S/PV.2380 Security Council

Members of the Council have before them document S/15240, which contains the text of a draft resolution 9. We must therefore strive to ensure that existing obstacles are removed and that no new ones arise. My country, which has a particularly deep attachment 10. I now resume my functions as PRESIDENT. I I. I understand that the Council is prepared to vote on the draft resolution before it. If there is no objection, I will now put to the vote the draft resolution.

I shall now call on those members of the Council who have asked to be allowed to make statements following the voting.

The Government of Japan has been following with grave concern the serious developments taking place in Lebanon in the past few weeks. We strongly deplore Israel’s invasion of Lebanon and its violation of the sovereignty, territorial integrity and political independence of Lebanon. My Government wishes to express once again its profound sympathy to the Government and people of Lebanon that are confronted with this serious situation. It also expresses its deep regret over the great number of civilian casualties, the deprivation and displacement suffered by the inhabitants and the heavy destruction of property in Lebanon. 14. The Israeli invasion has brought about the tragic displacement of reportedly as many as 600,000 inhabitants, both Lebanese and Palestinians, who are consequently in dire need of emergency assistance, such as foodstuffs, medical supplies and other basic materials. In view of this distressing situation, the Secretary-General has made an urgent appeal to the international community, requesting it to extend emergency humanitarian assistance to Lebanon [S//S/94/Add.2, prim. 31. 15. The Government of Japan, in response to this urgent appeal by the Secretary-General and in view of the severity of the suffering, decided yesterday to contribute $US 1 million through the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) for the affected inhabitants of Lebanon. 16. My delegation takes this opportunity to demand once again that all the parties concerned cease hostilities at once. We also demand that Israel withdraw its forces immediately and unconditionally, in accordance with Council resolution 509 (1982). My delegation further urges that all the parties concerned, in particular the Israeli occupying forces in Lebanon, fully cooperate with the international organizations engaged in the humanitarian relief activities in Lebanon. 18. As an earnest of our commitment, President Reagan has appointed the Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development as his personal representative to co-ordinate all United States efforts to assist in this process. Fifteen million dollars have already been committed to the effort: we anticipate the authorization of an additional $20 million. 19. Our principal concern remains the restoration of full Lebanese sovereignty and authority throughout Lebanon’s territory. 20. As I have said. we are wholly committed to serving the human needs of the people of Lebanon. We hope and we trust that no party and no Government will exploit these fundamental humanitarian concerns for narrow political purposes. 2 I. In the context of those considerations and reflcotions, my delegation has supported the draft resolution. 22. The PRESIDENT (intc~~/.cttrtion ,fiom Frcvnr~hl: I call on the representative of Israel.

My Government welcomes every humanitarian effort aimed at relieving and alleviating human suffering anywhere around the world. In keeping with this policy we support any genuine humanitarian effort to alleviate the plight d human beings in Lebanon, as we do with regard to suffering human beings in Afghanistan, in Kampuchea. in Chad, in Uganda, in the Falkland Islands (Malviniis). in Viet Nam and elsewhere. I note with re:gret thut I have forgotten to add to my list Syria, Iraq and Iran. 24. We shall therefore welcome co-operation with the Secretary-General in promoting genuine hurnanit:lrian efforts in Lebanon. This is fully in keeping not only with the traditions of the people and the State which I represent, but also with the policies of the State of Israel over the years and in particular over the past two weeks, as 1 had occasion to inform the Council in greater detail last night [237Yth mcetingj. 25. In this connection, I wish to make a point of clarification. Last night I quoted from a press COGmunication released by ICRC in Geneva yesterday. 18 June [ihid., pare. /29].‘1 wish to make it clear that in referring to the 300 wounded that are receiving treatment 1 was speaking of the situation in the city of Sidon 31. We do not expect any recognition for our humanitarian efforts on the part of the international community. We know the parliamentary constellation in this body and we know the personalities and the States which they represent well enough not to expect such recognition. Moreover, the humanitarian assistance that we are extending to the population of Lebanon is not based on any expectation of recognition; we do it because we consider it our human duty. But we are entitled to expect and we demand that the Council refrain from innuendos and from attempts to abuse humanitarian concerns for the purpose of political objectives-sometimes very dubious political objectives. 26. I also wish to inform the Council that in keeping with these policies df my Government direct contact has now been established between Mr. ya’acov Meridor, a member of the Cabinet of Israel’s Government. who has been put in charge of the humanitarian efforts t)f my Government in Lebanon and is acting as its co-ordinator. and his opposite number in the LebilllCSC Government. 27. Having said this, let me also say a few words aboUt the resolution just adopted by the Council. Mr. President, I will not hide from you and from the other members of the Council our feeling that perhaps not nil the members of the Council who voted for this resolution have been motivated solely and exclusively by humanitarian considerations, I would be happy to 32. We have heard the representative of the United States of America. In contradistinction to most members of the Council, he knows what he is talking about,, because his Government has been actively involved in those humanitarian efforts in co-operation with my Government. Thus it is not surprising that he is not bandying about all kinds of figures that belong in the sphere of imagination and fantasy. be proofed wrong. hut there are too many indications to ttlc contrary. 33. The resolution adopted here expresses deep concern at the sufferings of the Lebanese and Palestinian civilian populations. What about the sufferings of Israel’s civilian population? The Council treats the sufferings of the population of Israel over the past weeks with the same callousness and indifference as it has treated it with over all these years. Operation “Peace for Galilee” became necessary in order to alleviate the sufferings of the people of northern Galilee. And now that we are in control in southern Lebanon, we know better than before how necessary it was. 28. First of A, we have the sad record of the Council in tbc field of humanitarian efforts in general around the world. Then, of course, as I look around the table 1 cannot help noticing representatives from a number of countries which have excelled in their humanitarian efforts in recent years. So as not to attract replies on their part, I leave them unnamed today. If they feel they have been the targets of my remark, they will reply anyway. 29. With regard to the situation in Lebanon, the Council’s bizarre attitude is even more evident. As I told the Council yesterday, over the past seven years 100,000 or so Lebanese civilians have been killed, 250.000 have been wounded and more than a million have been displaced (ihid., pmr. 1331. May I inquire of you, Mr, President, about the humanitarian resolutions adopted by the Council over a]] these Years with regard to the population of Lebanon. 34. To give the Council just one example, yesterday we discovered a bunker in Sidon containing military equipment and ammunition for the transportation of which we shall need 500 trucks. All that equipment-peace-loving Soviet equipment-was assembled there to cause suffering, agony and misery to the civilian population of Israel. There is not one word about that civilian population in the resolution. 30. So as to shorten the proceedings, I should like to draw your attention to Council resolution 436 ( 1978). I think it is particnlnrly pertinent to mention that resolution because, like the resolution adopted here tonight, that resolution too ~21s adopted under French Presidency; that is, under the presidency of Your Predecessor, Mr, Leprette. It was adopted at the height of the Syrian excesses against the population of Beirut, which cost the lives of thousands of People. What do we have in that resolution? There is one Paragraph, p;~t*agl*aph 2, in which the CoUnCil “d]s uPon a]] involved to ~I]OW units of the International Commtttee of the Red Cross into the area of COIlfliCt to evacuate the wounded and provide humanitarian assistance”+ That was a]/ the Council had to say on that occasion* 35. But we are dealing with a humanitarian reSOh.Ition, which, surprisingly, reaffirms resolutions 508 (1982) and 509 (1982). 36. I need not repeat my Government’s position on those resolutions. I did that last night, and ] did that last week, But those are not humanitarian resO]Utions. And the true intentions of this resO]UtiOn are c]earlY revealed by the reference that is made to those reso]utions in this allegedly humanitarian resolution. 37. Then, of course, in paragraph 3 we have the ug]y innuendo. ln the second part of that paragraph 38. We reject this innuendo. 39. As I said before, and as I want to say again in conclusion. WC shell co-operate with any genuine humanitnritm effort. We shall resist, reject and foil any effort which, under the guise of humanitarian concern, attempts to advance dubious political objectives.

I call on the representative of Lebanon. 4 I. Mr. TUhNI (Lebanon) (intcrprcltcrtion ,fhm F/*rnc*/r): Mr. President, on behalf of Lebanon and all the Lebanese without exception I have the privilege of expressing the most profound gratitude to you personally, the representative of France, to the Government of France and to France, for which Lebanon has always had and continues to have feelings of confidence and historic ties of friendship, 42. We should like to thank each and every member of the Council and also those Governments that have helped us in these difficult days and that are not represented here this evening, 43. In conclusion, my Government wishes to say how much we appreciate the prompt reaction of the Secretary-General and his colleagues. Our future will depend a great deal on their efforts in the coming days, 44. As for the words of the representative of Israel, I hlive no comments to make on that subject. 45. Mr. OVINNIKOV (Union of Soviet Socialist Republics) (i/lt(‘/‘/)/‘Ptflfioll ,/kern Rmsion): I listened very carefully to two statements made today-that of the representative of the United States and that of the representative of Israel. 46. The representative of Israel. Mr. Blum, said that not all of those that voted for the draft resolution adopted by the Council today-now resolution 512 ( 1982)--were guided by humanitarian considerations. I agree with him, 47. As for the delegation of the United States, although it talks a great deal about its humanitarian motives, yesterday and again today it has shown that it is guided by whatever suits it, but certainly not by humanitarian considerations, 48. Yesterday. when the Council was discussing the draft resolution that became resolution 5 I 1 ( I982), the United States delcgution rtlised objections to parugraph 2, which in fact refers precisely to the humunitarian efforts of UNIFIL. It wished to exclude that humanitarian provision from the resolution. It was 49, Today, when the draft resolution that has now become resolution 512 (1982) was submitted to us. only one delegation-the delegation of the United States-in the corridors of this building categorically objected to this exclusively humanitarian proposal and, once again, only the fear of finding itself con pletely isolated prompted the United States to ugree to this humanitarian action by the Council. SO. I want to say one more thing. Yesterday, in his statement. Mr, Blum said that a crime is a crime is a crime [ihid., ptr,*tr. 1441. We agree with him, But there is something else that must be recognized: that is, that Israel’s aggression against Lebanon is aggression is aggression is aggression. 5 I, The PRESIDENT (into’~,‘c’ttrtiort fiwn Fwrtdd: I shall now call upon those representat’ives who wish to speak in exercise of the right of reply. 52. Mr, BLUM (Israel): I said in my statement that I was not going to identify those countriles which I think are not motivated solely and exclu~sively by humanitarian considerations, so as not to attract replies on their part. 53. For some reason the representative of tlhe Soviet Union felt that he belonged to that category. I respect his judgement. 54. My remark last night that a crime is a crime is tl crime did not originate with me: I was quoting the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. But since the representative of the Soviet Union has’ brought up the issue again I indeed agree: aggression iis aggl-ession is aggression-in Budapest, in Prague, in East Berlin, in Warsaw, in Kabul and elsewhere. And imperialism is imperialism is imperialism, 55. Mr, LICHENSTEIN (United States of Amcrica): I am a relative newcomer to these preciincts. hut I take the liberty of observing that it has been my impression that the discussions and consultations thut take place both in informal settings and in the corridors of the United Nations are largely a matter of COIleagues working together in good faith towa,rds common goals, We in the delegation of the United StM%, at any rate, will continue so to regard the consultation process. 56. Any suggestions that the Permanent Representative of the United States made yesterday wlith regard to resolution 51 I (1982) were mnde in an effort to improve that draft resolution and more finely to focus it on the problems that were then before the Council. 57, Today, as her deputy, I have attempted to muke the same contribution to a well-designed and finely MOW TO OBTAIN UNITED NATlONS PUBLICATIONS United Nations publications may be obtained from bookstores and distributors throughout the world. Consult your bookstore or write to: United Nations. Sales Section, New York or Geneva. COMMENT SE PROCURER LES PUBLICATIONS DES NATIONS UNIES Les publications des Nations Unres sent en ventc dans les librairies et les agences dcpositaircs du mnnde enticr. Inrormez-vous aupres de votre libraire ou adresscz-vous a : Nations Unies. Section dcs vcntes. New York ou Gentve. COMO CONSEGUIR PUBLICACIONES DE LAS NACIONES UNIDAS Las publicaciones de las Naciones Unidas estan en venta en librerias y casas distribuidoras en todas partes del mundo. Consulte a su librero o dirijase a: Nacioncs Unidas. Seccibn de Ventas. Nueva York o Ginebra. Litho in United Nations, New York 00300 8x-60YXY-June IYHY--?.WW