A/38/PV.93 General Assembly

For many years now, the developments in the Middle East have been among the darkest aspects of international relations. This situation did not arise spontaneously. As in other parts of the world, this tension is carefully planned and created by the most reactionary imperialist forces. The final objective of these imperialist forces is the establishment of control in the Middle East over both the internal and external policies of the individual States. The develop- ments in the Middle East reveal with growing ciarity the anti-Arab nature of the United States-Israeli aHiance directed against the achievement of equitable peace in that part of the world. 2. At the present time, Israel is doing its utmost to expand the occupied territories by a de facto division of Lebanon. In the occupied territories, it is destroying the economic structure, driving the Arab population away from the land and destroying its cultural heritage in an effort to deprive it of its national identity. In this way, Israel is striving to make radical demographic changes in the region that should ensure for it territorial gains from its aggression. 3. The unresolved question of Palestine is the primary source of the ever-more-explosive situation in the Middle East, which poses a direct threat to world peace and has a negative impact on the overall development of inter- national relations. 4. By its unprecedented brutality and violation of all existing international norms, current Israeli aggression in Lebanon clearly shows the entire world that Israel will stop at nothing. The milita:y actions of Israel in Lebanon have brought new suffering to millions of Arabs. A set- tlement of the Middle East problem, however, cannot be achieved either by military force or by the gradual an- nexation of the occupied territories. 5. Israel can behave in this way only thanks to the all- round support extended to it by the United States in the political and economic as well as military fields. This support alone has enabled Tel Aviv for decades to trample upon and to usurp the rights of the Arab States, to cause immense damage to these States and to ignore the recom- mendations and decisions of the United Nations. 6. The all-round support of the United States for Israel has reached a new stage. By direct military actions against the Lebanese patriotic forces and the inter-Arab peace forces, the United States has placed itself on the same level as the Israeli aggressor. This is the consequence of the failure of the Camp David accords to solve the crisis in the Middle East and of Reagan's plan for an imposed agreement between Lebanon and Israel, as well as of all NEW YORK the back-stage methods, such as the unleashing of a civil war and the launching of far-reaching aggression by Israel against the Lebanese people and the Palestinian resistance movement. It must be added that the United States did not learn a lesson from its similar action in 1958, the results of which demonstrated how futile are the attempts of neo-colonialism to turn back the clock of history. The historical experience of the Middle East proves that prob- lems cannot be resolved by the shedding of blood. Vio- lence only further increases the tension. 7. The adventurism of the United States is furthermore reflected in its deliberate overlooking of the fact that in the era of nuclear weapons a local hotbed of tension can easily escalate into a broader conflict. The taking of such a risk leads to the inevitable conclusion that the most reactionary forces of imperialism see in this method a hope for the liquidation of socialism and nationallibera- tion movements throughout the world and for world hegemony. 8. On 7 December 1983, the Federal Ministry for Foreign Affairs of the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic issued the following statement on the situation in the Middle East: "The recent actions of the United States armed forces in the territory of Lebanon offer new convincing evidence that, in a reckless drive for its imperialist objectives in the Middle East, the United States has placed its stakes on the policy of gross strength de- signed to force into retreat all those who resist the implementation of the joint United States-Israeli plans in that region. "Through its actions, the current United States Administration proves once again that its Middle East policy is a part of its global crusade against the forces of social progress and national liberation. The most reactionary militarist and Zionist circles in the United States are deljh~rately increasing the tension in the Middle East in ~a effort thus to create conditions for a further escalation of their direct interference in the affairs of the peoples of that region. "These ends are pursued also by the just-concluded agreement on the further strengthening of the so-called strategic co-operation between the United States and Israel, the first tragic fruits of which are the aggressive attacks against Lebanon and the Syrian Arab Republic. The conclusion of this agreement has completely un- masked the so-called peace-making and impartial role of the United States in Lebanon and the mission of its troops in that country. "The Czechoslovak Socialist Republic resolutely condemns the aggressive actions of the United States, which are sharply at variance with the Security Council resolutions adopted in the interest of securing the sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity of Lebanon. It expresses its lasting solidarity with the struggle of the peoples of Lebanon, the Syrian Arab Republic and other Arab countries against expansionist and imperialist plans and calls on all progressive and honest people throughout the world and on the entire international community to resist actively the imple- mentation of further stages of the aggressive designs of the United States and Israel in the Middle East." Furth~nnore, the PLO has been recognized as the authen- tic, legitimate representative of the Palestinian people. However, the lack of agreement between all the parties directly concerned enables one of them to continue to prevent the Pale:;tinian people from effectively exercising its rights. 20. ~_: Jsely related to the Palestinian problem is the problt::fil of the Arab territories occupied since June 1967, including Jerusalem. Despite the many resolutions of the General Assembly and the Security Council reaffirming UBy its blatant acts of aggression, the United States and'Israel have both violated the agreement on the cease-fire in Lebanon hitherto respected, and that has confirmed once again that the presence of United States armed forces in the Middle East is a threat to the independence and sovereignty of all Arab States. "The Pe'ople's Republic of Bulgaria firmly con- demns this new bloody crime committed by American militarist circles and the attempts of the United States and Israeli Governments to impose their will on Arab States by diktat and blackmail." us of the leading, unfortunate role which a permanent member of the Security Council has played and continues to play with regard to the Middle East conflict. 123. In this context, throughout the past few months we have seen how that supposedly peace-loving country has been, in the supreme organ of the Organization, the main obstacle to that organ's fulfilling its functions and adopting appropriate measures against Israel in the face of the latter's violation of the principles a.nd provisions of the Charter of the United Nations and its l.~n-compliance with Security Council resolutions. 124. Since June 1982, two draft resol' tions on the situation in Lebanon and one on the occupied territories have been vetoed by the United States in the Security Council. The purpose of one of those draft resolutions was to prevent the establishment of new settlements in the occupied territories. By vetoing it, the United States actually gave Israel the green light to continue its illegal settlements policy. In regard to other draft resolutions that have had a better fate, the United States has either abstained or not participated in the vote or, if ii. has voted in favour, the resolutions have remained unimplemented because of the passive conduct of that super-Power. 125. The ineffectiveness of the Security Council was clearly demonstrated in 1982 when Israel invaded Leba- non, disregarding the existence of an important instrument 130. Since the question of Palestine is the core of the problem of the Middle East and the main reason for the Arab-Israeli conflict, the United Nations must redouble its efforts to ensure that the rights of the Palestinians do not continue to be disregarded. 131. In the search for a solution to the Middl€ East problem, we must bear in mind the Geneva Declaration on Palestine I and the Programme of Action for the Achievement of Palestinian Rights, I adopted by the' International Conference on the Question of Palestine in September 1983. The fact that the Conference sup- ported the proposal that the United Nations shonld hold an international peace conferen"e on the Middle East with the participation, on an equal footing, of the PLO, the United States and the Soviet Union. as well as other interested States, and that one of the essential elements of a solution should be the establishment of an ir.depend- ent Palestinian State in Palestine~ must guide our work both in the General Assembly and in the Security Council. 132. My country will exert it~ best efforts to ensure the atta-inment of those objectives. 133. Mr. SINCLAIR (Guyana): At a moment when the situation in the Middle East is as tense as it now is, with 181. The unsettled state of the Middle East conflict and the tension which has been exacerbated by Israel are being used by the United States as a convenient pretext for sending to that region its naval forces and marines, build- ing military bases and engaging in large-scale military manoeuvres aimed at a military build-up in the Middle East in a manner contrary to the interests of the Arab States of the region. This was demonstrated in particular by the escalation of United States military operations in Lebanon. United States interventionist actions in Leba- non which have already been carried out and those cur- rently planned, are all part of the general aggressive militaristic policy of the current United States Adminis- tration, which has raised international terrorism and sub- versive operations to the status of official State policy. 182. The recent unprovoked United States air raid on positions of the Lebanese national patriotic forces and Syrian troops belonging to the Pan-Arab forces of con- tainment was carried out clearly in order deliberately to exacerbate the situation in Lebanon and the surrounding area and to create a pretext for further expansion of United States aggressive actions against the Syrian Arab Republic. 183. Israel has been using the tense situation which it has brought about in Lebanon in order to divert the attention of world public opinion from the Israeli occu- pation forces and the systematic annexation of the Arab territories seized by them. 184. One cannot fail to see a direct link between the recent piratical raids of the United States Air Force and the far-reaching anti-Arab strategic conspiracy between Washington and Tel Aviv, which was formalized in the recent talks between President Reagan and the Israeli leaders. 185. United States aggressive action has yet again shown very clearly that Washington and Tel Aviv are not inter- ested in the maintenance of peace and tranquillity in the NOTES I See International Conference on the Question ofPalestine, Geneva, 29 August-7 September 1983 (United Nations publication, Sales No. E.83.I.21), chap.. I. . .. h' 2See Weekly CompilatIOn ofPreSidential Documents, W~s mgton, D.e. Government Printing Office, 1982, vol. 18, No. 35, p. 1081.