which demonstrates our desire to define the nature of the commitments that must govern the mutual relations of the States concerned with the security of the Indian Ocean region, on the basis of the principles established at United Nations level.
89.	The difficulties that we encounter in the Indian Ocean area lead us to recall the crises that affect other . regions too, for which solutions must be found on the' basis of our principles and not seen through the deforming prisms of bloc interests.
90.	Elimination of the apartheid regime has always come up against the mental block of certain circles who fear change and contend that the liberation of the Africans and their assumption of political power in South Africa would be a threat to specific interests. That attitude, which contributed to delaying the breakup of former colonial empires, explains the will of some to liken liberation movements to terrorist groups. It also justifies the maintenance of so-called normal relations, even a policy of rapprochement, with the racist regime, raised to the rank of a stable and strategic ally. Finally, it is shown by opposition to the policy of sanctions and by the subordination of the future of the African majority to the hazards of East West confrontation.
91.	We consider that no specific interest is worthy of being opposed to the restoration of human dignity, justice, freedom and peace for the victims of apartheid. We strongly support the struggle of the African majority, under the leadership of their authentic liberation movement, and demand that the Security Council impose mandatory global sanctions on South Africa in accordance with Chapter VII of the Charter.
92.	In Namibia, the same causes have produced the same effects. The complaisance I would even say the complicity of certain western Powers has encouraged the racist regime to defy the United Nations, which, through the United Nations Council for Namibia, is the legal Administering Authority of that Territory.
93.	The adherence of the Western contact group to the idea of imposing constitutional principles, even before the future constituent assembly of Namibia has been elected, seems to us to be an inadmissible restriction on the sovereignty of that assembly. It is, to say the least, ironic that those who have insisted most on guaranteeing that that assembly shall be the true reflection of the will of the Namibian people should today be the first to usurp some of its powers. That is not our idea of independence and sovereignty, which must be vested in the Namibian people alone.
94.	We reaffirm the position of the Government of Madagascar, as communicated to the SecretaryGeneral and made known at the eighth emergency special session [6th meeting]. Either the United Nations should decide to implement immediately and unconditionally Security
Council resolution 435 (1978); or it should request the United Nations Council for Namibia, the legal Administering Authority, unilaterally to declare Namibia's independence, under the aegis of SWAPO, the authentic representative of the Namibian people recognized by the international community.
95.	The recent aggressions of the racist regime against Angola have rightly been condemned by the whole international community. It is to be regretted that the veto of one Power prevented the Security Council from joining in that condemnation.
96.	We also note that the ministers and heads of delegations of the nonaligned countries have taken note with satisfaction of the decisions adopted by the eighteenth session of the Assembly of Heads of State or Government of the Organization of African Unity held at Nairobi from 24 to 27 June 1981, on the organization of a general and free referendum on self-determination in Western Sahara [see Al361534, annex If, AHG/Res.103 (XVIII)].
97.	In a declaration made public on 31 August 1981, the President of the Democratic Republic of Madagascar said that he considered as positive the recommendations of the Implementation Committee on Western Sahara of the OAU [see A/36/512, annex] which met at Nairobi from 24 to 26 August 1981 to give effect to the Assembly's decisions. He believed that the acceptance by the Committee of the idea of setting up in Western Sahara an interim, international, nonaligned authority to ensure the carrying out of the referendum was a further positive step. However, no genuine free and democratic referendum can possibly be held while the Moroccan army and administration remain on Sahraoui territory.
98.	In the Middle East, true to its policy of expansion and regional hegemony, Israel increases its aggressions and "preventive reprisals" against its neighbors. Its raid on Iraq's nuclear installations was rightly and unanimously condemned by the Security Council.
99.	At the same time, using as a pretext troubles caused by one faction, the Tel Aviv authorities implacably continued their dismemberment of Lebanon, taking the opportunity at the same time to implement their campaign of genocide against the Palestinian refugees. We reaffirm our support for the sovereignty of Lebanon and respect for its territorial integrity, unity and political independence, and call for the full implementation of Security Council resolution 425 (1978).
100.	Those acts of aggression only further complicate the search for a solution to the question of Palestine,, which more than ever lies at the heart of the Middle East problem. We shall continue during this session to give our support to the proposals of the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People. We welcome the increasingly widening consensus given to the recognition of those rights, including the right of return, the right to self-determination and the right to establish an independent and sovereign State in Palestine.
101.	It is high time for the Security Council to take note of that consensus and to agree to amend and to complete in this sense the all-too-notorious Solution 242 (1967), which otherwise is in danger of becoming a monument to injustice.
102.	The Asian continent is shaken by crises, which certain instruments of propaganda present to us through clever caricatures intended to cast doubt on the true aspirations of the peoples concerned and further to divide the Movement of NOnAligned Countries.
103.	Apart from any ideological considerations, we believe that two principles are valid the clearly expressed will of the peoples and the need at all costs to find a politically negotiated solution to all disputes. That is why the question of Afghanistan could be solved on the basis of any constructive proposal, particularly that which was made public on 24 August 1981 by the Government of the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan [see A/36/457, annex]. Likewise, in the case of Kampuchea, we believe that a meeting between the countries directly concerned, without external interference, could lead to a solution which would not threaten the credibility of our Organization.
104.	We offer our support to the proposals of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea to convene a conference of the democratic parties of the North and South, which should lead to the v nation of a great Korean confederation, the Confederal Democratic Republic of Koryo.
105.	The recrudescence of tensions in Central America and the Caribbean causes us disquiet. As a nonaligned' country, we uphold the legitimacy of the struggles of peoples subjected for years to injustice and domination. Attempts at destabilization, economic pressures and other hostile acts against the States of the region can meet with nothing but general condemnation and provoke reactions that are not always to the taste of certain parties.
106.	Our solidarity with the peoples concerned is known, for, here as elsewhere, only they have the right, in full sovereignty and freedom, to decide their own political, economic and social affairs.
107.	In the economic field the outlook is not much better, because the crisis of which we have seen the omens for over a decade is now upon us, and has been given added impetus by the inroads of contention and counterclaims, which are undermining existing structures and for which we can find no more than palliatives in the absence of a real development ethic. We are resentful of the basic injustice of growth by groups, which is now losing sight of the basic idea of bridging the gap and instead is far too close to parallel but separate, and therefore basically unequal, development.
108.	This blinkered approach favors the notion of immediate or short-term benefits, as well as what might be called, for want of a better term, international profiteering, based on selfishness, impatience and shortsightedness. Is there still a true desire to find any answer to this crisis, or are we resigned to the fact that two humanities exist, looking at one another across the divide created by unrepentant imperialism?
109.	This is well illustrated by our inability this year to undertake the global negotiations provided for in General Assembly resolution 34/138, the holdup in the Third United Nations Conference on the Law Of the Sea, so many events which demonstrate that in spite of Our protestations the commitments assumed under the Charter "to employ international machinery for the promotion of the economic and social advancement of all peoples" are still limited. The procrastination of some and the ill will of others hide behind the pretext of a search for a consensus at all costs, thus leading to the undermining of international cooperation and the exacerbation of the world economic crisis.
110.	^	All our countries are affected by that crisis whose hallmark is a breakdown in economies, currency fluctuations, a chronic international payments deficit, the continuing trend towards higher interest rates, inflation and unemployment, the inadequacy of traditional adjustment measures and the uncertain prospects of growth, even for the medium term, all of which encourage a return to a more or less disguised protectionism.
111.	But egotism is not solely to blame, for we see that the countries that are most seriously affected are the developing countries, above all the non-oil-producing countries, whose external debts and balance of payments deficits have become disastrous. We are also paying dearly for the rhetoric in which some of our partners try to wrap up global prospects for development, since we are being offered only a patching up of the present system, which is functionally unsuited to restoring stability and ensuring .he growth of our economies.
112.	Once again we can fall back on skepticism and resignation. But we reaffirm that the only way of establishing equality of opportunity and eliminating the damaging effects of mistrust is the multilateral and global approach to the problems that underlie the present crisis. The International Meeting on Cooperation and Development to be held at Cancun may contribute to providing a fresh momentum to cooperation between two worlds that are condemned to interdependence, to the extent that the lines decided on in the context of the new international economic order are respected.
113.	The principles agreed on from Arusha to Caracas concerning cooperation among developing countries were not conceived in a spirit of confrontation or competition, but in reaffirmation of our will to provide ourselves with institutions designed to solve the major problems posed by the requirements of an equal and integrated development.
114.	We need not conceal this any longer: the 1980s will be difficult years and we will have to temper the optimism of the last two decades. Each State will have to bear its part. Each State will have to find the means to survive the crises that will occur and recover the security, equilibrium and prosperity to which it has a right. But what should our Organization do to reverse the new political alienation, to revive the vision of one world united economically and socially?
115.	More than once we have undertaken a redefinition of the role of the United Nations. Studies have been undertaken, committees have been set up, and yet we find ourselves at the same impasse, which seems to confirm the Views of those who defend the status quo, because our efforts have been reduced to attempting to reconcile irreconcilable interests or, at best, to collate divergent national reactions. And thus we are forced to ask ourselves whether the collective will to restore international life to its universality can still exist.
116.	We have been told that the Charter represented and still represents the best hope of inducing mankind to accept universality. We are aware that for some it is no longer considered as anything more than one reference among many others, and that from being the only means of reducing the dangers of tension, confrontation and conflict, it has sometimes become an instrument of justification for a partial review of relations among nations.
117.	From one session to another we reaffirm our faith in the purposes and principles of the Charter, and from one session to another also we see this increasing reluctance to resort to the existing machinery embracing practically every area of cooperation or to make it more effective, by taking account of change or even, I venture to say, of resolutions adopted since the machinery was first established.
118.	National sovereignty and national interests are put forward to hamper the role and the activities of the United Nations. But how can the preponderance of the United Nations which we accepted in the Charter restrain a sovereignty that cannot be more absolute? What interest do we have, acting collectively and in unity, in preventing world problems from being dealt with by a multilateral approach and being given global solutions?
119.	If the principles of the Charter remain valid for us at all times and in all circumstances, as experience shows, if we are ready to revitalize the objectives of the Charter so that they are more responsive to the aspirations of all peoples, if we have the courage to set aside our contradictions and accept the ineluctable evolution of mankind towards peace, progress and justice, then let us give our Organization the political means to fulfill its purposes, because that is the best way of reaffirming our confidence in ourselves and really promoting mutual confidence.


Mr. President, let me begin this statement on behalf of the Argentine Republic by expressing our sincere congratulations to you on your assumption of the most important post in the General Assembly. Your election represents not only an acknowledgment of your personal distinction, but also shows the respect of the community of nations for your country. The Organization may be sure that it has entrusted this high mission to an experienced diplomat who is aware of the grave responsibilities that his task involves.
2.	In your recent visit to Buenos Aires, in the company of the VicePresident of Iraq, our two countries restated the importance of their cordial, longstanding and fruitful relations.
3.	Argentina would also like to reiterate and reaffirm its high esteem for the ability and efficiency with which your predecessor, Mr. von Wechmar, of the Federal Republic of Germany, carried out this particularly difficult task during the thirty-fifth session of the General Assembly and the emergency special session.
4.	We express our satisfaction at the admission of the new independent State of Vanuatu as the one hundred and fifty-fifth Member of the Organization. We are sure that it will contribute to the fulfillment of the Organization's goals of peace and development.
5.	At the same time, I should like to express the satisfaction of the Argentine people and Government at the independence of Belize which was actually proclaimed yesterday and which constitutes an example of how the outstanding problems of decolonization may be resolved with a sense of history and realism, with decisiveness and without premature discouragement in the negotiations.
6.	May I therefore convey to each of those new States the Argentine Republic's desire to broaden relations of friendship and cooperation with them.
7.	This new session of the General Assembly brings with it, as usual, a world round of analysis and thought, which indeed is one of its main purposes. As it is opening at the start of a decade that appears to be tense and full of conflict, it demands above all a balance-sheet of the essential elements inherited from the 36 years that have elapsed since hope emerged after devastation without precedent.
8.	Today, as in the beginning, a single idea has remained defined with a clarity that does not allow for nuances: it is the idea of peace. There is no alternative to opting for peace. The Organization came into being under that inspiration and with that as its objective. The technology for destruction that has been developed since then has excluded world war as a conceivable instrument in any political program. The essentially immoral instruments of destruction that mankind has created have ensured an option that cannot be challenged; one that, so far, neither the ethical approach nor justice has been able to secure. Unfortunately, this lack of alternative to peace has neither improved the conditions of world security nor made it possible to thieve progress along paths that seemed promising only a few years ago. The international society, for some time multi-polar in the political and economic fields, is still supported by a bipolar arc in the field of final military power. This situation at present gives rise to growing tension.
9.	The disappointing developments in the recent negotiations on disarmament in the United Nations and the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe and the virtual paralysis as regards SALT have occurred at the same time as the emergence of new conflicts, which follow those that for years have been receiving the attention of the Organization.
10.	The idea of disarmament has been replaced in practice, first, by the concept of a slowdown of the arms race and, secondly, by the parity of military power. This has tended to dispel many illusions; indeed, we all know that a vicious circle has been created. True parity can never be established in such times of technological buildup. Every effort to close any real or imaginary gap inevitably creates yet another gap, imaginary or real.

11.	This process has a strong inherent logic. The increasing arms buildup comes from a sense of insecurity. This feeling persisted among all the protagonists despite all the unquestionable progress made during the cycle of so-called detente. Viewed in retrospect, it is clear that that necessary progress was far from sufficient and that today a further effort is needed, under much worse conditions. There is not the slightest doubt that the distrust between the main protagonists has increased. Nor is there any doubt that nothing deserves higher priority at this stage than efforts to recreate appropriate conditions for dialog.
12.	The obvious crisis through which the world security system is passing is aggravated by the equally unacceptable crisis affecting the system of ideas underlying it. For example, there is the clear care of those ideologies that believed they had grasped the meaning of history and were capable of building a final model society free of contradictions. Any observer today can clearly see that some of the most ominous changes threatening peace derive expressly from the objective existence of the contradictions supposedly overcome in that model.
13.	Insecurity and the ideological crisis are at the root of the emergence and universal spread of terrorism. It is evident that this real scourge has not only new dimensions but also a new essence. Contemporary terrorism constitutes one of the most dangerous assaults on the human condition. It is, above all, an assault on reason, similar to many assaults that history has known before, and it lacks any ethical motivation. Present day terrorism is a highly professional manifestation of naked power, with a worldwide organization, which is increasingly refined and threatens even those who succumb to the temptation to support it, directly or indirectly.
14.	We Argentinians cannot but recall in this dramatic context the attempt on the life of His Holiness Pope John Paul II, whose efforts to promote understanding among peoples are clearly exemplified by his welcome mediation* in the border dispute between Argentina and the Republic of Chile.
15.	A look at the world situation reveals a picture with many shadows, among which problems that have been included for many years now in the agenda of these sessions and those that have been added recently stand out. The common denominator is the element of national, regional or world insecurity.
16.	A single thread characterizes the most serious cases. The persistent delay in the solution of the Palestine problem, the nonrecognition of Israel by most of the Arab countries, the unacceptable risk of annexing the territories occupied after the 1967 war, the bombing of Iraq's nuclear reactor, the attack on Lebanon and the attack on the Vienna synagogue represent stern appeals to the conscience and sense of responsibility of all countries represented here. Another such is the continued illegal interference in Afghanistan, where one superPower is expressing its idea of national security at the cost of the security of a neighbor which by no stretch of the imagination can be classified as dangerous. Exactly the same can be said of Viet Nam's interference in Kampuchea another instance of a threat to regional security. In this world in which colonialism is now in its twilight, its continuing existence in the flagrant example of Namibia and the unacceptable delay in the process to independence of that country demonstrate how a situation of this kind can directly threaten not only regional but also world peace and security.
17.	These four situations, which constitute extreme cases in the present international scene, all have a common denominator, namely, the violation of fundamental principles of world order and of the Charter of the United Nations. They all involve the self-determination of peoples, a violation of the principle of nonintervention, a breach of territorial integrity and an attack on sovereignty. The invoking of their own security by the interested parties is a cover for conduct that clearly violates the security of others and thus threatens the security of everyone. It seems both clear and rational that the security that they supposedly desire to preserve would be better guaranteed by a precise definition of its own limits,
18.	In so far as those problems fall within the specific competence of the United Nations, "some comments on the methodology of their handling by the Organization are called for. The first concerns the need to adopt realistic political approaches that include activities and explore prospects, and lead to specific solutions. Those solutions must take into consideration both the objectives aimed at in each case and the purposes and principles of the Charter, in order if possible to obtain consensus among Members of the Organization. When the defense of a principle or worthy cause is at stake, it is much more effective to obtain the minimum common denominator acceptable to all than to put forward extreme proposals that inevitably give rise to reservations that neutralize them in practice. The second comment underlines the need to place more emphasis on negotiations and dialog between the countries directly involved in each problem, with the participation of the United Nations Secretariat where necessary, without prejudice to the concerted action agreed upon in the resolutions addressed to all Member States.
19.	From the point of view of Latin America, these considerations seem timely. It is evident that this continent, and Central America in particular, has entered an extremely critical phase. Possible actual violations of fundamental principles that have led to serious disputes in other areas are now a matter of real concern for the people of Central America, as shown clearly by the case of El Salvador.
20.	The highly dangerous potential for an escalation of conflicts in Latin America does not seem to be clearly perceived in other areas, especially in some developed countries that appear to see those disputes as a problem of spheres of influence relating to the prevailing political trends in Europe.
21.	This false perspective especially prevalent on the part of industrialized European countries, has also been, and is being, committed, although in a reverse sense, in the field of human rights. In the name of human rights there has been, and still is, an uncalled for and, by some sectors a distinctly superficial, interference in situations of internal security which in no way affect international peace and security. That interference is clearly a violation of the spirit and letter of the Charter. It constitutes, in fact, a very significant and decisive support of the subversive terrorist activities that really might create actual situations endangering international peace and security.
22.	Obviously such peace and security must reflect all of the elements underlying the system of international relations. The Organization was founded at a time when there was hardly any discussion of economic development and underdevelopment. However, as far back as 1945, San Francisco was the meeting point of highly industrialized countries and others that had not even taken the first steps towards modernization. The great campaign to dislodge colonialism, in which many of the battles were fought in these halls, multiplied the number of developing countries. Their political weight increased, but that did not narrow the gap separating them from the big centers of finance, industry and technology.
23.	The 1973 crisis, in which the new oil prices acted as a catalyst, did not change the essence of the problem, but introduced into the situation aggravating elements of decisive effect. In order to check these, on the initiative of the Group of 77, a more extensive dialog was begun based on the fact that the fates of developed and developing countries were clearly linked through their interdependence and they must therefore join in seeking a global agreement that would make it possible to find the basis for a sustained and balanced growth of the world economy. Our skepticism about developments thus far in no way detracts from the validity of that program or that approach.
24.	It is now more urgent than ever to reverse the trends that are becoming more marked in a situation of acute recession, but it must be on the basis of a realistic analysis of the situation.
25.	The increase in oil prices generated a regionalization of profits and a general spread of losses as a consequence of such a monumental redistribution of world earnings without the establishment in the meantime of "structural measures designed to correct the inherent distortions. During the whole process, the developing countries oil producing or  non-oil-producing maintained their solidarity and unity, in spite of the fact that most of them were the worst affected.
26.	After some hesitation as to whether priority should be given to checking unemployment or inflation, this, new situation led all the industrialized countries to emphasize action against inflation, and adopt measures that reinforced the recessive trends in their own economies.
27.	But as the recycling of financial surpluses was finally channeled to the industrialized States through private banks, those States availed themselves of a series of mechanisms which helped them to overcome their main basic problems. They introduced more streamlined protectionist policies, passed on the higher cost of money and oil to the prices of their products and services, and made aggressive inroads into the international market with new subsidized exports that compete unfairly with the traditional exports of the developing countries.
28.	Obviously the non-oil producing developing countries are the ones that meet the cost of balancing the accounts. They have to pay more for energy, for capital goods, for industrial inputs, for finished products and, more specifically, for currency.
29.	There being no other solution, the balance of payments on current account of three quarters of the international community has become structurally deficit ridden. Because of this development, members of the international community have responded to these negative trends with measures designed to remedy or alleviate them, although they do not yet form part of an effective concerted effort consonant with the problems identified. It is a proven fact that the developing world remain^ united in solidarity, in spite of the fact that some of those measures were also designed to divide it.
30.	The most important factor after 1973 has undoubtedly been the recycling of financial surpluses in the petroleum-exporting countries to the economies of the industrialized countries. This is a fact that can only be remedied with large scale measures. Otherwise, in a few years time the present trends will lead the international community to completely unacceptable situations. The oil-exporting countries and the industrialized nations today have an inescapable responsibility for the global redistribution of resources and growth. If the need for a solvent world demand was very clear 20 years ago, it is out of the question to sit idly by today watching the extension of insolvency to the entire world.
31.	While international dialog is pursued in New York, Caraballeda, Ottawa, Nairobi, Paris and Cancun without our getting any closer to a global approach to substantive policies, our conscience is struck by the situation eloquently described by His Holiness John Paul II in his recent encyclical Laborem Exercens, a document which is a virtual program of action for the countries assembled here.
32.	One could devote a great deal of time to the analysis of the situation, but the diagnosis would always be the same: there is no solution that does not involve reactivating the world economy, and this calls for a massive increase of cooperation with the developing countries. This is tantamount to saying that there will be no future prosperity for the great world economies of today if industrialization is not extended to all countries in the world.
33.	Argentina is the only developing country which is both self-sufficient in the energy sector and a substantial food exporter. It is therefore in a better position to judge the present trends. I would stress that the world food situation is as serious as ever and that the reduced interest which it evokes only reveals a shameful acceptance of backwardness, injustice and hopelessness. A world in which, pari passu, missiles and misery are built up threatens an explosion somewhere.
34.	I have taken the liberty of expressing some viewpoints of the Argentine Government, which are those of my people. The Argentine nation, as all representatives are aware, has inherited Western culture. It shares all the values that are inherent in that culture: a profound belief in freedom, in the alienable rights of the human person, in their defense through the mechanisms of a pluralist society, in the sovereignty of the people and in the republican form of government. Its national and international ideals were formed by men like Sarmiento, Calvo, Drago, SSenz Pena, Pueyrreddn, and Saavedra Lamas.
35.	In this Organization, as in the one that preceded it, Argentina has always played an active role, which has been permanently documented, through the most diverse Governments and in the most difficult internal situations. My country passed through one such situation a few years ago, when it suffered one of the most violent acts of aggression ever perpetrated by international terrorism. Argentina overcame that aggression by its own means, not asking for anyone's help. No one can say that my country is a threat to the peace or security of anyone. For that reason, we have not been prepared to permit interference in our internal affairs by anyone, either in the events that are part of history or in the present process of democratic reconstruction in which we are engaged, although our doors are open for everyone to see what we are doing and we are ready for a dialog with anybody.
36.	In that dialog Argentina will be, as it has always been, a zealous defender of international order, of the rights of the national State, of the principles of sovereignty; of nonintervention, of self-determination of peoples and, above all, of peace among nations. Argentina reaffirms those principles, which it has always adhered to and which it shares with the States members of the non aligned movement in which our country plays a part and whose principles we hope will be vigorously reaffirmed at the next summit conference in Baghdad in 1982 in the face of any attempt to weaken the Movement. Those principles, as well as the repudiation of all forms of racism or discrimination such as apartheid or any other kind of discrimination based on creed, culture, caste or class, are inherent in a nation that attained freedom at the dawn of the process that put an end to the colonial empires.
37.	It is a strange paradox that our country, which was in the vanguard of the struggle for national independence, should still suffer from a breach of its territorial integrity, an anachronistic persistence of colonialism.
38.	The Malvinas Islands have not been restored to Argentina despite the long interval that has elapsed since the General Assembly adopted resolution 2065 (XX) in 1965. The Malvinas are a colony to this day, with the formal status thereof, basically exploited by a company built on the pattern of those of the time of the mercantile States. Perhaps a unique case in these times of demographic explosion, the Malvinas at present have a population smaller than that which inhabited them at the time of the above mentioned resolution. Large food and energy resources are awaiting exploitation, which is not possible as long as the present illegal occupation continues.
39.	That situation is still less understandable when the islanders have had every practical opportunity of realizing that their association with Argentina is a source of benefits that are otherwise unattainable. Obviously the Malvinas cannot remain a colony, nor can Argentina passively accept that part of its territory should be one of the last colonies. I should like to inform this Assembly that Argentina has addressed to the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland a proposal designed to give a decisive impetus to the. negotiations regarding sovereignty over the Malvinas, South Sandwich and South Georgias Islands. The Argentine Republic hopes in due course to be able to report to the General Assembly that the series of negotiations concerning the Malvinas, South Sandwich and South Georgias Islands which we hope will begin soon, has proved to be the last.
40.	The clear awareness that we must have of the serious problems that we face does not hide the enormous capacity of the instruments available to mankind to solve them. The main one among them is the Organization. A single example would suffice to demonstrate the possibilities that open up when the international community works in an organized fashion towards common goals: the success of the intense efforts to ensure the establishment of a just and balanced system to govern the orderly and peaceful use of the oceans and the rational exploitation of their resources.
41.	In that connection, Argentina hopes that the draft convention prepared at the Third United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea1 will be adopted in the course of next year and that it will be open for signature in Caracas.
42.	There is no alternative to peace; nor is there any alternative to development. Peace and development require the effort of each and every State forming part of the world community. There is no substitute for our own work, but it is also necessary to have the contribution of everyone. Peace and development presuppose a demand for reason and a Call for moderation. Reason and moderation are the specific instruments of culture and the human condition. They can forestall any threats that hover on the horizon. They can ensure a proper synthesis of the demands of security and the sacred principle of the self determination of peoples. They can also foster the realization that the economic growth of the richest among us is not incompatible with, but rather requires, the development of the poorest among us.
43.	In this world there is no place for lethargy in the struggle for peace or in the development effort. We have reason to hope, not only because there is no alternative but also because the cause is good and just. In the pursuit of those ideals, Argentina identifies with the brotherly peoples of Latin America, whose destiny it shares, whose more active presence in world politics is one of the best assurances of the attainment of the goals of those who gave birth to this Organization* and whose authentic leaders are all men of goodwill.