A/PV.308 General Assembly

The Assembly has before it a report from the Second Committee on technical assistance for Libya after achievement of independence [A/1513] .. containing a draft resolution approved unanimously by the Committee after discussion. I hope the General Assembly will give the draft resolution the samereception. (A/ISM) [Agenda item 60] 142. The PRESIDENT ('translated from French) : The next item on the agenda was proposed by the Secretary-General; the General Assembly decided not to refer it to a Comm~ttee but to discuss it in plenary meeting. 143. I call upon the Secretarr-General to make a statement on the question he Wishes to submit to the Assembly. 144. The SECRETARY-GENERAL: It may be use- ful at t;le beginning of the general debate on this item to recall the circumstances in which my "Memorandum of points for considera~ion in. t~e development of a twenty-year programme lor achlevmg peace through the United Nations" [Aj1304] originated. 145. Early last spring it seemed t~ me-a~ I am su~e it did to most of you-that the Untted Nations was m grave danger. The deadlock over the representation of China came at the end of a chain of events that had progressively weakened faith throughout the world over a period of three years in the United Nations' approach to the problems of war and peace. 146. There had been a steadily growing tendency to relegate the United Nations to a secondary position in international affairs and to give first priority instead to the old, familiar expedients of arms and alliances. 147. I believed that this fatal tendency towards loss of faith in the United Nations as the principal means of preventing,war must be, and could be, arrested. 148. I never had any doubt that the peoples of the world would continue to support the United Nations with all their hearts, if given a chance to demonstrate their loyalty to its humane and universal aims. I also believed that the Member States-all of them-wanted . the United Nations to succeed. But the many and dangerous conflicts of interest and ideology were mak- ing all of us the prisoners of a vicious circle of charg-e and counter-charge, of force and counter-force, in which distrust and hatr~ds mounted month by month. 149. Somehow a way had to be found by the Member States to break out of this vicious circle. I felt it was clearly my duty as Secretary-General to do what I could to help. It was wi~h these considerations in mind that I prepared my memorandum on the development of a twenty-year United Nations peace programme. 150. In this memorandum I declared my belief that the atmosphere of deepening international mistrust could be dissipated and that the threat of the universal disaster of another war could be averted by a new and great effort to employ to the full the resources for conciliation and constructive peace-building present in the United Nations Charter. 151. I personally handed the memorandum to the President of the United States, Mr. Truman, on 20 April 1950. in Washington; to the Prime Minister of the United King'dont, Mr. Attlee. on 28 April, in London; to the Prime Minister of France, Mt.. Bidault, on 3 May, in Paris; and to the Prime Ministter of the 156. Less than three weeks later came the attack from North Korea upon the Republic of Korea. I do not need today to recall here the momentous events in the life of thfJ United Nations that have occurred since then. 157. The United Nations action in Korea and the" further steps towards the creation of collective security that have been taken at this session of the General Assembly are, however, not in cpnflict with, nor do they diminish in the slightest degree the importance of the many other approaches to peace prescribed by the Charter and suggested in the memorandum. It is just as important now as it ever was that the United Na- tions should serve as a centre for harmonizing the actions of nations towards achieving the purposes of the Charter-perhaps even more so. 158. The United Nations works best when negotia- tion, mediation and conciliation succeed in preventing breaches of the peace such as the one that occurred in Korea. 159. Once a breach of the peace has occurred, the United Nations can succeed on three conditions: first, that the breach of the peace is suppressed by effective collective action; secondly, that full collective assistance is given to rehabilitate and reconstruct the country that is the victim of a~gression; thirdly, that steps towards genuine and lastin~ reconciliation are undertaken as rapidly as possible after peace has been restored in that area. . 160. With these considerations in mind, I went ahead with toy plan to place my memorandum on the agenda 161. I am glad that the General Assembly decided to consider my suggestions in plenary meeting. My memo.. randum, of course. is not in itself a programme. It is, rather, a working paper that suggests an approach to what I hope may develop in time into a twenty...year Un~ted Nations peace programme. It is areaffirm~tiQn of the United Nations approach and an appeal to the Member States to renew their efforts to make the United Nations work as the only tolerable and civilized alternative to that barbarous thesis of despair-the thesis of irreconcilable conflict. . 162. I believe that the detailed consideration of the points in my memorandum can most fruitfully be under- taken by those organs of the United .Nations particu- larly concerned under the Charter. This consideration -by the Security Council, the Economic and Social Council, the Trusteeship Council and by appropriate United Nations commissions-wi1llead, I hope, during the coming year, to specific action by these organs in their respective fields of responsibility and to the formu- lation of definite and concrete.proposals. 163. Already, this session of the General Assembly has made several historic decisions that reflect the will to employ to the full the resources for peace,and forpolit- ical, economic and social progress available under. the United Nations Charter, which I had in mind in sug- gesting the dp.velopment of a twenty-year United Na- tions peace programme. 164. Let me now proceed to discuss briefly each ·of the ten points in my memorandum. 165.. The first point is: "Inaqguration of periodic meeting's of the Security Council,' attended by Foreign. Ministers, or heads or other members of governments, as provided by the United Nations Charter fArticle28, paragraph 2] and the rules of procedure [rule 41 ;, together with further development and use of other United Nations machinery for neg-otiation, mediation and conciliation of international disputes." 166. There have been no periodic meetings of the Security Council so far, either Qecause, until 1948, the Council of Forei~n Ministers met regularly, or'because, until this year, there have been two General Assembly sessions each year, or for other reasons. The Charter says there "shall be" such periodic meetings. separate and distinct from the regular continuous session. The Charter also says [Article 28, paragraph 3] that the Security Council may hold meeting'S "at such places other than the seat of the Organization as in its judg... ment will best facilitate its work". 167. Such periodic meetings, in my opinion, should be inaugurated and used for a general semi-annual review at a high level of outstandin!; issues. particularly those that divide the great Powers. These meetin~s should not be expected to bring great decisions every time. They should not be held primarily tor public debate. They should be used mainly for consultation~much of it informal-for efforts to gain ground towards agree- ment on questions at issue, to clear up misunderstand.. ings" to prepare for newinitiatittes that may improve the (,hances for definitive agreetnent at later meetings. - sSee 0lficlal Records Df Ih, G~"a' As.rtmb'~, 'Fiftls StSsCOIJ, Su/J/Jlement No. 1. . 169. We need more direct and regular contact between the men who are responsible for policy-making. Periodic nleetings of the Security Council will enable the For... eign Ministers of the five greatPower!3 to talk among themselves and to have the benefit of the views l:>f the Foreign Ministers of the six non-permanent mertnbers,. who represent the interests of alt the smaller Member States of the United Nations in the Security Council. They have often dc::monstrated their effectiveness in conciliating and moderating great Power disputes.· 170. I suggest that the special periodic meetings should normally be held away from the Permanent Head- quarters in New York) where the Security Council meets in regular session. The periodic meetings might appropriately be he:ld in rotation in the countries of the other four permanent members of the Security Coun- cil) as well as in the~ countries of other Member States. Among other advantages) this practice would. bring the United Nations into closer physical contact with all the peoples of the world. 171. I belk-ve tha.t the inauguration ofa series of periodic meetings of the Security Council may not only revive negoti~tion. on great Power policies and dif- ferences) but could. also bring about the progressive development over the next few years ·of other United Nations resources for the pl'~vet1tion) as well as the mediation and conciliation, or disputes of all kinds between Member States.·· . 172.. .The Security Council has well esta,blished its role as a place. wbere international controversies can be pUblicly •debated. It has, however, only·made a begin- ning at using its meetings for negotia.tion as effectively as for debate. . . 173. .I hope that the practice of using Presidents. of the Council as rapporteurs for purposes of mediation and conciliation will be encouraged) to~ether with reg- ularly established and functioning- machinery for private consultations of the representatives of the five great Powers among themselves as well as with the repre- resentatives of other Member:s--as' this session of. the General .Assembly has unanimottsly recommended (302nd meeting]. .. 174. .At San Francisco the repr,,~sentatives of the five great Powers met every day. That was One of the means through which unanimous agreement was ultimateiy secured on the United' Nations Charter. 175. The General Assembly has demonstrated its unique role as the main instrument through which world public opinion on international issues can be d~tertnined and given effective political expression. The Gerteral Assembly has surpassed in this .respect the expectations of the founders at San Francisco. Like- wise it has proved to be an ideal forum in which the statesmen of the smaller countries can exert upon con- flictsof power an important ~d even decisive mediat- ing and moderating influence. 176. We must build on this experience.l.rhe principle of equal rights. of States, large and small, is funda- mental in the United Nations approach to peace. The progress towards establishing an international control system for atomic energy that will be effective in pre- venting its use for war and promoting its use .for. peace- ful purposes'» . . 178. There is no. pl'ospectof any quick or easy solu- tion of this most difficult problem-a problem that goes to the veryhean of. the greatest conflict of power and ideology in the world at the present time. I do believe .in the possibilityd a definitive solution) but I believe that ·suchasolt.,ti"m probably will be found only at the·· end-rather than at the beginning-of a long' series of difficult negotiations for the settlement of wider issues. 179. In the meantime" I hope that negotiation on the prohlem of atomic energy itself can be resumed, in line w.ith the directive ~iven py. the General Asse.rably last year [resolution 299 (IV)], namely) "to explore all possible avenues and examine all concrete suggestions with a view to determining whether they might lead to an agreement". 180. It maybe that satisfactory intlerim or step-by-step agreements on atomic energyconttQl could be worked out that wot!ldat least be an improvement on the present state of affairs, when we have ,fln unlimited atomic arms race) even though they did not afford full seC1Ltrity. Even such initial steps .could be. of great importance. . 181. Perhaps the General Assembly and the Security CGt!ucil, in periodic meeting or otherwise should t'e- examll1~ tlte decisions to establish two separate Com- missions·-the Atomic EnerJOT. Commission and the Commission on Conventional Armaments-or at least consider the advisability of linking their work more closely together. 182. I recall the statement made by President Truman in this hall on United Nations Day [295th meeting], when he said in this connexion: "One possibitity to be considered is whether their work mi~ht he revitalized if ~arried forward in the future throug-h a new and consotia.ated disarmament commission." 183. This brings me to the thit·cl. point in the 1l1emo- randum: leA new approach to the problem of brine-ing the. armaments ".-ace under cQntrol, not only in the field of atomic weapons, but in other weapons of mass de- stntction and in conventional armaments!' 184. We should not for~et that a sin~le raid in the Second World War., carried out with so-called conven- tional blockbuster and incendiary bombs, killed more people than the atomic bomb. The destructive .power· of existin~ ·lethal .chemical. and bactedolo';cal weapons has not been tested, but such weapons may well be even more deadly ~han any atomic bombs so far 1lla~~ 185. It js understandable and i.n conformity with their responsibilities to their own peoples that Member States, when faced with the failure to make peace and the con- sequent delay in~stabtishin~ a United Nations'coUective securi~Jsystem~ should look to their own defences: 1880. VVe do not need-to delay, and should not delay, work on the vast ~1l0unt of study, discussion and plan- ning that is required to complete preparation of an effective system of international control for all arma- ments. 189, Neither efforts at political settlement nor efforts at regulation of armaments will wait upon the. other. Both must go hand in hand. 190. The fourth point in my me1l)qrandum is: itA re- newal of serious efforts to reach agreement on the armed forces to be made available under the Charter to the Security Council lor the enforcement of its decisions". . . . . 191. Negotiations on this issue have been stalemated for almost three years in the JVlilitary Staff Conunittee. The problem is clearly one of a political nature. This is an issue that needs new consideration by the Security Council, first of all, probably, at one of theproposea periodic meetings. . 192. The important action taken by the General Assembly at this session in recolluuending [A/1481] to Member States that they should have forces avail- able for United Nations service on the reconnnendatiol1 of either the Security Council or the General Assembly, does not in any way diminish the need for and desira- bility of new efforts to establish the United Nations forces that, under Article 43 of the Charter, should be made available to the Security Council. The Assembly has itself explicitly recognized this. . 193. The fifth point is: "Acceptance and application of the principle that it is wise and right to proceed as rapidly as possible towards universality of member- ship".· .. 194. Fourteen nations are still awaiting admission to the United Nations. Some of them. have been waiting for three years. S0111e have been kept out .by one negative vote, some by abstentions by the majority in the Secu- rity Council. - 195. Arguments have been advanced against' the con- duct or nature of each of these gov'ermnents by one side or the other. But it seems to me that the tests provided by the Charter for membership should be applied with . wisdom and with generosity, bearing in mind first of all the interests of the peoples concerned, rather than the nature of their governments. 196. I believe it is better for every nation to be inside the United Nations than outside it. I ·believe it is better both for the United Nations and for the people· of the country seeking admission. I do not think it is wise to discourage the intercourse and co.:operation with the rest of the world that United Nations membership helps to promote. Membership entails the sharing of respon- sibility for upholding the obligations of the Charter that rests upon each Member. . now, and others which may apply, but also Germany and Japan as soon as the peace treaties have been com- pleted. . . 199. The sbtth point is: ~tA sound and active pro- gramme of technical assistance for economi.c d~velop'" iDent and encouragement of large;-scale capItal Invest- ment, using all appropriate private, governmental and inter-governmental resources". 200. The fundarnental purpose· of. such. a United Na-· tiQnsptogranune is to help the people of every country to raise their standard of. living by peaceful means. A good start has been made during the present year with the inauguration of the $20 million United Na- tions expanded programme of technical assistance for economic development and social welfare. 5'-~ . 201. A United Nations programme of technical assist- ance that will produce a basis for sound eeonomic development anq social progress must be practical and realistic; it must aim at encouraging self-help. If care- rtdly planned and. sensiblyadniinistered it will help greatly towards the type of economic development which will increase production, increase purchasing power, andexoand the markets of all producers of.industrial and agricultural products. The mutual interests of wefi- developed and under-developed nations in such a pro- gramme are apparent to everyone. 202. But such a programme is only a beginrdng. 203. In aMition to technical aS$istanc(~, the under- developed cou~tries require financial ass~stance. The Second Committee l:tas recently given unanirnousap- proval to a drg;ft resotntion[A/1524]decJaring that the voil1me of private capital now flowing Into under- develope-d countries cannot meet th~ir net~ds for eco- nomic development. In this same draft r~solution the Economic and Social Council is asked to consider prac- tical methods for achieving the expansion and steadier flow of foreign capital, both private and\ public. I hope that the steps. taken by the General A~lsembly at this session will lead next year, to real progtess insQlving the problems of'financing economic development'on an adequate scale. 204. It .may be that what .is needed is. a ~trengthening of the resources of the International Bank for Recon- struction and Development and other intemationalor~ ganiiations operating in this field. On the other hand, it is probable.that additional methods o£financil1~ cerWn types of capital expenditures in under-developed eoun- tries will be needed. I confidently' look forward to the establishment of what has been called during this Assem- blya ltUnited Nations recovery force", .throu~h which all the nations will. join in a mutually beneficial'effort to raise the unspeakably low living standards,of more than half the human race. obs(~rvance and respect for human rights and funda- mental freedoms throughout the world". 212. The attention of the world has been so concen- trated during the past four years upon contests of politi- cal interest and ideological dogmas that the significance of the growing demand throughout the world for better 226. If, during the next twenty years, the G~"leral As- sembly, the International Court of Justice, the Inter- nationai Law Commission and other appropriate organs of the United Nations can proceed systematically in the development of international law, by the ~nd of that time we may have at least the essential beginnings of a. system of enforceable world law directly applicable to individuals as well as governments on all matters essen- tial to the peat:e and security of mankind. 227. In the meantime I hope that the Member States will continue the trend of the past year towards greater The meeting rose at 6 p~m.