S/PV.2466 Security Council

Members of the Council have before them a letter dated 11 August from the representative of the Sudan to the President of the Council [S/Z5922]. 2. Letter dated 8 August 1983 from the Charge d’affaires a.i. of the Permanent Mission of the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya to the United Nations addressed to the President of the Security Council (S/15914) 4. The first speaker is the representative of Cuba. I invite him to take a place at the Council table and to make his statement. The meeting was called to order at 5.25 p.m. Adoption of the agenda

Permit me first, Sir, to congmtulaie you on’;our assumption of the presidency for the month of August. We are sure that in that position you will once again bring to bear your experience as a diplomat. I should also like to thank you for the opportunity you have given us to address the Council. The agenda was adopted. Letter dated 8 August 1983 from the Chargh d’affaires a.i. of the Permanent Mission of the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya to the United Nations addressed to the President of the Security Council (S/15914) 6. Similarly, we should like to mention the competent presidency of the Council by the representative of the People’s Republic of China during July.

In conformity with decisions taken at the previous meeting on this item [246&h meeting], I invite the representative of the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya to take a place at the Council table; I invite the representatives of Cuba, Democratic Yemen, the Islamic Republic of Iran and the Syrian Arab Republic to take the places reserved for them at the side of the Council chamber. 7. Once again the Council has had to meet to discuss new threats and acts of aggression by the Government of the United States against a non-aligned country. 8. We are dealing today with renewed acts of provocation and hostility by the Government of the United States against the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya. Among those acts, we would mention in particular the violation of Libyan air and sea space by warplanes and warships of the United States navy and air force; the concentration of forces and electronic espionage equipment on the Libyan frontier; and the threatening and alarming statements by high off& cials in Washington, who claim the right to dictate the norms of conduct to a people, small but worthy of respect, the people of Libya, a country which as a result of its 14 years of triumphant revolution has succeeded in throwing off the yoke of imperialism. At the invitation of the President, Mr. Burwin (Libyan Arab Jamahiriya) took a place at the Council table; Mr. Garcia lturbe (Cuba), Mr. AI-Al& (Democratic Yemen), Mr. Rajaie-Khorassani (Islamic Republic of Iran) and Mr. AI-Atassi (Syrian Arab Republic) took the places reserved for them at the side of the Council chamber.

I should like to inform memb of the Council that I have received letters from the representatives of Afghanistan, the Lao People’s Democratic Republic, the Sudan and Viet Nam, in which they request to be invited 10. We draw the attention of members of the Council to the refusal of the United States-quite inadmissible in the light of international law-to recognize Libyan sovereignty over the waters of the Gulf of Sidra, which are adjacent to its territory, and the incursion of United States warships into the territorial waters of that country, in flagrant violation of its sovereignty. 11. It is noteworthy that a brief recounting of these actions by the United States in the Mediterranean and north Africa shows that they seem to be the twins of the actions being carried out in the Caribbean and Central America, and in their turn fall within the framework of the world-wide military build-up being carried out by the current United States Administration. 12. The situation is dangerous. Libya has proclaimed its legitimate right to defend its sovereignty, and there is the risk that an imperialist act of provocation will unleash large-scale aggression against that country. The accumulation of United States land, sea and air forces in that north African area and the United States’ growing intervention in the Chad problem have aroused legitimate concern in the international community. 13. Cuba categorically repudiates the United States acts of aggression and threats against Libya, which are also a threat to other peoples of the region. These imperialist actions must cease. 14. Our Government reiterates its active solidarity with Libya, and at the same time calls upon the Council to come out firmly in defence of a small, independent, nonaligned country worthy of respect-one which is threatened today, as are other peoples in Central America, the Middle East and Africa, by the aggressive, interventionist, illegal policies and actions of the imperialist Government of the United States.

The letter dated 8 August addressed to you, Mr. President, by the representative of the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya, which is now before us, draws the Council’s attention to the serious deterioration of the situation in the region of the Mediterranean, the Middle East and Africa that has resulted from acts of intimidation and steps of a provocative character directed against that country and requests urgent consideration of the complaint by the Council. 17. Whether or not those manoeuvres are called joint training activities and previously announced exercises of limited purpose and scope, they constitute a sheer demonstration of force, a show of military power aimed at intimidating those whose policies might not be to the liking of those imperialistic circles which see in increased tension better possibilities for the carrying out of their sinister plans and designs. 18. The threats and provocative acts against Libya that we are witnessing today are unfortunately nothing new. It is not long since the Council last dealt with them [24I5fh to 2418th meetings]. The patterns of development of the situation then and now are quite similar. 19. As we all recall, in February of this year the aircraft . carrier Nimitz and other vessels of the United States Sixth Fleet approached the coast of Libya. AWACS aircraft were, we were told, sent there for the purpose of joint manoeuvres. 20. Today the region of the Mediterranean and northern Africa bordering on the most sensitive region of the Middle East has once again become the part of the world to which forces and military equipment are being dispatched from outside the area and where rapid-deployment units are. being engaged in exercise activities the character of which is clearly visible. At the same time one can easily see the efforts of imperialistic Powers involved anew in neocolonial policies and attempts to take advantage of the long-complicated internal affairs of other countries-such as Chad, for example-meddling and interfering and eventually engaging in direct intervention. Those countries see their stepped-up role in the war. The number of advisers, instructors and mercenaries, as well as regular and special forces, is constantly growing. Those troops are accompanied by an increasing flow of arms, including weapons such as Redeye missiles. The French paratrooper and the United States adviser have once again become a common feature in certain areas. Beyond any shadow of a doubt their presence makes solution of the conflict more difficult. There are brazen imperialistic efforts to intemationalize the conflict. The pressure being brought to bear on some African States to drag them into military or political intervention is growing. The efforts of imperialism to impose neocolonial solutions on other nations and to use their territories for activities directed against those countries whose internal and foreign policies do not suit the interests of the United States and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) continue to be undertaken without the slightest hesitation, ruthlessly and with full determination. 22. It is not only direct military pressure that is being applied against the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya. There is also the specific pressure of aggression through propaganda. This instrument has been very well known for years in the arsenals of imperialism. It is used as a supplement in exacerbating tension, as a means of conducting psychological warfare. Different methods are used to paint a black picture of the country that is the object of such attacks. Yet all these methods-be they official statements or articles in the mass media, be they brief and simple remarks or lengthy and elaborated texts giving so-called evidence, which is but distorted facts-have the same purpose. The many allegations and charges against Libya testify to the fact that that country has become an object of constant attacks by the propaganda machine. 23. Threats to international peace and security and efforts to inflame tensions and rekindle the fires of conflict should be stopped. An end should be put to interference by imperialistic and neocolonial States in the domestic affairs of other countries. The problems that exist in the region can and should be solved by political means, with the participation of the Organization of African Unity (OAU), which is capable of playing a significant role in enhancing settlements in the interests of the peoples of the region. 24. The Council’s consideration of the complaint of the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya should contribute to the achievement of those ends. As an organ responsible for the maintenance of peace and security, the Council should eliminate hotbeds of tension, and combat actions that flout the sovereign inalienable right of countries to solve their problems, to carry out their independent policies and to decide their destinies for themselves. 25. The present consideration of the item on the agenda has shown clearly that many countries of the region are not turning a blind eye to the threats and dangers stemming from the involvement of the neocolonial States constantly seeking attainment of their strategic goals, which have nothing to do with the real interests of the peoples of that area. It has proved clearly that those policies are being condemned as inconsistent with the letter and the spirit of the Charter of the United Nations.

The next speaker is the representative of Afghanistan. I invite him to take a place at the Council table and to make his statement.

Mr. President, I should like to thank you and the members of the Security Coun- 29. Although Libya has been a target of imperialist designs since the victory of the September revolution, the most blatant form of imperialist aggression against that relatively small country was recorded almost two years ago when the United States Sixth Fleet naval armada invaded the territorial waters of the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya in the Gulf of Sidra and shot down one of the two Libyan planes which were in reconnaissance flight over national waters [S/24636, para. 33. 30. The international community, through various groups and organizations of States, strongly condemned that naked aggression and other acts of intimidation and provocation against Libya. 3 1. The Group of Arab States in the United Nations in a statement issued on 21 August 1981 [S/Z4638/Rev.I, annex], denounced and condemned that aggression which came in the wake of a series of threats and provocations that constituted a most dangerous precedent in international relations. 32. The Coordinating Bureau of the Non-Aligned Countries convened in an extraordinary session on 28 August 1981 to consider the grave situation arising from the provocative naval manoeuvres conducted by the United States Navy. In a statement, the Coordinating Bureau considered those provocative actions by the United States, one of the permanent members of the Security Council, as a serious threat to the sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity of the non-aligned countries in the region and the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya in particular. The Co-ordinating Bureau drew the attention of the Security Council at that time to that grave situation which threatened international peace and security. 33. The Ministers for Foreign Affairs and heads of delegation of the non-aligned cot&tries to the thirty-sixth session of the General Assembly expressed deep concern over the aggression by the United States of America against the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya in a communique. issued on 28 September 1981 [see S/14713, annex, sect. vll. 34. The Ministers for Foreign Affairs of the States members of the Organization of the Islamic Conference also condemned the American act of aggression against Libya in their statement of 3 October 1981.’ 35. It was logically expected that in the face of such strong reaction and condemnation by the international community, the United States would abandon its policy of pressure and threat against Libya. 37. Regrettably, not only were those actions not stopped, but the United States Administration resorted to various other means of intimidation and threat. That, in our view, did not come as a surprise, given the nature of American imperialism. Since then, the United States has increased its military presencein a number of countries in the region and surrounding areas. More and more sophisticated weaponry has been introduced to the region. Several provocative manoeuvres have been conducted off Libyan coasts and in the territories of some neighbouring countries. A huge campaign of lies and malicious propaganda to discredit the leadership of that country and its foreign policy towards the region accompanied other aggressive and interventionist United States actions. Baseless accusations are made with regard to Libya’s intentions, while Libya itself has been a target of the repeated use of force and threat of use of force. 38. Why ,Libya is subjected to such a defamatory campaign is known to everybody. It is the independent nonaligned policy of that country and its courageous refusal to submit to pressures that have angered the United States and its regional allies. 39. The most recent invasion of Libyan territorial waters in the Sidra Gulf by the aircraft carrier Nimitz and other military vessels of the United States Sixth Fleet and provocative interception of Libyan patrol planes by. United States fighter planes serve as yet another example of United States outlawry and its disrespect for rules of international conduct. 40. The United States, which has extended its spheres of “vital interest*’ to practically every corner of the world, arrogates to itself the right to violate the principles of the Charter of the United Nations that should govern the relations among States and has tried to make them subservient to its national interests. It spares no means from indirect political, economic and military pressure to direct armed intervention in the internal affairs of other States. , _‘_. , __ ___’ _‘,I 41. The Charter has burdened the United States, as a Member of the Organization and as a permanent member of its Security Council with enormous responsibilities for observing the principles enshrined in the Charter and for the safeguarding of international peace and security. ‘, _-_ s’, _‘, _-_ .I_ _‘. _’ 42. A brief glance at the United States record of compliance with those principles will immediately reveal that the trust which the international community had placed on the United States as a permanent member of the Council has been repeatedly betrayed. Suflice it to remind ourselves of the United States infamous adventures .in Iran, the Congo, the Dominican Republic; Viet Nam, Haiti, Chile, El Salvador, Afghanistan, and many, many other countries, where United States armed forces and intelligence services set up assassination plots against national- ,’ ,’ ‘/ _- 44. The Council theoretically serves as an instrument in which the international community and, in particular, small nations have invested their hopes and aspirations. 45. If the Council were to tolerate this and other piratical actions of the United States against other Member States of the United Nations, the confidence of the international community in this veryimportant Council would soon inevitably vanish. .46. Let us not forget that this body, which is charged with the primary responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security, very often became totally paralysed whenever it had to discuss a situation where the ‘United States was involved. That in turn resulted in the recourse by small countries to their national and bilateral means in order to avert the threat directed against them. 47. For the sake of the credibility of the Organization, and especially that of the Council, we call for prompt action to be taken to discourage the United States from its activities that endanger the peace and security in that and other parts of the world. 48. I should like, in conclusion, to reiterate the full solidarity of the people and Government of the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan with the people and Government of the Socialist People’s Libyan Arab Jamahiriya in the struggle for safeguarding their independence, sovereignty and territorial ‘integrity.

Sir, ‘my delegation has already had an opportunity to congratulate you on your assumption of the presidency for the month of August. However, since this is the first time that I have addressed the Council personally this month, allow me to renew our congratulations. My delegation recalls with pride the efficiency and skill with which you discharged the numerous and onerous responsibilities of the presidency during the long, hot summer days and nights of June 1982. Of course, we have also been able to have even finer appreciation of your wisdom and your talent as a diplomat during our work with you in the ensuing months. .We have every confidence that under your stewardship the work of the Council this month will be satisfactorily. concluded. 50. I should also like to extend my delegation’s congratulations to Mr; Ling Qing, representative .of China, with -which my country enjoys relations of great friendship and solidarity, for the efficient, methodical and serene manner

The next speaker is the representative of the Lao People’s Democratic Republic. I invite him to,take a place at the Council table and to make his statement. 52. My delegation paid very careful attention to’ the statement made by the representative of Libya at the start of the Council’s consideration of the question now before us and to that made by the representative of the United States, as indeed to all the subsequent statements made in the course of this debate [2464th meeting]. , 53. This series of meetings is taking place in a period characterized by a marked heightening of tension in inter- State relations. There is increasing resort to the threat of use of force as a means of coercing other States or of settling inter-State differences. Preparations for war intensify. In such a conjuncture, it behoves the Council, as the body with major responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security, to seek ways of exerting maximum influence for the exercise of restraint and for the promotion of inter-State relations firmly rooted in the rule of law and the principles of the Charter of the United Nations. 54. Guyana has consistently held the position that in relations between States the principles of international law must be inviolate and scrupulously respected. The best guarantee of the maintenance of stable international relations lies in the strictest respect by all States for independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity. In their relations with each other States must abide by the principles of the Charter and by those contained in such solemn international instruments as the Declaration on Principles of International Law concerning Friendly Relations and Co-operation among States in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations* and the Declaration on the Inadmissibility of Intervention and Interference in the Internal Affairs of States.3 States must refrain from the threat or use of force in their international relations., We cannot accept the use of force as an instrument of State behaviour. We believe disputes between States must be settled by exclusively peaceful means and that full respect must be shown for the right of all States to pursue their own paths free from intervention or outside interference and without coercion or pressure. 55. My delegation calls for the application of these principles to all conflict situations, whether in North Africa, the Middle East, the Far East, Central America or elsewhere. In focusing our attention specifically on the issues now before this Council, we‘call on all States to refrain from actions which endanger peace and stability in that region and to take positive steps, including the use of dialogue, to find political solutions to whatever differences may exist between them and to ensure the maintenance of stable, harmonious relations. 58.. Mr. VONGSAY (Lao People’s Democratic Rep& lit) (interpretation from French): Sir, first of all I should like most warmly to congratulate you on your assumption _ of the presidency for this month. My delegation is convinced that, under the guidance of a seasoned diplomat whose wisdom is well known and who represents a country and a people with which my own country and people maintain. traditional relations of friendship and co-operation, the work of the Council will lead to a successful conclusion. 59. Also, we wish to thank you, and through you the other members of the Council, for having granted our request to participate in the current discussion of the item on the agenda. 60. Yesterday [2463rd mehing], the Council had before it the item on the events afflicting Chad and its people, which some 10 days ago had already been discussed in this chamber [2462nd meeting]. My delegation noted with satisfaction the statement of neutrality made by the representative of the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya with’regard to the bloody conflict occurring in the northern part of Chad, a conflict involving the interested Chadian parties exclusively. The Lao delegation deplores the direct intervention of the United States of America, as well as of other countries, in this conflict, thus seriously jeopardizing both regional and international peace and security. 61. The .second’ matter brought before the Council on the very same day by the representative.of the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya in his letter of 8 August addressed to the President is also an urgent and a serious matter, since it undermines the independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of that country and jeopardizes peace and security in the region. 62. In this affair, the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya has, through its representative, quite rightly questioned and condemned the reprehensible acts of provocation, intimidation and armed intervention the United States of America is now committing against it. This has been reflected by the setting in motion and deployment of American air and naval forces of the Sixth Fleet in proximity to the land and sea borders of Libya with the stated objective, according to American official sources, of dissuading that country from committing aggression against its neighbours. That is a false accusation. :’ 63. My delegation joins those of other countries in condemning and rejecting this artifice, the representative of 69. The delegation of Laos would request the Council, the supreme body primarily responsible under the Charter for the maintenance of international peace and security, to take the necessary steps to de-escalate the situation, reduce tension and put an end to the threat of aggression. occupation and annexation with regard to Arab, Palestinian and African countries and peoples. 64. That is why the American Government is feverishly intensifying its political, military and economic support for its strategic allies, the Pretoria and Tel Aviv regimes, in their criminal undertakings and actions of repression, 65. This fresh act of hostility committed against the Government and people of Libya, which I have mentioned earlier, is in fact part of a series of adventurous acts of which the United States of America has been guilty for at least a decade. Still more significant are the acts of subversion and aggression committed by that country against the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya last February, events which, it will be recalled, were discussed in the Council [2415th to 2418th meetings]. My delegation today has been following closely the debate under way in the Council and was surprised last evening [2464th meeting] to hear the United States representative state that the deployment of United States naval and air forces was part of a training programme or a routine military exercise that had been planned long in advance. This is not, I think, a very good alibi. Indeed, the real intention behind this culpable act, as was stated by several speakers who preceded.me, was to attack and strangle politically and economically the valiant people of Libya and their Government. 66. The Lao people and Government approach this issue with a perfect knowledge of the facts because our country as well as other fraternal Indo-Chinese countries have already had bitter and painful experience of the aggressive adventure launched by the United States imperialists not very long ago. Those imperialist circles should have learned a lesson from their stunning defeat in Indo- China, but such is not the case. It would seem that, on the contrary, they are, in collusion with the hegemonists and expansionists, trying to perpetrate acts of sabotage and destabilization against our democratic and popular regime, resorting to all types of illicit measures extending from espionage with permanent tension in the border regions, intimidation, psychological warfare and economic blockade to calumnious propaganda. This is the global strategy of aggression and destabilization that the imperialists are applying feverishly the world over. _-_ --, .-:- *-, .‘,. .*,- , , ,_ I-. ,‘. _-_ ,-, ,‘_ :_ ,‘, ,-, ‘_ ,‘_ ‘, ‘_ _’ 67. The demonstration of force, reminiscent of the time of gunboat diplomacy, the United States Government is now undertaking in Central America, especially -against Nicaragua, speaks eloquently of this scheme. Needless to 68. The Lao People’s Democratic Republic expresses its unfailing solidarity with the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya in the heroic struggle it is waging to protect and consolidate the achievements of its September revolution, a struggle which we are sure will in the final analysis be victorious.

The next speaker is the representative of Viet Nam. I invite him to take a place at the Council table and to make his statement.

I should like first of all, Sir, on behalf of the delegation of the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam, to congratulate you most warmly on your assumption of the presidency this month and to wish you every success in carrying out your noble mission. 72. I should like to thank most cordially all the members of the Council for making it possible for me to take part in the discussion of the important issue at present before the Council. 73. The situation in the regions of the Mediterranean, North Africa and the Middle East has deteriorated dangerously in recent days because of the intensification of United States intervention in the affairs of those regions, where it is constantly enhancing its military presence and increasing acts of intimidation and provocation against the Socialist People’s Libyan Arab Jamahiriya. 74. Imposing naval forces of the United States have approached the shores of Libya with the open threat of entering Libyan territorial waters and increasing provocative flights. At the same time, AWACS radar aircraft and substantial numbers of United States troops are preparing for joint manoeuvres with the military forces of Egypt, the Sudan, Somalia and Oman. In yesterday’s edition of The New York Times a Western observer was quoted as saying that this was “the biggest American show of force across northern Africa since the Second World War’?. 75. This provocative and threatening display against the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya is not an isolated act but stems directly from the anti-Libyan policy of the United States, a policy which was planned and systematically carried out immediately after the victory of the Libyan Revolution in September 1969 and whose various episodes were reviewed recently in the Council with a great deal of accuracy and eloquence by the representative of the Libyan 76. However, United States ambitions are not confined to those regions of North Africa and the Middle East. Indeed, they extend to other regions of the globe: Central America, the Caribbean Sea, the Indian Ocean, South- West Asia, South-East Asia and the Pacific. In all those regions the United States is feverishly trying to whip up tensions and confrontation everywhere in order to intensify the arms race and to consolidate its role as international policeman. 77. But let us dwell for a moment on one single phenomenon in order to get a more specific idea of the threat which could be posed by these American global ambitions to the peace and security of peoples. My delegation would like to draw the attention of +members of the Council to the deployment of United States military forces in various regions of the world in recent times. In fact, this year the United States has constantly resorted to demonstrations of force nearly everywhere in the world, sending here and sending there nuclear aircraft-carriers and submarines, reconnaissance and combat aircraft and substantial weap onry and infantry forces in order to carry out ‘joint manoeuvres with the military forces of many countries which are satellites of the United States. What could be the .aim of the United States in carrying out all these feverish activities if it is not to spread its threat against the independence and sovereignty, of peoples and against international peace and security7 78. But it is very fortunate that the history of recent decades has made it abundantly clear that American military force cannot bring to their knees peoples determined to struggle to defend their independence and sovereignty. That force was unable to crush the peoples of the Indochinese Peninsula, and at the present time it is certain that that force cannot bring about the retreat of the heroic people of the Socialist People’s Libyan Arab Jamahiriya. 79, The people of.Viet Nam was the victim of the longest of wars of aggression, imposed onit by the United States, and it must now confront a sort of-war of attrition on many fronts waged against it by the expansionists and hegemonists of Asia; hence it stands in deep sympathy and total solidarity with the Libyan people in these critical times and firmly believes that the Libyan people will, with dignity, succeed in thwarting all attempts at intimidation and aggression made against it. 80. When the news of the United States acts of provocation and intimidation towards Libya reached Hanoi, a spokesman for the Vietnamese Foreign Ministry made the following statement on 6 August 1983: “The people and Government of Viet Nam reaffirm their total support for the struggle of the Libyan people to safeguard its national independence and sovereignty and to build a prosperous and happy Libyan Arab Jamahiriya.” 81. My delegation wishes to conclude this statement by calling on the Council, after it has considered the explosive present situation in the regions of the Mediterranean, North Africa and the Middle East, to adopt the measures necessary for putting an end to the acts of provocation and the threats of aggression now issuing from the United States against the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya. In so doing it would make an effective contribution to the defence of the independence and sovereignty of a State Member of the United Nations as well as the international peace and security in those regions and throughout the world.

The. next speaker is the representative of the Islamic Republic of Iran. I invite him to take a place at the Council table and to make his statement.

As I stated yesterday [2463rd meeting], the conflict between Chad and Libya is a family problem which should be resolved within the family of African countries. My delegation -avoided taking a side because to reduce the problem to a conflict in Chad would be too simplistic. What is going on in Chad is, in fact, the effect of a more fundamental problem, from which many African countries and Latin American countries are suffering now. 84. I therefore had no intention of arguing the legitimacy of the present Government of Chad, or of any other Government; only supporters of Chad themselves spoke of serious insurgency groups large enough to move towards ‘the capital and to threaten the central government. Defensive statements in justification of the deployment of troops in Chad by some countries in the region in support of-Chad against some of its own population can; of course, raise questions regarding ,the legitimacy of the present regime of the country, but such doubts, without direct attention to the more fundamental adversity underlying all the political problems of the region, remain irrelevant and may even confuse the masses in the area by diverting their attention from -the essential problem to minor issues:Many of the issues that were brought up in ,the -meetings convened upon the request of Chad yesterday and today were, my delegation would say, very secondary. I would thank the delegation of.Libya for bringing the main issue to the Council table today, 85. There is another point that I should like to raise, although it is not unknown to the Council, that is, the . . 86. Representatives are well aware of the conspicuous contradiction that strikes the attention of every observer at a first glance of Africa and Latin America, namely, the presence of the poorest populations of the world in those two richest continents of the globe. The reason for this poverty is quite clear. I wonder to what extent the professional skills of diplomacy allow some members of the Council to feign obliviousness to those reasons. 87. The role of the Western countries in the coionization of countries in Asia, Africa and Latin America for years, the swift change from colonialism to neo-coioniaiism and the contemporary role of global imperialism headed by the United States of America are too obvious to be explained to the Council. Fortunately, the criminals and the victims, the predator and the prey, are both present here. Although instructions from some capitals require them to adopt certain positions, the individuals through their personal capacities know the truth very well. 88. The fact is that, according to the United States, your Government, Mr. President, is not assuming a more active role in. North Africa, particularly in Chadalthough it has been sending considerable amounts of miiitary hardware to the area. Although Chad has been in the domain of French colonial territory; the United St.ates of America, owing to its vast involvement in the area, IS of course more active. But the United States should not blame your country, Mr. President, for this underachievement, because the United States is present everywhere. It is present in the Indian Ocean, its boats are fishing around the Persian Gulf and the Oman ,Sea, and they are near Libyan waters. Americans are carrying on ,military manoeuvres in Honduras, Egypt, El Salvador, Somalia and the Sudan. They have AWACS in Saudi Arabia and North Africa. They ‘are behind the Zionists in Palestine and South Africa. They’are in the Far East. As a matter of fact, they are everywhere-and, of course, in the Security Council as well. 89. This ever-present nature of the great Satan in ail troubled parts of the world-and everybody knows that the Security Council is also a troubled part of the woridhas put the United States Administration in front of a very crucial dilemma: on the one hand, their foreign poiities require them to be present everywhere; on the other hand, they reaiize that .if they are singled out, as they are now, the current’of events may soon turn against them. That is why they are encouraging their allies to be more I’ 90.’ In the case of Chad the United States has done quite well in making use of the troops of some other legitimate regimes to save the legitimate regime of Chad and further to hide its own face by trying to find fault with Libya-in exactly the same manner that it is blaming Nicaragua in the case of the Latin American tragedy. 91. The objective behind all these roars and teethshowing is also quite clear: oil, copper, gold, diamonds, strategic elements and metals and, in the case of Chad, radioactive resources which were recently reported to be available there. The people of that part of the world therefore must prepare themselves for a long struggle, because the good Administration of your ‘country, Mr. President, that of the United States and others will not give up that delicious dish so easily.’ Besides, the resources in the area have also resulted in.the subjugation of many other peopies in the region whose legitimate Governments have “friendly’‘-and, of course, legitimate-relations with satanic Powers. This much is quite understandable. ’ 92. The struggle against imperialism is following its natural course too. I am sure the number of prisoners in many of these “friendly” countries and the charges against them may be quite revealing in this context. I am sure France’s officials and the officials of the United States know very well who is and who is not legitimate. ’ They also hear the echoes of the Islamic Revolution ail over the Moslem world. We believe that ail their struggles against the liberation movement, and particularly against the energizing cries of Allah Akbar, are ail in vain. The United States and its allies will come to this conclusion only when it is too late, as has always been’ the case. 93. What worries the imperialist forces is the fear that after the ‘kicking out of the Western’ ,bloc Russians will come‘ and replace them,. particularly when the American wing of imperialism observes that Russians can find footholds among the deprived masses more easily than Americans and Westerners. Believe me, the masses are more intelligent than to fail into a trap after rescuing themselves from imperialists’ claws. They shall not surrender to another subjugation after liberating themselves from one. The’ communist threat is only a pretext for United States officials by which they justify their illegal interventionsand some United States senators know that, too. 94. The struggle of the oppressed masses ail over the world is, therefore, the crux of the problem, the crux of the matter. And Chad is just one very small example of this struggle. The struggle is everywhere and United States marines, boats, planes, troops and mercenaries are also everywhere. But in an effort to confuse public opinion, the United States usually resorts to the most simplistic and naive excuses. 8' “If that aggression is permitted to go unpunished, then the Council will be revealed as impotent and Qaddafi’s brutal ‘new colonialism’ will threaten even more urgently the security of northern and north-central Africa.” [2464th meeting, para. 47.1 100. The Government and the people of the Islamic Republic of Iran strongly support the Libyan struggle in the defence of their independence against American imperialism and its allies and puppets in the area. It is obvious that imperialist forces headed by the United States have never supported, any humane liberating movement, any revolutionary regime, any independent small country. The very opposition of these satanic forces against Libya and the people of the region demonstrates the humanitarian and anti-imperialist position of the people of the region and justifies our support for and solidarity with Libya. This is a good enough reason for all the oppressed peoples of the world to stand by Libya and against all its adversaries. 96. First of all, if the impotence of the Council can be confessed even by the United States then it is definitely impotent, and members are all wasting their time; but this quality of the Council is not a new discovery. What is new about it is that the impotence of the Council has brought it to the stage where it has lost all its serious-looking outward. projections, or, let us say, its tourist attraction. No one, not even the United States delegation, is taking the Council for more than what it really is. That is why to speak of the impotence of the .Council seems to be the only serious talk which adds some spice to its deliberations; but this spice is too hot and probably too good for United States diplomacy. 101. The Council must condemn United States provocative acts against the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya and the threats it exercises against the sovereignty and territorial integrity of that country. 97. Secondly, bearing in mind all the gigantic fleets and forces that the present Administration of the United States has dispatched all over the globe, United States officials must have a very low opinion of American public opinion when they flatly call a small, third world country like Libya a “brutal new colonialism”. 98. Let me ask a simple question, one I have asked very often: just why does the United States Administration not give a chance to good and patriotic people in the region to defend themselves? Why should the United States and its puppets always arrogate to themselves the quality of some sort of foreign patriotism? 99. American warmongers must leave our area unconditionally. That part of the world does not belong to them. They must go as simply as the Russians must go from Afghanistan. They must stop finding fault with Libya or any other people. This century is that of the victory of the oppressed over the oppressors. Our problem is that some lions of Africa are, unfortunately, tamed, encaged and then turned into spoon-fed pussycats. Otherwise they would not remain aloof spectators to so much plunder and crime which ‘is perpetrated on the entire African nation. United States foreign policy is now responsible for all that, since it is the leading force on the imperialist front. If the Council were what it should be, then things on the globe would be different and then such members as the United States would conduct their foreign policies in such a way as not to make the current meetings necessary at all. I can therefore pray for, and look forward to, a change in the structure and content of the Council. I regret that the Council does not have the power to condemn the interventionist foreign policy of the United States. I wonder if it could possibly advise the global arrogant Power to keep its satanic forces a bit away from the area, and let the oppressed people of the region sort out their differences without any American mediation or observation. This advice might bring relief even to the

I shall now speak as the representative of FRANCE. 103. The representative of the Islamic Republic of Iran has stated, in a tone neither agreeable nor serious, that France should be stripped of its right to vote in the Council. Moreover, he added that the Council was not serious. Hence I shall reply to him in the same neither agreeable nor serious tone and say that he might also not have made false accusations against France. 104. That being so. I noted with measure that he had not called into diubt’the legitimacy of the Government of Chad, and thus recognized the legitimacy of that Government and, implicity, the legitimacy of the assistance France has given it. And that is why, as the representative of France, I thank him most sincerely for his statement. 105. I shall now continue as PRESIDENT of the Council. 106. The next speaker is the representative of Sudan. I invite him to take a place at the Council table and to make his statement.

( Mr. President, it gives me great pleasure to express to you and to the other members of the Council sincere thanks for allowing me to speak before the Council this evening. 108. History repeats itself. Libya’s designs and plots have one and the same source and present an unchanged scenario. In the past-last February, to be specific-while Libya prepared to launch aggression against my country it hastened to complain to the Council [s/Z.56153 about the provocations and threats of the United States of 109. Libya’s request for an urgent meeting of the Security Council is nothing but a ploy, a poor attempt to deceive the Council as well as the whole international community and to divert their attention from the present situation. Whereas attention should be focused on the wanton, stark aggression perpetrated by Libya against the people and Government of Chad, Libya is trying to obstruct the Council from continuing its meetings on that subject, which started on 3 August [2462nd meeting], to consider the legitimate complaint raised by Chad [UZSPUZJ against Libya’s aggression and intervention, striking by land and air towns and villages in Chad, using internationally prohibited weapons, such as phosphorous, fragmentation and napalm bombs, as we were told yesterday by the representative of Chad [2463rd meeting] and as we learn from the various mass media on a daily basis. Libya also helps the rebels and insurgents, and recruits mercenaries to work against the sovereignty, independence, security, safety and territorial integrity of Chad. 110. We are confident that Libya’s stratagem will not deceive the international community and that it will not attract the Council. The Council must continue to discharge its responsibilities by continuing to consider Chad’s complaint against Libya, with a view to securing an end to the Libyan aggression and the withdrawal of Libyan troops from the lands of Chad, to enable the Government of Chad to restore the peace and security and stability necessary for economic and social reconstruction and development, and to secure and safeguard security, peace and stability in the whole area. Who knows? Maybe Libya has wanted this time, too, in coordination with some of its allies, to divert the attention of the whole world, particularly the Council, away from the ferocious fighting that is taking place in southern Africa, Namibia and even the Middle Past, and from the plight of fraternal Lebanon, suffering from aggression, occupation and tragedies for which the conscience of humanity bleeds. Or perhaps Libya has meant to divert attention especially away from the seditions and conspimties to which the Palestinian revolution is exposed, under 111. My delegation addressed the Council last February [2416fh meeting] when the Council was considering a similar complaint by Libya. We spoke then of Libya’s flouting of the principles that govern sound relations between nations, including non-intervention in the affairs of other countries and the non-recourse to the threat or use of force in international relations. This is the essence and the crux of the conflicts, tensions and disputes governing Libya’s relationship with its neighbouring States of the area. I do not want to make a long statement to the Council, which has already been informed of many aggressive practices by Libya against neighbouring States. I do not believe that its repeated hostile acts against Sudan have been forgotten, especially its aggression and use of mercenaries against Sudan in July 1976, [see S/12122, annex], resulting in our people’s suffering great human losses and damage. That forces us to take part in this meeting. 112. In a letter of 6 August 1983 [S/15912] to you, Mr. President, it was claimed that the military exercises in which my country is participating this month constitute a threat to Libya’s security and safety and to the security of the whole area. That is a false allegation. It has been made up and has no basis, as was demonstrated by Mr. Mohamed Mirghani Mubarak, Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Democratic Republic of the Sudan, in his message to you, Mr. President, of 11 August [S/Z592Z]. Despite the fact that that letter has been distributed to members of the Council as an official document, and despite the fact that the joint military exercises were announced and open and were common knowledge for a long time, which shows the essence of the exercises and disproves any false allegations that they are directed at anybody, it is appropriate to emphasize the following facts. 113. First, this is not the first time that our armed forces have conducted military exercises with friendly countries, be they situated in our region or outside it. The nature of the previous military exercises was no secret in terms of the place, the time, the size or the objective of those exercises. They were not directed against any neighbouring States or any other States. They always had the objective of training our armed forces and raising the level of their efficiency, ability and readiness to defend themselves, our people and our land, should there be reason to do so. The previous military exercises gave rise to no suspicion or fear on the part of our neighbours, including Libya. Why, then, all the noise that Libya is making today, unless it has the ulterior motive to which we have already referred-that is, to divert the attention of the Council 114. Secondly, consideration must be given to the rights of sovereignty and independence that we enjoy within the framework of international law, the United Nations, the OAU, the League of Arab States and the Organizatidn of the Islamic Conference, and within the framework of the principles and objectives and the basic ground rules of the Movement of Non-Aligned Countries, which unequivocally guarantee for us and other members the right to be ready to defend durselves at difficult times, when we are exposed to aggression, invasion or occupation, or any foreign ambitions directed against the sovereignty of our country or the security and safkty of our people. 120. The Cuban representative, obviously speaking out of rich and varied personal experience, spoke in moving tones of small countries being threatened. I thought at first he might be speaking of Chad, or even conceivably of El Salvador. But yes, I agree with the representative of Cuba. Indeed there is a certain analogy between the posture of my country in Central America and the posture of my country today in the northern part of Africa: the United States always stands ready and always reserves the right to commit its resources-often financial, economic, technical, military-when the situation demands, in situations when independent Governments are threatened, whether by their neighbours or by indirection at the behest of far distant Powers in the interests of colonial expansion. 115. Thirdly, Sudan has always called for strict adherence to the law and to international covenants and principles in its relations with other countries and peoples and stressed the necessity of pursuing policies of co-operation and good-neighbourly relations between countries, especially between African and third world tiountries suffering from poverty and underdevelopment, which need education, health services, tractors and agricultural harvesters more than they need military arsenals and the modern and sophisticated weapons which have been flowing into these areas in quantities far exceeding the needs of selfdefence, as in the case of Libya. We are committed to these noble principles, not just as slogans to be used when necessary or for the purpose of trickery and deception, as some States have used them, but in our relations with our neighbours and other friendly countries and peoples with which we are keen to co-operate and work in many areas for our joint interests. The record of our good and developing relations with all our neighbours with the exception of Libya provides categorical proof of what I am saying. We hope that Libya will find in this a good example and that it will work for respect for laws, principles and international covenants in word and in deed and steer clear of schemes of aggression and sedition and intervention in the internal affairs of other countries and peoples. When that happens, all our peoples, including the fraternal people of Libya, will enjoy peace, security, stability and development. 121. The representative of Poland also saw analogous situations in this case between the problem that the Council faced last February and the problem that it confronts today. 122. I join my friend, the representative of the Sudan, in affirming that, yes indeed, there is a high degree of similarity between those two problems. In February, Libya was thwarted in its plot to overthrow the’Government of the Sudan. Today, it commits aggression against another neighbour, against Chad. And if the so-called intervention of Chad’s friends is adequate to its needs, then it may be that once again Libyan aggression, Libyan adventurism, Libyan contempt for the Charter of the United Nations, will be thwarted. 123. Finally, a brief remark addressed to my good friend and neighbour and valued colleague, the representative of Guyana. His statement was an eloquent one. It is one with which everyone here must fundamentally and instinctively agree. My delegation and my Government agree with it. Would that we could reconcile our differences through reason and reconciliation and mutual accommodation. Would that no one did come to this table with sanguinary hands and with ambitions against its neighbours, which are not to be tolerated by this community, by this institution, by my Government.

As I have listened to the representative of Libya and to those who have joined him in the not-quite-credible attempt to rationalize Libyan aggression against Chad by diverting attention to allegations of intervention by my country in affairs that do not concern it, I have been reminded of the tale often told of the young lad who, having -just murdered his mother, and having just murdered his father, throws himself on the mercy of the court because he is an orphan. 124. The United States will join with all who come to this and to all other tables of reconciliation with clean , hands and genuine and sincere hearts and there need be no confrontations, no interventions, no threats. But that attitude must be present in both parties in order for the appeal of the representative of Guyana to succeed.’ 117. The case of Libya and its friends might be received more sympathetically by members of the Council were they’ to come to the table with less sanguinary hands. 118. I wish to make just a few comments about some of the specific comments wehave heard in the course of today’s debate.

The representative of the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya has asked to speak in exercise of the right of reply. I call on him. II 127. We all know that what threatens Sudan is not any external factor but rather the unwise policies of its Government. Those policies have placed Sudan in an extremely difficult economic situation and, according to the .press in the United States itself, we all realize what that situation is in the Sudan and what the facts are. For its part, the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya has tried to assist the brotherly people of the Sudan to overcome that deterioratingceconomic situation and has advanced several projects, including the establishment of a joint agricultural company. I believe that the capital of that company is greater than all the annual American assistance provided to the Sudan. However, United States plots and schemes have prevented that fruitful economic co-operation between the two peoples of the Sudan and Libya from taking place. 128. With respect to the allegations put forward by the representative of Sudan concerning the situation in Chad, I believe that they have already been rejected and are groundless; what was mentioned in our previous statement is sufficient. With respect to the allegations concerning the relations between the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya and the Palestinian people and the Palestine Liberation Organization, we know that the United States wants Sudan to act in that way and the representative of the Sudan has complied. I cannot possibly allow myself from a nationalist point of view to respond to those allegations. 136. The representative of that country in referring in his statement to the words we uttered here said that his country had, always been ready to make available its human and economic resources wherever in the world it considered that necessary; and in a display of arrogance and frivolity towards recognition of international law, he assumed that famous right to play the role of policeman, which that country has always arrogated to itself, against the will and the determination of peoples. :. .-. :. :. 12 ._ . . . . 129. Allow me also to mention what has been pointed out recently by the representative of the United States of America. He has tried to say that there are no American 130. Here I should like to point to a statement by the Co-ordinating Bureau of the Non-Aligned Countries of August 1981, as well as other statements issued by that Coordinating Bureau meeting in Managua and the statement of the Ministers for Foreign Affairs and heads of delegation of the non-aligned countries, who met here in New York in October 1982 during the twenty-seventh session of the General Assembly. 131. I wish also to refer to the way in which the United States representative spoke just now and the arrogance and the pride he showed while insisting that his country downed two Libyan aircraft and not just one, as though Libya were one of the super-Powers of this world and as though the members of the Council did not realize that the population of Libya were merely one-third that of the City of New York. 132. I do not wish to go any further on this point.

The representative Cuba has asked to speak in exercise of the right of reply. I invite him to take a place at the Council table and to make his statement.

Mr. President, I thank you for allowing me to address the Council once again-something I had not intended to do. But the words of the representative of the United States make this statement necessary. 135. That representative referred to our statement and said that Cuba was speaking out of rich and varied experience of small countries being threatened with aggression. It is true that Cuba does have a rich and varied experience, since Cuba was precisely the target of a considerable number of various acts of aggression stemming from the .United States of America: acts of aggression in the sense of invasion, like that of the Bay of Pigs, the results of which we are all familiar with; attempts at assassinating our leaders; economic aggression; and every other kind of aggression which, in fact, was carried out by no other country but the United States of America. 138. I think one of the best summaries of that policy was that made by General Butler in 1933, at a celebration of Armistice Day in Philadelphia, when he spoke as follows: “I spent 33 years and four months in active military service as a member of the best military forces of our country: the Marines. I held various ranks-from second-lieutenant to general-and during that period I spent most of my time in the service of big business and of Wall Street bankers. To put it briefly, I was a blackmailer, a tool of capitalism. At that time I suspected that I was part of a great conspiracy; now I am sure of it. Like any member of the military, I was never able to verify this until I left the service. My mental faculties were kept blocked while I merely followed orders from above. This is typical of anyone in military service. “I was sent to Mexico-specifically, Tampicwa safe haven in 1914 for American oil interests; I helped to make sure that Cuba and Haiti were appropriate places for the boys of the National City Bank to go and collect their profits. I helped engineer coups d&t in half a dozen Central American Republics for the benefit of Wall Street. “The list of crimes is long. I helped purify Nicaragua from 1909 to 1912 for the international banking house of Brown Brothers. I was in the Dominican Republic in 1916, in the service of Americansugar interests. In 1927 in China I helped Standard Oil settle in without being disturbed. “Throughout those years, as the boys in the backroom would say, there was magnificent business; I was rewarded with honours, medals and promotions: two medals of honour from Congress and 16 other war decorations. When I look at all that happened, I think that perhaps I might have given some ideas to Al Capone. The best he could do was to operate in three districts, while I operated on three continents.”

The representative of Sudan has asked to exercise the right of reply. I invite him to take a place at the Council table and to make his statement.

I totally share the point of view of our brother from Libya. It is most embarrassing and distressing to me to have to speak twice before the Council for the same reason: the policy of aggression, intervention and resort to force carried out, unfortunately, by a fraternal African Arab country. I hope there will be no reason for me to do so again. 142. The Libyan representative spoke also of the economic problems of’the Sudan, and, like any other thirdworld country, we certainly have economic ,.problems, which we do not hide. 143. As for the allegations of the Libyan representative that his country extended economic aid to the Sudan, I wish to state to him-and I am fully acquainted with the matter-that the Sudan is not indebted to Libya at all; he may remember that the only loan that Libya ever extended to the Sudan, when we enjoyed good relations, had, at the request of Libya, to be paid off on the spot by the Sudan; and the whole people of the Sudan, on its own initiative and without giving the Government a chance to do it, paid it off. I hope he remembers that.

I call on the representative of the Islamic Republic of Iran, who has asked to speak in exercise of the right of reply, to. take a place at the Council table,

The exercise of the right of reply this evening is probably not very appropriate because everybody is tired. I just wanted to bring to the attention of the Council that its conclusion regarding my delegation’s recognition of the legitimacy of Chad might not be exactly what I intended to convey. I believe that all through my statement I was consistent in maintaining that I had no intention of arguing over the,idea of the legitimacy of this or that tigime, because I thought it was a secondary issue and that the main issue was something more important and more relevant. I did not, however, commit myself as to the legitimacy of the present rCgime of Chad. 146. There is, however, one part of my statement that I should like to repeat as follows: “In the case of Chad the United States has done quite well in making use ,of . . . some other legitimate regimes to save the legitimate _ regime of Chad” Cparu. 901. Those who listened to my delivery of the sentence and not to the interpretation can clearly understand that the two adjectives legitimate were pronounced as if they were in quotation marks, by which I meant so-called legitimate or allegedly legitimate. I presume that in the interpretation the intonation was not rendered so accurately.

I thank the representative of the Islamic Republic of Iran for the preciseness he has brought us.

I wish merely to say to my brother the representative of the Sudan that I did not say that the Sudan was indebted to Libya. What I did say was that Libya had tried to assist brotherly Sudan to overcome its deteriorating economic situation. However, United States plots and designs prevented fruitful economic co-operation between the Sudan and Libya. This is what I said, and since my brother the representative of the in IJnitrd Nstionr. New York 00400 90-60205-September 1991-2.050 The meeting rose at 7.30 p.m. NOTES ’ See A/36/603, .annex. * General Assembly resolution 2625 (XXV), annex. 3 General Assembly resolution 361103.