S/PV.1565 Security Council

Before turning to the draft agenda for today’s meeting I should like to make a few preliminary remarks. 2. The annual accession of five non-permanent members is, of course, an important and happy occasion. It ensures the continued vitality of the Security Council by associating five new members each year with the Council’s work and it is most fitting and proper that they should be accorded a warm welcome. We expect much from the representatives of Argentina, Belgium, Italy, Japan and Somalia, who join us today, and I know that we shall not be disappointed. Ambassadors Ortiz de Rotas, Longerstaey, Vinci, Tsuruoka and Farah may have varying periods of United Nations service behind them, but they share with us a dedication to the ideals and objectives of the United Nations as laid down by the Charter. Eminent representatives of their respective countries, skilled in the arts of bilateral as well as multilateral diplomacy, steeped in the special atmosphere that is particular to the United Nations, they bring to the Security Council qualities and qualifications that bode well indeed for the future. I know they will make significant contributions to our work. We all look forward to a close and cordial association with these colleagues, during which the high regard and esteem we have for all of them and for the countries they represent will be further enhanced. 7. Reverting to my capacity as PRESIDENT, I should l&e to close with a word about the traditional practice of extending congratulations to the President of the Council. The President of the Council for January, Sir Colin Crewe, . . Ambassador Espinosa of Colombia; Ambassador Jakobson of Finland; Ambassador Khatri of Nepal; Ambassador de joins me in requesting each and every one of you to dispense with these Preliminary statements, and we urge 3. I cannot, however, welcome them without saying a word about their distinguished predecessors. Let me once more thank our former colIeagues on the Security Council: Pini& of Spain and Ambassador Mwaanga of Zambia. Their contributions to the work of this Council during their two years of service are noteworthy. I believe 1 can assert without question that they will be a continuing source of inspiration to all of us, old and new members alike: 4. Since this is the first meeting of the Council in 1971 and since this is the last month in which I, as representative of the United States, will have the occasion to preside, I should like very much to initiate one or two very modest reforms before turning to the draft agenda. 5. It strikes me as an dnachronism that consecutive interpretation into the other three working languages, in addition to their simultaneous interpretation into the official languages, is now almost exclusively restricted to procedural and ceremonial statements by the President. Thus, statements by the President welcoming new members, congratulating his predecessor, returning compliments paid to him, and inviting non-members who have asked to participate under rule 37 to take their seats, when interpreted consecutively three times have slowed the Council’s work and consumed inordinate amounts of our valuable time. On occasions in the past, Presidents of the Council have waived consecutive interpretation of certain statements of the kind I have just mentioned but no steady practice has yet been established. It is my hope to contribute to the effective functioning of the Security Council by following their good example. I therefore declare that during my presidency, consecutive interpretation will not be required of the President’s routine procedural and ceremonial statements. 1 shall so indicate when I believe consecutive interpretation of my statements is required. Of course, any member will have the right to request that a particular statement of the President should be interpreted consecutively. 6. Speaking for the moment as the representative of the UNITED STATES, I shoutd like to remark that the most familiar sentence in t-his Council is “I waive my right to consecutive interpretation.” I should like the Secretariat to note that henceforth the United States waives this right for all Of its interventions unless a specific statement to the contrary is made before the United States representative begins his remarks. 8. A number of representatives have asked to be allowed to make statements at this point and I shall call on them in turn. 9. Mr. LONGERSTAEY (Belgium) ~inte~ef&~n from French): I thank you, Mr. President, for the kind words of welcome that you have just uttered and I shafl be pleased to transmit them to my Government. Permit me, for the first and also the last time to violate slig.hhuy the rule that you have just outlined. Last month we enjoyed the great privilege of benefiting from the valuable experience, the keen intelligence and the subtle wisdom of Sir Colin Crowe. We are happy that this month our work will be conducted by a diplomat who is as eminent as he is courteous. His sense of compromise, his realistic view of problems and his sincere faith in our Organization quite naturally point to him for the delicate role of President of the Security COUIU~. It is unnecessary to add, Mr.President, that YOU can count on the full co-operation of the BeIgian delegation . IO. I take this opportunity to transmit to you, in your capacity as permanent representative of the United States, the warmest congratulations of my Government on the prodigious feat just accomplished by Apollo 14 and which we trust will be brou@tt to a successful conclusion a few moments from now. 11, May I also be allowed to express my deep feelings of joy at finding myself@sitting ‘next to the permanent representative of Burundi, a country with which Belgium enjoys very friendly and harmonious relations based on mutual respect and the sincere will to co-operate in strengthening the ties that have linked us for so long. 12. My country has been a member of the Security Council twice since the creation of the United Nations and we are fully aware of the honour as well as the responsibility incumbent upon us in joining this august group again. 13. Each time that Mr, Harmel, Minister for Foreign Affairs, has mounted the rostrum of the General Assembly, he has reaffirmed the adherence of the Belgian Government to the great principles of the Charter of the United Nations and its determined will to contribute to the achievement of the five options chosen in 1945 by the founders of our Organization. He has constantly offered his support for any initiative, any proposal that might increase the effectiveness of the principal organs of the United Nations. The Coun.ciI will further recall that the Belgian delegation took an active part in the preparation of the Declaration on the Strengthening of International Security, adopted by the General Assembly on 16 December 1970 /resolution 2734 (XXV/, which contains a number of recommendations addressed to 15. As the representative of a country of Western Europe, may I be permitted to pay a tribute to the permanent representatives of Finland and Spain, the eminent Ambassadors Jakobson and de pin&, who both contributed significanffy to the organisation of that historic meeting. Together with Italy, Be&m enjoys a very noble and rich heritage. The active participation of ourtwo colleagues and predecessors in the work of the Security Council during the last two years has given proof positive that the role of individual initiative and personal action of the diplomat remains, despite the changes that hava occurred in the course of time, an important factor in the search for solutions or the achievement of compromises. 16. By the same token, we would also express the hope-without in any way challenging the obvious merits of pubic diplomacy-that the Security Council will not depart from the practice it has followed, very often successfully, in the past, particularly in the most recent past when personal and confidential contacts made it easier to arrive at the necessary concessions and the establishment of a unanimous consensus. 17. The Charter has entrusted the Security Council with the primary responsibility for the maintenance of intemational peace and security. At present, international affairs are stiB troubled by a number of hotbeds of tension, sources of conflict and even warlike activities. At the same time, we cannot forget that our hope in these times must Be in the fact that nations have become aware not only of their material solidarity but especially of the absolute need to achieve a moral community. Today peace no longer depends on!y on treaties or commitments. Primarily it depends on the creation of conditions that will guide the conduct of men towards peace. That is the great lesson that European reconciliation has taught us since the Second World War. At this time Europe is enjoying an era of peace and a climate of stability because, over and above the interests that divide it, Europe has raised its sights to an international ideal. 18. In the field reserved to it and within the limits set for it by the Charter, the Security Council will be called upon to show political courage and creative imagination in order to revitalise -the machinery most appropriate for the solution of disputes by peaceful means, to eIiminate the sources of conflicts, to reduce rivalries or antagonisms and, in a word, to create conditions for lasting peace and understanding. 19. It is with those ideas in mind that my delegation will co-operate in the work of the Council. don of the presidency of the Council for the second month of this year. This Is an office of the greatest importance, which I am sure you will grace with the charm of your personality and with your wisdom and experience. We are most fortunate to have you as our presiding off& for this month. 28. I shall refrain from further abusing the indulgence of Council members by setting forth any more remarks of a general nature. I wish merely to add that the delegation of Japan looks forward with keen anticipation and with a sense of challenge to participation in the work of this most distinguished body. Japan is an Asian country and a member of the Afro-Asian group within the United Nations, consequently we are fully aware of our special responsibilities in this regard. At the same time, it is our firm belief that we should contribute to the construction of world peace, each of us acting as a representative of the whole population of the world. 22. I wish also to take this opportunity to thank the President of the Security Council for the month of January, Sir Colin Crowe of the United Kingdom, for his silent but efficient work during his tenure of off~c-e. No meetings of the Council took place during that month, but the President, with his usual skill and diplomacy, kept the situation under control. 23. I should like also to express my heartfelt tributes to the former members of this Council, namely, Colombia, Finland, Nepal, Spain and Zambia, whose terms expired at the end of last year. The services they rendered to the work of this Council are still fresh in the minds of all of us. My delegation, as one of the n,ew members of this Council, wishes to learn from their good example of devotion to the enhancement of the prestige of this body. 29. We are dkeply conscious of the importance of the heavy responsibilities Japan is assuming as a member of the Security Council. I should like to pledge our whole-hearted co-operation,

I thank the representative of Japan for his kind words and his most constructive statement, 24. Let me take this opportunity of expressing, on behalf of the Government and-people of Japan, our strong desire and determination to take an active part, in cooperation with our fellow members, in the lofty efforts of this Council towards world peace.

Mr. President, I shall at once respond positiveIy to your request and suggestions, which are in my view perfectly consistent with the wishes of my delegation, as well as of many other delegations, to improve the work and the effectiveness of the United Nations. I shall therefore avoid the compliments and ceremonial expressions customary in the past, 25. We may recall that on the occasion of the twenty-fifth anniversary celebration of our Organization last autumn much was said about the organization and functions of the United Nations. The year 1970 was indeed for all of us a year of retrospection over the past and of renewed determination for the future. Much was said about assessrnent of the past activities and of the future of the Security Council as well. Out of that retrospection and assessment one thing, we believe, emerged with certainty: that is, that the Security Council, though its efforts over the past twenty-five years, has firmly established its authority and position as the preeminent organ in charge of the preservation of peace and security in the present international society, a responsibility of the highest order. 32. Allow me, however, Mr. President, to congratulate you on your assumption of the office of President of the Security Council and to assure you of the full co-operation of my delegation in helping you in this delicate task. 33. I wish to thank you especially for the warm weIcome addressed to my country and to me personally at this moment when Italy, together with Belgium, a country with which we have the closest relations, starts to carry out the mandate entrusted to it by the General Assembly upon the nomination of the Western European and other States group. Your words are particularly gratifying to me as they come from the representative of a country with which Italy has very close ties of friendship and co-operation in all fields. Even the eventful and spectacular mission of Apollo 14 testifies to that, as our American friends named the destination site of Antares after an Italian cartographer. They established an ideal symbolic link between pioneers from two continents, two eras; a link between a humble Italian monk, Fra Mauro, whose ingenuity and intuition five centuries ago gave the world a map of the earth which is still a source of admiration, and three gallant American astronauts, who have applied the unprecedented amount of scientific and technological knowledge acquired by their 26. In this connexion it is worth noting that not infrequently observers from outside have pointed out that our Qrganization, and particularly the Security Council, has teen an indifferent attitude in a number of cases where titernational peace was seriously disturbed. We must think piously about that attitude, in case there should be any b&a for such criticism, Such a “hands off” attitude with regard to dangerous situations in the world would certainly not serve the cause of the United Nations or of the Security Council, on which the Member States have conferred pflma0’ responsibility for the maintenance of international r>eace and security in order to ensure prompt and effective action by the United Nations. 34. Allow me now, to welcome’ the new members, Argentina, Belgium, Japan and Somalia, all countries with which Italy has very close relations of friendship and co-operation, and to associate myself with the tribute you have paid to the outgoing members, Colombia, Nepal, Finland, Spain and Zambia. We for our part are particularly grateful to the outgoing members of the Western European and other States group, Finland and Spain, for the constructive contribution they have made to the deliberations of this body. Their delegations, in particular our colleagues Ambassadors Jakobson and de Pinids, have fulfilled their mandate with a high sense of duty and dedication to the principles and objectives of the Charter, Among the decisions taken during the past two years I cannot fail to recall the one w&h has historic significance: the holding of periodic meetings under Article 28, paragraph 2, of the Charter. And in this connexion I wish to mention the happy coincidence by which the first periodic meeting was held upon the initiative of Finland-an initiative relentlessly pursued by its permanent representative-and took place in this room at the level of Foreign Ministers on 21 October 1970 /ISSSHi meeting], during the session commemorating the twenty-fifth anniversary of the United Nations. I should like to congratulate .the Finnish delegation and particularly Ambassador Jakobson. The success of the work of that delegation in this field is a good omen for the Wire of the United Nations and it is an incentive to follow its example in order to strengthen the authority and the effectiveness of the Security Council in the pursuance of its actions for peace. 35, My Government is fully aware of the heavy responsibility Italy assumes in taking its seat at this table. My country has participated%nly once in the work of the Council-to be more precise, in the years 1959 and 1960, when it had to fulfil delicate tasks ln ‘a period of international crisis. Some areas of the world are today the scene of wars or are m danger of becoming so again. Among these areas there is one very close to my country which, In our view, is virtually a hotbed and haa constituted for long years the most dangerous threat to world peace. Further more, Governments and peoples, whatever the region they belong to, are increasingly demanding that the Security Council should really become the Irreplaceable instrument for the maintenance of peace that the founding fathers of the Organization devised. In fact the world of today, a world in a state of rapid and sometimes tumultuous change, requires such an instrument more than ever. The Declaration on the Strengthening of International Security, unanimously approved by the General Assembly on 16 December 1970 [resoiuHon 2734{XXV)J, bears witness to this need since, while solemnly reaffirming certain basic Principles governing the relations among States, it contains, inter alia, certain important recommendations to this effect. t t 37. Italy, which has always complied faithfully with thu decisions of the Security Council, acting in conformky with the obligations deriving from the Charter, intends to respond to the extent of its capacities to all these expectations, And, on behalf of my Government, I wish to assure you, Sir, and the other members of this Council that Italy is determined to pursue in this forum with an even greater commitment the action, often little known, that it has increasingly undertaken for the solution of the crises which afflict the world. Italy will at the same time favour all those initiatives which, in our opinion, could strengthen the authority and the operative capacity of the Security CounciI. You can rely Mr. President on the full and contident co-operation of the Italian delegation, which will steadily follow in its actions thelines of policy I have just briefly traced. I wish to give the same assurance to all the members of the Council, 38. Before concluding, Mr. President, and following the example you have given, I wish to state that I waive the right of my delegation to consecutive interpretation during our entire term of office unless we make a special request for It,

I thank the representatlve of Italy for his assurances of co-operation with the Council, his references to the flight of Apollo 14 ‘and his most thoughtful and important statement, 40. Mr. ORTIZ DE ROZAS (Argentlnna) ftnrerprerutlon from Spanish): Mr. President, always obedient to the decisions or suggestions of the President, I shall comply with your retuest and I shall omit the very wellearned congratulations that I had planned to address to you and to your predecessor, the representative of the United Kingdom, although I assure you that those feelings are implicft in the words I shall speak. Sir, knowing as you do my personal as well as official respect for you as a diplomat and gentleman, may’1 limit myself to expressing my satisfaction that my fuat statement in the Security Council is behig pronounced under your presidency. On behalf of, my’ Covermnent and the delegation I head, I wish warmly td, thank you, Mr.Presldent, for the words of welcome that YOU addressed to Argentina on.its assumption of its selif in he Security Council. /, ‘. .I *I ,, :,’ f,- I :, Il. I should also like specifically to iddregs my remarks to .he sister Republic of Nicaragua and to tell the represenative of that country how honoured and privileged we feel SeCUrity Council in the maintenance of international peace independence, to the elimination of racism and colonialism and security and also to ensure the fulfilment of the in all their forms, to the furtherance of human rights, and Purposes and principles’ of the Charter, We committed to the uplifting of our people through an active programme ourselves then, as we commit ourselves now, to endeavof national development. In addition to these commitments ouring to achieve those goals which would contribute to we are seeking to forge and strengthen Iinks of friendship reducing international tension, to ensuring greater underwherever we can in the international community at large. standing among peoples and to strengthening good relations among all nations. 49. In all these undertakings, whether on the national, regional or international level, we shall always strive to act 44, My concluding words must be words of welcome to in accordance with the principles of international morality the delegations of Belgium, Italy, Japan and Somalia, and international law laid down in the Charter and the which, together with Argentina, have now joined the Universal Declaration of Human Bights. We believe that Security Council. these principles provide a firm and complete basis for world order and world peace. It is this belief which will support 45. The PRESIDENT: I thank the, representative of the Somali delegation and will guide our actions as a Argentina for his kind words and helpful assurance of member of the Security Council. coqeration. 50. The PRESIDENT: I thank the representative of 46. Mr. FARAH (Somalia): Mr. President, my delegation Somalia for his kind words and his most constructive congratulates you on your assumption of the presidency of declaration. the Security Council at the start of a new year which, we trust, will show progress towards the goal of world peace, I Point of order raised by the representative of Somalia thank you for your kind words of welcome and 1 also thank other representatives who have so generously expressed 51. The PRESIDENT: Before passing to the business their goodwill towards my delegation. We thank the African before the Council, I shall call again on the representative group of States for the confidence they placed in UB by of Somalia on a point of order. unanimously supporting our elaction. We are happy to be I able to join our sister States of Burundi and Sierra Leone in 52. Mr. FARAH (Somalia): Mr. President, before the providing an African standpoint on this most important Council proceeds with the adoption of its agenda for organ of the United Nations. It is also a matter of today’s meeting, may I have your permission to place on satisfaction to my delegation that the representatives of record the position of my Government on the credentials of Argentina, Belgium, Italy and Japan, like ourselves new one,of the members of the Security Council. members of the Security Council, will be our colleagues. We look forward to working in close cooperation with them. 53, It may,be recalled that at the 1387th meeting of the Council on 25 January .1968, the representative of Algeria, 47, The Government and people of Somalia are fully the late Ambassador Bouattoura, sought cladfication on conscious of the honour that has’ been accorded our whether the Council was free to make a decision on the country and of the heavy responsibiIity we have undercredentials of all members of the Security Council and not taken. In the task that lies ahead my delegation will only in cases where there had been a change in represencertainly find inspiration in the examplsof our predecessor in this seat-the delegation of Zambia, which was most ably tation or where new non-permanent members of the Ied by Ambassador Mwaanga and which made a valuable Security Council had been elected. :ontribution to the work of this Security Council. 54. The Algerian representative indicated his under- @. I think it is fitting that I should indicate at this time standing of the matter to be that the Security Council could indeed make a decision regarding the credentials of he main principles and factors which will guide the actions any of its members, old or new. This interpretation of the bf the Somali delegation as a member of the Security rules of procedure of the Council was supported at the time council. While the energies of our Government and people by the representatives of the Soviet Union and France. The 55. The credentials of the representatives of the five new members that were elected to the Council for the two years commencing January 1971, including my own credentials, have formed the subject of separate reports by the Secretary-General and have been circulated. The reports on the credentials of other members have also been circulated as documents of the Security Counctl. According to the provisional rules of procedure any member may raise objection to, or make reservations on, the credentials of another member. 56. Within this context, I wish to place on record my Government’s strong objections to acceptance of the credentials of the representative who, since December 1962, has been occupying the seat reserved for the true representative of.the Government of the State of China. In the view of my delegation, acceptance of those credentials would imply that the authorities which issued them were empowered to do so, and that they were issued in the name of and on the authority of the Iegal and de fucfo Government of the State of China. We know that this is not the case: the credentiah were issued by the regime of Chiang Kai-shek who was ousted from authority by the Chinese people over twenty-one years ago, To refuse to allow the representatives of the effective government, the Government of the People’s Republic of China, to occupy the seat of the State of China is tantamount to nullifying China’s membership of the United Nations, Obviously, the State of China cannot e properly represented, an ercise its membership unless it is if it is a question of fact that the present occupants of the seat reserved for China have been sent here by a noneffective and non-representative r&ime. 61. I have found it necessary to recall these communications from t!ie Govermnent of the People’s Republic of China to illustrate that one of its first international acts was to serve notice to the United Nations that it was ready and willing to assume the responsibilities of membership. These communications in themselves should have been regarded as sufficient evidence of the intention of the new Government of China to take its rightful place in the world community and of its readiness to subscribe to the purposes and principles of the Charter. . :: 57. In China, as no one can dispute, a popular revolution took place and ended in 1949 with the expulsion of the Kuomintang Government under Chiang Kabshek and its replacement by the Government of the People’s Republic of China. There are several representatives here, inchuling myseIf, who represent Governments which have come to power as a result of a popular revolution. The right of our Governments to be considered the effective authorities of OUT countries was established when they took effective control of the national territory. When a change of government takes place, either by revolution or by con&&utional process, steps are usually taken by the new govemmerit to inform the United Nations. In the case of the People’s Republic of China. the President of the General Assembly ai the time, ana informed of the change in the Secretary-General, were government by telegraphic communications transmitted on 18 November 1949,’ 62. Many reasons have been given over the past twentyone years by *a powerful section of the United Nations membership for tht: stand it has taken against the seating of the representatives of the Government of the People’s 1 See document A/1123. 59. Another telegram, dated 18 November 1949 and addressed to the Secretary-General, also announced the formation of the Central People’s Government of the People’s Republic of China. It demanded that the United Nations should “deprive the ‘delegation of the Chinese National Govemment’, in accordance with the principles and spirit of the United Nations Charter, of all rights to further represent the Chinese people in the United Nations, so as to conform to the wishes of the Chinese people”.1 60. In his communication of 20 January 1950, the Chinese Foreign Minister, Chou En-lai, announced the appointment of Chang , Wen .Tien as Chairman of the delegation of the People’s Republic of China “to attend the meetings and to participate in the work of the United Nations, including the meetings and work of the Security Council”.a The communication expressed his desire that the new delegation should attend the meetings and participate in the work of the United Nations without delay. 3 See document S/1462. 68. 1 have described some of the main arguments that have been put forward in opposition to the seating of the representatives of the People’s Republic of China in the United Nations, but, as representatives are all aware, none of these is the real reason for China’s exclusion. This unfortunate situation was sparked by the ideological factor in the cold war struggle and has been supported by cold-war power politics. It was an untenable position in 1949 to exclude the Chinese communists simply because they were communists. It is even more untenable at the present time when peaceful coexistence rather than cold war is the order of the day. 64. It was said at one stage that the new Government was not peaceqoving, and its involvement in the Korean War has often been cited as evidence of this. However, since opposition to the seating of the Communist Chinese in the Security Council and in the General Assembly began nine months before the Korean war, and since it is almost nineteen years since that war csme to an end, I think that argument can be safely rejected. 69. The illogic of the present situation with regard to the representation of China in the United Nations is nowhere more marked than in the workings of the Security Council. Why do we speak commonly of the four permanent members of the Security Council and not of the five permanent members? Why is it that in important issues, such as the Middle East question, it is the four permanent members-the Soviet Union, the United States, France and the United Kingdom-which are expected to guarantee a peaceful settlement? Even in the establishment of subcommittees of the Council we find that, while the Big Four automatically become members, the representative of Chiang Kai-shek is bypassed and Asian representation is given to another State. This exclusion is condoned by the very nations which support his presence here. 65. It is relevant to quote here the views of an international jurist, C. G. Fitzmaurice, which appeared in the Year Book of World Affairs, 1952. He wrote : ‘Who can doubt, for instance, that the chances of procuring an agreed settlement of the Korean issue would have been at least much greater than they are, or might have‘materialized much sooner, if the effective Government of China had occupied China’s seat in the United Nations? It can even be contended with some force that had the Peking Government been permitted to occupy China’s seat in the summer of 1950, and to be present in the Assembly the same autumn, Chinese intervention in Korea in November 1950 might have been wholly averted .“4 70. So we have this very strange situation that the representative of a regime, whose tenuous existence on the island of Formosa is possible only because of United States military support, can exercise the veto on any question before the Council, Everyone recognizes the absurdity of the situation. Why must we go on perpetuating it? It has no basis in law, no basis in equity and no basis in common sense, 66. It is ironic that one of the main supporters of the argument that China is not a peace-loving nation, the United States, has been involved in a war of aggression against tfz people of Viet-Nam where hundreds of thousands of people have been killed or maimed, and where atrocities comparable to those condemned at Nuremberg have been committed by its forces. 71, In recent years there has been a growing awareness among the members of the international community of the injustice that has been inflicted on the Government of the People’s Republic of China by the denial of its lawful seat on this Council and on other organs of the United Nations. Last year, for the first time since the question was brought before the General Assembly, a majority of delegations voted at the 1931st plenary meeting in favour of restoring to the Government of China its lawful seat and of expelling the representatives of the chlang Kai&ek r&me. That same majority rejected the idea of a twoChina solution as being another attempt to confuse and perpetuate the issue. Unfortunately, an irrelevant and dishonest procedural device prevented the will of the majority from being implemented, 67. It has also been argued that the Government of the People’s Republic of China is critical of the United Nations and does not subscribe to its principles and purposes. If that Government has been critical of the United Nations, I think that such criticism is not surprising and that it is warranted in view of the unjust and illegal treatment it has received at the hands of this Grganization. As to the question whether the Chinese Government was or would be 72. But the current of international public opinion continues to flow in favour of China, and there are increasing 4 London, Stevens and Sons Ltd., 1952, p. 50. “Fog and myths for the past twenty years have befuddled our attitudes and our actions toward mainland China. These myths and fears may be the most costly and dangerous untruths in all of American public policy. 79. The anomalous situation resulting from the absence of this great Power from its legitimate seat in the United Nations, and especiaIly in the Security CounciI, strikes the work of the Council, in particular, with paralysis and gives it an air of unreality. It is high time that this anomaly came to an end. “They have isolated a population of 800 million, more ban one fourth of the world’s people. They have isolated be United States position from a large and growing body ,f world opinion and practice; from trade, from diplonatic recognition, and from other forms of contact which hould characterize relations between mature societies . . . 80. The remarks of Ambassador Farah and his brilliant and authoritative statement, to which I can add very little indeed at this time, are fully in conformity with chapter III of the provisional rules of procedure of the Security Council on representation. The delegation of Syria is in complete agreement with those remarks. “Our policy”-and by this he means American policy- ‘still reflects a belief, persisting since 1949, that the Iresent government in Peking is but a temporary usurper If legitimate power in China. We still await the eventual eturn of Chiang Kaiahek or his descendants, expecting hat he and some two million followers on Taiwan will omehow recapture control over the vast multitude on le mainland which long ago expelled him. Put bluntly, ris is pure fantasy.”

The Chair takes note also of the statement of the representative of Syria, which will of course also be fully reflected in the records of the Security council.

I reserve the right to welcome the new members of the Security Council after I have made a statement on the item under discussion today, the question of Bhutan. ‘Pure fantasy”, This neatly sums up the situation in Council when we are asked to acknowledge the validity the credentials of the distinguished gentleman sitting in seat reserved for the representatives of the effective, 1 and de facto Government of the State of China. It is r from the Secretary-General’s report, contained in ument S/52 19 of 18 December 1962, that the credenhave not emanated from the lawful Government of the pie’s Republic of China, lhey bear the signature of n Changhuan, who represents a regime which, in the Lion of my delegation,%as no legal standing in the :ed Nations, 83. In connexion with the point raised in the statement of the representative of Somalia, Ambassador Farah, concerning the representation of China in the United Nations and the Security Council, the Soviet delegation would like to reaffirm the USSR’s we&known position on the question of the restoration of the lawful rights of the People’s Republic of China in the United Nations. The USSR has consistently called for, and continues to caIl for, the restoration of the lawful rights of the People’s Republic of China in the United Nations and the expulsion of the Chiang Kai-shek clique from all organs of this international Organisation. Soviet representatives have repeatedly set forth convincing arguments showing the need for an appropriate decision on this question. It is hardly necessary to repeat these arguments again. My Government believes that it is time the Security ncil became involved once more In this question where ic and injustice combine to impair the credibility of the ed Nations, I do not intend at this time to do more express, on the grounds I have stated, my delegation% tg reservations regarding the credentials of the represenw e purporting to represent the lawful Government of the : of China. But I hope to be able to return to the er at a future date, after .consulting like-minded [ations, and trust that the Council will be responsive to I for reason and realism, and for a just solution to the lem of the representation of the great State of China. 84. The absurdity of the situation that has arisen, in which the seat of the People’s Republic of China in the organs of the United Nations has so long been illegally usurped by persons representing no one, is perfectly obvious, The Chiang Kai-shek r@ime has never represented and does not represent anyone in the United Nations. It has not had and does not have any connexion with the Chinese people. It cannot speak on behalf of the Chinese people and the Chinese State. That is the unchanging position of the Soviet Union on this question. I had the honour to make a statement about it in the Security CounciJ on behalf of the Soviet Government many years ago and I am stating my Government’s position with regard to it again today.

The Chair ties hate of the nent of the representative of Somalia and assures him the position of his Government will be duly reflected ! records of the Security Council. Speaking as representative of the UNITED STATES I urse reject categorically and totally his allegations in 1 to United States resistance to aggression in South- 1sia. 85, Mr. KOSCIUSKO-MORIZET (France) (interpretation from French): Mr. President, first of all I should like to 86. I should also like to welcome the initiatives you have taken. You are simply giving formal expression to a de facro situation when you call on each of us to waive consecutive interpretation. I believe this will facilitate our work. It goes without saying that this waiver must be subject to the reservation that in certain cases consecutive interpretation can be expressly requested. 94. The representative of Somalia, however, is obviously not raising the question of credentials: he is in fact raising the question of the representation of the Republic of China on the Security Council. He is thus raising a political question of far-reaching consequences. 87. Lastly, I also associate myself with the censure concerning the compliments that we address to one another. However, I would not wish the outgoing Presidents-Ambassador Malik and Sir Colin Crowe-or you yourself-to feel too frustrated. Know that our silence is pregnant with esteem and friendship. 95. I do not think this is the time or place to renew debate on the question of Chinese representation, but let me state at once that it is no accident that the Republic of China is specified in Article 23 of the Charter as one of the five permanent members of the Security Council. When that article was written into the Charter the Second World War had not come to a close. It is relevant to recall that at that time the Government of the Republic of China, in itslong war of resistance, had its seat in Chungking and was not then, any more than it is now, in effective control of the major part of its national territory. Yet no one questioned the right of my Government to speak on behalf of all the Chinese people. It was the Government in Chungking, not the illegal regime in Nanking, that represented the authentic voice of China in all international conferences. It was one of the principal allies which signed the Declaration of the United Nations in 1942. It played an important part in the drafting of the Dumbarton Oaks Proposals. It was one of the four Powers that sponsored the San Francisco Conference, It actively participated in the formation of the specialized agencies. The Republic of .China has thus earned its place in the United Nations by virtue of its contributions to the cause of peace. 88. Concerning the statement made by the Ambassador of Somalia, I should like to say that my delegation fully shares the views he expressed on the representation of the People’s Republic of China. We have no doubt that China’s seat should be occupied by the representatives of the People’s Republic of China. For us this is a matter of common sense, of reason, of law; I might add that it would be in the interests of the United Nations and of peace. 89. Mr. KUI,LAGA (Poland) (interpretation from French): I shsll confine myself at this stage to the point of order on which I asked for the floor. The representative of Somalia, in raising the question of the lawful representation of China and of the credentials of the delegation now illegally occupying the seat reserved for China, has thereby raised a problem which has long been of grave concern to the United Nations. Poland’s attitude on this subject has never changed: my delegation has always come out in favour of the restoration to the People’s Republic of China of its rightful seat in the United Nations, in all Its organs including the Security Council. We have always maintained that this attitude was entirely in conformity with the principles of political realism, with the objectives of the United Nations Charter and with the principle of the universality of our Organization. We maintain this attitude, which will continue to guide us in our activities in the United Nations, 96. Today, as during the years of the war of resistance, the Chinese people, under the same Indomitable leader&p, is still struggling for the right to a free and democratic way of life, and is as always committed to cooperating with all peoples for the fulfilment of the purposes and principles of the United Nations.

I do not wish to prolong this meeting, but I feel duty-bound, since the representative of Somalia has raised the matter, to place on record that my delegation shares the reservations expressed by previous speakers on the representation of China in the United Nations. 97. As the organ of the United Nations charged with the primary responsibility for international peace and security, the Security Council acts on behalf of the entire membership of the Organization. Representation on the Council is not a matter that concerns members of the Council alone; it is a matter in which all Member States of the United Nations have an interest, The voting at the twenty-fifth session of the Assembly has not changed the basic position of the Assembly in opposing the seating of Peiping, or the legal status of my delegation. 91. Since I have the floor, I should like to thank the representatives of the Soviet Union and France for the kind remarks they have addressed to my country.

It is far from my intention to delay the proceedings of the Council, but in the light of what has been said by several representatives around the table I deem It necessary to make a reply on behalf of my delegation. 98. Therefore, in the interests of the proper fUnCtiOnhg Of the United Nations as a whole, and in the interests of the sanctity and integrity of the Charter, I submit that the 100. The record shows that the credentials of the representative of the Republic of China, Mr. Liu, were reported to the Council on 18 December 1962. Under the longstanding practice of the Council, his credentials were considered and approved in the absence of objection and they have not been put into question from that day to this. Thus the provisions of rule 15 have been fully satisfied with respect to the credentials of Mr. Liu, as of all other representatives at this Council table. 104. The delegation of the USSR, representing a country that has, from the very fast days of the United Nations. waged a tireless struggle to strengthen international peace and security, would like particularly to extend sincere congratulations to all our new colleagues, the representatives of States elected to membership in the Security Council at the twenty-fifth session of the General Assembly. As shown by their statements today, they are eager to test their strength at the earliest opportunity and to use their rich experience to further the noble cause to which the Security Council is dedicated. 101. With regard to the broad question of Chinese representation in the United Nations, I would certainly hope that the Security Council would not be asked, now or in the future, to take action on that question. The Security Council, composed of only fifteen members-less than one eighth of the membership of the United Nations-is manifestly the wrong organ in which to deal with a political question of great moment that concerns every single Member of the Organization. That fact was recognized from the very beginning of the controversy over Chinese representation, when the General Assembly in 1950 adopted resolution 396 (V). That resolution pointed to the risk of conflicting decisions on such a question between the various organs and noted that “in virtue of its composition, the General Assembly is the organ of the United Nations in which consideration can best be given to the views of all Member States in matters affecting the functioning of the Organization as a whole” and therefore recommended that “when any such question arises, it should be considered by the General Assembly”. 105. We should like to welcome Ambassador Farah, the representative of Somalia, a young, independent African country with which the Soviet Union is successfully developing friendly relations in the political, economic, trade, cultural and other fields, on the basis of full equality of rights, mutual respect and non-intervention in each other’s domestic affairs. We also note with satisfaction that the Soviet Union and the Somali Democratic Republic are successfully cooperating in the struggle against imperialism 3 colonialism and racism and for selfdetermination, national independence, social progress and the strengthening of the peace and security of the peoples. In the person of Ambassador Farah, we are welcoming a tested fighter for the freedom of the peoples of Africa. 106. We welcome as new members of the Security Council the representatives of two European countries, Ambassador Vinci of Italy and Ambassador Longerstaey of Belgium. They represent countries with which the Soviet Union has recently been developing constructive, businesslike relations. We hope that the representatives of these two European countries, who, as members of the Security Council, will concern themselves with questions relating to the strengthening of international peace and security, will also, as is to be expected, bear constantly in mind, like the representatives of all other European States, the problem of European security, We are of the fir-m conviction that the task of strengthening security in Europe is one of the most important foreign policy tasks of any European State which genuinely advocates peace on that long-suffering continent and throughout the world. We should like to take this opportunity to mention the active role played by the delegations of Italy and Belgium at the twenty-fifth session of the General Assembly in the lengthy and complicated consultations that led to the drafting and adoption by the Assembly of one of its most important documents, the Declaration on the Strengthening of International Security [resolution 2734 (XXV)]. Adoption”of the agenda The agenda WAY adopted. Admission of new members Letter dated 10 December 1970 from the King of Bhutan addressed to the Secretary-General (S/10050)

Today’s meeting of the Security Council is an unusual one, as is the first meeting of this important organ of the United Nations in every new year. At this meeting five new members of the Security Council, who were elected at the twenty-fifth session of the General Assembly, are participating in the Council’s deliberations for the first time. 103. The, first meeting of the Security Council with its new members customarily arouses great interest on the part of all, causing us to reflect on the past and to want to have a glimpse of the future. An analysis of the present international situation, characterized as it is by the existence of a number of acute armed conflicts endangering Peace, makes unmistakably clear the enormous responsi- 107. The Soviet delegation welcomes the representative of Japan, Ambassador Tsuruoka, as one of the new members of the Security Council, It gives us satisfaction to note that relations between the USSR and Japan have moved forward 108. Among the new members of the Security Council there is also one of the Latin American countries, Argentina, with which the USSR has long maintained diplomatic relations. We note with satisfaction that in recent years our relations with the countries of Latin America have expanded considerably. We are pleased to welcome here the representative of Argentina, Ambassador Ortiz de RODS, and to express the hope that, with his great experience and erudition in the field of diplomacy, he will make a valuable contribution to general co-operation in the interests of solving the international problems which will be considered by the Security Council. 109. The Soviet delegation would like to take this opportunity to express its gratitude to our colleagues the representatives of those countries which, on the expiry of their terms of membership in the Security Council, have withdrawn from it. We shall always remember with pleasure working together in the Council with the representatives of Zambia, Nepal, Finland, Colombia and Spain. We note the exceptionally useful and important role played by the representatives of the African and Asian countries Zambia and Nepal in the Security Council’s consideration of questions relating to the elimination of the vestiges of colonialism and the defence of the sovereignty and security of the African and Asian countries against the aggressive designs of the imperialists, colonialists and racists. We feel we should make special mention of the fact that Ambassador Mwaanga of Zambia, Ambassador Khatri of Nepal, Ambassador Espinosa of Colombia and Ambassador Jakobson of Finland, together with our good friend Ambassador Kdaga of Poland, were members of the Special Missions dispatcheb by the Security Council-the first such mission in this Council’s history-to Guinea in connexion with the criminal act of aggression of the Portuguese colonialists against that sovereign African State. As we all know, the dispatch of that mission by the Security Council was an important event in the Council’s history and a new initiative by the Council in the discharge of its function of maintaining international peace and security, in strict 112. The Soviet delegation expresses the hope that the year 1971, upon which mankind has embarked and which opens a new decade, will be marked by new successes in the struggle of the forces of peace, progress and socialism against the forces of reaction, imperialism, aggression and social and national oppression, and for peace, security and the freedom of the peoples. 113. The Soviet people are preparing for an important historical event in the life of our country-the Twentyfourth Congress of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, which will adopt a new five-year pian, the ninth, and review the remarkable achievements of the Soviet Union in the field of economic and social development and in improving the well-being of the Soviet people during the past five years, the period of the eighth five-year pian. The new five-year plan, which will be considered and adopted at the Twenty-fourth Congress, will represent yet another giant step by our country towards the building of a communist society. For the successful establishment of the material and technical base of such a society, the further raising of the standard of living of the Soviet people and the development of their spiritual resources, we need lasting peace, the strengthening of international security and the development of friendship, mutual understanding and co-operation among all peoples. The establishment of lasting peace, the prevention of war and the development of friendship and co-operation among peopfes have constituted and continue to constitute the fundamental principle of the Soviet Union’s foreign policy. 5 Security Council Special Mission to the Republic of Guinea established under re8OhdiOn 289 (1970). 110. We should like to express our gratitude to the representative of the United Kingdom, Ambassador Crowe, during whose term as President of the Council last month, with the active participation of United Nations Secrefary- General U Thant, contacts were finally resumed-after long delays resulting from the stand taken by Israel-through the special representative of the Secretary-General of the United Nations, Ambassador Jarring, with a view to achieving a peaceful political settlement in the Middle East and eliminating the consequences of the Israeli aggression against the Arab States. 111. In conclusion we should m to welcome as President of the Security Council for this month the representative of the United States of America, Ambassador Yost, and to express the hope that, during his term as l?resident,.the negotiations between the parties to the conflict in the Middle East, which are being conducted through Ambassador Jarring, will finally yield substantial positive results, that progress will be made and that Israel will tinally recognize the necessity and inevitablity of withdrawing its troops from all occupied Arab territories, in strict conformity with the principle of the inadmissibility of the acquisition of territory by war, which was clearly and unequivocally set forth in Security Council resolution 242 (1967) and reaffirmed by the twenty-fifth session of the General Assembly in two important documents which it adoptedthe Declaration on the Strengthening of International Security and resolution 2628 (XXV) on the Middle East. 115. Carrying out the peaceful foreign policy bequeathed to us by the great Lenin, the centenary ofwhose birth was celebrated in 1970, the Soviet Union has struggled and will continue to struggle to prevent a world war, to save mankind from thermonuclear annillilation, to achieve the strengthening of international security and to consolidate the unity of the forces of socialism, democracy, national liberation and peace. 122. Today we wishto welcome amongst us as a new member the fraternal delegation of Somalia. Somalia’s defence of the Charter and of its principles and its firm attachment to international justice have been most SUCCESSfully illustrated by the continuous efforts of its permanent representative, Mr. Farah, and his delegation. 1 am sure their contribution to the work of the Council will be valuable indeed. Likewise we wish to extend the warmest and friendliest welcome to our new colleagues, the delegations of Japan, Argentina, Belgium and Italy, countries with which my country has the strongest ties of friendship and understanding, and we look forward to co-operating with them in the service of the principles of the Charter and the amelioration of the destiny of mankind. Let us hope that the Security Council during this year 1971 will prove instrumental in changing the tide from the rule of force to the ncle of Jaw and from the spirit of conquest to the spirit of Peace and justice. 116. Turning to the question being considered by the Council today, the admission of Bhutan to the United Nations, the Soviet delegation wishes to make the following statement. The delegation of the USSR supports Bhutan’s application for membership in the United Nations. As to the proposals for the calling of a meeting of the Committee on the Admission of New Members in connexion with Bhutan’s application for membership in the United Nations, the delegation of the USSR sees no special reason to convene the Committee in this particular case. 117. The Soviet delegation would think it should be possible in this case to have recourse to the procedure which the Security Council has followed heretofore, that is, that the Council, acting directly, should take a decision on the substance of a State’s application for membership in the United Nations without transmitting such a question to the Committee on the Admission of New Members. Jfowever, in view of the opinions and wishes of many other members of the Security Council, we would have no objection to transmitting the question to that Committee for consideration. 123. It argues well for such an expectation that the Council should start its work this year by enlarging the family of nations by the admission of a new Member, the Kingdom of Bhutan. The delegation of the Syrian Arab Republic commends Bhutan’s admission to the United Nations and extends its wannest welcome to this young Member full of promise. With the co-operation of the Bhutanese people and Government with the United Nations and its agencies, a further step will be marked in the realisation of the vast potential of the resources of Bhutan for the corr?mon good, Its close co-operation, particularly with its neighbours and the Asian community of nations, and with the world at large, will enhance its status and guarantee t&e acceleration of the tide of its modernization and progress. We are certain of the success of such a beneficial enterprise through which the community of nations can only be enriched. We extend our best wishes to Bhutan for a prosperous future. 118. The PRESIDBNT~J thank the representative of the Soviet Union for his kind remarks about me and share his hope for substantial progress during this month in the negotiations under Ambassador Jarring’s auspices for a just and durable peace in the Middle East.

Mr.President, allow me to begin by disregarding your request and congratulating you on your assumption of the presidency of the Security Council during the month of February and expressing the hope that the work of the Council under your tactful and learned leadership this month will be fruitful: 120. The thanks and appreciation of my delegation go likewise to 8% Colin Crowe, representative of the United Kingdom, who discharged the duties of President in the month of January with sagacity and skill. Of course, we cannot forget that during the month of December the Council was presided over by Mr. MaBk of the Soviet Union. During that month, under his statesmanlike and experienced guidance, very important decisions of the Security Council were adopted. 124. The United Nations is being extended from one year to the next. Let us hope that, parallel with this horizontal extension, its role in the defence of justice and the maintenance of peace will also be extended in depth and efficacy.

I thank the representative of Syria for his generous words in my regard. 121. This year we shall miss the outgoing delegations. We shall never forget the spirit of dedjcation and the valuable 126. Since there are no other speakers, I would say that in accordance with procedures which have been agreed upon HOW TO OBTAIN UNITED NATIONS PU0LlCATlONS Uniled Notions publicolionr may be obtained from bookstores ond dirlribulors throughout Ihe world. Conrull your bookstore or write lo: United Notions, Sales Section, New York or Ganwo. COMMENT SE PROCURER LES PU~llCATlONS DES NATIONS UNiES Las pu6licalions der Nations Unies ronf en venla dons les librairics et 10% agencw ddporitoirsr du monde entier. Informez-vour oupr&s da volra librai& ou odrarrcr-vow br Notions Units, Ssclion de1 venle$. New York ou Genivc. COMO CONSEGUIR PUBLICACIONES DE LAS NACIONES UNIDAS ’ Los publlcocioner de 10s Naciones Unidar es16n en vsnta en IibrarIor y cotas dirfribuidoros sn lodes parfar dal mundo. Consulta a LU librero o dirijore a: Nocioner Unldos, Seccibn de Venlas, Nuavo York o Ginabra. Litho in United Nations, New York Prici: $U.S. 1.00 (or equivalent in other currencies) 82000-July 1973-g